Diamonds are a girls best friend

This gorgeous little one belongs to a friend and it was such a pleasure to photograph her smiling little face. Though she tired in the middle and we stopped for coffee, tea and a chat. Little miss L got her second wind, at 10 months old she put up with 3 and a half hours of photos  taking and went though 6 changes of clothes. I wonder if we have a model in the making? 

 (Coffeshop Template)

We'd been planning the shoot for a few weeks and I was a little worried about who to pose a 10 month old that is only just sitting up. Wet and cold outside we decided to take these shots indoors at my place. My studio is my dinning room after I empty it of it's furniture and place the kitchen table and chairs in the living area, I have just enough room to set up a backdrop. 

 (Modified Coffeeshop Template)

For some reason I have hit a motivation high and I am working hard on improving my portrait photography skills, not just in camera but also using Photoshop (This is a big part of the reason why I haven't been around  much in blog land lately).  I've been pouring my efforts into learning how to make templates and  downloaded a few  from Coffeeshop and after some experimenting I have enough skills to manipulate templates to suite my photography or to create my own from scratch. 

 (Graphic Authority Template)

I know in the last year I have come a long way with my work but I also know I have a long way to go. I often wonder if I will every be truly happy with my end results. Though I am proud of my work I am always striving to do better. I suppose that's not a bad things as it is what helps me grow as a photographer.

When the law forces you to lie

First of all meet Puss Puss … he is a boy, around 7 months old and he is just beautiful! I have fallen in love with him in just a few short days. He is keeping me company while I work at home and he has no intention of venturing outside, the desk and my lap are far more comfortable. He follows me every where I go.

In search of finding Puss a vet I rang the one Mikaela so desperately wanted to go to all because the have a cute dog and cat sign out the front.

A nurse answers the phone and I tell her I have found a stray cat and would really like to keep it and wanted it all check out and de-sexed. She replied “If it’s a stray then we check to see if it is micro chipped and if so we contact the owner” Ok far enough, if someone has micro chipped the cat then I assume they care for it and therefore Puss needs to be returned. So I tell the nurse “If it’s not micro chipped I’d like to keep it” She replies “Well, if it is a stray you can’t keep it. It has to go to the pound and then you can go to the pound and purchase it if you really want it” Say What??? Is this just dumbest law? I found a cat I am prepared to give it a home. I am prepared to pay for it’s vaccinations, flea treatment and worming, I am prepared to pay to have it de-sexed and take good care of it  but I an not prepared for you to take Puss away and then send me for a trip to the pound to purchase something that is not your property to give away and not the councils property to make money out of.

Have they not heard the term “finders keepers”

Needless to say I didn’t take Puss to that particular vet. I rang a friend and she recommended another one. I then lied to this vet and told them I had been given the cat by someone who no longer wanted it. I felt stupid that I had no idea what sex the cat was or what age it was bla, bla bla. I could have ended up looking like a cat stealer if Puss was already micro chipped but I took the risk and luckily it paid off.

Puss has spent today in surgery having the snip and getting micro chipped. Now he is officially mine.

Dogs 3 ... Cats 1

I have to admit I’ve always been a dog person. I’ve grown up with dogs in facts since the day I was born there has always had a dog in the family. My current dog Sally the beagle (13 years old) is living with my mum due to where I am now living, the back yard is to small, I have no grass (only garden) and no under cover shelter for her to protect her from the heat or the rain or other extreme elements.

My kids have nagged me for another dog, they love Sally and play with her often at my mums but she is getting old and not as eager to fetch a ball as she once was. My brother has a small Maltese X dog, which Callum adores and does not leave alone. A friend of mine has 2 of the most beautiful Border Collies you have ever seen, they are such wonderful dogs and my kids could throw them balls at the park all day long. 

I get pestered for a dog, Mikaela wants a Chihuahua and has picked out the name Romeo. I keep saying maybe Santa will bring you a dog for Christmas hoping the idea of a pet will wear off by then. My friends think I am cruel for not getting my kids a pet to have at home. My response is I killed 10 gold fish in less than 2 weeks before I realised the responsibility of keep even the smallest of things… fish.

It’s so easy to say NO when the animal is not in front of you. The other week a friend found a stray kitten and asked me if I wanted it. I answered “NO”.

However today after school Callum was followed home by a cat and at 7:30pm it was still sitting on the door step with no intention of leaving. The cat is a nice looking but very skinny, very friendly and affection and has tolerated all of Callum’s attention.

A neighbour up the road tells mum that the cat was dumped on the empty block across the road a few days before. Now I am dealing with a cute looking cat, the smiles on my children’s faces and the please, please, please can we keep it. I will clean it’s poop and feed it blah, blah, blah.

Before I know it Mikaela has dragged me to the supermarket we have kitty litter, cat food and a diamond collar in hand. I know nothing about cats, I’ve never cared for a cat, I don’t know if it’s a boy cat or a girl cat. I need to take Puss Puss to the vet and I have my fingers cross that Puss Puss has already been de-sexed other wise Puss Puss is going to cost me money.

I can’t believe that I am so soft and I caved under the pressure. I am now a cat owner. I will take photos of Puss Puss soon so you can all see what I am dealing with.

In the mean time I’m off to bed to contemplate what I have done.

I need a Hero

If I were a superhero, I’d like powers that would make my life easier rather than powers that could be used to save the lives of other. I know that's totally selfish but there are just not enough hours in my day, and well frankly I’m just to exhausted to rescue people hanging out of windows in tall building or fighting villains that are plotting world domination. So if you happen to find your self hanging out a window, stuck in quick sand or tied to a train track please don't pin all your hopes on me coming to your rescue.

The only powers I desire are ones to help save some time such as,

•  Super Speed – this would allow me to do house work, ironing and other chores quickly and effortlessly.
•  Flying – could possibly come in handy and would mean not having to battle peak hour traffic. With the onset of winter I hope my costume and cape are water proof or otherwise I’ll have to take the car.
•  Invisibility – this power would allow me to hind form my children occasionally and I just think it would be really cool, you could have a lot of fun with this power.

On the 29th May people of all ages dressed as their favourite superhero and converged on Federation Square to break the Guinness World Record for the most number of people dress in super hero costumes in one location with 1245 people dressing up for the event.

Even though numerous villains were lurking about, the streets of Melbourne were safe with the good guys out numbering the baddies at least 10 to 1. While the good guys seemed more focused on eating, sipping coffees and taking a break the bad dudes just roamed around, happy to take the spotlight for a change and pose for a few photos.