How we found it: Urbanspoon.com
Where we found it: Cairns
What we drank: Latte / Cappuccino
How we found the coffee: Best we found in Cairns
Will we go again: Whenever we are in Cairns
Anything else we liked: Great design and atmosphere.
How you can find it: http://www.bangespresso.com.au/

Congratulations to Hannah and Adam who welcomed Leni the day after this shoot back in February

Head over to our online shop to grab your voucher.

Avaliable at the Photobat Shop, head over to see them all and grab a print that will be ready for Mothers Day!

How we found it: Twitter!
Where we found it: West End, Brisbane
What we drank: Iced Coffee
How we found the coffee: Awesome, best iced coffee I think i’ve ever had
Will we go again: Probably whenever we are in Brisbane
Anything else we liked: Seems like a heap of awesome photographers hang out here too.
How you can find it: http://cupcoffee.com.au/

Click here to buy direct from our online shop

Then off to Melbourne first thing to shoot some shots for one of my favourite comedians, Sarah Kendall. Click here to buy tickets to her show before they all sell out and keep an eye out for her in Sydney.

Up early on Sunday to hang out with Miles.

Then over to see Max and Lucinda…

And finished up at Trevallyn with Kelly and Ben.

Who doesn’t love an easter egg hunt? I know Jasper and Charlotte did!

I could have thrown them out or delivered them old persons home, but I was attached to all the ideas that were inside the covers easily. I had to go through each and every one of them and find the bits I like and rip them out, all the design ideas, images layouts and wall displays, while Vikashni pulled out all the recipes.

I thought I’d start to share some of the inspiration ideas that I found, ways you can display your artwork. As I mention in planning session, it’s all very well to get some great images, but where are you going to put them once you have them? It really is all about complimenting and balancing your existing furniture and spaces with the something that suits in size, shape and finish.

I’m still waiting to see what happens to all the recipes that Vikashni ripped out; well we shall see what comes of them… and probably post about them too!

This series is great fantastic. Two verticles and a horizontal with the black frames with the white matts above the sideboard balance it perfectly.

I’ve also noticed a trent towards large framed prints used though out houses and just leaned against walls. This is a great idea for those older homes that may have dodgy old plaster that will not support large frames.

This tryptych is also pretty great, it makes use of a tall thin space that can be quite tricky to decorate.

Above the bed is one of the most popular places we see for a wall art, and it need to be either a set or one larger image. The one above is perfect, the frame ties in with the colour theme of the room and it balances above the bed perfectly. The white frame on white wall looks amazing.

Apologies, in the rip-a-thon some of the magazines these images are from were mixed up and we will attribute them if we know where they are from. If you know where they are from please let us know and we can credit the mags.Sources: Inside Out + 3 missing.

Remember Emily and Craig? A couple of years ago they graced the back cover of Bride Tasmania in one of our ads. It was great to catch up with them up inBrisbane last month and meet their super sweet little girl Jaz. Considereing it was dam hot she did very well to pull out all the cuteness, including that bottom lip!

James and Bianca had a fantastic wedding down at the Lake House in Cressy.

Down Dairy Plains to shoot the Terry family…

And also shoot a couple of shots of Amy and her fiance Jonathan

Over to Exeter to catch up with some very cute kids and their animals.

Hanging out with Connie  at Westbury as she showed me the yellow tomato’s she love picking and eating…

Then back to town to shoot Daniel and Bec

How was your weekend?

None of the above, it did hit 38.9 degrees making it record wedding heat for me, but i can say that the heat was a little on the annoying side but really didn’t affect how everything unfolded. And it unfolded pretty darn well in my opinion.

There are so many stories about this wedding, from the dad’s joint conversational speech, the discovery of a great location that held the heat at bay, the amazing Tasmanian sourced menu, the boat trip down, those great flowers and reception set up, even the wine selection had a story.

Well done again to Sarah and Anthony for getting hitched in such a great way with such great family and friends all around. It really was a fantastic day. And here are a few shots to help tell the story of your day.

(oh, and the candles did melt   )

Burnie is a really pretty little city. I was surprised, I have spent many young years hanging out with my Nan in Burnie but it’s been a while since I actully spent time there.
Of course, when it came time to shoot Carla and Brock’s engagement portrait I ended up finding a dodgy area out the back of a dodgy pub. Still, these guys are getting married at Quamby so having shots in such a contrasting location appealed. And it was pretty fun too, climbing condemed stairs, braving walking under crumbling carports and exploring how we can use shopping trollies for a prop. Stay tuned for Carla and Brock’s wedding, coming in a few months.

