Lots of our sessions happen closer to the ocean. We head to the beaches, the city, to parks and reserves, which is great because there certainly is lots of beautiful scenes to be found. But we’re almost always headed east. Nikita chose something different. She elected to go next door to where she grew up, to a place with fond childhood memories. So one recent Sunday afternoon I headed towards, what most of us this side of Parramatta assume is the back of Sydney; to Nurragingy Reserve which adjoins Doonside and Rooty Hill. It’s a really beautiful spot, made even more so on the day we were given. A bit of warmth in winter. A clear sky. The promise of a lovely sunset.

Brandon and Nikita held each other, talked about their love, laughed and then relaxed (which really does make for great photography). Nikita talked about the fun she’d had growing up in the area and about how much this parkland meant to her. I couldn’t help but agree how great a spot it was. A natural woodland with lots of pockets to explore.

As Nurragingy Reserve came to closing time, the sunset had just started and I wondered if there might be a nearby hill we could head to so we could take advantage of the last glow of the day. Brandon and Nikita knew just the place. We zipped a couple of kilometres up the road to a bare hill that placed us high above the suburbs. The light below was gloomy, but where we were the last warm colours of the day lingered. There’s a natural amphitheatre there with staging, which became a perfect frame for the last few shots of the day. But what beat the view and the colours was spending time with two more people who have found love.