Reflecting back on 2024, it was a year of significant personal growth for me. From creating the concept of a fine art newborn session that can be set up in virtually any space to training with two incredible professional newborn photographers and launching my website, it’s been a wonderful rollercoaster ride.

The first 8 months of the year were admittedly intense. I had to juggle work, family, home and finding time to work on my creative passion. As Liz Gilbert (presenter of Magic Lessons podcast and author of Eat Pray Love and Big Magic), if a creative passion is truly important, you’ll work out how to find an extra hour in your day and you’ll do the work.

I got to September, took a deep breath, looked back at the evolution of my images and realised just how far I’d come. That in itself was rewarding and fulfilling. Yet I felt I needed to test myself just once more before the end of the year. So I decided to enter the Guild of Photographers Image of the Month competition. This is an international competition which is entered digitally and the judges zoom in to examine every single detail to determine the level of technical and creative excellence. The standard is exceptionally high. Only the very best images are awarded a grading, either bronze, silver or gold.

I had no idea whether my images were good enough to achieve any of these bars; I only knew that I wanted to find out. I was keen to find out what the judges thought of my images and whether they were close to the very high international standard set for professional photographers aiming to have their image awarded Image of the Month.

In September I entered 3 images and 1 image achieved a bronze; I felt elated. Encouraged by this first attempt, I entered 6 images in October and I achieved even greater success with 4 images awarded a bronze.

Newborn baby boy in oval wooden prop with autumn theme foliage and orange brown wrap

Newborn baby girl wrapped in pink in basket prop with pink roses and headband

Newborn baby boy in a bowl prop wrapped in blue with grey wool on backdrop

Newborn baby girl in oval wooden prop wrapped in purple with purple headband — My next 4 bronze awarded entries in the October IOM

I love every single one of these images and I’m so pleased to have finished 2024 on a high, with much to look forward to in 2025 and more competition achievements to aim for in the new year.

Thank you to all my wonderful clients for your support this past year and of course for your permission in enabling me to enter these images for competition. It really has been a pleasure and a privilege and I’m looking forward to meeting more parents in 2025.

My 2024 award winning images

What being a newborn photographer means to me

Choosing a theme for your newborn session