A little about me...
Hi, I am Yvette, the owner and photographer of Yvette Maree Photography. Yvette is my first name and Maree is my middle name hence Yvette Maree Photography. I grew up in Palmerston North and have become a world traveller in my adult years. I have loved photography ever since I was about 10 and got my first camera for Christmas. It was back in the day of film cameras and you never knew quite what you would get. While I was at high school, I wanted to be a teacher. However, I didn't take that career path, I became a nurse instead. In between times I worked in a pharmacy, a camera store in the Plaza in the 90's, Glaxo Pharmaceuticals, and then nursing in England. I married my amazing husband, the one who supports me in all my crazy endeavours. Many times my clients will get to meet him too. He is one of my unpaid assistants. After our time in England we started our family and had our first boy. I was a stay-at-home Mum and of course my first attempts at newborn photography were on him and very amateur. After becoming a Mum, I had a few more adventures in the 'working' world. I started a music playgroup, worked for a local photographer doing data entry and became a Zumba instructor. In 2004 we moved to America for 18 months. While there I fell pregnant with our very much wanted second baby, 7 years after the first. While I was a Zumba instructor, we welcomed our little surprise baby, our third boy. In 2017, we moved to The Netherlands and this is when I decided that I would pursue my dream of photography. I had the time to study now that all the children were at school and I was no longer working. Fast forward to 2022 when we returned to New Zealand and 2023 when I started Yvette Maree Photography.
Why is family photography so important to me?
I grew up in a family with 3 siblings, an older and a younger brother and a younger sister. We were a close family. Of course there was sibling bickering, but for the most part we all got along. We didn't have a lot of material things but there was always love. My Nana also lived with us from when I was about 10 years old.
When my older brother was 18, sadly, he died falling off the back of a truck. It was so sudden and a very traumatic time for us all. One of the things that sticks with me the most is that Mum was sad she didn't have any recent photos of him and particularly no family photos. It just wasn't something we could afford to do. Fast forward quite a few years and I lost my Nephew to Leukaemia at the age of 16. My sister had lots of gorgeous photos of him. She also loves photography! It cemented in me the desire to offer affordable, heartfelt family photography.
About My Photography...
I offer all sorts of photography, but my absolute passions are Outdoor Family, Maternity, Newborns, Performing Arts and Empowerment.
I offer emotive images, capturing the personality and soul of the people. I pride myself on being able to capture people the way they truly are, their individual personalities.
I love working with people and I try to make people comfortable and relaxed. Most of us feel nervous about having our photos taken. We don't like our hair, our arms, our bellies, our smile, our nose. But you know that they are you and unique to you and we should love ourselves for our uniqueness. I try to make sure I capture you and provide you with images you will love for years to come! My photoshoots are always full of laughter and fun (not so much laughing in a newborn shoot though, need to stay quiet and calm for them).
Pricing...
You can find my pricing here, however please don't hesitate to contact me and we can discuss what might be possible. It is so important to me that every family has some family photos done at least once!
If you know of someone you would like to nominate for a family photoshoot, then please send me a message. Tell me about the family and I'll see what I can do.
