The Way I View...Playtime│Sacramento Children's Photographer

In just two short days my oldest will begin First Grade and summer will officially be over.  It's bittersweet, but we have had such a fun, memory-packed summer that I suppose I'm ready to get back into the routine of school and Fall festivities.  It's time for the monthly challenge with my Clickin Moms ladies so I captured my kiddos enjoying a combination of sprinkler and chalk fun in our backyard.  Despite the vivid colors of "paint" created by mixing the chalk and water, I decided to go with a more timeless black and white processing on these and really like how they turned out.

Don't forget to click on through to see how Gretchen views "playtime"!

The Way I View...Playtime:

The Way I View...Summertime│Sacramento Children's Photographer

Another month down and summer is almost to a close!  I can't believe how jam packed and fun-filled our summer has been, truly one of the best summers ever I think.  For this month our theme was "Summertime" and the way I view summertime can be summed up in just one word: ADVENTURE!


Summer gives us the opportunity to find, create and enjoy adventure with every turn of our head.  Whether it be forts with blankets and chairs, a mud pit in the backyard, or catching bugs... the adventure and joy is limited only by our imagination.  This is especially true when at the beach.

Don't forget to click over and see how Celeste views "Summertime".

Oh and summertime is most definitely Old Navy patriotic shirt time!

The Way I View...Fatherhood│Sacramento Family Photographer

The Way I View....Fatherhood.  These images are all from our recent family vacation - I loved capturing these moments between the kids and my husband.

Head on over to Celeste's blog to see how she views fatherhood.

These next two images include my own father as well (in the kayak on the right):

Hiking in Mariposa Grove amongst the Giant Sequoia trees

A little pool time fun... 

**It may look like this father favors his daughter, but it was more that our son didn't care to be in ANY pictures on this trip** :)

The Way I View...Motherhood│Sacramento Family Photographer

The Way I View...Motherhood

This hand laid gently on her belly caressing the wonderment of life within.

One of these fingers softly brushed hair from my forehead as I slept dreaming of this beautiful world.

Sturdy and assuring, I held onto these fingers as I took my first steps. 

Refreshingly cool, this hand helped heal my fevers and calm my fears as it held me tight after a scary dream.

It's warmth comforted me with a cup of hot cocoa after a cold and long ski run or hot chowder on a rainy day.

It packed sweet little notes in my lunchpail and left encouraging notes in my desk after school open house.

It scrubbed grass stains from my jerseys and weathered many days and nights of clapping through games and recitals.

It turned off the light when I fell asleep reading in bed and wiped my tears when my heart felt slightly broken.

It disciplined me when my mouth and attitude got out of line and hugged me when I made good choices we could both be proud of.

These fingers taught me to type and do my best in all I do.

This ring taught me commitment and that the best things are worth all of the hard work.

This hand drove hundreds (thousands) of miles providing me opportunities for adventure and hope for my future.

It helped me pack and unpack as I began living on my own and helped me navigate the stresses of college, work and friendships via heartfelt emails.

It zipped up my wedding dress and made sure my veil was straight.

Strong and ever ready, it helped us move into our first home.

Loving and gentle, it helped me grieve the loss of our first child.

Eager to keep busy it sewed pillows for our living room, drapes for our kitchen and helped in making numerous other projects.

It cupped over her mouth in excitement when we told her she would become a grandma.  Then endured the LONG delivery of her first grandchild and hasn't stopped trying to care and love on her grandbabies as much as possible ever since!

This hand has changed countless diapers, wiped up pukie messes and gently rubbed weary backs while rocking and singing her songs.

It has worked in classrooms, driven for field trips and done anything else that has ever been needed or asked of it without complaint.

After 70 years on this earth, this hand has done so much for others, expected little in return and continues to keep giving and doing as much as possible.

Yet what I love most about this hand is the indescribable comfort, strength, encouragement and love I receive from just one touch of it.  I love that even as an adult I love just holding onto it while walking through the mall or sitting on the couch watching a movie or talking.  I appreciate that it is always there when I need it and even when I don't, it's there cheering me on.  This hand and the love that it is filled with is motherhood.  I am so blessed to have this image of my mother's hand over mine and the feelings of love and comfort that I feel when I'm with her and will always feel when I see this image.
  

 
Please click over to see Celeste's exciting accomplishment and view on Motherhood.

The Way I View...Friendship│Sacramento Children's Photographer

My year-long photography project with other Clickinmoms photographers has been so inspiring each month.  I've loved seeing the different perspectives each photographer takes with the theme and the beauty they create in their images.  This month's theme is "Friendship" and I loved these images for exemplifying Springtime friendship fun.  If you adore your sister you won't want to miss Laura Ackerson's "Friendship" post HERE!

Boys + Popsicles + Secrets = FRIENDSHIP

The Way I View...Happiness│Sacramento Children's Photographer

My year long project of documenting images monthly related to describing the way I view something has been a wonderful journey so far.  Here in month three the theme is "The Way I View...happiness".  Be sure to click over and see how Tarrah NeCole Photography views happiness, then continue on through the circle of photographers for a wonderful way to start your day!

hap·pi·ness

noun 1.  the quality or state of being happy.   2.  good fortune; pleasure; contentment; joy.

