My birthday

My fingers are currently gliding over my brand spanking new keyboard as I write this. Talk about a hit birthday present. Amba has quickly realised that a technology related present for any occasion will always set my world on fire. And a shiny, sleek keyboard is no exception. When I opened it this morning I think the neighbour's heard my shriek of delight.

I woke up to two little boys jumping on my bed, waving their home made cards around and asking if they could help me open my presents. A perfect way to kick off a birthday. In the past I've put way too much emphasis on my birthday (it's all about me, right?), and made a pact with myself just to let this birthday wash over me.


[Photos circa 2003]

It's my birthday and I'm naturally going to do the expected naval gazing. It's birthdays, not New Year's Eve, that I end up spending way too much time thinking about the year's that been, what have I done with my life, and where in the heck am I headed. Usually I make promises to myself that the following year of my life will be better, that I'll try harder, that I'll eat less chocolate.

And I wish I could say that this year was different, and I'm instead eating pizza in front of the tellie, but no, I'm getting all introspective.

I find myself thinking about what I was like when these photos were taken. Pre kids, pre photography, pre 'serious' life. I remember being fun. I laughed a lot, and loudly. And often inappropriately. I read books, went to gigs, drank too much beer, lingered over meals, got teary in movies, wore outrageous clothes, loved with overwhelming passion. I liked that me, very much.

Looking at these I realise just how much I've changed. (Okay, so the one below I just look like I've been, well, you know). I'm not that girl anymore, and that's really regrettable. It's not just my circumstances that have changed, but that I've let those circumstances change who I am. I'm not fun any more. I'm all work and no play. For some reason I equated having children and running a business with having to assume some sort of boring persona. I've managed to get myself so caught up in what I thought I should be doing, and have totally forgotten what it is that I actually love doing.



So the plan for my 29th year of life is to get more of that me back. To stop letting schedules, and balanced meals, and keeping appearances overtake me. To do more of the things that I love, to invest time in the people that I love doing them with. To wear stupid hats at the pub for my friend's entertainment.



Look out, here comes the old Meaghan. (I'm totally starting with a new hair cut. My hair used to be so cute, and now it's so mumsy!)

* Meaghan

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A revelation on an autumnal afternoon

I happen to be privy to some information which informs me it was Jess' birthday yesterday. So this blog post take the form of a birthday present to her. Hope you had a wonderful day yesterday Jess, and those wonderful boys of yours spoiled you.

I've known Jess for upteen years and been a reoccurring theme in my life. She is the older sister of one of my dearest friends, and as a result I've spent a fair bit of time with her over the years. She even employed me once despite me having no aptitude whatsoever for being a 'sandwich artist'. We had our children around the same time, and we've swapped stories about horrendous morning sickness. I consider her a friend, not just my friend's sister.





Jess met Mark, fell in love, married, and now has three vivacious boys. Reuben, Oliver and Liam are a whirlwind unto themselves; a whirlwind that you want to get caught up in to enjoy the fun. They were excited, inquisitive, playful and cheeky during our photo shoot at Werribee mansion. I hadn't seen Oliver and Liam since they were newbowns so I loved meeting them properly.









I'm always interested in the way other people parent, in the hope that I pick up tips and techniques that will help my own parenting. I learnt so much from my afternoon with Jess and Mark. They were a revelation to me. Jess and Mark enjoy their children. They laugh loudly when one of the children do something incredibly funny. They point out to each other if a child is being particularly cute. Jess and Mark don't sigh or roll their eyes when the kids bicker, they just get on with things. Jess assured me that it's not always as peachy as I witnessed and I know they go through struggles. But what amazed me that despite the struggles of raising 3 children (including twins), they can still laugh and enjoy their children. It was this which was the revelation to me.









Seriously, you fellas are awesome.









Happy birthday Jess!


* Meaghan



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From the heart

Sometimes as a photographer I get caught up in the technical side of things. Making sure my setting are 100% perfect and that the light is in the best possible place. My head is a whizz with apertures and shutter speeds. When I'm like this photo shoots can get very stressful becuase I'm caught up in getting everything perfect.

As i drove to meet Jess and her gorgeous boys I gave myself a little talking to. Forget perfect, shoot with your heart.







So that's what I did. I let my heart guide me. I concentrated on the connection between Jess, Ollie and Riley. I looked for what made them unique and beautiful. I looked for moments between them to photograph.







We chatted, laughed and looked for planes in the sky.








Jess has a wonderful bond with her sons. She was warm and kind to them during our shoot, and they in turn respond with overwhelming love for her. A photo shoot with two small children can be quite stressful for mothers, understandably so. Jess however was calm, serene and a professional negotiator.





