by Alana | Feb 15, 2020 | Newborn - Lifestyle
I love newborn lifestyle sessions, and I especially love them when you already have other children. What better way than to capture your kids getting to know each other, in the very environment that it’s all actually happening!! These real memories are the ones that will end up meaning the most – because they tell the story of what life was really like!! What it really looked like, and really felt like. You might feel like it will be this way forever, but it all changes so incredibly fast. Those toys they used to play with, they’ll outgrow…the way their room looks, it will change as they get older…the little details that make up your life as it is now, it evolves as the age of your kids change. It will never look quite this way again, and the details you think you’ll remember, you won’t. Until you see them in a photo and you smile and say ‘oh yeah! I remember what that felt like!’, and you might even pause and let yourself have a little holiday there in your mind.
The other obvious benefit of newborn lifestyle sessions when you have older children, is not having to pack everyone in the car to go somewhere! I come to you!! All you need to do is maybe clear some clutter from a few main rooms, and then just relax in your own environment! Let your baby feeds when he needs to feed, let your toddler have a break in another room when she’s not in the mood to be involved, get some snacks when needed…the freedom and ‘go with the flow’ nature of these sessions is exactly what you need when you’re learning to enjoy your life with your new baby!!
How beautiful is baby Lucas and his big sister Ava? Such a beautiful, fun, affectionate family, and extra special with their Grandparents also staying with them to get to know little Lucas. Grandparents being included in your session is one of my absolute favourite things…this is one bond you’ll always want to remember.
If you’d like to book a session for yourself, Contact me to chat! You can also view my Lifestyle Newborn Portfolio and learn more about newborn lifestyle sessions!
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by Alana | Jan 18, 2020 | Family - Location, The Wanneroo Pines
I’d met Grace earlier in the year for another photo session, so I was excited to see her again and to meet her two beautiful boys! Life with boys is chaotic, noisy and unpredictable – but there is also definitely lots of love, laughter and affection. As always, there’s beauty in chaos when you let yourself see it!!
During sessions with kids, it really all revolves around them! If they’re not in the mood for something, there’s no point in forcing them. It’ll only end in tears and frustration – and who wants that as a photo memory? Instead, just let them be a bit! Let them play and explore, and usually once they know they have this freedom, they come running to you for those cuddles we wanted them to give in the first place! So enjoy this time with your babies! Play with them, bond with them and watch them – use a photo session as a small breather on the demands of ‘life’. When you’re here, you just need to be together. Nothing else.
If you’d like to book a session for yourself, Contact me to chat! You can also see more examples of my work in my Family Portfolio, as well as popular location choices for your session!
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by Alana | Jan 17, 2020 | Family - Location, Hyde Park
Extended family sessions are not only perfect for when you have family coming to stay, but are also perfect for those family members who are a part of your every day world. It provides an opportunity to spend some time together, have some fun, and leave with some beautiful photos to display on your wall!! All of my collections include at least one gorgeous fine art textured print, and the option to invest in more! Displaying photos is the final touch to your photo session – your gorgeous images and memories deserve to be framed so that you can always look at them and smile as you remember!
Annabel had organised this session as a present for her mother’s birthday (perfect present idea!), and we chose the beautiful Hyde Park for their session. Choosing outfits for your session can be hard at the best of times, but when you have an extended family session, it can be even more challenging!! Annabel and her family absolutely NAILED IT! With beautiful textures, pops of colours, a neutral base and gorgeous accessories, everything worked together so perfectly! Keeping things simple, while adding some interest, texture and movement, is ideal when choosing your outfits. It’s also important to be comfortable (especially the kids!), and to try to avoid words, logos, and too many clashing patterns. Stay within the same tone, and you can look as gorgeous as this family!!
If you’d like to book in a session for yourself, Contact me to chat!! You can also view more of my work in my Family Portfolio, as well as location options for your photo session!
