Aug
29
2013
Andrew’s mommy is a photographer acquaintance from college. I saw her using Pinterest to collect tutorials on the “Frog Pose” featured above and offered to help her achieve that image. I guess that means I’m a Greer SC Newborn Photographer who does mentoring sessions? I really do love helping other photographers learn 🙂
Let me tell you, it was so nice to have another photographer in the room. I could pose and she could photograph which is one of those things that make sibling images so much smoother: especially with a sibling as young as Sophie (2). It was a little slice of heaven. So about half of these images she took and the other half I did, but I edited them all for the purpose of this blog 🙂
But the real reason I invited her over was so that Michelle could get in the images too. As a photographer, it’s pretty difficult to get ourselves in our images and I wanted to give her that gift.
In return, Michelle gifted me some images of me doing one of the things I love most: posing squishy little babies. Thank you, Michelle!
Sometimes if you tickle a cheek the baby smiles. 😉
Aug
15
2013I can’t even begin to tell you what an honor it was to be contacted by this client for Greenville, SC newborn photography for baby number 2! I served Amy way back in my portfolio building days two years ago as my fourth baby ever. The lighting was horrible the first day we shot, so I had to go back and shoot again. I was learning so much in those days and my imagery needed to grow in so many ways. I was both surprised and honored that my images were still featured prominently in Amy’s home.
Here are a few favorites from Charli’s session two years ago. As you can see, I’ve always sort of leaned toward the relationship images 🙂 These family black and whites are precious!
Now look how big and beautiful Charli is two years later! So pretty and such a sweet big sister!
Piper Olivia’s Greenville, SC Newborn Session
For Piper’s session, I finally managed to heat my studio room to the precise temperature to keep a newborn happy and sleepy. We were all sweating profusely, but sweet Piper never woke once and let us pose her however we wanted. I’d also just completed my first newborn workshop, so lots of things were coming together for me! I’m really excited about this imagery.
Mom brought this ruffled diaper set. I loved that it inspired me to finally nail this pose! Love those back wrinkles.
Piper’s also one of only two girls I’ve been privileged to photograph this year: what’s with the boy baby boom? I need another girly fix and soon!
Aug
01
2013Ok… the story behind this post title. Ha!
Karen and Shamus are our church small group leaders. Before his birth we were at small group chatting about which day the following week would be the induction date.
Karen exclaimed something along the lines of, “Any day next week but Valentines day!”
Shamus said something like, “Why not? Then he’d be Zan the Love Man? No wait… no one better call him that.”
Next thing you know, the whole small group is calling him “Zan the Love Man.”
Sorry, Zan, the nickname is going to stick, but we promise not to tease you too much.
Oh, no! I think we’ve hurt his feelings!
(On a side note, isn’t this the most awesome frown?! I love it!)
Relational Greenville, SC Newborn Photography
So this was the session that sort of set my philosophy for Greenville, SC newborn photography. I want to capture newborns all asleep and curly and adorable, but I also want to capture them in relationship to the people who love them most. I know the roller coaster that Karen and Shamus rode while waiting and praying for Zan. And the following image just makes my heart soar because I know I’m looking at hope realized.
This is why if during your pre-session consult you say “I’m not sure I want to be in images with my baby.” I’m literally going to beg you to get in the picture. These images will be images that your child treasures long after you’re gone. They’re the images that tell the story of relationship, of joy at your child’s arrival, of the very grace of God.
Just a few more images of Zan for you to enjoy. I really love this kiddo and I can’t believe he’s already half a year old. Where did the time go already?
Jul
18
2013Sometimes stories are hard to tell. I’ve procrastinated on this one for a long time because I’m not sure I can bear to tell it. But I am not the Author of this story and I do not know what glory awaits at the final ending.
Stephanie is a single mom. I don’t know all the particulars and they’re not mine to tell, but shortly after the child in her womb began to move, her husband left.
Stephanie worked and mourned and waited. She worked a local ice cream joint that gives free cones to children under a certain height. I remember seeing her long before our session. She smiled as she passed my children a cone. A smile that whispered hope: children are a gift. Hope that I needed on that warm late fall day when my son had likely woken me long before day’s first light.
The Stephanie I met in the studio: she was the same. Quiet patient hope. Smiling gently to her newborn Ethan and thanking Jesus for him as she rocked him to gentle slumber.
I’m showing you this whole session in black and white because it evokes all the emotion I feel thinking back to this day.
May
23
2013My session with this dear family started like most with a simple inquiry in my Facebook messages.
But this wasn’t the normal sort of photography inquiry. In fact, it had nothing to do with photography at all. Diane and Titus had just been selected by a birth mom pregnant with twins and wanted to pick the brain of the only woman they knew with young twins: me.
One thing led to another after I dumped my unused double stroller, registry advice, and lots of crazy pep talks on Diane, I begged to photograph the babies. I’m pretty shameless. 🙂 Adoption is expensive and I like to love on adoptive families however I can. So a session with the most gorgeous twins I’ve ever laid eyes on (besides my own), was sooo exciting that it was a gift.
However, as a twin mom, it wasn’t the best gift I could give. The best gift were words of comfort when I heard Diane had hit the 2-4 month absolutely exhausted slump. I wrote down how difficult it is to like two beings who rarely let you sleep more than 2 hours straight and yet whom you love dearly. The first 5 or so months of twin motherhood is pure survival mode. It’s hard. I’m not saying it’s not worth it, because I love being a twin mom. But there are moments in those first months where I would have handed over my babies to that kind old stranger lady in the grocery store who uttered the words “I always wanted twins” just to go home and nap. There are moments where somehow the grace of God eased me through, but I still have no idea how I and the babies survived. And I want new twin mothers to hear that it’s okay to have those feelings and those moments.
I come to love each session more than the last… but I have to say this is one of my very favorite sessions ever. Diane and Titus, thank you for letting me talk you into coming for a session! It was a true gift for me to snuggle your new ones.
I had some help from the lovely Mayfield Photography for this session. She shot some spectacular detail images and was also the hands behind my composite shots!
