Amanda – Anytime Portrait

…Romance, not the kind between 2 people, but the kind with nature… that was my inspiration for this series with my daughter, Amanda.

I love the outdoors and since this year I will not be taking my annual trip to a National Park I am going to spend more time outside in my own community! This is far from a National Park, but makes me happy anyways! I love the feel of this image, her hair romantically falling over her shoulders, the colors of the leaves in the back, the softness of the focus, the whiteness of her skin…

Although her eyes are quite dark in this one, I love it.

It started to rain on us for this shoot, but we continued and I am so glad we did. The rain is a regular occurrance around her so why not just go with it! We found a broken down shack to hide in…

I have been experimenting with more color and exposure for these last few shoots and I am loving the outcome! I love the little “over” exposed look with such yummy white skin matched against a colorful background.

I have also been experimenting with different focusing techniques. This image is purposely out of focus… clarity is not always the goal.

Another “different” focus technique.

Another new found love is the look of “vintage” 70’s… not the romantic feel above, but the overly grainy and washed out colors of years past…

This is one of my favorites of the shoot. Amanda wasn’t so impressed with my choice of hairstyles for her, but after seeing the outcome she liked it… just needs to learn to trust her mommy on these shoots!

Nothing better than a good Amanda laugh! She is wearing the special ring I bought her for Christmas… you will see this in another shoot we are planning later on… can’t wait!

We did this shoot with Joely, Amanda’s cousin and I have some funny ones I am saving for another post, but for now, wanted to show you this sweet picture of the 2 of them together. They have a very special relationship since Joely’s mom (my sister-in-law) used to take care of Amanda when she was just a baby…. so Joely and Amanda had a lot of time together as youngsters… now that Joely lives in PA Amanda cherishes those times she can come and visit.

This year is starting out well, a new decade to look forward to with a new career, support from family and friends, great kids and the love of my life sharing it all with me… thank you God!

One last one… more later…

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New for 2010 – Weddings

Well, after a year of declining wedding services I am finally going for it and have already booked some 2010 weddings. I have added a “Wedding” page, which also includes engagements and will be offering an introductory price this first year.

Please let me know if you are interested and if there is something you have seen elsewhere that you wish I offered… since I am still developing this service that kind of feedback would be great!

I have a post I will be doing tomorrow for a Kent senior, so stop by again then!

{{Hugs}}

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Just for Fun – Random Photography

I used this black ice cream chair in Karly’s shoot. It used to be in my room growing up, but it was white back then. My sister has the matching one.  We shared  a room growing up, her side always clean, mine messy… it used to drive her nuts!  She would be proud of how clean I keep my room now :).

When I am on a portrait shoot there is no guessing on what else I might take a picture of.  Sometimes it is only the subject, but many times there are other things that catch my eye and I have to get a quick shot.  I have used many past images for cards and others, like these just sit on my computer and no one ever gets to see, so I thought I would share with you (and maybe make some more cards with some).

Beware, I take pictures of things that strike me as funny, even if it is on you! Hee hee

I love the look of rusted iron.

I know it’s just a traffic light, but I like it.

Joe doesn’t even know when I sneak a pic of him.  I captured this during the shoot of Joely and Steph.

And sometimes he does… I love the Canon 70-200 2.8L lens for these types of shots. I always use that lens when shooting railroad shots too.  I think Joe must be the only guy from high school that has MORE hair than he did back then!

Things like this just jump out at me.

I make anniversary cards from images like this one… the gum wall in Seattle’s Pike Place Market.

Amanda comes along occasionally… sometimes she lets me take a picture and sometimes not!

Abby had these great red shoes, so we had to get creative with them.

I thought this was funny while on a senior shoot with Kayla.

Sometimes it’s of people I don’t even know… just because… shhhh, we will just keep that between us, K?

I LOVE animals, so I have lots of images of dogs, cats, birds and squirrels.

Hope you have a great day!!
{{Hugs}}

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Todd Family – Family Portrait

Time for family pictures again! Do you have yours yet? This is the second time I have taken the Todd’s family pics, but this time they have a new little one… baby Autumn Joy.. what a little darlin’!

