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Alexis

I'd like to introduce to you, Alexis.
This little cutie just became a big sister on Monday!

Seems to be a trend (probably just in age) but boooy, did she make me work for my shots! Her mommy was ready to have her baby brother "any minute now" the day that we did this shoot (couple of days later she did!). So, if I had to chase Alexis around the living room to tickle her, then so be it! We wanted to make sure to capture her as she was when her little brother was born.

We danced, we sang, we played chase ... all while Reed napped in his room. Shame, he would have really liked to meet Alexis. She was a lot of fun!

Hopefully, she will be back soon for pictures with her new brother!! Congrats to her family, we wish you the best.

I just love the little pooty face in the last shot ... Enjoy!

Beautiful little Talia

Beautiful little Talia is a good example of why a photographer should always be on their toes! If I had just told her mom, "well, she doesn't want her pictures taken today sorry" we would have missed some of her most beautiful moments. Those moments are when a child is just being themselves ... and it's not always the side that mom would like them to be at that moment, right?! Not all kids (especially at 2 years old) are going to flash their best "cheese" on command (my son would be one of those kids!!).

I was happy to have the chance to capture Talia ... even on her terms.

That's the way God makes them - love every moment of it!

A House FULL of Blessings

How can you NOT have fun photographing a family with 7 kids? Well ... I have to admit, I was pretty nervous going into this session. But it didn't take long before I caught their enthusiasm ... and these kids where pros in front of the camera! This wasn't their first family shoot - that was for SURE!


They spent the morning just being themselves and I did what I do - capturing it best I could! Everyone seemed to really be enjoying themselves. It was fun to get a glimpse of what must go on in such a FULL house ... but sure glad I don't have to worry about being the "bathroom police" on Monday mornings in that place! yikes!


One of my favorite shots is below where the kids are all chasing each other and baby Joshua is running away just as it becomes chaos! It's like he knew everyone was going to end up on the ground and he didn't want to be in the way. It may prove that the 7th child is instinctually born with knowing when to say "I'm outta here!"


I'd like to thank the Hoovers for making my job easy & for reminding me to watch what I pray for - maybe 1 little boy is plenty!

Hand Them the Camera, Let Them Amaze You

Yesterday, I toted Reed along to a Snap Happy Mom's meet up at the Japanese Friendship Garden. When he asked "Why Jap-you-knees Gardens?" I told him we were going to take some pictures. Fortunately, an old point & shoot camera that Reed has declared his own was in the car because he responded with "Me too takem pictures Mommy!".

And that he did! While we waited for the other moms to arrive he took pictures of the parking lot, pine needles on the ground, and a passing helicopter.

I thought for sure that once we got inside the gardens he would hand me the camera and take off. Don't get me wrong ... he TOOK OFF running alright ... but not until he took a few shots of the gardens.

I didn't look at what was on his camera until we got home. I was amazed that he was very intentional about what he wanted in his pictures. I had underestimated that he was just pushing the shutter, he actually aimed and captured what he was seeing he wanted to capture. When I showed him his uploaded pictures he said, "Ya, takem picture of flowers" ... like 'of course that's my picture, that's what we went there to do'.

He pleasantly surprises me over & over ... he also reminds me that God knows exactly what we need when we need it. Through Reed, I understand that there's no need to wait to start writing those "Workshops for Kids" that I've been planning for when he gets older ... they see beauty & wonder at ALL ages!

BOY, God sure did pack a lot into this kid!
I know every mom thinks their child is something special ... but mine sure IS!

... and one of my favorite parts of the whole story - I was able to capture him TAKING those pictures. Some day I may be HIS assistant and I'm completely okay with that!

(just in case you're wondering, the bigger pictures in the collage are his)

Baby Matthew

Have you ever seen a cuter bunny?!

Not only was baby Matthew one of the cutest babies I've photographed, but his parent get the Klicken award for working the hardest I've EVER seen to get a baby to smile! Oh my goodness, they cracked ME up! I wish I had video of it! :)

These shots were to celebrate Matthew's 6 month birthday.

We had tons of fun and some of these shots are my personal favorites so far!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter and look forward to our beautiful Spring weather ... perfect weather for getting Mother's Day photos done!! (wink, wink)

Hope you enjoy baby Matthew's shots as much as I enjoyed taking them!

Happy Spring!!

Beautiful Camilla

One of the most rewarding things about my job is working with little ones like Camilla. Taking photographs of a 2 year is a LOT of work! I have a very short time to make a friend, make her feel comfortable, and try to capture the wonderful little person she is - all in under 2hrs! No easy task!

But I was determined to try to show how much spunk God packed into this little beauty! And she definitely made me work for it ... as her mom & Aunt chased her around, I tried to convince her I was a "safe place" to run towards. It took her a while to warm up to me but it was WELL worth the wait!!

Being a mom of a toddler, it was interesting to me (and a little bit of a relief) to see that some "attitude" is just part of being 2 and discovering independence. You can tell from some of the little smirks on her face, Camilla's mom has her work cut out for her!

Such a beautiful little girl ... Happy 2nd Birthday Camilla!

Please enjoy some of my favorite shots from the session.

In Loving Memory

I don't know what to say other than this was a good man & he will be missed terribly. Thank you Lord that we were able to capture these loving moments just a couple of months ago ... and thank you that we were able to learn so much from him while he was here.

Hug your loved ones.

The best part of Spring ...

I think one of my favorite things about spring is BABIES! Spring is so full of new life! Flowers, bunnies, babies - love love love it!

It was a pleasure to photograph this little cutie again. She's already SO much bigger then when I saw her in January!

Even though I can't wait to shoot her when she's just starting to walk, I told her parents not to wish away a single moment!!

