Then & Now Portraits in Johannesburg
A portrait of what time has carried
There was a time
when they fit in your arms.
Now they stand beside you.
And somewhere between those two moments,
a life unfolded.
Then & Now grew from something I have that cannot be created overnight:
twenty years of photographing people.
Children I photographed as babies are now young adults.
Families have grown.
Relationships have changed.
People have left and returned.
And the photographs I made years ago are still there.
Then & Now brings those earlier portraits together with photographs I make of the same people today.
Not to recreate what we did before.
To see what time has done to their meaning.
The portrait session
I will direct you throughout the session.
Where to stand.
Where to look.
What to do with your hands.
But I am also watching for what happens between those instructions.
A glance.
A hand reaching for another.
The way people who have known each other for years naturally stand together.
Those are often the photographs that matter.
The earlier portrait gives us a starting point.
We don't need to reproduce it.
We are making the portrait that belongs to now.
Who Then & Now is for
Then & Now is for people I have photographed before.
It may have been five years ago.
Ten.
Fifteen.
Or nearly twenty.
You may have come to me with a newborn, a small child, a teenager or your whole family.
Perhaps I photographed a mother and daughter who now stand almost the same height.
Perhaps the tiny boy I photographed years ago now towers over his mother.
Perhaps your family simply looks different now.
The photograph itself hasn't changed.
You have.
And that is where Then & Now begins.
What time does to meaning
When I first made those earlier photographs, they meant one thing.
Years later, they can mean something entirely different.
A small gesture becomes important.
A hand that once steadied a child is suddenly noticed.
The way someone looked at someone else carries more weight.
The photograph hasn't acquired anything new.
Time has.
Then & Now places those two moments beside each other.
Not simply to show what changed.
But to see what remained.
Investment
Your session fee is R3,000.
This includes my time in the studio, creative direction and posing, professional lighting and equipment, and your portrait session.
Before your session, you will choose one of three portrait collections.
Foundation
A smaller collection of finished portraits.
Signature
More photographs, allowing us to explore different relationships and combinations.
Legacy
A fuller body of work for those who would like to keep more of what we create together.
Collection details and current pricing are available on enquiry.
After your session
After your session, you will view the photographs and choose your final portraits.
Each selected image is individually finished and professionally retouched.
Additional portraits may be added if there are more you would like to keep.
Your portraits can also become finished pieces for your home.
For Then & Now, an album can be particularly beautiful — allowing photographs made years apart to live together in one place.
→ View portrait finishes
FAQs
Black is always recommended to keep the focus on connection.
Adult children often bring a depth that cannot be directed.
You do not need to know what to do.
You are welcome to view the Then & Now portraits
→ View Then & Now portraits
Begin your portrait conversation
If this resonates, you are welcome to reach out.
You can share:
- Who the portraits are for
- Whether you would like to include an earlier photograph
- Your preferred timing
From there, I will guide you through the process calmly and clearly
→ Begin your portrait conversation
There are photographs that show how someone looked.
And there are photographs that hold what was lived.
JOHANNESBURG PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHER
One Moment. One Portrait. Forever
© 2005–2026 Bridget Corke Photography
Blairgowrie · Johannesburg · South Africa
International Master's in Portrait Photography
One of only two in Africa.