As some of you know, I am going on vacation in two weeks. As in, fast forward two weeks, I will be on the beach in Mexico, with a drink in my hand. No kids…all inclusive, I am beyond excited. My cousin is having a destination wedding, and it was the perfect excuse to convince my husband we needed to go on a trip! While I’m there, I’ll get to photograph the wedding, so that should be fun! They actually have a photographer hired through the resort, so it won’t be a ton of pressure for me…I hope!
In honor of this tropical vacation, I have been visiting a tanning bed. It’s like lying in a time capsule, every time I get in, I have flashbacks of high school. For some reason, it was mandatory to have a tan with your prom dress…even though looking back at the pictures, I don’t have much of a tan to show for it. So, as I sit here typing, the smell of fried chicken (read: my flesh) and coconut lotion are assaulting my senses.
I’m working like a mad-woman (when facebook doesn’t distract me-I swear, the Internet has turned my attention span into mush…’oh look, something shiny’)…I’m attempting to get a bunch of sessions shot next week (please pray for good weather), as well as get a lot of orders placed. My goal on vacation is to be completely work free. No Internet, no editing, no facebook. We’ll see if I can hold out!
On to the pictures…can you get over how gorgeous this family is? No? Me either. Their mom is pregnant and I’m just the teeniest bit jealous of how cute her baby bump looks! I’m glad they had these pictures taken of this special time…I can’t wait to meet the latest addition to your family
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Isn’t my title catchy? The other day I took my kids to our local health club. I am a member, although the whole exercising thing seems to have taken a major backseat to sitting at my computer desk….anyways, occasionally I bring the kids their to swim. The gym is old and could use a major face lift. The pool and hot tub area must date back to the sixties…the clientele that visit said hot-tub and pool area must date back even further…it’s like the old men in speedo’s convention in there. I took the kids to sit in the hot-tub (which was lukewarm) and I watched two very large, hairy men walk OUT of the sauna (where they had been sitting for quite awhile)…sweat poured off their bodies (only Tom Cruise in Top Gun-the volleyball scene-can make sweat look sexy). They started walking towards the hot tub. No. Please God, No. They walked right past the shower area, and headed straight into the hot-tub we were all soaking in. I’ve never moved so fast in my life. I threw the kids out of there before they even knew what hit them! Gross. Am I the only one who thinks this is completely disgusting?
Phew, I got that out of my system. My sister-in-law is always horrified by the things I write on my blog. She once yelled at me for writing an entire saga about bed-bugs, and immediately after the rant, I posted newborn pictures of a sweet little baby girl! Sorry Krista, it’s how I roll
Okay, so NOW we can move on to the cute stuff!
I contacted this mom about doing a swap…she’s an interior decorator/designer, and I wanted some help laying out the floor plans for my studio project. She came out and helped me design the perfect space, and in return, I took pictures of her adorable family! Thanks so much, I can’t wait to get started on the plans you drew up!!
Another sweet little newborn BOY! I do love boys…I’ve got 2 of my own…but if someone out there reading this could just ‘try’ a little harder to have a girl, that would be great. I’ve been told there are methods you can try in order to conceive a girl. So lean a little to the left next time, allright guys Sorry, I may have gone too far on that one!! It’s just that I have several new hats that I’m dying to try out…and pink and purple would not look right on this handsome fella!
I hope his mom won’t mind me sharing the fact that she got a little teary eyed when I started taking his pictures. She was totally overwhelmed by his cuteness…that and those darn hormones got the best of her!
Oh goody- a little smile
Congrats you two on your beautiful baby boy…He did such a good job!
This morning at the breakfast table, Lucy (8), was explaining the ‘ageing process’ to Riley (5). She said, “well, mommy’s in the middle, since she’s 32…when you get to be in the forties, you’re getting old…and when you’re in your fifties your just old.” (she stopped at 50, so apparently, there is no life after 50). Then Riley asked, “but Mommy wants to be 29, is that old?” Lucy said, “well, Mommy is NEVER going to be that young again…the twenties are still young, and she’s not.” Thank you for that uplifting speech Lucy…you really made my day!
Here’s the last picture share from my day of mini’s!
These kids were hilarious-and obviously, excited to have their pictures taken
Well, some folks think I’m funny…and some just bury their face and cry.
Most kids won’t sit and hug like this-love it!
I love how a bit of sun-flare makes such a cool difference in a photo…
How cute are these three?
This mini-session had to be rescheduled, so we did them in my backyard…It was so pretty that day. And now, it’s brown and dead
I leave you with this gorgeous photo…I envision at 20×30 canvas enlargement for over the fireplace??
