Charlie • 3 Year Update

So Mara & Charlie stopped by the studio the other day for Charlie's 3 year update. Seriously, I can't get enough of this kid. Getting a 3 year old to stay still and in a good pose is usually a challenge, but Charlie rocked it!! It doesn't hurt that his giggle and smile are insanely contagious. He brought the charm and we got some great shots.

I suggest having a special theme for each birthday update, something that is consistent in each one. With Charlie I purchased him an adult size dress shirt and tie. We will take at least one picture of him in this same shirt and tie each year until he is 18 or he outgrows it, whichever comes first. Here he is in the shirt & tie for his two year and three year update.

2 Year

3 Year

Here are some other favorites from this shoot.

I have a bunch of ideas on different themes to carry through yearly shoots. Want to hear more? Contact me & we can talk about starting a theme for your little one!

J. Family • Maternity Shoot

It finally happened!! I took my first shoot in the new studio!!!!

It wasn't entirely finished, still had a good part of the floor to finish, but the shooting area was complete and that's all we really needed for right then. We had other dates set as possibilities as baby J. wasn't due until the 24th, however it is really good we did them when we did, as baby Analena made her appearance less than 48 hours later!

The family, Amber, Adam & Evan J. are good friends of ours having been on our bowling league for the last three years, and Adam & my DH going way back to elementary school.

I had a blast with them, Amber had some really great ideas! I could tell with all the pink props she brought she was excited to not be the only girl in the house finally :-)

The rain held off so we took a walk to the top of the Auburn River Walk up by Great Falls for some outdoor pictures before heading back to the studio for some shots indoors.

This one was Adam's idea, too much fun!

I really had a great time with them and am happy to call them the studio's first customers! I can't wait until they come back for Analena's newborn shoot!! I'm also thinking about adding something to my maternity marketing about shoots with me lead to baby's in less than 48 hours. Whaddya think??

Miss Alexa • Easter Shoot

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of photographing little Miss Alexa. I had met her grandmother about a month prior while getting my nails done. She had previously gone to Sears and was upset that there wasn't anywhere to go for portraits anymore. I told her that I actually used to work for the Sears Studios for about 6 years before they closed, and actually trained the one photographer she liked to go to. Needless to say, she took one of my cards & booked a shoot! A little networking goes a long way :-)

I took my gear and some fun new backgrounds to her great grandmothers home in Auburn where we had the shoot, and I had so much fun with it! Alexa was super friendly and I was able to get natural smiles easily. I think the fact that we are both blue-eyed-red-heads means that we connected on some other plane :-p

I'm glad I found this fabric at Joann's -- I think it makes a really fun backdrop!

I had so much fun with Miss Alexa and cannot wait for her next shoot! She had a mind of her own and made the portraits fun, for instance her grandmother & great grandmother REALLY wanted a portrait of her in her Easter hat, well Alexa had other ideas. We were able to get a few cute ones, like the one below, she is just too silly, look at all that mischief in her eyes. 

Alexa's shoot was also my first shoot (since I worked at SPS) where I did an in-person sales presentation. It was a learning experience and I look forward to the next time I do one!