Banana Cherié Skirts & Accessories

With a name like "brennan" you just have to think "she sounds like a cutie" right? well of COURSE she is! i met up with brennan and her mom sarah over at the king road park in loomis for a short pettiskirt shoot, and she knocked these shots out like they were nobody's business! and the pigtails? super cute! every girl has to rock pigtails in their life (seriously... i'm 20 something and i still attempt it every so often. its one of the rights of being a girl!) and brennan looks cute as ever! ok. enough of me. take a look at her :)candy corn. in the park. you cannot resist. is my hypnotism working for you? no? okay. more brennan for you. ok. now with the next ones... i could NOT just pick one or two. so lucky you gets to see four super cute pictures of super cute brennan in some super cute pink zebra print. did i say super cute enough times for you? didn't think so :)i love a good on the tummy shot. my portrait studio days have trained me well :)thanks so much brennan and sarah for coming out and playing dress up in the park. you looked adorable as ever! and there you have it! the finale of my monday banana cherié pettiskirt shoots! now, i know what you're thinking... you're thinking "but emily, when will i see more pettiskirt posts from you?!" and to that i say, soon my dears. i have one shoot tomorrow morning with an adorable one year old (yes! one year olds can be pettiskirt-ified too!) and possibly one more shoot before saturday's craft fair. and remember, if you're looking for a skirt and bow set of your very own, email lisa at carrollcousincreations@gmail.com, and tell her emily sent you! p.s. pettiskirt offer coming soon. very very soon :)

Banana Cherié Skirts & Accessories

how could i let the week go by without more pettiskirts? well, i guess the fact that i have two more little lovelies already photographed, and up to three more to happen soon would keep me from that! and today we've got my seasoned model, kaylyn! and by seasoned, i mean she frequents the photography of her sister, and one of my middle/high school friends, suzanne :) you can see suzanne's work over at blank canvas photography. if you're in idaho and need a photographer, she's your gal! although, she's currently awaiting her very first brand new baby girl ANY time now (making kaylyn an auntie for the THIRD time!)
not going to lie. i love the fall. sure its not full of flowers, but i love the sort of rustic feel everything gets with the dried leaves and the lack of grass. kaylyn was such a trooper for sitting in all these stickery leaves and things!see what i mean about the rusticity... rusticness... rusticism... you get my point, right? sure makes the colors that are there pop that much more! and on that note, here comes the candy cane skirt :) i just love these next three of kaylyn. something about them has a sort of alice in wonderland feel to them with her soft expression and those eyes she's got!hello gorgeous! i'm sure she'll be quite the looker when she's older. just like her 4 older sisters :)saved my fave for last. love love love. thanks kaylyn and momma laura for letting me tromp around your back yard and play dress up with you. you look did a great job my dear!

Banana Cherié Skirts & Accessories

i promised you more pettiskirts, and here they are! this is anna, and isn't she just the cutest little thing? all these shots are taken at their home, and there were even more spots that we didn't get to that had so much potential. i let her go ahead and pick which skirt set she wanted to start in, and she picked the candy corn ensemble. be warned. some massive amounts of adorable cuteness are to follow... NOW!the skirt, the bow and the shirt are all coordinated to match. (the shirt is a bit hard to see, but it has a piece of candy corn painted on the front of it) perfect elementary fall festival outfit? i think yes. and on that note... time for more zebra!
i think she looks like such a little doll in this one. and truth is. she totally was! oh zebra print... why am i becoming so attracted to you?and here comes the fun part. check out the spin factor on these skirts! if i had one in my size... i would totally spend 95% of my day spinning in it. no joke.
thanks so much anna (and her mom clara!) for helping model these skirts for us! you were so much fun to work with, and i hope you had a blast playing dress up for the afternoon :) and for all you viewers out there, there will be more cuteness coming tomorrow and thursday so stay tuned!

Aileen

another dose of flash fill portraiture. this time, my sister got to be the victim... ahem, model. unfortunately, the flash was doing a bit TOO much filling, thanks to the dark coming quickly, so we were only able to get a few good shots before the night took over. even more so since i'm not terribly fond of 1600ISO for portraiture... my documentary project under the stadium lights on the other hand... yes, i'll crank that sucker up and shoot away! anyways, here is a shot or two from this evening :)would you believe this is part of a random housing development?seriously! this place has a big pond, and a waterfall... amazing. pretty sure when we reshoot, i'm taking her right back to the same place. now if only we can get rid of this 90-100º weather for good. ick. fun fact: in aileen's 14 1/2 years of existence, she's played at least 5 instruments. she started out on piano, played the mandatory recorder in elementary school, picked up flute, then moved to oboe. The marching band program really doesn't cater to the needs of an oboe player, so this fall she's also learned the mellophone for the fall season. now i know you're thinking "what DOESN'T she play? and the answer is, the vuvuzula... but that is not allowed. at least if i have a say in anything.

