For our 8th wedding anniversary we wanted to do something special for ourselves. We wanted something that wasn’t bought but still tangible, an heirloom. And as we have been taking our own pictures long before the word "selfie" even existed (and have an ancient tripod to proof it!) we decided on a couple's shoot for ourselves instead of the traditional gift of bronze or pottery.

We wanted to use all the things we love; the little wood next to our house, our favourite colour hues... blues, grey, a touch of sparkle, some sneakers...and of course our two favourite studio assistants, Lola and Hunter.

Lola usually just turns out a little black blur or blob as she just cannot sit still but Hunter was truly born for the camera so off to the woods we went...

Steph and I also fostered a caracal from a tiny cub until he grew into a gorgeous, giant beast. He was successfully released into the wild but we had to pay homage to our darling Abakki with some sparkling ears!

Due to the freezing cold rolling in on our first afternoon halfway through taking the photographs, {leaving us cold, a little wet and windswept} the photos were actually done over two days and even though the locations look completely different it was all literally about 20 meters apart, our mystery wood close to the house and in the open veld right next two it. Two enchanted afternoons celebrating milestones,  love, life and everything in between...

If we would do this for ourselves... imagine what shoot we would do for you!