My pop turned 94 this week, and I went to visit with him in the home of my mother’s childhood - a place that continues to vibrate with many of my own earliest memories.

To sit again in these rooms brought back pieces of myself I’d forgotten to miss. It was like opening a time capsule, and being met with the many precious relics I’d once carefully tucked inside.

‘When I was small, my dad took photographs. I guess you could call him an original family documentarian; he didn’t just take photos of clean kids siting neatly on the porch, or in front of the church before Sunday School. He took photographs of everything. My toddler brother in his high chair, eating Vegemite toast. Me and my sister picking mandarins off the fruit tree in the backyard, or shelling peas at the picnic table with mum. The washing line, heavy with tiny pastel singlets and cloth nappies on washing day, stark whites flapping lazily in the sunny breeze.’

In this piece, Geelong and Melbourne photographer Michelle McKay explores the true value of unposed photography and the way its value only grows over time.

'If you're looking for a Geelong photographer who combines lifestyle and documentary approaches to create instantly nostalgic and evocative storytelling images, I am your gal.'

In this post, Geelong lifestyle photographer Michelle McKay shows off her new business cards. I think you will agree they're very swish!

'Storytelling photography is a new style of lifestyle photography in the Geelong area. As a result, when I speak about what I do, people often express their reservations about having someone shoot in their home. They worry their space is ‘too dingy’ or ‘too cluttered’, or ‘not bright and airy’ enough. I’m sharing these photographs to demonstrate that none of that matters.'

In this piece, Geelong Lifestyle Photographer Michelle McKay demonstrates that many spaces, however unlikely, can be perfectly suited to documentary and storytelling photography. You just need to know how to find the light.

'Storytelling photography is the newest style of lifestyle photography. It’s authentic and real and it documents your actual life, transforming the ordinary into something beautiful and captivating. Here are just a few reasons why you should choose storytelling photographs for your personal picture galleries.'

In this piece, Geelong lifestyle photographer Michelle McKay explores why lifestyle photographs make evocative and meaningful wall art for every home. 

'Motherhood is a meditation. It is a prayer to the universe and to the darkest, innermost depth of our selves. Motherhood is a mantra, spoken over and again and not always tenderly.'

In this piece, Geelong lifestyle photographer Michelle McKay explores motherhood, and the fleeting nature of time. She also announces the introduction of Intimate Motherhood Storytelling Sessions for the residents of the greater Geelong and Melbourne regions of Victoria. 

'Storytelling photography allows for the creation of images that capture the essence of a family, documenting this season of their lives in a way that so accurately depicts them that they feel intrinsically bound to the images, that they sense an innate and undeniable pull toward them in their soul.'

In this piece, Geelong lifestyle photographer Michelle McKay explores the benefit of lifestyle and unposed storytelling photography, as compared to traditional portraiture.

'I cannot wait for her to see her tiny self, as large as life on the walls of our home. What a testimony to her importance, to her value as a cherished member of our family.'

In this post, Geelong lifestyle photographer explores the importance of printing photographs and displaying them around your home for your children to enjoy and cherish.