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All of my children have loved playing dress-ups. We have had witches, wizards, bob the builder, princesses and a pink unicorn all make appearances. At the height of a Buzz Light Year obsession, I had my friend post from the UK a costume to New Zealand for Christmas. Truly!






I am more relaxed about the dress-up phase now than with my first born children. Before, I would limit it to home and birthday parties. During a Bob the builder phase, my son would take his tool belt everywhere, but I would ask him to leave it in the car when we went to the shopping centre. This was partly to do with not wanting to search for the missing hammer that could be left on a shelf in a department store. Between you and me, it did have a little bit to do with my embarrassment of walking through the shops with a pink unicorn in tow. However, on a recent trip to Ouro Preto, my youngest daughter wore a pink tutu into a gold mine(http://www.image-421.com/2011/07/gold-mine.html) and I realised how relaxed I have become. 
I love the creativity children express when they play dress-up. They let their imaginations run wild, and they are totally living in the moment. They usually change their voice, their stride and adopt a whole new persona to become the best Wicked Witch of the West there is.

Knowing that this phase passes quickly, I wanted to capture my 7 year old daughter playing dress-ups before it ends. On the weekend, we attended a princess birthday party. I saw the perfect opportunity to capture a “princess playing”.

We all have favourite items of clothing. The ones we impatiently wait to return to the wardrobe after we have used it, and then immediately use again. The t-shirts we hate to throw away, even when they are past their used by date. The ones that eventually end up covered in stains and we can only wear around the house. Well, these are our  favourite t-shirts right now.

At the time, it can drive us crazy listening to the theme songs, hearing the DVD over and over again in the background plus looking for the magic wand for the 100th time that day. All of a sudden they have moved on, almost overnight, and the magic wand now lies collecting dust on a bookshelf somewhere.


These are the images I want to capture in my new project “telling a story”. They are what we see  Incorrect: When you add 3 and 4, you should get 7.
The personal pronoun, “you”, should not be used in formal writing.

The sentence may be rephrased so it remains impersonal:
Correct: When 3 and 4 are added, the result should be 7.

Alternatively, “you” may be replaced with “one”:
Correct: When one adds 3 and 4, one should get 7.

Incorrect: I believe this point of view is correct.
When one is permitted to express and opinion (only in personal or opinion essays), the use of “I” is still considered too informal; it may be replaced with “this writer” or “this author”.

Correct: This writer believes this point of view is correct.

” grammarpoint=”Personal pronoun may not be appropriate for formal or academic writing.” name=”Style/PersonalPronouninAcademicWriting/Informalpronouns/2064384″ patterndate=”1314099945000″ sentence=”They are what we see our children doing everyday, their loves, their passion, their story at this moment.”>our children doing everyday, their loves, their passion, their story at this moment. These are not the “put your fancy clothes on, comb your hair, scrubbed face, cheesing smile” images. These images are the everyday fabric of family life


I am starting with my family ( my awesome, supportive, guinea pigs) and I made a list of 25 of “ Incorrect: When you add 3 and 4, you should get 7.
The personal pronoun, “you”, should not be used in formal writing.

The sentence may be rephrased so it remains impersonal:
Correct: When 3 and 4 are added, the result should be 7.

Alternatively, “you” may be replaced with “one”:
Correct: When one adds 3 and 4, one should get 7.

Incorrect: I believe this point of view is correct.
When one is permitted to express and opinion (only in personal or opinion essays), the use of “I” is still considered too informal; it may be replaced with “this writer” or “this author”.

Correct: This writer believes this point of view is correct.

” grammarpoint=”Personal pronoun may not be appropriate for formal or academic writing.” name=”Style/PersonalPronouninAcademicWriting/Informalpronouns/2064384″ patterndate=”1314099945000″ sentence=”I made a list of 25 of our favourite things.”>our favourite things”. I know next week or next month the list could change, but right now this is what we love. 


First on the list was baking. All of my children enjoy time in the kitchen and baking with me. Licking the spoon is always a highlight, then eating the finished product and sharing with their siblings brings out the proudest of smiles. It is a fond memory I have of sharing the kitchen with my Mum when I was little, and I wanted to share this with my children. On the menu for Brunch, last Saturday, was blueberry muffins made by my youngest. I used this as my first opportunity to create this portfolio and capture everyday images, telling a story.

