The Wind Blown Look

Haven't had any "official" portrait sessions in the past week or two, but my camera's been getting a workout nonetheless. We attempted our annual campout this past weekend on the shore of North Landing River with friends and neighbors, and the weather was a little more than we bargained for. Cold wind gusts of up to 40 mph can really put a damper on things... but we put on our best faces and went into survival mode.

This spot is always so pretty. Without the overcast cloud cover, we usually see a magnificent sunset from the shore. Not this time.

And despite the wind kicking up sparks and embers that had us occasionally running for cover, the fire provided some much needed heat!

Thank goodness for delicious warmed, spiced wine for the adults and hot chocolate for the kiddos.

Hot chocolate makes everything mo' bettah.

Just some "here and there" shots of some of the kiddos. I wanted this picture of my son to demonstrate his lack of ability to drink a beverage cleanly. You should see him with Kool Aid. Almost a teenager and the table manners of a toddler... anyone have a napkin?

A friend from school, who came along for the first time this year. Wonder if he will show up next fall?

And a shot of my neighbor with his son on the shore. Yeah we missed the gorgeous orange sunset this year, but little rays of light poked down through the clouds and gave this image a pretty cool effect.

So... I attended my first Team in Training social/"meet and greet" last week. Seems like a great group of people. I have my training schedule all worked out, and once Thanksgiving is over, it's time to kick things into high gear. Updates on my progress to follow (for those who are interested).

Again, I want to thank those who have been so generous and donated to my fundraising effort. I am already a little over 50% towards my goal, and I am just so honored. This truly means the world to me. If you are interested in donating to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in honor of my young cousin's battle please visit my fundraising page. And if I can take some portraits for you in exchange for your donation, please contact me and I will be happy to set a time up.

And thanks so those who have asked me to take family portraits for their holiday cards! More images to share soon...

Having a Ball

Last weekend was perfect fall weather... cool, crisp temperatures, bright sunshine, glimmers of dew on the brilliant green grass...

Makes me think of... soccer.

"Tis the season for a lot of us mamas with mini-vans to be carting around short people to their various sporting events. Weekends (aka "rest days", ha ha ha) are fully scheduled with game after game after game. Yes, it's tiring. But these are the glory days... watching our sprouting little ones use that bundle of energy God gave them. It's really something to cheer about, sports fans!

I was so honored when a friend of mine (who happens to be my youngest's soccer coach) asked if I could take some pictures of her daughter in action on the field. I imagine she doesn't get a lot of opportunities to take snapshots of her little one while she's on the sideline coaching the girls.

I admit I don't have a lot of experience taking action pictures. I've taken shots of my son on the soccer field, but it's a challenge... you just have to keep snapping away, hoping that the referee will not be standing in the way right when you press that shutter release.

But we were blessed with fabulous brilliant sunshine... a key ingredient to getting crisper shots of girls running and kicking. And who would have a problem getting a good angle on this little cutie pie??

But don't let her fool you with that sweet smile. She's a terror on the field!! This girl means BUSINESS! I love it!

It was a lot of fun, and I hope her mama liked some of the shots we came up with.

So..... my official Team in Training Fundraising Page is up and running!!! If you're reading this and you have made a donation I sincerely thank you from the bottom of my heart. This cause and this project mean so very much to me.

If you're interested in arranging a portrait session... just shoot me a message via email or Facebook and we'll settle on a time, place, theme, etc. I'll edit the shots and send you a link to review them. From the site you can order prints or just share the link with family and friends. I'm more than happy to help with printing here locally as well.

"Fees" for the portraits are a donation to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society through my TNT page. The amount of your donation is whatever you feel comfortable doing. The photos are my way of saying thank you for donating to such a worthy cause.

Hope everyone is having a "ball" this season!

Soul Sisters and an Update

Been gone a while, but I'm back with a recent project. I sure do appreciate friends coming forward and asking me to take pictures. They have to know how much I love doing it, and my hope is that they'll have at least one or two photographs they'll end up liking.

So here are a few shots from my most recent session... a couple of lovely sisters. We decided against an "on location" shoot since the youngest has a cast on her arm! That's okay... I love the up-close and personal facial shots anyway. Lighting was pretty good this weekend.

