Rodger Family – Everett Washington Family Photographer
Hello friends!
Meet the Rodger family! This beautiful creature is my sweet friend Melanie.
We met in person for the very first time during her family session! Melanie volunteers for the same non profit organization I do, Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep.
Melanie is the area coordinator for the Seattle area. You can click on the link to read Melanie’s story and her journey with NILMDTS.
Melanie and I had scheduled her large family photos as a family beach photography session at Longbeach in June, but due to Covid her inlaws were unable to make the trip to the Coast here. And as much as we wanted to do a beach portrait session with just her little family, that weekend the coast wind was howling. We decided to postpone. It was then I realized that the following weekend I would be up in the Seattle area visiting my sister and doing other professional family portraits, so why not have her family join us!
It worked out so beautifully! The day was HOT! But by the evening the temperature had cooled off to a tolerable degree.
Melanie chose a combination of dark and rich colors, and lighter and airy colors for her family portrait photos. Perfect for an end of summer and beginning of fall feeling!
We met at my sister’s house, and walked down to the end of her road to a private open field. The lighting was perfect, peeking through the trees and giving us that warm and lovely end of summer glow, perfect for family photos.
Her little fella loved romping in the tall grass, making cheesy faces, and looking for the “butterfly” in my lens… which is the iris opening and closing. That always seems to capture the tiny humans attention.
Our session took less than an hour, and was full of giggles and fun!
Photographing families is a joy for me, especially when it is a fellow NILMDTS volunteer.
I added this image as surprise for Melanie.
Although these types of image have been around for a while now, this was the first time I had done a “shadow image”.
I felt like The Rodger Family should have a complete image as the true Family of Four that they are.
Hyacinth Maternity – Portland, OR Maternity Photographer
Hello friends! What a whirlwind 2020 has been so far, yes?
What a joy it is to bring a new life in to the world! Especially in a world where things are so crazy. A baby can be such a source of calm and joy in these uncertain times.
Meet the beautiful Hyacinth.
Isn’t she stunning?
Heidi and I went to school together! She has been one of my closest and dearest friends. I love when my photography business reconnects me with friends I have lost touch with over the years. When Heidi and I reconnected, it was like no time was lost at all. We just picked up where we last left each other, and started up again. Maybe with a few differences in between… like husbands, children, grandchildren, pets, houses… the fun things!
When Heidi reached out to me for her maternity session, I knew it had to be a special one. She has a five year old little fella, and we missed the opportunity to do maternity images with him because he was so anxious to make his arrival in this world!
Heidi decided she wanted blues for her maternity session, as she and her family nicknamed this baby “Blueberry”. She ordered her dress from Amazon, and I brought a coordinating crown that was made by Sunrise Baby Co.
For location, Heidi had found a gorgeous trail near her Portland, OR home. We went to the Rock Creek Trail, and spend some time on the bridge, under the overpass, and at the end of her session found some gorgeous evening light filtering through the trees.
Little Nixon is so excited to become a big brother! He is anxious anticipating the arrival of Baby Blueberry. Nixon really wanted to be in every image we took! I love his little grin and happy face!
When Heidi wanted to make good use of the Mask Mandate, I couldn’t resist!
How amazing is it that her masks completely matched her color scheme for her maternity session?
Heidi has this to say about her maternity session:
“You were and always are amazing! You mad me feel beautiful. You made me feel completely comfortable in my own skin when I was a little insecure in my dress. You had the perfect ideas to make everything work perfectly. “
Hello dear friends! It’s that time of year again! Family photos! And the beautiful Morris Family has faithfully had their images taken each year! I am so grateful to be the one who captures their professional family portraits.
For this years session, Joshua and Elizabeth wanted a different backdrop that meant something to their family portrait photos. They are avid hikers, campers, and backpackers and take make trips as a family each year. They decided to have their family photo location at Shepperds Dell Falls, in the lovely Columbia River Gorge.
They also have a Couples Session done each year. You can view their Couples Session HERE.
Each year, Elizabeth takes great care in selecting her wardrobe. I love being able to direct my clients to Style and Select, for help in wardrobe decisions. This feature, that is available to all my clients for whatever type of session, enables my clients to make the best and easiest wardrobe choices.
Elizabeth and Joshua are always up for unique photoshoot adventures, so standing and sitting in the water wasn’t out of their comfort zone. This made the waterfall place perfectly in the background of their family photoshoot .
For family sessions I always try and include several vantage points of the entire family, this gives more selection options for their wall display which Elizabeth always has. Also, I try and photograph each child individually so the family can see the child’s progression on their walls.
Images of the children together are also important, as well as images of the children with each of their parents. These types of images will be cherished by both the child and the parent, as well as the family.
Lovelace Extended Family – Manzanita, OR Family Photographer
Welcome to the Lovelace Extended Family Session in Manzanita, OR!
