Family [brisbane family photography]

Posted on 07/06/2016 by maddie

In August 2012 I photographed a gorgeous maternity session in a pretty field, where I met a beautiful couple who were expecting their first baby. The sun was shining, they were excited and within a month or so I was given the chance to photograph their new baby girl under the shade of the spring Jacaranda blooms. Since then, I’ve watched their little girl grow, with mini sessions every year or so (super sweet!) and now in 2016 an outdoor family maternity session in January, followed by a session at home with their new baby boy, just a few weeks ago – divine!

Spending time with them highlighted just how fast young families grow and change. My personal favourite mummy quote when my kids were little was ‘the days are long but the years are short’ [Gretchin Rubin]. As I pondered my gratitude attitude back then, I appreciated the words personally from within one of those young family stories. And now as my kids have grown (my baby is five already!) when you get to watch a young family from afar it is even more obvious how quickly they change! It’s truly a privilege to share in the story of family beginnings and an honour to see my clients cherish their little ones. I know these two little darlings will bring their parents loads of joy! Have a beautiful weekend! Maddie xx

blogapril16b

River [brisbane newborn photography]

Posted on 25/09/2015 by maddie

I’ve heard it said…that the name River… implies that the recipient of that name will lead an adventurous life… will pave their own way…will carve new paths… and push against the common, foraging into new ground. What a glorious honour…and what a grand dream for a new babe.

I truly love meeting new parents with their little bundles – there is something wonderful about your firstborn, the massive learning curve that is enveloped by your heart that has grown in an instant.

It was a pleasure to get to know this loving, creative family as they welcomed their new little man last month. Enjoy x

Sugar and spice [brisbane newborn photography]

Posted on 12/04/2013 by maddie

When I had my own first baby four years ago my husband and I had wanted the gender to be a surprise. So when our baby was born, we were thrilled to realise we had a delightful little girl in our arms (what we secretly had wanted!). But like many mums, I had a small thought that I would endeavour not to overdo the ‘traditional pink’ look in the clothing department. Within a few weeks though, we were inundated with pink gifts, pink clothes, pink hats and pink shoes. And the funny thing was, I soon realised, that my little girl looked absolutely ADORABLE in pink! I tried red and blue and yellow and nothing made her look as rosy and sweet as pink did. But I loved it. So she went on to spend the next few years fashioning various shades of wonderful pink and I enjoyed every second of it!

So far this year, my newborn sessions this year have been a good mix of both boys and girls. But I thought I’d share a real girly one from earlier this year that I’ve been meaning to post. This is adorable little Poppy with her mum and dad. I met them a few months ago and Poppy certainly suited the sweetness of pink. Her mum has done an amazing job creating her nursery too and the whole session was truly wonderful. We all had a relaxing time spending the morning at their family home, a little while inside the nursery and then some time out in the garden. So cute!

merry christmas & a little giveaway

Posted on 20/12/2012 by maddie

Just a quick but meaningful note to wish you all a wonderful Christmas and all the best for the beginning of the New Year! 2012 has been an amazing (and full!) year for me and as I begin my focus primarily on portraits, I am very excited to start a year of even more wonderful people stories. A special and beautiful thank you to all of my portrait, wedding and commercial clients from this year, it has been TRULY delightful to meet each and every one of you. I feel honored that you let me into the most precious moments of your lives and allowed me to capture your story xx so thank you xx

Also, in the spirit of giving, I would like to offer a giveaway! I cherish the fact that my photography surrounds me with some of the most beautiful times in life and I know that for many others this isn’t the case. Be in their work industry or just the hard seasons of life. So for this reason I would love to give away one session as a sweet etta photography gift, to pass on the love. The session can be any type – pregnancy, newborn, baby, child, family, couple, fashion portfolio or individual. It will include a 30-60 minute session in North Brisbane during January, an online private gallery of 20 images, two linen print display sets and a disc of your ten favourite digital images (valued over $500). To enter the draw, please leave a sweet comment of any sort below and make sure you include your first name and email (only your first name and comment will show below). I will draw a winner by RANDOM selection from comments at 12pm on Christmas Eve (noon) and then email the lucky person/people to let them know. All the best to you and I hope this will bring a little piece of joy to someone’s world who truly needs it xx

As I close off for 2012, I send much love to all and also ask that you too do something kind for a stranger this Christmas – just for the sake of old fashioned goodness! Pay for a strangers fuel. Cook your neighbour a meal. Tell someone in customer service what a great job they are doing. Let a car into your lane even if it means you’ll miss the lights. It keeps your heart rather happy and you never know whose world you may change. So for now farewell, I will be returning to work on January 7th and will respond to all emails in date order on my return. See you in 2013! x Maddie

people stories [brisbane party photography]

Posted on 06/07/2012 by maddie

You may have heard through the grapevine, that I won’t be taking any new wedding bookings. Yes it’s true. It was a big decision for me (and sad too – I adore weddings!) but I felt that to go to the next level of growth it was time I needed to choose to either shoot only-weddings or let them go. As much as I want to be able to do it all (and have a young family!) it was time to refocus. So after some deliberation, I have decided to opt out of shooting weddings stories. Sad, but a good choice for my work life balance for 2013. And thankfully, many of the lovely brisbane couples getting married, will also have babies, parties and creative business ventures, so I may be able to meet them anyway!

I still have more weddings to shoot this year which I am very excited about – so you’ll definitely see some of those on the blog soon! But that aside, those who know me well, know that I adore celebrations. So to satisfy my love of a good party, I now have a special package for personal party photography – to capture the story of an event – the atmosphere, the details, the fun (from $400). With all the amazing party ideas on the web these days, more and more people are creating wonderful, unique events and the details and fun times there also deserve to be remembered! So if you’re throwing a party sometime soon – I’d love an invitation to capture the fun! Here is a few shots from a recent first birthday party – good times and one very creative mummy! Have a great weekend! Maddie