I received an email from an expecting mom slightly outside of my normal driving range early this summer, and I jumped at the chance to say YES to this newborn session. You see, the mama was expecting a little boy with Down syndrome and if you've been around here for awhile, you know my six year old Ellie has Down syndrome as well.
The scheduling was a little tricky thanks to my Florida trip, but we managed to make it happen! Isn't baby J the cutest thing ever?
When your family grows from 4 to 5, it's worth documenting. This family was an absolute joy to work with - chill baby, sweet kids, great parents.
Capturing a new baby as part of the family, along with older siblings, is such a fun way to preserve those moments that parents often forget. Sleep depravation, running around, and the general fuzzy brained feelings of the first few months caused me to forget details of my own kids' newborn stages, so preserving those moments for others brings me joy.
I have newborn slots left in September and through the rest of 2017!
One of the Class of 2018 Seniors I'll be photographing next month is a beach volleyball player. Although she lives near my in Arlington, VA, it's hard to watch her play, as she plays all over the country. My luck is awesome, because she had a tournament just 90 minutes from where I was staying in Florida while I was there with my girls. Fortunately, this senior happens to be a family friend, so her parents kept an eye on my kids as we watched her play and I photographed the games.
I loved having my kids there. They were surrounded by confident, STRONG women pursuing a sport they love. My kids saw the results of hard work, grace under pressure, and sportsmanship, and they saw girls absolutely kicking butt.
I'm still booking Seniors for Fall 2018, so contact me ASAP for your senior photo session!
If you've noticed a lack of client work on here lately, it's because I'm a week away from wrapping up three weeks in Florida. I still have a client session from before I left to blog, which I'll aim to do this week. In the meantime, I wanted to share some photos from this vacation. My husband was with us for the first week or so, which included a drive down from DC. His mom was here for a week. My mom was here for nearly a week. And next, I'll be with the girls solo and actually photographing some beach volleyball while we are here! (When one of your seniors has a tournament in Siesta Key, you take that opportunity to shoot!)
Contact me to book your session for August and beyond!
Here's our trip so far!
I have a friend who has the cutest Etsy shop ever. I can serve wine to a decent sized group of friends in funny wineglasses thanks to her amazing talents. My kids (and I!) have great t-shirts and mugs, and if you're my friend, the odds are decent that you or your kids have gotten a gift she's made by hand.
But for those who live out of town or don't see her goodies in person, photographs are the only way to see her talent. And her photos of her products before were fine.
Fine, however, isn't good enough for a great product.
It just so happens that Capitol Maker and I have a similar clientele. We have lots of local clients (she has out of town clients, too.) We have lots of moms with small kids, and moms with big kids, too. Our brands are both bright and bold. Check out this change!
Before:
Her instagram now, which contains professional shots and her own shots, which are now more representative of her brand:
The whole point of product photos isn't about photographers who can operate a camera and edit, although we can and I think we're awesome. The point of product photography is to showcase a brand and allow potential customers or clients to see what the product looks like in action.
This little series is for the shop Harris & Fin. Seeing these fun tanks on two little tornados helps potential customers get ideas of what the shirts really look like, and also picture who might need one.
These back to school samples for Page Brook Market show a sign in use and across grades. Moms of littles AND bigs might need this product!
The Artistic Soul has products that I love as well. To capture her brand, we went to Union Market to catch an artsy hipster vibe. Here's what Shay had to say about these photos:
"Product photography is one of the most important aspects business owners take for granted when it comes to marketing. A beautifully captured photo, with the product in action helps the customer relate and envision it in their home. My advice is to showcase your work in the best possible way. Megan did that for our brand!
And back to where we started, with my friend from Capitol Maker. I asked her to tell me why product photos matter. (For the story on this IEP set, check out this post.)
"I'm creative but I'm not a photographer. Taking good, clear, Etsy worthy photos was a huge stress for me. The amount of time it was taking me to stage photos and then "edit" them was really taking away from the time I could be designing new products. I would also put off doing the photos so I wasn't listing new things as I was making them. I just had so much anxiety over the photos. Case in point, the IEP set. I had that made for weeks but I wasn't able to get it photographed. As soon as you took the pictures and I was able to list it, it immediately became and overnight best seller. I was getting by just taking photos on the same background. My Instagram was basically all the same thing, just the product changed. Now I have a bright, fun Instagram that really represents my brand."
But it's not just me! See what some other shop owners have to say about their partnerships with photographers:
Professional photography helps me control the narrative/ evoke a certain feel for my items. This helps me reach my target market. - Emily Davies
I NEED pro product pictures! As a maker using an iPhone to take pictures, it's incredibly difficult to get well-aligned, well-lit, balanced pics. And to do so from a neutral point of view. And to choose which details to highlight. And to "style" the pictures. I now have a huge appreciation for progressional product photogs! - Suzanne O'Brien
Simply put, product photography brings my products to LIFE. I get so many compliments from people who already know my brand- but to be able to reach a wider audience they must be able to see & 'feel' what others have experienced through my products, high quality product shots does this for me- it brings them closer than I ever could from a distance. - Annie Brown
If the timing manages to be so perfect that I have college models, mugs to photograph, and shirts to photograph on a beautiful weekend, my life is pretty good. We explored Union Market and I was in LOVE. Bright walls. Fun seating. COLORS! Oh, how I love bright colors.
Artist and Love & Light shirts by The Artistic Soul Shop
Mugs and Donut shirts by Capitol Maker
