"The light!  The light!" she squeals.  And anybody that has ever been on a photoshoot with me will know exactly what I'm talking about.  I'm constantly looking for that magical light that turns an ordinary photo into something quite spectacular.

I've just come into the office to catch up on my work to find Paul's latest project still open in Lightroom.  He's just finished doing a job for Bayleys who are marketing Woodend Gardens.  It's already a beautiful place - but last night Paul went when the light was just right.

A small trip in the helicopter gives everything a bit of context.

And the gardens themselves are really awesome, we've photographed several weddings here already.  

Like!!

And this is the spot that the ceremony is usually in.

Awesome job babe!  You're my hero....

So, it's about time that I, Paul, make my second post on this blog.   Normally I leave this part up to Jess (other than writing the software to run the blog). 

I have been all over Marlborough shooting some fantastic places for Bayleys during the last few weeks.  With a couple of helicopter flights thrown in for good measure my head is still spinning from all the amazing sights I've had the pleasure of photographing.  Here are a small number of pics - the best helicopter ones will have to wait for another day as I still have a bit of editing to do, but they will be worth the wait!

With two visits to Portage in two weeks, I had the thrill of catching the water when it was this beautiful turquoise colour - can't believe how much the weather changes the colour of the water out there!  Here is a panoramic shot looking back from the wharf (about 5 photos stitched together).

Just behind portage is a new development - beautiful views over the bay, but I really loved the setting in the bush:

After what seemed like a long winter it is so good to have some green back in the vineyards!  Most of these shots are taken just after the sun has gone down when there is that beautiful glow on the landscape.

Here's one quick view of our flight down the sounds - the weather was a bit hazy, but the views were still spectacular.

I like this old shed which was on the property we were hovering over - not too far above the water for this one:

Well I had better go and do some more editing...  A couple more shots as I leave.  One interior from a beautiful farm that I photographed out in the middle of nowhere.  And the parting shot is from a sunset I caught the end of a few weeks back.

So, until next time... have a fantastic Christmas and happy New Year!

Paul shot this house at Sunshine Bay this week, and man is it a stunner! 

See that little glass thing on the top? 

That's this!  How totally awesome is that?

With this many showerheads, you would never have to worry about the water not reaching you again!

Everything about this place has a certain 'coolness' factor.

It is such a beautiful and relaxing setting, that we took the children there for an outing on Sunday (to the shore, not the house!) and had a fantastic time searching for crabs and rescuing jellyfish.  I may pull out a few photos from that and include it in my next blog entry.

Well it seems that winter finally got to me, and I've become a little bit of a 'blogging hermit' - if there even is such a thing.  It's really not ok!  So to try and catch up I've rummaged through some of the recent work, and pulled a couple of bits and pieces out.

Here's a twist on the ordinary isolated wine bottle.  I love the way the light falls, and the barrels through the glass. 

Here's another beautiful place out at Rarangi.

Gosh, I love this shot.  You know all that it really needs?  A bride with a big white dress running along, veil flying.  Wedding season is just around the corner, bringing me more brides and veils to have fun with!  Bring it on!

In other news:

My tadpoles are getting oh-so-fat.  No back legs yet, but it can't be long now?  There's still about 50 of them, so I think we're going to have to take some back to the river - lest we end up with a plague of Egypt in our living room!

It's still raining.  Usually Blenheim has lovely, clear and sunny winters.  This winter is making me want to move to Queensland.

The children did a 'Kids for Kids' concert with Suzanne Prentice, and my Georgia got picked to sing a solo!

She did amazingly well, for a little girl singing in front of 400+ people!

We've made a new border for the photos, giving it a whirl.  Feel free to drop us an email to let us know what you think, is it a keeper?

Our photos have appeared in the latest issues of Unlimited and Homestyle magazines.  Very cool.

I think that's it for today!

This was such an awesome house, Paul said he could have spent all day photographing all the places and details.  This is the house owned by this cat.  Lucky little fellow.

Anybody want an olive grove in your backyard?

As well as a pool?

The view is not too shabby either.

And an aerial shot in there for good measure.

It's been a great week, tidying up loose ends and getting completely up to date with our photos and office work.  Yay! We actually had the full weekend off (mostly anyway) which has been a loooong time coming.  Back into things this week, no time to sit and twiddle our thumbs though, new projects have already been started and more stuff is booked in. 

Here's a place Paul did last week, I love how he captured this sign. 

In winter the sun is so low, it's a real challenge to light the south side of a house.  When the sun is shining right at you, it's also tricky to capture a blue sky.  Try it someday, just for a giggle. 

I want a water feature just like this.... it means I wouldn't have to clean my windows as often!

The ensuite with the hint of the bedroom in the mirror.

This next house was out at Havelock, on the waterfront.  What a view!

Paul's getting in touch with his arty side :)

Ok, so that's me for today.  I'll try and get some people shots up again soon, for those of you who would rather look at faces than property! 

Gosh, it's cold here tonight!  Winter has well and truly hit - I hear that there's snow all over the place down south.  I know that winter happens every year, but I don't think I'll ever be 100% fine with it.  The Dutch girl in me wants the snow here, and the Aussie girl wants to go back to Queensland. 

Oh well, summer will come eventually, and with it come lots and lots of weddings - yay!  I'm such a girl about weddings, you'd think I'd be over it by now, but I get so excited and nervous at every single one.  We've decided that where ever possible, we're going to keep the weddings down to one a week.  There is just soooo much behind-the-scenes work that goes into them, it's just not wise to take on too many, especially if we want to keep shooting other things as well.  So if you're thinking about booking us for next year, do drop us a note, as there are not that many weeks free in peak season (January-March).

So I had a squiz through Paul's property work this week, and pulled out a few that took my fancy.  He worked on a couple of top secret projects last week, which unfortunately I can't show you until the magazine comes out.... but I've said too much already :)

Love it....

And who doesn't love baby ducks?  I had no idea they were still around, I would have thought it was far too cold for babies.  However, obviously, I'm no duckling expert.

And Llamas!  I think I'd buy a Llama farm, just so I could go out and look at them - they crack me up, with their gorgeous faces and funny looking bodies!

Mummy has a watchful eye over her one day old baby - what do you call a baby Llama?  Hmmm... I'm no Llama expert either turns out!)

And it simply wouldn't be Marlborough without a parting vineyard shot!