Tag Archives: portrait

riley | the cutest little bean

I am so very excited to share these images of Riley and his family. He was born a few weeks early and was such a tiny, perfect little dear. I am honored that his parents were willing to have me travel from Jacksonville to Tampa to capture some of the first pictures of Riley.

I’ve heard so many times from mothers that time passes by at the speed of light after having a baby- that one day you look at them and they are BIG! They crawl or walk and talk and eat real food! It warms my heart to be able to help capture those very early memories when baby is the teeniest little snuggle bunny.

I’ve never met a brand-spankin-new baby that I didn’t like. ;)

We shot Riley’s session in the loft area of their home. It had the biggest window and such perfectly even light. Ahhhh!

This shot was requested by mom and I SO love how it turned out.

This has to be one of my favorite baby expressions- fast asleep and little mouth open. (annnnnd my ovaries flip flop)

Oren, you are SUCH a trooper! Riley decided he needed to relieve himself in a stream that shot straight up and onto dad’s face.  I don’t think I’ve ever had a dad that dealt with being peed on quite like you did. Thanks for holding your pose. :)


Thank you Erika and Oren for inviting me into your home to cuddle, rock, whisper to and photograph your absolutely adorable son.

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nawsheen | part 1

Let me introduce you to one of the sweetest, most patient (with me) girls you’ll ever meet. Nawsheen contacted me last year after seeing these posts and I jumped at the chance to photograph her in traditional Indian dress. Unfortunately, we had to reschedule many times due to rain, sickness, schedule changes and any other reason you can imagine. I am so happy we were finally able to arrange her shoot-I don’t think I could take a bad picture of her if I tried!
The light in this park NEVER fails me. I will miss shooting here when I leave for Colorado.
So many times I capture the most beautiful candid moments when I am metering my light. This is just another example.
I don’t have many words for this post, but I don’t think I really need them! I had perfect weather, beautiful light and a stunning subject with vibrant, sparkling attire. What more could I ask for?

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frida from norway

Needless to say, these shots  were NOT taken in Florida- but in Kansas. The day of the session was bitter cold. The temperature was in the 30s but the wind was fierce- with the windchill in the single digits. After being gone from Kansas for so long, I forgot just how bone chilling the wind can be. I quickly learned how hard it is to manipulate the controls on a camera with fingers that are frozen! When I move to Colorado, I’ll most definitely be investing in some gloves that will allow me to shoot while keeping my hands warm.

Frida is a foreign exchange student from Norway and her host family gifted her a senior portrait session for Christmas (yes that is how far behind I am!). Frida loves horses and rides all the time in Norway, so it was only fitting that she be placed with a family in America who loves horses as well. It was important for me to be able to incorporate this into her session. Several weeks before our shoot, Frida was thrown from her horse- breaking her ankle. Thankfully it was healed enough by the time we met that her cast had been removed and all that was left was an air cast that she could manage without for a few hours.

To get the right angle for these pictures, I had to be on a horse as well. It has been YEARS since I’d been on a horse. I assured the horse keeper(??) that I had ridden before and knew what I was doing. Only I got up on the horse and definitely did NOT remember what to do. I whispered to Frida “Hey, hey.. Frida how do I get her to stop once we start?”. “Whoa,” she says. Oh, right- how could I not know that? It isn’t easy taking photos while sitting on a horse. 1-the horse wouldn’t stand still and I had to hold myself sturdy on the horse with no hands while taking the pictures and 2-I am constantly moving all around trying to find the best angle- it isn’t so easy to get a horse to go EXACTLY where you need it to be.

We did a little clothing switcheroo and Frida put on one of my dresses. I know braving the cold wasn’t easy- but she did great. We kept my car running with the heat going full blast. It was so cold that after every few shots we had to run back to the car to defrost before continuing. I am so thankful that I have clients who are willing to do whatever necessary to get good pictures!

Snow makes for a natural reflector of light that is perfect for picture taking. I really love the pop of red in these two.

These speak for themselves. We had a lot of fun playing with the camels.

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instant film

On Sunday, I had the pleasure of meeting and assisting photographer Ezra Marcos on an amazing retro lifestyle shoot. You can see his sneak peak here. Look for me on that post (hint: floral shirt).

In December, I purchased the Fujifilm Instax Mini 7s. I have been using it to capture special moments in my personal life and am absolutely in love with the pictures it produces. I usually always have it in my camera bag, but have never pulled it out for a session until Sunday. The pictures couldn’t have fit with the theme of Ezra’s shoot any better. I am so pleased with them. Here are a few:

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lilah louise | 3 days

I almost missed her. I scheduled my trip to Kansas in December around Lilah’s due date, but with newborns it is NEVER that easy. When Lilah still hadn’t arrived on her due date, I decided to change my flight in hopes of getting the timing right. Even that nearly flopped. Lilah finally arrived at 5:51 am on Sunday, December 27th-weighing just over 8 lbs and 18.5 inches long.

