In Home Goodness

Eloise asked me to capture her and the family at home as they are moving out soon. So many memories have been made here and the home is as much as a part of the family as they are!

It's where most of your memoires are made and it deserves to star as well. Plus there is no rescheduling if the weather is bad, in fact a rainy day is perfect for snuggles in side and baking cookies!

I would love to capture you and your family at home too! Here are some favourites from Team Baxters in home session.

K x

The Wheatley's

Barbara booked me in for her intergenerational session as her two children were visiting Sydney and she wanted to capture he granddaughters while they were still little! Not long after she booked in we realised that her daughter and I were primary school besties!

The weather wasn’t great for our session but luckily they had a private room at their local golf club with an open fire place so we eased into the session inside and waited for a break in the weather and ventured outside! Overcast days make for beautiful light as well so we embraced the weather and all had a great time!

We let the girls set the tone and speed of our session taking breaks when they needed! I always find happy kids make for a happy and fun session so I always take me lead from them!

I really love intergenerational sessions and this one was no exception, I left with a full heart and captured some beautiful images for this gorgeous family.

K x

Lifestyle Business Sessions

I don’t know about you but when i’m looking for a business to use I like to see the face or faces behind the name. It makes you feel connected to them.

My lifestyle business packages are a great way to connect with your customers and show them who you are and what you do. It’s a fun session where I will capture you in your element, get team shots, headshots and any branding shots too you may need.

I would love to chat and see how I can help you.

Kirstyn x

Welcome Baby Denver

He was born in water at home by his amazing mumma and surrounded by fairy lights and love. I was meant to be there but he had other plans and arrived quickly eager to meet his new family. We still had a special in-home session to capture this new family of 5. Here are some of my favourites from his session.

K x

Mini Maternity Shoot

Kristi and I ventured out at sunset to a beautiful location in the hills district! The sun surrounded her and she was truly glowing. My Maternity and Newborn session package is great to capture you just before your bub arrives. I can’t wait to meet her little man soon and show you more from her full family of 5 session!!!

A break in the weather!

With a very limited window for this family session we were so lucky to get a break in the weather and captured some beautiful memories! Little Brother Chris (who i have known since he was 11 and he’s my best friends annoying little brother, not so annoying now) and his beautiful family were out here from Canada where they now live! So it was the perfect time to get together, dressed up and capture some fun memories.

Event photography...

Do you ever find that you have an event or party and afterwards realise that you have forgotten to take photos as you have been so busy! All that hard work you put into organising the event, from the cake to the decorations and the outfits chosen! I love when people contact me to capture their special event so they can relax and know they will have memories of the day.

 

I recently captured Brooklyn’s Christening. I have worked with this beautiful family 5 times to capture birthdays and christenings!

Drop me a message and we can chat about your next event!

K x

Intergenerational Sessions

 I have had a rush of extended family photos, or as i am now calling them ‘Intergenerational Sessions’!

I really love seeing all the different generations of a family come together and capture some beautiful memories. A lot of families go out for a nice lunch after as everyone is dressed up and looking their best!

No matter how big or small your family is i can’t recommend all getting together and capturing you all together now 💕 They are also such a cost effective way of sharing the cost and getting some beautiful images to treasure for years to come.

The Babikians were so much fun… here are some of my favourites from our session.

Kirstyn x

Spirited Children

So you’re considering getting a photo session but are thinking, my kids aren’t well behaved enough or, they won't smile. Will I waste my money? I have had a lot of clients tell me this over the years. Well I’m here to tell you, please don’t worry!

As a mum of 2 kids on the spectrum, and a big kid myself, I promise I will win them over! We will have fun and make them feel special. Letting your kids feel in charge lowers their anxiety and let's them shine. While we have fun I will capture their free-spirited nature and your beautiful connection with them. 

Please don’t worry about telling them to look at me or what to do. I have lots of tricks for that so leave that to me. I often see the stressed looks on the parents faces while I am editing, worried that their kids aren’t smiling or the perfect shot can't be captured.  Just relax and trust me. I will capture who you all are, chaos and all.

They are only little for so long and you will miss it when they grow up!

Kirstyn x

Meet Baby Cairo!

I met Baby Cairos beautiful family in May and finally got to visit again to capture some sweet new memories . As always so much fun with them. Can’t wait to see you all again soon for your Christmas photos.

K x

Welcoming Baby Mackenzie

It was so nice to be back doing in-home sessions! I was welcomed by big smiles from big sister Piper and big brother Hunter and we had so much fun!

Team Dargan

I’m finally getting around to blogging some of my pre lockdown sessions!

We had such a great time at this mini session. These are a great cheaper alternative to my full sessions and you will get some great images of you and your loved ones. Here are some of my favourites from this session with Team Dargan!

