Yesterday I decided to take the day off, which is always hard for me to do, but I did it.  I spent more time with my family and doing things that I needed to do.  Today I am working and I realized that this would be my last blog of the year, so of course I had to say something.

I just want to wish everyone a very Happy New Year filled with much success, joy and love.  Learn from your mistakes and try to be the best person you can possibly be.  That doesn’t mean try to be perfect, it just means do the best you can.  Help those who need help and make sure to take care of yourself and your family to the best of your ability.  Thank you all so much for allowing me to share my experiences and thoughts with you.  Below are some of my favorite images from this year and I look forward to creating more great images!

As a child photographer I have learned that my schedule is not necessarily my schedule when dealing with children and especially with babies.  Many parents like to take pictures with their newborns while they are awake; however I prefer to photograph them while they are sleep.  Considering that many of the babies do not want to go to sleep while I am there, I tire them out by photographing them awake with their parents.  One of the things I have to be careful about when they are awake is their eyes.  Since they can’t see very well yet and don’t have control of their eyes, they very rarely “look” in your direction.  Other times when they do look, their eyes may be crossed.  I’m sorry, but not matter how cute your baby is, crossed eyes are not cute.

As I was saying, I prefer to photograph babies while they are sleep.  That way there is no worry about crossed eyes or jerky movements which inevitably cause the baby’s hand to be in their face just as I snap the shutter.  Even with all of this, I love photographing babies.  This last session I had was wonderful, even though she wouldn’t go to sleep after two feedings and a diaper change.  She was determined to say awake, but she kept yawning signaling that we had to keep working to make her tired.  Her parents took this time to get a little something to eat and relax a bit while I tried to rock her to sleep.  Finally she went to sleep!  And when she went to sleep, she really went to sleep.

I was able to move her from prop to prop without her stirring too much.  It was great!  No, I didn’t go crazy with the posing, but I wanted to get a good variety of shots.  Mission accomplished! What a great session!  What really made my day was when the parents told me they didn’t want the pictures that were taken in the hospital because they had their own personal photographer to take them.  Wasn’t that sweet?  I certainly thought so!  In case you’re wondering why I called this post “My Little Fuzzy Wuzzy” is because her father nicknamed her fuzzy because of all of the hair that she as a newborn had on her body.  He’s such a guy!  Anyway, below are some of the images from the session.

After a while, Elizabeth finally woke up.  Yaaay!  Her mom fed her and then it was on! She had two outfits.  One was a Christmas outfit and the other  was just plain cute.  While Elizabeth had on the Christmas outfit, she wouldn’t smile much.  She seemed to be in a good mood, but we don’t think she was feeling the frilliness of the dress or the red, sparkly stockings.  At any rate, I was able to get some really sweet shots.

Next came the soft pink outfit.  No frills, just nice and comfortable.  She smiled much more and was rather mobile.  She would roll over or try to crawl somewhere.  I don’t know how many times her mother had to catch her from falling over.  I even have an image where she has a smile on her face as she is falling to the side.

We had such fun that day.  It took a while to get started, but it was well worth it.  I love photographing the babies!  I have another session with a newborn today and I am so excited about it!  Can’t wait to share those images either! Anyway, below are some images of Elizabeth and her mommy.  Enjoy!

This session was pretty much like my other sessions except for two things.  In the bedroom shots I decided to use natural light since a lot of sun was coming through the windows.  Even though it was sunny, it wasn’t quite enough sunny enough for me to shoot without a tripod.  Luckily Justin went back to sleep after a series of shots and I was able to shoot without any movement.  Yay!

Next we moved down to the basement and I set up my backdrop and light for other shots. I don’t use very many props, but one that I do use is what I like to call my “Moses basket”.

In case you haven’t noticed, Mr. Brown is a natural in front of the camera.  He loves having his picture taken and always gives me “good face”.  Sometimes I wonder are the sessions really about the children or are they about him?  At any rate, please enjoy the images from the session!

The special moments I like to capture are those in intimate settings with a small number of people, generally 5 or less people.  I get to work on my own schedule and don’t have to worry about not being able to stand in a certain place or not be able to use my lights or other such rules.  I like to feel comfortable and not be rushed so that I can get the best images possible.  When I’m comfortable my clients are comfortable and we have fun.

For the past two weeks I have showcased the Brown family.  Since I have such an extensive history with them, I figured I should share them with you.  This year marks the 5th year that I have photographed them and each time it gets better and better.  Last week I shared images of Mrs. Brown and son, then the previous week was Mr. Brown and son.  Today will be the entire Brown family.  Well one member isn’t that visible, but his debut will probably be in next week’s post.

There are many types of photography like wedding, portrait, sports, architecture and so on.  Within these categories are subcategories like photojournalist weddings, lifestyle portraits and the like.  I often say that I photograph lifestyle portraits.  For the most part I do, but I also do what I call relationship portraits/photography.  Generally there needs to be at least two people in the portrait to create a relationship.  From there I will have my clients interact with one another.  I’m not too into posing, but I will when I have to. The reason is because not everyone is good at posing or following directions, but they are good at being themselves.  Usually I will put my clients in a situation and let them take it from there.  They can talk, laugh, play, whatever makes them comfortable.  Sometimes I get in on the act and end up making them laugh.  Those are usually my favorite shots!

When you throw children in the mix, there is no telling what will happen.  They add a certain something to the image.  It is so great to see two parents smiling nicely and then their child(ren) are doing something that’s just off the wall.  A lot of times, that’s just how it is.  My motto is to let children be children.  I try not to constrain them, but that doesn’t mean I let them go completely crazy either.  Just a nice balance of both works out well. So with all that said, enjoy the images below!

