My Own Beauties!

I know it sounds crazy that as a photographer I rarely take photos of my own children, but unfortunately it's true. 

I take my kids pictures, like "real portraits" about twice a year! 

Now don't get me wrong, I take their pictures as much as any other parent, but they are usually dressed in whatever clothes they picked out, with their hair either unbrushed or fixed with their own two little hands, and since we play outside a lot they are usually dirty. So, I wouldn't consider them to be nice portraits.

But, like I said about twice a year I spend some time finding outfits and picking a place for their portraits. I have had past portraits with my kids that were unplanned and turned out amazing, although it seems with more kids and older kids I need to plan more. 

So, this spring I ordered some handmade dresses from Etsy. 

The two older girls dresses came from Amanda's Shop, Kaleidoscope Of Colors.

And Willow's (the little one) dress came from Linda's shop, LAF it up Creations.

My plan was to take the girls in their dresses to a field of wildflowers, but  decided last minute to take the dresses to Florida with us. So, the pictures were taken on the beach of Pensacola Bay at Naval Air Station Pensacola, literally just steps from where we were staying. 

Here are the pics! 

Now that you have seen the pics I will tell you the real story. 

I waited until the last sunset of our vacation. Who wants to work on vacation, right? And yes, taking photos of my kids is work! Anyway, it was our last day there and I waited until what I thought was an hour before sunset to tell the girls they needed to get off the beach and take a shower for their portraits. So, we went in to find out we had no power, which meant we had NO hot water! And I tried, but they refused to take cold showers. 

So, I sprayed their hair with a water bottle, brushed it and on with the dresses. They were sandy, sweaty, and oily from sunscreen, even their hair had oily sunscreen in it! But, we headed to the beach anyway and somehow we almost missed the sunset! 

Most of the time was spent trying to get Willow to look up from the sand AND keep my other two girls smiling so when Willow did look up I could get a good shot of all three. You will notice in every picture of the 3 at least one of my big girls is making a bad face, but hey, at least Willow is looking up! 

So, willow did great by herself and Kennedy and Brooke did great together, but my goal of getting that perfect shot of all 3 just didn't happen. 

Many things as a parent turn out "not the way you planned." That goes for our portrait sessions too, even as a photographer mom. But, while I have these photos to remind me I will always remember the crazy times with my little girls that never turned out as planned.

Sydney- St. Louis Newborn Photography

This sweet little Sydney traveled over an hour at just 10 days new so I could photograph her. And I could not be more grateful. She was just the most perfect angel! 

You can view her entire session below. And remember to like Exposure on Facebook to see my latest work and hear about my current specials.

I LOVE feedback, so please feel free to comment below. 

To enquire about booking a newborn session or any other type of session you can email me.

When is the Best Time to Schedule a Family Portrait? - St. Louis Family Photography

"Schedule a family portrait session," is something you see on a lot of To Do lists. Yet, it is one task that often never gets checked off. 

I hear a lot of parents say they need to have a family portrait done, but they just haven't gotten around to it. Well, the main reason it never gets done is simply because parents just can't decide when to have the portraits taken. 

We all know the biggest milestones in our families' lives which are the most popular portrait sessions; When a new baby is born, we celebrate a 1st birthday (or 2nd), Christmas card time, and when there is a high school graduate in the very near future. 

So, what about all the "in-between" years? Are there certain moments that are more important than the others? Of course there are! But when is the right time to schedule a portrait session?

I could so easily tell you that ANYTIME is a good time for a family portrait, because it is, but then that would not be at all helpful, right? 

So, I am here to help you decide when the right time is to schedule your session. And to tell you the truth, there is not a science to it, it's simply figuring out when it works best for your family.

My advice is this: 

Families with young children should schedule a portrait session at least 1-2 times a year. The reason? These years go by so fast and young children change so much in so little time. I am always amazed when I look at portraits of my own children from one season to the next. I think, "Oh my gosh! Look how little they were! That was just last Spring!" They grow so fast and it is so important to document every stage possible. There are times when parents say, "Well, Lily has lost some teeth, so we are going to wait for pictures" "Really?" I tell them. That is such a big part of childhood, and quite frankly, one of the cutest parts of childhood. Why would someone not want to have a photograph to remember that adorableness? Moral of the the story is don't put off having a family portrait session because you are waiting for "the right time". There will never be the perfect time in your eyes and that is the beauty of the portrait. It's your family! The way you are, the way you will remember. 

