finn

I know, I know, it's been a very long time since my last post... but in my defence I have been busy growing a person; that is my super power.

So introducing; Finn Henley Geraghty, born Friday 16th December 2011, weighing a somewhat large 3.9kgs (that's 8lbs 10oz for the metrically challenged) at 3.49pm. 

 

I can't believe he's finally here, it's felt like a very long road to meet him, and I promise this won't turn into an 'I love my Baby' blog... I'll get back into the proper pics very soon...but I reserve the right to sprinkle it with some Finn Love every now and then!

In the mean time - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, I'm sure yours will all be a lot more alcohol-induced than mine!

schmokin'....

Most of you know I've been swanning around North America and Canada for the last free weeks...needless to say, it was amazing. Sadly, back to the Southern Hemisphere with a bump (seriously, in all ways possible, turbulence made for a nightmare landing and I'm now HUGE as well).

Here's the first of many updates from our travels...

morning light....finally

I can't be the only one who's noticed the improving light in the mornings. Well thank goodness is all I can say...and welcome to Spring (for those of us in the southern hemisphere!)

looming symmetry

There's not much to report on at the moment....apart from being referred to as Jabba The Hut last night...thanks.

Oddly being drawn to shapes and patterns and light in nature, so you'll have to indulge me.

glowing

This is off topic, but as I was walking through North Sydney Oval on my way to work these two school kids got out of their P Plater car and sparked up.... quick cheeky nicotine hit before school eh boys?! It's 7.30 in the morning... your addicition cannot surely be that bad?!

Quick bragging rights: Off to The Big Apple and Canada in a little over a week! Cannot wait! Stay tuned!

morning goo?

This is in no way, shape or form an artistic photograph, this is a request for information?! I was walking through North Sydney Oval on my way to work this week and the whole place had these weird foam piles that I could not figure out.

Were the residents of North Sydney have a giant foam party that I wasn't invited to? In which case I'm incredibly insulted.

I didn't want to get to close in case some highly dangerous Australian insect that I have not yet been warned about came flying at my face in an Alien style take over (I have an active imagination). So I took a snap shot and went on my merry way, sans a zenomorph attached to my noggin. (Alien reference, watch the movie)

all blue?!

Shhhhhh.... don't mention the weather, you might frighten it away! In a sort of homage to the clear skies and out of character August mid-20s on the Mercury dial, I'm photographing blueness.

 Seems to be a bit of a minimalist theme coming through... not sure what that's about.

I haven't braved the water yet, I'm not convinced the blue lagoon will have caught on to the atmospheric temperatures... surfers are still wearing wetsuits which is enough proof for me to stay beach-bound.

This blog post is brought to you by the number seven.

I honestly have no reason for taking photographs of air rats seagulls. There were just lots of them and I liked the orange legs. I blame the baby.

Toodles.

spots and stripes

I don't even need to comment on the conditions we've all been experiencing this week. Needless to say I'm a little over the fact that it has done nothing but rain, constantly, all week. And it's cold to.

It could be worse though, I have friends who are moving house...Good luck Dean & Ainslie!

Me, I'm considering a few months of hibernation. We talk ourselves up as the top of the food chain, intelligent creatures blah blah blah, but you don't see squirrels running from street corner to street corner trying to stay dry and walking into buildings looking like drowned rats. No, they're currently curled up, all snug and warm and DRY...point made?

So as you have probably guessed, I haven't really been anywhere that was dry or interesting enough to take a camera this week. Fingers crossed for some clear blue skies (what does that look like again?) over the weekend (yeah, right) and next week.

 A guy in my office got an email informing him that all soccer matches had been called off this weekend. It was from Captain Obvious. What a waste of cyber space.



there she blows!

You know what sucks more than anything in the entire world (famine, war, global warming and pollution type issues aside)? Sea sickness. What's even more sucky is sea sickness when you can't take any medication for it. There's nothing you can do about it, the only way to make it stop is to get off the damn boat...and when you're stuck on a 4 hour tour with 20 other people, you're not getting off anytime early.

Out through the heads - let the games begin

It didn't start off badly... the swell was big, and it was slow and rolling, so you felt ever inch of that wave...up...over the top.....and down....and on and on.... oh and it was freezing, but I felt fine and when we saw the huge pod of dolphins that came to play in the wake of the boat, I just started snapping away...

They call him Flipper, Flipper, faster than lightning

And then the whales came. 

Thanks not a wonky horizon... that's a wave...uuurrrggghhh....



What was that?

From here on in, I was a pretty putrid-green colour and was spending much of my time visiting the facilities. Nuff said.



High Five!

Sadly we only saw them breach once, unexpectedly, hence no photo...despite being promised by the research  dude (who looked a lot like a drunk pirate) that "if they do it once, they'll do it again".

How do you type the Jaws theme? Duh nuh.......Duh nun......

Did you know these guys don't eat for 6 months when they are at the Antarctic?! 6 months?! Every day's a school day. I can go about 3 hours at the moment, just. 

Dropping in at Manly on their way north for some good old fashioned feeding.

Note to self: don't go whale watching when pregnant, have a sensitive stomach, are prone to motion sickness at the best of times and can't take anything for it. Apart from that, will definitely be going again. Next year. When it's warm.



