MY JOURNAL

On a freezing day in January Mike and Jenni came down from Busan to spend the afternoon with me and have their engagement photos taken. The week before, Gwangju had, had the most snow it had seen in quite some time and made the city look like a winter wonderland. Really pretty to look at, but being out in it takes a little bravery 😉

Lisa has a special place in my heart because she was my first ever maternity client. I remember how nervous I was. I had a little book with poses drawn out, only one lens to work with and pretended that I knew exactly what I was doing when I had very little idea at all! But Lisa remained so calm and encouraged me every minute of that shoot, she made me feel so capable. I don’t think many clients realize that without knowing it, they teach us little things and impact our careers positively in numerous ways!

The first time I met the Billet family was for their daughter Briony’s newborn session and now she is already 3 years old!! I love seeing how all the children grow up and develop their own personalities, and little B is a cutie!! But on this rainy autumn morning I was not there for her, I came to photograph her new born brother, Griffin. I often try to photograph the newborns in their home (if the lighting conditions permit) because they are still so sensitive to the outside world. In their home they feel safe, it’s more convenient for parents and tells more of a story. Some day Griffin can see where he spent his first days and parents have a keepsake of this wonderful time (that goes by too fast) to look back on for many years to come.

On a magnificent fall morning, I made the trip down to the quaint county of Gochang where I was to photograph a lovely traditional wedding. Close friends and family came from all parts of the country to celebrate the marriage of Seong-cheol and In-hye. The couple have been together for years so this was really a just formality. Even so, it was a lovely celebration enjoyed by all!

Nigel and Serena were visiting Korea from Hong Kong in the early autumn of last year. She wanted to have her pre-wedding photographs taken while they were on their trip and had her heart set on Jeju Island. However, due to the fact that it was the long Thanksgiving holiday it would have been nearly impossible to get the team over there because of a lack of tickets. So I convinced her and Nigel to come and meet me in my beautiful province of Jeollnamdo and we set to work on planning a half day shoot.

On a crisp autumn morning I embarked on my journey to Jacob and April’s beautiful wedding. The wedding was held at Island CC Resort near to Ansan. On arrival at the resort I was so excited because not only was it a beautiful day, but the resort had really pretty architecture and was surrounded by mountains. It was the perfect setting!

It’s really cool how I get to watch families around me grow. How I get to see babies grow up to become their own, unique little people. When moms contact me and share the news that their family is growing, I feel so much joy for them and I get excited to share in the the next chapter of their happiness.

Three years ago this lovely family came to me to photograph their little girl’s 100th day milestone. Later that year I was at her first birthday party. In the meantime they stayed in touch, always sending pictures of Eunchae growing up. I love this journey that I walk with the families I photograph. Seeing the kids grow up and the love and happiness between the families is so special to me.

During the late spring, I made my way down to Busan to photograph the mamma-to-be in her new home. Our original plan was to go out in the afternoon to take advantage of the pretty spring sunset light, but between all the chatting and the lack of accurate planning from both Dorette and myself, we had to get up the next morning very early. You see, I’m terrible at direction and failed to realise that Busan is on the east coast of Korea, so of course the sun wouldn’t set over the ocean. Luckily we were having so much fun catching up and Busan has so many good restaurants we weren’t bothered too much and instead went to fill our bellies with some good food and ice-cream. The next morning we ventured out at 5:30am to the famous Haeundae Beach. Our timing was perfect! Just as we arrived there was beautiful golden light coming through the little garden at the entrance and we played around with the morning rays for a bit.

This past spring Queenie and her family travelled around Europe and Asia and decided to include Jeju Island in their itinerary. As they were planning their vacation, they wanted to take a day to have some photos taken to remember their trip by.