The good ol' B&W treatment.

I love the effect of changing a colour photo to black and white. It looks moodier, more artistic and definitely more interesting. The one above started out as this...

...an ok shot, but nothing to write home about.

The black and white effect seems to clear out the clutter and focus on the best aspects of the shot.

These shots below look more dangerous in B&W...

They make South Freo look less like a beachside haven for middle-class hippies and more like the kind of place you wouldn't let your daughter go after dark.

Here they are in colour...

See what I mean? No sign of a seedy underbelly here.

What I'd really like to do is give my life the B&W treatment. Clear out the crap rubbish and make everything look a bit more interesting and artistic. 

What's not to love about that?

x

Memory Lane (well, Silver Street actually)

There is a whimsical block of streets in South Fremantle which is so mouth-wateringly-pretty that it always makes me think of lollipops and sugary sweets (so what's new?)

If you are ever down that way, take a walk down Silver Street, along Coral Street and up Gold Street - even the names are magical.

I found these shots going through some old photos. I love the mustard colour of the combi van and the muted reds and browns. 

I may have blogged some of these before, but worth a trip down Memory Lane I think.

Just along Coral Street there is a tiny park (we called it Surfboard Park in honour of the one piece of play equipment).

Have a glorious weekend.

x
PS - a new header for my blog, made with the program I love to hate - Photoshop. 

Packing Up

I only truly realise how strongly I put down roots in my home when I am moving away from it. We have decided to move for completely practical reasons. We drive an exceptionally long way to and from school and work every day, sometimes twice a day, and earlier this year it became clear to us that it had become unmanageable. So, we tossed our renovation plans, bit the bullet, and bought a home much closer to the places we spend most of our time.

Tomorrow we start to move. Our life is now contained in what seems like hundreds of cardboard boxes with labels scribbled across them in black marker. Packing up makes me feel sad and excited all-at-once. There are lots of things I will miss about my home, like my fireplace that came with two hooks attached ready for Christmas stockings. They had been put there by the previous owners who also had two little girls. 

I'll miss all the 'old house' features like the ceiling roses (ok, I won't miss those lights)...

...and the decorative arches.

I'll miss the way my girls' rooms evolved as they grew, and came to reflect their own beautiful personalities. This....

...and this.

The home we are moving to is also old, but 1930's old instead of 1900's old. It is in a lovely tree-lined street, rather than an often-noisy cafe strip. It is going to be a wonderful place to make new memories, and to see our girls grow into young women. But for now, it's goodbye to this little terrace of mine. I hope the next occupants can make good use of those hooks on the fireplace too.

x

Photographer's Assistant

Oh-so-long between posts. I blame work (the real job, not this blogging lark). But, despite the day-to-day busy-ness, I spent a happy few hours on Saturday morning being the assistant for one talented girl - my eldest daughter Lilly. On a mission to complete a photography assignment for school, we all went along to help her. Beth (my second, and newly emerging wild-child) was the model, resplendent in floral dress and boots-with-attitude. I carried all the stuff, and my husband was the big-burly-bouncer type who kept us all safe in a slightly dodgy part of Freo. Good times! I was happy to relinquish the Nikon to my girl, who produced some jaw-dropping shots. That left me with the good-ol' iphone - what can I say? It's an addictive little toy.

I'm a shamelessly proud Mum!

(and I'm playing Point-and-Shoot here)

x

Australia Day 2011

I can't think of anything more Aussie to do than spend an hour or so at Gino's watching the cars go by. Driving up and down South Terrace in the noisiest and flashiest car you can lay your hands on has long been a right-of-passage for generations of, well...let's just call them young men.

We could have sat there for hours, watching the spectacle of passersby. The highlight for me was the motorcycle rider with a blow-up doll riding pillion. And yes, I do believe her mouth was open to catch the wind. Unfortunately no photos of that as I was too busy munching on my Gino's fries to take my camera out (see how I now refer to my phone as a camera...very sad indeed.)

Today is Australia Day here in the land of Oz. Seafood barbeques, fireworks and girls walking around dressed in a bikini and a flag. There is also, of course, a healthy dose of denial about what this date really commemorates. (What could be more Australian than that?)

Wherever you are, however you choose to mark this day, have a good one friends.

x

We took off this afternoon to walk and drink coffee. Loving a long weekend!
More pics here.
x