I photographed fire performers Karl Wulff, Anne-Marie Richards and Lillian Howarth during Nelson Fire Club event at Community Art Works.

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Portraits of my husband Alexis taken for my level 5 digital photography course.

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These photographs were taken during a lockdown, featuring my husband Alexis, Lana (dog) and Honey (cat) at our home and on a walk in the grampians.

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Elia and Georgie are best friends and they are both naturally amazing models. It was such a pleasure to work with them, if you can call it work. I had so much fun getting to know them while we made these photos. This was a very spontaneous photoshoot. We each brought a bag of clothes and played dress up while exploring Founders Park. Hope you enjoy this set.


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It was a pleasure photographing the beautiful belly-dance queen Lisa Maia Ambrose on Milnthorpe beach. Hope you enjoy these images! 
 
See behind the scenes photos here.

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For part three of my collaboration with Summah we wanted to do something a bit different. I had this neoprene skirt, chain-mail top and vintage fur coat hanging around in my wardrobe, which I obviously don't get many chances to wear out. I also had some black lipstick left over from my goth days and some $2 shop silver eyeshadow! It all fit together perfectly to create this weird unique alien look.

Wharariki beach just before sunset happened to be the perfect location and timing. Isn't the lighting spectacular? And once again Summah did an amazing job modelling in the freezing cold!

There are so many awesome photos it was so hard to choose the best ones. I'm so exited about this shoot, it is definitely one of my favourite projects I have done so far.

Check out my Behind the Scenes blog post to see how this all came together. 

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M

This is part two of my recent collaboration with Summah. She's wearing her fleetwood bells from Spell Designs and crochet top by She Made Me from Free People. 

For this shoot we went out to Wharariki beach and had the most amazing time. The landscape is so beautiful and there's endless possibilities for locations. I definitely plan on going back there soon! It was absolutely freezing (there was literally snow on the hills) so I think Summah deserves some applause for making it look like it was the middle of summer. 

Hope you enjoy! Part three is coming soon with much more strange, quirky, extraterrestrial vibes...

Click here for Behind the Scenes. 

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M

My friend Summah came to stay with me for a few days and we had a great time creating some beautiful images. I'll be posting them as three different series, this being the first one. 

The weather outside was grey and miserable but we really wanted to do some photography so I did her makeup, we chose a few different items of clothing and then spent a few hours messing around in the bathtub.

Summah is an amazing model and a great photographer aswell. I've done alot of collaborations with her over the past couple of years. If you want to see more of our work together just look on my website under Modeling and Photography and you're sure to find plenty of images.

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Jazlyn is such a wonderful model. She's only thirteen but she acted very professionally, took direction well and was open to all of my ideas. I would definitely love to work with her again.

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Dove was undoubtably one of the best models I've worked with. She was open to all of my ideas, provided input in the creative process, seemed unfazed by the unfortunate weather conditions and was totally aware of every inch of her body when it came to posing.

We were both fans of Kirtsy Mitchell's photography and Dove suggested we use her as inspiration. So I did her makeup pale, with soft eyes and bold lips. I also loved the idea of covering her in autumn leaves, although everything was saturated from the pouring rain so we ended up only using a few. In the end it turned out perfect anyway.

The caterpillar eyebrows idea had randomly came to my mind a couple of weeks before this shoot so I was eager to test it out. And again my wonderful model remained totally calm as we placed the wriggling critters on her face.

Click here to see what it all looked like behind the scenes.
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This is my beautiful cousin Hannah from Austria. Her and her family moved to New Zealand for one year and are currently living near Motueka. They're close to the end of their stay here so I thought I'd take the opportunity to photograph Hannah. 

She's a dancer and does gymnastics, so it was really fun getting her to do flips and jumping splits for this shoot. Aswell as just being generally gorgeous, so of course I had to get some natural portraits of her aswell. Those eyes... staring right into your soul.

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M

It was absolutely wonderful to reconnect with my childhood friend Sundari the other day. I was lucky enough to collaborate with her for three different projects in one week! First we modelled together for 'Wandering Spirits' by Summah Noakes and then on the same day as this shoot Gabrielle Wee photographed us for 'Sun and Moon.' I still can't believe we managed to get everything done, to this standard, within such a short amount of time with the sun disappearing so quickly. 

