Brent pointed out to me last night that in my long family post he didn’t see any of Dave and Debbie.  I guess their kids are so darn cute that I skimmed right over them!  But, I need to show were all the cuteness comes from. 🙂

I’m off to have a little quality time with my mac…and sort through the 1,000+ photos from this weekend!

-Kristin

I feel like every photo session is meant to be.  This one is no exception.  I received the call as a referral from Shannon, so I had never met the family.  They even traveled as far away as Denver to spend the holidays together.  It was an absolute pleasure meeting each and every one of them!

The session took place in Encino…at a location I’d never been to.  It was like traveling back in time with historic buildings and a big orange grove.

We had a little fun with the oranges…

Here little Gabe…

Benjamin…

And Toby…

We wanted to get some casual photos and the pathway was just gorgeous with the light streaming in, so I had the family walk together.  I love informal these turned out!

I LOVE this shot of grandma and grandpa!

I’ll finish up posts of the two sisters’ families…

Well, family…I hope you had as much fun as I did.  And even more I hope these photos are keepsakes for you to remember how much you love each other!

-Kristin

Yesterday was full of kids, fun and more kids!  The first photo session was months in the making.  When we finally coordinated everyone’s schedules it happened to be on a perfectly clear day.  I could go on and on about how fun these guys are, but I’ll let the pictures do the talking…

Not only are these guys loads of fun, but they are also great looking!

Grandma Helen is so sweet with all the kids.  Here are a few adorable pictures of her with the kids…

And here’s some more cutie pie kids!

These photos don’t even scratch the surfase of all the fun we had and shear number of cute images that are on my computer waiting to be seen!  And stay tuned…before I go to bed tonight I’ll be sharing from my second photo session of the day.

-Kristin

I’ve been rained out before, but today I was winded out.  It was so windy, we had to postpone the photo shoot until tomorrow, so my clients wouldn’t have 80’s hair!

Instead, we went out to breakfast with my little sister- Janelle and my brother in law- Skylar.  The first reaction when I told the kids that Aunt Janelle was coming for Christmas was…and I quote ‘Aunt Janelle’s crazy!!!’

We don’t let Jillian wear fuchsia lipstick in public, unless it’s MOOD lipstick given to her by Aunt Janelle.  Apparently the only mood is fuchsia colored…hmmm.

Why use a fork, when you can use your fingers???

We ventured outside, and as you can see it was a bit cold!

And here’s Jillian’s new shoes…

Tomorrow will be a busy day with two photo shoots and more hang out time with Aunt Janelle and Uncle Skylar!

-Kristin

There’s nothing better than reliving Christmas through the eyes of your kids…

I know I can always count on Cooper for a great reaction to his presents.  He was counting on a fish for Christmas.  He chose “bring a pet to school” as his last rainbow prize at school (way back in October-even though we didn’t have any pets!)  He was told by Mrs. Claus that his wish list would be pinned up in the elves’ workshop.  He was SURE the fish was coming.

Brent and I tried to come up with some other options…a remote control fish for the pool.  Would that work?  In the end, we decided to bite the bullet and add a new member to our family.

This morning we welcomed Freddie the Fish…named by Cooper.

Getting to know Freddie…

Freddie, I hope you survive many years at our house.  But, just in case you don’t, I’m glad to know you have many identical twins back at the pet shop that could step in for you if needed.

-Kristin

Merry Christmas everyone!!

Now that all the cards have been sent and are hanging on fridges across America, I can share a few of the cards I designed this year.  I calculated over 2,000 cards that went out with my name on the back…that’s a lot of cards!

Here are just a few I wanted to share.  I love how each card really shows the personalities of the families that chose them.

I can’t believe tomorrow’s Christmas Eve!  I hope you are all tucked in with your loved ones, enjoying these days in your nice cozy homes.

-Kristin

I love the entire process.  Brainstorming locations, picking out clothes, getting to know families, having fun, capturing the perfect moment, downloading it all, oohing and ahhing over what I get to work with, and finally adding my artistic touch to the image.

If you give 4 photographers the same photo, you’d end up with 4 different versions.  We all have our own style.  But, sometimes it’s hard to narrow down the direction I want to take a photo.

Here’s an image of Jillian I took this summer.  I was playing around today with different versions of the same girl. 🙂

And sometimes I decide that I just want to crop it totally different than the way I took the photo.

I’m off to snuggle with this cute girl…

-Kristin

Before we even begin, I’m going to warn you this will be a loooooong post.  I guess I’m making up for the last few where I just showed one image.  And I have good reason to share lots…we had an awesome photo session!

Can you believe it was 50 degrees??  It’s the coldest day since I’ve been here and Erika and Jacob had to make it look warm and toasty!

Are these two not the cutest couple!?  And the sofa…oh, the sofa.  As soon as a client starts talking about taking furniture outside, I know it’s meant to be. 🙂

I just gave a photography class to a local mom’s group and was telling them that doorways are one of my favorite places to shoot.  Not only does it frame the subject, but the light comes in perfectly.

Later we ventured down the street and found this amazing textured door…

And we couldn’t leave without incorporating a bit of orange.  It’s the new black, you know.

Erika told me her favorite pictures of the two of them are kissing pictures, so I have to post one for her on the blog…

I have a feeling you will be kissing the same way when you’re 90.  It’s great to see people so in love…

-Kristin

Today’s post isn’t about the picture…

…but I had to share any way.  Ben snapped this for me with his camera phone.  They installed the pictures I took way back in October.  I think it’s the biggest I’ve ever seen my work!  I’ll be going by to check it out soon and will take more pictures to share.

Fresh Foods Cafe opens in January at Catalina Landing in Long Beach…so go check them out!  If their food is anything like what Ben makes at home, it’s going to be phenomenal!

-Kristin