Next thing you know, they are sassing, potty training, and pretending to shoot you with a laser when you say "No more candy!" ... it all happens so fast! Enjoy every precious moment with your little ones! (and bring them to me every couple of months so we can capture it all!!)

And now, here's more of little Danica ...




(By the way, I made this little bonnet she's wearing so if you need shots in a special flower or color for your sweet baby - just ask! I may just make one for you!)

Look Mommy! Take'um Pictures

No one has ever seen me move as fast as I did when I heard Reed say "Look Mommy, take'um pictsher!" ... I just about knocked Randy down to get my camera! You see, I'm what Reed refers to as the 'Mommarazzi' - he avoids looking at the camera at ALL costs! To hear him ASK for me to take his picture was a 1st ... it was better then hearing "free cheeseburgers!".

It may never happen again, so I took advantage of it! I didn't even get my settings completely dialed in before he told me to stop - but hey, beggars cant be choosers!
This collage is my 1st attempt at using a storyboard template. I downloaded some templates after getting my hands on an older version of PS Elements. This one isn't perfect but I'll get the hang of it because boy, do these make life easier! Expect to see plenty more!

I haven't blogged as much as I'd like to lately. But don't worry! I have lots on my list of topics to get caught up on ... so stay tuned! I have 2 giveaways in the works, some CUTE shots of an Easter session to post, and some tips for Mom's with SLRs. There's also another workshop scheduled for 3/31, email me for details or check out the Klicken Photography Facebook page!

Thanks for stopping by!

Erika's Senior Session

Last week I had the honor on meeting & shooting Erika. She'll be graduating in May so we wanted to make sure to get some extra special shots.

I think she may have learned that modeling wasn't as easy as it looks! But she did a great job & we had a fun session. The location was beautiful ... Erika was beautiful ... what a great afternoon! I felt so blessed to be part of such a special time for her!

I'd like to wish Erika the best ... you only graduate high school once, so have FUN! but be SAFE!

SLR Basics Workshop

I'd like to thank the 8 or so moms who came to the workshop on Wednesday! and a big THANK YOU to Anna for setting it up.

I know its hard to listen, learn, and watch the little ones, you did great! I hope everyone took something away with them.

For those of you who missed it, here's the list of what we covered:

• Automatic Modes - what are they? what do the different modes do?
• Semi Automatic Modes - what are they? what do the different modes do?
• Manual Mode - what is it? what do I need to practice in order to confidently use it?
• 3 Elements of Exposure - what does ISO, shutter speed, and aperture have to do with it?
• DoF - what does it mean? what setting should I use and when?

It was a LOT to cover in about an hour, so please don't feel like you'll never understand. The key is to PRACTICE! Get out of the fully automatic mode & start practicing with Av! All moms have a perfect subject matter - their kids! You can practice by documenting the fleeting moments of their childhood. What's their favorite toy? What face do they make that just melts your heart? Do they have a favorite t-shirt? Get pictures!! 2 years from now you will have shots to take you down memory lane.

The next class will cover how to use your camera settings to get more creative shots. I will also try to cover some information on composition. So watch for information on when & where. If you aren't a Facebook Fan, become one so you don't miss it!

But if there's some burning question or you just don't know where to find the information - please ask! I may know where to direct you.

Practice, practice, practice!

and thanks again!

The Full Service Me...

Lately, I've been really thinking about my photography business ...
where do I want to go?
who do I want to be?
how do I set those goals for myself?

One of the things I've come to realize is that like anything in life, if you are working on everything; you master nothing.

It's not easy to go from thinking about posing a bride one day to posing a high school senior the next. I feel that in order to really improve my skills, I need to focus & specialize. That led to the next question, what do I love to photograph?

I've had a few comments that my business card looks like I "only shoot babies & bellies". I put a lot of thought into that and have come to the conclusion that while I enjoy ALL photography, I'm passionate about babies & bellies. I think that shows in my work. I've also decided (for now) that weddings are an extension of that because they lead to bellies & babies!!

That's not to say that I won't be doing Family & Kid sessions ... because well, babies get older! But I think my marketing will really be more focused on Maternity & Newborn sessions. It's what I started out wanting to capture - the beginnings of God's beautiful gift! And to really feel like my work honors that, I need to get better at it.

In the meantime, I'll continue to be a 'Full Service Photographer'.
You want pictures, I'll take them.
But if you know anyone that's pregnant - send them my way!!
Practice makes perfect!
Photography is a continuous learning process - that's why I LOVE it!

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Spring is Near!

Spring is my FAVORITE time of year! I'm so excited that spring is almost here!! Sessions at the park, beautiful Arizona weather, and its perfect "Family Photo" time!

And I can't think of a better way to get excited about it then to shoot some Easter pictures ... of Emery!

Some of you may remember that I took some pictures of Emery's beautiful little smile last August (picture above right). She wear some very special little beanies for me. We had such a great time that I just about couldn't wait until it was time for her to put on a cute little Easter dress!!

Well, the time has finally arrived! ... and even though she wasn't feeling well, I think her images will still make you smile.

Beautiful Baby Boy

This week I had the pleasure of meeting little Rhett. At 7 days old, he's one of the youngest babies I've photographed.

I'm always amazed how tiny, warm, and snuggley newborns are. And that particular baby smell is God's way of making sure they WILL be snuggled!

Rhett was so much fun to capture. He never actually feel completely asleep so I patiently waited until he closed his eyes or yawned. And for a newborn, he was SO active! Already lifting his head up and making his mommy and me WORK to get him posed just the right way. All this beautiful boy wanted to do was eat. Glad he won't remember it was me that delayed his snacks!

Congrats to John & Emily. The most precious gifts are given to those who had to wait! Thank you Lord for little Rhett.