I so clearly remember being about seven years old and sitting on my Grandpa’s knee whilst he told me that time speeds up as you get older. This year has certainly whizzed by in such a flash that I am beginning to believe Gramps!

As the last days of 2012 pass us by I would like to give thanks to everyone who has supported me through this year. Thanks to all my wonderful clients. Thanks to my family, my friends and my fiance. 2012 has been an amazing year. Wishing you all a wonderful 2013.

Here are some of my favorite non weddingy pics of 2012 ……

View full post »

My brother Shane and his  beautiful wife Zo, are people of the sea. They love the sound of the ocean, the thrill of a wave, the feel of sand between their toes and the ebb and flow of the tides. In a few weeks time they will be having a little mermaid and we are so excited for her arrival!

Guy Buttery’s music makes me close my eyes and look inward. It’s dreamy, soulful, clean and clever. Watching him play is interesting, as he shuts down and moves into another land … a land where he is seems to be swept away by a creative force. If meditation had a dance, and if that dance had a sound, and if that sound had a playful joyful twist…..  then in my opinion, that sound might just be Guy’s music.

This was a warm up shoot … A shoot before the real shoot.

I hope I have done his talent and beautiful soul justice.

For all of my European readers Guy is on a tour with Nibs Vd Spuy and will be playing in Amsterdam, London, France and Italy over the next month. You can click here for more details or follow him on FB here. Guy is one of South Africa’s finest musical exports having won all sorts of awards but more importantly he plays the guitar (and a saw among other instruments!) like a maestro. You wont regret going to see him I can assure you!

View full post »

My Granny Smith is the type of Granny who always had freshly baked lemon cake when we went to visit. We used to have sleep-overs and she would make us porridge with condensed milk for breakfast. She smelt of Red Door Perfume and often wore a pink sun hat. She always made us feel so loved and so special even when we were naughty and not so nice. I love Granny Smith very very much and feel lucky to have had such special Grandparents in my life.

These days Granny Smith is not able to take care of herself anymore and is in frail care quite far from where I live.

I used to pop in to see her everytime I had a wedding down the Coast or up in the Midlands ,which was quite often.

Then all of a sudden it was ages in between visits.

I had a rare weekend off and I decided it was time to go see her. Then I got invited to visit a friend on the opposite end of the world and I thought I might put off seeing Gran till the next time I was up her way. I went to yoga that Saturday morning and after the meditation our yoga teacher read us this piece of writing below. Needless to say I went to visit Gran and I also took this picture.

View full post »

2011 has come and nearly gone and instead of going through a bunch of new years resolutions I thought I would share a few random things I learnt this year along with some non matrimonial fun photos!

View full post »

When I asked Mo and Len about their marriage they told me that they do everything together. They live together, love together, work together and play together.  ”We live along side each other and next to each other always”. I just love how the first image of them on the bike could symbolise the two of them whizzing through life, side by side …. moving as one but still as two individuals on one common vessel.

View full post »

Brendt and I met in Noosa, Australia way back when the year 2000 was just a young pup. We have hiked in the Himalayan mountains together, survived getting ill in India together, we’ve partied like rockstars in London and lived together in a West Hamsptead apartment reputedly own by George Michael. Whilst we were in India Brendt did a shiatsu course and I guess this sparked his interest in Eastern medicinal practice as it wasn’t too very long after that, that he returned to Austraila to study to become a Chinese Doctor. Upon the completion of his degree he decided he needed to do his Masters in Chinese Medicine in Tawain (!) and therefore also had to learn Madarin. He is that kind of guy!!!!!

12 years past and even though we have always kept in contact via the wonderful world of the internet, we hadn’t seen each other. My going to Hong Kong changed all of that, and it was if not one moment of our physical separation had ever existed. Brendt is truly one of my most favorite people on this earth. He radiates an inner light which draws people to him like moths. He inspires me to be a better person and be kinder to myself in the process and I love him more than words could ever say.

I was so excited to meet Brendts new partner Saysana as I had never heard him so enamoured over anyone before. After only an hour of knowing Says I knew why! He is a remarkable man with the heart of an angel and the presence of a prince ……. and I am just so very glad they have found each other.

Here are some portraits of these two very very special people. Love you both!

View full post »

Carla is South African Champion belly dancer and a really lovely girl! We took these pictures yesterday and I just cannot believe she was nervous for the shoot as she rocked it! I look forward to our next session, we had so much fun!!

View full post »

I met Tresor for the first time whilst photographing one of Durban’s hot new music talents, Holly. Tresor came to help out and I was struck by the amazing light that he carries. Hard to describe unless you have met him but he just has a warm glow about him. Tresor meaning treasure in french is from the Congo and came to South Africa in 2007 not knowing how to speak a word of English. In just four years he has not only learnt to speak English fluently but he now writes songs and sings in English. He is currently recording his new album and hopes it will be released by the end of the year. His music could be described as alternative soul and it reminds me of Coldplay or One Republic. When we did this shoot I was aiming for one image which summed him up … a talented man moving from the unknown bathed in light ….. here’s 3.

View full post »

A while ago I felt like I was beginning to stagnate in my work so I decided to dedicate a month to making images for myself. I believe that if you keep doing the same thing all the time you are going to get bored and probably become boring. It’s vital for creative people to give themselves the space and time to grow. I wanted to push my own boundaries and spend time learning new techniques, I wanted to work with new people and shoot in new ways. So i turned down a whole load of work, specifically weddings, cleared the diary (bar one wedding which was already booked) and set out to organise a bunch of shoots. And then ……..

And then ……….. life happened!!!

Stu and I got engaged, his family came out from the UK and we organised a big engagement party, I went down to CT to give a speech at the South African Wedding Photographers Association, I realised that I actually had PILES  of admin and other work to do and a hundred other little time consuming things. I didn’t get to do even half of the shoots I planned … but here is some of the work I did do this month. I will do more dedicated blog posts when I get a gap.

View full post »