Background story
I was born & raised in Southern Africa - we lived in Johannesburg in the late 1970’s and in the bush of Namibia, where my dad did field work as a geologist. Growing up in the 80’s in South Africa seems now like an incredibly special time to have been a kid, and I hope I never lose the flavour of nostalgia I get when I look through my childhood photo albums.
My father was a keen photographer and I have his old Nikkormat SLR film camera now, which I will get round to shooting on more soon!
I’ve always had a taste for nostalgia, and I used to love imagining that what was happening around me was a kind of film montage of the past - as a kid I liked to create for myself that feeling that everything was a memory. I don’t know, kind of strange probably but comforting for some reason. It comes in handy for what I do - giving me a sense of what might be missed in the future. Learning the skills to capture that is my obsession to perfect.
It’s also where my passion for prints comes from, and the firm belief that my job is not done until I know that the babies I photograph will some day have something like this to thumb through.
natural moments photography
Savouring your moments in pictures…
We start families and have babies without the slightest inkling of how much they will change not only our lives, but our selves. The dream of motherhood/parenthood comes with delicious promises of sweet moments, but there is no preparing us for the demands… the challenges are brutal, relentless and ever shifting. But the rewards are astonishing and incredible, and we are given the chance to tend to so many of our own unhealed wounds which is the greatest gift of all.
10 years in I’ve started figuring out what you miss the most from those early years, and how important it is to capture it all well. We all have thousands of phone photos and video clips stuck on a device, but how many beautiful photos hang up on your walls that will help you remember - I mean truly remember?
As this adventure unfolds, your story is revealed. It is entwined with the stories of your loved ones, your babies, and your partner. Your legacy will continue long after you’re gone - the love you give, the lessons you teach, and the example you lead with are shaping the future in ways you cannot comprehend.
You may not believe it but you matter, and your moments matter. They are so important!!
It’s the little things we want to remember down the road - because the little things invariably seem like big things once they’re gone.
Capturing some of these precious memories will be able to fill you up once this time has come to an end - which it will. Investing properly now in your memories will see you through.