She didn't think maternity photos were for her.  I for one am really glad she changed her mind!  Love getting these opportunities to get to know couples better before their newborn sessions!  Looking forward to meeting this little one!

  
      Are maternity photos for you?  Check out this post!

       You may remember this lovely couple from a recent post about why you should get maternity photos.

       When we first met over coffee Mary-Ann & I talked at length about what she envisioned for her maternity session as well as her preference for a studio or in-home newborn session.  There is a lot to consider when we plan a newborn session.  If you're looking for those curled up sleepy bucket shots, or candid moments as a family.  Studio sessions and in home sessions tend to look very different!  In the end Mary-Ann chose an in-home session to capture them just as they are.  New, home....precious.   

      This is Lilli....all 10lbs4 squishy ounces of her!

    

More Than Meets the Eye

  Believe it or not, I didn't just walk in and press a button to get this shot.

     What you don't see is the 3 hours of our 4 hour session that was spent feeding and soothing this little fella into a deep sleep.  The careful placement of a blanket to keep his skin from touching a cold guitar, the thought that went into placing the studio light, or the 6-8hrs of editing it took to polish up all his images.

     Despite what you might think, newborns do not look like this.

     Nope.  They're red and blotchy with acne & peely skin that is very sensitive to even the slightest touch or draft.  On average my newborn sessions take 4 hours, with a lot of that time being feeding, cleaning up 'accidents' & gently calming baby to sleep.  Did I mention feeding?   There can be a LOT of feeding! 

This is  a more accurate representation of a typical newborn session.

 Newborn sessions are a LOT of work!  ....and I love them!  As simple as these images seem it is a culmination of countless hours of practice & study as well as a huge investment in specialized newborn editing software, blankets, wraps, bean bag chairs & lighting & posing workshops.  Above all the patience to listen to the baby's cues and keep them safe & comfortable at all times.  

     So yes, my camera takes really good pictures....and there might also be a little more to it than that.

    If you're interested in booking a newborn session it is best to do so months ahead of time.  Due to babies unpredictable arrivals I can only book a limited number of sessions per month based on your due date.  Once the baby is born we confirm a date that is 4-12 days after the baby is born in order to achieve those sleepy curled up shots. 

In the end we only regret the things we didn't do

 In case you're questioning it, yes.  YES you should get maternity photos done.

    I know, I've been there.  I felt fat, exhausted & emotional.....and that 40 weeks went by like the last 15 minutes of school that you stared at the clock...painfully slow.  The anticipation of getting to hold my baby & being able to re-claim my body as my own was all I could think of.  Capturing that to preserve forever seemed somewhat trivial at the time.

    For most of us we only get to experience pregnancy once or twice, if at all.  If you're 8.5 months pregnant and reading this you might think you'll never want to do it again!  But believe me, you'll hold your baby and sometime later, it may take a year or two, but you'll think back on it & decide it wasn't so bad after all.

   You'll realize that it was a pivitol year of your life.  A year that forever changed who you are.  It was shorter than it seemed and you're amazed at what your body was capable of.

          So here's the thing, I'm not saying come get your maternity photos done by me. I am not the photographer for everyone.... BUT GET THEM DONE!  Choose a photographer who's work you LOVE.  You may never get to experience this again & the photo your husband (bless his heart) took in the bad light at a bad angle is not what you'll want to remember yourself looking like!  And just think of the treasure those photos will be to your children later in life!

Case in point.  Yes, that's me. And it's a good thing I'm standing near the ocean because I look like a beached whale!

           Pregnancy is a beautiful experience & you deserve photos that are far from ordinary to reflect on that amazing time in your life when you were building a little person in your belly.

  ....maybe next week we can talk about why you MUST get professional newborn photos done! 

One Big Deal

   Turning one is a HUGE deal.

A really REALLY huge deal!

Think about it.  It's the most monumental year of your life in terms of development!  All those firsts!  In one short year you go from a little slug like being, doing nothing more than eating, sleeping and pooping. To your first smile, first laugh, rolling, sitting, standing...maybe walking or even running for some.

And you've completely and utterly turned the lives of your parents upsidown, forever changing them.

