Me, in front of the lens???

It’s obvious by now that I LOVE to take photographs, almost anything is a great subject. I even love photographing things that I KNOW I am not an expert at, the challenge of practicing is so exciting.

But getting MY photo taken, that’s a whole other story. I read in an article a long time ago that more people HATE having their photo taken than are scared of spiders. Well, I love spiders, so that makes my phobia of being in front of the lens twice as valid, right??

Then I met Megan of Megan Aldridge Photography. Megan is amazing. She’s bubbly, friendly, generous with her knowledge and she’s so very thoughtful. We have quite a bit in common, as it turns out, and I really hope to build a solid friendship with her, along with a business relationship.

I’ve attended her business seminars, loved what I heard and worked with her to help get my head around starting out. If you EVER need a photography business and marketing coach, Megan is your go to person.

During a chat one day, where we shared life stories and all the not nice things that are on our plates at the moment, I heard those dreaded words – “how about I photograph you, with your oldest daughter, you will have lovely images of the two of you together and it will be great fun”

Fun. Me in front of a camera. Not my ideal use of the word, but Megan is SO lovely and she was also RIGHT. There are not enough photographs of me, and even less of me with family members. Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa, Mea MAXIMA Culpa.

So, we set a date, and off we went. Her studio is just at the foot of the Dandenongs, in lovely Ferntree Gully. And it’s around the corner from a gorgeous little Op Shop. I LOVE Op Shopping!

The lovely Anka was our makeup artist, I really did feel very spoilt, having someone else make up my face, she didn’t make any mention of my wrinkles or horrid skin tones (good, because I don’t care about either, they are part of me). I was busy making mental notes, because her attitude, her set up AND her personality was amazing, she took hardly any time at all to make us look and feel great.

Poor Megan must have nearly died inside when she saw our outfits. Laura and I DO NOT wear the same colours, or have the same skin tones, and we clashed horribly. But she didn’t say a word, or even frown. Like a true professional, she smiled and commented that she loved purple too, and that Laura’s red rose dress was the nicest pinup dress she had seen in a long time.

I was actually enjoying myself. The studio is small and intimate, exactly what I want to build for myself, but it’s so versatile. My first time under studio lights, but no strobes, only the modelling lights in the soft boxes, which was very interesting for me. I have the exact setup that was used, but I have never pulled it out. You know what that means, gentle reader??? It means you can expect a model call so that I can experiment with this technique – yay!

We did poses together and separate, and very interestingly, while I DID recognise some of the posing (we both adore Sue Bryce’s work), Megan made the poses very individual and really made both of us very comfortable in front of the lens. We were all laughing and giggling like old friends by the end of the session, something I had not expected.

So, we finished, said our thank you’s, and went on our way. Megan returning to the studio, where she was booked with more sessions, Laura and I went off to the Op Shop (oh, the treasures we purchased!) and then into the hills for a lovely lunch, where the images I have shared here were taken on our phones.

I ended up not feeling nervous at all, but very excited about the whole process, and now, instead of dreading, I am REALLY looking forward to sharing the official photos here, once they are ready. I also plan a large print to go into our family loungeroom. The whole experience has given me a new outlook on what images mean to our memories, and I am more determined than ever to share that excitement and purpose.