So here we are with the basic "together" shots:

 And clearly my symmetry was off with this one, which makes me SOOOO mad because I really like the shot! Yeah, I could crop, but the printing dimensions will be off....  :(

 I love seeing all of the baby teeth in this one.

 Just experimenting a little bit...

And here we go with the solo portraits. Here's the oldest...

And now the youngest...

And finally a quick shot with their very pretty mom. Could have done better with this. Wish I had taken more time to set this up better.

What lovely ladies! That was a fun session.

So...

Time to get myself a little more organized with my purpose and my goal. I finally received contact from Team in Training and they are having an informational meeting later this month (one that I cannot attend because I have a staff meeting at the same exact time that I cannot miss). Apparently, this session is for those who want to train for the Shamrock Marathon. The Nation's Triathlon is not listed.

I've been doing some thinking.

I would love to do another triathlon at some point, but I am worried about the expense of the equipment. I would need a new bike, probably some attachments, and a new wetsuit. I don't know if I can justify the expense of these things while we will be facing a pretty expensive year with our middle daughter in travel volleyball. My races this year sure added up too.

It is probably significantly wiser for me to sign up for the marathon. I will be mostly trained... just need to keep my distances up over the winter, if my body will allow it. I won't need any additional equipment (except maybe a new pair of four leafed clover shaped sunglasses).

Hmmmm. Need to come to a final decision very soon.

Sweet Cheeks

Have been busy the past couple of weeks... ran a 200 mile relay with friends in the wilds of Maryland and Washington, D.C. and celebrated my niece's first birthday. My camera has definitely been in use, but more for the "candid" side of life. That's okay... great memories are being created!

But this past weekend I needed to fulfill a promise I'd been keeping for a while. My good friend and colleague gave birth to her second lil' one a couple of months ago and I was long overdue for a visit to see her sweet new bundle of joy. I wanted to take portrait-style pictures of both of her beautiful girls as a gift. 

We were not blessed with great lighting this weekend, and truth be told, I was a little less than pleased with some of the shots. The girls did fabulously... I was the one with the problem. I will most likely ask for a "do-over" with this session, but here are some of what I came up with.

Look at the sweet cheeks on this little cutie-pie!!

And here's mama with her little newbie.

 She reminds me of a sweet little elf.

 And this is always a "money shot"... Daddy and baby. Wish we didn't have a quilt in the background. Anyone want to teach me how to use Photoshop?

Fall is really here! My favorite time of year for photos...

The Secret Garden

Last Easter my sister, her husband, and their new baby girl came for a visit and we decided to drive down to the quaint town of Manteo in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. My sister shares my love of photography, and we decided that it might be a nice idea to catch some shots of our beautiful girls in their Easter "finery." It's so rare these days that my girls put on a nice dress and a bow in their hair. Soon enough they will refuse to do it, so I have to take my opportunities while I can.

Gardens, especially in the spring, are such perfect places to shoot pictures of darling young girls in pretty dresses. We enjoyed our visit to the Elizabethan Gardens with the azaleas, roses, and tulips in full bloom. While I typically prefer black and white for most portraits, many of these shots had to be color of course. I am typically not a fan of the "classic pose portrait", but there's something to be said about it.

 Is there anything more touching than young parents and their beautiful baby? My sister and her husband are completely in love with their little girl, and it shows in almost every shot. This was my favorite of them...

And this photo reminds me yet again of how the unexpected moment often turns into the "money shot." We placed baby girl in a bed of tulips, hoping to catch her sitting pretty. But she promptly fell over and just stared at her cute little toes. One day when I get a hold of photoshop I will remove that gazebo thing in the background, but I love this picture.

 The next photo is a personal favorite, but not without faults. My two girls, three years apart, are peering into a fountain. I love the way the picture compares and contrasts them. They're both wearing the same outfit and hairstyle to highlight their "kinship." But one is much smaller and needs to boost herself up to see over the edge. I like that.

 The problem with the shot (and what I learned) is that shoes make a difference. I brought fancy shoes that were identical. But the girls thought they were uncomfortable and replaced them with their scrappy summer shoes so they could run about the garden in between shots. I never asked them to peer into the fountain. It was true discovery on their part and I caught it. No time to think or change shoes. But as I look back at the image I realize it's one of the first things your eye goes to. The difference in their shoes. It bothers me, but I still like the shot anyway.