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by Alana | Jan 16, 2020 | Maternity, Perrys Paddock
Amy is a good friend of mine (also a photographer at Amy Lee Photography), and was also due for her third baby (spoiler: it’s a girl!), so we decided to have her Maternity session at the beautiful Perry’s Paddock during golden hour. I love the gorgeous glow of Perry’s Paddock, and the variety it provides with the trees, buildings, and open fields, so it’s perfect for celebrating a new baby coming into your family! How beautiful does Amy and her family look!!
Pregnancy is such a special time in your world. You don’t always feel beautiful, you don’t always enjoy it, and it definitely comes with its challenges (especially when you have other children to look after!), but it’s so worth capturing. Your body changes so quickly as it grows this new life, and the anticipation of the time just before you get to meet this new little person is indescribable. Maternity sessions are best booked around 32-37 weeks – a time when you look pregnant enough, but you’re also hopefully not too ‘over it’. Including your partner and other children is also really special. Chase and Emily were so excited about their new baby coming along – it’s a life changing time for them too!
If you’d like to book a maternity session for yourself, Contact me here!! You can also view more examples of my work in my Maternity Portfolio.
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by Alana | Jan 15, 2020 | Burns Beach, Family - Location
Aileen makes sure that she organises a family shoot every year, which is a perfect way to make sure that you take the time to update your photos and look back on how much everyone has grown and changed. Their last session was at Perry’s Paddock, and this year she chose Burns Beach. Unfortunately we had a few attempts to get the date right (weather being the main barrier!), and pretty much as soon as we arrived on this particular day, it also started to sprinkle with rain! Luckily though it held out and we were able to enjoy the shoot!
During family sessions we always have a lot of fun, and I encourage interaction between you and the kids. Lots of running, spinning, tickling, kisses and cuddles. Movement is the best way to encourage those natural emotions and expressions – and these are the most beautiful to capture because they’re the true essence of YOU! They tell the story of the love for your kids, the humour between them, and the fun you have all together! So don’t expect, or direct, your kids to sit still and smile at the camera if you’re in a session with me – just let them be free and show me who they are!!
If you’d like to book a session for yourself, Contact me here!! You can also view my Family Portfolio for more examples of my work!
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by Alana | Jan 15, 2020 | Events
Special events for your kids are times you’d like to capture and remember, but you also want to be able to focus on them and the day itself, without worrying about trying to take your own photos. When I’m there to capture an event, I spend most of the time just walking around and looking for those little moments, expressions and interactions that are all part of the story of your day. We also make sure to get some more ‘formal’ photos with particular special guests, and the more formal parts of the ceremony. This leaves you just able to be in the moment and enjoy the day, knowing that you’ll have some beautiful photo memories to look back on afterwards! Memories that include YOU in them!!
Sofia had her christening at the Macedonian Orthodox Church – a place I’ve attended before for Ethan’s Christening. She coped so well with all of the formalities, and was obviously well loved by so many people around her. And how gorgeous does she look in her little outfit!! Sofia won’t remember this day at all, but she’ll always be able to look back on it and see what it was like!
If you’d like me to capture an event for you too, Contact me here!! You can also view my Events Portfolio for more examples of my work!
If you’d like to book an event, Contact me here!!
by Alana | Jan 15, 2020 | Newborn - Lifestyle
When you have a new baby, the time can pass in such a blur of sleepless nights, feeds, and trying to figure out your ‘new normal’. This is a time where you and your baby are getting to know each other. A time where you spend a lot of moments at home, on your couch…on your bed…pacing the halls…and welcoming visitors. These are the moments you’ll want to one day remember – the normal, every day moments which although exhausting, are also the most magical moments of your life. That doesn’t mean that they’re perfect moments – it just means that it’s life as you know it right now. The moments that your baby will never remember, and the moments that will fade in your own memory. A newborn lifestyle session means that you don’t need to leave your house, because I come to you to capture some of these moments for you and give them to you in a photo to be able to hold onto forever!
