Photo a day - May

Published on 15th of June 2023
   

It's June, school's over, and summer is finally here. It's a bit late this year, but I am not complaining, heat is not my thing. Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike summer! I am looking forward to spend days (and evenings, because - sunset!) on the beach swimming and splashing and digging in the sand, and all the fruit and summer salads, ice-cream and long evenings on the terrace. It's the heat that I have problem with, my brain just switches off and all I want is to find a cool corner under air conditioning and hide there with the book. 

We've finally started our photo wall. The project was complicated - we wanted a photo and art wall that tells about us, that reminds of Scotland, and has each of the kids equally represented (they checked!). For now it has some framed art, artistic map of St Andrews, photos in vintage frames we had in our home in Scotland, and new photos too. I'm already thinking what else to print, and looking for new frames to expand it.

We've been spending a lot of time on the terrace gardening. Mara still loves digging in the dirt and picking flowers, and watering the floor. This game never gets old! Everything blooms - geraniums, jasmine, lemon trees, succulents. We also have two big boxes with basil and already harvested enough to make pesto! I'm giving another try to growing tomatoes and eggplants too - fingers crossed it will work better than last year.

What else happened in the last weeks - we went to Madonie, to spend a day in Piano Zucchi, explored abandoned railway close to nonno's summer house (nonno is grandfather in Italian), I tried to start a new knitting project but keep struggling with the lacy pattern I want to use, watched the rain making bubbles on the terrace floor, and Mara kept stealing my sweater which inspired a photo of us both wrapped in it. 
































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Photo a day - February

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Published on 25th of March 2024 This February did not feel like February at all. We were hoping to find some snow and were treated to spring-like temperatures and lots of sunny days instead, slow weekends spent outside collecting oranges or playing hide and seek in a giant blooming rosemary shrub, climbing trees, collecting rocks and even some splashing in the sea. Yes it was warm. We went to Scotland to take care of some personal matters, came back with a new cough, as if recent Covid and other cough and ear infections etc etc was not enough. I made a sweater for Mara and realized I've miscalculated the size, what I hoped would last also for autumn is just right for now. She is growing so fast, which makes me both sad and proud. Still loving her dinosaurs and playing hide and seek (the laundry basket is apparently an excellent hiding spot!), discovering 'big kids' Lego and liking it a bit too much, and trying to keep up with her big siblings.   Like what I do? Get in t
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Photo a day - September

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  Published on 24th of October 2023 These past weeks I've been reflecting a lot about my photo a day project, that I am doing for almost 3 years already, I started a few months before Mara was born. There are days when it feels too much and I have no inspiration and energy to pick up the camera. And then there are moments when I see my kids playing, a new trick or game or mess they are up to, a spot with beautiful light, an interesting combination of colours, and I want to take a photo. I've decided to go easy with this, with myself in the first place, because there's no creativity when you are exhausted and feel forced, and the photos show it. But I try to make time and space for this creativity, it's something my soul craves. And when I look back, all the things I've discovered and mastered, tried and experimented with, all the energy and ideas and feedback, it's amazing. The results are amazing, and not just for me personally (this project is my hobby and doc
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I luoghi migliori a Palermo per fotografare la tua famiglia

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Ville storiche e parchi di Palermo Dove faremo la nostra sessione fotografica è una delle domande più frequenti che ricevo dai miei clienti. Da un lato, è bello farlo in un luogo che abbia una qualche importanza e significato per voi, come un parco che frequentate, dove tuo figlio ha un posto preferito per nascondersi o il suo 'albero da scalare. Ma forse stai cercando qualcosa di nuovo, perchè il vostro parco preferito è chiuso per lavori di manutenzione o semplicemente non è adatto come location per uno shooting fotografico perché è piccolo o presenta altri problemi. Quando si sceglie una location per le foto di famiglia, ci sono diverse cose da considerare: quanto è grande il luogo, se offre diversità di sfondi e possibili attività, ma anche quanto sia facile da raggiungere, o va evitato in alcuni orari perchè troppo affollato. In questo articolo, parlerò dei miei parchi e giardini preferiti di Palermo che sono perfetti per una sessione fotografica di famiglia. Villa Trabia  è u
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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 succulents, be
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Photo a day - January