Mixing the ingredients

Little hands, with chipped nailpolish

Standing on the stepladder to reach the bench

Getting ready to bake

The washing up

The Blueberry Muffins

Fresh Produce Collage

I remember opening the box of my new Nikon D90 with the biggest smile. I had been wanting to replace my point and shoot camera and, after much begging,  my wish was granted for my 40th Birthday. Now what?
So many buttons, letters, lights. I had no idea what to do. I have had many people ask me what to do with their new camera and so here are my random thoughts.

1. Enjoy it! 
Leave all the features of the camera on automatic and get to know the camera. Practise using the zoom features, when to use the flash and when to use the natural light. Think about the composition of the photo, getting closer to the subject or moving away, and trying different angles. Let the camera do the work and you can enjoy the moment of taking the images.
2. Learn the features of your camera.
When you feel you are ready to turn the dial from automatic, start looking for a course that covers the features of your camera. I did my course online at Betterphoto.com and it was the worth the investment. I learnt quickly and consciously the features of the D90 and how to use them.
3. Move to Manual
This step is difficult  but it is one that takes your photos from snapshots to beautiful images. I read the camera manual, books, googled, read blogs etc and the words didnot sink in….but maybe that is just me :-). I needed to study this and not just once. I found courses online, again at betterphoto.com, which really helped. There are many introduction courses to photography that will help you learn the basics. Find one that fits your budget and your schedule.
4 Practise!
Now after almost 2 years of practising, I am starting to get this. It takes time, practise and patience. The best and most fun way to do this is to start a project. Find something that you love to look at and want to capture. Sunsets, your children, church doors, cars, clouds. Oh! The list is endless. Search online for other similar projects to get ideas and follow their achievements as well. I felt such joy after completing my Fresh Produce project, that I have 3 projects running now.

One of the most frequent questions I receive is: ” Where do you find the time? 5 kids, busy husband and living in a foreign country…  how do you make time for your photography. The answer is simple.


TURN OFF THE TV!!. I cannot remember the last time I  sat down to watch a night of TV. We have family movie nights and  sometimes I like to catch up on the news.  After 5 minutes of CNN and BBC (my only english option here in Brazil), I am ready to turn it back off . I have now lost interest in the TV shows that were once so important to me….serious crime stories, drama, mysteries diseases and a neighbourhood I truly would not want to live in. The only way I keep up to date on the gossip about TV shows is from my friend’s posts on FB.


Was it easy at first? NO! At the end of the day you just want to tune out, put your feet up and munch on  TV snacks before crawling into bed. If I turned the TV on for just 5 minutes, I would be there for an hour or 2, as one program rolled into the next.

But I wanted to learn photography and I love to be creative.  So turning the TV off and throwing away the TV guide were my only options. I know that if my day is totally full, I will always be able to process the photos, research ideas on websites, study the theory  and write my blog, once everyone is snoring in bed.

So make a plan, start a project and turn off the TV. You will be amazed at how creative you will become as the ideas bubble up, instead of being zoned out…..

There is a current trend in portrait photography to shoot with the background telling a story. Some backgrounds include farms, country lanes,  derelict buildings, graffitied walls and using an antique chair placed in a paddock full of flowers. I have been admiring the creativity of some photographers but have not had the opportunity myself to really try this out.

Recently, my family and I visited Ouro Preto, MG, in Brazil and spent a wonderful afternoon playing in the old slave gold mine. My Husband and four oldest children went underground and explored the tunnels that  travel under the city. My youngest and I went back to the front of the mine to patiently wait for their return.
It was while she played in the mine that I saw this image develop before my eyes. Independently, she had decided to wear her pink tutu, tights and boots that day. The background of the mine and the mud face painting were in total contrast to the clothes. I knew I had to capture it. It was technically very challenging to capture, as the  light was terrible and I truly need to stretch all my knowledge to make it happen. I had no tripod and I had to balance myself up against the mud wall( covering my own jacket in mud).  This is the image I captured.

In processing, I further increased the exposure, highlights and recovery  plus added a Lightroom preset to get the effect I was hoping to achieve.

Now its time to go shopping and find that antique chair.

This weeks find is pineapple. OK, so pineapples are found all over right? Until we moved here, I did not know they could be SO sweet and SO delicious. At Mercado Municipal in Sao Paolo, they remove the skin and cut the pineapple in half without the core for a super sweet snack on the go.  When I buy them from the markets, I have the luxury of  telling the seller when I want the pineapple to be ready to eat; today, tomorrow or next week. 99% of the time they get it right. 
                                                    Take care
                                                    Cindy. XXXX 

Pineapples at the market

Getting ready for Saturday morning brunch.