by Alana | Mar 1, 2021 | Family - Location, Hyde Park, Maternity, Newborn - Lifestyle, The Wanneroo Pines
There’s nothing I love more than meeting up with my families again, and I’ve had the pleasure of catching up with this gorgeous bunch since Adriana was pregnant with Felix during their maternity session at The Pines. Next I was able to meet the gorgeous Felix during their newborn lifestyle session which are undoubtedly my favourite sessions to capture! And more recently (although I’m massively behind with blogs!), I met with them at Hyde Park for their family session. This beautiful family come into their session relaxed, willing to have fun and connect with each other, which makes for the most beautiful and natural images to be captured! During all of my sessions I want you to connect with each other, and not be focused on looking at the camera. That’s just my style – always looking for the authentic expressions of connection between you!
Hyde Park is one of those locations that is still beautiful outside of golden hour, but of course that magical period where the sun is setting always always always results in the most magical light!
If you’d like to book in a session or ask any questions, send me an email! You can also view more beautiful photos in my Family Portfolio.
Contact me to book in your session!
by Alana | May 24, 2020 | Extended Family, Family - Location, Hyde Park, Newborn - Lifestyle
I first met Harrison and his parents and grandparents during his Newborn Lifestyle Session back in October last year. While his other grandparents were visiting, his parents chose to celebrate them all being together by organising an extended family session at the gorgeous Hyde Park. Despite some weather issues, and the emerging issues with Covid, we managed to meet up and capture some beautiful moments for Harrison with those who love him the most. As with any session with young children, it all revolves around them and their needs. When Harrison needed some cuddles from mum, we’d stop and let him have them. When he needed a feed, we gave him one. When he fell asleep, we let him be. I think he did pretty perfectly!!
If you’d like to book in a session for yourself, Contact me and we can chat! You can also view more examples of my work in my Family Portfolio and Lifestyle Newborn Portfolio.
Contact me to chat about your session!
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!
Contact me to book in your session!
by Alana | Apr 28, 2019 | Hyde Park, Maternity
Not only is this beautiful mummy pregnant to TWINS, she also had just flown down from her home in Karratha two days prior so that she can give birth in Perth, she has a gorgeous (but energetic!) toddler, and her husband was flying back to Karratha the very next day. She contacted me last minute as they’d had to cancel the maternity session they’d booked in Karratha due to her son Saxon being unwell, and time was running out to capture these memories for her! I was so glad that I was able to fit her in, and especially glad that Adam was able to be a part of it before he flew back to Karratha the next day.
Including partners and older children in your maternity session is just so special. Although the purpose of the session is to celebrate mum’s growing bump and the magic of pregnancy, life also changes a lot for everyone else too. Freezing those final moments of being the family as you are now is something you’ll never regret. It’s hard not to look at your oldest child sometimes and feel sad that this part of life is ending. I know, because I felt that too. But there’s also so much excitement for what’s to come – this magic that’s being born into your family!
Saxon was the cutest little boy and is so lucky to be getting not one, but TWO little babies to look after – a brother AND a sister!! He arrived on his little orange balance bike, and was incredibly amazing throughout the whole session. It’s so obvious how much this little boy is loved, and how hard he loves back. He’s going to be the greatest big brother! I really wanted to capture some moments just between Saxon and his parents too. These moments where he’s still an only child and where he has their whole attention. As Kele said, he really doesn’t know what he’s in for! I think they’ll be amazing though – what a perfect little family who were an absolute pleasure to spend time with.
If you’d love to capture some memories of your own pregnancy, I’d love to chat to you about it! No matter how hard it is some days, or how you feel you look, pregnancy is amazing and it’s fleeting. Every woman is beautiful and this moment in your life deserves to be captured. Contact me here and we can chat about your session! You can also have a look through my Maternity Portfolio for further examples of my work.
by Alana | Mar 24, 2019 | Family - Location, Hyde Park
Hyde Park is one of the few locations where shooting outside of Golden Hour can still produce some gorgeous images, so it’s also a great choice for young kids who can’t stay up until sunset. I met with Jackie, Ben and their two daughters Scarlett and Lucy at Hyde Park last week to capture some images of their family together as she wanted a relaxed family session. I’m all about relaxed family sessions, and I absolutely loved the energy that the two girls had – they were running, rolling around, doing cartwheels and generally being fun and silly. I actually encourage this during a session!! I really don’t want parents to stress about their kids sitting still and looking at the camera – their job is to just have fun, and my job is to capture it all. I promise you that no matter how energetic your kids are, I’ll always find a way to capture them, and it’s usually these genuine moments of play and connection that are the best images from the session. Scarlett in particular was FULL of energy and fun and I truly loved her enthusiasm for the camera and for simply having fun with her sister and her parents. Little Lucy was a little more apprehensive of the camera, but that’s totally okay. Kids don’t need to be pushed to be in the frame – the less ‘pushing’ we do, the more likely they are to just relax and join in. Plus, those moments of tired cuddles are just beautiful to capture on their own.
