Rachel and Calvin's wedding

Wedding photography scares the bejeebus out of me.  I helped Philip out with a wedding once, but it's not really my thing to be honest.  That said, I've always been a little curious about shooting a wedding solo, and when Rachel (not my Rachel) asked if I'd take a few photos on their wedding day, I decided to have a crack at it (and was rewarded with some rather brilliant dessert wine and a dinner containing some of the best sweet and sour pork I have ever tasted). It was certainly a scary experience (shooting the wedding, not eating the sweet and sour pork).  If you miss a moment, that's it really. Gonnnnne.  But in the end I had a great time, and this was certainly helped by how chilled out Rachel and Calvin were about the whole thing. Their family and friends were extremely helpful and accommodating, and I have to admit that when asked by a few guests how long I'd been a wedding photographer for, I took much pleasure in saying "Since around 2:30 this afternoon."

The two big things I learned from the day (from a photographic point of view) were that I should probably learn to use flashes properly, and that the floodlights from a tennis court make for really, really, really crappy lighting.

Technical difficulties and my own shortcomings aside, I had a great time, and I hope Rachel and Calvin did too.  Special thanks not only to Rachel and Calvin - who were utterly fantastic to me all day - but also to Matt (an usher), who herded families and friends into position for formal photos, making my job a million times easier.

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Sorry Calvin - this is the exact moment that Chopsy mentioned Mence Beauty...

New toy

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...courtesy of this lovely lady and her mummy:

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Highlight of the weekend was when 2.5 year old C managed to lock 9 month old E in a bedroom about twenty minutes before they were due to head to the airport.  We all laughed about it afterwards (sort of).

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Lunch in Kennedy Town

Had a very enjoyable trip to Kennedy Town for lunch with my ex-office-neighbour Philip today.  Philip and I worked next door to each other for over 5 years (through two office moves and three office locations) until Philip left the law to pursue a career in photography in April. Anyway, we had a(nother) great curry lunch - a rare treat for me, given that I work way out in the middle of nowhere.

It's great to see that Philip's business is coming along really well, although it's hardly a surprise - he has talent to burn. You can find his work on Facebook or at his business website (if you look at the photos from Alice and David's wedding, you should find me in there - and if you look reeeeally closely, you'll see Rachel).

.Philip at lunch - he doesn't always have this look on his face.  Just when the food is particularly delicious.

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An afternoon with Milo and Ruby

I went to do some IT support on Brendon and Leah's computer yesterday afternoon, and it turned into a playdate for the kids and a bit of dinner for George the Food Moocher. .

George and Milo on the chair usually occupied by Trotsky the Retriever

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Ruby (who insisted on eating chicken in this photo)

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George, after Leah brushed his hair...

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Of course today is Fathers' Day in New Zealand, so:

Backwards

He keeps his clothes on when he's swimming at the beach (blue t-shirt on the left photo), and strips down when he's at home reading.  Weirdo. .

(Photo on the top right was taken on the way home from the beach.  Poor kiddo was completely knackered.)

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Parklife

Dragonboat Festival today, which meant a rather lovely day off.  We had friends around for brunch this morning - Rachel whipped up scrambled eggs, bagels with dill + lemon cream cheese, blueberry muffins and a fruit platter, while  I went beserk on the coffee machine, knocking out seven flat whites in record time.

In the afternoon we shot down to the Cyberport waterfront park with Milo (George's BFF) and his family - it was fantastic, but crikey it's humid now.

The first photo pleases me - George looks like he's effortlessly busting through an opposition backline while giving his parents on the sideline a casual nod (I've dreamed about this moment hundreds of times - although in my dreams he's a bit older and he's not wearing cloth nappies):

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A few more from the afternoon:

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More of the beach kids in Galle

I hate photos of myself, but Sarah (link to her incredibly neglected blog here) kindly sent me a photo from our time in Sri Lanka which I thought was pretty cool (the cool bit is not me  - I still look like a donkey).

Sarah was with me when I took this photo in Galle:

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...and while I was showing the kids the photos of themselves on the LCD screen, she took this photo:

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Thanks Sarah!

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More Sri Lankan randomness

Sarah on the beach - this was just before we took photos of the Sri Lankan kids jumping in the sunset

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A frog (Sinhalese: "gemba") on the wall of one of the restaurants we went to in Galle

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More elephant bathing action from Pinnewela.  Those two brown lumps at the top are indeed what you think they are.

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Tim and Charlie walking around the villas in Sigiriya

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George during a game of hide and seek in our hotel room in Colombo

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Happy Birthday Uncle / Godfather Ross!

Can you believe that this photo is 17 years old?!  Happy birthday Ross!  Much love from the Far East, and in particular much dribbly (and slightly grumpy, if we're being honest this morning) love from your godson. .

Pink bowties and waistcoats with yellow smiley face buttons are going to come back in style.  I just know it.

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First photo of our holiday

I certainly didn't expect it to look like this: .

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We were about to board the Singapore to Colombo flight just after midnight, and who should we bump into at the boarding gate? Mr Alex "Chuck Norris is my homeboy" Bellingham, formerly of Hong Kong and currently of Spain.

Alex was en route to some business meetings in Dubai and was about as surprised as we were at the chance encounter (given that the last time we saw him was when we were farewelling him and the family from Hong Kong in 2009).  We had a lovely - but quick - catch up, then boarded for the painfully timed flight (left at 1am Singapore time, arrived in Colombo three and a half hours later at around 2am local time).  Alex put on the eyemask, earplugs and passed out... we tried to settle an overtired little boy who spent much of the flight screaming.  Oops.

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