I am hoping my life is going to settle down soon to get back to some regular posting. Although it has been crazy I have been having tons of fun and am very excited to be heading to Whistler tomorrow to have just a little more fun at the Olympics!!
I have been shooting quite a bit with a highlight being a shoot for a wonderful family with Soulumination. I always leave a Soul shoot so moved and wishing I had more time to donate to such an incredible organization. With the craziness of my business and having two youngsters in the house it just isn't a reality so I always make sure to contribute financially and hope that as the years pass I will have more time to give. There are so many worthy organizations seeking funds these days but I beg you to visit their site and make a small donation. It is a gift that will impact families in such an incredible, unforgettable way.
I just finished work on another shoot and am very excited to share it with my clients because for most of the shoot I think they were concerned that great images may not result as their little ones were tired and just wanted to the comfort of mom and dads arms. I have to admit I was a little unsure too as the sitting progressed but I couldn't give up and then slowly it happened and their beautiful smiles and giggles emerged. I drove away from the shoot so excited to see what I had captured and now I get to share it with them!

A few weeks ago my car was hit by another car...totalled, big headache, big distraction from work. This week I felt like my body was hit by a car, big headache, body ache, no possible way to work. I think I am on the mend and I can finally get back to focusing on my work. (after my little President's week vacation to the mtns...I guess I can't complain too much!).
Before I head out of town I have been frantically working through some adorable images of one of the happiest infants I have been around in a long time. As soon as I walked in the door his smile burst across his face. I had so much fun. His brother has a few years of me under his belt and was not quite as thrilled to see me. But once I found the crack in his tough armor he was full of giggles and grins.

January was a busy month that I spent catching my breath from last year and trying to "clean house" so I can prepare for a great 2010. I think February is going to be a little more of the same so if it is quiet for a few more weeks here know that March will be ramping up to with lots of pictures to share. I must admit that I cherish this time of year because I get a lot more family time and even some great me time that is definitely recharging my batteries.
Yesterday I spent the morning hanging some of my Laos work at Macrina in SODO (1943 First Avenue South). I am excited about how it looks on their walls. Macrina has DELICIOUS food and breads so take a trip down there this month if you have time. I will be moving the images to their Queen Anne location next month.

Two weekends ago I had so much fun hosting my workshop. Once again all the participants made my day with their openess to share and learn. As the morning progressed I saw light bulbs going as everything started to click. By the end of the workshop everyone was so excited to go home and put to use what they had learned. I will close with a few images that I received from Brianna Donegan that she took during the workshop using some of the tips during the capture and postprocessing. She has a blog which is already full of great image & I think her images are just going to get better and better!! It is obvious she has an eye and passion for photography which are the most important ingredients to capturing powerful images. Thank you Brianna for sharing these images with me!

7 years ago I travelled to Haiti alone. The time spent there and the people I met were amazing. I cannot begin to describe the strength and resilience of the people living in some of the poorest conditions I have ever seen. I have travelled to numerous 3rd world countries but I have always felt that Haiti was something different. It was mind boggling that the island was so close to the US but the citizens lived such a drastically different life than the neighboring countries. I left thinking I couldn't fathom where a person or organization could start to make a noticeable impact on their lives. The population density and the level of impoverishment was overwhelming.
So for the past few days I have sat thinking about the devestation that Haitians are currently experiencing and my heart is breaking for them. The images and information that are now coming is so sad. I so wish I could jump on a plane and go help in the rescue and relief efforts but that is not a reality for most of us. But giving money to support those that can is so if you are reading this please go here and donate what you can. Or they have made it very easy to donate $10. Text haiti to 90999.
Think about how fortunate we are to be sitting in a warm home today and being able to get into our own bed tonight...please just give a little to help!

Within the first 2 minutes of this quick sitting these girls' mom and I knew we got the one shot that we were not sure would be possible. Whatever happened during the rest of the shoot was a bonus as the goal was to get at least one picture of all three girls together. The first image here is from the very beginning of the shoot and one of my favorites from 2009.

Happy New Year!