Scarlett and Lucy also have a beautiful relationship and this was special to capture. They were affectionate and full of fun and joy together – at one point I turned around and Lucy was sprawled across Scarlett’s back! Of course this is a moment worth capturing! Even Lucy’s bunnies joined in on the photo shoot which is gorgeous as her bunnies are such an important part of who she is during this time in her life. Thank you for letting me capture some beautiful images of your gorgeous family Jackie!
If you’d like to book a fun, relaxed family session for yourself, Contact me here. You can also view my Family Portfolio for more examples of my work.
by Alana | Nov 20, 2018 | Family - Location, Hyde Park
This year I did some mini sessions at Hyde Park, which is one of those locations where I’m happy to shoot outside of Golden Hour. The purpose of mini sessions is to give the opportunity to people to have a short and sweet session, whilst still capturing some beautiful memories and also saving money in the process! My mini sessions also come with some print enlargements, which is a great way to either hold onto your memories at home, or gift them to someone for a special occasion. I was so lucky with the weather for both my mini session days, and I was also super lucky with the amazing people who came along for their sessions. Everyone was on time (big tick – especially for a mini session where time is so important!), everyone looked amazing, and everyone was willing to have fun with it all! Although mini sessions only come with a small number of images, there is the option to upgrade, and so most people walked away with all of their beautiful images and memories to keep forever. It’s amazing how many we can get in such a short amount of time!
Mini sessions can be great for kids – sometimes parents worry that it won’t be long enough to get them to cooperate, but during my sessions I don’t expect kids to cooperate the whole time anyway, and a mini session is no different. The shorter time frame means that things move quite quickly, and that kids can move on to the next part of their day sooner rather than later (ice cream anyone?!). All we need from the kids is a few minutes of them ‘cooperating’, and the rest of the time it’s up to me to capture genuine moments and things they’re interested in, or those beautiful moments where they’re reaching for a cuddle from their mum or dad. The benefits of a mini session include:
- less time (20 minutes compared to one hour), which is especially great when kids are involved
- they can be for any session type (maternity, family, couple)
- save money
- sessions may be outside of ‘golden hour’
As there is less time in a mini session, we tend to move through things a lot quicker. The flow is very similar to my regular sessions though, and it gives you an idea of what a full session might be like. Typically, we start with the full family shot, and this usually just involves getting everyone to sit or stand together. Although we might get some where everyone is smiling at the camera, usually I encourage people to interact with each other, and I do a lot of the moving around myself to capture different angles and details. From there, we usually try to get the various combinations that you might want – such as dad with kids, mum with kids etc. If there are kids, we really take the cues from them just as with a regular session. If they’re feeling it, then we keep them involved in taking photos. If they’re getting restless or frustrated, we give them a break and focus on something else. Once these types of shots are done, we might get some playful ones, such as spinning, chasey, follow the leader, shoulder rides, and jumping. This has the benefit of letting everyone relax and have fun, whilst also creating some beautiful genuine emotions. My aim as always is to capture those expressions and images which will remind you of what life was like at this point in time.
I only do a small number of mini sessions, so keep an eye on my Facebook page or Contact me to register your interest in my next mini sessions. Below are some sample images from my most recent mini sessions.
by Alana | Nov 16, 2018 | Family - Location, Hyde Park
Wow – what a gorgeous family!! Dana and her family came along for one of my recent mini sessions at Hyde Park, styled just perfectly! Her two boys Cooper and Clayton were just ridiculously gorgeous, and so easy to photograph! The blonde curls on Clayton are just to die for! They had a very natural and easy affection, and so I was able to capture a lot of naturally beautiful moments between each member of the family, including tickles, cuddles, hand holding, and of course wrestling between the two brothers. Even though there is only a small age difference between the two boys, Cooper obviously seemed to take on the big brother role, and I love the images of him with his arm around his little brother whilst he is looking down protectively at him. Making this session even more special was the fact that Dana is three months pregnant, so she wanted to get some images which highlighted this special time in her life. Her two boys were more than happy to cuddle into her and to kiss her stomach – celebrating their new baby brother or sister! Chris and Dana are unsure whether they’ll find out the gender of their new baby (they didn’t with their other two!). Whether their new one is a boy or girl, I know it will be a very loved little baby, with two beautiful big brothers.
