Jasmine and Aurora

I'm home from Florida, and just getting caught up with my vacation photos and responding to the clients who wrote to me while I was gone. I start up with sessions again tomorrow, so look back for some previews in the next couple of days. But in the meantime I thought I'd share a few images of the little princesses. These comfortable, cotton princess dresses are made by my good friend Angela of Ollie Girl!. She and I worked closely to design this Jasmine dress because I knew that my little princesses wouldn't like the traditional Jasmine pants costume, and would prefer a dress.

Fancy Wings

Greetings from Orlando! We're spending the week at Disney World, and today we spent a little time taking in the Garden Festival at Epcot, including Minnie's Butterfly Garden where we spotted some beautiful winged creatures.

Our Cinderellas

I have been reminded twice recently to slow down and appreciate the time I spend with my family, and especially my little girls. The first was when I listened to the song "Cinderella" by Steven Curtis Chapman.



Again today, when I heard the news that his youngest daughter--one of the Cinderellas he is singing about in the song--was killed in a tragic accident in her own yard. I'm so saddened for the family, and it once again serves as a reminder to stop and appreciate my little ones.

Little Girl in Black and White (and a touch of red)

What's more fun than trying to keep up with a spirited 2-year-old? This little gal was full of sweet personality, and we had a little fun looking for frogs and fairies in her yard this morning. Here are a few previews of her session.

Baby Girl

What a beautiful little newborn I got to work with this morning! Only 2 weeks old, and she looked like such a doll. Her daddy is a firefighter, so I suggested that they bring over his helmet for a few of the images. I just love the little sleepy smiles!

Lemonade Stand

We had our second annual front yard lemonade stand this morning. The girls and I went out early this morning and bought the makings for lemonade and some fresh doughnuts. They were very popular among the yard-sale-crawlers this morning, as well as the neighbors who were out walking or mowing their lawns :)

Just in the Backyard

Doesn't nature have the coolest colors and designs? I just took a few pics in the backyard this afternoon, and check out the cool things I found!

I am thankful

As this rainy Mother's Day comes to a close, I just had to take a moment to recognize how thankful I am for my family. For my wonderful children, for my dear husband, and how wonderful it is that we got to spend the day with all of our parents. My mother-in-law just recently lost her own father, and I know that I am so lucky to be at the point in my life when I have a generation above and below me, and to feel the love from parent and child. So I share the dear gift my daughter made for me. They were just as beautiful to me as the lovely real flowers that my mother and mother-in-law brought for me, and I've got them displayed prominently on the kitchen table :)

To All those Mommy Photographers

This weekend is Mother's Day, and I still think of it as a holiday where I give thanks to my own mom. But as my kids are growing into wonderful little preschoolers, they've started to tell me what I mean to them. It really helps to remind me of the important role I play as a their mom, and how crucial it is to capture these precious times we have together while they are young. Because someday they will also grow up and move away. And when they are on their own, I can look back at those images and remember when they were my little princesses.

As a photographer, I am lucky in many ways, because I can grab my kids anyday and go take portraits of them. But every family should be able to capture the precious memories of their kids, so it's important to bring them to a professional at least once a year while they're small to make beautiful portraits that capture the fun and innocence of childhood. And for catching great moments the rest of the year, here are a few mommy tips for improving their everyday snapshots.

1) Remember that good light makes for good photos. Avoid bright sun because it not only causes your subject to have squinty eyes, it also can result in unflattering shadows and bright “blown out” spots. Shady porches or overcast days make great light. Trees also provide great shade, but be sure that it is full enough not to provide “spotty shade”.

2) Get down on the kids' level. Taking the photos from above causes their heads to look disproportionally large compared to their bodies. It may be the way you're used to seeing them as an adult, but kneeling down to take the photos provides a better angle, and also helps the child be less intimidated by the camera.

3) Anticipate, don't react. Mang digital cameras have a delay between when you press the shutter and when the photo snaps. DSLR cameras are much better, but even using those it's importrant to watch the child and predict what's coming next, so you can snap in enough time to catch the special moment.

4) Move beyond “cheese”. Some of my favorite photos of my own children are when they're looking in wide-eyed wonder rather than smiling. Capture them doing what kids do, and don't pressure them to smile for the camera. The natural smiles that you can capture will be much nicer than the forced ones.

So for all those mothers out there, I wish you a happy mother's day, and happy snapping!

Rain...the flowers are lovin' it

The rain hasn't been too good for my portrait schedule--I'm having to reschedule a few sessions--but my yard is loving it. These are some pink wax begonias from my planters on my deck.

Bake Sale

Last weekend I was asked to be the event photographer for a fun run and festival. What a great morning! I have lots of images, but I thought I'd share some of the yummy bake sale table. I'm just always so impressed with how creative the moms are with their packaging.

Sweet Sixteen

I had so much fun spending the morning with this beautiful teenager. We started at her house with the studio setup and then drove in town for some fun location shots. When we were walking around the tourists stopped her about a dozen times to ask if she was a "real princess", and we even caught some taking photos of me taking her picture!