What is happiness to YOU?  The number of things that make me happy are too numerous to count, so I thought I would just list off a few for you...

Jumping in Mud Puddles

 

Blowing out candles with Grandma on her 90th birthday

An organized bookshelf with a few empty spaces

Leukemia in remission

Sneaking a lick of the spoon

Worshiping Jesus with childlike abandon

Hunting for Easter eggs

And most certainly...my children being sweet to one another!

The Way I View...│Sacramento Family Photographer

It's hard to believe a month has passed already and here we are in March ready to share the February round of "The Way I View..." with 12 other amazing photographers I've met through Clickinmoms. Don't forget to click over and see Breanna Peterson's point of view and continue clicking through to see all 12 photographer's views for the month.

February's theme? Sweetness and love.

As I thought of what I wanted to photograph to express this theme I was left with many different ideas, but not a lot of time left in the month to execute them.  Then as I was reviewing my February images there were a few that jumped out at me right away as perfectly fitting for expressing how I view sweetness and love.

First off were these two images of my 3 1/2 yo daughter at her first day of dance class with her older and much adored cousin.  These two girls could not love each other more and my heart always flutters when they see each other, be it only a day or hour since they've been apart, and tightly embrace with the innocent and all encompassing love only a child could express for another.

The other two images that stood out to me were of my son and his kindergarten teacher when she came for a home visit.  We received a letter stating the kindergarten teachers were available for home visits on a voluntary basis, a program that exists in hopes of fostering more open communication between parents and teachers.  We felt comfortable with the amazing Mrs. Randazzo already, but knew Myles would be beyond excited to have her come for a visit and we were right!

At the end of a very difficult day where we found out Myles' teacher's long-time teaching partner and friend had terminal stomach cancer, Mrs. Randazzo still gave of herself and came to our home visit.  For an hour and a half she delighted Myles letting him be her tour director and entertainer, letting her overwhelming love for children and teaching flow out and make our little boy's day!  Maybe even his year!  This joyful experience for him, during a tragic day for her seems the epitome of sweetness and love.

The Way I View...│Sacramento Family Photographer

Each January my heart fills with the hope.  A new year.  A new beginning.  My mind fills with thoughtful goals and projects I hope to complete. 

One of these projects I'm excited to be a part of is "The Way I View...", a 12-month project with 11 other wonderful photographers from Clickinmoms  documenting an image or series of images that describe the way we view things.  Each month we will have a different theme to photograph and post at the beginning of the next month.

January's theme?  The way I view...new beginnings.

The world is filled with many new beginnings...the tiny bloom of a bud, the cry of a newborn babe, the joy of a newly engaged couple...I could go on.  However today I share the new beginnings in our home, a home newly devoid of baby gear, not a crib or bottle in sight.  We've gone from baby nurseries to big kid rooms for our 5 yo son and 3 yo daughter.  We've said goodbye to the baby and toddler phases and are in the beginning of the adventurous preschooler and school age phases.

 

Now please head on over to Gretchen Willis Photography's wonderful view of New Beginnings and leave her some love!

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Four Things Your Photographer IS and Four Things They're NOT

While browsing my favorite photography forum, Clickin' Moms (click on the link at the bottom of the blog to check it out), I saw this post by Alana Hawker of Rare Photography and thought I would share it here (with her permission of course)!

Four Things Your Photographer IS and Four Things They’re NOT

After spending countless hours, days, weeks and months perusing photographer forums I’ve come to the conclusion that there are 4 things your average family photographer IS and 4 things they are NOT.

4 Things Your Photographer IS…

1. A Parent

Every single family photographer I know is a parent. This means we are used to the hissy fits, the tragic meltdowns and the oil-to-water like aversion your toddler has to the camera. Every time I get an uncooperative toddler the parents apologize profusely for their behavior. Don’t sweat it! It makes me feel better that my kids aren’t the only ones that think standing still for 3 seconds is akin to getting your limbs ripped off. One simple apology will do just fine.

2. Patient

Sometimes it takes 10 minutes of running around, dancing like a fool, making silly noises, and talking about crazy monkeys just to get ONE good shot. Don’t bother demanding your child to sit and smile because as I’m sure every parent knows, the harder you push a toddler, the harder they push back. And an irritated toddler doesn’t give good smiles!

3. Busy

Taking pictures isn’t the only part of our job. Sometimes it’s not our only job at all! Please please please (yes, I’m on my knees begging!) be on time to your shoot. If you aren’t going to be on time, at least give us a call and give us your ETA. We may have clients lined up right after you, we may only have a babysitter for a certain amount of time. Whatever the case may be, it’s just plain good manners to let us know if you’re going to be late. Barring a true, provable emergency, if you don’t bother showing up, don’t expect your deposit back. Just because we didn’t shoot pictures doesn’t mean we didn’t spend time preparing for your shoot by gathering props, creating a pose list tailored to your shoot, checking the weather and lighting, etc.

