Friday, April 30, 2010

Missy

Another friend who likes to model for me is Missy. Initally Missy was very cautious about being in front of the camera and hated almost every image I shot. So I took the time to find out exactly what it was about each image that she didn't like and a pattern started to form. These days she comes to me wanting another photoshoot and loves almost every image. All it took was for me to downplay the things she didn't like in the photo and show her how much better the photos look when she just relaxes and has some fun. The wine helped too!

In the first photo Missy is dressed in a very tight corset and a full net skirt. We were in the middle of a bush track where we found a small waterfall. The water was freezing but Missy was a trouper and we got some amazing photos.

For the images below I was after a grunge type train station thing but the shoot didn't really go as planned. The sun and wind combined were making Missy's eyes water and her makeup run, so we went with that as a theme. Again we got some great shots and had a lot of fun.


Thursday, April 29, 2010

Nature Too!

It’s not just people that I like to photograph, I am a keen nature photographer too. Over the past year I have spent a good deal of time shooting butterflies at Butterfly Creek near the Auckland Airport. With cheap airfares available, it’s not a bad day trip from Wellington. The butterfly house is temperature controlled with very high humidity so it can get somewhat uncomfortable if you stay in there too long. I have found that a ten minute break too cool off and I am ready to go back in. I was lucky in that my camera didn’t fog up at all – my glasses were a different matter!














Closer to home at the Pauatahanui Wildlife Reserve I have been photographing damselflies. A friend from the Camera Club that I belong to introduced me to them just recently. They are so quick when they are moving that you can easily miss them.














Next weekend we are heading up to Waikanai where there is the Nga Manu Nature Reserve. My aim is to get a good fantail shot while I am there but they are tricky little birds to capture with the camera so I am not sure of my chances.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Introducing Chrissi

Going from one extreme to the other, another friend and willing model, Chrissi, recently visited for a few wines and a play with the camera. Chrissi has been doing burlesque dancing and loves to dress up - so the combination of the two were the inspiration for the shoot.

The first time I visited Chrissi's home I was blown away by some of the stunning images she had on her wall of herself over the years. These were not your normal portrait images either - they were pieces of art that you would be proud to hang on your wall - and she is! Now I visit and smile widely as I look at the wall and see some of my own work hanging there alongside the others. It's a huge compliment and now the challenge is to have more of my images hanging there.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Abigail Elizabeth

One of the joys of being a photographer is that you get to photograph your friends babies when they are really young. Every new mother wants photos of their precious baby and even more so when most of their family is on the other side of the world. So when they have a photographer as a friend it is a win win situation for everyone.


Abigail Elizabeth was 10 days old when these photos were taken last weekend. She is the most placid baby that I have ever had the pleasure to work with - not a peep out of her the entire time. Her parent's had bought along lots of props for the photoshoot and even a contact page of other baby photos that they liked for me to try and recreate.



I have to admit I was a little concerned that my images would not live up to the parents expectations but I decided to just have some fun and worry about that later. It was a lot of fun - each image was just a little bit different to what was planned as it was Abigail who made the images. She is just beautiful and it shows in every shot.

An Introduction

I was watching an episode of House on TV last night and it was all about a woman who blogged constantly. Her every move was blogged and decisions were made based on the comments she received from followers. It was a little sad that she was so addicted but the whole idea of blogging intrigued me. I wanted a blog and I wanted it right now!

First I had to come up with a topic to write about. Well that part is relatively easy, I am a recreational photographer. It is a hobby I am passionate about and I hope am reasonably good at, but you can make up your own mind on that later on when you have seen some of my images. Anyway I have photography as my topic, now I needed a name for my blog. ‘Camera Shakes’ was the first name that came to mind. My hands shake constantly so avoiding camera shake is always a challenge – but it just didn’t sit right as a name.

So I slept on it and this morning I have come up with ‘Portrait of a Photographer’, because the words I intend to write are really going to form a picture of my life with my camera in the mind of the reader. A portrait with words about my life as a photographer. At least that is my intention – do let me know if it works.