I remember the way the golden light shone through the trees in the Jubilee Creek forest as I stared up at them. They seemed impossibly tall through those young eyes. The cold, soggy leaves had started to soak through my "Chicks Rule" Nando's t-shirt.

"If you are still for long enough", my Granny said, "the fairies will come". So I lay there. Motionless. Point and shoot camera in hand. Silently waiting. All that arrived that day was the flash of a Knysna Loerie, a mud ball from my brother, and a grumbling tummy. At some point, the only thing that there was left to do was to get up and carry on with my free-range childhood. I searched for new magic whilst running through the grass in the Highveld, chasing naughty pigs between cucumber vines, and silently swinging from ropes on the sides of cliffs with blistered hands and a head full of ambition.

10 years after that forest morning, I sat on the sandy floor in Musina with my film camera and a home made solar filter, photographing a full solar eclipse. A huge group of people collectively held their breath as the moon moved over the sun. With millimetres to go a bright spark of light created the most beautiful thing I had ever witnessed. My fairy. It had come in the quietest moment of my life. One that opened my eyes not only to the true wonders of the world, but also to the joy and excitement that comes from sharing incredible experiences with the people you love.

The memories come and go, as they do, but I still have my photos to remind me. As I pull them out of their far-from-glamorous plastic box, they quietly whisper back all the things I have long forgotten. Holding these images makes me feel the same anticipation of magic that I did all those years ago.

It took me a long time to realise that my legacy would be centred around capturing the intricate web of emotion, compassion, and human nature that connects us all. I left behind a career in Law because I instinctively knew that the way I saw and recorded things was different. It takes a special eye and a special heart to recognise that human interaction is precious, and to understand that human interaction within the beauty of our world is pure art.

My gift has taken me to the most exquisite places, on the greatest adventures, and has introduced me to incredible human beings.

You are one of them. Hi, I'm Niki. I am very grateful that you have arrived here, and I can't wait for our journey to start.