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What should we wear?
So, you’ve locked down a date for your photo session… and if you’re a woman, the first thing that hits you is “I don’t have anything to wear!” if you are a man, I’m sure you’ve heard your lady say that many times on many different occasions. I’m guilty of it too. Piles of clothes strewn all over the place trying to find the perfect outfit.
Well, today I set up my studio for a session tomorrow and I decided it was finally time for a new family portrait. My last one was taken when my daughter was around a month old…. She’ll be 1 Saturday. (Whoa.) While my husband complained about doing the pictures this instant (what man wouldn’t) I persuaded forced him to do it.
I started going from closet to closet trying to find something. All the while yelling speaking loudly to my husband to get off the Xbox 360 and come help. (Do you think he turned off the game? Of course not… Men.)
Here’s how the hunt for a coordinating, but not totally matching, outfits went down:
My son’s wardrobe is pretty limited, he wears pajamas all day and play clothes when we’re out. But, I had just found a pair of plaid shorts from last year that would still fit him. Oh wait… the only matching shirt (also from last year) is way too short. So, I kept searching through his closet, and I found a couple polo’s. There was a green one I liked, so I took it and went to my daughters dresser. Crud. There was nothing that looked good with it. Then, like the shining sun, I saw my daughters bright yellow capris! Score! I just saw a yellow and white striped polo in my sons closet! Add the only “nice” shorts my son has (Khaki) and a white top for my daughter and they’re done!
Whew! Now I have to find something in MY closet to match… yikes. I went through my husbands side first. He only wears khakis, so that was a no brainer. Seriously, the man does not own a pair of jeans owns one pair of jeans that were a gift and never wears them. So, I thew them at him while he was still paying the Xbox 360 and told him to put them on. He was still in disbelief that I was going to force him to quit playing a game to take some family pictures.
So, here’s the even “funnier” stuff… so, the kids are wearing yellow and white. Do you think my husband owns a yellow shirt? Surprisingly there was one in his closet… circa 1998. No kidding. And, the kicker, it was actually my sisters. No, she’s not as big as a man, that was sadly the style back then… to wear a mans polo much larger than you need. *shakes head* what were we thinking? So, I threw that at him and went to my side.
OK, remember the whole “I don’t have anything to wear moment”… insert that here ____
I’m looking and looking through my pitiful amount of clothes. (Seriously, how does my husband have MORE clothes than me?) Well, I remembered I had just bought a couple tee-shirts from target, two of them where yellow. I got one off the hanger, looked at it and went “What am I thinking?! Everyone is wearing a polo or something nice, this won’t coordinate. 
” Then it hit me… hidden in a JCPenney’s bag… in the back of the closet… was a brand new white eyelet dress. (Thanks Mom!) I hadn’t worn it yet, but I fell in love when I saw it and had always wanted a dress like that. (Can I give another thanks to my mom? She bought it for me… THANKS MOM!)
So… there you have it in a not so small nutshell. Oh, and least I forget… footwear… when in doubt… go barefoot. Kids feet are too cute to hide behind shoes. As you can see… it IS possible to have a cute, coordinating family without buying a single thing. If I can do it, you can too! Seriously.
What have we learned today?
- Start with the person that has the least amount of options and work your way through the family.
- Don’t match. Coordinate.
- Pick one main color (White) one neutral (Khaki) and one pop of color (Yellow)
- Show your personalities (yes, my sister’s polo is kind of my husband personality, he lives in polos and tees… just never wore that one)
- Go barefoot
Tucker’s 1 yr old and Cake Smash
This little guy has been to me a couple times, for 6 month/Christmas portraits and for 9month/Easter portraits. This time, we got to really have some fun and show what a cutie this guy is! He had the BEST laugh and was just a cute little man. He LOVED his birthday cake during the cake smash and was just really into it, licking icing off his fingers. It’s been an honor to having this family come back for more portraits. Tucker has changed so much in the past 6 months I really cannot believe how fast time flies by.
Metten Family and Newborn
This family holds a very special place in my heart. I met the mom is high school and while we lost touch for quite a few years, we found each other thanks to Facebook. I’ve photographed this family back in November, right when they were announcing their new pregnancy. It’s amazing how much can change in 6months! I had the honor and privilege to photograph the newest member in this adorable family and also capture their new family of four and their 2 year old…. who just turned two the day before the baby arrived. I still can’t believe their birthdays are a day apart. I love this momma and I hope these images have done her true beauty justice.
