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Warning: Undefined variable $ub in /var/www/wp-content/plugins/advanced-page-visit-counter/public/class-advanced-page-visit-counter-public.php on line 160 April 2025 – John McRae Photography & Studio
Family portraiture is a universal category in photography … but I do not often get the opportunity to shoot this genre. Although I mostly concentrate on corporate, theatre and general commercial work, I was recently asked to photograph a Sydney family at home.
Jackie and Gerard wanted a photographic document that would be a snapshot recording a time in their family’s life, making an image that they could refer to in the future. They particularly wanted the family to be photographed in front of the family home in Sydney, showing the house where the kids had grown up. I thought that was a great idea.
So, on a temperate autumn evening, I ventured to their family home. We shot a series of portraits of Jackie, Gerard, Majella, Jimmy and Frankie in various combinations and poses, also with their pet dog. It was a great exercise in contributing to part of a family’s heritage.
I invited my friend Michele to an afternoon birthday party on the Central Coast. This is Michele pictured below….
At a certain point in the afternoon, a wonderful 3-piece band started playing. The front-man was the well-known rocker Billy Field – respected singer song-writer, bass guitarist and music producer. He was well-known in the 70’s and 80’s for his top-20 hit singles “Bad Habits”, “You Weren’t in Love with Me” and “True Love”. He’s still going strong!
Given that normally Michele is fairly retiring in her approach (I wouldn’t say shy, but certainly not someone who grabs the limelight) I was impressed that she suddenly took the place of the drummer and started “jamming with the boys”. Apparently the drummer said that he wanted a break and Michele seized this opportunity to take his place.
What was even more astounding to me is that she was fabulous on the drums … I never knew she had this talent. The rest of the band appreciated her as well. The party guests were all up dancing and everyone had a good time. For the rest of the afternoon whenever the drummer wanted a break, Michele was “in” to take his place. The moral of the story is “never under-estimate your friends”.
The recent event by Roberts Co at Charles Street, Parramatta was to mark the recent completion of the “top floor” of this residential sky-scraper. Hence the expression “topping”. The views are amazing.
As I have posted before, topping is a ritual in the construction industry to celebrate a landmark, meaning that the building has reached its highest point. Normally a tree hoisted by crane to the pinnacle. The parties involved (executives, project managers, architects, financiers, etc) congregate, speeches are made and everyone takes a moment to discuss the progress and the future completion. The tree is usually planted later in the grounds.
We/Us/Ours is the catch cry for this “first in Australia” health facility which caters for sexuality and gender diverse people in NSW.
Funded by the NSW Government as part of their LGBTIQ+ Health Strategy 2022-2027, the centre was established in South Everleigh in Sydney by ACON, NSW’s leading LGBTQ+ and HIV health organization, with a $4.2 million grant.
The Kaleido Health Centre provides a range of primary care and specialist health services, including general practice, sexual health services, mental health support, gender-affirming health care, drug and alcohol interventions, and cancer screening services.
The building occupies one of the grand, heritage-protected buildings at South Eveleigh, at 6 Cornwallis Street, called “The Bell Tower”. As the name suggests there’s an old bell tower as part of the roof. The building has been renovated and now houses a state-of-the-art medical centre, both modern and welcoming and at the same time, maintaining its historical character.
Michael Woodhouse, CEO ofACON and Interim CEO of Kaleido Health, states:
“ACON established the Kaleido Health Centre because our communities deserve the highest level of care designed by us, for us. Too often we hear stories of people who say they can’t find safe, welcoming care that understands their lives. Kaleido Health will provide integrated care specifically designed to meet the needs of LGBTQ+ people and their families, across a wide range of health services, accessible state-wide.”
I was commissioned to photograph the newly opened building and to capture a series of head-shots of some of the staff.
It was also an adventure, since I had never before been to this smartly developed part of Sydney before. The centre is situated within the boundaries of Technology Park which is full of large, converted and heritage-listed buildings. I even managed to find a good coffee shop and barista in the vicinity at the end of the shoot.
Acclaimed author Blanche d’Alpuget recently stepped into my Sydney studio to create new imagery for promotion aligned to the release of her latest novel, “The Bunny Club”.
What an absolute joy it was to work with this gorgeous and intelligent lady. We were shooting a variety of portraits and basic head-shots, so we concentrated on changing what she was wearing, alternating the colours of her outfits.
Blanche arrived having had her hair already styled by Ivan Chircop, owner of “La Libertine Hair Salon” in the CBD. The next step was for David Cranson (MUA) to take care of her makeup.
Left to right: Ivan (Hair), Blanche and David (Makeup)
Before long we were ready to set about shooting under the lights. Blanche was a wonderful model … professional and willing to duplicate any suggestion I had in terms of pose and mood. Time passed quickly and soon we had a number of looks and configurations from which to choose.
Blanche’s literary repertoire is extensive. There have been biographies, novels, essays and numerous awards. Her best-selling 1982 book Robert J Hawke: A Biography, researched and written after they were no longer a couple, won the New South Wales Premier’s literary award and it remains the definitive work on the former Australian Prime Minister. Her novels Monkeys in the Dark, Turtle Beach, Winter in Jerusalem and White Eye have won the Pen Golden Jubilee award, the Age novel of the year award and the South Australian Premier’s award. She has also written historical novels about Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine.
The Bunny Club is something a bit different: a racy detective novel set in the harbourside glass castles of Sydney’s eastern suburbs and at the equestrian estates of the southern highlands. It opens when an ageing morning television host who is fighting to keep her job, Evelyn Sinclair, is found dead at an astoundingly grisly crime scene: hanging upside down from the ceiling, tied-up using shibari, the Japanese art of rope bondage.
I have almost finished reading my copy of Blanche’s book. The novel was launched at the Manly Writers Festival on the last weekend in March. It is available in most bookstores or can be ordered on-line at this link:
