The Beautiful Bella.

Saturday saw me in spectacular surroundings, with gorgeous weather and wonderful people, shooting the most exquisite of faces I could have hoped to photograph.

The young model was the delightful Bella - a fellow photographer and great friend, Keith Anderson's work acquaintance's daughter. Yes, I felt that I was very fortunate to have been asked along for some advice on posing and lighting techniques, and to also have a bit of a shoot. An opportunity too good to pass up!

Not only did Bella possess physical beauty, but she naturally radiated a beautiful personality which the camera found absolutely captivating. Oh yeah, right away I knew this would be an incredible shoot!

So the inimitable Keith Anderson, and our ridiculously awesome friend and photographer, Kerry Sumner, Monika and myself, all met Bella on Saturday morning at our local shooting haunt, The Abbotsford Convent. This time of year lends fabulous light, as the sun does not rise too high in the sky for all that long - so for pretty much most of the day, everyone is rim lit! Such a shame that.. Not!

After we finished up at the Convent, we headed for the abandoned house where I previously had the pleasure of photographing the wonderful Richard and Rhiannon - making a brief McDonald's stop on the way of course!

The morning's shoot had already proven successful by yielding many fabulous photographs, and allowing young Bella time to settle in to being photographed by four giggling snipers! To say that we all had fun, would be a gross understatement! It was a day I'll not soon forget.

The abandoned house and surrounding paddocks provided an excellent backdrop for Kerry's fabulous new red chair, and Keith's friend's 1950's Ford pickup truck. Talk about some incredible photographic opportunities!

So we began quickly in the paddocks with the red chair - a great contrast to the surrounding golden brown weeds. Placed rim lit against the sun, we used a gold reflector to cast light back onto Bella's beautiful face whilst she sat in the chair, and hey Presto! Amazing photographs.

All day, the reflector was our best friend. It's amazing how a photograph can improved by using one - or two in some cases we found.

Now, I have to say that Kerry, an exceptional photographer in her own right, has some breathtaking images in her portfolio. She has a gift for placement with an incredible sense of style, and so when she was excited to use her recently acquired red chair.....so was I!!

Photography is a natural form of expression for Kerry, and this is evident from her unique vision. The red chair was PERFECT!!! Thank you very much Kerry for the opportunity of shooting your red chair. I just loved the concept!

Before the day's shoot even began, Keith had an image with the pickup truck in his mind he wanted to shoot. So after a while of shooting Bella in the red chair, the pickup truck arrived and it was time to create Keith's photograph! He saw his image as a post production photograph - keen to use a 'vintage' processing technique.

Yes, the girl was gorgeous, the pickup truck was perfect, and the sunlight could've been ordered from a catalogue it was that good! He had all the ingredients needed to execute his shot. And so he executed it. And it was brilliant! In fact his entire series from not only from that part of the day, but the rather the whole day was incredible! And to think, he was only ever a landscape photographer!

Creating a photograph doesn't always end with pressing the shutter button. Often photographers such as Keith, have 'PhotoShop eyes' when setting up their shots - knowing the processing effect well before the photograph has been taken. This differs greatly from the 'I'll fix it in PhotoShop later', mentality, because the photographer has enhancement in mind. Not repair.

As the day drew to a close, Monika, Keith, Kerry, Bella and I were all very pleased with the results that were achieved. All in all, it was a brilliant day - one I desperately needed to enjoy. Thank you so very much Keith, for asking me along. It was such a joy to witness you in action, and share in your zest for photography. You have a beautiful gift for photography, and during the time I have known you, it has been a pleasure seeing that gift develop. I deeply appreciate the opportunity of photographing the beautiful Bella by your side, creating fabulous photographs, and enjoying an incredible day with you.

Thank you Kerry for bringing your effervescent sense of humour, delightful company, incredible photographic vision, and gorgeous red chair! It's always an honour to shoot with you, and Saturday was no exception! I adore your photography, and I am so very grateful when I have the chance to experience your photographic genius in person. You are an incredible inspiration! 

Monika, your company is always delightful and appreciated. It was so wonderful shooting with you, and to see your photography improve exponentially in this one day, was the highlight of the shoot for me! Well done on creating some fabulous images to be proud of.

And lastly, the beautiful Bella. Thank you for being so lovely! You brought a lot to the day, and for someone so very young, you handled yourself extremely professionally, and rather maturely. I wish you tremendous success, and hope to one day photograph you again.

Contact Keith Anderson at Red Dirt Studios, regarding possible modelling assignments for Bella.