I started shooting as my main source of income about a decade ago, but I’ve been making pictures with cameras for as long as I can remember. For a while I ran a commercial studio and co-working space in downtown Wellington. My husband’s work took us overseas and I had to give up that space, but it was a wonderful experience to be right in the middle of a vibrant hub of artists, designers and filmmakers. I now work out of a studio in the Eastern Suburbs of Wellington.

I am very much a people-person, so most of my work leans toward portraiture. I love the process of connecting with a subject, helping them feel and look their best, and then capturing that “decisive moment.” Whether it’s a bolder magazine-style portrait, a more business-oriented headshot, or an actor/model portfolio shoot, I work with my clients to understand exactly what their needs and aspirations are, and then design the shoot with them to achieve that.

I also really enjoy working with businesses and brands on commercial and product shoots. Naturally, I love people-oriented things, like jewellery, cosmetics and clothing. But I’ve also had a lot of fun shooting medical products (seriously!) and packaging. I’ve done a bit of work on film sets, too.

I don’t normally shoot weddings, but I do know some seriously talented wedding photographers that I’d be happy to put you in touch with.

It’s a big topic, so I’ve got a Process page [LINK] where I talk all about that. But briefly, you can think about your photography job in four sections:

Prep - You help me understand what you want to achieve, and I help you understand what we need to do to get there. We can do this in person or virtually - whatever you prefer. We’ll make arrangements with the support team and the location, if necessary, and I’ll put together a quote for you and send you a contract with all the Ts&Cs. You’ll also put a 20% deposit down for the work.

Production - The shoot! I’ll work with my team to set everything up, we’ll get the subject ready, whether that’s you or a model or a product, and we’ll shoot away.

Post - I’ll offload the images and process and grade the RAW images, and then I’ll put everything up on an online gallery for you to make your selects. Once you’ve made your selects, we retouch them, do a final color grade, and then export the high-resolution images to a final gallery.

Publish - From the high-res gallery you can order prints and frames, and you can also download the high-res images for your own use. (See printing and attribution). [LINK]

I am very much a people-person, so most of my work leans toward portraiture. I love the process of connecting with a subject, helping them feel and look their best, and then capturing that “decisive moment.” Whether it’s a bolder magazine-style portrait, a more business-oriented headshot, or an actor/model portfolio shoot, I work with my clients to understand exactly what their needs and aspirations are, and then design the shoot with them to achieve that.

I also really enjoy working with businesses and brands on commercial and product shoots. Naturally, I love people-oriented things, like jewelry, cosmetics and clothing. But I’ve also had a lot of fun shooting medical products (seriously!) and packaging. I’ve done a bit of work on film sets, too.

I don’t normally shoot weddings, but I do know some seriously talented wedding photographers that I’d be happy to put you in touch with.

I'm currently based in Wellington’s Eastern Suburbs, and I regularly shoot all over Wellington. Jobs in other cities and countries are possible. I love traveling and I’m in Auckland fairly regularly.

Yes!! Please do! It makes me feel AMAZING when I see my work posted on other people’s feeds, especially when they’ve made the effort to credit me for the photography. I just ask two things: 1) if you could please tag @SignyPhotography in the image or mention @SignyPhotography in the caption or gallery description, that would be wonderful; and 2) Please don’t add filters or alter the picture. (Cropping is fine).

For more about Attribution and Use [LINK].

Need to think about this and write it!

If you order prints through your personalized gallery on my website, you will get museum-quality prints on premium acid-free materials using archival inks and a color-accurate post-to-print process. Your prints will look their best and they will last their longest.

Your high-resolution selects are also available to you to download, and it is totally fine if you want to make your own “DIY prints.” Just be aware that local print shops, in their competition for the lowest cost-per-unit, vary tremendously in the quality of materials and processes they use. They often adjust color and contrast automatically and inconsistently. The fast-drying papers that most shops use age particularly poorly, and your print may change color over time.

The answer is it depends. A modern archival print, matted and framed behind glass and displayed away from bright sunlight can last well over 50 years before any noticeable fading or color change occurs. In a quality acid-free album away from heat and humidity, archival prints are expected to last more than 200 years without noticeable change. But put the same print unframed in direct sunlight, and even with the best prints can noticeably degrade in just a few years. UV glass can help, but it comes at a cost.

Portrait sessions start around $650. Business headshots run from $XXX for a single person at my studio to around $XXX for a half-day at your office, which is good for shooting up to a dozen or so employees as well as shots of “the team.” Commercial work can vary quite a bit depending on the size of the shoot, crew and gear. If you reach out through my contact portal and tell me a little bit about what you are after, I can follow up with a chat and a quote.

I mainly shoot digitally, and mostly on full-frame Canon gear. My primary body is a Canon R5, which shoots 8K (45 megapixels). A well-shot image at that resolution can be printed up to about one meter across, or larger with special processing. If you’re downloading the highest-res JPGs, they’ll end up around 20MB each.

The camera is only a small part of the kit, though. I use particular lenses for different kinds of portraits, and I use other specialized lenses for product work and special effects. I often use natural available light, but for anything where consistency and control are important, I lean on my Profoto strobes and a variety of fixtures and modifiers. The strobes are also great for freezing action and ensuring sharp, clear images. Everything is portable, so I can shoot from the convenience of my own studio or pack a kit and bring the studio to you.

If you have symptoms or test positive for COVID-19 before your shoot, please let me know as soon as possible and we can reschedule at no additional cost to you. I am fully vaccinated and boosted, and I am pretty careful, but if I do happen to develop symptoms or have to isolate before your shoot, I will let you know immediately and we can reschedule or I will give you a full refund, whichever you prefer.

Yes. I’m equally comfortable shooting on location or in the studio. I have a full compliment of commercial studio gear and I am set up to shoot beauty lighting, more dramatic “edgy” setups, and even more technical things like macro photography and “frozen moment” high shutter-speed images.

Not right now. Because of health and safety concerns around COVID-19, clients are required to provide their own clothing. We’ll discuss a wardrobe as part of our initial chat and brief, and we will make a plan to achieve all of your goals for your shoot.

Absolutely. I worked in film for 7 years, including some time shooting on set and also in the studio.

I am always excited to work with people and brands I admire. If you have an idea for a collaborative project, please get in touch and let’s chat about the images we can make together! [LINK]