I want to show off a little man that stole my heart

This is Remy, and he was around a week old when I photographed him. I remember meeting his Mum and Dad at the Expo in March and was stoked that they rang me to do their pregnancy and newborn photos. I love being part of this time for new parents :o)

Remy was an angel, alert when we wanted him to be, sleepy when it counted, and although he managed to poo all over the laundry floor, we forgave him considering the shot we got just in time.

Isn't he beautiful? Thanks again Mike and Heidi :o)

xo Simone

Tagged!!

So...there is a game going on in the photography blog world where you have to tell 8 things people might not otherwise know about you. That will be hard because I like to talk, but we'll give it a burl hey?

1. I'm not the holiday type. I like having time off, I love girls weekends, visiting other cities, but as far as sitting on the beach with a drink and a book, I'd rather not. I put it down to the fact that this was exactly how I spent my childhood, I lived in a coastal holiday village, but I think it's more to do with the fact that I like to socialise and I'm a bit of an info junkie (and shopper LOL) I'd far rather be at local markets, a historical site, at a long lunch with friends, at the movies etc.  Makes it hard that I'm married to a die-hard fisherman type!

2. I would have loved to have had 4 kids, that was my goal, and I always wanted to have two, and then another two a while later. Time is ticking on that (Toby is nearly 6),  but I think that ship has sailed. I thank my lucky stars every day that I get to be around babies and children for work, it's made it all easier :o)

3. My favourite movie is Phenomenon (with John Travolta...another favourite).

4. I'm a terrible school mum.I find school notices, diaries, schedules, assemblies etc just so hard to get my head around.I need a secretary for those things alone. I'm sure I'm not the only one either...

5. I became allergic to cats at 16, weirdly because I'd always had cats up until then. We bought a Burmese cat because they're supposed to be less allergenic, and it's true! I sneeze occasionally if I've been loved up by Anakin, but it's nothing compared to a regular moggie. Yay! Love cats :o)

6. On the cat topic, I've always had cats with stupid names. I think it's a waste to call your cat something conventional when there are some fantastic alternatives. When I was a kid we had a Pussy Poo Poo (don't ask), Caramel Snowball (my sister chose that), and most famously we had (or rather have, at the grand old age of 20) Kaboobi. Named after the flying camel in the cartoon Shazzan. Points are awarded if you know remember Kaboobi and what noise he made. LOL ;o) My current cat is Anakin, named so because we got him the weekend the last Star Wars movie came out. My boys were Star Wars crazy at the time, so it was very appropriate and a reminder of that little phase of their lives for as long as Anakin doesn't get himself run over. He has a thing for sunbaking in the middle of the road.... He's also been known to transform into Darth Vader from time to time. The name fits.

7. I love scary movies, but not the blood and guts types. I like the supernatural thriller types, and the scarier the better. Even better when watched with a friend who loves them as much as I do. She lives in Melbourne though so we cram a few in whenever we're together. Here's a hot tip though, DON'T rent Silent Hill. It's two hours of my life I can't get back.

8. I used to have issues with my eyesight, long sighted in one eye and short sighted in the other. Since I became a photographer I have neither issue! My eyesight has improved, which proves the old 'use it or lose it' I think :o)

I'm sure you're all fascinated now ;o) Back to normal programming...Oh, and I'm meant to pass on this to some other photographers, but everyone I know has it already! Sorry!!

Carpe Diem

I've wanted to write this post for a long time, and was reminded to do it recently when my mum asked me to scan some old snapshots of my family. Amongst them was a photograph of my grandmother with her first baby (the first of nine!). This photo haunts me. I see myself in her, I see my son in her son, but most of all I know how she feels. I see the delight on her face as she looks at her first-born and know that utter infatuation with that little boy. I also love the shadow of my grandfather, obviously using his old box brownie, given the way he's standing :o) That little boy is now 77, and my grandmother passed in 1999 (just months after meeting my first-born, I'll attach that photo too), but what it brings home to me is the importance of a photograph. It not only shows you how your family looked, or where they lived, or what clothes they wore. It binds you to them in ways you never imagined. I knew her as an already old woman. To be given the gift of seeing my grandmother as a new mum is incredible. The cheapest and easiest time machine ever made, and one that you can travel in every time you pass that photo on your sideboard. If I can capture even one iota of my life to give to my grandchildren and great-grandchildren in the same manner then I know I've done my job, and hopefully I've done the same for your families as well.

Carney (our nickname for her) with my first-born, Morgan (1999) Please excuse the woeful scan, it's an old scan from a very yuck scanner!

