About Me | mysite

Welcome/Kia Ora/Mabuhay!

Hi, my name is Janice, but my friends and family call me ‘Nice’. It’s a fairly common nick name where I’m from but has caused some confused looks and the occasional mixed message here in Aotearoa! You can call me Nice.

I am from the Southern Philippines and there I met my husband, Steve, who is Māori. Together we have three beautiful children, our daughter, Connie, and twin boys, Stuart and Arturo. So, our life is very busy but also very happy and very blessed! It is not something I take for granted because for most of my life I thought I couldn’t have children due to a medical condition I was diagnosed with as a child. This was particularly painful for me because I’ve always loved children and babies so very much. So, you can imagine my joy when very shortly after I married, I was able to get pregnant very quickly with four beautiful kids! Did I just say four? Yes, you read it right, I have miscarried one, we named her Gabrielle. She is worth mentioning because I love her as much as I love my other three children. I miss her every day and wish I had the privilege and joy of kissing and cuddling her.

I’ve always had an interest in photography but after my children were born, my interest in photography was renewed. I simply wanted to increase my knowledge of taking photos so I could get great photos of them from the day they were born, because I knew I would never get that time back. The memories I had would be vague due to me being so tired from no sleep! I really wanted to capture and remember every detail of my little loves. I want to capture them growing up. I want them to see how much we love them. I want them to have what I had while growing up, and what I still have now, lots of photos that my Papa took, all printed.

My father is a great influence in my life. I used to love spending time with him, talking to him and posing for him. He had an old vintage SLR Fujifilm and used it to take photos. I was his best model. I would beg him to take photos of me! And you know, it was the good old rolled film, and we were poor, which meant that every click mattered. Even though we were poor, he never said no to me because I matter to him more than anything in the world. Now, I travel back to my childhood so easily because of those images he took. A story is told better with pictures. This relationship I have with my father is the kind of relationship I want with my kids. And I want to capture every moment of it and help them tell their own story to their future kids with the images they have in their hands.

Eventually I thought, this is something I can share with the world! I believe you deserve to have this special moment in your life captured and enjoyed. The experience of becoming a parent and welcoming a beautiful new life to your family is so precious and special. Yes, it will be forever remembered in your heart, but sometimes our memories can betray us. A printed image never will. It will honestly and beautifully tell your story. Your baby’s story. And you know what else? Children love looking at their displayed photos on your wall, it boosts their confidence and reminds them how loved they are. The first time I put photos of my kids on the wall, they said ‘Wow, look at me there, amazing, Mama!’ They repeated those words for a long time, every time they saw their photos. Also, it reminded me to tell them often ‘Yes, you are all amazing!’ As a mum, I know how time flies, it does pass by so quickly, and every second matters. You wish in your heart that your baby will stay little forever and give you cuddles and kisses all the time (minus the sleepless nights of course). They grow so fast. I want you to freeze those little moments through photos and enjoy them every day. I want you to smile looking at those photos, remembering how special your little boy/girl was.

I want you to have the priceless, tangible thing you can always keep, when your kids are off enjoying their independence and all you and your partner have is a clean home, no messy lounge, untouched beds, no dishes in the sink. Completely clean and quiet. Then you will have the time to look back and pull the albums and re-tell your story.

I want to help you to tell your story and your family’s story through images.

Meet my not so little family! Here is where the proceeds of this business go.