Emmett endured his first photo session today…handled it like a pro! #LadyKiller
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...a collective
Amanda and I go way back. Seems she’s always been involved in the Big Sister program. Love that about her! When I asked for unique ‘twosomes’ to volunteer for a project I was working on she jumped at the chance to schedule a session for she and her ‘little’. This is ‘Joy’…she loves to read so I met them at the Minneapolis Central Library…..she’d never been. So fun!
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Hmmmm…what I love most about photographing kids? Good question. What I love most about photographing children is the opportunity to get together with them year after year on or around their birthday to see and capture their growth both physically and to see who they are becoming as a person. I have had the pleasure of capturing Kathryn for 10 years now and she never ceases to amaze me. She’s 11 now….. WOW! What a joy she is. So grown up, full of both confidence and humility.
We try to do something different each year to mark her birthday milestone and this year I asked a friend (Jenny Phillips of The Country Camera) if I could borrow her property out in Medina and we set the date. While Kathryn actually turned 11 back in May, we went ahead and let summer happen then grabbed a great autumn day and let Kathryn…be Kathryn….
Then we added her cavachon, Sam….
My niece, Gemma, turned 21 on Monday. Rather than mixing it up and gifting her with a bottle of wine or fun flavored vodka for this momentous occasion, I opted to stick with my time honored tradition of a lively portrait session….no hangovers here! I think this makes 8 years running now. Gemma works at Taglio (pronounced Tah’ lee oh) in Excelsior so I sort of got bumped out of the hair portion of the gift but they really have fun with her hair so we just spend more time shooting! This year, I called upon a friend and fellow photographer, Jenny Phillips out at The Country Camera in Medina, MN. She hosted a TCPPA summer picnic on her property last year and I walked around in awe. A lovely farm on 200 acres..close enough yet far enough out to give you that “wide open spaces” feel. Gemma said, “Well, I’m not really a country girl.” And when we wrapped..she was impressed! I love you, Gemma. Here are a few of my faves….
The youngest of 3 means, quite clearly, you rarely get to do things first in the family. It’s either been done, being done or no one gets to do it. But don’t tell that to Amanda, she’s a trail blazer and doesn’t normally let things stand in her way. You see, being 3rd also means that the bar has been lowered by each previous child making things, sometimes, more attainable. Now, I’m no parent but I occasionally get the opportunity to “fill in” and my style, well…let’s just say…it’s pretty loose. I even get the “green light” from time to time with some of my nieces and nephews because…well, people trust me…and by people, I mean…my siblings. They trust that I will use my better judgment and not get carried away, make a scene or lose my mind. Yesterday was no exception. It was Amanda’s turn to redeem her (October 22nd) birthday gift from aunt Sue….a new “do” and a photo session.
I’m pretty certain that most 10 year old girls (outside of “toddlers and tiaras”!) don’t get to have highlights put in there hair and then toss on a little mascara and head out to a location and have their own private photo shoot compete with props. Yippee for Amanda cuz that’s just what we did yesterday. Due to the fact that Amanda has 2 older (girl) cousins and an older sister that have received this gift in the past she has a tendency to want to emulate their sessions and often likes to get a little serious. But we have fun too, don’t get me wrong.
We got a late start yesterday and with daylight savings time ending I’d forgotten to plan on the sun setting earlier but we got it done! Being 10 also means that high on her list was getting to a family function on time for cake that afternoon and it set the pace for the shoot! Amanda wanted to hit the same location that her cousin, Jess, hit on Saturday for her shoot so once the hair was perfect we hopped in the car and headed back out to the University of Minnesota’s Landscape Arboretum in Chanhassen, Minnesota.
I love her. Here’s a few of my faves from the day….can’t believe she’s 10 already!