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Before the youngest Brown came along we had a maternity/family session.  These are always great because we mix up the session so everyone gets to be photographed with everyone else and by themselves.  Of course this type of session lends itself to plenty of images with lots of choices!

As many of you know, there is nothing like the bond between a parent and their child/children.  Because mothers are supposed to be the nurturing ones, it’s no surprise when they are closer to the child than the father, but there are times when the roles are reversed.  Being a mother, I understand the love and devotion between a mother and her child/children and love capturing that connection.  Every once in a while I get to witness that same type of connection between the father and the child/children.    This connection is quite evident with Mr. Brown and son.

From the very beginning it has been quite evident that he had a special bond with his son. Fathers and their first born sons are always a major deal, but it seemed to be a bit more between these too.  They are just a joy for me to photograph because when I put them together they begin interacting with each other.  As I’m composing a shot, there may be a hug or kiss exchanged, some playful moments and very tender moments.  Is it always quick and easy?  Of course not.  Children can’t be turned on and off and sometimes you have to bribe them to get the shot.  Other times they are just priceless and no matter what they do it’s pure magic!

Well I can try to describe the bond between them all day, but I think it would be easier if I showed you.  Below are some images from the session along with a collage that I created.  Mrs. Brown provided me with what she wanted created for Mr. Brown’s Father’s Day gift and I did the rest.  It was printed on a 20×24 gallery block and was absolutely gorgeous!  (Thanks Artsy Couture!)  Without further adieu, meet the Browns (again)!

Every time she started to go to sleep, she’d wake back up.  There were some shots where she was asleep, but after two captures she’d startle and wake back up.  At that point we decided to photograph her awake with her mother, grandparents and even the family dog.

Evidently all of this photographing and changing positions and clothes tired her out. Before long she was in a deep sleep and ready for her close-up.  She was dressed in a beautiful white and pink dress with a pink bow headband.  Unfortunately I couldn’t take more shots because her mother had a doctor’s appointment to go to, which limited my time.

What I have found out from photographing newborns is that you cannot be in a hurry.  You are on the baby’s time not yours, so make sure you allot enough time for the session.  My average newborn session takes about 2 to 2.5 hours.  This session was around that long, but could have been longer if we had more time to try more poses.

Even though she wasn’t sleep the entire session, I could see the possibilities when the baby is in a deep sleep.  I was able to pose her a bit more without worrying about arms and legs flailing about or not cooperating with the positioning of the head, hands, feet or whatever.

Because no one knows everything about anything, I always learn something new after each session.  What I have learned from this session is that I may have to tire the baby out first and then I can start the second part of the session.

When she first arrived, she stood in the middle of the pavilion with her hands poised in a very dainty way.  She was basically frozen, just looking around as other children and adults walked or ran past her.  It was like she was trying to take it all in and didn’t quite know what to do.  It was actually priceless.  What came to mind was a princess being put in a room with commoners and not knowing what to do.  Of course I captured this moment, considering she was still and all.

Next there was a pinata, which seemed to be the most difficult pinata to pop ever.  All the children got to whack it twice, with 3 to 5 hits per try.  Mind you, some of the children couldn’t hit hard enough to break an egg with a stick let alone a pinata, but it was still difficult.  Before it was over, most if not all of the adults had taken a swing at it too….hard swings.  The men took huge hits at it and finally the candy came out…reluctantly, but it came out.

After that there was an Easter egg hunt, a dance contest and a game of musical chairs.  All in all it was very entertaining, especially the dance contest!  Cake and ice cream were served and then the children went to play on the playground.  Now how much more fun could that be?

It was a beautiful day to have a party outdoors and an even more beautiful day to capture images.  These are special memories for her family and friends, who I believe will cherish them.

Well this week I will be blogging about my latest maternity session with the Edwards. This is her second maternity session and her third child.  When she was pregnant with her daughter, I wasn’t capturing maternity sessions then.  Better late than never I say!  As you will see, the Edwards are an absolutely beautiful family.  You wouldn’t guess that little Caruso wasn’t all that fond of having his picture taken.  I think he did it because mommy and daddy “asked” him to.  At one point he said “I’m done.  No more pictures!” Now that made me laugh.  Another funny thing that happened was that the children kept running out of the room to play, which ended up working out.  During that time was when I was able to take pictures of either the mother or the mother and father together without the children trying to get in.  What’s interesting about children is that sometimes when you want to take pictures of them, they may not want to, but as soon as you exclude them, they want in!

You may be wondering about the tutus that are being warn by mother and daughter.  Firstly, it is a fashion statement.  Secondly, they are both dancers.  Actually Mrs. Edwards was a dancer, but now spends her time taking care of her family and working. Her daughter is an up and coming dancer, so she will be following in her mother’s footsteps.  How sweet is that?

Without further adieu, here are the Edwards!

Children have this way of showing you who they are without any pretenses.  It’s absolutely wonderful!  When I photograph children, I like to play with them and let them know that it’s ok for them to be themselves in front of the camera.  Sometimes they show me a little more than I’m ready to see, but I still roll with it.  Like little Caruso kept showing me his backside and his “stinky feet” as he would say.  It was hilarious!  Ok, there are only so many images I can take of his rear before we had to move on to other images.

Basically they pretty much were ready when I got there.  Between Caruso helping me and Taylor dancing for me, I felt pretty warmed up by the time everyone was ready.  They even had their portraits taken before their mother and father joined the fun.  In fact, she was surprised when I showed her some of the images because she didn’t know I had already taken some.

It was a beautiful session and we had great fun.  In fact, Taylor told me she wasn’t ready for me to go.  Now that’s what I like to hear!  Well, I’ve told you about the session, so now I will show the children’s portraits and will share some of the actual maternity session in my next post.  Enjoy!