Jodi and Lilah made it home from the birthing center on Tuesday and I did her session Wednesday morning- hours before my plane left! I don’t think I have ever completed a newborn session so quickly and with such great results. Jodi and Cory are naturals in front of the camera and Lilah so easily soothed.

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They seriously take my breath away!

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Look at those cheeks!

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It is so easy to take wonderful photographs when you have such beautiful subjects.

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This is one of my favorite pictures of Jodi. The look on her face is so telling and it warms my heart.

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The color image on the left is hanging large and in charge in the office of the doctor who delivered Lilah. Talk about ecstatic!

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Jodi and Cory, I am so very happy to have had the opportunity to photograph all of your milestones (so far!). I feel incredibly privileged to still have you in my life even though we are thousands of miles apart. And I am incredibly appreciative of you opening your home to me just days after giving birth and the day after coming home from the hospital. I hope you cherish these pictures always.

P.S. I have film images from my vintage camera that I took in the hospital being developed right now. Fingers crossed!

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Taylor | my BIG little brother

While back home in October, I took my Taylor’s senior pictures. This is the same pumpkin patch Jodi and I trespassed on for her maternity pictures- only this time I thought i better not press my luck. I asked for permission :) You’ll notice most (ok all) of Taylor’s pictures are of him kneeling or sitting- that would be because he is darn close to 6″6″ tall. Yea.. WOAH. All of the standing pictures looked oddly out of proportion and I could see right up his nose. I never even thought to bring a stepladder. That’ll teach me.

That cute little black fur-ball is Samantha Jean. We call her Sam-bo or Sammy for short. I think she is half blind and half deaf by now, but I love her to pieces. She pretty much goes nuts every time I go home for a visit.

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Couldn’t resist.

IMG_2150The second pose was his idea. :) So we went with it.

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My favorite 2 of the bunch.

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Avery | 6 month old beauty

I had the chance to photograph this beautiful family back in October (and of course am just now blogging it). Avery is an absolute doll and her mommy and daddy are two of the nicest people I’ve ever met. Avery’s mommy, Amanda, has inspired/encouraged me to train for my first half-marathon. I haven’t gotten there yet, but I am up to 10 miles (3 and a little to go). Thanks Amanda, for being so fun to work with and for the motivation to do something I never would have dreamed of.

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As my friend Charisse would say, “Ohhh, what a little dumpling”.

The little smile is the result of me acting like a complete goofball.

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We did most of the session in the family’s spare bedroom- it had the most gorgeous light! Just look at the catchlights/reflection in her eyes. Her adorable little face also helps. :)

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The color one on the right?? One of my favorites. Her little grin is just too cute.

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As is the way she is so intently listening to her daddy.

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All together now: “AWWWW”

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Of course, the foot in the mouth shot.

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During the session, we stopped to give little Avery a snack. Avery would tug on her daddy’s face and he would calmly tell her “gentle, Avery, gentle”.The intimacy of these two makes my heart smile.

avblogDon’t let the sweaters fool you. We had one semi-nice day amidst the Florida humidity.

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Picture perfect

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jodi & cory | love shoot +1

It is December, less than 1 week from baby Lilah’s due date, and I am just now posting images from her mommy’s session back in October. Oh GEEZ.
I’ve been friends with Jodi and her twin sister Jenna since the 7th grade. They were my first friends when I moved to a new town and new school at a time in a tween’s life when everything is chaos (or at least feels that way). Without getting too mushy gushy–I’ll just say that words can’t express how fortunate I feel to have Jodi and Jenna in my life. Even though we live a full 24 hour’s drive from each other and all of our lives are too busy to keep in proper contact, I still consider them two of my best friends.

From the moment I learned Jodi was pregnant I was plotting a way to be able to shoot her maternity pictures– and then I learned of Jenna’s wedding in October. Perfect. I was able to to knock out my brother’s senior pictures (coming soon), attend (and sneak in a few shots at) Jenna’s wedding AND do Jodi’s maternity session.

Jodi’s belly was just blossoming and the leaves were just turning. I couldn’t have asked for a better setting to photograph a more in love couple.

I’m pretty sure we were illegally trespassing on private property for the next 5 pictures with the yellow leaves. So worth it.
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And then more trespassing at a pumpkin patch that we found while hiking to shoot with the red-leafed trees you’ll see further down. Jodi and Cory just ooze love and happiness AND they’re naturals in front of the camera. Not that I can really pick favorites- but I do really love these two.

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The interaction and smiles in the next two really get me as well

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A beautiful, glowing, happy mommy-to-be. Sweet or what?

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I’d say “beautiful” again, but I don’t want to be repetitive.. so I’ll say “gorgeous”.

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These two make me giggle. I hope they make you giggle too. Cory got plenty of practice catching- lets hope he gets to “catch” the real thing VERY soon.

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Again, not that I can pick favorites..but I do love this one an awful lot as well. :)

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Note to Lilah: Please be kind to your mommy and I-and don’t arrive too late. You already have your first photo shoot scheduled and it just won’t be acceptable for you to miss it. :) Thanks.

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