…. this is just a taste? Meet Hannah. The second of my 2010 Kansas high school senior reps. Beautiful doesn’t even begin to describe her inside and out. And, in case you’re wondering, the answer is “yes, I’m still pinching myself.” To say she rocked the outfits, the poses, the locations would be an understatement.

While I always go into a high school senior session with a loose plan swimming around my head (and often my notebook) filled with colors, textures and desired shots we often take a stealth approach driving around new locations and seeing what inspires us, then hopping out, staging our shots, hopping back in and so on. What makes this process even more fun is being able to do it with fun parents who “get” this style of custom, natural light photography and play a vital role in helping to achieve the final product. Reed’s mom, Robin, and Hannah’s mom, Deb, are two such parents. I had a blast with them!

These are just a few of my favorites so far. Watch for more of Hannah, part two, as I wrap processing on this session.

Next up on the blog: gorgeous little Mia.

Meet Reed. The first of my 2010 high school senior reps to appear on the blog. I love photographing high school seniors just as much as I love the little ones and this session was no exception. And I’m so glad to be adding more boys to the gallery!

Could he get any more All-American?! In addition to being so handsome, he’s on the football team, loves his mom and is just an all-around great kid. (I can say “kid” now that I’m about a month away from hitting another decade milestone.) While I was taking shot number one, I noticed in a matter of seconds the sky behind him got very dark and then … boom … downpour. Serious downpour. Like the kind Tom Hanks talks about in “Forrest Gump” … “Rain coming up from the ground.” I had my camera gear shoved up under my shirt tail to keep it dry and we were stranded right there on that old train depot under the awning for a good 15 minutes while it passed. The good news: It was the last of the rain for the morning and the cloudy skies meant we could shoot anywhere we wanted without blazing, direct sun.

I’m smack in the middle of processing, but had to stop and share because I know mom is watching anxiously (there are so many more great shots, too!) Hi Robin! Watch for part two of this session next week as I wrap up. And, Deb – Hannah is next! For now, enjoy a few peeks:

in pure vintage style, of course. And who could blame him? With eyes like that (and need I mention those curls?) they’re going to be lined up around the block. At least around the playground.

But somehow I think big sister’s going to be watching his every move.

Meet Calvin and Emma and their mom and dad (the ones with the great recipe for stunning babies!) This is the third time they’ve appeared on the blog and, this session, we made our way downtown – along with Dad’s vintage ride – to commemorate Calvin’s second birthday.  I couldn’t find it in me to do one black and white conversion in the whole bunch … it seemed like sacrilege in light of the amazing colors. Enjoy some of my favorites!

I think we’re officially having a baby boom … if you keep up with this blog, then you’ll probably agree.  I had a mom text me this morning to say her water had broken (she didn’t “sign” her text, so it took me a few minutes to determine which of my expectant clients was on the way to the hospital) and by this afternoon, they welcomed a dark-haired, big-eyed, long-lashed beauty into the world. You’ll see her on the blog very soon along with several boys yet to be born in the next few weeks.

In the meantime, enjoy part two that of Sierra’s newborn photography session peeks. You can see part one here. Mom and Dad are wedding photographers in their own right (no pressure!) and wanted to ensure this session really captured their family with the baby, especially her big brother.

While the focus of a newborn session is typically those distinct images of the baby, I always tell parents who request shots of sibling(s) younger than age five with the newborn, that I will do my absolute best to work a few in (time permitting and once I’m sure we’ve captured the most important shots of baby alone).  I also underscore that, in these situations, we nearly always “get what we get” depending on the sibling’s desire to cooperate … something any parent of a toddler and preschooler totally understands. All that said, I have to say in this session, big brother was really, really good to us!

I’d love to say we planned it in the fourth image down, but the most beautiful things often just happen naturally … mid-pose, Sierra reached her left hand up to grasp brother’s hand from above. Enjoy!