Prior to my sessions, I ask clients to fill out a pre-session survey to get an idea of their personalities and what kind of images they would like. Dana mentioned that Chris is uncomfortable in front of the camera, and I totally understand him on that! I hate being in front of the camera (which is why I spend most of my time behind it), but in my sessions I encourage people that if they’re not sure what to do, just touch or kiss one of their loved ones, or even just look at them or interact with them in anyway they feel comfortable doing. I think Chris did an amazing job!
If you’d like to book me to create some family memories of your own, or to purchase a gift voucher for someone, Contact me here. You can also view my Family Portfolio here.
by Alana | Nov 12, 2018 | Family - Location, Hyde Park
I’ve known Renee since we worked together a long time ago (pre-kids!!), so I was extremely happy to take some photos for her and her gorgeous family. And how gorgeous they are!! Renee is one of the most beautiful and stylish women I know, so I knew she’d turn up with everyone looking effortlessly beautiful – and she did! I love how she mixed some beautiful neutrals with some splashes of colour; how she added texture and interest through her skirt and belt and Leila’s gorgeous patterned dress; how she found the perfect balance between light and dark; and how their outfits were perfect for the location – casual and comfortable whilst still being stylish and beautiful. Simple clothing when done well is so effective!
As for the session – well it was easy to capture their connections as they were so naturally affectionate with each other! Leila obviously just adores her big brother Josh, and was more than happy to be picked up by him or to cuddle into his legs. He in turn, was so beautiful with her as well, and I especially loved being able to capture how much of a protective brother he is. There’s one image where she’s sitting on his lap, and he’s gently moving her hair out of her face. I’m so glad that they’ll have these memories of their relationship during this time in their life!
During sessions with younger kids, I always take my cues from them. When they’re happy to be in photos, I take the opportunity, but if they need a break, I let them have one. I never want parents to feel that their kids need to be ‘on’ the whole time during a photo session, or that they need to behave a certain way. In this case, we captured a lot of images at the start of the session as that’s when Leila was more happy to oblige, but then she needed a little time to be ‘free’, so we took our cues from that. Not to mention, there is always beauty in a child who is happy doing her own thing, or who is seeking comfort from mum or dad.
Renee’s husband Pete doesn’t like to be on social media, however he has let me share a few of the images of him from the shoot. It’s important for everyone to know that there is never any pressure to share your images. As much as I love being able to share what we’ve created together, there is never any pressure for you to share them if you’d rather keep them private.
If you’d like to book a session for yourself, or organise a gift voucher for someone you love, Contact me here.
You can also view my Family Portfolio here.
by Alana | Nov 9, 2018 | Family - Location, Hyde Park
On the weekend, Nikki and her family had their mini session at Hyde Park. Mini sessions are short and sweet, and yet we’re still able to capture some beautiful images and memories to look back on. My main focus as always is not to get everyone to simply smile at the camera, but to try and capture those connections with each other. Nikki’s little girl Chloe had just turned 1, while her little boy Ethan is 3 years old. Such gorgeous ages, and yet also ages where they are unlikely to want to sit still for too long! Our session included cuddles, tickles and spinning and flying in the air, and little Ethan was the leader in a game of ‘Follow the Leader’. Chloe wasn’t too interested in allowing Ethan to give her cuddles, although her affection for dogs kept her distracted enough as a couple of dogs came past and allowed us to grab a quick shot of her with her brother. I love that in one shot she’s obviously unimpressed, and yet her mum exclaimed at how perfect that was, as that was their real life with Ethan attempting to give affection and Chloe rejecting it! I love that these are things that she was happy to have captured, as this is what life is like for them NOW. Things will change and relationships will evolve, but looking back they’ll remember what it was like once upon a time. As always, I also like to get some images with just mum and dad. It’s not often that we focus on ourselves as life becomes all about the kids, so it’s nice to have some memories with each other as well. I absolutely loved spending time with this family. They were relaxed and fun, and so happy to just go with the flow. Thank you Nikki!
