I’ve been daydreaming about sunshine and warmth while I look back upon some photos I took in Noosa, last September. The winter sun through the study window and the warmth of the ducted heating blowing up from the floor, just does not compare. The weather we experienced wasn’t spectacular – but it was mild and cloudy and moody. It was lovely to be somewhere else.
I’m excited to share my first Photographing Happiness album, comprising 12 of my most recent photographs that capture happiness in my world. My friend and fellow school mum, Rachel Devine, recently invited me to participate, and you can learn more about the project here:
The theme of this month’s photography is light! My collection includes a variety of different light situations – from low light environments, to moon-lit sunsets. There is beauty and happiness to be observed in seeing light fall on a sleeping child, to seeing it shine through water. I hope you all enjoy.
It’s been a relatively quite year for my photography, but I’m hoping 2017 will be a year for reconnecting and nurturing my talent and my small business. In many ways 2016 has been a year about stepping back and focusing on my family priorities and my own well being. I’m really grateful for the opportunity to photograph several families this year, all of whom are families I’ve photographed before. Thank you for your support and encouragement!
Attached are some photos I took today of my children before the school carols. Merry Christmas!
My darling Elara had the day home from school today, recuperating after having a general anaesthetic yesterday for some dental work. She was feeling quite tired in the morning, but brightened after having lunch out and being treated to a new doll, Pearl, from her Nana. The doll is called ‘Princess Pearl’, and she is made by Nana Huchy. Elara is wearing a dress from the Young Hearts by Collette Dinnigan collection that was available through Aldi.
Having been a bit distracted with the ebb and flow of life, it was good to take out my camera and take a few photos of Elara and Pearl. These are taken with my 85mm prime lens, in the middle of the day, in full shade.
Today I am sharing a beautiful image of a family that captured late last year. This is one of my favourite photos from 2015! It’s not necessarily the best photo from the shoot, and it not a typical family portrait, but it captures the gentle spirit of their family. And it is timeless.
Today we live and work in a world where we exist both in real-life (as a living, breathing and evolving person) and online (in various virtual dimensions, largely self edited). From Facebook to Twitter, LinkedIn to Instagram, to a host of other emerging social platforms, our virtual presence sometimes preceeds our real life self. Take LinkedIn for instance. If you are applying for work, be aware that any recruiter is going to ensure they have done their research on you! Not just on LinkedIn, but on any platform they can find, using any online reference they can find. More and more, we need to be aware and mindful of what we are posting online and how we are presenting our virtual self to the world. As in real life, people can be very quick to make judgments about who you are online, what you stand for and what you even think, without even knowing you. And unlike the real world, our online presence can exist in an almost timeless way, continuing on regardless of life itself.
So my challenge for you is to stop and think – how am presenting myself in these virtual dimensions? First stop, profile pictures. Do your profile pictures enhance your online presence, or could they be inhibiting you? Second stop, do an audit of your online presence. What is posted globally for the ‘world’ to see? Are there opportunities to enhance your privacy? Are there posts you need to consider deleting? Does everyone need to know how hard you can party?
If your goal is to secure a new job, for instance, maybe you need to rethink your online presence. Think about your life goals and how your online presence might be helping or hindering you in achieving these goals.
For example, below is a new LinkedIn profile photo that I took for a client several weeks ago, in my home based studio. My client is presented in a professional and friendly manner. Here is someone with a clear vision, who looks approachable and intelligent. Someone you’d like to do business with. The simple black background amplifies the person, and the personal qualities you see expressed through his face.
One of my favourite places to go is the beach at Sandingham. I never tire of its beauty or of the view, across the water, of Red Bluff, further to the south. I have drawn, painted and photographed it several times over the years. It is a view from which I never tire. I hope my children grow to love this place and view as much as I do. I’m sure they will.
moments of presence 