I was recently contacted by a very old and dear friend who wantd me to collaborate with him on an upcoming project.

 Greg B was my very first boss when I got a job right out of University and he offered me my first promotion to come and work with him at the flagship Kinko’s store in Liverpool Street in Sydney.

Those were crazy days doing crazy hours filled with crazy clients and even more crazy colleagues. I have fond memories of an accidental giant gargoyle print in the middle of a window banner, a old lady we nick named Granny Smith and her aversion to Windex and the strange woman who asked me to type up a letter to “The People of the USA” warning them about aliens. She was arranging ‘a plane to fly over the USA’ and drop her 10,000 leaflets as a public service.

Anyway, after I left Kinko’s in Australia in 1998, Greg and I have kept in touch over the years. He has been quite inolved in his local council and when he contacted me asking for a logo I was more than happy to help out.

It was a surprisingly quick and efficient process – and this is the final logo they selected. The idea behind the logo is that its about community and standing together. The houses can also be seen as arrows pointing upwards signifying growth and new things to come. The middle 3 colours are of the aboriginal flag to represent the indigenous people in the area and the wavy bottom represents the proximity to the sea. It’s a lot crammed into a little space – but here it is…

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Posted by Netra on Feb 8th 2010 | commercial - corporate - design - graphic design - personal - pro bono
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I had distinct pleasure of photographing the 10-day old baby Jamie this week. Her mum Enjel and I have been friends since highschool – actually we didn’t like each other very much to start, but clearly things changed after a while and we’ve remained friends over the past 17 or so years.

I don’t often get to photograph newborns, and the fact that Jamie is the daughter of one of my closest friends made her even that much more special to me. I was pretty happy with the photos while at the same time being so scared that Enjel and her husband Ray wouldn’t like them! Thankfully they do, so all is well!

Congratulations Enjel and Ray, she is just the sweetest thing and I hope to capture many, many more photos of her as she grows up!

Posted by Netra on Jan 29th 2010 | baby - family - personal - photography
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For a family like ours, that has lost many of its traditions and a significant amount of culture over the past few generations (2 immigrations in 5 generations tends to do that!) I do try to let my kids have some understanding and experience of their rich cultural heritage. By doing so I learn a bit more myself.

Diwali, the Indian Festival of Light, is one of the times that I remember fondly from my childhood. My aunt and my grandmother, all working together in the kitchen to produce some of the most mouth-watering, decadent sweet treats from old family recipes. While they worked for days in the heat of the kitchen, we would run through trying to pilfer a favourite here and there, get scolded, and unabashedly try again.

On the day we would receive new clothes, get dressed in our best, package up all the sweets into festive plates of goodies and take them to family, friends and neighbours as a gesture of goodwill. In the evening we would light the clay lamps along the verandahs and strive valiantly to ensure none were blown out by the winds. Inevitably in Durban, it was always rainy or windy on Diwali.

The best part of the evening were the fireworks. My grandfather used to buy boxes of them well in advance for all the grandkids. Roman candles, Tom-Thumbs and a host of others that whizzed, swirled, popped, or simple exploded overhead in magical showers of light.

As many of the foods made on Diwali are only made on this one occasion each year, I took the opportunity to photograph some of the sweets. I was supposed to be packaging up the plates but instead I was trying to make the most of the fading light, my mother’s dining room table (already overflowing with trays of food) to capture the colour, the richness and the variety to share. And if you think they look good, the flavour is indescribable…

Happy Diwali everyone!

Posted by Netra on Oct 17th 2009 | family - personal - photography
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This week at Kyra’s school was “Book Week” and they had a safari theme. On Friday parents and friends were invited to a parade of the animals and the fabulous teachers put on a pantomime for the kids. It was hilarious – with the Principal and the Dean both dressing up as gorillas. I think the willingness of the people in authority to do crazy things like this makes them so much more approachable in the eyes of the junior school students.

Kyra requested a leopard outfit quite early on, and my grand visions of making a costume came to a grinding halt when I discovered the fabric cost $69/m. Off to local toy shop we went where this snazzy leopard outfit was only $50 and probably much better looking than one I could turn out.

Not to be left out, Lia was bribed with face-paint, a pettiskirt from Marcella Creations (website launching next week – watch this space) and ‘her’ leopard print jacket that was a gift to Kyra from their godmother Kasia (who bemoaned the fact that they were not available in adult sizes). I have to say this jacket has fared impressively well over the last 5 year and still looks in mint condition – a near miracle given how often its gets worn.

Anyway – some pics of my wild African children from today…

Posted by Netra on Aug 27th 2009 | child - family - personal - photography
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I finally stopped procrastinating and went out and bought a Canon 100mm f2.8 macro lens. I really wanted this lens for photographing grown ups and also for catching little close-up details that other lenses cant catch.

I also got Lia’s hair cut again so it seemed like a good opportunity to try the new lens out. I’m already loving the longer distance of this lens, the nice background blur, tha clarity of the prime (fixed, not zoom) and the weight of it. Here are a couple from today…

Posted by Netra on Aug 25th 2009 | child - family - personal - photography
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It’s been a while since I’ve put up any personal posts. I’ve been rather busy with work. This weekend I decided to take a break, relax and do a bit of reading. I Also spent some quality time with the kids at the local library and managed to capture these.

This is Kyra’s regular serious face. She is just looking so grown up all of a sudden. She looks so much older than her 5 years.

As for Lia, she is trying to perfect the grumpy/serious look but can’t keep it up when I tease her. “Oh mum,” she giggles, “you twicked me!” She can never manage to completely hide that hint of mischief that seems to sparkle in her eyes.

Posted by Netra on Aug 9th 2009 | child - personal - photography
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• Only four packages on offer each calander month
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Please email me at netrac@optusnet.com.au for further information.

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Posted by Netra on Aug 3rd 2009 | corporate - design - graphic design - personal
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Posted by Netra on Jul 27th 2009 | adult - family - personal - photography
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Yesterday I photographed a very dear friend, Carla. She has recently bought a chic little apartment and after months of trying to meet up to do this shoot, we finally managed it. Carla cooked for me – a rich, amazing spaghetti bolognese with lots of chilli and smothered in parmesan cheese and then we got down to business.

I find it more challenging photographing friends. I see them in my mind and heart a certain way that sometimes doesn’t quite translate into the photographs. It took us a while to get into the groove of the afternoon. As she was getting dressed, I wandered around her place, snapping away at little details that intrigued me, or that I thought were just so her. A note held on the fridge with a ceramic fish, and old email clipped together with a few postcards, her green glass splashbacks with a lost sprig of lavender…

When I started to process the images from her session, I realised they all fit together like pieces. No single image conveyed the sense of who she is, or her pride in her new place, her sense of style and her funky decor. So here it is…

Posted by Netra on Jul 26th 2009 | adult - family - personal - photography
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She finally relented and allowed me to have a play today with the galabeya. I am amazed sometimes that she is my daughter. I see her and watch her antics every day – but when I capture her on camera she looks so different, so much older.

Posted by Netra on Jul 17th 2009 | child - personal - photography
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