Loving at home photo sessions and my sweet subjects. They make me want to cozy up in bed and cuddle warm bed-headed children…
I made this painted gray canvas backdrop last year and I’ve become quite fond of it. It gives a nice clean crisp look to black and whites, but with the seams and un-even paint, it has a perfectly unperfect feel.
I’ve been using it in my recent newborn sessions and must say I’m loving it!
Hey all…just a quick update that I have filled all the 8 spots for August 10 underwater photo sessions. Woohoo! If you’re interested in being added to a wait list or the possibility of adding time slots to the day, please send me an email. info@kristineldridge.com Don’t miss out on this one…my cousin a crazy talented surf photographer and the two of us working together is going to result in some epic photos!
He also does some amazing videography. Here’s a little taste of what he recently created…
Attention water babies! I’m doing a very special limited edition summer promo on August 10. I’ll be teaming up with my cousin/surf photographer, Kyle MacLennan, to offer underwater photo sessions.
Here’s the scoop:
$120 for 30 minutes and 1/2 off all digital images if you order within a week of proofing.
Kyle will be shooting underwater and I’ll be shooting above water. The location will be at my pool in Long Beach. Parents will need to get in the water if their child is not a proficient swimmer (but you don’t have to be in the photos unless you want to be!). We will be heating the pool, so it’ll be nice and comfy!
This is a totally fun way to document summer…we can’t wait!
**Times will start at 3:00pm and the last session will end at 7:00pm. We will need a minimum of 8 clients to make these sessions happen. I’m happy to add on more time slots if we fill the 8!
I’m dropping by the blog for a quick second to say hi…week two of being away from home has started and we are having a blast. I’m lucky to be able to carry my laptop wherever we go and fit work into the cracks of family life. That’s what summer’s all about, right!?
The kids are off to an insane game of dodgeball…at 9pm. Again, only in the summer… Tomorrow we’ll be doing things like spending hours at the pool, making crafts and taking hikes. What a great life!
As I run off to the game of dodgeball, I’ll leave you with a few adorable pictures of twin boys and their super sweet big brother. PS- I love how their mom dresses them. Perfect mix of color/prints!
Here’s a handful of pictures from Rascals to Rebels 2 weeks ago. I was so happy with the way the backdrop turned out. My brother-in-law found me the barnwood…perfectly distressed and my father-in-law worked it into a backdrop that perfectly fits into our SUV so I can truck it around town and such. He even gave me a little training in how to lift and carry it so I don’t hurt myself. 🙂
Anyway, between this fabulous century old wood and the festive bunting, I was extremely excited to meet all the kids that were going to be photographed over the weekend. And can I just say that the moms BROUGHT IT in the outfit department. I mean cuter than I could have styled myself. Simply adorable.
I’m so lucky to be able to work with Rascals to Rebels and photograph so many cuties in their clothes!
-Kristin
I feel like I may need a t-shirt that says ‘I survived last week.’ Things were humming along and looking great and THEN I got a bee-sting while I was at the beach doing photo sessions on Tuesday. Thankfully, one of my clients was there to help me get the stinger out of my finger. By that evening my finger started to swell. No biggie, just a little bit uncomfortable. I worked away on the computer and woke up the next day unable to bend my finger…every couple hours the swelling moved down my hand, so I decided to see a doctor. Of course this was after the pool party at my house and shooting a line of clothing. So, I got steroids to help with the swelling and went to the next group of photo sessions on the beach on Thursday. Fast forward to Sunday and I had done almost 30 mini sessions at Rascals to Rebels, hosted a few more dinner parties and my finger was back to normal.
It’s amazing how a tiny little bee affected my week so much! I was trying to stay on top of my editing because this week, I’m taking some time off to hang with my family. All that work last week was worth it. I’m all caught up (for the moment!) and loving life with the use of all my fingers. 🙂
Speaking of parties!!! Every so often I get to photograph the birthday parties of one of my clients. I’ve been photographing Chloe for over a year, so when her mom asked me to document her 4th birthday party at the aquarium, I felt like a proud auntie!
This was such a fun place for a party! They kept the kids moving the whole time from one fun activity to the next. Chloe had a blast and with her adorable expressive personality, gave me one fantastic shot after the next!
I’m so excited about this next photo session…I love going to the bay. Last year I went back time and time again. Always something a little different, always something new to explore. This year, I wanted to add a little twist, so I added a few props and I’m smitten. The little hand sewn fish and the romantic white chair are the perfect whimsical touches. (I made them in all different colors and sizes, then accented with a cute little contrasting button! 🙂 Of course, you don’t have to include any of the props in your beach session, but I think they add such a fun to the photos.
I tried a vintage-style editing too…and it also looks great!
And a huge thanks to Addison for being my little muse this morning!
-Kristin
With Lady Gaga everywhere you turn, I have those lyrics in my head. Not that that’s a good thing. But, as I was going through Baby Jax’s pictures, I was amazed at how he was smiling in so many of them. I love babies with a happy temperament. It’s like they enter the world ready to melt hearts. I know the technical answer is that it’s not really a smile, but I choose not to believe that. I believe their tiny little personality is showing itself…even at days old.
My cousin, Kyle, just graduated from film school. We were chattin’ it up at my grandma’s and he was telling me all about his underwater housing. I’d heard of housing for cameras, but I thought it was just for surfers. Then, I saw an amazing underwater maternity shot on pinterest and an idea was born. Originally, Kyle and I wanted to have my friend Laura model for us. She’s that perfectly tiny and stylish pregnant girl. But, we missed the boat, because the baby came early. Sooo, plan B was to use my kids as subjects.
Let me just tell you…this was the most fun I’ve had in AWHILE. I swear we were in the pool at least 2 hours just having fun and trying ideas out. I think this is the most I’ve been in our pool all year. See family picture below and you’ll know why. 🙂 Kyle did all the technical-ish stuff and just let me try out some creative ideas. It was A LOT harder than I anticipated. Maybe it’s because I had a hard time staying under the water for long, maybe it was because pushing the shutter was 50 times harder than normal. I don’t know how surf photographers do it!? Kyle’s a pro and taught me all the tricks of the trade.
I should also note that our pool is perfect for this. The funny thing is that our house was bank owned and when we bought it the pool was a literal swamp. We had no idea if it even worked or that the bottom would look like this. After it was drained and cleaned, we were so excited to have such a unique pool.
I also really liked some of these images in black and white. There’s just so much contrast!
Okay, so our family picture. Kyle thought it would be fun to do this. He forgot that I can’t submerge for longer than like 2 seconds. Oh and I wear contacts, so I was squinty-squinterson. I also learned through this experience that Brent is EXTREMELY photogenic underwater. Like freakishly able to open his eyes and be all relaxed at the bottom of the pool.
And here’s Kyle. He calls this one attack of the cousins.
We were thinking about offering underwater sessions as a special promo in August. Of course this is for swimmers only. Unless a parent wants to get the pool too! If there’s enough interest, we’ll put something together…so give me a holler if you’re interested!
-Kristin