Madeleine Turns Two!

One of the best things about my job is that I have met so many amazing women and made so many  friends. Photographing a woman when she is pregnant is a very intimate experience and it brings me a level of closeness with so many of my clients, that I never expected. Then, being able to document their babies growing up, is icing on the cake. Most of my clients have not had the easiest time getting pregnant. I have heard so many heart braking stories along the way. This is why the photographs are extra special, these babies were very wanted and the pregnancies so carefully nurtured.

Miss Madeleine turns two today, and I had the pleasure of photographing her along with her family, last week. I will never forget the first email I received from her mom. She was so excited to photograph her pregnancy. Through the past two years I have photographed Maddie and her family several times and each time I love them more and more! Maddie has a sparkle in her eye and warmth from within. I know that comes from being wanted and loved so very much. Happy Birthday Maddie!

The Magic of Bubbles and Tutus

I was on a shoot recently with one of my long time clients. I shot Amanda's first and second pregnancies and many others in between. I did a family shoot with all four of them last week. We went don to Levi Plaza to get some fun candid shots. When we got down there Amanda pulled some bubbles out of the bag, and the fun began! Bubbles bring on the smiles. Her little girl could not get enough of them, and oddly enough, I couldn't either. It was so fun to see her face light up each time her dad blew some bubbles. Each time was like the first. With my kids being 12 and 13, we haven't had bubbles out in awhile. Now, I see age shouldn't stop us from getting the bubbles out and having some fun.

Next out of the bag was the tutu. Again, big smiles. I remember when the tutu was a part of daily fashion with my daughter. Before I had children I would think how weird it was to see a child dressed up in a a full tutu, with tiara and all, at the mall on any given day. Once I had my daughter it all made perfect sense! The mom or dad had no real say when their 3 year old wanted to wear a tutu to the mall, and they realized it was not going to hurt anyone and it usually brought smiles to the people shopping. It brings us all back to when our children were little and that sense of fun and fairy tale. We all need that once in a while. Bring on the tutus!

Mannina Family Portraits- the twins are 18 months old

I will never forget my maternity shoot with Jana Mannina. I had seen a lot of bellies before her, but never one as big as Jana's. She was pregnant with twins! I was amazed at how she was still standing. She said she had held out so she could get her maternity photos done, but she was ready to deliver as soon as we were done. Gianna and Mateo were born 6 days later!

I can't believe how time flies. The twins just turned 18 months old and Jana and Steve decided it was a perfect time to capture them on film and to have a professional family shoot. They will have an album to to look back at in years to come, as well as digital files so they can share photos with friends and family on the internet. The timing is perfect to have great photos for their holiday cards!

Remember when you are photographing your children not to worry so much about them looking right at the camera. A lot of my favorite shots are when the little ones are not aware of the camera. You are more likely to capture more of their personality. Also, zoom in. Close ups really show the children's expressions, and again, more of who they are. Set aside some time to follow them around and just keep shooting. The more time you give yourself to take photos of the kids, the better the chance of getting one of those priceless pictures.

Family Traditions

Sometimes it seems, as life gets ever more busy, that family traditions can fade away. We have a few family traditions that are big, some that are smaller. Eating tuna and crackers on the way home from a day of snowboarding, dinner's together at the dinner table, a trip to the ice cream parlor after the first day of school, dressing for halloween and of course, our yearly family portrait, some of our traditions.My husband and I dress up every year for Halloween, along with the kids. It was an easier task when they were younger. For the past few years, it seems harder and harder to come up with a costume, but we always come up with something fun. Looking at the photos of the four of us all dressed up in kooky costumes is priceless, and pushes me to keep up our tradition. The kids love to see what we come up with for ourselves, as much as they do their own costumes. 

Our other big tradition is our yearly family portrait for our Christmas Card. We started with the birth of our daughter Sydney, 13 years ago. We set up the tripod and got that first holiday family shot. When our son Tristan joined us we of course wanted to keep the tradition going. Each year we would try to find a new location, new theme and always included the four of us. There were many years as the kids got older and harder to control for a family shoot, that I was tempted to just photograph the kids. Trying to schedule a time when all four of us were in portrait mode was almost impossible. But, I knew that there would be lots of pictures of the kids together throughout the years, but photos of the four of us, dressed nice, looking our best, were few and far between. So, each year we look forward to finding a new spot for our picture, a new theme etc. I know that every year I will have at least one great shot of my family.

I urge you all to think about this and not be tempted to bow out of the family holiday photo this year. Whether you have a friend take it, get your tripod out, or hire a professional, it is worth the time and money, and you will look back and be so glad you did. It is important for your children to look back and see how important the whole family is. 

Nina and Rob's pregnancy session

I recently had the chance to shoot a great couple here in San Francisco. They live in a very cool converted warehouse space South of Market. I love San Francisco. Even though I have lived here for more than half of my life, I still find neighborhoods I don't know,a secret spot to shoot photos, or a new restaurant. Their building was super cool. Nina was one of the first to live in the SOMA district, before it was a trendy place to live. The light and architectural details were a lot of fun to work with. I never know what I will get , shooting on location is always exciting. There home was especially great to shoot in and Rob and Nina were so much fun, it didn't even feel like work! I have the best job.

Rob and Nina were a fun couple and I am so glad we did their Pregnancy portraits when we did, she had the baby two weeks early! Congratulations to Nina and Rob, on the birth of their second child, Rex!