This is my first year photographing this amazing family unit! I have been photographing Layne and her beautiful family since her first baby was born. You can see her little fella’s newborn session HERE.
So when Layne contacted me about potentially photographing the entire family unit, I was thrilled! I was pretty excited to meet the rest of the family members that I had heard so much about, and also love on other family members that I hadn’t seen in quite a while! And large family photos are so much fun!
Another thing about this amazing family that you should know, is that they own and operate all of our local Papa Murphy’s Pizza joints!
This fantastic family has a beach trip in Manzanita each year, which you all know is my favorite place to visit. So it was even MORE exciting for me when they wanted a beach portrait session!
I try and give at least two days to shoot when I have this many people for family portrait photos, and also this many tiny humans. Kids are unpredictable, and when there are so many people from out of town I want to make sure that the family receives as much as they can.
We decided on sunset for the professional family portraits, and then the next morning I returned early for the kids images!
Caleb and Judah – Vancouver, WA Newborn Photographer
Meet beautiful Caleb and Judah!
These two little loves attend my church, so I was super excited for their arrival. They came to visit me in my Vancouver, WA Newborn Photographer studio.
Twins are my favorite to photograph. They are so loving and comforting to each other, it’s really quite fascinating. There are so many twins being born in Vancouver, Wa!
These little fellas were so relaxed and easy for their session. I really love when moms can just sit on the couch and have some peaceful time while I work with their babies.
For twins sessions I try and photograph the babies together, and individually. I feel it’s important that they are their own person as well. But these two were just so snug and cozy together, it was hard to separate them!
I am so blessed to be able to see these little cuties each week at my local Vancouver, Wa church!
Imaging 2020 Trip – Vancouver, WA Newborn Photographer
Hi friends! As many of you know I took a trip to Nashville for a photography conference! Imaging USA 2020 was such an intense and amazing week of learning and networking.
Packing is always a little tricky for me, since I choose to pack my own food.
Having a strict diet often makes travel a little more difficult! One side of my case was clothes, the other was my snacks!
We had a fairly early flight out of PDX! I was so grateful to fly with a friend!
Very front row on our first flight, thank you Shonda!
Snack time and watching Doctor Thorne for the second flight. I need to finish reading my Doctor Thorne book!
We arrived safely at the Nashville Airport, and took a bus to the Grand Old Opryland Hotel, where the conference was taking place. I was so grateful to not have to travel to and from the conference!
We had our own balcony too! Lots of breakfast and people watching, phone calls and FaceTimes.
Staying at the resort also gave us a discount on food at several restaurants! Shonda talked me in to eating rainbow trout with the skin left on! It was amazing.
Arriving at Imaging early was such a good plan. About 13ooo photographers were expected to attend! Shonda and I were able to register and get our attendee and vendor badges early before the rush! We we also able to attend Pre Conference classes at an additional fee. The main conference classes were first come and had a limited number of attendees. Taking the Pre Conference classes allowed me to learn in a much smaller class size, which I prefer.
Some shopping was in order before the conference started too!
These boots were so sparkly and gorgeous! I don’t fancy boots like this, but I was tempted!
I also found this amazing journal for taking notes in. I love the soft leather feel to it, and that it zipped closed so I never lost my pen!
The hotel had an amazing amount of gorgeous shops as well. I was particularly excited to visit the Library… and was quite disappointed when I found no books but only whiskeys and wines.
These beautiful grand pianos were found everywhere in the hotel. I was a little sad to find them all with locked lids, so they could not be played. They were still gorgeous to look at.
There were so many water features in the hotel as well! It was like living in a giant green house for a week! There were many large waterfalls, and rivers fill of beautiful fish!
The first class I took at Imaging! This was taught by Kristi Elias. She was such a fascinating teacher, with a wonderful hands on demonstration. I appreciated her openness about photography journey, and her experience as a luxury fine art portrait artist. Kristi is kneeling on the floor on the left.
Pausing for a picture at the Imaging photobooth with Shonda and Marcela!
While at Imaging, Shonda and I were asked to speak on a panel for the non profit organization we both volunteer for. Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep is dedicated to helping families who have lost their infants heal through photography.
We were asked to speak about our experiences volunteering, in the hopes of recruiting new photographers, digital retouch artists, and assistants.
Our first NILMDTS speaking panel!
So many photographers in one place! It felt so good to be with my people.
Shonda and I also volunteered to work at the NILMDTS trade show booth! We answered to many questions and soothed so many concerns. Most photographers don’t think they can do bereavement photography, but we find so many times that’s just simply not the case. So we were there to help put all those fears aside.
My sweet friend Michele of Memories by Michele signed up to be a new NILMDTS photographer! Michele and I mentored under the same photographer, Stone Hall Photography. It was such a joy to meet her!
Also note our amazing photobomber in the back. Thanks, Tim.
