Romance in Black and White

I have finally been able to finish this couple's engagement photos. They were taken in September! My apologies to them for the long wait. This was an especially tender photo experience for me and I will treasure its memory always.

First of all, I noticed that the groom's clothing always seems a little too big for him because he is such a bean pole! So I decided I would take this couple out for a little shopping before the appointment with my camera. We went into downtown Portland and I purchased the pants, shirt and tie that fit him like a glove. He already owned that incredible hat. The gracious tailors at Nordstrom put a rush on hemming his pants so he could wear them for the photo shoot. The bride was going to wear the dress her aunt wore when she was engaged, but she definitely needed some killer shoes to go with it, so I decided to purchase those for her. With the daylight quickly disappearing, they hurried home and changed into their clothes and we all went to the scenic Pittock Mansion.

Looking right at home in such majestic surroundings, the day couldn't have been more beautiful. As you will see from their photos, they have a tendency to get rather silly together! In fact, I had to wait many times while he teased her unmercifully to make her squeal. I have the feeling he will be making her giggle for many many years to come!

We were able to capture such great images of them. I love all of the kissing shots, especially the one where she is kissing him and his hat is coming off! I also adore all of the images of them dancing. Hopefully, I was able to capture the joy and love they have for one another.

Oh, by the way, did I mention that the groom-to-be is my precious oldest son and the beautiful bride-to-be is going to be my daughter in July? I love them both with all of my heart!

So here are "S" and "S", my darling children:

Football, Wrestling and Pooh!

Hello Everyone! I am finally here again! I have been working feverishly to get everyone's Christmas needs met, that I haven't had time to actually finish a photo experience. I am finally back on track! Woot! Woot!

This delightful family came to play in October! They have two adorable boys who are active and full of fun! The older brother is an amazing athlete! I couldn't believe how coordinated he was at 6 years old. I plan to hear big things about him. He likes all kinds of sports. Mom said that when he was younger, he was so active, she didn't know what to do. Now that he has discovered sports, he is in heaven! He and Dad spent a lot of time playing while I was working with his little brother.

Now this completely adorable little one decided to make me earn my money! He was giggling and happy until I put the camera up to my face and then he would run away! It was quite hilarious, to tell you the truth! For those of you who know me, I NEVER give up, so I just pushed up my sleeves and chased him around! The shots we got of him are even more precious because of how many we had to take! Finally, I put him on Mom's lap and he was thoroughly content to laugh for me there! Whew! We figured it out! He had this wonderful blue blanket, a stuffed Eeyore, and, of course, Mr. Pooh, himself.

As you will see, this wonderful family is full of life and love for one another and I am so lucky to have been able to take a part in creating a few memories for them.

Here is the "D" family!

Honorable Mention!

I just received notice of my placing an Honorable Mention in the One World Photo Contest! I am so excited! Here is the adorable little one who helped me win!

Stolen Giggles!

I have had the distinct pleasure of being able to document the stages of these two beautiful children from before they were born! They had their year birthday this summer and I was lucky enough to have them come back and play for Christmas photos! Mom booked early so they would have these in time for Christmas.

Little Miss has always been a little shy around me, but this time, she was all giggles! I was so tickled to capture her sweet and happy personality. Her brother has always been a little more eager to smile, but this time, he was a little more interested in the tree, the presents, the blocks and especially the running around! He kept Mom and Dad hopping! I have found through my experience that from about age 10 months to 4 years, my little clients are MOBILE! I just have to follow them around and click, click, click.

This is a wonderful family and I love having them come to visit as often as they do!

So here are little "Z" and "I", completely adorable and as always, melting my heart!

Rainy with a chance of Sun Showers!

This early fall was pretty crazy. September had more rain than I can remember. I swear, we had to reschedule this Photo Experience about 99.5 times before we got together! The weather just wouldn't cooperate. Mom thought that they might be a little cursed, but I still had hope. And then on this gray rainy day, the sun decided to peek out and dry up all the clouds. I called her and she hurriedly got her family ready and we headed out! I'm sure it was a pleasure to get everyone ready at a minute's notice, but you wouldn't know that it stressed her at all. In fact, I don't think I have ever seen her stress out about anything! She is just one of those genuinely kind and thoughtful people who immediately put you at ease. She has very lucky children!

As you can see from their photos, they are a delightful family and we all had way too much fun together! I didn't have to work too hard at getting natural smiles out of them because they were always laughing. Dad is quite the ham! The oldest son is a senior this year, so I took a few extra photos of him to commemorate this mile stone in his life! They have been wanting nice family photos for the longest time and I sure loved being able to capture how wonderful and beautiful they all are for them.

So here is the "B" family! "K", I hope this is all you hoped for!

Rain Boots, Water and lots of Giggles!

This Mommy did what I recommend to all of my clients who may have a shy or nervous child. She came to my home to meet me before the photo day. I had my petticoats out for the little sweethearts to try on while I talked with Mom. I didn't pay too much attention to the girls until I could tell they were feeling more comfortable with me. It worked like a charm! When they got to the Photo Experience, they were looking forward to playing with me.

This family was so delightful! Their twin daughters are absolutely beautiful. Daddy is going to have his hands full when they become teenagers! Stealing giggles was easy! I just had to be my goofy self and their smiles were plentiful! I love the shots of them as a family. We traipsed all over the beautiful Pinewood Gardens. The girls had brought some of their little stuffed friends and they look so sweet with them.

We donned the colorful rain gear and got down in the water to do some serious splashing! I love the shots of them together. Then we broke out the petticoats. They are simply adorable. I giggled the entire time I was working on these photos. It was just way too much fun!

Introducing the "C" Gang! Just sit back and enjoy little "A" and "A". They will be sure to delight you!

A Guitar, Some Petticoats, and a Little Kissing!

Here is a family who I got to play with this time last year! They have the most beautiful twin daughters. Well, they are one year older and so tall! It's fun to watch my little clients grow up. They picked their own outfits and I thought they did a terrific job! The bright colors made it difficult for me to post any of the black&white versions of their photos. The colors just seem to pop off my computer screen.

First of all, we did some group shots with Mom and Dad. Then I decided to torture Mom and Dad and have them kiss for me. They couldn't seem to stop laughing, so I had to include every photo of their ordeal! I guess I was a slacker last year, and didn't make them kiss because they looked at me like I was crazy. Be warned Moms and Dads out there. I like to see you kissing! I am just a sentimental romantic and think that couples should have great kissing photos of themselves at every stage of their marriage and not just the wedding day! Anyway, I think they survived it....

The girls brought their own things in the cutest little backpacks. We were able to capture some beautiful shots of them together and also individually. They were full of energy and wanted to play in the stream with rocks. I had to keep dragging them away to take their photos. Then they changed their clothes and we got some great shots of Dad with his guitar. The girls had drum sticks and noise makers. I told them to sing, and they tried their best. It was really quite pitiful actually, so, next year, I want a number rehearsed for me! We got photos of them with Dad's guitar last year, so I hope this will be an annual tradition.

The girls spread all of their favorite things around themselves on a blanket and I was able to grab some shots of that. It's fun to see what they came up with.

Next came out the petticoats. They had some adorable rain boots, and I had them traipsing up and down the stream bed. They splashed and got nice and wet. The sun was getting low in the sky and the lighting was beautiful.

Well, here is the "P" family. Little "A" and "E" are simply delightful!