Sunnie left a few days after this to begin her adventures overseas. If you want see what she's up to now you can follow her on Instagram @sunniezuleta. She's also a very talented photographer and one of the best models I've worked with, so if you ever get the chance to collaborate with her - go for it! I couldn't be happier with the images from this shoot. My only regret is that I didn't spend more time with this incredible woman before she left. I wish her all the best on her travels and can't wait to catch up when she returns!

Click here to see behind the scenes.

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M

I haven't posted on here for a while because I've been super busy having summer adventures. But I've somewhat settled down now, back in Golden Bay, and I'm working on a few different projects which you'll soon be hearing much more about!

When I asked Izsi and Grace if they would like to model for me I wasn't sure if they even knew eachother, I just thought they'd look perfect together for what I had in mind. This was both of their first times modelling and they did such a great job. I wanted to do something a little bit different to my usual style (as I usually do) and went with a whimsical, innocent, friendship theme.

They each brought their own dresses and I styled them and did their makeup. We had so many to choose from but we only got around to doing one look. But that's ok because these ones were totally perfect!

I couldn't be happier with the outcome of this shoot. It feels so good to be doing photography again!

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M

After an amazing week in the Coromandel we flew down to Christchurch to pick up Isaac's new van. Our flight was delayed so we didn't get in until 10pm. His dad picked us up and drove us to where he had his housetruck parked up in a red zone. After the 2011 earthquakes alot of buildings in Christchurch were damaged beyond repair and left abandoned. We were exhausted after our long trip so we went straight to sleep in the new van. When I woke up I realized where we were and couldn't help but feel curious... so I went exploring this nearby house and took my camera with me.

This was actually the first time I'd photographed something other than people. It was an interesting experience for me which I really enjoyed. I made a point not to move or touch anything, every object was found exactly where it had been left. Each image has a bit of a story to it, and they all tie together with a common theme.

1. the dandelion was the first thing I saw, growing right in the middle of the driveway, which tempted me to go and explore the rest of the place. It had emerged from a crack in the brick and has become this magnificently beautiful plant. I love the natural symmetry and the intense colours in this image.

2. the dried up pool and the estuary at low tide looked so surreal right next to eachother. I put these two images together because I feel there's a significance, in that the feather represents freedom but it is stuck under the brick, and the boat is a potential way to escape but there is no water around it. Deep I know haha... I thought they tied together nicely anyway.

3. this traffic cone looked so out of place that I had to make it stand out even more by partially desaturating the rest of the image. These bits of the old fence had been piled up in the back yard so I made use of them aswell. I love the depth of field in this one, I counted nine different points of focus. See if you can spot them all...

4. I like this image for alot of reasons. I like that although the original plant is dead, the fresh new plant has grown out of the area of the pot which has broken away. And I like all the details like the crack in the wall on the left side and the little seashell carved on the broken off piece of pot. This has alot of meaning that I can't explain in words right now, but it's all open to personal interpretation anyway. It's art after all.

5. this one is a little bit strange. It's not very pleasing to the eye, but then again, it's not supposed to be. I love seeing things that just look totally out of context. Like I said before, I made a point not to move anything around. This missing piece of a children's toy happened to be lying in the overgrown garden. And it also happened to be my favourite number, three.

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It was a pleasure to photograph my friend Polly and her baby Blue in Wellington last week. His full name is Indigo Blue Besley Le Dorre and he's nine months old today. The idea of this shoot was inspired by a project called 4thtrimesterbodies which is "dedicated to embracing the beauty inherent in the changes brought to our bodies by motherhood, childbirth and breastfeeding." 

My goal was to make sure Polly was comfortable the whole time and to capture some beautiful natural moments between her and her baby that she can cherish forever. It was my first time photographing a child and also working with a semi-nude model so this was a good learning experience for me. Polly said to me afterwards that this was a scary thing for her to do but I made it easy. That meant so much to me because that's what I'd hoped for, and that she can see how beautiful she is from these photos.