More trade show stuffs! So many vendors were present! It was really overwhelming! I loved seeing all the vendors that I was interested in, and ones that I had purchased from online.
I checked out all the new flying photography things, which I am actually quite interested in!
And of course all the amazing artwork on display!
I think this guy was my favorite part of the trade show!
During the conference I signed up for business classes only.
I had a side satchel with my for my new notebook and my snacks… and it also doubled for a book sling after hitting the Imaging Book Store after each class! These are two out of the five books I purchased during my conference.
During the opening speech from Professional Photographers of America’s David Trust, I learned that there are no rights for photographers when their work is stolen. We are unable to take someone to small claims court over stolen work. Simply “right clicking” on an image online, or using Facebooks handy dandy “save image” button is stealing. And there are no rights for me to stop people from doing so.
There is only ONE senator holding up the next step of the bill, and it is so embarrassing to say it’s Ron Wyden of Oregon.
You can learn more about this by going to the PPA website and reading the article about it.
By the end of the week our little group of four had grown! These ladies were so much fun, and so inspiring!
My gorgeous cousin Brooke came to visit me twice! She lives in Tennessee and I rarely get to see her. She and her husband and children came to visit me the first night I arrived! Ut was such a blessing to see them all! She came back the night before I left, and we had some good catching up and healing talk about our grandmother who died a few months earlier. I do miss my family.
The last morning was so lazy and quiet.
I stayed in bed for the majority of the morning and had coffee while reading some of my new books.
One last time with the delicious sushi from Wasabi!
Heading home from such a packed week! I was excited to get home to my family, and start implementing all the new ideas for my business!
Sushi at the San Jose airport was greatly lacking compared to the sushi I had eaten all week at the Opryland!
And this little kitten made me smile.
I am so grateful to PPA for the opportunity to attend Imaging USA 2020! And I am looking forward to attending next year in Grapevine, Texas!
Their mama had been dreaming of this shoot for months, so when she came to me with her idea I was so excited!
She made their dresses and bouquets, I brought the halos and crowns and together we made her vision come to life! When discussing the outcome she was dreaming of, she mentioned wanting the girls to be in a wooded or rich green and lush area. I knew that the backyard at my mother’s Washougal home would be the perfect place for our creation! We both loved the idea of the ivy, and how it made the girls the main focus of the session instead of the backdrop.
This session was so magical to shoot and edit! I really enjoy being able to do creative things in Photoshop to make parents images come to life.
I am excited to see these images printed out and hung up in the girls bedrooms!
This family is so special to me. I met Brad and Ashley when they were just days away from expecting their first son, Witton! I photographed them for the first time for Witton’s 6 month milestone session. I instantly fell in love with this amazing little family.
When it came time for their second son, Cruz, to arrive, they asked me to come document their home birth experience. These two people exude so much patience and love with each other and their children.
I met Ashley for coffee to chat with her about being a woman small business owner. It is so good to connect and refresh with another woman who owns her own business! Even when it’s not the same field, ideas can be bounced off of each other and plans for progress can be made! Ashley and Brad are health coaches! You can find their website HERE, and their Facebook HERE.
During coffee, Ashley let me know that she hadn’t scheduled her professional family portraits for the year yet… and also that she hadn’t printed out ANY of the images that she had paid to have done in the last few years.
We immediately got her on my calendar to schedule her 2019 family pictures!
AND I got to show her the amazing products my studio now offers, so she can have actual PRINTS in her hands!
Ashley used a service that I provide to my clients called “Style and Select”. She was able to style her family session clothing from this simple and easy to use service. We all know that choosing the family outfits for family portrait photos is one of the hardest parts of family picture time, right? I love that Ashley was able to style her family session with ease, and made it exactly “Them”.
When discussing the theme and style of her family session, we needed to find a location. She let me know that her in-laws home in Ridgefield would be a perfect backdrop for pictures, and it was! The property was amazing, and the boys had the freedom to run and be themselves! What a great way to document this part of their journey through life, and at a place they love!
Here are some of my favorites from the Miller Family’s sunset session!
This beautiful little lady was such a gem for her newborn session! She hardly made a peep!
Whites and creams for newborns.
Babies in white look so angelic to me. Newborns are so innocent and pure, and placing them in a white wrap on a white background just looks so divine. I have multiple backdrops, wraps, and bonnets for both boys and girls for the whites and cream setups. For Mia, I loved the lace backdrop that my mother gave to me.
Heirlooms
I love when parents have their own personal and unique items that we can use for sessions. Mia’s mama was wearing this gorgeous necklace, and we decided that it would be a gorgeous addition to the images. Adding in heirloom pieces to newborn sessions really personalizes them even more.
Monochromatic
I do love the monochromatic look for babies’ sessions. I feel that it places more focus on the newborn than the setup. And in this case, Mia looks stunning in this gorgeous blush color.
