Happy Birthday Amara

Yes I'm a little lazy and slack at wishing my gorgeous daughter a Happy Birthday.  She turned 5 on the 30th January and unfortunately we had to cancer her birthday party due to the horrendous snow we have had.  Poor Amara! Not once did she complain though unlike her brother who would have had a huge breakdown had his party not gone ahead.  Instead it was spent at home with some friends and my little sister Kelly, MJ and baby Cody (who is growing sooooo fast).

I would have posted a rambling blog sooner but I always forget what my password is and give up after a while.  I did start to store my passwords on one of those account password thingys but yet again I forgot the password for the password website.  You know what I mean right?

Anyway, hope the start of the year is going well for all of you, mine is off to a slow start but I'm getting there.

My gorgeous birthday girl x

Here's to a New Year "Happy 2010"

I've actually been thinking about my new years resolutions the whole month of December and as much as I would love to say that I will stick to them I normally don't. However, I am going to try my best this year ha ha!!

So here is my list.......

Eat Healthy (will only last a couple of weeks probably)

Loose Weight (it will all be back on by the end of the year)

Start running (that's if I don't kill myself after the first run)

Make more time for myself

Get a six pack (highly unlikely)

Learn to knit and sew (again unlikely with my patience)

Read more books

Learn something new in photography

Spend more time doing stuff I like

Hardly exciting but I am very much looking forward to a New Year and I wish you all the best for yours!

I thought I would add a "awwww pic" just to put a smile on your face x

Merry Xmas

Gosh I can’t believe it’s that time of year again! 

I’ve neglected the blog once again but it’s all been down to being extremely busy all thanks to you guys who so kindly booked me for your wedding, portrait shoots etc. This year so far has been a good one for me in photography terms and I hope it continues and hope to offer new and old customers something new for next year!

The past couple of days have been lovely, spent at home, snowed in and cleaning cupboards.  I feel like we have loads of room now in our house ;-).  Four big black bags later as I de-junked the kids bedrooms I can safely say we are ready for Santa arriving.

So I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and hope you get everything you wish for. xxxx

P.s I got a nice surprise Christmas card in the post today from Alex Salmond!!

Off our heads

When I first started college I wanted to make sure I could use the best models so I searched on Facebook and came across Erin, going through her pics I asked if she would like to model for me on some of my projects. I think Erin modelled for me once and she became more than a friend over the past couple of years than anything else. So anytime we meet up or arrange a night out we always talk about doing a pic together but very rarely get round to taking one.

However, Erin and I had a night out on Fri in which we got "off our heads" (I wasn't that bad in all honesty), just felt real crap with colds, bugs and ill children the next day. Anyhow, after our wild night we went for lunch and ran over some ideas and this is what we came up with.   In all the time I have known Erin she has been one of the most kindest and caring friends I have ever come across and I will really miss her when she moves to London in January ;-(

How sheep eat!

Yeah I know the title is a little silly but that's kinda where the inspiration for this image came from.  I've been dying to take some new self portraits for a while but just been too busy with other shoots to indulge.  Soooooo, today after my morning shoot with some gorgeous little people I managed to indulge before picking Ritchie up from the school bus.

Now.... Granny if your reading this I really didn't wonder about the countryside naked but I can't tell you on here so if your interested I'll tell you all about it the next time I see you ;-).

I'm very much looking forward to producing some new selfies for a change, it helps to keep my mind insane ;-)

Little Munchkin

Well this has been another busy week.  I was away with hubby and my darling children for a few days in Aviemore which was lovely, but it's now back to madness and trying to get organised for school next week. My house is in total chaos as we are or should I say hubby is laying new flooring in the kitchen, I had no idea how much dust there would be let alone how far it would travel.  So at the moment it means the studio conversion is on hold for a day or two till hubby completes the kitchen complete with the odd four letter rant at times!

Today I photographed another little girl called Murron, this time she was only 4 weeks old and boy was she a little munchkin.  She did not want to sleep but she did want to eat ;-) hee hee.  Anyway she was a little star and I got some great shots of her in the end! 