Crouch Sisters
It was a beautiful June day when I got to photography these two cute sisters! If you know Kentucky, you know June is hot… and humid… but the weather was perfect that morning! I had a great time following these two darling little girl around while they explored trails and flowers. Their interactions with each other were priceless and memories that won’t ever fade for me. They were absolute sweethearts and their beauty really shown, both inside and out.
Embry Maternity
I had the joy of photographing the Embry family as a surprise father’s day gift from the momma. They’re expecting their second baby, a girl, and big brother is too cute for words and loves to slobber the baby belly with kisses. We had a great session and got to explore a few areas. I really had a great time with this session! Enjoy!
Baby Riley
Had a wonderful time photographing sweet baby Riley! She had the cutest little expressions during our session and made darling little baby sounds the whole time. She was REALLY strong though and liked to kick off her feet! She kept me on my toes for sure! Editing her session was lots of fun, I loved going through the images all over again. I’m not going to lie, I may or may not have gotten a litttle teary eyed when I got to a family shot where Riley was smiling…. ooooooo sweet baby smiles get me every time!
To Riley’s parents: thank you so much for allowing me to photograph your new bundle of joy!
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Project 52 Week 20
The first week of January, I embarked on a weekly project. To pick up my camera and take a picture. Sometimes as photographer, you get into a rut; you forget to see the beauty in the little things around you. My project 52 will be a way to give me a little lift, to challenge me and hopefully inspire me. It will be a way for me to try new things and really, just have fun! During this project, you will see children, nature, and a few random objects that have meaning to me at that moment.We’ll see if I make it to week 52.
Week 20
This week, I was visiting with my mom when she shared her excitement that her peony was blooming and that it was pink! The colors she was hoping it would be.It had just stopped raining… which was huge because it has been raining for over a week here in Louisville, KY, so I popped outside for a few minutes to capture a peony for my mom.
“9″ month portraits
There was finally a beautiful day in Louisville, KY! I’m going to blame the Kentucky weather for me not being able to actually take my daughters portraits at 9 months… she might be 10 months now…. That’s my story, I’m sticking to it.
There’s a little field that has these pretty yellow flowers, and I’ve been waiting for the rain to stop, and hoping they didn’t get mowed over before I got a chance to take my daughters portraits there. Thankfully, the stars aligned today and I feel so happy to have finally taken her portraits!
She’s wearing the same dress I took her 6 month portraits in, but this might be the last time she can wear it, it’s looking more like a long shirt at this point than a dress. She’s all of 22lbs at 10 months. She’s also a tomboy right now, loves to get messy, play with dirt… eat the dirt… and apparently she has a thing for eating flowers and grass too. (And dog food, but that’s a whole other story)
She’s an amazingly sweet little girl who screeches and sequels with delight (and discontent) all day long. She’s my constant inspiration, my pride, my joy. (And, to be fair, so is my son!!!)
But, enough about her… here’s what you really wanted to see!
FAQ: Cropping and Print Ratios
FAQ: What does it mean when you say “final images may not be cropped as proofed due to differences in cropping ratios.” Can’t you just change it to fit whatever size I want to print?
Answer: Yes…. and no. My camera has an output ratio of 8×12 (or 4×6). When I take portraits, I try to keep some extra space on the sides of the image. There are times where that just isn’t possible due to space limitations, but I do my best. Most proofed images will appear in the original 8×12 size. So, depending on the size you would like to print, you may not notice the crop, but if you want an 8×10, that will take off 2 inches from the proofed image.
Here are a couple examples of portraits and the print sizes. The purple outline is an 8×12 (or 4×6 ratio); everything inside the purple rectangle will print. The green is a 5×7 ratio, and the red is an 8×10. As you can see, the image with lots of room on the sides will crop very nicely no matter the size you wish to print. The other image is a very close crop (due to space limitations) and won’t print as an 8×10 very nicely.
If the situation arises that the print size you want will not crop nicely, you have a couple options. If you’re ordering through me (or have purchased the disk of images) I will gladly see if there is a way to add some room to the sides; sometimes this is possible, sometimes not. A great alternative would be to print in an 8×12 size. It’s not a well known size, but there are frames that would fit it. You might also consider purchasing a canvas, float wrap, or mounted print. All of which wouldn’t require a frame and would be beautiful artwork for your home.
If you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to ask! I hope this cleared up some questions you might have had about cropping and printing ratios!
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