4. An Artist

Photography is an art, just like painting. Each photographer has their own style. If you don’t like what you see on their website, that photographer is not a good fit for you. People who like Picasso like his style. He is unique. Every photographer has their own unique style as well. You should hire your own Picasso. Don’t hire any old photographer and request they change their style to what you want. Most photographers have spent years perfecting their style. Asking them to change it is not only insulting but also doesn’t give them the necessary years of practice and will likely result in images not nearly as pleasing as you expect. Also, our status of being artists entitles us to be a little kooky and eccentric. It’s the fun part of our job description.

4 Things Your Photographer is NOT…

1. Walmart

As much as we’d LOVE (I think love isn’t quite strong enough a word) to be grossing $405.6 billion per year, we aren’t. Heck, I’d love to gross $405.6 thousand per year! But alas, we are all small businesses. We don’t have the sales necessary to offer $5 portrait sheets. We also don’t utilize cheap ink or poor quality paper just to keep costs down. We charge what we need to to not only keep our business afloat, but also food on our table. If that’s outside of your budget, that’s perfectly fine. Most photographers fall into the “starving artist” category and can’t afford to book themselves, so it’s not going to offend us if you can’t afford us. It WILL offend us however, if you request us to price match someone else. Our price point is unique because our business is unique. Nobody but nobody is going to have the EXACT SAME costs as anyone else. Please understand that 99% of us aren’t priced to be making $100,000 per year, we’re priced to afford preschool for our kids, shoes for our feet and food for our bellies. If you want Walmart prices, go to Walmart! Just don’t expect personal photographer quality for Walmart prices, and visa versa.
As a subnote to this, we’re also not able to give things away for free no matter who you are. Asking us as your friend to “take a few shots of the party/event since you’re here” would be like asking your dentist friend to “examine the teeth of all the guests for free since you’re here”. It’s not okay to ask that. If we want to take a few pictures, we will. If we want to send you the pix we take, we will. Unless you’re willing to pay our regular rate, please don’t ask us to take “just a few pictures”. You may get lucky and have a friend with a special friends and family rate, but remember, you wouldn’t do your job for free, please don’t expect us to do ours for free.

2.  A Plastic Surgeon

Photoshop is an AMAZING tool! Unfortunately, it doesn’t substitute for a scalpel. We can easily hide zits, conceal under-eye bags and sometimes even shave off a few pounds here and there. We cannot turn a new-mommy-body into Gisele Bundchen’s body with a few key strokes. (And if we could, we’d be in Hollywood making the aforementioned billions!) Moms are expected to have normal size 14-ish bodies, complete with a little pooch belly, and sometime, yes, even the feared double chin. If you can’t love yourself the way you are, perhaps getting giant paper printouts of what you look like in all your natural glory isn’t the right thing for you right now.

3.  A Magician

We can, in some ways, be thought of as magicians. We can take your memories, your precious children and photograph them in such a way that you will treasure their portraits, the captured moment, forever. But we cannot wave a magic wand and make your sugar-buzzing 3 year old sit still, brush their hair and smile like a Gerber baby. You are paying us for our time and our artistic talent. If someone (who may or may not even be of toddler age *cough* DAD, I’m talking to you!) doesn’t want to cooperate, we can only try so hard. You (in most cases) are not obligated to buy prints if you don’t like them, but please don’t expect to be refunded for the session fee if pictures didn’t turn out to your liking through no fault of our own. Please remember, we were out there, trying as hard as possible to get great pictures for you. We deserve to be compensated for our time. Depending on the situation you may even be offered a free or discounted re-shoot, but don’t expect anything. Sometimes the child is a lost cause and will refuse to be photographed no matter what the situation. That doesn’t say anything to your parenting or how good your child is, that just says your toddler is normal. Toddlers are miniature control freaks and if they don’t want something to happen, it wont be happening no matter the bribe!
We also aren’t mind readers. If there’s a certain something you do or don’t want, please tell us! Nicely.

4. A Robot

We are human. We feel overjoyed when we have a great shoot and we feel devastated when we have a terrible one. There is no need to treat us like anything other than living, breathing humans. We make mistakes sometimes. We don’t deserve to be berated or ridiculed because we didn’t get the shots you hoped for. When we get a shot you love, tell us! Share your joy! And for the love of pete, BE POLITE! Please and thank you go a loooooong way. I know several photographers that give free gifts and prints to clients that treat them like human friends instead of contracted camera slaves. Besides, it’s just good manners.
Despite all of the fun little intricacies people rarely consider, I still see my job as one of the funnest there is, and I know most of the photographers that inspired me to write this do to. I don’t think any of us would trade it for the world. I think our goal is just to remind people that though our job is fun, it’s still a job.

Clickin' Moms 2010 Scavenger Hunt | Sacramento Family Photographer

It has been a crazy month photography-wise for me!  For fun I decided to join in the hunting for the 2010 Clickin' Moms Scavenger Hunt and I've been searching high and low for hundreds of items on their list!  Today is the last day and I haven't done as well as I would have liked, but I've done pretty well considering what a BUSY month this has been for our family.  Here are a couple of my favorite pictures (these were from my first day hunting):

Two People Kissing

Someone Dancing