This is what Nikki had to say about her session: “We absolutely loved our shoot with Alana-she has kids the same age so totally knew how to relate to our busy little bodies who were not interested in sitting still for one moment. We are in love with all our pics and just had to get a full gallery as we just couldn’t choose! A good problem to have”
If you’d like to book a session for yourself or someone you love, Contact me here. You can also view my Family Portfolio here.
by Alana | Oct 16, 2018 | Family - Lifestyle, Hyde Park
On the weekend I held some mini sessions at Hyde Park. Mini sessions are truly amazing value – they’re a great way to have a short, sharp session (perfect for restless kids!), and save some money whilst STILL getting some amazing print enlargements at the end of it, and a wide selection of images. Kelly booked in for her mini session as she felt that the timing would suit her children’s attention spans, and because she always felt guilty for not having a newborn shoot for her daughter like she did for her son…don’t we all always feel guilty about something?! Kelly also wanted to get some beautiful images of the kids to give to the grandparents, and to show the kids when they’re older – shots that also include her IN the frame instead of being the one always taking the photo with her phone! Even though it’s a mini session, you still receive a full gallery to choose from, and can upgrade to receive all of the images if you love them all (which Kelly did).
We had a really fun session – the kids played and jumped and did flying with Daddy, and spinning with Mummy, and I also made sure to get some of mum and dad together. How gorgeous does Kelly look in that dress! Her outfit was the perfect choice for the photo shoot – I absolutely love lightly patterned dresses for images! It was the perfect choice! As with all of my sessions, the focus isn’t of getting the perfect ‘everyone smile at the camera’ image. Although I usually put everyone together at the start, and at various points throughout the session, I truly love to capture individual personalities. I also love to allow kids to be kids and I find that following them around and showing an interest in what they’re doing and what THEY want to do, is more likely to bring out genuine emotion compared to forcing them to sit still and smile at a strange lady holding a camera!
Frankii and Chet (yes that’s their names – how gorgeous!!!! I almost want to have another child just to use those names!) were just beautiful to shoot. Chet examined some of my photos in camera to make sure they were good enough, and this also encouraged him to give a big smile for a few photos, as he wanted to see what he would look like! Frankii had the usual energy and curiosity of an 18 month old, and I certainly got in some exercise chasing her around (as did Chet who assumed the big brother role and ‘lovingly’ tried to hold her still at times!). I loved meeting this family and capturing some memories for them!
If you’d like to book a session, or a mini session, please Contact me and feel free to ask any questions!
by Alana | Sep 23, 2018 | Family - Location, Hyde Park
Melissa wanted to book in a family photo session while her parents were visiting from Malaysia, and she also wanted to include her in-laws in the photo shoot. I thought this was a beautiful idea, especially as I later found out what a special place they all have in the family. Both of Melissa’s children have two middle names each – one chosen by each of their Grandparents. I thought that was just beautiful! Prior to her shoot, Melissa and I discussed location options – you can check out this blog for Location options for your photo shoot! We decided on Hyde Park which is such a beautiful location, and was a good choice for her young children as Hyde Park is beautiful even outside of the Golden Hour. Melissa also received some styling assistance through this blog Styling tips to help you plan your photo shoot, and she sent me images of outfits she was considering. Styling can be such a stressful part of planning your photo shoot, especially when you’re trying to coordinate so many people. I think they did an amazing job – everyone looked perfect! Splashes of colour, pattern and interest, whilst also remaining in the same colour tones.
Driving to the shoot, it began pouring with rain and we were worried that we wouldn’t be able to go ahead with the shoot. Luckily for us, the rain cleared as soon as we arrived, and was perfect for the time we were there. It was such a fun shoot – everyone was relaxed and just seemed to be having so much fun with each other. Their connection was really able to be captured, as they all genuinely seemed to enjoy each others company. Bubbles were a massive hit with the kids at the start of the session, and I think helped them to relax as well. Little Paige just loved posing for the camera, and Ari was so beautiful to photograph. I genuinely enjoyed spending time with this family, and capturing some amazing memories for them. Melissa chose the Deluxe Collection, so she was able to keep all of her images (this makes me soooo happy, as I truly love clients being able to have all of their images and their full story!). She also receives two enlargements, a beautiful linen photo book, and a slideshow of her images set to music which is shared above. I love the Deluxe Collection, as I really feel that it allows your full story to be told. Thank you for such a fun afternoon!
