Botanical Gardens. Boys' style


A walk in Botanical Gardens of St Andrews with a little boy. Forget about appreciating creative landscape design, enjoying alpine terraces and the pond, admiring cacti collection and finding all the spring flowers.

This is about run, hide, find something interesting, invent games and more run.


Some good finds. What can we do with them? A boat? I am a bit skeptical here.


Nope, did not swim the right way. Some major engineering work to do. For some other story :-)


Piú letti

Last days of autumn

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I know, it is Xmas time, so autumn photos are somewhat out of date. But I have some nice ones to share, and I had creative break to experiment with my photo editing, and work on some other photography projects. So I am sharing them now :). I had some ideas, the individuals involved had others. Sometimes I get carried away with my own ideas, which they did not want to do. I still need to remind myself to let go and let it be. I get nice stuff this way too, not what I wanted, but full of real emotions and laughter. These were made on one of the last warm autumn days, when rolling on the grass was still OK and leaves were down, but nice and dry and crunchy. Not dripping wet as we were hit by a rain season. So rolling in the leaves and grass we did. We have started in the park, where all the shouting, grass rolling, leaves throwing and laughing took place. Then we continued to the harbour, where we wanted to do some silhouette shots with Matteo. We piled up l...
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5 fun games for natural family photos on the beach / family photo shoot on West Sands

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I'm often asked, what do we do during our photo shoot, and what do we need to bring with us?  The answer to the first one is - do you have a favourite activity, or something you usually do when outside? No worries if not, or if every walk is a new adventure (our family walks are often like this, so I understand!).  Here's a list of 5 simple activities and games for the beach that kids love (and adults too!), and that result in great natural photos. We did most of it during this family photo session on West Sands with little Noah and his baby brother. Most of these activities don't require any additional toys or equipment, which is great if you plan to walk and move around, and don't feel like dragging with you bags of toys and stuff. The few things I always have for a walk on the beach, and suggest to my clients are water, wipes and change of clothes. Treasure hunting Shells, rocks and sea glass are the obvious choice for this. Can also be funny-looking seaweed, sticks ...
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The magic of reading during your family photo shoot

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5 reasons to include books and reading in your family photos If you are reading this, you are probably considering a family photo shoot. I know all the different concerns that my clients have before their session. And one of them is - what do we do, how do we get those images with genuine moments and real emotions? During my 7 years doing family photography I've discovered one activity that always works - it's reading books with your kids. There are so many good reasons why integrating books and reading into your lifestyle family photoshoot can bring a touch of magic, warmth, and togetherness, while capturing beautiful and candid moments along the way. Below I'll let you know the top 5.  Let's get started! 1. Reading with your kids is great for those who might feel uncomfortable in front of the camera Because you do what you usually do - you sit down, take a book and read. You don't need to worry what to do with your hands - they are holding a book, or both the boo...
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At the harbor

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St Andrews has a harbor, and there is even a lighthouse. Not a large and fancy-looking one, it is more like a large torch, but it is there. We continued to East Sands beach and with its playground and nice green area for running and rolling in the grass. We found a dandelion, the poor thing has missed its season. Matteo had its way with it :-)
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Sculptures

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This story started in May and still goes on, as Masha is working on ballerina sculpture in her art class with Jaclyn Stuart. The children were learning about Alberto Giacometti and his sculptures, and made some of their own artwork with wire, tape and colors. Colors are still to come, as well as tutu - so to be continued
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What inspires me

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Today's post is slightly different. Today it is not about my photos - it is about other photographers who inspire me and whose work I love so much. It's so many things that I love about their photos - candid approach, finding beautiful moments in everyday routine, beautiful details, their work with colours and editing, the way they capture emotions and little expressions that tell so much about the character of their kids. Here are some of my favourites, and links to their Instagram accounts for more inspiration.   Laura Elizabeth Wood   Megan Loeks Megann Robinson
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