Lauren's Communion Portraits

Eleven years ago, I photographed an awesome couple (Heather and Craig) as they became husband and wife. One of my favorite photos of their day is this sweet moment between the bride and her flower girl. 

The couple and I periodically kept in touch as I photographed other events in their family. Fast forward to this week, when I had the pleasure of shooting their little girl's communion portraits. I was so touched they asked me to do so. On top of that, notice the tiara their daughter Lauren is wearing. This session was so sweet on so many levels. Here are Lauren's communion portraits.

Lucky for me, communion season and cherry blossom season coincide nicely and makes a stunning backdrop.

I like to blur the background to give a soft look for these images.

 Centered and pretty.

 Another heavy blur of the grassy background to make my subject really pop.

 I like to give a variety of poses.

 Let's not forget the pretty details.

 A little off center to add a more modern flair to this traditional event.

 I think this is a favorite composition for communion girls.

 Lauren was so well behaved and cooperative....I was able to achieve a wide range of looks.

 I think this is a close second to my favorite shot of the day. Spring is just awesome.

 Gotta love this sweet moment with little bro. You can tell they have a nice relationship.

 Although I prefer the previous image, I do get them looking at the camera as well.

 He was such a ham....beyond adorable in this suit!

 Trying to get something a little more serious here. The sun was harsh but I angled her to avoid shadows on her face while still illuminating the veil.

 Who doesn't love a little girl skipping down a row of cherry blossom trees in a poofy white dress?

 It was a chilly day and Lauren was trying to keep herself warm with her veil....I clicked and really like this shot!

 A super wide fish eye lens really capture the environment.

 Hands down my favorite of the day. Traditional with a modern twist.

I hope you all enjoy these photos and have a wonderful Communion Day!

Family Portraits

"It would be great to hire a photographer for some photos" is what this family had in mind when planning to get all dolled up for their eldest daughter's confirmation day. When your child turns 1, it's easy to think, "Hey, let me get some nice pictures." Photo priorities seem to fade as children get older but isn't it all really important? I'm so glad I was asked to take some professional snapshots of this family at this time in their family journey.

Here they are all dressed up.

 I like the more carefree feel to this image (and I love the hairlight on the girls!)

For those that may not know, a confirmation sponsor is a person selected by the young person to be their spiritual guide, so I wanted to get more personal/close-up for this image.

 I like that the girls are not looking at the camera here.

I always do some traditional shots, too.

 Straight on nice shot of a very lovely young lady.

 I like the use of blank space and the angle at which she is looking at the camera.

 I wanted to capture the garments in a unique way. I love the look on her face, too.

Traditional shot at another angle. I make sure the background is super blurred so that the subject really pops.

 I saw this fence and knew I wanted to use its texture for these teen portraits.

The sun was nice and low in the sky and provided yet another flattering hair light. Add a tilt to the camera and shoot when she looks directly into my lens.

 Cookie was very cooperative so of course we had to do this photo!

I like this "let's look through the peephole" for group shots. Adds a fun element for this family that gathered together for the special occasion.

I hope you enjoy these images....thank you so much for asking me to be your photographer!

A Mother-Daughter Session

I was thrilled to do this session for lovely Rachael and her mom Betty. We often think of family photography as documenting young children, but as the relationship matures, it, too, is a treasure to capture.

It was Betty's birthday and she came into town to spend it with Rachael. I was glad they carved out a bit of time to get these images. And it really didn't take very long!

To say that I enjoyed this session is an understatement. We had a lovely exchange on email before even meeting in person, where I learned about their personalities and relationship, making the session go that much more smoothly. These two were so wonderful - as you can see, they were like two giggling schoolgirls! The photos speak for themselves.

 Capturing the exchanges between these two was so easy.

 So natural and pretty.

 Shooting from above to ensure I get those catchlights in their eyes.

 Went wide and off center. The body language is natural and sweet.

 Traditional shot with two different backgrounds. It's always nice to give options.

I like blurring flowers in the background for a "circle" effect and capturing the subjects slightly off center. Converted this one to black and white for a slightly dramatic effect.

 Straight on and close in with a strong eye connection to the camera.

 There I go off center again....it is my preference.

 To me, this image ever so subtly captures Betty's wisdom and Rachael's mature youthful nature.

 Rachael has a warmth about her that captured well as she looks on at her mom.

 Betty has so much personality - I was clicking away.

 I made sure we did individual shots so that Rachael and Betty can each have a portrait of the other.

 It was a little chilly so the coats were on and off in between shots, but I really like this one!

Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to photograph you both. Happy Birthday Betty!