Photographying Dance Studios

January 17, 2012 by Tony | Leave a comment

The end of the year brings about not just Christmas and summer holidays, but the opportunity for students to demonstrate the skills they have acquired during the course of the year. And we are lucky enough to be involved with two dance studios to capture photos of the students in full costume.

The Goodhew Academy of Dance we have photographed for a number of years now, and it is amazing to see the development of the dancers… from tiny tots who sometimes get overawed with the whole experience, they quickly develop into confident dancers.

We spend one day in the dance studio photographing the dancers using our studio lights – and we photograph both the individual as well as in their groups. The logistic challenges are a challenge, but it is a lot of fun.

Also this year we worked with Dance to the Limit, photographing both in the studio but also the actual concert. The concert is a real challenge as the dancers are obviously focused on their performance, and the lighting is a challenge… I’ll include some of the photos for you to judge yourself.

However, below are photos from the studio shoot…

Posted in Christening, Dance, Family Tagged , , , , |

2012 – Looking forward to another busy year!

January 15, 2012 by Tony | Leave a comment

Wow, the Christmas ham is finally eaten, the turkey sandwiches are no more – that must mean it is the New Year! After a well deserved break, well, at least I think it is, it’s time to pick up the cameras, charge up the batteries, dust off the suit, and prepare for a year of Christening Photography.

Photographing a child’s Christening is really a privilege for us, sharing that most special of days with family and friends. And ahead of us is the busy period up until Easter (or at least 40 days before Easter), and Kathy and I are ready to start…

Next weekend we kick off the first Christening of the New Year, and I’ll blog about that (and put up a gallery of images) next week.

Let us know how we can be part of your special day, and I’m happy to talk (or email) you about why using us will leave you with many treasured memories of your child’s special day.

All the best.

Posted in Anglican, Catholic, Christening, Orthodox Tagged , , , |

Savannah Rose’s Christening

November 25, 2011 by Tony | Comments Off

Poor neglected blog… sorry for not having given you anything to show over the past few weeks – but we have been really busy!

Last weekend we photographed Savannah Rose’s Christening, and what a joy that was. I’ll put up a full blog post shortly, but thank you to Claudia and Dragan for letting us be part of your daughter’s special day.

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Posted in Catholic, Christening Tagged , , , , |

Bill and Mary’s 60th Anniversary

September 27, 2011 by Tony | Comments Off

We had the pleasure of photographing Bill and Mary’s 60th Wedding Anniversary recently. Bill and Mary were married at St Mary’s Cathedral – half way between their homes in Victoria and Queensland… and on their anniversary they gathered together on the steps of St Mary’s with their children and grand children.

Thank you Louise for organising this fantastic celebration, and for allowing us to be part of this most special of days.

Below are a few images from the day – some more formal portraits at the Cathedral, and some informal photos from across the road in Hyde Park.











Posted in Catholic, Family Tagged , , , |

Ahlynka’s Christening – At Home

August 7, 2011 by Tony | Comments Off

We recently received an email from Nick whose son we photographed in February last year, and now his daughter Ahlynka was also being Christened. How fabulous for us to go back and be part of this growing families lives. Nick was keen for us to photography his family at home (as we had done for his son Jacek) so one beautiful Sunday in Sydney that is exactly what we did…

Firstly, let’s meet the ‘Person of the hour’ – Ahlynka:

Ahlynka christening photograph - at home

Jacek had (obviously) grown so much in the past 16 months and it was a delight to see his personality developing. Here is father and son at the beginning of our session:

 

 

And let’s bring Ahlynka back into the picture

 

And of course the love a mother has for her child is seen here as Natalka holds her beautiful daughter:

And we rounded out the at home session with the proud parents and their beautiful daughter:

 

And finally the whole family – great fun and a lot of happy memories…

 

Posted in Catholic, Christening Tagged , , , |

Ava’s Christening – The Service

July 12, 2011 by Tony | Comments Off

Welcome to Ava’s Christening

 

This post we are looking at the Christening of Ava – a beautiful six month old who was recently Christened at St Spyridon Church, Kingsford.  Ava arrived at the Church rugged up against the cold, but certainly with her sense of style in place, as can be seen by the lovely headband.

 

Father Steven quickly moved into the service, and Ava is seen here being held by her Godmother.

 

For a six month old, time can pass rather slowly, so Ava decided to amuse herself by playing with her Godmother’s dress.

 

Taking his candle holding duties very seriously…

 

Despite the chill in the air, the Church attendants ensured the water temperature was just right for Ava – seen here on her second trip into the water.

 

The proud parents with their newly Christened daughter.

 

And finally, one of the family shots taken at the alter – lovely relaxed photo with everyone enjoying the moment.

 

Thank you for reading, and the reception will follow shortly.

 

tony

Posted in Christening, Orthodox Tagged , , , , , |

Continuing the journey of knowledge

June 16, 2011 by Tony | Comments Off

A photographer’s learning journey is never complete – I know I will never arrive at the destination, but that is surely the point. Sometimes the journey is better than the actual destination (although as a child, some of those drives to camp sites were pretty brutal!)

