Here is a peak at a little film I made this weekend. I have some personal projects that I have been planning to work on for women's body image for ages now and it's finally all coming together. I'm very excited! I'd love any feedback if anyone is still following this blog.

One of my favourite views waiting at the train station - Spittal, Austria

After having the most amazing time overseas it feels like I never even left. But then I sit back with my new food crush 'sicilian canolli' and look through more than 10,000 photos and can't help but smile about how lucky I have been. Amsterdam stole my heart with it's beautiful canals & art filled streets and Italy filled my mouth with ridiculously good food. There's too many stories to tell (mostly food related) so I promise to take it slow. For now here's a glimpse of my little European adventure.

Hello and goodbye!

Tomorrow I leave for my adventure of a lifetime. First stop is Dubai and then winging it through Europe for 4 months. I can't wait to experience the beautiful European culture, I think I will fall in love. If anyone has any tips of places I must see or visit, I'd love to hear from you. For now, I thought I'd leave you with a few photos from a wedding I photographed on the weekend. I'm hoping to update my blog as I travel so I can share the special moments with you all.

Until I'm sipping espresso in sweet Italy,

Jenna

Here is a still that I shot from another film last week. I really been enjoying capturing shots without the subject knowing and then taking the image out of context and making up my own story behind it. I was thinking the other day about how we subconsciously make up little stories every day about people even if we don't mean to. I find myself looking at people on my way to work and thinking how many cats do they have? are they happy? are they one of those people who can't use chopsticks?

I find it interesting that everyone can see a different story depending on how they grew up, where they live and what they're exposed to. I don't like to judge people but I think we all do without even noticing. We might make up our own stories about someone but I think it's all innocent and I guess it makes it all the more interesting when we are proved wrong. Look at Susan Boyle!

So anyway, I guess we should all keep our little tales but also an open mind and aim to be surprised ...

Lately I've been finding potential in old, unplanned photos that I have taken. I feel like I am looking at them through a new pair of eyes and letting them tell me stories. This photo was an in between shot that I didn't think twice about at the time but I've been looking a little deeper to see what those spontaneous images are trying to say.

Photo: Me (Feb 2010) Model: Jemma

Thank you Law of Attraction! It was only the other day that I was really hoping to get into shooting stills for films when out of the blue a very talented friend of mine Sarah Tinitali asked me if I could come along to a film she was producing to take some. I got to meet so many fantastic people and see how the whole film making process works. The makeup artists and hair stylists, professional actors and talented crew were all so kind and really inspiring. I noticed how important it is to work as a team and I can only imagine it would be the same for big fashion shoots. There are so many things to organise and people on set that without the amazing cooperation that they had it easily could have ended in tears. I also saw that the directors were very specific with what they wanted and had a lot of patience which made things run very smoothly.

The colour palettes that were chosen for the set and costumes were stunning. You could tell that everything was really well thought out as it tied together so perfectly. It was a great opportunity for me to be able to work with some fantastic lighting too because I have really only had experience with natural light. It was all set up for me so all I had to do was shoot! I even got to use a 50mm f/1.2 lens for the day which I am now in love with and have put it on the list to buy before I head overseas.

When I found this quote there were quite a few people in my life that I thought of. I hope that all of you who are going through some tough storms at the moment realise that they are only there so that we can appreciate the beautiful rainbows all the more. love jenna

Photo by me. Model: Tessa

... there is suffering in life, and there are defeats... But it's better to lose some of the battles in the struggles for your dreams than to be defeated without ever knowing what you're fighting for - Paulo Coelho

Photography: Me. Models: My brother Jono and host brother Mitch

I'm thinking a move is on the cards. I'm heading overseas soon for 4 months of traveling but I already have a feeling that I'm going to fall in love with Europe and want to stay there. I mean Australia is absolutely beautiful but the idea of being somewhere foreign makes me so curious and intrigued. Maybe I'll get over there and be disappointed but right now I am pining to live in a place full of culture and unique personalities who share a passion to create and be yourself.

I feel like I get most of my inspiration from reading blogs and connecting with other artists online. I want to walk out of my front door each morning and be overwhelmed with inspiration. Maybe I'm dreaming and this doesn't exist, but I'd rather be optimistic and a fool, than pessimistic and right.

This is a photo I took of a friend of mine who just came back from a tour of Europe... Ahh I'm so in love with natural light.

Just as I was getting all sadsy about it being winter, I woke up to the most beautiful sunrise the other morning. The colours were so unreal and magical, I braved the cold in bare feet and betty boop flanno pjs to take a few quick snaps. I love that about photos, you get to keep the memory forever and every time you look at them they bring back those same emotions.

ratbags or angels?

I want to be a kid again. Now that I'm not so little anymore, I remember how carefree it was to be a 5 year old ratbag with not a care in the world. Well I was a ratbag anyway. A fat one. My family used to call me the Michelan child because I had so many rolls. Back then, my biggest worry was who would get the front seat on the way to the supermarket . I guess back then those little things seemed enormous and in ten years time I will think back to me in my 20s and how sweet life was without wrinkles.

Anyway, I wanted to share with you a few photos that I took while I was playing photographer at the National Celtic Festival on the weekend. They make me appreciate the small things and live for the moment. The girl in the second photo made me smile, she jumped up out of nowhere and danced her little heart out in front of a room full of people. She didn't care who saw her or what anyone thought of her. That would have been me back in the day... but more like rolling around the stage instead of floating.

I was going through my iPhoto jungle today and came across this photo that I had taken earlier in the year. I'm not gonna tell you what it was from or instill any ideas in your head as to why it was taken. Instead I want to hear from you guys. I really want to connect with my viewers and make them feel something from my images. What story is this image telling you? Don't be shy now haha