Gorgeous little Harrison was surrounded by love with his parents, his uncle and his Grandparents. I always think it’s so special and beautiful to include other family in your session!! They’re important people in your world, and their love and support helps you through this beautiful, but also challenging, time with your new baby! There’s nothing quite like welcoming a new little family member into your world – the dynamic changes and everyone melts just a little bit. So invite them over, include them in your session, and freeze this moment in time!!
A few months after this session, I met up with Harrison and both sets of Grandparents for a location session at the gorgeous Hyde Park. Check it out here!
If you’d like to book a newborn lifestyle session for yourself, Contact me here. You can also view my Lifestyle Newborn Portfolio and learn more about Newborn Lifestyle sessions here.
To book in your session, or find out more, Contact me here!!
by Alana | Dec 28, 2019 | Newborn - Lifestyle
You know how sometimes you’re around people and their happiness is just infectious?! This is how I felt after meeting Callan and his parents, as well as his beautiful Grandmother who had come to stay from Scotland. Callan is their first baby, and it was pretty clear they were all on Cloud Nine! Their faces were a constant expression of how happy and in love they are with their little boy, and Callan himself was just pretty content the entire time. It’s impossible not to look at their photos and just smile!!
Steph had received a voucher as a baby present from her friends and co-workers, which is such a perfect present to give! This newborn stage is so fleeting, and is often one that passes in a complete blur of sleepless nights, overwhelming love, and finding your way in your ‘new normal’. Looking back on these photos taken in your own home, with your own memories surrounding you, will let you always hold onto this time in some small way. You’ll not only remember that moment, but you’ll feel it too. You might smile, or stop and hold onto one of the photos just a little bit longer as the feelings of the memory come flooding back. You’ll remember how it felt and what it sounded like, and you’ll realise how quickly and suddenly things have changed and how much you’ve learnt along the way. And you’ll miss it. So you’ll smile at these photos as you take them all in, and step back in time just for a moment to remember a time in your life that once was.
If you’d like to book in a session for yourself, or learn more about newborn lifestyle sessions, feel free to ask me any questions and Contact me here. You can also view my Lifestyle Newborn Portfolio for more examples of my work and the gorgeous memories created.
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by Alana | Dec 9, 2019 | Family - Location, Perrys Paddock
Perry’s Paddock is always one of my favourite spots to capture your family. I love the trees…the open field…the buildings…there is so much to offer in this location, especially during the gorgeous Golden hour! This is also the place where I get the beautiful silhouette shots – always a fun way to capture your family! All you need to do is spread out a little and have some fun with big movements! This family chose the silhouette shot as their complimentary print which comes with all of my collections!
Family sessions are about fun. I’m not really about the formal, stiff, smile at the camera pose. I’m more about capturing the authentic fun and chaos of your family! So when your child hangs upside down or leans over to kiss you….or pulls a funny face…or jumps on your back for a piggyback…these are the moments I love to capture the most! I truly believe that these are the memories that will mean the most when you look back on this stage of your life – the ones that show beauty in chaos and the ones that make you smile and remember what it was really like (or maybe breathe a sigh of relief that things aren’t quite so crazy anymore!). Crazy or not, this is your family and you love them to pieces just the way they are! So embrace the crazy photos, the ones that make you laugh and feel something!! This is real life at its finest!!
If you’d like me to capture some fun and crazy memories for you too, Contact me to chat. You can also view my Family Portfolio for more examples of what to expect from our session!
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by Alana | Dec 9, 2019 | Events, Slideshow
When your little one has a special event like their Christening or birthday party (or in this case, both at the same time!), you have so much to organise as a parent. You want to be able to enjoy the day and focus on your special guests and your little one, so getting the day captured means that you’re able to do that! Before the day I always send out a quick questionnaire just to find out what you really want to be captured. Usually we make sure to capture you and your little one in some more formal type photos with special guests, and then the rest of the time I simply just capture what’s actually going on. The real life moments, reactions and details of the special day – the ones that really tell the story! You then receive ALL of your edited images AND a beautiful slideshow to look back and remember your day!
