9.11.11 The Slaven Kiddos

And the award for messiest photo shoot goes to... These guys! Between the creek and the birdbath, and the falling fence posts, things got pretty dirty! But I wouldn't have had it any other way. It really was a lot of fun. The three year old took it upon himself to give me the grand tour of the family's awesome property and the one year old made it her job to keep us all on our toes. It was certainly an adventure! And with a toddler and a preschooler, that's what life is all about: adventures, getting dirty, and having fun. Here are some of my favorites:

9.10.11 The Pfeiffer's and the Grandkids

I had the chance to photograph the Pfeiffer's and their 6 grandchildren on Saturday. Those grandkids of theirs- I am blown away with how confident and comfortable they were in front of the camera! And they are all so adorable, it's like they are a family full of child models ;)
I think everyone had a good time- the kids especially liked climbing the tree. And I'm pretty sure the boys liked watching their mother dance around behind me to get the baby's attention- oh, the things we'll do to make a baby laugh!

Scott and Jen Get Hitched, 7.9.2011

In general, I refrain from photographing weddings, but of course, I am willing to make exceptions for family! My cousin Scott finally married his long-time love, Jen, and it was my honor to photograph their engagement portraits as well as their Big Day!
It was hot, as July days are, and there were moments of chaos, as weddings usually have. But there were glimpses of perfection and and the evening as a whole was everything a wedding should be: stressful, loving, hilarious, fun, and memorable.
Congratulations you two!!

 

 

The Lighthall Kids

This was my first time having a shoot at Newport on the Levee. It was a nice change of pace to the usual park shoot! The entire time, the children were bribed with promises of ice cream if they cooperated for photographs (by Mom, not me, I swear). And they were angels! Well, at least they definitely earned their ice cream, anyway. ;) We had met early in the day to avoid melting in the heat, so when our shoot wrapped up at 11am, imagine the disappointment when we discovered the only ice cream shop on the levee doesn't open till noon! Actually, these kids took it like champs (tears of rage would have been flowing if it had been my kids). Despite not being able to follow through with promises, the photos turned out great. I usually don't post so many photos, but as you can see, I had a hard time choosing what to share!! Too much?

 I can't pick a favorite out of these three photos... probably the one on the right?

The "Arcade Games" photo just cracks me up.

Rivers are there for kids to throw rocks into. That is why they exist. Ignore what science says, this is a fact.

The Miller Family

I love doing extended family shoots. Love them! It seems like it would be daunting to photograph 20 people in one sitting. And it is. But in between the posing and placement and shouting, and general chaos, there really is a lot of fun happening. Teasing, joking, laughter, and lots and lots of love. I know I am only there as the photographer, but I come away from shoots like this one feeling like I've really gotten to know the family,  that I was sort of adopted in for a short time. For an hour or two, I was another member of the family, allowed access to that teasing, joking, laughter and love.
Yep. Love it. :)
This family gathering was in honor of the family matriarch's birthday. Happy birthday, Mabel!!

The Hubert Family 6.23.11

 Families are so much fun. I mean, really, what is better than getting together with brothers and sisters and cousins and grandparents and just hanging out and having a good time? I'd say, not much! It was a fun time at the park with the Hubert family, and a fantastic opportunity for photographs. I have to tell you, my personal favorite of these few I'm sharing with you, is the one with the stroller- everyone else is checking out the turtles in the pond, and the baby girl is just having a blast with her blankie!
Enjoy!

 

 

Hubert Family 5.30.2011

It was a hot hot Memorial Day, so luckily the Hubert family and I met up late morning before the real heat of the day set in. (By the way, apparently Spring Grove Cemetery is a great place to go on Memorial Day... lots of activities and special events, if that's your thing. Luckily for our purposes, though, most of those activities didn't start till our shoot was over!)
It has been really fun to be able to photograph the Hubert family over the years. This is our third family shoot together! The first was when their kids were 4 years, 2 years, and one month old (this was before I started blogging my shoots, but you can see some of those photos on my Facebook page). The second was last year, when the little guy had just turned one year old (which you can check out here). How special to be able to watch them grow, and see how much they've changed year after year!
We spent the majority of our time together near one particular pond at Spring Grove. Maybe it's looking at the water and all the reflections, but as I was going through these photos I kept thinking they looked like they belonged in a dream. Or a fairy tale. Maybe it's just me!
Here are a few to share :)