Big brother Benjamin is an active one, but the sweetest thing! I chased him around the yard trying to capture what I could before he ran to the next interest.

We did manage to get him standing still long enough for a few pics with his little sister.

Then off again, playing… kids are so much fun at this age… I definitely get my exercise during these shoots. It was such a cold day that we didn’t venture off too far… jut stayed in the backyard…

Click on this one to enlarge it so you can see the art fun… love making artistic images. I will be doing a post soon featuring some favorite art images. What do you think for something different?

Then Benjamin found out that we had a drum set! Inside we go! Joe says he’s a natural… come on parents… time to get this guy a set of his own (Benjamin told me to tell you that :)).

We exhausted poor little Autumn… nothing sweeter than a baby sleeping…

Thanks for a great morning you guys! Such a cool family!

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My Favorite Day in 2009

Since today is my birthday, I started to reflect on this past year. There were days I would rather forget in that time period, but other days that were magical. I decided to blog about the number one magical day in 2009 to celebrate my 44th year… can’t believe I am already 44!!

Back in May Joe had this great idea to go to New York again, but just the two of us this time. It had been a long time since just the 2 of us had been on a vacation together. So, he sold a guitar and off we went… to New York City!

We met up with some great friends, Melissa and Brad for the first few days and visited sites we had never seen before. Brad hates getting his picture taken, can you tell by how excited he looks in this one! Too funny!

Our first stop, the Empire State Building.

It was a foggy and wet day, so there was absolutely NO ONE in line. If you have ever been to NYC and waited in this line, you will appreciate that there was really no one in line this day! We were told the whole way up that there was zero visibility on the top, but we continued anyway and when we reached the top, the fog started to lift…

We walked around a couple times, then suddenly we stopped. Joe took his backpack off, opened the top compartment and pulled out 2 small blue boxes wrapped with white ribbon. I was confused for a second and then Joe explained that we were renewing our vows… well, from then on I was a mess! Brad is a pastor, so performed the ceremony and Joe read vows he had written for me. I unwrapped the little blue box, to find a white gold band with the words Tiffany inscribed on it. He placed it on my finger and I did the same for his and we… kissed… Melissa was quick to grab my camera and get a shot for me…

What a kiss!

That was day 1 of a wonderful second honeymoon! We escaped from the reality of the world and embraced what was really important to us, that we were together, having fun, enjoying each and every moment and kissing a lot!

We walked in the rain…

Road the subway everywhere, saw museums, a broadway play, shopped on Canal street for purses, watches and scarves, ate good food…

And visited the sites…

It was all magical…

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Amanda and Bailey – Child Portraits

Bailey is my daughter’s friend. She is a kind, loving child and is always laughing. Her and Amanda love hanging out together. Even though it was pouring rain all day we took advantage of a few minutes when it wasn’t raining and took some pictures of them.

They are both ballerinas and I thought it would be fun to get some shots away from the studio.

Love this one!

Before the rain hit, we also managed to get a few other images captured.

We had a great time together. I love that Amanda begs to go on photo shoots! It wasn’t that long ago that she dreaded me dragging her out, so I stopped. Now, she is begging ME. Nice change of events! Now to get that to happen with my son, I don’t think so!

I will end with a typical Bailey… happy and laughing! The movement in this image helps tell the story, don’t you think!

Thanks girls! xoxoxo

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Karly E. – Senior Portrait

Funny how many Karly’s I have photographed in the last year :). Meet my newest Karly… she is a Bonny Lake High School senior; beautiful, talented and fun to hang out with.

Karly brought along her boyfriend, Aaron to watch the fun and help us make her laugh. It is always a good idea to bring someone along on the shoot. They wanted one of the two of them… but I wanted one of just Aaron too… so…

I talked him into giving me a shot… it was a hard sell… but worth it! 🙂 I know his mom will thank me!

Karly has these incredible eye lashes!

I love the richness of the colors in this one and Karly looks so beautiful and natural.

Love the reflection…

Karly just jumps out of this image… scarves make all the difference in an image, this one is my daughter’s, she is a scarf girl like her mom!