I had a wonderful vacation and holiday with my family and did some work before the new year too but I have been laying low and am finding it tough to get back into the swing of work...I'm sure I'm not alone on that one. I think I had been putting off blogging as that would mean I really need to get back at it full speed. But there is one thing I love doing and that is giving my clients their first peek at images from there sitting and I have another family who is anxiously waiting to see what resulted from our cold Christmas Eve shoot. These kids had me smiling at the get go, they are full of life and seemed to be such good, solid kids...I need to get a few tips from their mom and dad for sure!!

My blog has been completely quiet not because I have been away but because I have been working day and night. It has been a CRAZY few weeks filled w/ over 30 holiday card designs and so much more. I am so relieved tonight as I am typing that I somehow managed to get through it all and am leaving in 4 hours (yes, I will only get a few hours of sleep tonight but I have gotten used to it as of late) to hopefully get a ton of R&R in the sun. And I am so excited for all my clients who are mailing out their one-of-a-kind holiday cards. Word on the street is that they are getting rave reviews from friends and families. I really hope they are some of the best people receive this year.

Another reason I am excited tonight is that I finally have a date for my next workshop. So if you are wondering what to ask for this holiday this may be a great idea for you.

The next workshop will be on Saturday, January 23rd beginning at 9:30am. If you haven’t had any idea what to put on your wish list for the holidays this may be a great idea for you!
If you have invested in a “fancy” Digital SLR camera but are still taking pictures like you got with a point and shoot this workshop is for you. All my workshops participants have had varying levels of photography knowledge from very novice to photography buffs so do not be intimidated if you feel like you don’t have any idea what you are doing but you want to learn. But if you are someone that has a good grasp of the technical aspects of photography do not think this class will be below your abilities. I promise to teach to everyone and have always received great feedback from everyone regardless of their knowledge when they walked in the door.
We will be meeting at my home (address to follow) and lunch will be included. The workshop will finish around 2pm. The cost is $265 per person.
Here is a little information on what I cover:
-the camera...I will discuss key settings and functions that will improve your ability to capture your kids. I will not be covering every function of the camera and what they do so it is not a "how to use your new camera" workshop but you will definitely get a much better understanding of how to use your cameras best features.
-the lens...I will make a few recommendations on lenses and how to get the most out of them. Lenses are really the key to improving your standard pictures so this is great information to learn.
-f-stop/shutter speed/ISO...this is where photography gets confusing and most get lost. I will help you understand the correlation between these and how to use them to improve your ability to take great pictures.
-taking the picture...use of light, angles, etc.
-post-processing...key tips to bump your image up in Elements or Photoshop.
-image/file management...ways to ensure that you don't turn your computer into the old photo shoe box.
-vendors/software...there are great products/vendors/software out there.
And more!!!
For the workshop I ask that everyone rent or own a 50mm 1.4 or 50mm 1.8 lens. It is an incredible lens that will help in the learning process (and also allow you to take much better pictures). I can email you links to the specific lens that you would need if you let me know what brand of camera you have. You can rent lenses at Glazers & Optecs in south Lake Union area. If you will be renting I recommend calling ahead to reserve the lens.
Let me know if you have any questions or if you would like me to hold a spot for you.
I will be responding to all emails as soon as I return on the 22nd.

And I can't bear to have a post w/o an image so I am leaving you with one that is straight out of my camera and you would be able to take after attending one class with me. Although my little guy isn't looking at the camera there is something I really love about this image.

I have been photographing this family since their 2nd was an infant. I look at these images and cannot believe how time has flown and how amazing it is that they have added two more little ones to their family that are just as beautiful as their first two. It was a freezing cold day but the kids were up for a little running around with me.

As I was photographing this next shoot this mom asked me "What is your favorite place to photograph kids?" and my reply was, "I don't have a favorite, I love photographing in new places because it challenges me which I think pushes me to produce better images. But I really believe the place doesn't matter, it is about the kids and if they are having fun and allowed to just be themselves than that makes the perfect shoot." And I mentioned that her kids were a perfect example of that as we were walking. They were having so much fun and were up for anything. Her daughter is incredibly comfortable being photographed which is so great to see in a young girl, I am a big believer that self-confidence is the key to success (not smarts/athleticism/money...)and we must nurture it from a very young age. This girl, I am sure is going to knock peoples' socks off in the future! And her brother is right behind her on that path! Love these kids...and there eyes are amazing to boot!