Ethan was celebrating not only his Christening, but also his first birthday! Despite not having had his normal sleep in the morning, he was absolutely perfect throughout the entire day! We started capturing moments at home while he was getting ready, and then this gorgeous little boy fell asleep in the car on the way to the Church. He slept through most of the ceremony, but then woke happily and calmly when it was time to get changed. It can always be stressful wondering how they’ll cope during these events, but Ethan was a total superstar! And now his family have these beautiful memories to look back on forever!!
If you’d like me to capture some memories for you too, Contact me here to chat. You can also view my Events Portfolio for more examples of my work. I have a very relaxed, ‘fly on the wall’ type approach to capturing events, as I really want to capture moments as they truly happen. As always, I want to tell your authentic story!
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by Alana | Nov 23, 2019 | Newborn - Lifestyle
When you have two boys, there’s always going to be a lot of energy and noise in your home, and during this session it was obvious that baby Zac is loved on with quite enthusiastic force by his big brother Lachie! Newborn lifestyle sessions are very relaxed, go-with-the-flow type sessions. When you have one baby, they revolve solely around the needs of your newborn. When you have other children, they usually revolve a little more around the toddler. When your older child wants to sit and cuddle their baby, let them. When they need a cuddle from mum or dad, give it to them. When they need to jump on the bed, or play flying games with Dad, let them do that too. No two sessions follow exactly the same routine, because each family is unique and different. The one thing that does stay the same is that there is no pressure and no expectations…it’s all about capturing your life as a family as it is today, in this very moment. Some days might seem never ending, but I promise…they end all too quickly and before you know it, they’re just memories of a time that once was.
During our session, Lachie had leg rides from dad, played with his trucks, snacked on some food, jumped on the bed, flew on the couch, did stamping with Mum, read stories with Dad, and cuddled his new baby brother. All in the day of the life of a little boy who has just become a big brother! Meanwhile, Zac remained calm and chilled throughout it all. Eating when he needed to eat, and sleeping when he needed to sleep. And this session is now just a little snapshot into their life as it was during that very time in their lives.
If you’d like me to capture some memories for you too, Contact me here. You can also view my Lifestyle Newborn Portfolio and learn more about newborn lifestyle sessions here.
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by Alana | Nov 23, 2019 | Newborn - Lifestyle
One of the reasons I love in-home newborn lifestyle sessions so much is that they are absolutely perfect when you have other children! Little Theo is the third baby in this beautiful family, who also have a 4 year old and almost 2 year old at the time of the session. Sarah had mentioned that there would be ‘lots of patience and going with the flow’ needed, and that’s exactly what goes on during a lifestyle session! Rafe and Clementine were included when they were willing, but were also given time to play outside with Dad or Grandma when they needed a break. Little kids shouldn’t be expected to sit still and ‘behave’ the entire time. Giving them freedom and flexibility and not forcing them to do anything allows them to actually enjoy themselves, and also allows us to capture a little bit of real life. And real life is beautiful, albeit chaotic!!
Theo’s Grandmother was also staying over from America, and so I made sure to include her as well – despite her initial reluctance! The relationship between Grandparents and Grandchildren is always such a beautiful, precious one to capture. Theo is definitely one loved, beautiful little boy, and I truly loved spending time with this gorgeous family.
If you’d love to book in a session for yourself, Contact me here. You can also view my Lifestyle Newborn Portfolio for examples of my work, and learn more about newborn lifestyle sessions here.
Contact me to book in your session!
by Alana | Oct 31, 2019 | Family - Location, Perrys Paddock
I first met Leanne and her beautiful family during Zoey’s Newborn Lifestyle Session last year, so I was happy to be able to see them all again for an extended family session during the beautiful Golden Hour at Perry’s Paddock. It’s always amazing to see how much kids grow in such a short period of time, and really makes it hit home why taking photos is so important to me. Only one year earlier, Zoey was a tiny newborn who slept in my arms before I left their home, and now just a year later she’s walking around, laughing, and interacting with those around her!!