Congratulations Rob and Shannyn!

Let us know your best or worst story about you and your significant other’s attempts (good or bad) at home renovation, handyman work or gardening.

We will upload all the stories into a facebook gallery where you will be able to share your story with friends and family. The winner will be the story that gets the most likes.

This year our prize is a dinner for 2 at The Black Cow Bistro and a $1000 towards a luxury portrait session and artworks from Photobat.

You can use your $1000 towards a couple shoot, a family shoot, a natural light studio session or even some shots just for yourself. You will then be able to create some amazing artwork for your home.

How to enter:

Head over to: http://photobat.wufoo.com/forms/enter-photobats-2012-valentines-day-competition/

Enter your details and story in the form and you will be in the running. Voting will start Wednesday 8/2/2012 at 10am and finish at 7pm on Monday the 13th of February.

Some conditions: only likes on the images in the Photobat gallery will be counted, the image with the most likes at 7pm on the 13th of February 2012 will be the winner, winning couple must agree to have their photos be used on the blog/website.

This was this guys 4^th shoot, initially there was the pregnancy session, followed by the Cam as a baby, Cam as a 2 year old and now Cam as a rather feisty little 4 year old. All the other shoots so far have been in Launceston but this time it was time to head East. As one of their favourite family holiday spots it proved to be the perfect location for Cam and Ben to expel a heap of energy, running, jumping and wrestling.

This time we also had the added bonus of having Sara’s dad Adrian down from Canada so we could do some shots of the three generations together. I love generational portraits, it’s so fantastic to see three generations in the one image.

This Valentines Day… what would you like?

A peck on the cheek?

A kiss and a cuddle?

Or having people around you telling you to GET A ROOM!

We have three HOT SPECIALS from Photobat for you to give to your loved one this Valentine’s Day.
Each voucher comes with a portrait design session, your luxury portrait experience, your purchasing session and is all wrapped up in a gift box filled with chocolates and a card for you to write your special message.

You can use this towards couple shoot, a family shoot, a natural light studio session or even some shots of your other half.

Get in touch now by calling 6334 8789, emailing photobat@photobat.net or just head over to www.photobatshop.net and order online by heading to the product page.

The Peck on the Cheek.
Includes a portrait design session, your luxury portrait experience, your purchasing session and is all wrapped up in a gift box filled with chocolates and a card for you to write your special message.  Only $75 (valued at $175)

The Kiss and A Cuddle.
Includes a portrait design session, your luxury portrait experience, your purchasing session and is all wrapped up in a gift box filled with chocolates and a card for you to write your special message and $350 towards your artworks.  Only $150 (valued at $525)

 The Get A Room!
Includes a portrait design session, your luxury portrait experience, your purchasing session and is all wrapped up in a gift box filled with chocolates, a card for you to write your special message, $500 towards your artworks and a bottle of Josef Chromy wines. Only $195 (valued at $675)

Get in touch now by calling 6334 8789, emailing photobat@photobat.net or just head over to www.photobatshop.net and order online by heading to the product page.

Jasper is a second child. Apparetnly one night when he was being soothed to sleep he kept looking at photos of the baby on the wall. It was his older brother Griffin. The other photos on the wall of the little boy playing with his parents was also Griffin. Jasper was missing. That has now been fixed when we delivered filled out Jasper’s a perscription of a shoot to help relieve the symptoms of 2nd Child Syndrome.

Admittidly, Griffin did star a bit while Jasper had a nap, he was especially good captaining the Explorer 200, his wave surfing ship.

If you or you know a family that has been affected by Second Child Syndrome, please let us know and we can send then a perscription to rectify the situation!

The break over summer gave me the chance to do so,me reading. I do read all year but the amount of time it takes to read a book greatly increases. I’ve just finished two pretty inspirational books, the first was The Pursuit of Happyness by Chris Gardner.

I saw the movie, but I knew there had to be some aspects that were more Hollywood than real story. The movie is actually only one year of his life and about a quarter of the book, there is so much more to the story. You can see that from a bad beginning with a abusive step father that Chris had to overcome more than homelessness to arrive at being a multi millionaire who now is helping to expand trade into developing countries. You can see that he learnt a lot from his upbringing and that focused him to be the best at whatever he was doing. It also shows his human failings which is good to see in a autobiography, if the whole book was “look how good I am” it would be a bit unbelievable. If you saw the movie, go grab the book and give it a read.

