Colin & Alexa

Legos, radio flyer wagons, jumping on the bed, and parents' promises of homemade chocolate chip cookies after the shoot... life for a kid doesn't get much better than that, does it?  ;o)

Colin and Alexa's photo session was a blast and I had so much fun with these two little firecrackers.  They were on the go for the entire session and their parents and I did all we could to keep up with them.  Colin was so excited to show me all his favorite toys and he'd crack himself up with this full-faced grin and a bubbly laugh.  His little sister Alexa just turned one and wanted to do everything her big brother did.  Her favorite activity seemed to be jumping on the bed, and she'd just bounce up and down and fall over laughing.  Such a fun morning!!

We got some great shots in their classic Radio Flyer wagon.

And Alexa was a gorgeous little model with those sparkling eyes of hers.  Love the blurred background and bokeh in this one!

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A few of my fave black & whites from our session...  Truly, some photos just beg to be in black & white!!

This was the family's first time doing a photo shoot outside of the portrait studio at the mall, and they really loved the freedom and flexibility of it.  For all those moms who are thinking about their holiday photos this year - why confine your kids to a 6x10 space where they're out of their element, tired, fussy, and uncomfortable?  And why rush yourself working around someone else's fast-paced schedule?  Portrait sessions at home are so much calmer, usually last 60-90 minutes, and really let the kids be themselves and their personalities shine through.  The photos are much more personal -- they show their real smiles and expressions, their favorite toys and pastimes, and those candid moments of playtime and interaction between siblings that you often cannot capture at an in-and-out chain store. In the end you're not just printing out photographs but creating memories that you'll look back on with a smile many years from now.  After all, isn't that the sign of a true photograph?  One that brings you back to that moment and lets you relive everything about that time?

Contact me to set up a holiday session for your family today!

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Emilee: Class of 2013

Talk about a photographer's dream!  When Emilee came to me for her senior portraits, she had a beautiful location in mind: Luciano's Lake Pearl in Wrentham.  The original day that we were scheduled to have our session, we awoke to a rainy morning and I crossed my fingers and hoped that the torrential downpours would stop by evening.  After frantically checking the weather reports every free chance I got, a few emails and hours later I realized that that was just silly as the storm relentlessly pounded the area, making for yet another rained out shoot.  (That's the chance you have to take as a natural light photographer!)  We rescheduled for a week later, and boy am I glad we did!  The conditions were perfect!  Between the combination of the perfect rays of golden hour light slanting through the trees, a gorgeous setting, and a beautiful senior who was open to all of my crazy ideas... the shoot was a dream!

These gazebo photos below showcase Emilee's true talent of keeping a poker face despite her photographer rearranging the wedding furniture that was left outside and climbing atop a rickety table to get the perfect angle for the shot in the middle!

Emilee is a vibrant senior girl with big dreams for next year.  I was thrilled to be able to capture this in her photos.  A few of my faves...

*.*.*.Laughter.*.*.*

And these whitewashed arches that I found on the beach... ooooh, but I fell in love with these arches!  Absolutely gorgeous, and only made more so with Emilee posing in the arches!

One of the best parts of the shoot?  When I spotted the pier in the above photo, I looked at Emilee to see if she'd be okay with hopping the fence and climbing out into the water.  She was all up for our little conspiracy, and we then were able to get some great shots at sunset!

And to finish this post off... what would a session of mine be without catching some brilliant sunflares?

Congratulations, Emilee, and the Class of 2013!

Location: Luciano's Lake Pearl, Wrentham

Makeup Artist: the very talented Joana Castano

Shutter Session: Ravi

Those hot July days were good for one thing -- some fun-filled photo shoots with friends!  Last week I got to photograph my friend's son Ravi. He just turned one, and he is the most adorable little boy ever with these huge dark eyes that just make you melt when you look at him.

He's a very independent, spunky little guy who's sure on his feet but is always looking around to make sure his mama is right behind him.  I love these black and whites of Ravi, especially the second and third that show him with his mom.

He was a blast to photograph and we definitely had a lot of laughs -- and outfit changes! -- during his photo shoot. Ravi is one of those kids who will have a million toys and will manage to play with each and every one of them at the same time.  His mom's been talking about the "path of destruction" he leaves in his wake.  Always being on the go, I can see how that might happen!  Here, a few adorable shots of this little guy.  Note how DIFFERENT they all look -- that on-the-go nature of his really made that possible.

At one point, somewhere between the kiddie pool and the jungle gym, we busted out the colored bubbles.  Have you seen these yet?  Crayola makes them, and they put all these warnings on the bottle about wearing play clothes and not using them at weddings.  (I keep imagining the poor bride that didn't read the directions.)  They are messy -- WARNING! Only do this with friends' kids  :o) -- but they are so much fun in photographs.  Ravi was more interested in chewing on the wand than playing with the purple bubbles, so his mom decide to shake things up and cover him with the purple liquid instead.  From there, EVERYTHING was purple.  A little bit messy, but a lot of fun!

Mr. Independent.

I absolutely love the soft, hazy sunlight in the two photos below.  Plus, the expressions on his face in each one are so unique!  Above he looks a bit mischievous, and below he's just happy and bubbly, lost in his own little world while sitting in a pool of sunshine.

Ravi was such a joy to photograph.  Already looking forward to our next session this month!

