Candid Chic Photos

bragalicious

A word I have used to describe myself, only when referring to my favorite little niece.  I talk about her cuteness to strangers on the street.  For those of you who are always curious, or don't already know, this is not my "real" niece, but my bestie's baby girl and therefore my adopted kin :)  She is just sooo yummy!  I seriously have to resist nibbling on her little cheeks every time I see her.  She is starting to have such a darling personality, and is finally learning how nutty and dramatic her aunt CiCi can be.  Mommy's cheeks and voice were strained after a few minutes of working on her smiles, but I was still going strong with songs and noises that were uber obnoxious, but whatever I have to do for a good picture!  Happy 3 month birthday, little lovie!

Mommy will love your little hands in this one.

Her smiling so big it looks painful :)

On her tummy in pink fluff courtesy of her aunt HayHay!

Love that little grin.

I look just like my daddy!

Sitting pretty.

More tummy time.

Pretty mommy and baby.

Cracking herself up!

I bought her this dress the day I found out she was going to be a girl....so glad it finally fits.

Finally, in a tutu....so proud she wasn't scared of it!  Love those lil toes.

all star baby boy

Meet sweet Mr. W....the easiest 6 week old old ever!  Usually by this age, they are hard to get to sleep and even harder to keep asleep.  He just slept and slept and let us move him at least a dozen times.  His parents should be very proud!  All the sweat and a little accident on mommy was well worth it to capture this fleeting time in his life.  Enjoy your sneak peek...

His mommy had so many fun props to choose from....love how the zebra ottoman turned out!

Such a doll!

A little grin...

For his daddy.

Pretty blue eyes during the 2 minutes he was awake....hope that didn't mean he was up all night :)

LOVE this one!

lil cupcake

This little beauty belongs to the very first person I met on my first day of college.  It was my 18th birthday, the day my parents left me in Lubbock, and the scariest moment in my life up to that point...made a little less scary by one sweet new friend.  10 years later (hard to believe), she and her high school sweetheart gave birth to Miss E....with her mommy's cheeks and daddy's lips.  She was just as sweet as her parents, and a photographer's dream sleeper!  Enjoy a little sneak peek....

She just slept...

...and slept...

...and slept...

...and slept...

...and slept...

...and slept.  Even I was amazed!

Caught a little grin :)

Proud parents.

One of the whole family.

Loving those cheeks.

pumpkin patch - round one

Jack, Parker & Elizabeth

Ethan & Barrett

firetrucks and fishies

I met these two little ones at the Firefighter Museum....fun location, not great lighting, but we worked with it.  Luckily the subjects are cute enough to brighten up any room, and with tons of firetrucks and gear we captured some sweet moments.  We headed out to the patio to check out the fountain of fish before our session ended.  Thanks for a fun morning!

Miss A fit perfectly in her daddy's helmet.

A little vintage firefighter....that helmet is heavy!

Laying pretty on her daddy's jacket.

Daddy's jacket almost fits...ha!

A little more vintage fun outside.

Mr. G giving sister kisses.

Some "happy" shots!

boots & butterflies

Spent a fun, mosquito filled evening with this sweet family.  This shoot produced some very candid shots that ended up being my favorite, as always!  I am saving the "holiday card" shots for your full gallery, but here are a few family shots to tie you over until then.  Enjoy!

Happy faces.

Their serious faces.

A few with a little vintage tint.  Boot scootin'...

...and butterfly watching.

Last year, big sister called the shots, but this year little sister stole the show :)

Such a pretty location....their backyard!

editing

People often ask, "How do you make your portraits look so vibrant and skin so flawless?"  Well, it's why so many of you pay for custom photography.  Some photographers will do small touch ups, but I try my best to make your image look like a work of art.  Of course, there are a ton of steps and actions that go into each edit, but sometimes just the basic skin smoothing, background "junk" removers and a little boost of color can turn a great picture into a FABULOUS portrait.  Here are a few recent examples of some simple edits, that really improve the overall look of the photo.  Some require very little adjustments, and others take hours, if stray hair, very blemished skin or background noise is more of an issue.  Each "after" image has been cropped to make the image look better and given a little contrast boost.  The rest are listed on the photo, to help you see the difference.  Sample before or SOOC (straight out of camera) and after images are below:

updated session availability

Holiday mini - sessions are almost full!!  We have 5 spots left in each city!  If you want to book a mini - session, the time is NOW!  After these sessions are full, we will ONLY be booking full sessions until January.  Here is what is still open:

Houston/The Woodlands - 

October 6 - morning or evening

October 21 - evening

October 22nd - morning (2)

Austin - 

October 11 - evening

October 14 - morning

October 15 - morning

November 3 - evening

November 8 - morning

Fort Worth - 

October 20 - morning or evening

October 27 - morning

October 29 - morning

November 11 - morning

Dallas - 

October 26 - morning

October 28 - morning

November 2 - morning

November 10 - morning

November 18 - morning

pumpkin patch sessions

It's that time of year again.  I sent out an email this morning to several people who have been asking about the pumpkin sessions, and all but 5 sessions are now full.  Pumpkin Patch sessions will be held at the Dallas Arboretum this Wednesday, Sept. 30th and Sunday, October 4th.  A weekend date has been added to accommodate more of you.  Time slots are listed below:

Wednesday, Sept. 30th:

2:30pm - 

3:00pm - BOOKED

3:30pm - 

4:00pm - 

4:30pm - BOOKED

Sunday, Oct. 4th:

9:00am - BOOKED

9:30am - BOOKED

10:00am - BOOKED

10:30am - BOOKED

2:30pm - 

3:00pm - BOOKED

3:30pm - 

4:00pm - BOOKED

4:30pm - BOOKED

All sessions are first come, first serve.  Last year, the sessions filled up within 24 hours, so please let me know ASAP if you are interested.

20 minute mini-session, a CD of 10-15 of the best full-edited images + photographer's copyright release. CDs will be delivered to you within 2 weeks of your session.

$40

 

The reason I have decided to offer CDs of the images (FOR PUMPKIN PATCH SESSIONS ONLY) is because I know many of you like to send out Halloween cards and thought having a CD of the images would make it easier and cheaper! 

 

Costumes are welcome, but not required!

I will send a map to any of you that are unfamiliar with the location.  The physical address is 8525 Garland Road, Dallas, TX, 75218.

You will be invoiced online (viapaypal for those who are familiar, or you can call with credit/debit card).  All payments are due in advance to help the sessions run more smoothly on the day of.  

Please pass this info. along to any friends and family who might be interested.

little doll

Miss M, with her gorgeous blue eyes, was quite the delight this evening.  The sweat & mosquitos were all worth it to capture such sweet moments before she turns two. Let this be a lesson to all of you moms who often leave a shoot and think your child didn't "perform."  As long as they aren't screaming or crying during the whole shoot, we most likely got something.  She didn't love the 5 wardrobe changes in one hour, but who would?  So glad we did them all....can't decide which is my favorite look!  Thanks to her sweet mommy & Nana for acting silly right along side me.  Enjoy!

So many people have been digging the pastel/washed look lately, so here's a few I tried it out on.

The dolly really made the picture...so sweet!

Miss M and her pretty mommy.

So angelic.

Turned out to be one of my favorite shots, and SO unplanned :)