These brothers are going to change the world.







I drove home with my heart singing because it was so happy it finally got to take the lead.

* Meaghan x


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MAEVE

I used to strictly be a book reader. There was always so many books I wanted to read that I never got around to magazines. I would flick through friend's copies of Rolling Stone, then go back to whatever tome I was reading at the time. Then when I moved to Melbourne I discovered the free street presses, and would read them on the tram on the way to uni. From then on I was much a a book reader as a magazine reader. I discovered the joy of being able to borrow magazines from the library (especially great when you're a broke uni student), and the delightful sin of reading the reallly trashy ones in the doctor's waiting room.



I've even written for a couple, including a rather hilarious turn as a columnist for Practical Parenting magazine. I wrote about what it was like to be a young mum with no clue about what to do with a baby. It was honest, I bared my warts and all. Yes, I even wrote about getting caught without a nappy and having to fashion one out of one of those green eco bags.

And now I have the chance to write again for a magazine. MAEVE magazine is launching tomorrow, and I'm so proud to be a part of it. MAEVE is an online, free magazine. They describe what they are all about best on their website:

"MAEVE appreciates that you are all grown up, that you are intelligent and street smart. That you are raising kids and creating a new generation. You have a desire for knowledge and a thirst for real life content. You want inspiration. You want to know what other people are doing and how they are doing it. How they are parenting. How they are achieving. How they are loving. How they are living. We all do it – its human nature. You want to see life in a state of fluidity. Full of flaws and controversy. Bursting with pride, success and failure. Naked ambition and true friendship. Hardship, sorrow and grief. Celebrations, milestones and mindfulness.

No bullshit.

Its about making your life better. Giving you something to think about. Evoking feelings in you and allowing you to redefine who you are and where you want to be. MAEVE gives you solidity in its purest form. Strong in presence and sustainable by nature

MAEVE treats you like the intelligent woman you are. We offer insight, inspiration and intelligent reading. MAEVE seeks to enrich and redefine the life you already have. Knowing that you have worked hard to be where you are now."



Brilliant, right?

Some of the other people writing for it are my friends, and I can't wait to read their stuff. They are all wise and generous women who will add a terrific dynamic to the pages of MAEVE.

I urge you to subcribe, it's free after all. I've got a fiction story in there, and I'm terrible nervous about it. It's been eons since I've written fiction, but apparently the saying 'it's like riding a bike' applies.

Kudos to Kate and the team for pulling it all together, and adding what will be another sublime title to the already wonderful collection of Australian magazines.

Go here to SUBSCRIBE

* Meaghan

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Sweetheart session - Jo and Ben

I've never been a horse girl. You know the girls at primary school who wore their hair in a long braid down their back, would have stickers of horses on their school books, and would talk about 'Winnie' or 'Storm' or 'Freckle' endlessly. I was never one of those girls. I was too busy playing netball and reading books, sometimes at the same time.

The repercussions of that are that I have no 'horse sense'. None. Nudda. I can't read them. I don't know if they're going to lick me or bite me. Because of this I get a little bit jittery around horses. Their sheer size overwhelms me and I feel like I'm going to get sucked into those nostrils.

When Jo let her horse Murphy off the lead and he started walking towards me I pretended to be totally cool but on the inside I was going ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod repeat x 100.







But what an incredible creature. I loved photographing him. I can see why people call horses majestic.

Enough about Murphy the horse. On to Jo and Ben. The awesome Jo and Ben. I met them over a year ago when I had first moved to Ocean Grove. They were the first couple from the area that I met with. I drove to their house a bundle of nerves, thinking that it was make or break for me. For some reason I equated my success at that meeting with the overall succcess of my wedding photography business in Geelong. So lucky for me that the meeting with Ben and Jo was wonderful, we all hit it off instantly, and now their wedding is this Saturday.









For their sweetheart session we went to the most AUH-mazing property. It belongs to Jo's aunty, and sits high on a hill and overlooks Swan bay. And Queenscliff. And Point Lonsdale. And Port Phillip Bay. And all the way across to Sorento. Murphy the horse is lucky enough to live their, and gets to take in that incredible view every day.



When Jo and Ben pulled up they apologies because their dogs had come along too. 'They go everywhere we go," they explained. They needn't have apologies because it was brilliant to be able to photograph them too.







These two photos are especially for Jo. For gorgeous Jo.



See you both on Saturday. Im busting out of my skin with excitement.

* Meaghan

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