Christina Lauder Portraits

Every now and again I like to do some portraits for personal growth. I use this time to try new things and to just have fun in the studio. Ashleigh is one of my daughter's dance teachers and someone who helped me come up with posing ideas for Kenzie when she modeled for me on the Bowens stand at the Photography Show back in March. So I thought why not invite Ashleigh in to do some dance portraits for her. And this is what we came up with. Ashleigh not only teaches but still performs regularly and is currently preparing for this season's Panto down south. So when it came to her portraits we wanted something that both suited her style and would lend itself well to something a little dramatic. The first thing that came to mind for Ashleigh was Chicago. So some searching online for inspiration and this is where it got us. My vision involved black and white, high contrast, spot lights and smoke. Seeing as it was my first time using smoke pellets I have to say I am quite ple...

I have a love and hate relationship with family portraits. I love the finished piece and creating something that is truly special to the family. I love that in years to come something I made is going to be a cherished and valueable memento for this family. What I struggle with, is getting all members of the group to look their best at exactly the same moment in time. You would be surprised at how difficult this actually is, particularly when it comes to 6 children. But I always get there in the end, whether it is the luck of a moment or with the aid of Photoshop. I ensure that everyone in the portrait is looking their best, even the dog. Seeing as this family is actually made up now of two families we also did portraits in their respective groups which I chose to do in different style to their main group. I love adding a bit of style for the overall main group and what you see above is something that is proving popular with my clients. I love adding props and giving a sort of Vani...

  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 ...