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Published on 13th of February 2024 This January has been... different. It should've been great, we had a trip planned for New Year, my brother was expected to visit with his family, Mara and Matteo have their birthdays in January too. It turned out not quite what we planned and expected. The trip to Sila had to be cut short because everyone got ill, which turned out to be Covid, which as a consequence affected also Mara's birthday and made the time with my brother and his family a bit less fun too. On the other hand, it felt like my body and my mind needed this slow time after busy and stressful December, there was a lot to reflect about, a lot of rest and quiet. It's ironic that Covid became the answer to this, oh well. The January photos reflect this slow time too - we stayed at home or visited grandma's garden to collect oranges and to play, we baked and built pillow forts, planted bulbs for spring, read books and baked some more. Cookies and muffins are usually what
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Servizio fotografico di famiglia - offerta speciale

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7 motivi per fare il tuo servizio fotografico di famiglia all'aperto

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A volte i miei figli tirano fuori i nostri album di foto e li sento ridere sghignazzare, mentre ricordano cosa è successo in quelle foto, quali avventure stavano vivendo, chi ha fatto la cosa più buffa, come schizzarsi d’acqua in mare, Maya mettere sabbia sulla testa di suo fratello, saltare sui mucchi di fieno, fare picnic su una collina mentre guardavamo il tramonto. Amo sentirli, perché amavo quei momenti.  E come fotografa di famiglia, questo è il tipo di foto che voglio scattare per te. Immagina questo per un attimo. Invece di vestirsi elegantemente, andare in uno studio fotografico e stare fermi per 15-30 minuti mentre si regolano luci e riflettori, si correggono le pose e si scattano le foto, uscite per giocare, esplorare e divertirvi. Condividete questa esperienza come famiglia e otterrete foto naturali e uniche. In tutti gli anni in cui ho lavorato come fotografa di famiglia in Scozia e qui in Sicilia, ho realizzato decine e decine di sessioni all'aperto. Genitori e bambin
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Quanto costa un servizio fotografico di famiglia

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Quanto costa, ti stai chiedendo?  È una delle domande più frequenti quando si tratta di fotografia di famiglia. Ed è anche giusto! Quando si prenota un qualsiasi servizio, che sia fotografia o altro, si desidera giustamente sapere in anticipo quanto costerà. A nessuno piace venire a sapere il prezzo alla fine, un po’ a sorpresa. E’ normale sentirsi truffati e arrabbiati. In questo post, proverò a spiegare come i fotografi calcolano i loro prezzi, che tipi di servizi sono inclusi, e perché i prezzi possono variare notevolmente, in modo da sapere quanto potresti aspettarti di pagare per le tue foto di famiglia. Come i fotografi stabiliscono i loro prezzi Per iniziare, diamo un'occhiata generale a questa domanda. Si trovano due modelli principali: un modello a prezzo fisso in cui sono incluse tutte le foto digitali. Quindi, paghi una tariffa che copre lo shooting stesso e tutte le immagini in digitale. L'alternativa è il modello che prevede una tariffa per la sessione e poi i pro
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9 essential tips for taking great photos of your kids on the beach

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A lot of Sicilian summer is about the sea - it's a place to escape the heat, to relax and have fun on the beach with your kids, be it splashing, swimming, collecting shells or digging in the sand, reading or even napping! As parents, we often find ourselves reaching for our cameras or smartphones, eager to capture these moments and memories of the summer.  However, there are quite some challenges when it comes to getting beautiful photos on the beach - the biggest are strong sunlight, crowded space, kids moving all the time. During my 7+ years as a family photographer, I took hundreds of photos of clients and my own kids on the beaches in both Scotland and in Sicily. I've learnt and discovered a lot, what to do, and what not to do, to get beautiful kids' photos on the beach. Here are my top 9 tips and tricks, that will help you to elevate your beach snapshots to beautiful photographs. It's about essentials, nothing technical, and will work both for your phone and camera
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Outdoor baby photo session in St Andrews | East Sands and St Andrews Cathedral

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