One of the things that goes through my head almost daily is the importance of making time stand still every now and then. You'll know it when it's time. There comes a day when you say 'he's grown so fast, he'll be walking before we know it', or 'I can't believe she's lost her first tooth, she was only just teething!'. A scene from the movie Dead Poet's Society replays in my head, it had a big impact on me at the time and still does to this day. It's the scene where Mr Keating (Robin Williams) takes the boys into the hall to look at the trophy cases.  He gets them to lean in close to see the photos of the boys that have gone through the school before, and whispers...

"They're not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they're destined for great things, just like many of you, their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because, you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen, you hear it? --- Carpe --- hear it? --- Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary."

I found in looking through the old photos of my family this scene came to mind again and again. These photographs that were in some instances over 100 years old of babies, families, their houses, their new car, the places they'd visited...those things, those memories, and those people are all now gone. Not forgotten, and they live on in our genes to surprise us from time to time, but in their snapshots we have 'some' record. A way to reach back and see and feel those things that tie us together as family and as humans.  I just don't think there is anything more valuable :o)

Thanks for listening to me ramble :o) It must be the weather, the whisper of spring and new things to come!

xo Simone

I have to show you this...

The CUTEST tea party, where as often happens, the tiniest one steals the show...and the bikkie.

This is Winston, Hester and Scarlett, at the end of a shoot, taking a tea (ok water!) break. Complete with YoYo bikkies of course :o)

it's hard when you're only 11 months and you can't sit on a chair, so swiping off the table is just as effective...it helps to be cute...

:o) Simone

Mmmm winter...

wood fires, GREAT fashion, boots, rain, thunderstorms, hot food, cool scarves, movie marathons with my boys, the drive-in (we just love the drive-in!), rain, rain, rain and more rain :o) I'm still very excited about the rain! The best bit about winterfor me though is the light. The light is just exquisite now. Have you ever looked out the window and seen that amazing glowy light that makes the world look like it's lit with moonlight in the middle of the day? It's incredible, and such a buzz to create something beautiful with.

Winter is also a fantastic time to photograph indoors. I don't get much of a chance to do it during summer, the outside beckons, but indoor shoots are a real love of mine. I love the way I get to use light and the environment and create something for you that will forever remind you of that time and place.

This shoot was a prime example. This was the weekend we had the most rain we'd had in umpteen years. All in one weekend. I was lucky enough that the rain stopped for an hour or so, but even if it hadn't we'd have managed. We were warm and cosy while it was so miserable outside and the images show it. This is Lynette and Dave with their darling boy Liam. He was the master of many faces, all of them VERY cute.

If you needed more convincing, check out how winter fashion looks in black and white! The most divine Eva, in the most adorable hat. I wish I could get away with wearing a hat like that :o)

Stay warm!

xo Simone

Happy Mother's Day

My mother's day has been lovely. I woke up to a little boy giving me a beautiful laminated drawing he'd done for me, with all the reasons he loves me written on it. The other little boy gave me something similar, with a picture of me on it too! Sob!! I. am. so. blessed.

To all the mums out there that are having their first mother's day, their umpteenth day, spending today pregnant waiting to hold their baby in their arms, to the mums that are missing their mum...or baby, to those that are hoping to conceive this year, or the mothers that are just going about the day as if it was normal...taking care of it all as usual. A huge hug and thanks for letting me be part of your lives. Happy Mother's Day :o)

Our attempts at self-portraits! Very blurry!

Kisses from Morgan...

and from Toby :o)

It rained!!

We're so excited :) For those outside Adelaide, or even Australia, we're in the middle of a drought pretty much nation-wide, and have been in dire straits for some time now. But...last weekend saw rain, lots and lots and lots of it, and I even got to shoot in it!! I'll post some of those in another post, but this one is to herald the end of the summer style of shoots. My last beach sitting with good weather was two weeks ago now and even then it was cloudy and a bit cool. We coped though, and little India and Jett didn't seem to notice after a bit of running around.

So, bring on winter, with the dark skies, wild storms and loads more rain to replenish the land. Just let me have a few dry days to take families outside! It's business as usual through winter, it's rare it's ever tooooo dark, but it's nice to be able to utilise the beautiful winter light and dramatic skies we get. I look forward to it every year :o)

xo Simone

Lock up your daughters

the Hanckel boys are coming ;o) I was playing around with the digital, and of course my little posers had to perform for me. So Morgan leaps into the tree and starts his own Calvin Klein shoot. Oh boy...I'm in trouble... I'm picturing girls doing drive-bys on their bikes, phone calls where all you can hear is giggling and a "No, you say something..." and a hang-up, notes home from school that say 'Morgan is easily distracted in class'. Of course, I never did those things...what do I know ;o)

all this in stark contrast to his little brother to whom it's not funny unless it involves a body part...

The girls of Adelaide better watch out ;o)

xo Simone