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.

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Teen Portraits - Prom Season is Just Around the Corner

If your child is heading to prom in the next couple of months I'd say there is probably no better time than now to have portraits created of your growing teen. With the purchase of a new (and probably expensive) outfit wouldn't it be nice to capture this milestone with a portrait created by a professional. Across the pond this is a hugely popular time to create portraits, and although I am not American (I'm Canadian) I wholeheartedly agree that this is a special moment to record. My prom was a key memory in my teen years and in fact I myself had professional portraits created also. I think I'll go dig them up if I can, though admittedly I think my mother has them back in Canada. I wonder if I can get her to scan one for me. My daughter is currently making plans for college and in the running is one that will move her away from home, as many others are probably experiencing for themselves, particularly those who are 18. This makes it all the more important to ...

My First London Fashion Shoot

Well I finally did it. I bit the bullet and faced my fears and headed to London with a good friend, Mr. Panikos Hajistilly to do my first location shoot. We chose our locations together and Panikos organised a model and brought so much of his gear which he kindly shared with me. And probably most importantly, he showed me how it's done. I was so surprised to see just how much wonderful light was there, just waiting to be used. I am a studio photographer and while I understand the use of studio flash very well, I am very much out of practice and out of my comfort zone with using available light. Its one thing to place lights and backdrops around my subject in the comfort of my studio. Its very different to find the right light and the right backdrop in unfamiliar territory and to place my subject in it. That may sound simple enough but honestly it is not, particularly on a day with no clouds in the sky. One of our planned locations just wasn't possible as a result of the ...

Its a Dog's Life

When life gets tough I always look at dogs or my cats and think how lucky they are. I know not all are treated well but those lucky enough to be in a good home, like the ones who come into my studio, have a really great life. They look so happy and its a wonderful thing to see. I honestly love photographing dogs. They are a joy to work with and its almost impossible to produce a bad portrait of a dog which does of course make my life a little easier. I am someone who really needs to love the work I create. I can't help but love the portraits I've created of all the dogs I've photographed over the years. And this shoot was certainly no exception. I found it a real pleasure using a lighter background this time too. I do often gravitate towards darker looks but seeing as this dog had a light coloured coat I thought I'd produce lighter images. This gave me the chance to use a canvas I painted a couple of years ago but never really used and I absolutely love it...

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...

The Cuttest Little Creature (a baby Shih Tzu) I Ever Did See

I say creature, rather than dog, puppy or even animal only because as I looked through the images I had created on more than one occasion she looked like more like an animated character in a film than any dog I'd ever met. Weighing in at just over 4lbs she was little more than a ball of fur, adorable in every way. Once again my work day felt very little like work. I love creating pieces such as these and the bonus of puppy cuddles is simply wonderful. This one above is a particular favourite of mine. The scales are quite accurate so its nice to have a keepsake that includes just how small a new puppy is. This family will always have this as a reminder, not that this little on will grow particularly big. This image above is quite easy to create because puppies naturally try to climb out, yet they aren't big enough to get themselves out. This results in quite a captive audience giving us some great portraits. Here again this little girl looks like a ball of fluf...

Christina Lauder Portraits

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