Gigi and the Grinch

I can so clearly remember sitting down with my Dad to watch the cartoon How the Grinch Stole Christmas the year it came out. Every year when it comes out I watch it and it brings back such a happy memory of that time with my Dad. I'm a much bigger kid now (ahem) and I still love watching it!

Happy memories of watching it with my son, and seeing his delight in it also. My son will probably deny this but he's really a big fan of tradition and Christmas (like the year we didn't have brown and serve rolls...he said "what? But we ALWAYS have brown and serve rolls!" I hope my son has his wonderful memories from his childhood like I do with my family.

I had our 13 month old Gigi over yesterday and we watched it. Even though she's still a baby, she was old enough to enjoy it! She loved the beginning when the Whos stand around the tree singing. My puppy even enjoyed Max, the cartoon dog...he kept barking at him! I have to admit, I had to rewatch it today by myself because I was so enjoying watching Gigi watch it last night, that I really didn't see the cartoon at all. So we are now making a memory together.

Hope you and your family make some wonderful memories this Holiday Season. Thanks to all my customers for letting me be a small part of their lives, and capturing their memories, in 2007!

The image attached to this blog is my husband playing Santa and Gigi is the little elf...this is the card I sent out this year to my customers. Even though she watched him put on the suit she still wasn't too sure about him all dressed up!

Reflective Moment

I love this shot...mom ordered a large wall portrait of it - yea! It deserves to be big and impressive and shown as a piece of art. I love the look in her eyes (her hair is red in real life, beautiful), she seems very soulful here. A nice change from the smiles and looking into the camera...makes you wonder what she's thinking about. Miss K here worked it during her session...she was a doll to work with as always!

Please, just go away!

I photographed little I here yesterday...we were hurrying to beat the cold weather that has now arrived, brrr! Grandma had hired me 5-6 years ago to photograph her other granddaughter. This is the same dress and bear, suitcase etc. we used then. But "I" here, she wasn't liking the bear so much being in her shots. I think she knew she was supposed to be the "star" of this shoot! She was very gentle but kept nudging him over and away from her! I had a really hard time editing her session because she gave great expressions in about 99% of them...very hard to throw any out! It's so easy to overshoot when you get a cutie like her who was enjoying it all. Well, except when we put her on textures she hadn't had before, like trees etc. New stuff to a 9 monther!

My Umbrella!

I was cracking up Friday on this session. I have been photographing R since she was a newborn and she is so cute, love her curls! She is now 2.5 and I think her motto might be "I am woman, hear me roar!" She loved playing with the rain boots and umbrella and of course, the petti! Which I think may be magical...no little girl yet has been able to resist it, even when they don't feel like having their picture made. Anyway, R loved the rain gear so much that we couldn't get her out of them. I finally had to hang the umbrella handle from the back of my pants at the waist, to hide it from her (kind of like a dog with a tail back there...). The rain boots we just left on! And she didn't forget about that umbrella...the title says it all. I was seriously cracking up, she is a typical 2 year old...knows what she wants and wasn't going to forget about it! Mom, Dad...I love this image and it was hard for me to edit ANY of them out...your gallery is coming, look for your email!

A Nice Note from Mom:

Hey Cathy!

Cracked up at the blog! "R's" motto could also be: "What's mine is mine and what's yours is mine!!"

You've proven from this last shoot that you can also work miracles. The pictures of "R" were just beautiful and made the choices very difficult!

A Couple of Characters!

This brother and sister were so much fun to work with and a perfect example of how I like to work a session. The trick to photographing kids in the style I work in, is to let the kids be themselves. I try not to pose too much but instead give the kids an activity to do...like run a race or hold hands and spin, things they will have fun doing and get natural smiles and expressions. The sister here, who I think may end up in Hollywood someday, she was so lively and spirited and that makes a session so great, because you're really getting to see the true personality. Her brother, a very sweet little guy, very gentle, has a different personality, he's quieter and not as much an extrovert and he has very soulful eyes, and I was lucky enough to capture that in his images. I personally feel if you overly pose kids, you just lose all that personality and what makes them the special kids they are. You just let go of expectations and follow where the kids take you! Okay, off my soapbox for now!

It was a cold one for sure!

Well, I'd just like to request our Indian Summer back...this poor family flew in from the northeast part of the country and their session was the morning the cold front was blowing in! Poor little girls were chilly but luckily (and kudos to the whole family for being sports), we got some great images in spite of not so great conditions.

Little Miss Fashionista

Well, I couldn't believe this outfit was jammies! Santa's probably going to bring her something extra just for dressing so nice when she leaves his milk and cookies! Mom had several cute outfits to dress her in. Little miss here was all about the shoes...and they were darn cute! A sweet family and they did a great job coordinating their outfits for their shoot. A good time was had by all.....