"M" Family Maternity Portraits

I LOVE LOVE LOVE shooting maternity portraits! I adore the glow the mom-to-be has, and the anticipation on dad's face. I love the connection between the two and the inevitable kiss ;) I also love the interactions with the older sibling(s).

This shoot was no different! Both mom and dad were so excited, and big sis was bouncing off the walls! (Whether due to excitement or the fact that she is 2 is debatable, LOL!) But it was so very fun to shoot this sweet, adorable family! I was honored and thrilled when mom-to-be "J" called asking me to do the shoot- we go way back & recently reconnected on facebook! I've known J since high school and have so many fun memories of field trips, orchestra trips, and her great sense of humor; she would always crack me up! So it was no surprise to see that come through on camera! Hope you see some of it, too! 


I must announce this, too! The precious baby boy inside her belly was born yesterday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY B!

J, J & I, here is your preview! (a bit late now, *blush*) But I hope you like what you see so far! It was so fun shooting these with you three, thank you for allowing me to photograph you beautiful growing family!!

My Inspirations

There they are. My inspirations. R, K, and C. 

One of my goals as I study photography and grow in my new chosen career is to take beautiful portraits of my own kids. So this was one of my first attempts in April. As I learn more, I will try again and again and hopefully, each one will be better than the last. They are the reason I started this venture to begin with! 


My heart was broken over and over again when I would take them as infants to have their portraits made and the photographer would either limit how many "shots" I could keep or how many poses I could order, and they would not let me keep the rest of the pictures they took of MY KIDS! I could not comprehend why I couldn't just have a CD of all the images. Of course, I knew about copyright and their need to make money, after all, it is business and they need to feed their family. But why couldn't a compromise be made? Something that benefited everyone?


This is what got me started thinking about starting my own portrait business. However, I was going to do it differently. Somehow I would find a way to give parents the CD of their entire shoot, and still be compensated for my time and effort. 


Then I found out that my friend from high school became a photographer. Not only is she a successful wedding and family photographer, but included in her pricing is a CD she gives to her clients of all their images and her photography business is flourishing!!! 

That was the day I started this venture. With her help as well as several other photographers in my area (Marietta / Kennesaw / Acworth, Georgia) and online, I am on my way to having my own photography business! I have a ways to go, but one day I will take a portrait of my kids that makes their mom cry. That will be the day I know I've made it ;) Oh, I'll never stop learning! But that day will be a special one in this lifelong journey of learning photography.

Baby Portraits Through New Eyes

I am always so honored and thrilled when I get invited into a family's home to take pictures of their precious children! It has been such an exciting time learning, practicing and building my portfolio! This was no exception!

I met this precious family at McDonald's a few weeks ago, and then we realized we attend the same church! Small world! They were so patient and kind with me while I figured out how to capture the best light, and I am so grateful! I left their house a bit concerned that I did not get many good shots. But again, just like my last maternity portrait session, after reviewing them later at home it was like I was seeing them with new eyes. Not perfect and much room for improvement, but better then I thought with my critical mind's eye. So I think the key for me is going to be allowing myself to see them with new eyes a little after the shoot.

New Eyes. It seems that's what I have now. I hate to interject this painful personal insight into such a happy photography experience, but it was so healing that I feel the need to share... It started with a comment my Aunt Renee said to me last week, that through all I've learned since my miscarriage, it's like God has given me New Eyes with which to photograph babies now. Now I see it's so true! Every little detail stands out to me so much more now, and this passion inside me burns deeply to try to capture their innocence, joy and love.

I hope I did that with this adorable baby. Baby B was wide awake and quite content! I love his cheeks and his bright eyes and.... well all of him!! I'm sure you will too!

S an K - hope you enjoy your preview, I loved every minute of shooting and editing these portraits for you! Thank you again for the opportunity to do these!  :D

A Sad Birthday

Today is my due date. Or, it would have been my due date if I had carried to term. And it is hitting me harder than I thought it would.


This is an unexpected turn of events for me. I thought I had dealt with the pain, and received a beautiful gift of peace and assurance.  
Coping with miscarriage is never easy, but I believe I grew closer to my God and family through it. Then I thought I was done. Finished with the grief, at peace with the loss and ready to move on.

But the date June 19, 2010 loomed ahead, yet I was sure I would remain un-phased.


Now, here it is and I am feeling surprisingly shaky. I still know my baby Camryn is with God, waiting to be joined by the rest of us when our time comes. I know we will meet one day. I know it is not my fault. And I know there is nothing I could have done to prevent it. My head knows all of this. Still, my heart yearns for my baby.


I don't know why  I am writing about this. It is awful and painful and yucky. Still, I felt the need to share it with you. Maybe one day a hurting mother-to-have-been will stumble across it and find hope in the grief. It is a process, I am learning. One that we have to go through or we will never heal. It is OK to grieve.  Actually, it is healthier to grieve. But do so with hope.