Leanne’s in-laws were all visiting from interstate and overseas, so they thought it was the perfect opportunity to get some photos all together. Despite not seeing each other regularly, it was obvious that there was a beautiful bond between them all, and so much energy and fun! Spinning, running, flying in the sky, tickles, cuddles and laughter are all high on the agenda during my sessions, and this family made it super easy to achieve that! Although during extended family sessions we try to make sure we get each combination of people together, I still definitely want to encourage fun as opposed to ‘let’s all look at the camera and smile’. Looking back on these images, I can see the love, the fun, and the genuine connection between them all. Perfect!
This is what Leanne had to say about her session: “We met Alana a little over a year ago for Zoey’s Newborn shoot and this year we had Family come to visit from New Zealand and Brisbane so we thought what a great time to get more photos done and again Alana met expectations. Thank you so much we are absolutely in love with the images”. She describes the images she received as “Beautiful, Fun and Special”.
If you’d like to capture some fun and beautiful memories with your own family, Contact me to chat. You can also view my Family Portfolio for more examples of my work!
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by Alana | Oct 30, 2019 | Newborn - Lifestyle
Georgia’s parents received a Gift Voucher for a Newborn Lifestyle session to celebrate her arrival – what a perfect present to give!! Gift vouchers can be for any amount and are a perfect baby shower or new baby present. You never really realise just how quickly this time passes, and how much your baby will change. These newborn days are such a blur of feeds, nappy changes, sleepless nights, and just trying to get to know this new little person who has come into your world! When there are other kids (such as the gorgeous Harrison in this family!), it’s also a time of changing dynamics and learning to parent more than one child at a time. It’s hard, chaotic and noisy…but it’s definitely worth remembering!!
I love including your dogs in our sessions as well, they can be such an important part of your family and deserve to be in some of your memories!! So never hesitate to include them!
If you’d love to capture some memories for yourself, or organise a gift voucher for someone, Contact me here. You can also view more examples of my work in my Lifestyle Newborn Portfolio.
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by Alana | Oct 30, 2019 | Newborn - Lifestyle
One of my absolute favourite things about being a photographer is being able to meet some amazing families and spend some pretty special time with them, and I especially love it when I get to revisit those same families. I first met Adriana, Josh and Elias during their Maternity Session at the beautiful Pines in Wanneroo. Within a matter of weeks, I was meeting their perfect new addition – little Felix!! Stepping into their apartment, I was so thrilled to see that they already had displayed their photos they received from their maternity session – displaying photos is so important to me!!
Just as with any session, it usually revolves around the toddler and his moods. I never want to force kids to behave, to sit still, or to really do much of anything. And most of all, I don’t want parents to stress about that!! Having been with me during their maternity session, Adriana and Josh already knew that we would just go with the flow, and that inevitably we’d come up with some magic! Take pressure away from kids, and they’re likely to just naturally bring that magic along themselves, and I’m just always ready to capture it when it happens!! Adriana said that prior to her session, she felt “Relaxed and excited. Even though we knew our toddler could have been difficult we knew Alana would be amazing with him”.
It’s fair to say that Elias definitely brought along the magic when he was ready to – and after we’d let him fly in the sky with dad, play trains with dad, and jump on the bed! This time in your life is chaotic and noisy, it’s beautiful and it’s crazy, and a lifestyle session aims to capture all of that!! There’s no sitting still and smiling at the camera, it’s simply just being YOU and letting me capture that for you!! Adriana describes my style of photography as “Real life beautiful photography capturing genuine moments between us”, and describes the photos she received as “Precious, heartfelt and artistic”.
If you’d like me to capture some of these moments for you too, Contact me here. You can also view my Lifestyle Newborn Portfolio for more examples of my work. And yes, I offer gift vouchers!
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