The second was always looking up by Michael J Fox. This is the follow up to Lucky Man, his first more show biz memoir that covers his early life and up to the diagnosis with Parkinson’s Disease. That was a fantastic book and the sequel takes off where Lucky Man left off. It’s not a showbiz autobiography, more of a life after showbiz, life with Parkinson’s Disease and how he started his research foundation, following on with his political activism, exploration of faith and his stories of family life. What I took away from this is his fantastic optimism towards life and his dedicated work towards informing and promoting the research into stem cell research. This can be a little clunky to read, the politics side can bit a bit dry but persevere because the family stories are fantastic at the end.

These two books are quite inspirational, and a fantastic way to get some perspective to start the year.

I’m currently onto the Steve Jobs autobiography, it’s not on the kindle and it’s a big book and will take a bit longer to read. The speed of reading is greatly increased when I can pop the ipad into a bag and open the kindle app where ever I am and read a little.

So, what books did you get into over the summer, anyone else reading the Steve Job’s biography? What should I be looking to read next?

Paint is a favourite

How we found it: Looking to the front of the boat
Where we found it: On the Derwent
What we drank: Café Latte
How we found the coffee: Pretty alright for a boat coffee.
Will we go again: Certainly, coffee on a boat is fun
Anything else we liked: Did I mention it was on the boat from MONA? Last coffee of 2011 too.

Shon happened to be a couple of years below me at shool, we reconnected briefly at his cousin Clare’s wedding that he happened to be MCing and which we were lucky enough to shoot. Flash forwards a couple of years and Shon and great wife Lisa have bought little Anna into the world. Anna is the first baby i can remember that actually arrived on her due date, so there is some expectations on her being punctual the rest of her life. Anna was a dream little girl to work with, there were a few of those baby tremours but really she was just so sweet the whole shoot. Of course, I have to mention my fantastic assistand on this shoot Sheamus, who managed to get in on the act and displayed some very good dog behaviour.

I’m down in the Binalong Bay / St Helens area this Saturday (14th of January) and have one spot left for a portrait session in the early afternoon. It’s yours for only $110 (normally $250) if you give me a call and book in on 0407 848 734.

How we found it: Ages ago, it’s one of our Hobart favourites
Where we found it: Salamanca Square
What we drank: Mostly lots of coffee
How we found the coffee: It wouldn’t be a favourite if it had bad coffee would it?
Will we go again: On most Hobart visits
Anything else we liked: The food is pretty fantastic, and the best designed restaurant it Tas I think.
How you can find it: Via their website

“We are getting married at St Davids and having the Imperial March from Star Wars as the Recessional Music”

My initial thoughts were that this is going to be fun with a touch of geek/nerd. You can go over the top when you are planning those little details in your wedding, too much and it’s overkill, too little and no one notices. Renee and Dave had it just at the right balance with the guests first inkling being the laughs and smiles as they realised that music coming from that sacred organ in that big old church was pure late 70’s Sci Fi.

There were the other touches too, the tardis on the garter, the tardis on the gifts table and the tardis with Tom Baker-esk scarf and caketoppers. Add in the button hole and cufflinks being role playing dice and you knew exactly who these guys were.

And who says geeks can’t look good? These guys looked fantastic and every other bit of the wedding was spectacular. The huge 4 million course guys breakfast, the red kombi for the girls, that great dress, those friendly butterflies, the brief zombie walk and a little boat trip out to the reception at MONA.

I think the best part was exactly what I knew it would be. The fun. Oh so much fun.

Dave and Renee are awesome, geeky and awesome. Congratulations on getting hitched and for doing it your way.

here was one thing that Renee said to me when she was talking about her wedding that set in my mind how this wedding was going to play out.

“We are getting married at St Davids and having the Imperial March from Star Wars as the Recessional Music”

My initial thoughts were that this is going to be fun with a touch of geek/nerd. You can go over the top when you are planning those little details in your wedding, too much and it’s overkill, too little and no one notices. Renee and Dave had it just at the right balance with the guests first inkling being the laughs and smiles as they realised that music coming from that sacred organ in that big old church was pure late 70’s Sci Fi.

There were the other touches too, the tardis on the garter, the tardis on the gifts table and the tardis with Tom Baker-esk scarf and caketoppers. Add in the button hole and cufflinks being role playing dice and you knew exactly who these guys were.

And who says geeks can’t look good? These guys looked fantastic and every other bit of the wedding was spectacular. The huge 4 million course guys breakfast, the red kombi for the girls, that great dress, the brief zombie walk and a little boat trip out to the reception at MONA.

