Catriena’s Story: Walking Through the Door Into Another World
Catriena had never had professional portraits taken before.
She had never been married, never had a wedding album, and had never experienced the kind of portrait session where the whole focus was on her.
Then she saw Venus Rising on social media.
At the time, Catriena had recently semi-retired and moved back to Melbourne. She was entering a new chapter of life, beginning to cull a much-loved wardrobe, and thinking about who she was now. Not just who she had been through years of work, identity and responsibility.
As a women’s historian, she was also drawn to the idea of a portrait experience created specifically around women.
“I just thought this is something that I would love to do to capture a little bit of who I am now,” she said.
Arriving nervous
On the day of her session, she arrived in the rain, carrying her clothes and feeling nervous.
She described herself as feeling like “a little drowned rat” walking into “a palace.”
But almost immediately, the experience began to shift.
She was given a cup of tea, a towel to dry her hair, and the team helped her settle in. Narelle took her through hair and makeup, and Catriena found herself relaxing into the process. The uncertainty began to disappear because everyone around her knew exactly what they were doing.
That mattered.
A portrait session can feel vulnerable at the beginning. You may not know how to stand, what to do with your hands, how to move, or whether you will feel comfortable being photographed.
She felt all of that.
But after the first few photographs, something changed.
Getting swept into the experience
At first, she wondered whether being photographed was “a skill” she would need to learn very quickly.
Then she started to relax.
The session became playful, creative and fun. She brought in clothes she loved, including a silk coat that had belonged to her mother, favourite jackets, vests, ties, boots, jewellery, fake pearls and meaningful family pieces.
The studio added its own found objects too — a hat, a tiny umbrella, a ladder, and styling ideas that helped each image become its own little scene.
Some portraits were funny.
Some were dramatic.
Some were glamorous.
Some were mysterious.
Some revealed a version of Catriena she would never have photographed herself.
As she said afterwards, the portraits showed “different versions of me.”
More than a memento
Catriena originally joked that she wanted “a photo for my tombstone.”
But the session became much more than that.
It gave her a chance to pause and think about herself, her past, her family, her work identity, her mother’s clothing, her Scottish family badge, and the next chapter of her life.
For a long time, she had been a worker. Her job had been a major part of her identity. Now, after semi-retiring and returning to Melbourne, the session became a kind of re-grounding.
“It was like a really beautiful pause to just think about me a bit,” she said.
That is one of the most powerful things a portrait session can do.
It does not only capture what you look like. It can help you recognise a transition, honour the life you have lived, and step into the next part with a little more clarity, humour and presence.
Seeing herself differently
When Catriena saw her portraits, her reaction was immediate.
“Oh my God.”
“That is so cool.”
“That is brilliant.”
“I’m so happy.”
She noticed the details, the boots, the books, the water, the coat, the tiny umbrella, the shadows, the humour, the styling, the movement.
She saw herself in ways she would not have created alone.
One of her favourite portraits was not the funny or daffy version she expected to love most, but something quieter and more mysterious. A different version of herself.
That was part of the surprise.
Catriena did not lose her humour in the session. She brought all of it with her. But she also found other parts of herself in the portraits — elegant, bold, theatrical, reflective and strong.
Catriena’s advice to other women
Her advice to other women is simple.
You may feel nervous.
That does not mean you should not do it.
“I can’t stop you being nervous,” she said. “Just be nervous. But it’ll be fantastic. Honestly, it’s just walking through a door into another world.”
Her advice was to dig into your wardrobe, find the pieces you love, and be yourself.
Because the session itself is not just about the final album or finished portraits. It is about the experience of doing something special for yourself, being guided by people who know what they are doing, and discovering that the process can be far more enjoyable than you expected.
“It was just so much fun,” Catriena said. “I just went out on a high.”
Thinking about your own Venus Rising session?
If you have been thinking about a Venus Rising portrait session but feel nervous, uncertain or unsure what to expect, Catriena’s story is a good reminder.
You do not need to arrive knowing how to pose.
You do not need to have everything worked out.
You do not need to feel completely confident before you begin.
You only need to walk through the door.
From there, the team will help you create portraits that feel personal, expressive and true to you — whether that means playful, elegant, bold, mysterious, sentimental, or something you have not seen in yourself for a long time.