Some would think that Christening photography would follow a standard script – after all the service is set is stone – but there are some many variables at play that no two are ever the same. And there have been a number of Christenings that have been held at the same church and the same reception centre as a previous one, however, the interaction between the child being Christened and its parents, the priest, god parents, all lend themselves to beautiful, unique photography.

As a photographer it is essential that my skills are continually updated, and recently I got to listen to an amazing Sydney based portrait photographer called Sue Bryce – She comes to us from New Zealand, but now calls Sydney home, although she also runs studios in Brisbane and Melbourne. Her ‘thing’ is photographing (mostly) women in a glamorous way. Her sessions include hair and make-up before an hour or so in front of the camera. Her web site is here.

So what does Sue’s style of photography have to do with Christening photography, I hear you ask? Well, posing people is essential to gaining great looking photographs, and anyone who has been photographed by Kathy and I know that you are in for a work out with us! You want us to capture memories of your child’s special day, and we will draw on our experience of photographing all our previous Christening to know what will work for you and your family and guests.

Sue demonstrated a number of techniques that were new to me, and I know I can modify her ideas to my own approach. Our ’at home’ sessions allow us to be very creative with the kind of shots we can take, and Sue’s approach may well influence the shots we take in the future.

Until next time, all the best

tony

 

Posted in Anglican, Catholic, Christening, Orthodox Tagged , , , , , , , , , |

Styliani’s Christening – the service

June 6, 2011 by Tony | Comments Off

Styliani’s Christening – the service

Following on from the previous post in which we were at home with Styliani and her parents, we are now at the Church for the actual service. Today we are at St Catherine’s Orthodox church in Mascot. Most Orthodox services start at the entrance to the Church (as opposed to the alter) and today is no exception. Here we see the godfather Jamie holding onto a wriggling Styliani as the service gets underway.

 

We have made our way inside the church and are at the alter – and Styliani is enjoying herself as Jamie continues to hold on tightly.

 

Jamie’s jacket is off, so we are ready for the oil and water. Here Father Giatsios makes the sign of the cross in the font with olive oil. He’ll next pour some oil into the Godfather’s hands which he will then use to rub over the child.

 

The oil is rubbed over the head, as well as the body.

 

Here Jamie continues rubbing the olive oil over Styliani

 

And now Father is immersing the child in the font:

And he cups the water over her head…

After three immersions she is lifted from the font and placed into the care of the Godfather, who will then take her over to the change table for dressing.

 

The mother Helen kisses the hand of the priests whilst holding onto the (now) dressed Styliani.

 

A lovely photo taken at the alter with Styliani, Helen, and Effie (Godmother)

 

But it’s not over until the paperwork is complete …. the register is signed by the Godfather, Father and (here) the Mother.

 

Until next time, thank you for reading.

tony

Posted in Christening, Orthodox Tagged , , , |

Styliani’s Christening – At Home

May 30, 2011 by Tony | Comments Off

For something a bit different this week I would like to share with you some photos taken at the parents home before heading off to the church.

Styliani’s Christening was last weekend, and she joins her parents Helen and George (along with her older brother Savva) in these photos.

Savva is always keen to have his photo taken, and quickly settled in for a simple formal portrait…

Savva at home, before the christening

 

George and Savva grabbed some time on the couch to get their photos taken… and we ended up with a lovely detail photo…

Hands

 

of course it’s also a time to get some lovely photos of the parents – here Helen and George turn on the charm for the camera

Helen and George before heading off to the christening

 

Mother and Son were not to be forgotten, here Helen and Savva strike a pose for the camera

Helen and Savva

 

And finally Styliani is ready for her photos… well not exactly. She was still resting before heading off to the church, so a great opportunity to get some candid photos:

Styliani asleep before going to the Christening

 

And once awake we took some family photos.

Candid family photo at home

 

And finally, playing on the parents bed…

On the bed, playing

 

 

To see more images from this At Home session, click here.

 

Until next time, when we’ll take a look at the service and reception.

tony

Posted in Christening, Orthodox Tagged , , , , , |

Autumn

May 30, 2011 by Tony | Comments Off

Wow, did Autumn arrive quickly this year, or was that just me! The leaves changing colour is a mixed blessing: beautiful to look at, but deadly underfoot! And Christening season seems to be well and truly with us.

Kathy and I have been busy this past few weeks shooting a number of Christenings. I’ll be posting a gallery or two in the next few days so you can see the results of our work.

One day especially stands out – the Christening of Styliani. The reason? Because we got to spend time taking photos of her, her parents and brother before heading off to the Orthodox ceremony at St Catherine’s, Mascot.

It is great to spend some time together before hand to really capture the child’s beauty, the child is in familiar surroundings and is content and happy. It has been our experience that sometimes the service can overwhelm the child, leading to tears!

I’ll get the galleries up in the next couple of days, until next time…

 

Tony

Posted in Christening, Orthodox