Last week, Sam and I were lucky enough to be photographed by the incredible Natalie Franke & Caitlin Kellagher. These girls are from Annapolis, Maryland USA. They are very far away from home, travelling around New Zealand together. I follow Natalie online, I love reading her blog and when I saw she was going to be in New Zealand, I didn’t hesitate to get in touch! The girls came to our family farm in the Waikato (where Sam and I are staying until April), after exploring the Coromandel and getting drenched at Cathedral Cove! I loved getting to know these beautiful, talented girls over a BBQ dinner and chatting around the fire pit, late into the night. It was SO nice to connect with likeminded girls, from the other side of the world! I love the internet and it’s power to make these sorts of connections.

I wanted to write about what it was like to be on the other side of the camera. Sam and I have been photographed before, and as a photographer myself, I think it’s so important to regularly put yourself in your clients shoes, so you actually know what it feels like to be photographed.

Needless to say, I loved it. Specifically because of these 3 reasons:

THE IMPORTANCE OF TRUST – When you are photographed, you are vulnerable. You kiss in front of another person, you press your heads together, and get close! This requires huge trust! I know I could relax, and have fun with what Natalie was directing us to do because I loved her work, and I trusted that she would produce amazing images!

DIRECTION IS GOOD – So many people say to me that they don’t want to ‘pose’, that they want spontaneous, candid and natural photographs. As a photographer I want those type of photographs too, but I know that to get them requires direction from the photographer. When Natalie was directing us, telling us specifically what to do, there was no confusion and we were actually relieved she was guiding us in order to achieve natural photos.

ENCOURAGEMENT MAKES IT FUN – This is one of my favourite parts of being a photographer. You get to tell people that they are beautiful, that they look amazing. As well as being a self confidence boost, it’s experience that you rarely get anywhere else. Natalie and Caitlin were amazing at giving genuine encouragement. This made the shoot more fun, and honestly made us laugh even more!

I absolutely love the little sneak peek above that Natalie posted on her Instagram and Facebook. I’m so grateful for these photographs, and I know that I will treasure them forever.