Little Pup

This was a different kind of newborn for me--the furry kind! This little guy is only 8 weeks old and around 3 lbs. He is a long-haired Dachshund pup. What a sweet and snugly guy!

Two Little Redheads

I have known these little guys since they were born, and the little boy was one of my first newborn clients last year. Now look how big (and adorable) he is! They had fun checking out a real life red caboose this morning. And despite their best efforts otherwise, we did manage to grab some images of them together :)

Celebrating Adoption Slideshow

This wonderful family has many friends they have made through their adoption process, and asked if we could share their session slideshow here on the blog so that others can see. They just shared such warmth and happiness that was a joy to photograph. Click on the slideshow image to take a peek at their session.

A Prayer for Baby Angel

I am spending this week teaching at my childrens' Vacation Bible School. Today the craft was a prayer pot where the kids decorated the pot and filled it with popcicle sticks labeled with names of people to pray for. I asked one of the 7-year-olds in my class about his sticks, and he told me: Mom, Pop, God, and Angel. He explained that Angel was his baby cousin who died at birth, and that his aunt named her Angel because she was in heaven.

I was so touched that this little guy and his prayer for his cousin, it stuck in my head for the rest of the day. He was so little to grasp such a situation, and clearly it stuck in his mind and affected him. It made me think of the work that my fellow photographers do through the Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep program. They come to the hospital at the family's request to photograph the precious moments they have with their child, and provide them with lasting memories of their own angel.

So tonight, no photos, but I offer a little prayer for Baby Angel. And for all of the other little angels and their families.

Announcing my "Christmas in July" Special

I know that many of my clients have been eagerly anticipating the announcement of my holiday special, so without further delay, here it is! As my July special, I am offering clients who schedule and prepay their holiday portrait package this month a complementary session fee, 25 custom-designed holiday cards, and 2 free digital images on CD (along with the rights to reprint them up up 8x10 in size). That's a $430 value, just for planning ahead!

Holiday sessions can be scheduled in September, October, or November.

This year's holiday packages are:

The Holly Package
includes one 10x20 storyboard, one 11x14 traditional print, and a $600 print credit

The Mistletoe Package
includes one 16x20 gallery-wrapped canvas print, one 10x20 storyboard, 25 holiday cards, and a $600 print credit.

To schedule a holiday session and qualify for the Christmas in July special, contact me through the email form on my website. Weekend dates will fill quickly, so if you need a weekend appointment, please book early. And holiday sessions don't need to be holiday-themed. You are welcome to use this special for regular fall family or children's portraits.

So imagine it's cool outside (rather than 90 degrees and sticky!) and that you're sitting in your living room snuggled in a warm blanket, and looking at that gorgeous canvas portrait of your kids on the wall. It's like a holiday present to yourself, and since you prepaid it last July, it won't bust your holiday budget. So Ho!Ho!Ho! Merry Christmas in July!

Gotcha!

This morning I had the opportunity to work with my first Celebration Adoption (CA) family. I am a participating photographer for the CA program, which links families who recently participated in the adoption process with custom photographers. I had a great time working with this family, and I enjoyed reading about their adoption journey on their blog. Old Town Alexandria turned out to be a great location for exploring and capturing some of their special moments.

Three Sisters

This session was meant as a surprise for Mom, but it seems the cat is out of the bag, and she knows she has portraits coming her way. I hope she will love seeing the images of her sweet girls.

European Cutie

This little guy came all the way from Austria for a session with me. Well, ok, maybe he had other reasons to visit too ;) He was staying with a neighbor, who mentioned that they just had to have some portraits before they left. So we popped him in the trusty orange bucket and made it happen. What a good sport, since it was probably past his bedtime and the bugs were eating us alive!

Brothers in Blue

I had a fun session bright and early this morning with these sweet little guys and their parents. We started out in their yard, and ended up in the studio with some fun baby portraits. Aren't those little arms just the cutest?

Best "picks" from the farm

Ok, I couldn't resist adding the last one. I thought this little bull was so cute with his calf eyes, and sweet face. It wasn't until I got home and was looking through my photos that I realized that he was picking his nose with his tongue. My daughters were amused, and both tried to do it themselves. Luckily their tongues weren't long enough!

Mother/Daughter

I was lucky enough to be invited back to photograph my "award winning" family last weekend. My image of this young woman and her grandfather won first prize in the family category of ProPhogs Convention's print competition, and I was excited for the opportunity to work with them again. This time I was photographing her with her mother. With such wonderful models, it was hard to pick just a few to share.

A Girl and Her Flower

We got together early in the morning last week for a quick mini-session to get some closeups of this little cutie. Near the end of the session we gave her a flower and although she didn't quite understand how we wanted her to hold it, we ended up with a few cute shots after all. I just love her little scrunched nose in the last one.