Wedding season has been pretty darn busy and all consuming so I haven’t been taking on too much other portrait work which I enjoy. I really do love photographing people. Here are a few recentish pics which never made it to my blog and which I think deserve to be here. I have decided not to take on any wedding bookings in September time (other than one special wedding) so I can concentrate on personal work. I will however be taking portrait bookings over this period so this would be a good time to get hold of me if you have tried in the past and I have  been fully booked. Please note though that I am on holiday from Tuesday and will be without email for 3 weeks.

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Silly Season is upon us and I have loads of kiddy shoots in my diary these days. These little guys were great fun! I just loved the Alvin the Chipmunk glasses (apparently he wore them every day for their week long Cape Town holiday!). Big thanks to the Smith family and especially to Natalie. This is my second shoot with the Smiths …….. its always so great to have regular customers as I get to catch up again and see how the kidlets have grown.

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Silly season is definitely upon me and I have lots of Mommies madly booking family photoshoots for Christmas prezzies. My monthly planner is so full right now that I can hardly read anything as its so crammed! Kiddy photography can be hard work but its very rewarding when you get the shot, I think the trick is to have an activity for them to do … in this shoot we went to the beach, climbed trees, blew bubbles and picked wild flowers. All the things kiddies should be doing!!!!

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I was up in Jozi a few weeks ago to attend the Nikon Africa Photographic Awards (which i got a bronze for in the family portrait category) and also to visit and photograph the family of my very good friends Marie’ and Danie who have recently moved up there. Marie’ and I met way back in our first year of University when we were both living in the hideous “tampax towers” residence of UCT. We have both lived all over the place but somehow our lives always seem to come together again, even if it is just for visits these days.

Their little sprogs Noah and Issy, or Isla Mae are super duper cute but dam can they make a noise!!!!! Or is that just all children?

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Peter and i have been friends for ever and ever, I am based in Durbs and he is down in Cape Town, and so we have gone through all sorts of modes of communication over the years … it started with good ol snail mail letter writing (yes i am that old!!! ha ha), nowadays its facebook and cellphones but we still make the effort to see each other as often as possible! When he first got together with Nicole many moons ago I was so pleased as I felt like i had known her my whole life!!! We have all seen each other through so many different milestones … and its been amazing for me to meet and fall in love with their first little princess Ajua Luna and now their second Zara. Wow they make beautiful babies!!! Peter is a fantastic photographer who’s work i have always admired. Check out his website www.peterrussell.co.za

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Taryn Botha will always be Taryn Van Wyk to me even though she married Ryan Botha ages ago!!! We went to high school together many moons past, in fact it is so many moons ago that when i realised that we have known each other for 19 years today, i nearly fell over! Taz is one of those lovely people who is always smiling and sweet, and her husband, Ryan is pretty much the same. As for their little one Keegan …. So dam cute but man can this little guy run!!!! The last time i photographed him he had just been born and wouldn’t wake up ….. (the time before that he was still in mommy’s tum!) definitely not that still these days.

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The other morning i opened my email to find this very exciting message :

Dear Jacki,

We have great pleasure in advising you that this image was selected as a finalist in the Nikon AfricaPhotographic Awards.
Only a very small of percentage of the entries made it this far and you can be justifiably proud of your achievement.
Congratulations once again on being one of the top achievers in a very competitive field.

Kind regards

Michelle van Dyk
Project Coordinator

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It seems like just the other day that i was photographing a very pregnant Lisa, her husband Rory and their adorable son Jamie here in Umdloti. Rory is a big fisherman and they often come to the beach as a family. I really love doing family shoots in the great outdoors as opposed to in a studio. There is just so much more opportunity to capture real emotion outside of a controlled environment! That is why i also prefer doing baby shoots in the comfort of a family’s own home. Let’s face it, its just a way more relaxed and less intimidating way of doing things! Little Faith has actually been here awhile already …. but I didn’t have my blog up when she was first welcomed into the world.

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Richard, Hayley and Sarah aka Poppy Firth, are old Umdloti residents so we decided to do their family/preggy shoot right here on the beach in our home town. Poppy is such a little sweetheart who really stole my heart. Her little sister has since been born and i look forward to meeting her very soon!

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