Shoot & Share made me this fancy little video... so I'll pop that up first...
Why hello! It's getting close to the end of 2018 which means I'm ridiculously late in sharing these on the blog, but better late than never or something eh!? I figure I should probably share them before the 2019 contest begins! The week before Jacob was born, I entered a bunch of images in the 2018 Shoot & Share worldwide contest. This was the third year I have entered and I LOVE it so much every time! The 2018 Photo Contest broke records with 413,000 photos submitted, 175,000 unique entrants and voters, and a whopping 81 MILLION contest votes collected! You can read more about my 2016 and 2017 entries, but I thought I would just quickly share with you a few of this years images - two placed in the Top 100 in the world in their categories, four others were finalists, and others placed in the top percentiles in their categories. It's just a bit of fun, and it's extremely addictive! Shoot & Share made me this fancy little video... so I'll pop that up first...
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Wasn't it just yesterday that I was writing a wee blog in the days leading up to Eli's birth?! 2.5 years later... we are perhaps just days away from meeting the second little Hutton button! We can't wait to find out who has been hiding and growing inside me! But there's also a million things to do beforehand, and no doubt this little bubs is probably easier on the inside than on the outside, so I'm content waiting if he or she decides they are not quite ready for the outside world by due date ;)
I'm totally not any more prepared this time around than I was last time... it's sooo surreal still, and I think it will feel that way until I'm holding my precious new love in my arms! And then I'm sure it will feel like it's exactly as it was always meant to be... as if life beforehand was somewhat incomplete or something. It's taken me since the beginning of this year to work out whether or not to share these images from the 2017 Shoot and Share Contest with you. These first two images are particularly special and poignant, and I don't share them because of the 'awards'. I share them because I want to share the hope in these images. This is beautiful little Emily, who I photographed in NICU at about 26 weeks old. This absolutely tiny little girl really touched me, and I am just so pleased to let you know that she is now 20 months old, and is doing so well! NICU is an amazing place. It's a place filled with so many mixed emotions and roller-coaster rides for so many parents - in reality, it's a place sometimes crippled by sadness and fear, and other times filled with hope and strength. But no matter what, it's always a place filled with love and care. I know not all these beautiful, tiny little babies are as fortunate as Emily, but I wanted to share the power of the hope, love, strength, and the fighting spirit of this wee girl!
Out of over a thousand photos in the "Passion Portraits: Giving Back" Category, Emily’s photos placed 12th and 15th. This category is reserved for photos taken to give back to our communities. It's about using our gifts within photography to share with and bless others. These two photos are really special to me, and I'm glad they touched the hearts of photographers around the world who voted. Hello Mamas! So many of you have reached out to let us know that you would really love to take better, more meaningful photos of your beautiful kids... so we wanna help! We are really excited to let you know that Justine Weatherall Photography and Kimberley Cheyne Photography are teaming up to create a photography workshop just for Mums!
If your camera has too many overwhelming and scary buttons, or you want to learn how to see the best light and capture the best emotions and moments of your children, please check out the info and registration details are on our webpage here! We would LOVE to see you there! Numbers are very limited so get in quick... or if you would love to see us doing a 'Through Your Eyes' workshop in another area of NZ... let us know! xx In February, at the very last minute (like the night entries closed!), I threw a bunch of images into an international photo competition by Shoot & Share... purely for fun! This is a MASSIVE competition... there were 225,000+ entries over 25 categories... from photographers from 149 different countries around the globe!!! 225,000! That's a lot of photos! I had ZERO expectations... it's just more entertaining to be a bit invested in something like this rather than to just watch from afar.
So then 10 rounds of voting happened... with tens of thousands of photos eliminated after each round. And each time, I was beyond surprised to see some of my photos survive the elimination and pop up in the new round! I feel a bit weird sharing successes sometimes... but these are also successes for our awesome clients, so I'm excited to let you know that FIVE of my photos were finalists in their categories!! And one even made it to 8th place!! Crazy? Yes. Totally unexpected? Yes. So give a massive high-5 to our awesome bride, Nicky, and her hilarious Grandad, for this shot that got 8th PLACE in the 'Just the Guests' category!! Photographing the guests at the end of the ceremony is one of my favourite moments on a wedding day... people are throwing happiness around like confetti and emotions are bubbling over, and we get to sneakily capture it! We want your thoughts!Hello people! We are really keen to hear from you, whether you're a total newbie wanting to learn the basics of photography, or a photographer wanting to take your business to the next level! We are considering a couple of different teaching options, depending on where you are at in the big wide world of photography... so we're just putting out our feelers! We often get asked about one-on-one mentoring for photographers, or running fun, relaxed workshops to teach keen-as-beans amateurs. So let's start by finding out how we can help you...
We would love for you to fill in one of the following forms, even if you are just a little curious. This will help us to gauge what ya'll are keen on learning about! We can then keep you in the loop about any teaching or mentoring we are offering. There is zero obligation to commit to anything... we would just love to see who is out there and where we can possibly help! :) We are SO excited to let you know that Eli William Hutton was born on the 28th July 2015... a full 8lb 8oz of awesome! We are making sure we spend heaps of precious time with our new little bundle... he is just so amazing and we absolutely adore the gorgeous newborn cuddles he is giving us! (Just a reminder... I am on maternity leave until January 2016, when I will begin taking on a limited number of shoots. I will attempt to follow up emails over the next few weeks, but responses will be slow sorry! For now, this amazing little man needs my undivided attention... but I pretty much can't take my eyes off him anyway, so that's ok!)
