Two Heads Are Better Than One

They say that two heads are better than one; and in the creative world, this comes about by way of collaboration.  There are many collaborations available to photographers and I have been very lucky recently to work with Little Birdie Events, a fabulous little events styling business based in Brisbane.  
This is a mother-daughter team with the daughter component of the team, Gerri, being an old university friend of mine.  "Old" as in having been friends for a while - not "old" as in grey hair and giant underwear.  Just needed to clear that up ...


It was late last year that Gerri and her mother Carole got Little Birdie underway.  I was very chuffed to be let in on the secret when Gerri and Carole asked me to photograph for them.  I was paid for my troubles in cupcakes, which is really quite a fantastic way to be paid.  

Although living in Sydney makes it difficult for me to be at every event, I love to help out when I can.  My last trip up to Brisbane coincided with a 1st birthday party that Little Birdie had been booked for, and so I headed to Clayfield on a sunny Sunday morning to photograph their sweet table stylings.  I then stayed on to photograph the party itself and I will share those photos with you another day.

To have a look at my delicious photos, check out the blog post on the party by Little Birdie Events .  Do not do this if you are hungry!  The photos are mouth-watering!
This event was also featured in the blog of event styling guru Amy Atlas Events .  It was a bit odd at first to look at the photo on her blog and go "Oh, I did that!" - and then it was just fun!

I am neeeeaaaarrrrrrllllllyyyyyy finished editing the photos from Sarah and Ben's wedding and I cannot wait to share them with you here.  There are some beautiful candid moments and some fun tomfoolery with the bridal party.  Stay tuned!

A Day at the Zoo

A few weekends ago, Scott, Faye and I went to Taronga Zoo.  Sunday was a beautiful sunny day and so we lined up in a sea of prams to get our tickets and our maps, to navigate our way around!

I never realised that Taronga Zoo was on such prime real estate!  These animals have some of the best views in Sydney. 

First up were the koalas, and it was evidently nap time.  Faye had previously told us that there was some sort of koala union which determined the 'working hours' of these furry fellas.  By 'working', I mean 'being cuddled by tourists' - apparently this can only occur for 30 minutes in duration, and then the koala needs 3 days off.  Tough life!

 It was apparently nap-time at the chimpanzee enclosure also.



These mountain goats look pretty pleased with themselves - wouldn't you, with a view like that?

This Sun Bear was happily lazing in his/her hammock - imagine if you were just having a kip on a Sunday and woke up to see a whole bunch of people peering at you over your back fence, and pointing?  You'd probably do this ...

Or you might consider jumping for safety and making a run for it ...

I have a special soft spot for meerkats.  Advertisements for "Compare the Meerkat" abounded when we lived in the UK - if you haven't already, go and compare a meerkat!

The gorilla enclosure was probably the highlight of the day.  We were watching this little fella munch on some tasty green leaves and were a bit suprised when Big Daddy lumbered out of the door!  One of the other little gorillas was intent on 'playing' and was trying to incite a bit of rage in an older gorilla - tactics ranged from leaping onto the older gorilla to picking up entire handfuls of sawdust and dumping them on his opponent's head!  Hilarious! 

Away from all the chaos, this mini gorilla was happy to hang out with mum.


This little fellow was a lot more chilled out than the gorillas and seemed quite pre-occupied by his banana.

There were a few enclosures where we could walk around quite close to all the animals and that was great - had fun trying to spot even half of all the creatures that were apparently there!

We could not find a platypus all day, not even in the platypus enclosure.  Lucky we found this guy instead!

Hello Blog World!

Welcome to my blog!  A blog is an odd concept ... "I am so fabulous that I must write about myself and everyone must read about me!".  My objective in creating this blog is to challenge my creativity on a continual basis, and never stop growing as a photographer.  

I will be more inspired to set out on photo walks or to set myself mini projects if I know that I have an audience to share my efforts with.  It is also nice to be able to provide the story behind a set of images, beyond that which the images themselves can provide, and that is where a blog can be so useful.

To fill in the gaps ... it was an overseas move that kick-started my passion for photography.  I lived in London for three years and would venture to Europe or within the UK on a monthly basis.  Photos were my way of capturing the memories which would otherwise have slipped through my hands.  

I discovered a bit of a knack for this and went on to study a Diploma of Photography, along with numerous day-courses.  A natural eye is essential for photography, but knowing the nuts and bolts behind an image is important also.

Now I am back in Australia and my photography focus has shifted from travel to people.  People photography is so enjoyable and I am most satisfied when I have captured a fleeting moment or emotion - an expression on someone's face that is "so" them.  Weddings and children/baby photography are great examples of this! 

I have recently made a wonderful partnership with Little Birdie Events, as their product & event photography.  I’ll post images providing evidence of their event styling genius, but feel free to head on over to their page and have a squiz also.

I intend to post about once a week, or whenever I have a shoot to share.  Upcoming projects include a stylish park wedding, and a Little Birdie event.

To discuss procuring a piece of wall art from my extensive selection of travel photographs, or to discuss my photography services, please don’t hesitate to get in touch – I’d love to hear from you!