Sweet Siblings

We tried out our new spot again last week. This session was with a brother, sister AND a mom after I talked her into joining in on the fun. They were more interested in playing in the creek (what child wouldn't), but we were able to get some great portraits. The leaves were the perfect color, there was a slight breeze, Fall is alive and well. And of course, we brought out the santa hats... :) Everyone loves those!

Anniversary Session

I know all my blog stalkers have seen this beautiful woman and her adorable dog.... well, now we add the husband! The lovely couple scheduled an autumn session as an anniversary gift. It was a beautiful day and this session was in the couples backyard. Enjoy!

Christmas Cards!!

Check out the beautiful young ladies posing for Christmas portraits! Don't they look like angels? They really are sweethearts. After we did a quick Christmas session, the girls changed into play clothes and had the best time in the park playing in the autumn leaves. I wish I would have caught it in print but I was busy with another family that I will share in the coming days.

I am so excited that Christmas is near. We are debating putting our Christmas tree up this weekend. I know we are strange but I love this time of year. Give me a call if you are interested in making a card with a previous session portrait or if you want to schedule a Christmas Session. There are many more cards to choose from!

He is growing!

We had the opportunity to photograph this family when the son was 6 months old. Now he is just over a year and getting so big. The entire time I was behind the camera I was amazed at how the baby was leaving and a little boy was in its place. The mom loves photography as much as we do so she was up to anything. This was a fun session with lots of laughing and the photographer singing "la la la la la ELMO's World". We will do anything to get a smile.

This little guy is two weeks younger than my son and almost has the same name. He is such a cutie. When he gets excited he starts flapping his arms almost like a bird. I just love pure excitement! Check out the red hair coming through! Watch out girls in a few years!

Extended Family

Two weeks ago I had an extended family session. The grandparents were celebrating an anniversary and the lovely daughter thought a nice portrait was the perfect gift. I agreed. It took a little while for everyone to warm up (it was windy and everyone just felt weird at first) but we powered through! I usually have to get the kiddos to smile but this day I heard myself say "Smile, Grandpa" :).

They are a lovely family and you can see from the pictures that they love each other. And everyone is beautiful so it makes it easy! The grandmother has a high school reunion coming up and wanted a good picture from this decade (her words) because the other alumni are using old pictures and trying to pass off they haven't aged. That cracks me up. I hope I look 1/2 as beautiful as she does when my reunion comes by.

I just got home!

What an exciting day! I started with an anniversary session celebrating 5 years! This session was done at their home and was so much fun. You will recognise the wife from a few of my other sessions. She is a friend of mine and was in my wedding 7 years ago. She is beautiful and willing to try my crazy ideas for poses. This one is my favorite but there will be many more to come.

Then my family went to a session with a family friend. They have a one year old within weeks of of my son. We met on the Internet when we found out we were pregnant. We are several women who share children of the same birth month. We are all over the country and one in Canada! It is a great group of friends.

This family lives within an hour of us and we did family portraits when he was 6 months. This was one of our first sessions, period. What a blessing to be able to do this again. We chose a new location by a creek. The leaves were falling as if on cue. The colors where beautiful, the family picture perfect. :) My favorite picture of the day...a very original family photo. There are many traditional portraits to come but this has to be my favorite of the day. I love it!

Anyone what to tell me what you think?

The pleasures of Fall...

Sometimes a photograph is about capturing the perfect smile, forever etching the details of the face as it is right now. These are what my friend has taught me to call the "money shots". These are the portraits that are proudly displayed on the wall in large prints and nice frames. I love giving these to the families that come our way. But sometimes a photograph is about being there, right then, capturing a moment that will never been the same. It is like being a spy on a person's life freezing the splendor of childhood or just life in general.

That is what these pictures say to me. I had just completed my friend's Christmas portraits (they are coming soon, I promise). I was sitting down talking to her when I look out to see her daughter raking leaves. She had changed out of the formal Christmas clothes into her play clothes. She was just enjoying God's earth. She didn't need any toys, electronic devices or even anyone to entertain her... she was enjoying life and I had the pleasure of being there. Look at her face... isn't that what life is all about?

I love the formal poses that I do every week for my clients, but I most enjoy capturing life and just being there recording something that will never be the same again. Thanks for letting me share. :)