Also, I really needed to acknowledge to the world that I have a baby in heaven, and that baby hasn't been forgotten. Though we miss having her here with us physically, the rest of the world has forgotten we had a 4th because they can't see her amongst our other children. But I always will. Especially on June 19th. So, today we will celebrate the brief time we got to share with her, and focus on the hope we have that we will meet her one day.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Baby Camryn!!! We Love You 

and can't wait to meet you.

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.

.

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Cutting Grass and Conquering Fears

My youngest son, KT, loves to help. His favorite thing to help with is cutting the grass. One of the first phrases he said when he started talking was "Pawpaw cut grass?" He would say it as soon as he saw Pawpaw put on his straw hat... his grass-cutting hat! Then he would run and get his little lawn mower to help. He has continued this fascination now for almost 2 years!

So I was really excited when he sat still enough for me to shoot this picture! It truly captures a memorable moment. This is a shot I got one day when he was "taking a break" from helping Pawpaw. I loved how he was just looking out at the overgrown grass in the backyard. What was running through his little mind? He got quiet & pensive and just stared!  (Which if you know KT you know is RARE! The boy is hardly ever still!) But we attribute that to his passion. The boy is incredibly passionate, and he has no fear! He actually inspires me to act more on my passions.

For example, photography has long been a passion of mine, but fear has kept me from pursuing it. Fear also kept me from trying out for my high school musical and the school of music in college, but yay! Here I am years later finally pursuing a passion. Better late then never, huh?!  Yet, even now fear threatens to stop me: I had my first maternity portraits shoot this past Tuesday and boy was I ever nervous. My friend who was modeling was so patient and encouraging though so I was able to make it through the shoot. However, when I got home and viewed the pictures, I was disappointed in myself and the results I got.  They just didn't look how I pictured them in my head. I found myself thinking that maybe I should just stick to photographing my own kids and ditch this whole becoming-a-photographer thing.

But something has changed inside me... I want to keep going! A large part of that is the incredible amount of encouragement I am receiving from my sweet hubby and several great friends (one of whom IS a photographer!!). Another reason is that I see the whole world before my kids and I truly believe they can do anything God calls them to do, and would be heartbroken if they let fear stand in their way.  But how can I encourage them to conquer their fears & pursue their God-given passions if I don't do the same? So here I go... pushing through the fear. Soon you will see some of those maternity shots. I promise ; )

Time in a Bottle

When I was a little girl, my mom and I had two songs we called "our songs."  One of them was "You've Got A Friend" by James Taylor and the other was "Time In A Bottle" by Jim Croce. To this day when I hear those songs I get swept away to those moments in time. 

There are two vivid memories that stand out to me regarding these songs; these are the ones that especially come flooding back upon the first few notes of either song:

The first was right after we moved and I started a new school for 1st grade. I felt so alone and scared; I was painfully shy. It was recess and I remember sitting on top of the monkey bars alone, crying and singing the words to "You've Got A Friend" to myself, willing my mami to hear them and come rescue me:

"When your down and troubled
And you need a helping hand
And nothing, whoa nothing is going right.
Close your eyes and think of me
And soon I will be there
To brighten up even your darkest nights.
You just call out my name,
And you know wherever I am
I'll come running, oh yeah baby
To see you again...."

This song reminded me that she wanted to rescue me, even when I knew she couldn't. Just remembering that would make me feel better.

The other memory is when I was trying on her clothes and modeling them around the house, she got tears in her eyes and said
"if only I could save time in a bottle," and started singing that song to me:

"If I could save time in a bottle       
The first thing that Id like to do       
Is to save every day       
Till eternity passes away       
Just to spend them with you..."       

       Of course, when you're little you take everything literally, so I asked her what she meant by "saving time in a bottle" and how can someone possibly do that? If she could tell me how, I'd do it for her since she wanted it so bad!

Oh if I only knew how quickly time would pass, and what she meant by that. Now I find myself saying the same thing to my three little ones, and wishing I could find a way to keep time in a bottle. Maybe that's why I love photography so much, it is a way to freeze time and keep it forever. I try to take mental "snapshots" every day of those fleeting moments, but am always so thrilled when I capture them on film. This is what drives me, and why has become one of my biggest passions. But I know I owe it to my mom for making so very aware that nothing lasts forever. I think most kids (& grown-ups!) don't understand that until it is too late.

So Mami, thank you for teaching me to savor the little moments, even when I didn't understand.
HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!!!! I LOVE YOU!!!

And to all my mommy friends... remember everything your child does is a phase- the good ones and the not-so-good ones too- and they will (all too soon) pass, so try not to rush any of them. Focus on moments: just get through the tough ones and look forward to that inevitable yet fleeting next good one, and when it arrives, freeze it.
Then, save that moment in time in a bottle. ♥

(or a frame, LOL!)