Fields can be found along any rural road. This is one of my newest favorite spots and it’s different every time I visit it.

Karly is a volleyball player and brought her letterman’s jacket with her. Love all the blue in these shots…

The many faces of Karly…

I feel so fortunate to finally be pursuing a love I have had for many, many years. Photography is more than just using the camera technically correct. It is capturing someones spirit and soul. It is having fun with people and creating art. Thanks for sharing my love with me.

I will leave you with one of my favorites… xoxoxo

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Abby – Senior Portrait

Abby is a special girl and I was honored to take her senior pictures. I have taken pictures of her family before, but now this time it was all devoted to sweet Abby.

She has a quiet spirit about her, but if you become her Facebook friend you discover a whole other side to her. Hee hee…

The fall colors can’t be beat right now.

Funny what you can find to use in a portrait session. We found a “storage” yard on the side of the street in downtown Tacoma. I love how junk can look good in a photo! Abby helps by being so darn cute!

Another cute image of Abby. I was so glad it wasn’t raining so I could get some shots on the ground. This time of year it is a little hard to predict what the weather will be like on the scheduled shoot day, but it worked out for us this day!

I’m into scarves right now… been wearing them every day. Back in May Joe and I escaped to New York City and on Canal Street there are tons of vendors selling purses, watches and scarves. I packed about 10 purses in my suitcase and at least 20 scarves (yes, some were for friends!).

I recently had a friend ask where I go to take my senior portraits… my answer… anywhere! Really, you can do a portrait session anywhere! I find most my locations while driving around to other events. I especially love graffiti walls. This one is on 6th Ave. in Tacoma. It changes every once in a while, so I can get different images at different times of the year, so cool. This is one of my favorite images of Abby. It just shows her personality so well.

Love this image as well. Her eyes pierce right through you!

Simply beautiful…

Hugs to you sweetie… loved hanging out with you like always!

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Karly – Senior Portrait

Meet Karly, a bright, beautiful and talented Bellarmine senior.

Karly was a lot of fun and so relaxed and down to earth. She came with jeans, t-shirt, sweatshirt, flip-flops and 2 shirts shoved in her purse. Love it! A gentle confidence…

Nothing like capturing someone’s happiness and joy…

Wide angled images are quickly becoming some of my favorites.

And an almost sepia wash is becoming one of my favorite effects.

What a beauty.

Natural and relaxed.

My favorite of the shoot…

Had fun hanging out with Karly for a few hours and can’t wait to show her the rest. I will leave you with one more… I love the blues… reminds me of a mermaid. 🙂

Love to you… until next time.

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The Blackmon’s – Family Portrait

This session was nothin’ but fun for all of us! The day – a kiss of perfection, the family – a joy to be with, the location – dreamy, my assistant – so valuable (and yes, dreamy too, hee hee)!

I have worked with Bob for years, so was honored when he chose us to do his family portraits. I have watched the kids grow up in pictures on his desk and have heard countless stories about his family, so what a pleasure to now be part of an event in their lives.

Both the kids have the most beautiful eyes!

Are these kids not adorable! They are so funny too! I could have taken them both home with me.

I love this image… there is just something about it.

I know that many families stress about getting their pictures taken. It seems there is just so much to do – get clothes ready, make sure kids are happy and clean with hair brushed. Well, that is all important up to a point. It is more important to me that they have fun and that I am able to capture who they really are. I know it’s a relief to parents when they see their kids are enjoying themselves, laughing and playing. It helps when you have an assistant that gets them laughing almost too hard!

The Lakewold Garden’s is such a cool place full of benches, statues, water and trees.

Matthew was such a doll and never stopped talking, except for this shot!

And Hannah full of make believe and laughs.

Adore this shot of Bob and Mandy.

Lots of great shots of the kids, so hard to pick out just a few to share with you.

I love this tender moment between mom and daughter. So sweet…

The kids are both into Martial Arts and came prepared to defend themselves!

That soon tired them out, but Matthew looks like he is still ready to have more fun, don’t you think!

What a wonderful day! Love to you all….

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