I think the best part was exactly what I knew it would be. The fun. Oh so much fun.

Dave and Renee are awesome, geeky and awesome. Congratulations on getting hitched and for doing it your way.

It’s been a fun year, if not a bit life changing. Having Saffron about has been lots of hard work, smelly and a heap of fun.  I don’t think I’ve ever been so tired or hit with so many trips to the doctor (we have a VIP card there now!).  Everything is looking clearer as the year ends, we have had some more sleep, even sleeping in to 7.30 on occasion!

The hardest but most rewarding aspect of 2011 has been doing a couple of Heartfelt sessions. It’s something that completely destroys me for a few days afterwards, my thought are always on the families. I have the knowledge that the service is priceless and it is something I can give that will be some of the most treasured photos I’ll ever take. If you aren’t aware of Heartfelt, please click the link at the bottom of the page.

2012 is looking pretty full on from Photobat’s view. We will still be taking some fantastic photography with some more shoot types in the works as well as everything we have been doing this year.
There are a heap of weddings that I’m looking forward to, some local and one not so local (look out Hawaii and Adelaide!). It’s been great getting to know the couples and helping them on their road to the big day.

New website will land in the first couple of months, we will have a bit of a launch party at the Top Shots 2011, which will be held sometime in February/March.

Special thanks to everyone for letting us into your lives either through letting us photograph you, by coming to one of our events or even just visiting us online at our blog and Facebook sites. Extra special thanks to all the families who have returned to us to update their photo stories, it truly Is the best part of the job watching families grow.

We love meeting you, hearing your stories, creating artworks and sharing our stories with you.

As for my favourite photo of the year. I thought about it for about a second and only one image came to mind. I just realised it didn’t even blog it and its never going to win awards. I peeked early with this shot being taken in the first week of 2011. This shot takes me back to a hot day, everyone exhausted and knowing  the little touch of a little hand makes everything alright.

Thanks again for being great, reading, looking, smiling, laughing with me this year. I can’t wait for next year (lucky it’s only a few hours away).

Alan

Ps. Photographers, I know you are out there. Post up a link in the comments to your favourite shot/blog post of the year. I’d love to see them.

Visit Heartfelt

Remember Rhys and Jess? Well if you don’t click here.

I caught up with then last week and met their little Jin! He was a little sleepy but still could pull the cute when needed.

Congratulations to Cat too on your graduation tomorrow!

Raquelle and Chris had one of their first date kind of things there, so it was a great spot for their shoot, and what a fun shoot it was.

Girl need an accountant.

Boy is an accountant.

Girl’s friend recommended Boy.

Girl’s friend realises that Boy and Girl would be a good match in more than a professional way.

Blind date.

Some romancing.

A hidden ring in a sock draw for months.

A proposal.

An acceptance.

Wedding.

Age old story

So now tha she is walking we are moving everthing up to a higher level.
What are some of the things your little ones got into when they started to walk?

I had a past with Shane, apparently we worked together at Pizza Hut many many many years ago. And apparently he was in my brother’s year in primary school. And now he works at Coles and is the nice guy who looks after the online ordering which we take advantage of occasionally. Susan appeared in the picutre back in Shane’s Pizza Hut days, but after my time there ( I think, I really don’t remember much of those days, I do know I was 17, had a white 2 door 82 Ford Laser and I know I have a scar on one of my fingers from getting too excited when leaving on a delivery once, oh and I ate a bit of pizza)

Anyway. We are talking about Brax. Don’t think I have to say too much about him because I believe his cuteness will shine through in the photos below. Congratulations again Susan and Shane on your little man, lets hope he lets you get a good amount of sleep soon!

Lira and I had some time for her to show me her bedroom before Leo woke from his nap. She loved showing me all her things and especially showing me photos of all her friends. When Leo decided it was wakey time we spent a heap of time playing in the back yard, with Jean relearning the lesson of “holding a baby above your head just after it has had a drink, never ends well”

There was so much singing, laughing and so many beautiful moments that it was hard to stop shooting and it was certainly sad to say good bye, especially for Lira  who wanted me to watch the wiggles with her.

Thanks again Amanda and Jean on the really great session, can’t wait to get your artworks to you!

How we found it: Walking past, knowing Amelia
Where we found it: Bottom end of George St, near the corner of Cameron
What we drank: Coffee, Water
How we found the coffee: Pretty good, light roast
Will we go again: Every other day
Anything else we liked: BYO lunch as long as you buy a drink and a big table to eat at
How can you find it: Facebook

After our pancake party last month we had so much feedback about how amazing the pancakes. It is Vee’s secret recipie… but not any more! See below for how to make awesome pancakes, cooking them on the BBQ adds that extra little bit of magic too. I’ve also included my Blueberry Compote recipie, I used frozen blueberries but i’m sure it will be much better with the fresh ones.

