Kate is 34 weeks pregnant, and is looking fabulous! I was very excited about doing this maternity shoot for Kate. She is an absolutely gorgeous girl anyway... but give her a baby bump, and she glows.
Kate is a photographer too, and has started her own great business, Still Waters Photography, in Te Anau. Photographing another photographer always adds an extra load of pressure! But Kate told me she trusted my ideas, and was a blank slate - allowing me the opportunity to be creative. I had an idea I had wanted to play with for a while. For this I needed a grassy field, a cute little white chair, and some gorgeous soft, golden light.
Step One was a grassy field. So, on Thursday Helen and I set out on an outing to Outram. I found a perfect spot and was sold on it for the shoot on Friday. We also found real fruit ice-cream. So that was a bonus.
Step Two was a chair. On Wednesday I was having coffee with Rebecca McSkimming and I happened to mention I was just heading to an antique store to find a little white wooden chair. She told me she had one at home, and said I could borrow it if I wanted. Then in some crazy coincidence, she text me 2 minutes after we had left saying it was actually already in the back of her truck! So, ta-daaa! A perfect little white chair, just as I had imagined. Thanks Becs!
Step Three was perfect light. If we are honest, I had no control over this one, and with a mid-morning shoot in autumn, it could have gone either way! We were super lucky though, and out came the gorgeously soft, golden light... just as I had imagined.
Kate, you are so, so beautiful. You are going to be a fantastic mother! I can't wait to meet baby 'monkey' xx
Step One was a grassy field. So, on Thursday Helen and I set out on an outing to Outram. I found a perfect spot and was sold on it for the shoot on Friday. We also found real fruit ice-cream. So that was a bonus.
Step Two was a chair. On Wednesday I was having coffee with Rebecca McSkimming and I happened to mention I was just heading to an antique store to find a little white wooden chair. She told me she had one at home, and said I could borrow it if I wanted. Then in some crazy coincidence, she text me 2 minutes after we had left saying it was actually already in the back of her truck! So, ta-daaa! A perfect little white chair, just as I had imagined. Thanks Becs!
Step Three was perfect light. If we are honest, I had no control over this one, and with a mid-morning shoot in autumn, it could have gone either way! We were super lucky though, and out came the gorgeously soft, golden light... just as I had imagined.
Kate, you are so, so beautiful. You are going to be a fantastic mother! I can't wait to meet baby 'monkey' xx
Unfortunately Kate's husband, Mark, was unable to come over for the shoot as he was busy running their farm in Te Anau. So Kate invited along our good friend Kristy to join in the fun! Not only was she a great model and friend, she also acted as my wonderful assistant - holding my cameras, and even finding great little locations along the way.
Kristy is a stunner too. She brings sunshine to my life xx
On the way out to Outram, I was telling Kate and Kristy about the perfect little field I found and how excited I was about it. The thing is though, when I was location scouting, I didn't actually get out of the car. What I didn't know was that there were sheep at the end of the field, no real access (especially for a pregnant lady who we weren't going to let jump the fence), annnd... it smelled really bad. Whoops. We managed to find equally perfect and much more accessible and open field just down from it though. Phew!
I loooove this kind of backlighting - it is so feminine and gentle. Kate and Mark know they are having a wee girl, so I think it is perfect. The parasols are also those used at their wedding.
Kate has a special fondness for horses, so we managed to find some of them along the way too...
We then drove right into Outram, to find some locations for slightly more fun, bright photos, as Kate had brought along some meaningful props she wanted to use too. By this stage the sun was beaming down, creating some sharp shadows, which sometimes, you just have to make the most of...
This ribbon surrounded Kate and Mark's wedding cake... another awesome way to represent their marriage and their love in their wee poppet's birth.
Kate and Mark both had well-loved toys as children, and I know their new wee girl will be even more well-loved by them. Meet Panda and Popples... Kate and Mark's favourite childhood toys. Popples is a bit evil looking because Mark coloured its eyes in red when he was little. We will let that slide though...
Kate and Mark are awaiting the arrival of wee 'Monkey', as they fondly call her. Pregnancy is such an exciting time, full of anticipation, hope and joy. Yes, there are many discomforts throughout, but I am sure it will all be worth it when she arrives. And I have no doubt she will grow up to be a cute, cheeky wee monkey...
Kate, you are doing an amazing job - you make pregnancy look so easy and cruisy! You and Mark will be fantastic parents and I am so looking forward to meeting your wee bub.
It was so nice to hang out with you and Kristy in the awesomely hot and wonderful sun, and to capture this amazing time in your life! I hope your last few weeks of pregnancy are easy and you are able to put your feet up and let Mark do everything around the house!
Mwah! xoxo
It was so nice to hang out with you and Kristy in the awesomely hot and wonderful sun, and to capture this amazing time in your life! I hope your last few weeks of pregnancy are easy and you are able to put your feet up and let Mark do everything around the house!
Mwah! xoxo