Bleached with Beachley

The highlight of my week had to be meeting Layne Beachley...she is a bit of a personal hero of mine, between us we hold seven ASP Women's World Champion titles....

The shoot was for work (sadly I wasn't the main shooter this time) so the even the unofficial images have to go to be approved before I can publish them, so they'll be up next week. But here are a few taken on Dee Why beach during the shoot... gorgeous day!

By about 9.30 I was watching people getting in and out of the surf and thinking 'what am I doing wrong that I'm not one of these people coming down to the beach at 9am on a Thursday'....



a weird symmetry

 I wonder what this guys does for a living?

This is as close to Layne's photo as I can get for now - her board. It's 5'5", the same height as her. She's just cool, sorry. You'll be glad to know, I was much more calm and collected around her...I think.

I hear the waves were pretty mammoth today, so enjoy a sunshine filled weekend everyone, I'm off whale watching.

Oh, and one more thing, I'm trying to get into this Facebook Fan Page thing, so if you haven't already, please visit the page, cunningly named Images by Sophie and click Like. If I get 25 fans I win a prize or something.

change

It happens to the best of us.

I'm sure you've all missed me incredibly over the last few weeks (it's a shame sarcasm doesn't translate well through the written word).

You may have all been wondering where I have been since May...well those of you who know me, will know I have been busy 'baking'. For thoses of you who are further afield, that's a euphemism for having a bun in the oven, up the duff, knocked up, in the pudding club, eating for two, on stork watch etc etc. The last few weeks have been pretty exhausting and nauseating, a combination that does not mix well with getting up at 5.30, for any reason, let alone to drag my weary ass out into the cold, pitch black morning and try and find some creative morsel in my otherwise energy depleated, rapidly expanding body.

However, you'll be glad to know (again, sarcasm) that I am feeling much more lively, and promise to suck it up and get back on the wagon.

The weekend looks like it might be nice, spare me a thought when you're out and about, I'll be stuck indoors revising for my end of term yoga exam. Awesome. I shouldn't be all that nervous as I randomly taught my first ever Ashtanga Class on Wednesday night...a complete fluke, a story for another time.

light in a bath tub

I'm not going to lie, I think I've mentally and physically exhausted myself this week. It's got to the extent that I've started taking photographs of shells in bath tubs. Seriously, what's that about?! Worst part is, I can't decide whether I like it better in colour or black & white?! I'm no Edward Weston that's for sure. (Photographer, fascinated with sex, shells and vegetables, (no, not all at once). Google him - he photographed a lot more naked people than I have for starters).

This week I had a last minute photoshoot, headshots and location stuff for the Bikram Yoga Studio, Brookvale; check out the website as it's been newly updated with the teacher images I've done previously.

Here are a couple of Jen & Vince, a couple that run a Life Coaching service from the studio as well.

a view to kill

Who said light pollution couldn't be beautiful?

abstraction

Can you guess what it is?

Seriously, if you figure it out, you'll win a prize! (yes, a good one)

just one sunrise....

Just felt like a little colour on a gloomy Friday afternoon.

broken tents and calm seas

You'll all be glad to know I survived my camping experience. Only slight se back was realising jsut before we went to bed on the first night that the tent poles and snapped, piercing the 'waterproof' outer layer and then being woken up at 2am byt the pissing rain. Running around in the rain trying to fix and rain-proof the damn thing was not the most enjoyable thing I did all weekend. I actually quite enjoyed it, I may have even been a tad bit too vocal about how much I liked as apparently 'we' are now 'campers'. Right then.

On the way up to Seal Rocks we were passed by the notorious Highway 61 bikie gang which was cool... watching them disappear into the fog was pretty eery. Apparently "they are the most infamous New Zealand bikie gang and have been associated with drugs and violence". Mmmmm. Fact; my mother is scarier in the mornings before she's had her Panadol.

Brink

biddy waves



floating

  

Walking on water



Where's everybody going?

   

Fellow camper

Right... Pip pip and tally ho! I'm off to a Royal Wedding Party. Apparently we have to take something British, so M is taking me, and I'm taking a jar of Branston Pickle. Love that condiment.

the land of the mighty chilly!

Because I'm super brave and adventurous, I went on a road trip....to Bowral. Actually, it was for work, but a trip is a trip nonetheless in my books. It was cold. Seriously, it was something like 12 degrees... I didn't move here for that!! I have been led here under some gross misconception that Australia is warm all the time.

I really love this time of year, weather-wise there are still some warm days, the leaves are changing colour and the light is just amazing. I could get all poetic and shit right about now, but I'll spare you that in the name of the upcoming extra looooong weekend. (That's 5 o's by the way, one for every day we have off - can-I-get-a-whoop-whoop?!)

So my images this week are dedicated to the change in season, and the colour red, apparently.

I saw this bike outside a cafe in the buzzing hub of a metrolpolis that is Bowral town centre.... I just thought the method for job advertising was quirky and orginial. That is all.

And then it was back to Sydney... Not a shabby bus ride home when there's light like this....



Here's to a lovely long Easter break everyone, be warned, I'm going camping.