You know the movie, The Nightmare before Christmas?
We have our own version of that. It's called the annual Christmas photo. This dubious tradition dates back to when I was a child and my mother would dress us all up in our Sunday best and then attempt to get all of us smiling or at least looking like no-one was about to kill or be killed.
It was indeed a nightmare and yet I carried on the tradition. I figured it would be easier as I have one child not four and I do not have to send the slides - yes slides - away to be processed and then the cards printed.
But it remains an annual Christmas torture perhaps because of my slight (?!) obsessive compulsive nature and the desire to get it just right.
In the early years there were as many as 12 rolls of film sent off to the chemist to be printed. The positive reinforcement (read bribe) for cooperation from the model growing with each reshoot.This year I decided for a pool shot because nothing says an Australian Christmas quite like diving in and who doesn't love taking the leap fully clothed?
Given that my vision included dry clothes there could be a maximum of one go at it a day. This could have been a very risky strategy but here it is - the 2012 Christmas photo captured on Day 3.
The model is still talking to me and only one trip to the video shop as bribery was involved plus he got to cool off on a hot day.
Result. Yes?