What to expect

Thought it was time for an update on what my plans are for now and the future and a little insight into what to expect on one of my shoots.

I never seem to have the time anymore to enjoy or take self portraits which is how I started out in photography.  Starting my business seems to have taken over a lot of things as well as trying to raise two children or should I say three including hubby!  I can’t complain of course as things are going well and I’m enjoying every shoot that I take on. Having the chance to do a self portrait allows me to get all those mad little ideas that go on in my head out in the open.  I hope to be able to incorporate these ideas into other shoots that I take on leaving the customer feeling that they have some images that no other person, couple, family have.

The kind of customers I’m aiming to attract and have done so far are those that want that little something different and are willing to work with me on creating the images you have in YOUR head as well as me throwing in my little bit of creativity …..after all the images are for YOUR wall not mine! But don’t worry if you haven’t a clue we can sit down and come up with some ideas together.   This is just all part of the extra service that I provide.  Chances are your sitting fee goes towards a prop that I will use for the shoot anyway.  So you tell me “what other photographer offers styling, locations at the drop of a hat with a vivid imagination”?  Hubby argues that I’ll never make money if I continue to buy as much props as I have been but I’ll do anything for that special shot!  I remember feeling quite anxious when I took my kids to get their photos taken (this was before I became a photographer) I felt silly asking for poses etc and that I should just shut up and let “them” do their jobs.  I never want for my clients to feel like that and what I hope to offer is a relaxed atmosphere with a few cups of tea thrown in for good measure!  There are also many products/framing options available for everyone’s budget.

So what are the plans for the future?

Well I’m in the middle of converting our garage into a studio and very much looking forward to having a wee opening night.  I’ve also been asked quite a lot for Boudoir photography.  Many women of all ages are really wanting to try this and why the hell not?  So whether you’re a mum of five or a bride to be or a hen party or just an average girl wanting some seriously wowzer images then watch this space as that’s coming soon also!

That’s about all I can tell you for now I will continue to strive for originality in every way possible and always stay one step ahead of the game and please, please feel free to ask me anything about anything. x

Little People

This past week has been quite busy with the little people. I've had great fun on the past few shoots. I have to admit that it's getting colder at this time of year but little Leyton who loves windmills and my pink lady apples was soooooo cute but absolutely frozen. My other shoot was with Joss, his mum and dad were great sports also and mum Louise was like a personal stylist to Joss...... so cute!

Little Leyton



he loved the windmills


I love his little expression on this one


Little Joss and super Dad








These are just a few of my fave's from both shoots.

Now it's time for a cuppa and a biscuit.

Custom made Tutu's

I've been making these for a while now and use them when photographing little girls. They are absolutely adorabley gorgeous and you can basically have them in any colour. I am now selling these so if there is a particular colour you are after then please let me know. Please email for details and prices.



Goodness, I don't think I've posted so many times in one week! ;-)

Products

Some new products now on offer from Amara Ritchie Photography. There are many other options available and with Christmas not too far away (eek)....... Calendars are the perfect stocking filler for Grandparents and family. I'm currently offering the Long Wall Calendar but please ask for more details.



A gorgeous and contemporary and stylish way to show off your images.
Overall size of around 24x24 inches with 9 equally spaced 6x6 apertures.
Your images are carefully placed behind highly polished 15mm thick acrylic blocks and then fixed into each aperture in your chosen order. The product is finished with a high gloss lacquer in three popular colours - red, black and off-white.



Why not send out your images on a Christmas card.....



Alternative framing.....

Beautifully presented in a material lined black display box. Mounting the print to the back of the 30mm block gives a prism effect, allowing you to view the image in different ways from many angles.



Or why not treat yourself to a stylish 12"x12" custom designed Coffee Table Book to show off to all your friends.



Amara Ritchie offers many products with a variety of framing choices, please ask for more details.

