Hello! I’m Clare Stephens, owner/photographer of Your Life Through a Lens Photography and the creator of the Kids Through a Lens Online Photography Courses.
Child and family photography for me is all about connections and relaxed moments and fun and true emotions – these are the types of images I love! I want to capture relaxed moments in your family portraits rather than stiff or forced smiles! If you work with me either through booking a family photoshoot or through my online photography courses, the first thing I do is get you to tell me more about you and your family and what motivates you and what style of photography you like, so that I can find out a little bit more about what makes you tick!
Connecting is a two-way street though, so here is a little bit about me!
+ I grew up on a 300 acre farm and but have found that living by the water makes me feel happy and content.
+ I love the sunshine and any day that involves a swim at the beach feels like a really productive day.
+ I’m a big believer in investing in a great pair of sunnies. Practical plus they make me feel trendy even if I’m not really.
+ I laugh a lot. And often loudly. I am affectionately known in one circle of friends as the Wide Mouth Frog.
+ I love travelling and seeing the world (especially for the photographic opportunities!) So much so that at the age of twenty-three, I headed off on a twelve-month working holiday and returned thirty countries and five years later. Since then I have been maintaining the same number as countries visited as the age am each year – I need to decide where to go next year for country number 38!
+ Coming home made me realise how much I love Sydney, the beach lifestyle and being settled. Not the traffic so much though – which is why I get around on my scooter as much as I can!
+ I love early mornings far better than late nights.
+ I’m a Virgo, a little bit of a perfectionist and get a nerdy little kick out of creating excel spreadsheets (and don’t get me started on how much I love lists)
+ I love my big, supportive family and I’m very proud of my Irish-born mum. (She’s Australia’s first Irish-born female Senator!) Both my parents brought me up to show me I am capable of anything I put my mind to, and I am so proud of myself for making my photography business a success.
+ I am relaxed and affectionate. Don’t be surprised if I put kisses on the end of an email to you. And probably give you a hug when I turn up to your photo shoot.
+ I have to credit my two beautiful (and ridiculously photogenic) nephews with igniting my love for taking children’s portraits and my gorgeous godchildren for being patient models for me every time I see them.
+ I have a shocking memory. Anything maths or numbers related, no problem. But ask me about girls I went to school with for twelve years and I’ll draw a blank until someone shows me a picture or tells me a story to jog my memory (sorry girls!). Which for me is why taking photographs has always been so so important. Photographs tell a story, they remind us of places and times and events, they reflect our love, affection and emotion in our relationships back to ourselves and out to the world, they freeze people and moments in time that might otherwise be forgotten. If you can’t tell, I’m pretty passionate about photography.
+ Which is why I love to share everything I have learned over the years – about photography, about kid-wrangling, about building a thriving photography business that gives me the freedom and flexibility that is my “why”. I used to be one of those women who always wished she had ‘a passion’ – I found it through photographing children and it has amplified tenfold in teaching other women they can find their own passion too. Even more so, I hope to inspire the women I teach that it IS possible to turn your passion into a way to support yourself and your family. I’ve done it single handedly, without the finance backup of a husband or partner
So that’s a bit about me! if you’ve smiled or nodded at anything above, I might be the photographer or the teacher for you! I am based the gorgeous Tamarama Beach in the Eastern suburbs of Sydney but will travel pretty much anywhere for great locations and great clients! All of my photography courses are accessible from anywhere around the world through the magic of online learning! :)
Thank you so much for stopping by. Feel free to check out my online photography courses here, browse the blog, or head over to what to expect and some common questions for more information.
If you are interested in having your family portraits taken with me, you can book straight in for a shoot here! Alternatively if you have questions or would like to chat you can get in touch you via the online contact form on this site. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
I would love to hear from you!
