So it has been a very busy year and poor Catherine had to wait until now for me to have a booking opening. But I think it was the perfect time to do the shoot. It is winter (and it still felt a like winter when we did the shoot 2 weeks ago) but the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens looked like Fall. I'm so glad it is starting to warm up, I love spring!

Catherine and Toni have been dating for 9 months now and are soooo in love ;) Everytime she went into his arms they both smiled. With most people, meeting a stranger in a park and letting him/her take photos of you is a very weird experience, but it took Catherine & Toni a couple of minutes to get used to me. We had so much fun, Catherine was very cold, but held her pose and did everything I asked - Thank you :) and Toni... probably the first guy I've photographed who really looked like he was having fun, he reminded me of a little boy having fun without worrying what people around him thought, everyone should still have a little kid in themselves and come out to play now and then.

It was a wonderful experience photographing Catherine and Toni and I hope everyone enjoys the photos as much as I do! Give the gif a minute or two to load South Africa :)

Boeta and Malenke got married on the 24th of July at Kwa Madwala Game Reserve, near Hectorspruit in the Lowveld. Kwa Madwala means Place of the Rock, and you'll soon see why. This magical place has rock everywhere and its so beautiful. The Reserve have a lot of game including lion, rhino, elephant, and occasionally leopard that guest can see on their game drive. The reception was set in a dried up river bank in the middle of the bushveld, and the food made by Stoep Cafe in Komati was delicious! Oooh, now I cant wait for Ruan and Mary-Ann's wedding next weekend...nom,nom,nom :D Part 2 coming in a couple of hours.

Fielies and Melissa are getting married in a month on their farm in Kaapmuiden, in the Lowveld. Can't wait to be part of their day.

It has nothing to do with honouring women just because we need another “Mother’s Day”, this day commemorates the 9 August 1956 when women participating in a national march petitioned against pass laws … (For anyone who does not know the history – “pass laws” were legislation that required African persons to carry a document on them to ‘prove’ that they were allowed to enter a ‘white area’ during the Apartheid regime).

On this day in 1956, over 20 000 women of all races and ages from every corner of South Africa marched together towards the Union Buildings in Pretoria. These brave women were marching in protest against the pass laws that proposed even further restrictions on the movements of women.

Organised by the Federation of South African Women, the March was led by four brave women; Helen Joseph, Rahima Moosa, Sophie Williams and Lilian Ngoyi. The leaders delivered petitions to Prime Minister JG Strijdom’s office within the Union Buildings.

Women throughout South Africa had put their names to these petitions indicating their anger and frustration at having their freedom of movement restricted by the hated official passes.

To conclude the Women’s March the women sang freedom songs such as Nkosi sikeleli Afrika, however, the song that became the anthem of the march was “Wathint’ abafazi, Strijdom!”

Today I want to say thank you to every women that is inspirational to me.You might not even know that you are an inspiration to me, so here's to you Mom, my 2 Grandmothers, my girlfriends and peers. You have all influenced my life with not only the small stuff like teaching me that I not only have to be fair to people, but also to be fair to myself - I had to apply it to life this past week. To always dream bigger, reach for the stars - and that if it doesn't work out right now, it will do soon, just believe and never give up ;) To love someone even though they make you soooo angry, forgive and forget! That if you work hard you will reap the benefits. And to all these women who protested in 1956, thank you for not giving up and respecting yourselves and to fight not only for yourself but for future woman in South Africa. You are all a support system I count on and look up to. Thank you.

Here are a couple of photos of my lovely mom! You Rock MOM! Thank you for listening when no one else would and to motivate me when I'm down. ;)

In January Adele came to visit me in Johnnesburg, when we decided to do a little spur-of-the-moment-shoot, it turned out to be, not only a lot of fun but it was ridiculously hilarious. Our abs were so sore at the end of our shoot, we found ourselves to be a little confused and did not know what to do, I'm sure a lot of photographers experience this, we are so used to being behind the lens that once in front of it, we go blank, we forget what to do. Adele and I just decided to be silly, laugh it off and act like kids - which is in fact what I love to do with my clients, once you have a little fun, you forget about the camera and just enjoy the moments you're in. I hope I can always be a little silly behind and in front of my lens.

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