Let us know how you go, sorry if this post makes your tummy grumble!

Vee’s Pancakes

Makes 4 – 6 pancakes good sized pancakes.
Prep time 10 – 15 minutes
Cooking time 4 minutes for each pancake

Ingredients
o 1 cup milk
o 1 cup self raising flour
o 2 tablespoons sugar
o 1 egg

o Butter for cooking

Method
o In a large mixing bowl combine the milk, sale raising flour, sugar and egg. Mix all ingredients well until there are no lumps, best to use an electric beater but if one is not handy you can use a whisk or a spoon. Don’t get too worried if it is a bit lumpy when the batter cook it seams to turn out fine.

o Heat a non stick frying pan over medium heat. Add a little butter to the pan so that the base of the pan has a very light cover of butter only add enough so that the pancake does not stick to the pan.

o Using a soup ladle pour a small amount of mixture onto the pan, you can make the pancake as big or small as you like depend how hungry you are. Cook the pancake for 2 minutes or until bubbles form on the surface, turn the pancake over and cook for a further 2 minutes or until cooked through.

o Repeat this process with the remaining batter, and don’t forget to put a little bit of butter on the pan after you cook each pancake.

Blueberry Compote

Ingredients
o 2 tablespoons caster sugar
o 300g frozen blueberries
o 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Cooking time about 10 minutes

Method
o Place all of the ingredients into a pot and let simmer on a medium heat until the sauce becomes syrupy and reduced slightly

Other suggestions
To make your pancakes a little more indulgent try replacing the 1 cup of milk with 1 cup of butter milk, the butter milk creates a more velvety textured pancake. Add some ice cream as a topping too, it is afterall a long forgotten breakfast favourite!

Over the years I’ve filled up many hard drives of images taken for no reason than for my own self interest. Some make it onto the blog, some get entered into the awards and some just sit about and gather virtual dust.

Well, I’ve just completed some dusting and uncovered a heap of images that I’m proud of and though that I should open them up to everyone who would like one. The Photobat Print Shop is now open offering affordable photographic prints that are ideal to put on that blank spot on the wall, place on the bookshelf or even to give to someone as a present so they can enjoy it.

Some of my favourite images are included, and it is the first time I’ve offered prints of “The Caravan” (8 inch version pictured above on my mantle at home) one of my most popular images.

All prints come unframed and will be delivered within 10 days of ordering. For Launceston buyers I will throw in a special discount card so you can get your print framed.

To celebrate the launch of the Photobat Print Shop, we are offering free shipping on all orders made until the 25^th of November.  Plus if you order 3 you will get 20% off.

Please head over to the Print Shop and have a browse. I plan on adding images to the collection over time as I take new ones. Also, if there is an image of mine that you love that you would like to see in the shop please leave a comment and I’ll see if I can dig it up for you.

Click here to visit the Photobat Print Shop

Remember, Free shipping until this Friday and Christmas is just around the corner…

Ruby is small, furry and very friendly. She is the first fur child of Alex and Jake. During the shoot she pretty much did what ever she wanted including discovering some great things to sniff, balls to chase and other strange four legged furry creatures to look at.

It was fantastic to catch up with so many clients down at the Apron market last weekend. Here are a few shots with more images up on our Facebook page

10 Months ago…

Ps Happy Birthday Sarah!

Thanks Toni for coming in and hope you and Tim had fun on your shoot, we can’t wait to get your artworks to you. Vee

Remember you can bring in your other half to play in the session. Only  3 spot left for sessions in the studio this year, click here for more details on booking your session

This is the dress that I bought a few months back its amazing but discovered that is is made out of the worst fabric ever. I took it to the dry cleaners and they told that I have to be extra carful with it because the fabric stains really really easily. I hate that, a great dress and i’ll be paranoid everytime I wear it  

How we found it: Online + stalking one of the staff members
Where we found it: Flinders Lane, Melbourne
What we drank: Over 2 trips, 3 cafe latte’s and a piccolo
How we found the coffee: Worth multiple cups, plus it’s Single Origin Coffee so that is always good.
Will we go again: Every chance we get
Anything else we liked: Breakfast, get in early to get a seat and not have to wait about. If you do have to wait, make sure you persist as it is well worth it.