If you’d like to book a session for yourself or someone you love, contact me here. You can also view my Family Portfolio for more examples of my work.
by Alana | Aug 21, 2018 | Burns Beach, Couples, Family - Location, Hyde Park, Information, Maternity, The Wanneroo Pines, Uncategorized
You’ve decided to book in a photo session to capture some memories – perhaps you’re investing in a family shoot to remember your family as it is now; a couple session to celebrate your relationship; or a maternity session to celebrate your beautiful growing baby bump. In all of my sessions my main focus is on capturing the connections between you, and the little details. To do this, I usually place you close together on a rug. The aim of this is not to get you to all smile towards the camera – the aim is just to get you CLOSE. From there, it’s quite common for me to be running around and capturing you all from different angles – above, below, left, right, behind and in front. It can feel like you’re staying in one spot for a long time, but because I’m moving around a lot, I’m capturing you from all different perspectives. I’m also looking out for those little details – your little one holding onto your hand; a stray curl of hair blowing across your face; a beautiful expression on your face. The fact that I move a lot also has the added benefit of ensuring that you’re not tempted to always just smile at the camera – because the camera keeps moving! For this reason, the actual location isn’t always important. However, it’s always nice to be in a location that you feel represents what you want to get out of the shoot. As I’m based North of the River, I’ve put together a few locations I regularly shoot at. This doesn’t mean you can only choose from these locations – as I’m always open to new suggestions or places that are important to you – but these are just the places which are regulars for me.
- The Wanneroo Pines. This place is great to go to with kids, as they love to explore amongst the tee pees made of sticks, play with said sticks, and jump on the logs. This allows them to burn off some energy between shots – or capture some candid images of them playing. These candid images often result in those genuine smiles and fun energy kids have when they’re free to play. While kids are playing, I can take the opportunity to get some images of mum and dad. It’s also a beautiful location for maternity shoots – the tall trees make a beautiful backdrop to show off your pregnancy. It’s always most beautiful to go here (as it is with most locations) in the hour before sunset. The glow from the setting sun gives off a beautiful magical feel – especially when it peaks between the trees. If you’re unable to book your shoot during Golden Hour (that hour before sunset), then the trees do provide a decent amount of shade, making it an option for daytime shoots as well.
- Burns Beach. This location is most popular for maternity shoots. It can be more challenging with family shoots depending on ages of the children, due to the water. Burns Beach is beautiful as it also provides some rocks and greenery as a backdrop, without needing to solely rely on the water backdrop. The absolute best time of the day for a beach session is the Golden Hour – the hour before sunset. I generally don’t like to shoot here outside of those hours unless the day is particularly overcast, or if timing wise the shoot needs to be at another time. Maternity sessions here are beautiful – the setting sun makes a great backdrop to a pregnant tummy.
- Perry’s Paddock. This is another location which is best towards golden hour, as there’s a lot of open space. This is one of my favourite locations to shoot at, as we can utilise the trees while the sun is still quite high, and then move to the open field once the sun starts to set. This is where I get some silhouette shots which is always a fun way to show off your family! This location is pretty much perfect for any type of shoot – there’s a lot of space for kids to run around, an abundance of gorgeous light, and the sky always looks beautiful once the sun has set. There’s also a beautiful old white building which can be used as backdrops.
- James Spiers Park, Wanneroo. I love this park for the variety it brings to a session. It’s particularly beautiful in Autumn with the leaves fallen on the ground. This park offers a beautiful area with trees and greenery, a staircase, a wall for people to sit on, as well as a basketball court with a wall that is great for backdrops. There’s a lot of choices at this park, and also a lot of shade options for when shoots can’t be scheduled for golden hour.
- Hyde Park. I love this location, although due to additional travel, I do charge a small travel fee to go here. There are so many choices at Hyde Park, and is another one which offers a lot of shade so is a good spot if we can’t schedule a session for the golden hour (although that time of day is always best no matter the location).
These are just some of the options of places for your shoot. If you’d like to organise a location shoot for yourself, or as a gift for someone else, please Contact me. You can view more family sessions in my Maternity Portfolio or Family Portfolio.
by Alana | May 20, 2018 | Family - Location, Hyde Park
I met the Bebic Family at Hyde Park for a family session. Sue wanted to get some new photos of her with her two daughters. Her girls may have been hesitant to attend a photo session, however there were no signs of that when I met them. They were fun, easy going, attentive to their mum, and willing to do anything I asked them to do. It’s obvious how much they love their mum – and also how well they get along with each other. I know it’s probably not always like that, but it was beautiful to be able to capture their bond.
As with all family sessions, I love capturing those little moments between shots. I don’t need everyone to smile at the camera – I want to capture the emotion of their relationships, and the little details that are so easy to take for granted. During my sessions, I’ll guide you to sit somewhere and get as close as possible – and then the rest is just me moving around and capturing your bond from all different angles and perspectives. I move around A LOT during my sessions, and in fact in every single session, I’ve always almost fallen over at least ONCE. One day it’s going to happen for real!
If you’d like to capture some memories with your family, I offer both location and in-home lifestyle sessions. Contact Me and we can discuss what will work best for you. For more beautiful family images, check out my Family Portfolio.