 That first birthday is as much to celebrate their birth as it is a celebration of the rebirth of their parents as entirely new people. 

That's why I have something called the first year plan.  If you book 3 sessions within the year, such as maternity, newborn and a family session, I give you the first birthday cake smash session for free.  It's a big deal & my thanks for letting me be a part of that first year....such a huge year!  

Thanks for letting me help make a big deal out of your birthday little one.

Even if you didn't really like the cake. 

Perspective

 This is my son pushing me off the proverbial cliff.

          I'm very fortunate in that life has a great way of giving me a push, ok maybe a big slap upside the head right when I need it.

          A lot of you know by now that a couple weeks ago I miscarried.  The worst part being we were just in the safety zone of happily announcing it  to the whole world.  For me that's bad because I'm not very good at accepting sympathy, or praise for that matter.  So the hugs and puppy dog eyes get nothing but an uncomfortable sideways glance and a muttering under my breath that I've been through worse and survived.

         There's not one event in my life, good, messy or sickeningly awful I would take back because it's where I got to where I am, which is pretty okay if you ask me.   

         I took a little time to myself to mourn. Somewhat the little being inside that I never got to meet, but more so the loss of the vision I had for the next few years of my life.

        Two and a half years ago I sat out on my deck & stared up at the stars and thought, "I CAN do this!"  Since then I have been working a full time job on top of growing my business....on top of being a mom to an insanely busy little boy.  In the first year and a half I spent more time than you can imagine reading everything I could get my hands on to learn as much as possible both about photography and business.  I swear some mornings after staying up till 3am that part of my brain was actually oozing out my ear from so much mind blowing information.  I've worked harder than I ever had in my life, and that's saying something for someone who regularly held a minimum of 2 jobs and then threw some school in the mix!

       In the past year I've probably spent 3x what I've earned on my business, but I was getting to where I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.  It was very exciting to think that in a year and a half when my maternity leave would be up I could be at a point that I could take the leap and have photography as my sole profession. 

      Well take that plan & chuck it.

      Cue slap upside the head.

      "You don't have to see the whole staircase to take the first step." -Martin Luther King Jr.

     That was the first thing I saw a couple days after when I opened my email.  It was from a company I had taken a photography course from in the fall. 

      Right!  It doesn't have to be a leap off a cliff, but a step up a staircase instead.  Obviously I can be a little thick.

     So I've taken a step.  Just a baby step.  But a step towards finding a little more balance and time for my family & the photography dream that lights my fire.  After talking to my super incredible and understanding boss at my 'real job' (did I mention totally awesome? probably best boss I've ever had? and no I'm totally not sucking up JP), we worked out a plan to reduce my hours just enough that I can still just barely cover the bills for some security, but have more time to focus on my family & business.  (so photography will hopefully keep food on the table....no pressure....just kidding, please book now! lol)

      I'm excited to see where I'll be a few years from now.  Wherever a million baby steps take me to look back & understand why things work out the way they do & be grateful always for exactly where I am right now.

Snow. It's a love hate thing.

Nothing makes snow more fun than kids!  I'll admit I went through years of hating the snow.  Not so much the initial snow, when it's all fluffy and pretty like a bright frozen blanket of silence.  It's right after, usually by the afternoon when it turns to a slushy mess then freezes and becomes a dirty crusty sloppy sludge covering the streets for a week after.  Maybe it's a resentment I harbor from having to wear mittens as a child.  Totally useless for sign language and my little digits would still be frozen afterwards, again nothing but frustration trying to communicate with my parents as a kid in cold weather.  Now with a son nearly three I'm finding some love in the snow again.  Watching his eyes get wide at the wondrous white world that has taken the place of what he sees everyday makes it so fun again! 

So who knew that family photos could be so fun in the snow?! You may remember this little guy from his 1st birthday session back in June.  http://grinningweasel.blogspot.ca/2012_06_01_archive.html

I was super exited to head up the mountain in search of snow with them for a family session just barely in time for Christmas!   We had a blast...although I'm pretty sure their dog Gus had the most fun of all! And now I officially have 2 reasons to love the snow again.  Can't wait for my next snowy session!