Visit them virtually here and look at their facebook here

We still have a few free spaces available in our diary for portrait sessions with a guarantee of pre Christmas delivery. Alan is currently on fire and shooting some of the best portraits of his life.

We have a special offer for sessions booked pre Christmas, if you purchase a customised wall art piece  you will receive a complimentary gift size copy of your print. Now you can have a unique and special gift to give that even the person who has everything will locce. That’s a bonus of a $175 print for each artwork ordered.

Time is ticking and we only have a limited amount of times available so please click here or give us a call on 6334 8789

We have been getting some really sleek, beautiful and even sexy images from our natural light studio, but sadly it’s time for it to be put to bed for 2011.

We have 4 sessions left for the 2011, all on Sunday the 20^th of November. Each session includes professional hair and makeup (which everyone is raving about), a great natural light studio session and also your cinematic purchasing session. All this for only $220!

We have a tremendous offer to wrap up the session with anyone who purchases an Image Folio Box of their session will receive any custom wall art at 30% off, a saving of up to $1350.

So, if you want some pampering, some great images of you, or even you and your special someone remember to get in touch now by call is us on 0407 848 734 or by clicking here.

Summer is nearly here and this year we are going to the beach to capture the magical charm of informal lifestyle sessions of your family while all relaxed on your breakaway.

Our east coast portrait sessions are going to be extended 2 hour sessions, meaning we can design the session around your favourite beach, the shack or a mix of a couple of spots.
Imagine the great shots we will get of you all building sandcastles, splashing in the waves, running with the dog or doing anything you love to do while on holiday.

We also guarantee we will come to you for a next day viewing of your images so you can select what artworks, albums and other products you would love to have to remember your holiday.

Normally our extended, quick turnaround sessions are $395, but for our east coast sessions we are offering these sessions for $220 with an added bonus of special holiday album/wall art rates.

Book now  as there are only a limited number of sessions available, click here to get in touch or give us a call on 0407 848 734.

Remember, extended sessions, quick turn around and awesome holiday special rates and limited sessions!

Mark is one of those guys you meet and like instantly. I first met him probably 10 or more years ago when he was making and delivery coffee at Glenroys when they used to be next to Sportsgirl, I then followed him to the new Glenroys in the Cd Centre (showing my age as none of these places exist in their old forms any more) and then onto Morties, then he made a big leap over to Mud, then an even bigger leap down to Hobart. I lost track of him for a little while down there but then managed to find him and again follow him through a couple of places. Then he disappeared again. This time to Melbourne. I had no idea where or what he was doing, until a chance conversation gave me a lead in Melbourne, a name of the place he was working. I promptly forgot that name. So when I was in Melbourne a few weeks ago I do an online trawl through cafe/bar/restaurants in central Melbourne and one of them seemed familiar even though i’d never been there… Cumulus Inc. Was it because i’d read about it in a magazine or was it where Mark was?

We went. No Mark. But awesome breakfast and coffee.

I then had the brainwave. So simple. Guaranteed way of finding Mark and where he was working. Something so basic that was going to deliver the goods.

I texted him.

I may have forgotten I had his mobile number.

He replied, I had the right place but the wrong time of day.

I went back the next day, Mark has progressed along way since delivering coffee around Launceston. Cumulus Inc is lucky to have a great and dedicated hospitality legend like Mark working there. He’s not so much making coffees any more, genereally running about offering good service and choosing some good wines for people to drink. Chasing Mark is fun, I look forward to the day he has his own place and I’ll be able stop the chasing.

How we found it: Random wandering 5 years ago, then rediscovered random wandering last week.
Where we found it: Flinders Lane, Melbourne
What we drank: 2 cafe lattes
How we found the coffee: Worth going back for more
Will we go again: Without a doubt, have to try the Canteen section.
Anything else we liked: Fruit Toast was pretty awesome and there was a lift for wheelchair / pram driving dad’s to use to get up the stairs. Buzzing with a great atmosphere and design. Plus there is a side window for take aways.
How you can find them : Facebook

My dad went to get his camera cleaned in Melbourne and came back with a pair of cool shoes that didn’t fit him so I grabbed them.
What do you think?

It’s always great catching up with previous wedding clients, especiall when they bring along their kids.
Abigail was at the wedding, it was also her naming ceremony. Edward is the new kid on the block.
We spent a great morning running about in St George’s Square just avoiding the bad weather that was threatening us from all directions. Abigail has turned into quite the runner and Edward has a very cool serious look about him.
Thanks again guys, i’m really looking forward to getting your artworks framed and ready for your home.

