Wine. Food Art. {corporate}

Albanians LOVE a winery cafe - and now we have a new one very close to home - perfect for an escape from the City for a few hours amongst the wines and bush!

Already renown for awesome wines and for their Gallery featuring the paintings of the very talented  Bronwen Newbury,  Phillips Brook have just opened the doors to  The Brook Cafe and you can check out the menu here.   I can highly recommend the coffee!! I had MORE than a few!

Check out some photos I took recently for the new website. (Special thanks to my gorgeous models!)

My hero... {editorial}

Last week, I was asked to photography 5 year-old Jarman, who is going to be receiving a bravery award after his traumatic dog attack earlier this year.

As a mum, it cut me to the core hearing Jarman's mum, Sheryl, recount seeing her baby go through such an horrific nightmare. You can read about it on page 6 in today's Sunday Times or here .

I am in complete awe of Sheryl who managed to hold it together until her son was safely in the hands of the doctors, before she collapsed from the shock.

What a brave boy!  And what a brave mum!

A brand new identity... {personal}

While my blog has been very quiet these last two months, I've been busily re-working my brand.  These last two years have passed in a flash - in truth, I didn't expect the business to have taken off at quite the pace it did.  I left me gasping for breath just focusing on my clients, let alone keeping up with marketing (which I LOVE) as well as boring things like bookwork!  So, my brand management has been less than ideal.

Before my blind-leap into the photography business, my working life was all about branding! Over my twenty years in tourism marketing, I was there for the birth of a number of brands including Brand WA in the late 90's and amazing albany about 5 years ago.  

In the case of Brand WA, it was drilled into me by the "Brand Manager" (AKA "Brand Nazi") the importance of a brand management... and I am not kidding when I say it was drilled! Leisa took her job very seriously!    But with the amazing albany brand, it was ME who was the Brand Nazi.  This brand was my "baby" and I was an overly protective mum!

So, there's not excuse for me to have dropped the ball when it came to my own brand, other than the usual -  not enough hours in the day!  

As a small business owner, I am, in many ways, the brand! My brand is a reflection of what I do, say and how my traits come through in every aspect of my photography. So, its  the way I've built and maintained relationships in this very small City, the way I do business and treat other people that has laid the foundations for my brand re-fresh.

Yes, I did have a logo.  And yes, it was a match to where I was when I first started out - it was fun and frivolous - I was very fond of it. However, I had outgrown it - my clients now valued my services for different reasons (although I hope there's still SOME fun!).

With help from some of my fabulous clients and very loyal followers, I was able to shortlist two of the strongest characteristics of my business that has made my word-of-mouth marketing so strong;
                1. my genuine authentic personalised customer care - nothing but the best will do
                2. my LOVE of what I do and the flow-through effect that my enjoyment has

One very clever friend summed it up ;
             "...you have an interest in people and their situations and you are able to  
             capture what is important and real. Your pictures, therefore, do not look 
             posed or over styled.    Ultimately it is your pleasure at taking photos that 
             shines through. It is not just another job for you - it is a joy and delight - 
             and that is reflected in the pictures you take. They are full of joy and delight! 
            Simple, without fuss or too much trickery..."

So, based on these two core elements, I embarked on a new brand.  I worked with a fellow photographer,  Leah, who actually lives near Seattle and who helped me come up with the logo (based on my core business values) and some basic templates I needed for my business. And because Leah uses the temples in her own business, it truly was so easy to come up with a complete new look.  I am sooooo very grateful for all of Leah's help - and especially for her late nights - she was often up at 2.30AM just so that we could chat across the time-zones! And this is what we came up with...

I hope you like it!  Its just the beginning - I have soooo many things planned for this brand, including a WHOLE NEW WEBSITE dedicated solely to my brides and grooms!  So, watch this space!

And, I promise the next posts will be back to LOTS and LOTS of photos from recent fun jobs - my blog looks unrecognisable without photos!  But I just couldn't wait to share this!

Dusting off the cobwebs {personal post}

Yes, the cobwebs are gathering on blog - but there is a good reason!

I've been beavering away behind the scenes developing a brand new look for my weddings website and other wedding preparation collateral that I provide to my gorgeous brides and grooms.

All will be revealed soon!

But just for the moment, here's a sneak peak of some of my engagement info....

Milly + Mike, 9 April 2011 {wedding}

It was a given. Milly + Mike were promising me an uber-stylish wedding.  After all, Mike proposed to Milly in NYC - it doesn't get much smoother than that! 

They didn't let me down. 

Every little detail about the day was just exquisite, beginning with Milly's fairytale dress, and ending with a reception at the couple's own bar - The Village Bar in Subiaco.  And yet Milly was the most relaxed bride ever! She wafted around all morning as though living out the fairytale day to match the dress, while her gorgeous bridesmaids and mum all did the stressing for her.  One of her bridesmaids was actually feeling quite sick with nerves by the the time we arrived at St Hilda's Chapel.  But she needn't have worried - it was picture perfect.

This was the first wedding I have shot at my old school, so I was more than a little excited to be back in my old stomping ground.

Thanks to Ben Reynolds for assisting me.  See more of this wedding on the slideshow at the bottom of this post.

Press play to see more of Milly + Mikes wedding day.

Justine + Ian, 16th April, 2011 {wedding}

I was very excited when Justine + Ian first told me that they were to be married at The Goose in Busselton, right on the waterfront.  But I admit I was a little nervous  - I've seen sooo many beautiful images of The Jetty - after all, it has become one of our State's most recognised icons.

Fortunately, the Weather Gods smiled on us for this special day.  After a blisteringly hot start to the day, slowly but surely, clouds crept in over  our setting giving us the most perfect evening.  I couldn't go wrong! 

Now, you may have seen some of the sneak peeks from this wedding on facebook - here + here - and if you have, you'd know that this couple like to have fun!  Justine + Ian, if you intend to spend your married years sharing as much laughter & joy as you did on your wedding day, you're in for a fantastic life together.  Thank you for letting me be part of the very beginning of it.

Off to the big smoke... {kids portrait}

These excited little nippers are off to Perth to play under the lights at Subiaco oval on Friday night at half-time.  The four of them have been playing footy together since they were five years old and I think this picture shows the special bond they have. 

Donna's hammock... {personal post}

Just to even things up, here's the other offspring in Coral Bay too...

Hello winter... {personal post}

Well, this is a rude shock!   

We have returned from paradise to winter at its fiercest.  That late-afternoon-beach-warmth is but a distant memory.  Thank goodness for photos... this photo warms my bones.