Shutters & Steering Wheels

Given that a car crash was part of the reason that finally prompted the purchase of my fancy DSLR camera 1 1/2 years ago (more on that later!), there must be a few good reasons about why it's not such a good idea to wield said bulky camera behind the steering wheel.... whatever those reasons are, I certainly didn't find them today!  Behold, the car pictures....

I spent the weekend down the Cape, and while driving back I got stuck in traffic on a two lane road.  With a glimpse of a field of purple flowers to my left, I slammed the brakes, turned around, and got out with my flashers blinking to photograph it.  I thought it might have been the Cape Cod Lavender Farm, which I just found out about and am dying to go to and photograph.... instead, it was the front lawn of a private property.  Still gorgeous:

And a close-up:

Well, those couple of pictures led to the end of the end for me.... after all, what's a girl supposed to do while stuck in traffic at sunset?

Above: I got a bokeh in my shot! If you don't know what a bokeh is, click the link.  Bokeh is my latest photography obsession.

(Oh, but of course I managed to catch a sunburst while balancing my camera on the steering wheel in traffic!)

Seriously, there must be a number of logistical reasons of why this is dangerous.  And after this blog post, there may even be a new law going into action about hands-free cameras. Case-in-point, the bridge that I definitely shot a little off center/out of range with my aim:

Despite steering wheel mishaps, that camera will still be in the front seat with me.  So in the meantime, keep those beautiful Cape Cod sunsets coming, and I will find ways to capture them (even if I am stuck in a car in end-of-weekend traffic!)

Shutter Session: Emma and Lila

Last weekend I was lucky enough to spend a Sunday morning with two charming little girls, collecting flowers and blowing dandelion seeds all over the grass.  Emma was a little hesitant at first, but quickly warmed up to me with a couple of pirouettes and plies from her dance class.  By the end, she was even singing her favorite songs from the radio.  Her little sister was all about the camera, running around and stopping long enough to show me a pose.  The most fun part was catching her in action, though! Their session turned out wonderfully.  I have a new-found appreciation for dandelions, and I thought that this was the perfect example to use for a storyboard...

I loved catching the little details in these sisters...

*Their sparkly shoes...

*The catchlights in their beautiful eyes...

*Their sweet interactions, sister dances, and hand-holding.

*Each girl's independence.

Lila forged her own path across the park while her big sister acted as my assistant and told us where we should go for the next picture!  Emma was such a talkative little girl and she loved helping me, telling me all about school, and taking in everything around her.  Unfortunately we couldn't fulfill her request of taking pictures next to the lion's den so it'd look like she were getting eaten!

Here, one of Emma's photo locations.  A gorgeous bench shot of the two girls.

Some more dandelion fun.  Lila wanted to do everything that her big sister did!  I love the sunlight in this photo.

And finally, two of my favorite images from the day's session.  Really, how can that last one NOT make you smile?  :o)

Brighter Than the Sun

"This is how it starts, lightning strikes the heart.It goes off like a gun, brighter than the sun. We could be the stars, falling from the sky, Shining how we want, brighter than the sun."

~Colbie Caillat

Sunbursts.  Sunbeams.  A glimmer.  Rays of sunshine.  Golden light.  A sparkle and a twinkle.  Sun flare.  The clouds part above as the angels sing...  Call it what you want, but it is oh-so-beautiful.  Ever since I first figured out how to capture that on my camera, it's kind of been an obsession of mine.  Quite a few people have told me, "Oh, you can avoid that by using a lens hood."  Oh yes, I certainly have one of those. And oh no, I rarely use it.  I prefer to tilt my lens just so, knowing that I'll have a better chance of getting those twinkling rays to grace my photographs.

And here, for your viewing pleasure, are a few of my favorites.

*My first ever sunburst photo, taken on the Charles River by my home.

*Cape Cod.  A Yarmouth beach at sunset.

*Barcelona, Spain.

*An all-time favorite, and one that has made it to my walls.... Check out that sun flare!  Il Colosseo, Roma.

*The sunlight gave this photo taken in a plaza in Salamanca, Spain a very warm feeling to it...

*And finally, those gorgeous beams hitting an ancient stone entryway in Taormina, Italy.

So really, call it what you want, but there's no denying that those sunbeams are the most amazing thing to "catch" in  your photographs.  Hoping to capture a few in my upcoming sessions.... yet another reason to keep my fingers crossed for some more sunny days!

Shutter Session: Holden

Last weekend I got to spend an afternoon with little Holden at Capron Park in Attleboro.  He was such a calm, content little boy who was just starting to maneuver his first steps, skipping completely over the crawling stage!  This independent little boy didn't want to sit for a second, just stand... so stand he did! His photos turned out angelic with those dreamy blue eyes of his.  I love how I caught the perfect sunbeam in a few of them.... as you'll start to see on this blog, I kind of have a thing for capturing sunbursts and sunbeams in my photography!  I'm always searching for ways to get those sunbeams to appear in my photos.

I discovered one of the most amazing prop finds ever as I was driving to the location.  There was this beautiful, stark white wrought iron "H" at the entrance of the park.  Perfect for Holden!  We did a series of shots with this spunky 8-month old at the H.  Here are a few...

And finally,one of my favorites showcasing those stunning eyes.  Love the catchlights in this photo!

Plus, who doesn't love a toothy grin?

It was a fantastic session with a smiley little boy.  He loved the "click" of the shutter and would gaze intently into the lens every time he heard the click.  Such a cutie!