Ten on Ten: August

I've been talking about my appalling photography skills for as long as I've been blogging. In January I also promised myself that I would try to get better at it this year.

So, it's August now, which means it must be time to do something about my new year's resolutions. I'm joining in with A Bit of Sunshine's 'Ten on Ten' for the first time this month. Once a month on the tenth taking a photo an hour for ten consecutive hours. Finding much life and beauty among the ordinary things of our day!

I confess I cheated a little. I kept forgetting to take a pic each hour. I supplemented two missing photos with ones I'd taken at about that time on another day. Whoops. Plus, I used my iPhone with Instagram for most of the pics. Which I think is cheating even more... Will do better once I get into the 10/10 groove, I promise!

10 AM

Staring at the kitchen bench again.

11 AM

Gardening on the front verandah in the sunshine.

12 NOON

"Badoo bring your shoes inside, Badoo bring your shoes inside, Badoo bring..."

1 PM

My girl, shining.

2 PM

A mother and... a head.

3 PM

After-school cake high.

4 PM

Hanging out on the verandah with Lianne.

5PM

Dancing shoes.

6PM

Jurassic Bath.

7PM

Bedtime Bedjump. (Although she is actually not jumping on the bed, the patient* has obviously improved immensely.)

I loved Ten on Ten this month. I'll be back for sure! Pop over to A Little Bit of Sunshine to check out other Ten on Ten action.

* Cappers 'landed funny' on her ankle on the trampoline on Sunday. Thank god I didn't make her 'hop' into school on Monday and instead kept her home to rest. We watched her ankle grow larger by the hour and by Monday night we were getting a cast put on in Emergency. She's doing just fine, don't worry! But I tell you, it's been a hell of a week... there is something much worse than 'routine' after all!!!

Snaps for the snaps

We've never had 'professional' family photographs taken, even of the Tsunamis. And definitely not of me. I even shied away from having a typical wedding photographer. I'm just so... shy... who me?... having my picture taken. I get stressed, or act the ham or my hair just threatens to take over the entire world. I just never look the way I think I look in my head. Reality check needed, anyone?

Anyway, you can imagine how nervous I was at the thought of snapper-extraordinaire (and soon to be famous given the love he is deservedly receiving in our blogging world) Tim Coulson coming over to our place yesterday to record our family 'doing what we do'. You mean, like, reality? You want the 'real' us? Really?

Oh, why not? I suddenly thought. Why not?

So glad. So glad I just decided to go for it. Tim put me at ease within about 5 seconds of coming in our front door at 8am on Saturday. We were all in our jamies. The porridge was threatening to bubble over on the stove. I was baking disastrous-looking (but not bad-eating) cinnamon scrolls. In he came.

So glad. We spent the most terrific morning showing him around our place and then taking him to a little spot that we love to go to as often as possible. It was just so wonderful when he loved everything we love almost as much as us. Snap snap snap away he went and I wasn't nervous or silly or hammy at all. I was just me. I have no idea what the majority of the photos look like yet, but I'm loving the sneak preview Tim has posted... and I will do a 'big reveal' post in the next couple of days to show you more of the good stuff.

So glad. Tim does a different sort of photography. He really does just capture a family doing what they do. No posed, awkward, matchy-match shots. Just 'a day in the life' stuff and a beautiful record of home and family life as we know it. It felt like a lovely morning with a lovely friend and I'm hoping that the resulting images capture the beauty of the day. Can't wait to show you more.

Have you had professional shots taken of your family before? 

(If you've blogged them, share a link as we'd love to take a peek.)

Do you like having your picture taken?

[Image by Tim Coulson]