With Freedom day on the horizon it’s a great time to emerge from our lockdown bubble and celebrate family. Maybe after a visit to the hairdresser!?

Hello Baby Lily

Before lockdown i got to meet Baby Lily.

I really love in-home sessions, we can take our time and have breaks. We get to capture one of the most beautiful times in your life and your newborn bubble that really is a haze after you come out the other side.

2020 - The year that was!

Ok well we didn’t see that coming.

2020 you were defiantly not what i expected you to be! I have seen so many posts about all the bad things in 2020. Don’t get me wrong, there were and are so many! Countless live’s lost, family and friends displaced, businesses and livelihoods gone thanks to Covid. However, out of the devastation left in its path there were a lot of moments that I found made people slow down and see what was really important. I thought I would go through some of my favorite moments during 2020!

First up the Drive by birthdays and celebrations!

After we saw it taking off online our little group of close friends jumped onboard with this ISO celebration craze. I think it was even a little more special and certainly a birthday that wont be forgotten!

ZOOM!

At the beginning of 2020 I thought that zoom was a sound my son used to make when he was racing his matchbox cars really fast! But now it is one of the top ways we connect. We all found new ways to maintain our connections online including school meetings, birthdays, mums nights in and even our therapy sessions for my son with RIDBC!

Drive-up family sessions

A way to still be able to capture families and being socially distanced at the same time

Home based learning & working form home and all the rest!

Lockdown was when we found out how valuable our teachers really were! I knew how amazing my kids teachers were but being home with them for what seemed like eternity really cemented that for me. A lot of us became teachers and thank goodness our school was so amazing and really stepped up when all of a sudden we all had to learn from home. We went out for family walks for PE, went on bear hunts, had lots of baking for maths including Anzac Day biccies. We had Easter hat parades on zoom and there was a lot of free play time in our house! Hubby got to work form home some days so it was a nice break to have a substitute teacher on those days except when he had his very important lunch meetings on the veranda!

Most of all I discovered how resilient our kids were with all the big changes they had to face this year. Sure we had way to much screen time and to many treats. And if i had a dollar for every time i heard “ I’m hungry and board “well then I would be rich. But they adapted where they needed to and when they’re older i hope they look back on this time with some fond memories and will know never to let the toilet paper supply run to low.

Here’s to 2021 and i’m sure many more challenges it will throw at us!

Happy New Year to you all, Kirstyn x

Welcoming baby Archibald

When a whole family comes together to welcome a new baby something special happens! Especially having two grandmothers there to love on this little guy. This was so much more than a newborn session, it was a celebration of family coming together.

Mums get in the frame!

It’s 2018. I used to write NYE resolutions and then never stick to them. Loose weight was always on the list. I loose it and put it on and so on. Its always a reason that I don’t want to be in photos. I hate what I look like when I have put on weight. I remember getting married thinking I wish I had lost more. Now I look back on those photos thinking "damn I wish I looked like that now".
 
You need to stop and just enjoy the body your in and if you  loose weight then you can get some new photos taken to celebrate the new you. But if you don’t, you risk only ever existing in your children’s memories by always being behind the camera. Do you look back on old family photos and ever think "wow Mum really was a bit too big", Ummm no! You see her as your mum, your world.
 
The biggest reason I get from Mums when thinking about getting family photos taken is "oh I hate how I look". I know as I have been guilty of this. But you need to stop and think of why are you getting family photos done? For me it’s to capture the moment, the reality of what is happening now in your life. Our kids are growing up so quickly. These are the moments I want to capture, their little personalities, the hugs, the tickles and the fun! Because soon they’ll be teenagers and you will be creating different memories.
 
I have a beautiful friend who is now a Mum to three boys. I have been lucky enough to be there and capture memories for them. For her this is extra special. She doesn’t have many photos at all of her mum because the unthinkable happened. She lost her Mum to cancer when she was young. Her Mum hated to be in photos because of the way she looked. She wont let this happen to her family. In her words her Mums size was the last thing she looked at. She just saw her mother and the woman who meant the most to her in the world.
 
So this year I’m aiming to get in the frame in our life as we know it. Warts and all. Because when my kids look back on these they will remember that I was there too. I hope that you do the same.

Kirstyn x

 

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Source: www.kirstynsmartphotography.com.au

And baby makes three...

Well... what could be more exciting than the birth of your own children. When your little brother and his amazing partner have their little girl!  I am lucky enough to become and Aunty again so I'm reliving it through them.

Seriously this makes me miss that stage of life so much... the newborn smell that I wish I could bottle, the tiny clothes, even the sleepless nights and the fear you have no ideas what your doing! All these things and the endless possibilities being a new parent brings!

Well your new baby girl is so lucky to have you as her parents. You're taking every day as it comes and enjoying everything being a new parent is, you got this guys! Thank you so much guys for letting me be there and document these special moments in your life...