T'was The Night Before Christmas !!
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap,
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;
"Now, DASHER! now, DANCER! now, PRANCER and VIXEN!
On, COMET! on CUPID! on, DONNER and BLITZEN!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"
As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.
His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;
He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;
He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT!
Merry Christmas Love Sophia & Family xx
Beside The Seaside Photography
Portsmouth UK
Credits to ONE BROAD STREET BRIGHTON & ZARA & My Gorgeous Son too !!!
Oh January 2021 what a long month you were !!
Who else feels like January has been the longest month in history ?
Yes it is common place that the first month is always so slow in comparison to the other months of the year but January 2021, oh boy you certainly dragged your heels didn't you !!
The month after Christmas, A long time since pay day , The 3rd Lockdown announced, Blue Monday, homeschooling AGAIN and everyone trying to stick to dry January ( not particularly hard when all pubs are shut I guess ? I stuck to it albeit a tad of red wine in my roast dinner gravy !! )
Well enough doom and gloom I wanted to share something very special with you all it is something I did in the studio just before Christmas by special request of my client.
Mrs C wanted to create a calendar for a present from her son to her husband ( also little Atticus's Daddy )
I was given a list of ideas by my client for each month but bizarrely I had been eagerly researching this special calendar session and we had near enough chosen exactly the same ideas for each month.
Attucus’s Mummy had also added a few personal ideas too.
I initially met Atticus and his Mummy one day whilst shopping, when Atticus was just 3 months old.We hit it off instantly and it was so nice to chat to someone over the age of 12 !! ( who else has missed proper adult conversation during this pandemic ?? You know the verbal kind and not just Zoom, WhatsApp and Messenger ??!! )
As anyone who already knows me I am a very friendly and approachable kind of person so it's no surprise we chatted for quite a while, obviously the cute and smiling Atticus being the centre of attention at all times !!
Atticus then became a model at my home based studio for Halloween and it was there I got to know Atticus and his Mummy a little bit more.
Atticus was born at the beginning of lockdown so his arrival into the world hasn't been quite the normal start to parenting for his Mummy but nether the less she has embraced parenthood wholeheartedly and given Atticus as many opportunities and experiences to say the least. And I could tell instantly he is one contented little boy.
Luckily we were able to use a few images from that model session for two Autumnal months October of course celebrating Halloween and November would include lots of leaves and Autumn-like colours.
So on the day of the calendar session we were left with the task of capturing 10 months worth of 'calendar prints'
With most of Atticus's wardrobe in my Portsmouth studio and an array of my appropriate outfits and props both his Mummy and I set to work.
( Mrs C chief wardrobe assistant and me as photographer !! )
We had an A-plan where we would start from December and work our way through each month accordingly.
I really couldn't believe how well it went Atticus seriously ‘rocked’ his session.
In total we were shooting for 2 hours with a few drinks and nappy changes for him along the way ( I was naughty and had an overload of coca cola, the sugar boost was very much needed !! )
The first three months went really well but come April we both think Atticus disliked the wool type texture bunny outfit (courtesy of Adaphotoprops ) plus the studio was really warming up by now !!
We ploughed on and managed to achieve May to September shots after this with continuous changing and shooting.
I had a feeling that September would be an extra special month as both parents are teachers so a Harry Potter themed set was totally on point !!
Wow, Atticus you were truly amazing and certainly did your parents proud ( and me ) that day.
On the day of the gallery reveal back at the London Road, Portsmouth photography studio ( due to officially open once Lockdown is lifted ) both myself and his Mummy loved so many of the images it really was so hard to choose therefore a USB with all images was the best option.
I know the tissues came in very handy at the reveal and Atticus the trooper that he is slept so that Mummy could really decide what images would be best suited for each month. ( He had been to a baby group beforehand too !! )
I so hope Mr C and Atticus's Daddy was overwhelmed and overjoyed with his first ever gift from his son at Christmas and will be just as happy when he looks at the calendar everyday for the rest of 2021 ( which of course can be framed afterwards too )
I was so pleased with how well the session went and wanted to order my own calendar for the studio too.( I also ordered a personal one for home of my own children - thank you for the inspiration Mrs C !! )
I think one thing is for sure during these unprecedented times looking at happy faces definitely gives us hope and certainty that this lockdown won’t last forever.
Now no doubt Atticus's Mummy is already planning his first birthday cake smash session ( any guesses of what theme she will choose !!…..watch this space )
“I think one thing is for sure during these unprecedented times looking at happy faces definitely gives us hope and certainty that this lockdown won’t last forever.
”
Oh 2021 please be kind to us !!
There have after all been some wonderful things to come out of 2020 Atticus was one of them ( his bespoke calendar ) and a new studio for Beside The Seaside Photography.( more details to follow shortly )
If you have a unique project in mind please do not hesitate to contact me to discuss today.
““Capturing the moments and memories that will last forever”
”
