September 29, 2008
September 26, 2008
Happy Birthday Charlie!!
Today is Charlie's birthday. She came to us from the Parrot Rescue Centre in Queensland 12 months ago having been surrendered by her previous owners because she was too noisy. We had to go through a rigorous testing program before Zarita at the Parrot Rescue Centre would allow her to come to us. But we are glad that we made the effort. She has become a much loved member of our family and is a great companion for our other corella - Dougal.
Charlie is a Long-Billed Corella. She is a member of the cockatoo family but has a shorter, stockier body than the more common sulpher-crested cockatoo - and a much larger beak!! Her long beak is used for digging grubs and seeds out of the ground.
Although it may not seem like it to farmers - who treat Charlie and her kind as pests - Corella numbers are in decline in the wild due to the loss of suitable nesting sites (old trees with hollows) throughout their natural habitat.
August 03, 2008
Africa Album
Lindsay and Kym spent the first half of June on a safari through South Africa and Botswana. For anyone travelling to the Southern part of Africa, we highly recommend Sunway Tours. Riaan and Speedy were our guides and made the entire trip totally awesome!! When we left the tour, we jumped the border into Zimbabwe and had a fantastic time at Bomani camp and Gorges Lodge. I will post more about our Zimbabwe experience later. Here is the photo album that we have put together from photos that Lindsay took on the trip This file is quite large and may take a little while to download - please be patient. Download AFRICA.pdf
March 02, 2008
Melbourne Town Hall Wedding Expo
We have spent the past two and a half days at the Melbourne Town Hall wedding expo. We had a fantastic time speaking to so many brides about their plans for their special day - everyone has so many great ideas for styles and themes. There were a couple of questions we found ourselves answering quite often: how much extra for travel and; what are the hidden costs.
The answer to the first question is - there is no extra for travel within Victoria. We are based in Geelong but are happy to travel at our expense to all areas in the state. We are fortunate to be photographing Fiona and Les next weekend in Echuca and the week after that we will be back up in Corryong on the NSW border where we photographed a wedding last April. We are often in Ballarat, Bendigo and Daylesford and this year we have spent a bit of time on the Mornington Peninsula - most notably with Dean and Kathryn at the Red Hill Estate Winery in January. If you live outside Victoria we would have to assess each individual wedding based on the time of year and how far away you are. That being said, Greig went to Noosa two weeks ago and the only extra expense was airfares (and they are cheap enough now with Jetstar and Virgin Blue) and a couple of years ago Lindsay and Kym went to Cairns but were able to tie the wedding in with a holiday so there was no extra charge for the bride and groom. So don't get scared when you see that we are based in Geelong, the world is a small place these days and you might be surprised at what we'll say yes to.
And what are the hidden costs? There are none. We often hear of photographers who charge a low fee but you find that when you come back after your honeymoon there are extra pages in the album or extra fees for retouching and that 'bargain' that you struck with your photographer really isn't a bargain any more. With all of the packages that we advertise either here on our website or in our printed material, the price that is advertised is the price that you pay - end of story. Of course you are welcome to add extra pages to your album or buy extra copies of your album for parents but you will not be pressured to do this and we will communicate with you at every stage of the album design process if you want to add extra pages so that you know up front how much different designs will cost you before you decide to go ahead.
If you have any other questions, we are just a phone call or email away - as we have stated so many times over this weekend, booking your wedding photographer is not just about good images - most experienced photographers can give you that - you need to be comfortable with the person that you choose. Your relationship with your photographer can make or break your wedding day and you will not be able to relax and trust your photographer to get the best out of you and your day if you have little niggles in the back of your mind about his or her integrity.
We meet Wade and Emma
We had a breakfast meeting with Wade and Emma last Saturday morning. They are getting married on New Years Eve at the beautiful Chateau Wyuna in Mt Evelyn at the base of the Dandenongs. They have booked their reception until the wee small hours so that they can share a glass of bubbly with their guests as the clock strikes twelve. We will be staying on for the festivities with these two and we can't wait to share their excitement.
January 27, 2008
Lindsay Goes Back to School
Lindsay has accepted an assignment with a local school photography organisation and will be out of the office most days for the first term.
We have the answer machine on in the office so please leave us a message and Lindsay will call you when he returns to the office late in the day. Please make sure you leave a number that you can be contacted on after hours.
Of course you can still email us and we will get back in touch with you as soon as we return to the office.
Sarah and Russell at the Zoo
Yesterday we met up with Sarah and Russell at the Melbourne Zoo to have a look at the site they have chosed for their ceremony and to have a look for the best places to take their wedding photos.
We are lucky that Sarah loves photos because Lindsay just saw opportunities at every turn!!.
We had a fabulous day and can't wait until March when the main event takes place.
Helen and Dave at the Shell Club
Helen and Dave were married on Saturday January 19th in the lovely gardens of the Shell Club.
Helen was married in a dress designed and made by Lainie Brookman - a well known dressmaker here in Geelong. Her son Ryan gave her away and although it threatened rain all day, we got through the ceremony with just a light shower.
Helen's father travelled from Germany and guests came from as far afield as Singapore. 
