I'm Back and its About Time

First, I can't believe where the summer has gone. It just seemed to disappear in a blink of an eye. I hadn't intended on taking this much of a break from my blog, but I knew I couldn't keep up with regular postings with my daughter off school for 6 and a half weeks. Still I hadn't realised it has been this long. Sorry about that. It shan't happen again (until at least next summer, I hope).

Anyway, I've had a great summer so far which even included a trip to Turkey where the weather was fantastic (so much better than here). I now see why the British holiday abroad each year. You need it so you can get through a British summer.

As you can see, I can't get away from photography, no matter where I go. In fact I even brought two cameras with me (but managed to leave the large lense at home). I feel very uneasy without a camera, like I could be missing out on a great Kodak moment.

And I really enjoy collecting portraits of the kids so we can look back on them in years to come. These aren't all of mine, by the way. We had friends staying at a nearby resort so we met up for a day, which turned out to be highly eventful when two members of their family ended up in the hospital. It was my husbands great idea to see if they could get 9 people into a single raft down a slide. Needless to say it gave me the opportunity to say I told you so.

Amazingly though, nothing major came of it. And the rest of the holiday was fantastic. I would definitely recommend a resort with a waterpark. It amused the kids for hours. This was a perfect example of how some adverts do work really well. This holiday was a direct result of my 6 year old asking for a First Choice holiday everytime the ads came on the telly. I have to say, I am glad we went too.

Anyway, it is back to work now. Things have really been picking up over the past few weeks. So I have plenty to blog about now that I have decided to make a determined effort to keep up with my blog again. So I'll apologise in advance for bombarding you with frequent posts

because I have a fair bit to blog about now.

Comments

I am Still Me: A Story about a Transgender Boy

Meet Leo. Leo is 15 and currently going through an epic transformation that has momentarily turned the lives of himself and those around him upside down. A mum who once had the daughter she always longed for is now coping with the realisation that she will be living the rest of her life with a son instead. When your child is born you have certain expectations of the typical life they will lead but most of us know and accept that it won't necessarily end up the way we imagine. Not every person wants to marry, have kids or be involved with the opposite sex. Most of us have come to accept this and can adjust to whatever comes our way relatively easily. But few of us have expected to have to deal with a change in sex. Its not that we've hoped it won't happen, but just that it never occurred to us that it might. This is a new adjustment that we as a society are being presented with today, just like so many others that have come before. When I first heard that Phoebe

Fine Art Portraits of a Beautiful Young Girl

So this is really becoming my thing lately. I am having so much fun working with children individually where I can direct and interact in ways that bring the best out of my subject. This has certainly become a process now of creating rather than taking photographs. And its what I have always wanted to be, a portrait artist rather than a photographer. I cannot put into words fully just how rewarding this is. For each of these shoots (as with nearly all of my shoots) we begin with a consultation where we discuss what we would like to achieve in the shoot. Here we will consider the type of clothing and any possible props. We will look at both the clients clothes and my ever growing collection so we can pick what will work best. In all circumstances we are heavily guided by what the child in the portraits wants to wear as I see this as vitally important. If he or she is uncomfortable its going to show and the portraits won't work. But most are happy to play dressups and wear a com

5 Reasons you Should Consider Getting a Professional Headshot

Headshots, or profile pictures are becoming a requirement of so many tools we regularly use or reference today. From Facebook to Linked In, Instagram to Twitter and often any website that represents a company for which you work or own will have a place to include a photograph that is meant to show your audience who you are. And how you present yourself there will tell your audience so much about you. 1. A profile picture is your first opportunity for your audience to see you. Its often the first impression you make and we all know you only have one chance at a first impression. A professional photographer has the skills to show you in the best, most suitable way to give a great first impression. (These headshots were created for recruitment firm Optima UK who asked to have their logo placed behind them. I think it makes these headshots quite eye catching and they should do their job well.) 2. Using a professional to create your headshot will convey yo

Family Photos with Flair - Vanity Fair Style Family Portraits

This style of portrait continues to be the eye catching success I had always hoped it would be. Once again I created a beautiful family portrait that I am really proud of and I know this family loves too. Over the years I have developed this style through influences such as Vanity Fair and the many photographers I follow, though I hope that there is something in here that is entirely my own. Having my work easily identified as my own was a goal of mine from the start. Getting to the point where people will want not just a portrait but a Christina Lauder portrait is where I've always wanted to be and I'm hoping I'm on way. These portraits were created for the family of two professional photographers who wanted some portraits of their own. Family portraits isn't really something one can do of oneself, at least not easily. So they needed the services of another and I was honoured to be chosen for the job. They chose me not just for my style but also for my ab

My Fellowship in Child Portraiture, Baby Photographer of the Year and All Things Convention Related

Its been a very busy year for me. Hence the reason I've not been keeping this blog up to date. That's about to change though. I anticipate this coming year to be even busier but I plan on getting a lot more organised and keeping on top of things like this. For now though I'd like to tell you all about last week. I keep trying to think of some words to describe this past week and I keep coming back to 'I had the time of my life' and breaking into song in my head. Apart from when my daughter was born I haven't had a better time in my life. This week was spent at the Societies Convention where in excess of 14 thousand photographers from around the world meet to take part in print competitions, submit qualification panels and join in on various classes and events. The week began as one of the most stressful of my life. I've never felt nerves like it. I'd just spent the best part of a year planning and preparing my 20 image panel to present to 5

Christina Lauder Portraits

Search This Blog