I should've known that I was going thoroughly enjoy my time w/ this next family because they are close friends w/ a client/friend who I think is the best. These boys really made me thing twice about adding a 3rd to our family. They were so easy to be with and you can just tell they really love being brothers to each other. And no wonder why they are so easy because their parents are so laid back and we all just went w/ the flow.

Last week I received an invitation to join a friend and her kids on Whidbey Island. My husband was working nights all weekend so I jumped at the opportunity to get out of town w/ the boys. And anytime they hear the word island their eyes get big and and dreamy. I am not sure who was more excited to get away. The forecast wasn't favorable but in good old NW style they couldn't have been more wrong. We spent a day and a half completely beside ourselves w/ how beautiful the weather and the locale ended up being. Of course my camera made the trip and I was forcing myself to play w/ my new lens (24mm 1.4) which I was so excited to get in the mail but needed to get used to working w/ the fixed wide angle. I am one that really likes to get in close to my subjects so if I don't force myself to play with the lens and fall in love w/ the focal length it will end up being an expensive paper weight in my camera bag. So here are a few of my favorites from the trip. The very first image is in my top 5 of all time favorites. It may not translate well w/ the smaller image but I have already printed it big and I LOVE IT!!! Anyone up for ending a sitting w/ finger paints this summer??? Kids LOVE it and so do I!! And I now love my new lens too.

I met this next family almost 2 years ago and photographed little Ellie a few times. It is always fun to see how much change happened in a year and to meet a new addition. Penelope proved to be just as great as her big sister when it comes to picture taking.

While I was in San Fran I managed to squeeze in a mini-shoot w/ my cousin's family. For 4 mths and 2 yrs old these two were super easy to photograph. I could have played w/ Celia all day in the 3 ft area in front of her door. We had a ball!

Little Maggie is on the go having just started walking but every so often she would demonstrate how she managed to get around for the last few months...walking on her knees. It did not look easy or comfortable but she did it w/ ease. I have never seen anything like it so I was thoroughly entertained all afternoon.

One week old and beautiful!

I feel like I have been falling behind on my blogging a bit. When I get buried w/ work and life it is always the first thing to hit the back burner. But you will see w/ the number of images (and LONG ramblings) in this post that I am hoping to make up for it (I'm sure most of you out there really don't care much but I know my parents are regulars here so this one is really for them as I know they have been anxiously awaiting seeing Cooper's recent accomplishment and today they are celebrating their 41st anniversary...HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!).
Yesterday I had my second weekend workshop. On Saturday I was feeling a little bad for having the workshop on a day when we FINALLY got warm weather. I was so hoping people weren't going to be disappointed to spend the beautiful weekend day inside with me. But as everyone started to arrive and I could sense their eager excitement to learn I was able to put that worry to rest and share my excitement and knowledge about photography with them. From the feedback I was receiving as people were leaving they had as much fun learning as I did sharing all the info and did not feel that the day spent inside was a disappointment.
I am not a writer so I am finding it hard to put into words how much I have enjoyed these workshops. Throughout the day I see the light bulbs go on as someone starts to get it and as they leave they are not as intimidated by the 2lb piece of hardware in their hands as when they walked in. And hearing them say how they cannot wait to start taking pictures is just the best! I hope to continue offering these workshops and still have a list of people who are interested so if it sounds like something you may be interested in and want more info type "workshop" into the search field in the corner and then get in touch with me if you want to join the list.

This is long but I want to explain these images a little. For the first time I asked my boys if they wanted to be my "models" for my workshop. They were both VERY excited and the night before but as I told the group I had VERY low expectations on how they would do and that we may have to use adult models. After a morning at Bicycle Sunday by the lake they arrived. We started inside. Cooper was a rockstar from the start having gotten himself dressed for the occasion but Oscar showed immediate signs of disinterest. And then when we headed outside he made it clear that he was "outie". Cooper hung in there for the full time but did manage a few "can I bike now mom? I really want to bike now..."
Biking is the sport of choice now that Cooper is on 2 wheels. I am sharing a few pics of Oscar & his ride (and one to answer the most asked question I get, "do you kids ever get tired of you taking their picture"). And the last is a picture I took of Oscar after the workshop was over...he was a confused model...he thought it was an afternoon NUDE shoot.
Thank you for reading my novel and enjoy...