Happy Birthday Charlie!

It was my nephew Charlie's first birthday on the weekend. Happy birthday Charlie!

Lisa & Mark - Marysville Nov 08

It's hard to know what to write after a couple of weeks like we have just had in Victoria. A week and a half after they started the bushfires are still burning but, luckily, at present no more towns appear to be under threat, and let's hope it stays that way. Living close to both the Yarra Valley and Dandenongs, it's hard to comprehend that so many of the beautiful places I have both visited and photographed are either damaged or no longer exist ... and that's without even touching on the devastating loss of lives we are all having to come to terms with.

So it's quite timely that I post this wedding at this time. Lisa and Mark were married on the stunning grounds of Marylands Country House in Marysville on 29th November last year, one of the many buildings that was decimated by the bushfires. Once again, it's so hard to comprehend that such a beautiful piece of the world has been totally destroyed. Lisa and Mark's wedding was my first visit to Marysville and I remember being struck by the beauty of both the town and the surrounding areas I drove through to get there. I feel so blessed that I had the opportunity to see it in all its glory, even if only briefly.

Hopefully the photos below give you at least a small glimpse of this beauty ...

Crack up!

I titled this post 'crack up' because that's what I do every time I look at this first photo which is one of my favourites from last year. I photographed little James here towards the beginning of 2008 when he was just 9 months old, and while the main focus of this shoot was supposed to be the older members of the family, little James still mananged to steal the show!

Time to get together!

It's difficult to get the family together at any time of year, but Christmas is one of those times when people are likely to be around, so a number of people used the opportunity late last year to have a portrait shoot where up to three or four generations could be involved. I love it when families decide to do this because so often parents take photos of their kids when they are young but forget about themselves, and before you know it 10 or 20 years has passed by without a proper family photo. It's just as important to document your family as everyone gets older! A lot of us may not like having our photo taken but your kids will love it, particularly as they get older, and as someone once put it to me, "don't worry, you'll look back in 5 or 10 years and think you look fantastic!" Anyway, enough waffling. Here are a few shots from another pre-Christmas portrait ...

And not forgetting the most important family member of all ...

Happy New Year!

Happy new year everyone! I've been back at my desk for a few weeks now following a short but fantastic break over Christmas and New Year, however I have been slack on the blog front - sorry! I wanted to kick this year off with a few portraits, as I did a pile of them towards the end of 2008 but I didn't get a chance to post any, and they are such a huge part of my business that I really love doing.

Nick & Sara from the lovely H family below run Inglewood, one of the loveliest reception venues around. They are always a joy to work with and Inglewood itself is a photographer's delight so I had a great time photographing their family portraits on the property.