And finally, my favorite of the day. We're still at the fountain and my littlest peers into the water. There are flower petals floating about. There is something timeless about this shot. It could have been a century ago, so I gave it a sepia tone to "antique" it. It just worked.

Gardens are such a fun and beautiful place for portraits...

In and Around the Lake

For Labor Day our family met at Smith Mountain Lake in southwestern Virginia. Most of the shots that I took were candid "point and shoot" type images... just your typical pictures you'd take on a family vacation. Nothing super artistic... just glimpses at our fun activities on the lake.

But it's always special to see a group of young cousins get together. Time flies and special memories are created day by day. That's why these pictures will be important one day, as a trigger in their minds about carefree summer days swimming in a lake.

While no one likes the "super posed" shot, I had to force all the kiddies together on the dock. Perhaps a tradition will be born and we can repeat this next year.

The cousins together on the dock.

My little two year old niece was a bit shy around me and didn't appreciate my following her around with a camera. I tried. But this image was as close to a smile as I got from her, and for some reason, I really liked the shot. Her expression says to me: "I'm thinking about smiling, but won't give you the full deal. I'm smarter than that."

 I loved this image of these two brothers smiling at their dad as he jumped into the lake. They soon followed him in.

 My favorite shot (from an artistic point of view) was my daughter jumping in the water first thing in the morning. She was just a silhouette, but this was a simple joy... to leap through the air and plunge into the cool water below. They must have done this a million times over three days.

The favorite activity of the weekend.

Hope everyone had a chance this holiday weekend to create great memories with family and friends.

First Project... Life's a Beach

Drove down to the beach last night with a fabulous family to try to capture some nice shots. It really was a beautiful afternoon giving way to evening. The lighting was perfect and a good setting.

I haven't had much of an opportunity to photograph these four kids together... and I have to say it was more of a challenge than I anticipated. The ages between the kiddos spans five to sixteen. It was kind of an interesting dilemma to try to get the older kids (who feel awkward posing in sentimentally sweet stances) to mesh with a very busy five year old who thought my shutterbugging was an infinite nuisance.

I realize the set of challenges those portrait studio people face as they stand there squeezing their rubber duckies, trying to make the kids look their way for a split second.

I didn't have a rubber duckie.

So I just did what I could and played around.

I found the best tactic to utilize with the busy little man is to just let him do his thing. He wanted to jump off the sand dunes. He wanted to run in the ocean. He did not want to look into a camera lens. I just followed him around and tried to catch those moments of lovin' the beach.

And he loves his big brother. Of the scenes that I tried to photograph within that hour, for some reason these were the easiest... the two boys playing in the surf...

And this was my favorite shot of the set:

I loved it because I asked the older brother if he could lift little brother up in the air... and the little one screamed "NO!" and he meant it. So it seemed like a lost cause, but they went ahead and tried... and note the look on the little one's face. Despite his protests, he loved it. And that's why I love it too.

Wow. These kids are growing up. Hate to be nostalgic here, but I've known these kids for 14 years, and remember this "little" one coming over to my house dressed in a superman cape, cowboy boots and a diaper.

He's practically a man now. When did this happen?

And these beautiful sisters... time may be marching on but when I look at their expressions in this photo I see the same little girls I've always known.

I took 102 shots in an hour, including the entire family and am only posting a small sampling here. I think with every "session" I do, I need to take note of what I learned. Yesterday I just walked out of there with no specific plan, just thought I'd "feel it" and see what happens. That's probably okay if you're working with one person, but not six. Have a plan, have some shots in mind. Some days the creative juices will be flowing, and some days it just won't be there.

I need to just keep snapping away, especially the moments between the poses. My favorites from this set were the unplanned ones. The PLAN was to have all the kids hold hands and jump off a sand dune. While the jump shot was cute, I loved the BEFORE shot... the one when they're laughing at how ridiculous they feel holding hands:

And of course with the little ones... it isn't worth it to push. They want to do what they want to do. I'd rather catch them running away from the camera and laughing than looking at the camera scowling. It's all good.

Teenagers... I'll never figure them out as long as I live, so just roll with it. Actually, these kids were awesome. Very few eye rolls. Guess they know me by now and accept my weirdness.

So my first session since "Picture the Cure"s inception is in the books. I liked the challenge of it. If nothing else, I hope the family will enjoy some of the shots. I saw a lot of smiles, even if they were as a result of feeling silly. I take what I can!