Here’s a few more families from the day of mini-sessions. I’ve been asked a few times if I’ll do these ‘mini-session’ days again…and the answer is yes! I am really hoping to do a day of mini-sessions in the spring. Finger’s crossed, my studio space will be complete for those, since it will be cold and ugly outside in March (which is when I’m tentatively planning them), and we will need to be indoors. The spring mini’s will be geared towards children only…and the fall ones will be geared towards families again. Please don’t ask if I plan on having bunnies for the spring sessions…the answer is, “only if you plan on coming and cleaning the cage every day!” Otherwise, it will be a bunny and chick free zone. Okay, we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves here…but since we’re discussing animals…I’d like to introduce you to a little pupper named DAZZLE. How can you not say the name dazzle and just smile? I’m smiling right now
The adorable ‘R’ family…the kiddo’s fell asleep on their way out to see me, and mom and dad had to give them some fruit snacks to pep them up…this incidentally turned their tongues blue…which made for a couple of interesting photo-shop challenges!!
And the ‘B’ fam…what up, folks? A little birdie told me (okay, it was on facebook) that dad was none too pleased that we had to reschedule mini’s for Sunday (during the Viking’s game)…although he never once complained to me!!
Sigh…this little dude did so awesome. He let me bend him like a pretzel without a peep He had a knack for smiling e.v.e.r.y. time I put my camera down. Like, every time. I’d adjust a blanket, he’d smile. I’d look at my camera screen, he’d start to smile. I’d itch my nose for 1/2 a second, he’d smile again. These newborns are messing with me. Thanks to his mama for bringing him out-you’ve got a smart kid, better keep an eye on him
Would you guys like to hear a little tip on photographing busy kids? Okay, listen up…here’s my one and only secret…keep them immobilized. Huh? What I mean is don’t let the kids down to explore the area before the shoot starts (not even to tie your shoe). Nothing drastic like a straight jacket (although it’s not a bad idea), just have mom or dad holding the child (ages 9 months to 2 1/2 yrs), until you have everything ready to go…when you have your camera set the way you want it, plop the child down on some type of chair and start shooting. Normally, I’ll get a good 5 minutes out of kids while they’re just a tiny bit out of their element. After they get super comfortable (notice I didn’t say bored!) with me and the chair, they’ll get down and start checking out the place. And that’s okay, I don’t want them to feel trapped (I only torture my own children), but usually those first 5 minutes are where I get some of my favorite shots. After the ‘newness’ of the location wears off, then I go for the more candid/active shots. My ‘real life’ example: Every parent knows that when you walk into the grocery store with your child, you immediately put them in the cart and buckle them in. You don’t walk into the store and let them stroll about for a minute-they would NEVER get into the cart after you’ve allowed them this taste of freedom! Same principle applies here!
This little guy just turned one, and was quite the busy beaver. I love his smile, it lights up his whole face! (My apologies to his mommy for making him the ‘poster child’ for active children-he’s actually really good-and no busier than the average kiddo!).
PEEKABOO!!
Okay lady, you got me up on this ladder, now how do I get down?
I love this last shot-I think it’s my favorite from the day!
Thanks for coming back to see me ‘D’ family! I love seeing how much they change in 6 months…he was so funny on the day of our session. Laughing and happy, then random bursts of tears…followed by more smiles. Where did the ‘diva’ personality trait come from??!
I was looking for his 6 month blog post and I couldn’t find it (must be on the old blog), so here’s a storyboard we did for his 6 month session.
Allrighty…and the summer weather continues. I wish it would do this every year. I like the concept of the fall colors and the summer heat. I wonder if it’s messing with my dad’s fall fishing extravaganza? Fall fishing is his favorite…in fact when I managed to give birth to not one, but TWO of my kids in the beginning of October, he was actually a bit put out! Sorry dad.
Here are a few families from my mini sessions a few weeks back. This was before the heat wave, and right after the never-ending rain. A perfect fall day, crisp and sunny! My goal is to get all mini sessions completely edited and the gallery’s up no later than this coming Friday-okay mini-folks?
And another adorable family….everyone came looking so stylish for the mini’s…I was very impressed with all the coordinating!
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by Kelly
BEAUTIFUL!!!
beautiful portraits!
amazing photos:)
[...] Here is one of the most gorgeous little babies I’ve had the pleasure of photographing…she had the sweetest little cheeks, such a cutie. Just as long as we didn’t put her on her tummy, she was perfectly content to just snooze. Oh, and if you missed her maternity session, you can check it out here. [...]