And the best part is EVERONE IS INVITED! All past, persent and upcoming clients, we are looking forward to seeing you there.

It’s my own pancake recipe which was loved at my old job, and Alan likes it a bit too (as does Saffron and the cat may like them too)

All the details are

Place: Tail race park, Riverside, Tasmania

Time: This Sunday. 30/10/11 at  10 am – 12pm – just drop by for as long as you like. Please bring a blanket/chairs to sit on

RSVP: By THIS THURSDAY, either in  a comment below, by phoneing up 63348789, by clicking attending on facebook or emailing vee@photobat.net

All ages are welcome we will have balloons and a MAGICIAN called Mr Beep coming all the way from Hobart just to entertain you!

Also let us know your favourite pancake toppings and we will see what we can do about having them there for you.

We are excited and look forward to seeing as many of you there as can make it!

V took this one above.. Unfortunatly this is one of Saffron’s latest smiles.

Check out the chompers! Still only 2 teeth, more on the way i’m sure of it.

When you get 3 girls and a large paddock together I know there is going to be a bit of exploring. And how awesome are ther girls dressed, if I remember rightly the clothes are grandmother made, so well done Nan on the fantatic clothes!

It is that great time of the year where we are getting some fantastic light at the end of the day. Soft evening light, if I had my way i’d move the trajectory of the earth so that this light was about for more of the day. Not 100% sure how i’ll go about doing it but i’m sure I can get an app on my phone that will do it.

Congratulations again Jim and Bec on the great little tribe you are bringing up!

I’m have a a heap of fun putting our new Natural Light Studio through its paces, every session is giving some fantastic results.

We have only 5 Natual Light Studio spaces left for the rest of the year.

The avaliable dates/times are

Saturday, November 11th @ 4pm
and
Sunday, November 20th – 5 sessions available from 9am till 3.30pm

Get in touch asap to secure your session, we  have some special offers for all the natural light sessions booked in for November that will save you well over $100.

Remember, partners are welcome to come jump in some shots too.

So email us, or call us on 6334 8789 and we can get your session booked and let you know everything about how to prepare and get the most out of your session.

There are some sessions after work on week nights, if you are interested please let us know and we can see what we can do.

Make a Booking

For something a little different we now have our awesome image boxes available in black. The edges and inside of the box are black with a canvas printed photo from your session on the front. Each box comes with 15 prints and is pretty cool. We still have the white ones too, so depending on what image you would like one the front and where you would like to display it in your home will depend on what colour we would reccomend to you.
We had this one made for Bianca’s Natural Light Session and it looks fantastic, so fantastic that we wish we made one for us to keep. Then again everything we create for our clients we tend to want a copy for ourselves too.

Image boxes are available for every portrait session, and now come with a specially priced wall art to finish off your collection.

Stay tuned as we will be releasing the last Natural Light Session dates for the year early next week.

Hmm… I was just thinking about some things that i’ve learnt in the last 12 months of having a little human baby to keep alive and happy…. here are a couple of things…

Back up and keep photos/videos organised. That includes renaming them. If you start at the start of the babies life it’s easier. Think about how hard it generally is to get the negatives of your baby photos. The digital files ARE you negatives so make sure you look after them so that the great grandkids can look at them. Plus get them printed, at least the key ones because the great grandkids might be experts at their laser guided rocket jetpacks, but they may have no idea on how to use a CD/DVD, but i’m sure their eyes will still work to look at a print.

Sleep. We were told to “have as much sleep before the baby arrives so that you have some banked up” Yeah. that realllllllly worked. (note the sarcasm)

Microwave bottle sterilisers are great as long as you keep water in them. If not they have a tendency to melt. Plus they are great for steaming carrots (note, the last point may be false and no i didn’t try it but I did think about it.)

Flying Jetstar wasn’t fun. We had to change flights in Melbourne, which mean recheck in. It’s was our first flight with a 3 month old, we had a heap of extra stuff that we had to pick up and recheck in. Probably wouldn’t have been so bad if the line to check in wasn’t all the way back to the Virgin check in.

Get a cleaner if you can for a couple of months. Enjoying the new baby is more important than vacuuming.

There are about another 1000 things i’ve learnt, i’ll add them below when they come to mind. Alan

In the process of planning Saffron’s birthday I envisioned a red themed dessert table, as I was explaining my plans to Alan he asked about the food? My answer was “What food? Cake is the food!” We thought that we better not just feed our guest with cake and throw on a bit of a BBQ.