I WANT your ideas, I WANT you to tell me what you WANT so that we can work together to create something that you will love.

Cute Bundles

I know I said I would blog more but it would help if I could remember my password to get in. It normally takes me about half an hour or I figure it out!

Anyway, on Sunday I had the pleasure of photographing this gorgeous little girl called Murron. Her name is from the film Braveheart and she sooooo suits it. She had the cutest, little face and was an absolute joy to photograph. It was rather tricky in getting her to sleep with a few piddly accidents on the way but who cares when you get shots as gorgeous as she was. So mum, dad and I sat and waited and chatted and had numerous cups of tea until little Murron fell asleep.

Things have been pretty hectic with me these past few weeks but I'm beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Paul & Sarah

Just wanted to share Sarah and Paul's wedding with you. This was the most relaxed, well planned wedding I have been to yet. Paul being a photographer himself has seen many weddings I'm sure so, the attention to detail was bound to be perfect. I was also quite honoured to be asked to do their wedding, even though it's quite daunting to photograph a photographers wedding. They chose to get married at Loch Muick, a favourite place of theirs and then it was onto the Craigendarroch at Ballater, again a fantastic choice of hotel. It was quite a cold and windy day but Sarah was brilliant considering she was suffering from the cold.....she didn't complain once. I have sooo many images yet to go through but just wanted to share a sneak preview.

Freebies

Thought I would share this lovely little texture with you. If you click on the title "Freebies" above you should be able to download the large size. It's very pretty. It would be nice if you could credit me and show me what you've done with it.

Molly

Click on the image to view larger..

I promised I would post some more images of the gorgeous Molly and here she is! Sound asleep. I'm loving these newborn shots and sooooooo desperate to do some more. I need to get out and shooting more but it's very difficult with the school holidays etc.

Hope everyone had a lovely weekend. Mine was rather hectic to say the least ;-)

Babies

OMG.......what is there not to love about newborns? This is Molly a gorgeous 3 week old baby girl who I had the pleasure of photographing on Tuesday. I couldn't resist sharing this one as she looks absolutely adorable. Little Molly however was rather curious and wanted to see what was going on so there was lots of waiting till mum got her sleeping before we could place her where we wanted, but oh no..........up she got again ;-). When you photograph babies you can't rush it, you have to take your time and go with the flow otherwise you don't get the shots you want. I was lucky enough to hang around for a good while, enjoying cups of tea and getting lots of little cuddles from baby Molly. More to come from this shoot soon........ My little sisters baby was due last Sat and I'm waiting patiently to kidnap him/her for some serious newborn photos. She knows the sex of the baby and I think I'm about the only one who doesn't as I chose not to know. My guess it's a boy though!! We helped her move house last night (mad girl). Hopefully this will get her going though....so watch out for lots and lots of newborns flooding my site ;-)

Press

I meant to put these up a week ago but am just getting round to it now.
Thought I would share my little press cuttings with you ;-)
*Click to view larger*



Things are shaping up nicely. Wedding brochures have arrived and are looking lovely, as have my sample album packages which I must say I'm hugely impressed with. I have a good few shoots lined up and my little sister is due her baby in about 2 weeks time (can't wait)! *squeel* It means I will have a newborn baby at my disposal. I've been busy making tutu skirts which will hopefully be up for sale soon with some gorgeous pics to follow of course. If anyone is interested please email me.

Right it's time of my Markies Indian, hope everyone is enjoying the summer so far x

Vintage Frills

Thought I would induldge in another self portrait. Actually.......this was taken back in February I think for my Graded Unit project based on faceless self portraits but thought I would share it with you as I quite like the effect I achieved. Anyway....off to Glasgow tomorrow to see Eskimo Blonde they are playing at Maggie Mays if anyone is from or going to be in that area. I'm also escaping as it's my brithday (21 again) so it will be quite nice to have some me time for a change!

Got some model shots to post soon, have been working with a make-up artist and hoping to do some more soon. Hope everyone has had a lovely Easter so far.