Palermo

We are in Palermo for most of the summer holidays. The plan is quite simple - to enjoy the sun and the sea, spend time with family and get to know a new puppy Bombay :-)

Drop me a line if you'd like to book a session for your family, or children portraits. Availability is limited!

Piú letti

Autumn in St Andrews - family photos

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 Autumn is solidly settling in, with its gorgeous colours, cosy blankets and sweaters, rains, and this special something in the air. At home, we watch more movies, bake more pies, walk on the leaves and listen to their crunchy-crunch under our boots, and I want to soak in all these colours around us - I love autumn! It can be risky to have a photo session this time of the year, the weather becomes so unpredictable. But it's well worth the risk, because the light in autumn is often golden and magical, and you have all these gorgeous colours around you. I can be more flexible with my schedule so we can work around the sunshine. Favourite spots around St Andrews for autumn family photos. Of course Lade Braes and Botanic Gardens - if you want all these gorgeous colours and nature details! Outdoor walks in autumn are so much fin, kids up to their knees in the leaves, or hunting for autumn treasures together, making piles of leaves for jumping, weaving crowns, hide and seek - you name it...
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Peter Pan, catch your shadow

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The shadow we've got, in a girly way with a wee bit of pink :-) The sun, sitting low in Scottish sky, invites for all sorts of shadow plays. We already had this , and this a while back. And will have some more probably, with a new twist.
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St Andrews by the front door photo project

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I'm starting a little project. It's about us as a community and how we go through this new and uncertain time. We cannot get together with family and friends, but we are together in this as a community. Going through the same feelings and emotions, trying to figure out how to live this new normal, how to make sure everyone is safe and sane. It's a rough time, but there is also so much goodness happening. The idea is to document families by their front door, through a window or in their yard. Reading, talking, playing with bubbles or making chalk drawings by your front door. Just being together at home. I'll spend 5-10 min at each home, using my long lens to be sure there's plenty of distance, and we'll be communicating with our phones. I am not making a charge for these photos. Instead, I am asking that, if you can afford it, please make a donation to North East Fife Community Hub and Cafe , a local St Andrews charity supporting vulnerable people in our c...
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She is 5!

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Maya is 5 today! 5 years of adventures and giggles and running after this little girl of mine. Maya at 5 loves to dance and wear dresses, beach and Christmas, to eat ice-cream and to watch Peppa Pig. Her best play (and mischief of course) buddy is her brother, she has a bad day at school when there's painting. She is passionately avoiding any green leaves in her food (like parsley or spinach - big no no). Her next big project is to learn to ride 2 wheels bicycle. And her birthday cake request is chocolate with raspberries and pink frosting - so I am signing off for the day to work on that, and balloons, and surprizes, and yes there's also ice-cream stashed in the freezer :-) This is her official birthday portrait. By special request - with glitter. Lots and lots of it! More personal updates Contact Julia
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Her. And my personal photo challenge for 2017.

This was our special photo project for 2017, hers and mine. We were supposed to do a portrait a week. It was interesting, useful and a challenge in more than one way. Some weeks we did more, than we had weeks of doing nothing. Sometimes we both were excited, later we both hated it -  each of us for different reasons. Yet we are proud with results. Here are my favourites, and some of them I am getting printed. Quite large :-) Photographs are copyright of Julia Pagano Photography. Julia Pagano specializes in candid natural light photography of babies, toddlers and families, as well as children portraiture in St Andrews and Fife, as well as Dundee.
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Family photo session in St Andrews, West Sands beach

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West Sands did not disappoint - beautiful dunes, moody sky, wind. But then, it very seldom does, especially if you do not mind the wind. We met on a beautiful September evening for this photoshoot with Marion and her daughters. Our destination was the very end of the beach, by the Eden estuary and sand dunes. Marion picked some flowers and decorated Keira's curls, girls shared some secrets and treasures found in the sand, wind was playing with Keira's hair. And me - I was observing it all as it unfolded in front of me, and clicking along. I often tell my clients that photo-session is like going for a walk together - this one was no exception. I am a very silent companion on such a walk - I might suggest something interesting if I see beautiful spot or some nature details that would make beautiful background for you. But more often I just follow what's happening and how you enjoy this beautiful walk and your time together. From Marion: " Very relaxed photo shoot ...
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3 reasons to have your family photos in Villa Giulia park

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Villa Giulia is a park in historic center of Palermo. It has its origins in 18th century and is remarkable for its perfect square shape with diagonal alleys dividing the park in different sections. Marble statues and fountains, a sundial, shady alleys and open spaces, and wide variety of trees and shrubbery make it a popular spot both with locals and tourists.  If you'd like your family photos to have lush green background with a touch of special Sicilian atmosphere, this park definitely should be considered. It ticks all the boxes - plenty of space, nice surroundings, easy access, lots of options for things to do during your photo shoot to get natural and emotional images (anyway we don't do posed photos on the benches or next to flowering shrubs!).  Here are my top 3 reasons why villa Giulia is a great location for family photo sessions. Reason 1  Lots of space and diversity. The park has an alley with Ficus trees, a little bamboo forest, a hill with cacti and succulen...
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A bit of sunshine

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Let's blame Instagram for this one. I was invited to participate to a photo challenge dedicated to the theme of sun flare on one of the communities I follow there. Parallel to it I was trying to bribe, torture, blackmail etc everybody and anybody (read Maya and Masha :-) to do something with the light shining on their back, so that I could experiment with shooting counter light. So it kind of came together. It is an experiment. I am still not quite sure I like it. We'll see at the end of the year, if I include these pics in the photobook. Or what happens with the Instagram challenge :-) And here's my Instagram , that is to blame :-)
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Visiting St Andrews

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Published on 27th of September 2022       The final weeks of school holidays we spent in Scotland - summer break is very long in Sicily, kids go back to school around mid-September. It was great to escape from the heat and mosquitoes, see our friends in St Andrews and visit all our favourite places. West Sands, East Sands, Tentsmuir, Botanic Gardens, Coastal path, Lade Braes, and of course Carnie fruit farm!  We came with quite a bucket list of things we wanted to do during our time in St Andrews, and we planned some of our walks and outings so that we were back by the time school is over and they could see their friends at Canongate. This was one of the downsides, different school schedules and limited time they could be with their school friends, so we tried to squeeze in as many play dates as possible. I think being back showed just how much has changed for us in this year - new country, big city, new language, new schools for everyone, different climate, differe...
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Family photos in Tentsmuir forest

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Beautiful summer evening in Tentsmuir forest. This family wanted their photos in a green space, not on the beach, so Tentsmuir seemed to be the best option. It is one of my favourite spots around St Andrews and offers a wonderful mix of scenery - forest, dunes and the beach. Plus, plenty of space to run, things to do and explore for two active boys. And this is what we did on a warm summer evening a few weeks ago.  I love to capture families in their element, talking and having fun together, without posing or direction. This was easy to achieve here, as our photo session was about a walk in the forest, with a variety of activities captured - balancing on logs and climbing trees, stick and pinecones fight, piggyback rides, races and who has the biggest stick competitions. Of course, some cuddles, tickles and stories were thrown in the mix, and flowers the youngest boy has found for his mom and put in her hair. The result was a collection of beautiful, natural, at times funny, emotio...
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