Families with adolescent age children probably don't worry about having a portrait taken as much as they did when the kids were younger. But, it's still important to take the time out of your busy schedules about once a year for a family portrait. One hour, once a year! That's easy! Deciding when to schedule your session can sometimes be as simple as what season do you like the best? Spring? Fall? Summer? Or when are the kids' sport seasons over? When are the kids even available? There are some smaller factors to think about too. Like making sure your son or daughter does not get a new hair cut/style right before the session. There is too much risk in them hating it and canceling the portrait. You may also be thinking that you will never be able to talk your kids into showing up for a family portrait, so you may have to use a little bribery. Maybe promise to take them to their favorite restaurant, out for icecream, or buy them those shoes they've been asking for.

Families with teenagers probably have the hardest time, mostly because the kids have become little adults with their own lives and their own busy schedules. They have school and sports, exams and jobs, and of course, their social life. But, again, as a parent you are asking your kids for 1 hour. And a lot of parents find it easy to schedule a family portrait around a big event in their teenager's life. For example, prom or graduation. Your teenager will be dressed nice, hair fixed, and you could probably squeeze in an hour long photo shoot before his or her friends arrive. A lot of the time you can have the photographer come to your house or a park very near your house. Also, as I mentioned before there is the infamous senior portrait session. It is very common for a parent to ask the photographer to do a few photos of the entire family at the beginning of the senior session. And it's usually not a big deal, just be sure to mention this when booking the senior session. And be prepared to have just a few family shots taken then step aside and let your senior be in the spotlight. 

Aside from the baby milestones, the adolescent bribery and the squeezed-in teenage family portrait, there are certain times of the year that families consider a "good" time for a portrait session (remember I really believe ANYTIME is a good time). Some of them include, Mother's Day, Father's Day, summer vacation, Grandparents Day (you would include the grandparents of course), Spring blooming season, and Fall foliage. It is also helpful to schedule the session around the same time each year. Then it just kind of becomes expected. 

I hope my advice can be of some help to you. And I hope to start hearing about parents checking "family portrait" off their to do lists.  

So when was your last family portrait? Do you have a favorite time of year? A favorite milestone? A favorite occasion? I would love to hear about your family portraits.

Be sure to Like me on Facebook to see my latest work, hear about my specials and events! 

GIVEAWAY!- St. Louis Family Photography

Alright everyone, since I had very "quiet" fans a few days ago when I first posted this on Facebook I thought I would post again.  

YOU CAN WIN A GIFT CERTIFICATE FOR A 1 HOUR PORTRAIT SESSION! 

GET EXCITED! 

What kind of session can you use it for?

Maternity

Newborn

Kids

Family

Engagement

You can even give it as a gift!! Remember, Mother's Day is just a few weeks away! 

It's so easy!

First, if you haven't already, like my Facebook page.

Then share this on your timeline and ask your friends to share.

And last, comment below letting me know that you want to win.

Hop Scotch- St. Louis Child Photography

I just love hanging out with Brooke! She is so sweet an innocent. The kind that makes you wish you were a kid again. 

Here she is playing hop scotch in her rain boots, which she insists on wearing everyday.

Looks like fun, right? 

The Perfect Gift - St. Louis Family Photography

In the photography business it's very rare for me to aim my marketing towards men. Let's face it, when it comes to family portraits Mom is usually in charge. It's always Mom who calls to book the session. It's always Mom who chooses the location. And it's always Mom with all the questions about what to wear, what to bring, etc. 

Well guys, do you know what is just a few weeks away? 

MOTHER'S DAY! 

As a mother of 3 myself I can tell you that one the BEST gifts a husband/dad can give is relieving us of at least one task on our list. 

Now I know that can be a little daunting. All mothers have HUGE "To Do" lists! And we all have 

"our way of doing things." 

So, lets think for a minute. What would be the BEST gift for the special woman in your life? What is something she will never forget? Something that will last a lifetime?

That's right...A portrait session! 

Exposure offers gift certificates! 

All you do is purchase your portrait session now. And you will receive a beautifully packaged, ready to give gift certificate. Once she has received the certificate you (or she) can call and book your session. You get 6 months to use it, so there's no pressure! 

You do almost nothing and yet you get to give the best gift! 

The certificates are good for:

Babies

Children

Families 

Couples

and

Maternity sessions

A portrait session is a wonderful gift for Grandma too! So, in honor of Mother's Day this year I am offering a discount if you buy two or more. Then you get to check off another task on her list...buying a gift for her mom and yours! 

Be sure to like Exposure on Facebook to learn about specials and events.

You can visit www.stl-photographer.com for more information.

or

 Email me