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My new friend Teesh and I had a wonderful adventure in Wellington's beautiful Botanical Gardens on Tuesday. We accidentally ended up spending three and a half hours there and got sooooooo many amazing shots that are all so different and awesome! This is actually the coolest place ever. We both brought along some clothes to mix and match and they all just looked perfect. The yellow jacket and the space top are mine, the red jacket and the stripy dress are hers and the checkered dress is her friend Anna's. I have 300 photos to choose from so you'll be seeing plenty more of this gorgeous girl in the next few weeks.

I've been up in Wellington for two weeks now and I had so many plans and people to meet up with and photograph. If I was meaning to catch up with you and haven't yet, please forgive me. We might have to postpone until next time. Sadly I was in a terrible headspace for the first week where I didn't want to leave the house or see anybody. I got over it after a while and my amazing friends helped me snap out of it. Thank you so much to everyone who sent me messages or came and visited me. I don't know what I'd do without you. I'm so grateful for all the wonderful people in my life.

I've had an amazing time up here over all, I've made alot of new friends and had heaps of fun going to gigs and dancing and having picnics and partying and chilling out. I've done two photoshoots now and I'm keen to squeeze a couple more in in the next couple of days if I can. Photographing people makes me so unbelievably happy. Thanks so much Teesh for reminding me of that when I needed it the most.

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I had the idea for this photoshoot a while ago but had no idea who to ask to model for me. Then Kas came and stayed at my house in Takaka and she was keen to collab. I was expecting her to be weirded out when I said "ok so first you're going to be vomiting up flower petals" but she went along with it enthusiastically, and patiently did it over and over agin so I could get the perfect shot. And she didn't even get annoyed at me giving directions like "ok good, but look even sicker, like you just ate the most foul thing you've ever tasted" and "hey just come and lie down in the wet grass for 10 mins while I rearrange every little piece of your hair and throw flowers around you." Yea... we had fun though!

I decided to do something super colourful for a change. Isn't her hair amazing! And that dress is perfect, I'm actually so jealous. We had a lovely time catching up and I expect you'll be seeing more of our work together in the future.
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I spent last Saturday afternoon with these two beautiful creatures whom I had the pleasure of photographing. I'd had the idea for the image of Gia with her legs in the air lying back on the armchair when I was at her house a few weeks before. I was sitting in the lounge waiting for her to get ready and staring into the corner where the empty armchair was. I thought that it would make a wonderful background, and I'd been meaning to photograph her for ages anyway, so when I got home I drew a stick figure version of the composition so I wouldn't forget. 

Then when the photoshoot day came I happened to be chilling out with Storm and a few of our other friends after a crazy night on the town and he said he was keen to come and help. So we all turned up at Gia's house in the afternoon, after going on a mission to find our cars and get some food, and lay down in the sun.

Our friend Renee had her little suitcase full of all her gorgeous handmade jewelry and Storm bought this awesome necklace. You can check out her facebook page Renegade Strange or see her around selling her things and doing hair wraps on the streets of Nelson and Takaka or wherever she happens to be. 

I'd bought the red oriental jacket at Lady Bug Boutique a few days earlier, even though it didn't fit me and the colour wasn't quite right, I'd just had a feeling that it would find it's place somewhere in my life. Sure enough I got Storm to try it on for the photoshoot and immediately I knew it belonged to him. Since him modelling had been a spontaneous decision I didn't bring any appropriate male clothes. But it worked out fine because I had been wearing some gold flared pants the night before which happened to fit him perfectly and worked with the outfit I had for Gia. I love it when everything just flows together like that.

I had such an awesome day, thank you to everyone involved. I got the exact picture I'd imagined and so much more!

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I have so many amazing shots of this girl, it's always so hard to choose! Brooke was awesome to work with, she's so relaxed in front of the camera and took direction really well. Definitely serious model potential right here! Cheers to her little sister who came along and patiently helped carry her things while we wandered around. Also thanks heaps to the weather for staying fine for our entire shoot after a typical Nelson spring day of changing its mind every half hour. After I took the last shot of the day it literally started hailing. I enjoy what I do so much and I love meeting other creative people, so please feel free to get in touch with me if you want to collaborate. Hope you enjoy these images!