Thanks for all your well-wishes and love! It's Baby Loss Awareness Week internationally, so I thought maybe I'd share just a little more about a wonderful organisation called Heartfelt. If you've been hanging around this blog for a while, you'll know that in June last year my sister lost her beautiful, perfect baby at full-term. She had also lost another child through miscarriage prior to that. This was the first time I was really exposed to infant loss, but it opened up a whole new world to me - a world that is hardly ever talked about. A world where people often grieve silently, a world where everything doesn't happen as perfectly as expected. A world that turns hopes and dreams and anticipation upside down. A world that, sadly, many of you will know all too well. I knew I couldn't change the circumstances for families in similar situations, but little old me did have something tangible to offer. Heartfelt was already up and running in Australia, and now it's growing in so many areas here in NZ, thanks to an awesome bunch of volunteer photographers throughout the country. There are also other amazing organisations working in similar areas, offering services to these families... every one of them is inspiring. Through Heartfelt, we offer photos free of charge to families who have experienced stillbirths, premature births, or have children with serious and terminal illnesses. It's heartbreaking that this organisation even has to exist, but so incredibly awesome that it does. Not only does it provide treasured memories for these families, it also helps them to know they are not alone in their grief. It gives people an opening to share their experiences, and talk about their beautiful babies. These photos are so important to families who find out that their little child they have been nurturing for weeks or months is no longer going to be going home in their arms. I really had no idea of the scale of need for something like this here in our community at the beginning. Unfortunately, we have had many more call-outs than I expected. But I am so glad to be able help in even a small way. Yes, it is difficult. Very difficult at times. But I've seen the difference it can make, and on a personal note, it also makes me think about my little niece often too, which is really nice.
It's so important to remember these precious wee babies and their families. Life doesn't necessarily just move on easily for them, despite the rest of the world doing so. If you know of someone who has lost a child to miscarriage, stillbirth, neonatal death, or beyond... let them know you are thinking about them now. I figure this week is also a good opportunity to raise the awareness of Heartfelt and other similar organisations, so that families in need will be offered these services when they need them. More photographers are also needed around the country, so let me know if you know of anyone who may be willing to be part of this incredibly supportive and awesome organisation. I truly consider it a real privilege to be part of Heartfelt. But Heartfelt is just ONE organisation making a difference. There are SO many amazing people out there who are doing incredible things for people with all sorts of needs. We don't have to change the whole world, we can just make a difference in one person's world. No matter what you do as a job, no matter how much money you have or don't have, no matter what your circumstances are... you have something to offer. It doesn't need to be as part of a wider organisation, it might just be your offer of time, practical help, a smile, or a listening ear. We all have different gifts, talents, and abilities. Whether you feel they are big or small... what you can offer may mean the world to someone else. Massive thanks to the lovely people at Edinburgh Realty who asked to feature little old me and Liam in the latest edition of their magazine, 'Exclusive'! This isn't just any old property magazine. Uh uh. It is an awesome showcase of NZ businesses, cuisine & delicious recipes from local restaurants, news and events from around Otago and Central... and of course plenty of amazing properties to ogle over as well! Flick through the online magazine below, or find yourself a beautiful reeeeal magazine around town to actually feel and hold... it is much better that way! Thanks also to the stars of the article - Amy & James, Sean & Elizabeth, Emma & Abner, Pip & Pete, Catherine & Greg & the Bloomfield family - just some our lovely clients who make our job awesome! :) Just click on the magazine below and flick through the pages! You will find us on pages 6-7, but don't stop there, the whole mag is worth a look xx Ain't no party like the Mad Hatter's tea party! Crazy. Quirky. Bonkers. Whatever word you want to use, there is no denying that it sums us up. The Mad Hatter's Tea Party is one of the most loveable cinematic scenes of all time - of course it's been done before, but it just HAD to be done again! We needed a fix. A fix of creative insanity, a fix of fun and laugher, a fix of achievement, and a fix of jellybeans. One simple idea evolved into two photographer friends (and our husbands) teaming up - sharing ideas, making props and costumes on a humble little budget, turning other friends into cartoon characters, and converting a little forest in the middle of Arrowtown into a colourful, visual feast of a set... ringing with the joyful sounds of singing and laughter!! And seventeen months after the idea was formed... Heather (from Heather Ellis Photography) and I finally get to present to you our finished product.... a cinematic photo story book - our take on the Mad Hatter's scene!!! Of course I would love for you to sit on my couch, touch the hard cover, and flip the pages with your very own fingers to get lost in this wonderland story. But alas, there isn't enough room on my couch for all of you in cyberspace... so here is the next best thing!! Go on, go flip through the pages with your mouse at least.... click on this link to expand the book to full screen! {The book can be shared but not sold, most written content was obtained from the Disney Movie, Alice in Wonderland} And to Miss Heather - this making book was definitely a journey and I am soooooo glad it was a journey with YOU!!!! The number of times we got uncontrollable giggles throughout the shooting, editing, designing and publishing of this book... annnnd the amount of chocolate and RJ's we went through, just makes it all the more memorable, fun and awesome. Here's to you my friend! XOXOXO
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