You may remember this family; I just captured a family session with them two months ago when Mom was expecting baby number three here. Well, Olivia made her appearance since then and of course I HAD to get newborn images of her. She is just as adorable as her brothers and is settling into her family’s hearts quite nicely…and mine too!

It was so sweet to see how gently the boys treated her – for now, that is! Most little sisters soon learn to hold their own around their big brothers!

Carter still has a little of that “are we actually keeping her?” look about him:

And this one pretty much says it all – life as parents of a new baby!

Newborn photography in the upstate, Anderson SC newborn and baby photographer

My 9-hour drives to PA are made a lot more enjoyable by my satellite radio. Last week as I was driving home I was channel surfing and came across a talk show where they were discussing how to avoid the high cost of professional photography for a wedding. Basically the dilemma was how to get high quality, artistic, out-of-the-box different, reliable service…without actually paying much for it. Callers talked about their experiences using a friend, an art or photography student, a hobbyist, or someone who does it on the side without a registered (ie, tax paying) business. Several said they were thrilled with their choices, and some said they were sorely disappointed.

Let me say that I am in a fairly contemplative mood nowadays, as I just had another birthday and we are preparing to move into our dream home in just over a week. But I feel like I just have to share my thoughts on this topic, as it is a question that I myself struggled with as a young mom – why custom photography?

I have always loved photography, even more so when I had children and wanted to capture my wonder at their beauty and their personalities. I knew I didn’t want to forget any of it. I spent so much time trying to breathe in the moments, burn what they were like into my memory forever. I seriously did not believe that I would ever forget the way they looked, sounded, smelled, laughed. I almost didn’t even bother labeling the backs of photographs with dates and ages – I knew that I would instantly remember what age they were in those images, and where it was taken and why.

I was pretty good with a camera, and I was proud of a lot of the images I captured of their sweet faces and expressions and little outfits. I got lots of fun photojournalistic shots that I thought were very cool. I didn’t feel like I needed to spend money on custom photography when I took such great pictures, and besides, there were cute outfits to buy.

Well here it is, nearly thirty years later. The girls are grown, and I’m a nanna. I have been packing up old photo albums and scrapbooks for our move and have had some very sweet moments looking through them. But my underlying thought when I look at them is a feeling of a job not quite complete, and certainly not worthy of its goal of capturing my children completely and beautifully.

What I didn’t realize is that my “mommy goggles” colored the greatness of those pictures I took. At the time, my heart filled in the slight blur, the poor color, the over or underexposures. All I could see were my kids, like a mom views a child’s crayon drawing with pride because her darling produced it. And guess what? The memories do fade. I have to try to decipher an unmarked photo – sometimes I can’t even tell which baby it is!

I want to encourage all of you to take lots of photos, learn all you can about photography, document every happy moment. But I also want to share my experience with you in the hopes that you will not repeat my misguided mistakes. Especially in this economy it is important to cut back on unnecessary expenses, and certainly custom photography is a luxury. But I will tell you that it is one luxury that I wish I would have dedicated more resources to. I always managed to buy them cute clothes that are now so forgotten that it isn’t even funny. I took them to chain store studios to save money, but those images of them with giant bunnies for Easter are not something I would display in my home as art now. How I wish I would have supplemented my own pictures with professional ones!

Over the next few weeks I will be writing about all of the things that make custom photography worth it – and why it costs what it does. I don’t want to convince you just because I’m now a professional photographer (!). It’s because I want to make sure that you don’t have the same sense of loss that I do when the day comes that you have to pack up your own albums. And that day will come faster than you can believe possible.

(Anderson SC photographer, Lake Keowee Photographer, Washington PA photographer)

This session was intended to be a surprise Christmas gift for the grandparents of these twin girls, and no one (including their parents!) thought that they would actually be able to keep it that way. But lo and behold, neither of these sweetie-pies uttered so much as a hint, and their proud grandparents received a wonderful Storybook and dvd slideshow on Christmas that thrilled them to pieces! Btw, grandma made the little ponchos and jackets that you seee in these images, and that makes these even more special!

( Anderson Sc photographer, Washington, PA photographer )

This little sweetheart has been in front of my camera almost yearly since she was a tot, and it’s always such fun to see her grow and change. The camera just loves her, and so do I! Just look at what we got this year:

Clemson SC photographer, Anderson SC children’s photographer, Mt Lebanon PA photographer

This is Alex, whom I’ve been photographing forever. He is a typical little boy, on the run and loves to climb & play. The day of our session was a little nippy, but Alex was having a good time exploring the park and was just delightfully fresh-faced & rosy-cheeked…I just could eat him up!

(Anderson SC photographer, Clemson Family Portrait Photographer)

STILL kinda cold here; 20′s in the mornings, 40′s during the day. I’m still in the mood for comfort food, so I wanted to tell you about a recipe that I used to make all of the time and then just sort of FORGOT about.  Probably because I made it too ofetn before. Anyway, it’s for meatloaf – and the special ingredient is stuffing mix. If you have never tried it, well. you simply must.  And if you have, time to make it again! And there is nothing better than meatloaf sandwiches the next day.

1 1/2 lb LEAN ground meat (or it will be too greasy)

2 eggs

1/2 cup water

1 pkg Stovetop stuffing (chicken or herb) – dry, no need to prepare

1/4 c. ketchup

Mix all together, shape into a loaf, and bake at 350 for about  1 hr 15 min.  That’s it! You can pour tomato sauce or ketchup & sugar over the top if you wish (I don’t, because I serve with gravy & mashed potatoes).  If you are really adventurous, mix together & flatten into a rectangle about 3/4 inch thick, then top with seasoned mashed potatoes and roll up, seal ends, and bake.

(Anderson SC photographer, Clemson SC photographer)

Amy brought her boys to me after seeing other work of mine, and she was hoping that I could capture their personalities and spirit…as a mom, she knows that these precious growing up years are just going to fly by and she wanted to have images that capture who they are now.  These guys were like a pile of puppies, wrestling with one another and on the go, but with such genuine bright smiles! I can see glimpses of the teens they are growing into, so I’m so glad we did this now…I’ll bet the next time I see them they will look very different  How fun that they are a blonde, brunette, and a redhead! And they all have amazing eyes…

(Clemson SC photographer, Anderson, SC children’s photographer)

These girls are cousins of Italo & Rocco (see them here ), and I have been patiently waiting & hoping that I would get the opportunity to photograph them. Mom Jenn has been waiting for two-year-old Ruby to be – well, less TWO – so that the session would go smoothly and we would be sure to get good images. No doubt about it; these THRILLED me!

Ruby was named for a relative before she was even born – so that makes her gorgeous red hair even more remarkable!

Emma was a joy – posed for me in the freezing cold without complaint, and with that beautiful smile that never fades!

I have been using Cecil Park for my PA sessions when possible…it’s close to my old house, and it has some wonderful spots with great light for family pics. This is my third year for this family….here’s one from 2006:

And now…these kids just keep getting more adorable!

Mom & Dad:

I think I’ve photographed Julie’s kids for three years in a row now – always a fun time, they are easy & so photogenic! But this year I noticed a change; they are slowly entering that pre-pubescent stage…losing their baby looks….starting to stretch up, thin out, and give us glimpses of the teens that they will be. I love that – and I hate that at the same time. (sigh). But let’s not think about that too much! Just enjoy these wonderful kids, as always dressed perfectly in a fun colorful style that suits them so well!
Last year:

This year: