Brothers.

Cousins.

I could shoot with this delicious lighting every day and never tire of it {and subjects as perfect as these boys}!

Oh the temptations for three young boys climbing on this contraption… they showed a lot of restraint for this portrait!

After we “finished,” we let the boys cut loose and this perfect scene unfolded. This is why when I say I’m “done” I never put my camera up right away:

Photographing children is outrageously fun & unpredictable! You never know what you will get & they are quite entertaining.
Here are some outtakes from their vintage inspired portrait session:

I enjoyed this session so much, a big thank you to their mamas for coordinating their outfits and helping to keep everything flowing on such a hot March day! We enjoyed popsicles at the end {to my satisfaction}. My one regret is that I didn’t incorporate the women behind the scenes, but I look forward to when we will! ♥

Nathaniel’s newborn session took place at Carriage Hill Farm located in Huber Heights, there’s a lot of charm & excellent natural backdrops to use in portraits.

I am love with every perfect wrinkle he has.

It’s probably obvious that while I was photographing Nathaniel & preparing this post, it just made me all the more ready to meet our little man. With every kick and movement I wonder what he looks like and what he will think of our world. It can be distracting, but I love daydreaming about him :]

Congratulations Samuel & Suzanne, I’m so very happy for the two of you!

I’ve been eagerly anticipating spring and couldn’t wait to start shooting outdoors again. The idea was to create a sweet picnic for two adorable sisters with a yellow theme. As I’ve been assembling this post, Pandora played a live version of Coldplay’s Yellow. No kidding. I had to laugh at the very appropriate selection.

I love cotton candy & how it never fails to take me back to being a little girl. Usually, the portions are too much to eat at once. I made some quick cotton candy suckers by slicing the cotton candy, then cutting it with a cookie cutter. I assembled the cotton candy hearts on the candy stick with a small dab of lemon curd. I recommend them if you have some main desserts but want a pop of color and flavor for a shower, wedding, or birthday. I’ll have to post a DIY with pictures of how I assembled them and some creative ideas. The only drawback: they won’t last long.

Right now the earth is still waking up, so it’s pretty bare around here. Last fall & throughout the winter I shot most of my sessions in the field just at the edge of Tipp City. It’s ideal for some outdoor shots without showcasing our severe lack of greenery on the trees {plus it’s within walking distance of some other great historical backdrops}. It complimented their spring wardrobes perfectly.

Angie’s dad, {my uncle Dan}, was a Marine so I didn’t get to see her family a lot when they lived in Japan. Her daughter Madison looks exactly like the Angela I remember from when we were little and they were visiting one Easter…

I love these… Austin looked so handsome in his cowboy hat & you can just see how much he loves being with his mama!

When we were finished with their session we stopped to reward “the kids” with ice cream {Angie & I had some too of course!} and wrapped up the day enjoying our treats at the park. Madison picked me my first flower of the year and even though we were “finished” I had to snap one more…

Angie, your family is so beautiful… I had such a lovely day with you three! ♥

Here are some pictures from spending a beautiful spring morning with the Waltons…

Jack, I love your curls!

A little known fact about Jack, he’s quite a literary enthusiast.

All styling done by Mr. Jack. I just had the pleasure of watching & photographing him at work.

He kept track of every book they read and made sure Kerry got to every single one. I love how particular little people can be.

She makes pregnancy look so amazing:

I love Kerry’s modern style. It can be hard to find maternity clothes, but accessories & colorful shoes always make an outfit feel more fun {and you can still wear them after the bambino gets here}!

Kerry, you are beautiful in every stage of life. I wish your family all the best and can’t wait to meet your precious little baby! Happy Birthday lovely mama ♥

I don’t plan on updating my other blog, Military Spice anymore. I have to admit I miss food photography. I love it.

I usually try to brainstorm ideas for cakes early in advance, but it’s been very busy. I only had 24 hours to sketch, gather supplies, bake, assemble, and decorate the cake {and cupcakes}. I was inspired by cakes I found on Flickr, it never fails to give me unique ideas.

The monkey, green pillow & tag were last minute additions. They helped bring some color to the cake that fit my color palette. I had tried to incorporate some yellow as the crib sheet color, but I added too much gel & it was almost fluorescent! I covered that layer with white fondant & I’m not sorry.

This is kind of what it’s like when you become a mama… your baby puts the world into focus.
It becomes easy to make decisions because you can see what matters & what can wait…

Best wishes to Sam & Suzanne as they welcome this baby boy soon!

Next I’ll talk about seeing Wicked at the Schuster Center in Dayton. I made the mistake of reading & falling in love with the books first…

{The “Subscribe by E-mail” option for getting notifiications when there are new posts is finally working!}

I always start any session out with some poses. Once we get them out of the way, we start having fun:

After playing, the little ones forget that I’m aiming my lens at them.

The man behind the snow. One of his amazing special-effects-snow-balls blew towards him because of the wind…

I know they made everything look fun & comfortable, but it was truly freezing outside!

I love watching toddlers check everything out. No matter their response, it’s priceless.

Aimee… you’re gorgeous.

Nataly’s enthusiasm is awesome. Love those bouncing curls :]

So it turns that The Greene isn’t just a great place to shop at the gigantic Forever 21 or grab Chipotle. It’s an excellent backdrop for photographs, especially as twilight approaches and all the city lights are illuminated against a kaleidoscopic sky…

On the other hand, I made some good friends at my church. During that painfully awkward year, Sarah became a good friend and we’ve been able to stay close.  We’ve had so many long conversations about husbands & children before either of those things were a reality for us.  There were years of wonderful, innocent memories made enjoying life {even though we always longed to be “adults”}.  Our sons were born on each other’s due date, two years apart. We always look forward to their birthday month & discuss how quickly they are growing. Her family is beautiful & she is blessed with two good “mans” {as my son would call them}. These were taken in the ripeness of fall and I  hope they do her favorite season justice. I wanted most of them to remain colorful, because there is such a short time when the colors are naturally this amazing.

Her Shiba Inu, Cider, is so adorable! I love when pets can make a cameo in family pictures, especially one as photogenic as hers :]

I love you Sarah Ann… I’m so glad you are part of my life.

Miriah is a year old, and I love how at that age, everything is new & their curiosity is so obvious. She made me smile all over again working with these pictures.

And because her shoes were insanely adorable, had to show them in color :]

Recap of October II still in the works as well as three weddings & three engagements. I am gonna be a blogging machine for the next couple weeks ;]

Photographing them with their children is pretty much as good as it gets. When people make your life more beautiful for so many years & encourage you through every teenage disaster, then, you have an opportunity to show them how special their life is… it’s just cool.

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With all my love, enjoy.

I love standing back quietly as a witness. Watching. Waiting… for innocence to bloom through my lens.

Tara{h}: He is growing so fast. But he couldn’t be more handsome or sweet. You’re a beautiful mama!

Love the colors in the next two of Tara & Zak. They were some of the last ones we took as the sun was setting.

Love my lens. Especially how it enables me to give Photoshop a break so often…

Tiffany had asked me to do her wedding while I was still in school for graphic design. It was a really big encouragement, since I had never thought of doing photography that way before. I regret not doing her wedding for her, but she has continued to help inspire & coax me in that direction.
The next time I was asked by another friend, I said yes.
And good things have happened.
I will always try to continue making it up to her…

And one more…

Sometimes I add lens flare in my “digital darkroom.” This one was natural {rainbow & all}. Lucky timing.

Hope you enjoyed these photos, they were truly a labor of love. Thanks for being part of my life {for so long} you two!
Which one was your favorite?