Four straight weeks of consistent rain has left the late Summer countryside verdant and flush with moss, mushrooms, and green grass.

Below: A fairy ring

The Summer grains are just turning golden in preparation for the harvest

I’ve just started to proof a shoot done in the area of Loviisa and RuotsinPyhtää.  A beautiful, beautiful area encompossing 18th century smithies, sawmills, fortresses, and castles.  And the location of some of the biggest sea battles in Europe (Imperial Czarist Russia vs Imperial Sweden) took place in the waterways in front of these areas.   Pyhtää the town also has an interesting history in that it was split in half along the river Kymi from the Treaty of Turku in the 1700s.  The forge and ironworks ended up on the Swedish owned side.  The rest of the village on the Russian side.

Above: The bridge that once divided a country

Below: Battlements and fortifications from the 1700s

Just look at that beautiful smile - she’s angelic both in appearance and personality. This was a really relaxed and wonderful mother-daughter session.  My only regret was that we didn’t have time to shoot more.

And her lovely mother - who is crazy enough to think she is a poor photography subject!

Autumn is approaching in Finland and the colors in my yard are changing into the beautiful colors of the season.

I have accepted an invitation to fly to Australia and provide photography mentoring and workshop services to several wonderful portrait photographers in the Brisbane area.  And while an all-expenses paid vacation to Australia is wonderful - I have to admit I am most looking forward to meeting the great photographers down under and working with them on several interesting shoots.  And, well, playing with all the koalas that we just know hang from every backyard antipodean tree!

After my return from Autralia, I’ll be available again for fall and Christmas sessions.

I am very proud to have been asked once again to contribute an article to Design Aglow Magazine.

My first article was an in depth tutorial and discussion on using textures and blends to create unique photo art.  That article was featured in Design Aglow Issue 3: The Art Issue.

This current article, published in Design Aglow Issue 5: Success, is about creating a brand and distinctive style - and includes a tutorial on getting rich and perfect color.

Both issues can be previewed at DesignAglow.com

Issue 5 article:  Consistency and Style

Issue 3 Article: Photographic Artistry: Textures and Blends

Here are the first images From a recent wedding in the lovely city of Kirkkonummi.

The 200 year old windmill

The bride’s lovely hair

Their kids are so cute!

This was a pleasure - four generations in dresses from their ancestral homes - Keuru and Southern Karelia.

Great-grandmother and great grand daughter

How is this for traditional Finnish ’smiles’

And this is the Design Aglow True Antique Template 3

I have to admit, it can be really refreshing to shoot adults now and then. This is Mari - and she is every inch the naturalist and environmentalist. I wanted these images to reflect that beautiful nature of hers - both inside and out.