Moments to Remember at Photography Sessions

Now and again things happen at photography sessions that make one laugh, though usually not until a bit later after a glass of wine or two. A small sampling…

1. I was doing a very casual portfolio building shoot of a friend’s 3-month old son at my house on my back deck. She took her glasses off to get some pictures holding her child without the specs and my own child grabbed her glasses, broke them, and dropped them under the deck. We had to fish them out (or rather, I did, as she really is basically blind without her glasses) using a hook AFTER we located where they were by peering through the wooden boards at the assorted dead leaves below. Finding patterned brown glasses in dead leaves with almost no light is, well, interesting. I told her to let me pay for new ones. Did she? No. They are STILL taped together and that boy is 18 months old now. Every time I see them I feel glasses-guilt. Lesson learned: don’t ever try to do even the most casual shoot with your kids around. This just doesn’t end well.
2. I did a maternity session for one woman and was doing a set of rapid fire pictures, one after another, of the same pose. When I went back to proof the pictures, as I flipped from one to the next, I realized I could see the baby shifting around inside her womb and causing her abdomen to change shape. I’ve also had a woman have contractions during the shoot; she was a trooper and hiked all over West Hartford Center – in high heeled boots – pausing only briefly during contractions. She admitted she hoped the walking would bring on full labor. No such luck. I did, however, once have a mother go into full labor about 5 hours after our session.
3. Babies pee on my ALL THE TIME. It’s just part of the job and one reason I wear very casual clothes to shoots. Only once, however, did I manage to actually catch an arc of pee in the air when I pushed the shutter RIGHT as the baby peed. If this happens to you I will add a complimentary 4X6 of that shot for you to tuck away until your child’s wedding rehearsal dinner when you can add it to the slideshow of cute childhood pictures. This will be payback for the sleep deprivation.
4. At a wedding I once, camera gear hanging from my neck, jumped down a river bank to grab a blow-away ketubah that the wind had snatched and was attempting to introduce to the water, not 15 minutes after every single person in the family had signed it. This was not in the fine print of “How to be a wedding photographer.” I’ve also helped a bride into her dress, which eliminated any sweet “the bride getting dressed” shots but ensured that she actually DID get zipped into her dress.

Ridiculously Adorable Little Boy

People ALWAYS want to know how to dress their kids. Little boys in tank-tops and jeans are about as cute as it gets. It gives them the freedom to show me the bugs they find (and, err… your kids will probably end up dirty after a photo shoot with me – best not to plan a fancy dinner directly afterward) and to sit in the mud or climb a tree. Of course, I’m perfectly happy to send a girl in a linen dress into the mud too but there is just something about a little boy in a simple shirt and jeans that evokes timeless childhood innocence in a way that ties and button down shirts just don’t.

Mini Session Marathon Sneak Peeks

Last Saturday I held a series of mini sessions in what I confess is my favorite location, Westmoor Park. All the participants enjoyed (or, at least I hope they enjoyed) a 30-45 minute session with some shots in the barn and some in the fields.

I love barn light. Really really love it.

There were a variety of victims. Errr… subjects. Families, 3-year-old twins, 1-year-old twins, children with more fashion sense than I can ever hope to have, older kids, younger kids and special needs kids. It was a wild ride of photography and, for many people, playing in the park afterward. There are chickens to see, a free roaming rooster to ogle, a very friendly horse (and, no, my hair is NOT a snack despite what he seemed to think) much open space to run in, barn cats that like even young, active children. Westmoor Park is such a hidden treasure, tucked away in West Hartford, and I always like to be able to introduce more people to it.

Each mini-session guaranteed 5-10 images (though I’ve finished proofing one and thanks to my lack of self discipline there are 18 final pictures from which to choose) and the $100 fee is wholly applied to the initial order which, of course, makes the actual session free. I am thinking about doing one more set of this style of mini-sessions for the holidays. But, enough of my prattle. Here are some pictures…

Library Snapshot Week in West Hartford

I love the West Hartford Public Library and so do my kids. The children’s preschool room is truly incredible with fabulous comfortable sofa benches, a train table, doll houses, a puppet theatre, a play kitchen and more along with books galore. My kids ask to go there regularly and along with the basic “free-ness” of the library they also validate parking for the closest parking garage which is great in the winter when, well, I’m not walking the 4 blocks to the library with two three-year-olds if I don’t have to. They getting there isn’t so bad, it’s the getting them back home, tired, overexcited and grumpy, that’s less than fun.

Given how much I love the library volunteering for Library Snapshot Week was a natural fit for me.

The primary purpose of this community-based project is to showcase the library through photographic images. During Library Snapshot Week selected photographers will take pictures of our library, the building, patrons, staff, etc. Of the photos taken, some will be chosen for display in the Noah Webster Library Gallery, on the library website, or used for library promotional purposes, but all for the benefit of the community.

Over 30 photographers participated coming in both one Sunday morning for what I called “still-life day” and then taking pictures through the libraries during one week. Over 1,000 pictures were donated to the library for them to use promoting their services, 20 of which were selected to be hung in a gallery show.

Two of mine are there, including this one:

The exhibit will be up until March 31st and I encourage you to drop in and take a look.

Mission Santa Clara

Why You Don't See Them All

I shoot LOTS more pictures than I ever show anyone, least of all a client. Every once in a while someone asks why. I hereby submit my poor, innocent child as my example of why, no, you really don’t want to see them all.