Photographed in the light they play in.
We take the kids outside. Into the yard they know, under the trees they climb, in the afternoon light. It turns out that's where they look like themselves.
Grey backdrops never made much sense to us
Kate started Redgum in 2011 after fifteen years teaching prep. She'd sat through a lot of photo days — the queue, the stool, the roll of grey paper taped to the wall — and watched kids who were perfectly happy five minutes earlier go completely stiff the moment they sat down.
So she tried it outside instead. Same kids, same morning, just out in the yard. The difference wasn't subtle, and we've never gone back.
How a day with us goes
We turn up early
Usually about an hour before we start. We walk the yard, work out where the light's landing and where the wind's coming from, and pick our spot. Every yard is different and we'd rather find that out before the kids come out.
The kids just play
We don't call them over one at a time. Outdoor play runs as normal and we work inside it — a few minutes with each child, wherever they happen to be. Most of them barely notice it's happening.
You see them in a fortnight
Two weeks, near enough, and your families get a link. No deadline attached, no countdown, nobody chasing them. The gallery sits there until they get to it.
“Half our families said the same thing — it actually looks like her. Not the photo-day version of her. Her.”
— Centre director, Strathdale“We're a bush kinder. Every other photographer wanted to bring a backdrop indoors. Redgum turned up in boots and got on with it.”
— Educational leader, CastlemaineBooking for autumn and spring 2027
We cover Bendigo, Castlemaine, Echuca, Shepparton and most places in between. If you're a fair way out, ask anyway — we travel more than you'd think.
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