This little girl has had a personality all her own since day one!  She knows what she wants and knows how to get it.  You have to admire a kid that has that kind of spunk at 7 months old.  AND, let me tell you, for someone just learning to crawl….she is FAST!!!!!!  I absolutely adore this girl - She’ll always be the leader, make no mistake about that. She definitely called the shots during our session, she just let me think I was in control!

By the way…I call one of this portraits “I’ve got Daddy wrapped around my finger.”  Guess which one!

THE END…..

Ava and Luke brought their parents to see me one very cold morning!  So cold, that little Luke refused to stand on his own.  I couldn’t blame him, I was bundled up in a jacket and sweatshirt and I was cold.  So we decided that another day would probably be better.  Well, we were right.  The weather was warm but overcast and Luke was ready to play!  Ava is always the little model and was a charmer from the beginning.  I had a blast shooting this session.  These two were pretty active, so I went back to my candid roots and it paid off!

Jessica was one of the first to volunteer for my maternity model search and boy did I get lucky with her!  She is absolutely adorable and ALL BABY!  We had to move kind of quickly as she is 34 weeks along and approaching her due date.  I generally recommend maternity portraits be shot between 30 and 34 weeks, so we were definitely at the outer edge of that range.  Thanks to everyone that volunteered, I’ll blog each session as they take place!

This was quite a session!  It was a very warm, but calm day until right about session time.  The wind kicked up and was gusting quite a bit.  It made for some hair fly aways, but it also made for excellent images.  I was in love with the tall grass from the moment I saw it.  This was another one of those sessions (like the bamboo) that once I got my heart set on it, I could have shot in it all day and the way it was swaying in the wind was AWESOME!  Little Molly was quite the trooper and such a friendly, happy child.  It did not take her long to warm up to me at all.  She was fascinated with my camera and loved to chimp at shots of herself.  For those that don’t know what “chimping” is, it’s when people check their LCD screen after each shot to oooooh and ahhhhhh - professionals are usually checking more for exposure and focus, but we do our share of admiring too!

I have 4 new backgrounds, tons of new props and want to spice up my maternity portfolio!  I need 2 or 3 pregnant women between 30-35 weeks gestation.  You must be willing to come to Huntsville and shoot the session in the studio.  It’s nothing too risqué - simple wraps, jeans with tank tops, etc. For your time, you will receive, the complimentary session (obviously) , an 8×10 image of your choice, and 3-7 low resolution, watermarked images for use on social networking sites.  Older children and husbands are welcome to participate in the session with some limitations and exceptions.  Please contact me via email at jennifer@authentic-images.com for more information!

This is an example of one of the new wraps, I now have it in 4 different colors and backgrounds to match -

This was quite a session.  We walked all over that park, we explored just about every nook and cranny, we checked out rocks and bugs, but whenever I asked Dawson to look towards me, he always gave me such a sweet expression.  Capturing the personality of the child in an instant is what I love, but it’s the authentic smiles and gazes that melt my heart, and Dawson turned it to mush several times.

Oh, this weather is wearing on me!  On a day that only had a 30 percent chance of rain, it poured.  I thought we would get lucky and catch a few sprinkles before the session got started. It just kind of sprinkled on and off during the session.  We would wait under the porch for the sprinkles to clear and then run out into the park, catch a few shots and it would start raining again.  We eventually got caught and it POURED on us.  So, we have to reschedule to complete the session, but as promised, here are a few of what we were able to catch.  I think I shot for a total of five minutes.  The rest of the time was spent standing under the porch waiting.

Okay, well, we are back….well, kinda.  I am up and semi operational, I can now proof and I have access to all images, but orders and galleries are still on hold.  The software was not available for those yet.  So I am making do with what I have.  This session was a blast.  Let’s just say, I could have played in that bamboo all day.  I loved the light filtering through it, I love the texture it created, and it’s just as beautiful in black and white as it is in color.  It did help that Miss was all about getting her portraits made.  She played shy at first, but warmed up quickly.

Let me tell you, you don’t realize how much you depend on technology until you don’t have it available anymore.  There is very little I can do without a computer….MY COMPUTER, I should say.  I can’t proof or load galleries because the computer must be calibrated so that it’s color profile matches those of my lab, it must be loaded with the correct software to produce galleries and of course, having actual access to the pictures is always a bonus.   I can’t schedule sessions because I don’t currently have access to my calendar and scheduling software.  I can’t even reconcile my bank statement right now, because I don’t have access to my books.  I’ve spent more time on facebook the last 2 days then in the entire 3 months before combined.  That’s really all I can do!  I can answer emails from my husband’s computer and surf the net.  I’m frustrated and I’m bored, but I am thankful that I can at least communicate still.  Ugh, just a few more hours and everything will be back to normal!!! <—- I hope!

Winner - LANDON

THE PRIZE:

• A complimentary session, completely conceptualized by Jennifer.  Clothing will be provided, as will age appropriate props and choices in locations.
• A  full session album - a beautiful black leather bound album presented in a satin lined box for storage and safekeeping.  Contains 20-30 5×7 portraits from your session.

2nd Place - TORI

THE PRIZE:

• A complimentary session in the Huntsville area.
• A  custom designed storyboard collage from the session.

3rd Place - ZOEY

THE PRIZE:

• A complimentary session in the Huntsville area.
• A  custom designed desktop collage from the session.

Thanks to everyone that entered and those that voted.  This was by far the most successful contest yet.  I’ll be running another one in the fall with just a slight twist to it and an even bigger prize!  Stay tuned!

To all the winners, I will be in touch to get everything scheduled as soon as the computer/schedule is back up and in complete operation!