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I had a wonderful experience doing my very first maternity photoshoot with the beautiful Aydee. Her friend Hazel came along and helped us out with make-up, styling and posing. The silhouette shots were so much fun to create, I always love trying new techniques. Pregnancy is such a wonderful, magical time and I'm so glad I got to capture it in these images. I hope you enjoy them.

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It was so good to catch up with Immy and Indigo on Saturday. It was pouring with rain when I woke up so I cancelled the shoot but we decided to chill in town anyway. We got a drink and wandered around for a bit and stopped in at one of my favourite shops, Whirled, and found this awesome necklace. Then I felt inspired so we went back to the flat and got Immy all dressed up. I love her long, glorious, white-blond hair. It's very - Danaerys Stormborn. We'd been planning this shoot for a while but since I'd cancelled it earlier we didn't have all our gear so we got spontaneous instead. This is why I shouldn't plan things. They never turn out the way I intended but usually end up better.
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Oonagh was so fun to work with. She brought some funky outfits with her and we wandered around Nelson finding random hidden corners like this empty carpark, alleyway and tiny staircase.

When I'm doing a spontaneous photoshoot like this I like to explore and see interesting shapes and unique beauty in all of my surroundings. I try to do this as much as I can in my everyday life aswell but I often just walk by not noticing the details.

I choose people to model for me based on their quirky style, natural beauty and individuality and I try to capture that in my images. With each new experience I learn more about my personal photography style which is constantly developing and improving, I doubt that will ever stop. I hope you enjoy this serious of photos!
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Here's some of my favourite shots from my collaboration with Jesse Maxwell and Summah Noakes last friday. Summah came along to capture what went on behind the scenes of our little adventure into a creepy abandoned house. Jesse's makeup was inspired by Clockwork Orange hence the one sided bottom eyelashes. The third and fourth photo were taken with a long shutter-speed and an extra flash, which created that trippy layered look and was so much fun to make. 

Thanks so much again to Shell at Allkindz for letting us borrow these awesome clothes. If you ever need any funky costumes, gorgeous clothing from local designers, quality second-hand goods or if you want professionally done dreadlocks please go and see her!

I love collaborating with other creative people and I want to do stuff like this as much as I possibly can. I love photography because it gets me out of the house and meeting up with awesome, talented, interesting people who I wouldn't normally have the courage to talk to. Thanks so much Jesse for spending the last afternoon of your holiday back in Nelson to chill out with us and create some awesome images.

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Firstly I'd like to thank the extremely talented woman behind Circle of Wolves Jewelry for creating the beautiful custom-made crystal crown and necklace for this shoot! Also a huge thanks to Allkindz for lending me this wonderful dress. And of course, my amazing model and muse, Morgan! 

I had the idea for this shoot before I'd even met Morgan, but when I did I knew that she'd be perfect. I was inspired by a character from one of my favourite childhood stories, Morgana le Fay, from The Legends of King Arthur. Especially the movie "Merlin" where Morgana is played by Helena Bonham Carter, and also "The Mists of Avalon." This is my second time working with Morgan and it was a pleasure yet again. She's got a bright future ahead of her.
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I've been experimenting with new techniques and pushing myself to take risks alot more. It's all in the little things, like not talking myself down when I have an idea. Even when I was doing Morgan's makeup, I kept questioning wether I should make it darker or add more details. But in the end I just did it and I'm so happy with the result.

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We had a wonderful morning yesterday doing this photoshoot. Danaan and Zoe pulled an all-nighter and I woke up super early to meet them at the Queen's Gardens. I borrowed this dress from Allkindz and bought the eyeball necklace which ended up becoming a statement piece during the shoot aswell.

This makeup was inspired by Danaan's idol, David Bowie, and applied skillfully by Zoe. We came up with the concept about a week ago and pulled this all together, I hope you enjoy!

Don't forget to check out Zoe's make up page here, Allkindz costume shop here and Danaan's music here.
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