So here is some pictures of the special day, and I am happy to say that the desert table had a delightful spread of red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, frog in the pond jelly’s, white coconut truffles, love hart jam drop cookies, red heart chocolates, red and white assorted lollies and the all important birthday cake which was a dark chocolate flourless cake finished off with a white chocolate ganache. The food was delicious, and thanks to everyone who came along to celebrate the day.

It’s been a couple of years since I caught up with Brendan, Claire and Issac. In that time they have added little Oliver to the family. Issac has turned into quite a cool little kid too, I seemed to have made yet another best friend! Oliver is pretty cool too, did a good job of being cute for the whole session.

I also had some serious envy issues to about the addition of the awesome pizza oven in the back yard. At least I got to try some pizza now I want one in our back yard.

Christmas is coming up soon, seriously it’s only like 13 weeks away. We always get slammed in November / December with portrait sessions and sometimes we have to disappoint people because we don’t have enough time to fit them in.

So this in mind, if you would love to get some family portraits done and have them ready for Christmas presents (or just to have some new artworks on your wall to make other visiting family members jealous about how good you look) we have an early bird special for you.

The special includes:

Your Planning Session

A Personalised Family Portrait Session

Your Purchasing Session

20 Custom Christmas Cards

and $250 Credit Towards Your Artworks

Valued at $530

Early bird special only $75.

We only have 7 sessions left at the early bird rate so please get in touch and we can fill you in on all the details. So give us a call now on 6334 8789 or click here to make an enquiry.

Note, only avaliable for familoy portraits and to be shot by mid November 2011.

I told you big changes were happening.

We are 10 this year and all grown up, so time to get dressed in our new clothes and start to dance!

It’s really sad to say farewell to the old Photobat logo, it’s done us very well over the last 5 years. The good ‘ole circle P is still very much loved, but like a paisley bow tie, it was limited with it’s design applications. Our new logo is very versatile and we don’t need to write Photobat next to it.

So, this is the start of our facelift. The new website is on it’s way and will be up by the end of the year and from what we have seen so far it is awesome.

Bear with us as we will be looking a little confused in the brand area until all our new collateral is printed and delivered.

And if you are about on Friday and Saturday come to the Apron Market and see what fun things the new logo can do (it’s very uplifting)

Hi there, welcome to the Photobat’s blog.

Our main website is currently being repainted and getting some new curtains. So in the meantime please enjoy our latest work below or click the below categories to be whisked away to relevant blog posts.

Click for Weddings (note, we are fully booked to the end of April 2012)

Click for Portraits

Click for Natural Light Studio

Please click here to book a shoot or ask for more information.

Or why not give us a call on 03 6334 8789

Thanks again and enjoy our transition phase, the new site is looking pretty awesome.

Alan and Vikashni

It was great meeting Janelle when she came in for her natural light studio portrait session. She had some pretty fantastic outfits chosen for the shoot and I learnt about another couple of clothing stores in Launceston to check out. (Vikashni is writing this… because Alan doesn’t look good in a dress, it’s his legs…). I think you will find that the blue dress is awesome and makes me think straight away that summer is around the corner… time for a new wardrobe. We were really thrilled with the way Janelle’s shots came together, thanks again for coming by and hanging out in the studio. Can’t wait to get your  wall art to you.

And  Nataasha Jamieson has taken out the $800 voucher and dinner for 4 at Black Cow Bistro! Congratulations Nataasha, we will be in touch soon to get you your vouchers

Thanks again to everyone who voted, think we might have to do this again sometime. And a huge thank you to all the families who joined in on the fun, we will be getting a little thank you to you soon.

Thanks again Emily for letting me come and meet your grandparents, it was a real honour to spend some time with the.

I haven’t spent a lot of time in Ulverstone. It has always been the town after Devonport and before Burnie. I didn’t realise how great the beach was and how luck Ulverstonians are to have it just there. Launceston is a bit lacking in the beach area, apparently we used to have a couple of good ones but silt has taken care of them, plus who would want to swim in the lower reaches of the Tamar anyway.

I was introduced the beach at Ulverstone by Elise, Jarod, Zack and Sienna who are lucky enough to live within a stone throw of the beach (a good stone thrower, not a girly one like me). I think the beach brings out energy, something in the wind maybe? These kids didn’t stop. Lots of running, jumping, splashing and exploring in the dunes. They were smart and took off their shoes, i still haven’t learnt that me + beach = wet shoes/jeans. But killing a pair of shows was worth it for these guys. Thank again for the really great time and introducing me to your beach, i’m very jealous of it – Alan