Banana Cherié Skirts & Accessories

you loyal readers of mine have all met my cousin lisa. well, maybe not met her, but you've seen her, the husband man, the two year old cuteness, and in more recent shoots, the baby boy to be. and if you're an uber loyal reader, you've been to my other blog, and seen that i'm crafty. and well, as genetics have it, so is lisa! well, here we are, at the end of september gearing up once again for this year's craft fair at bella vista high school. with this being our second year there, we are taking in our experience, and trying to amp it up for this year. This is where me and my lovely camera come in. we're working to bring in more of an online/visual marketing of some of our products, and we're first starting with lisa's pettiskirts. she has spend the last weeks/months/i-can't-remember-because-its-craft-fair-time-and-it-all-starts-blending-together working on these pettiskirts in various colors, prints, and holiday themes. our first "shoot" happened in our grandma's back yard on saturday, and bekah (lisa's little sister) was a trooper-even when i made her sit on the random wood pile. who knew an 8 year old could work it like tyra banks (guilty pleasure of mine = america's next top model. i admit it) so with all that said, here are a few of the different skirts from saturday.don't you just love the zebra print with the pink? i'm not one of those die hard animal print lovers, but this combo on this skirt style... LOOOOOOVE. and the bows. super fab with those skirts.
here is your best bet for no calorie candy corn. seriously, can you get any cuter without everything blaring out ghosts and goblins for halloween? yeah, i didn't think so either.and yes, believe it or not, christmas is right around the corner. and i KNOW you families are thinking "hm. how can we get festive without going the ugly sweater route?" ding ding ding! we have a winner! seriously. can you NOT imagine your little girls in these skirts, spinning and twirling for your holiday card photos? yeah. i totally put the image in your mind. no need to thank me :)
i will be photographing more skirts coming this week, so stay tuned! plus, there might just be a special offer coming soon after i'm off this craft fair prep week. those of you with an adorable girl in your life will want to stay tuned! to commune with lisa about pettiskirt potentials, you can email her at carrollcousincreations@gmail.com (if she doesn't reply... you might get me. i love to answer emails. and i am one half the carroll cousins that do the creating. heehee)

Jenny

...with a dreamy, far-off look
and her nose stuck in a book
what a puzzle to the rest of us is Belle

the assignment was to create a portrait using the camera flash only as a filler. the background was to be fully lit, PLUS the subject in the foreground (you know, without that creepy washed out look?) and on top of THAT, the subject needed to be interacting/involved with something that describes them. insert jenny. plus books.the idea first came to me when i was on tumblr.com (i'm kind of addicted to that site. no joke). i tend to look up a specific keyword, and then just let the posts show me what they can come up with. i fell in love with some images of young women reading books. in fields, on their beds, in a chair, you name it. and once i recieved this assignment, i knew i wanted to replicate something of that genre. (insert reason #3,520,951 why my friends rock) jenny is a reader. quite the modern day belle with her love of reading if you ask me :). i told jenny my idea, and she LOVED it.and then came the preparation (or perspiration, depending how you look at it). finding a day, coordinating schedules, and what have you. well, today was that day! jenny works two jobs, and we were able to get together BETWEEN her shifts and bust this awesome session out! i had this vision of piles and piles of books all around her, so i had jenny bring HER books as well as i scrounged every bookshelf in the house practically for anything "novel" like. and then of course, this also involved me lugging the chair you see in these photos from my living room, across the driveway, and over in to the field next door... doing all this without tripping on the barbed wire. skilled, right? oh, and don't forget, it was like 90º outside today.but once jenny arrive, and we started shooting, things went so smoothly. we lugged books across my lawn, and then across the fence. sitting, standing, piling in a wagon, you name it. i asked jenny to do something, no questions, she did it. amazing, right? i feel like these images captured jenny and her downright LOVE of reading, as well as her sweet personality very well. and just to recap how amazing jenny is (in case you somehow forgot already) she's currently majoring in childhood education at CSUS to get her teaching credential and be one of the best elementary school teachers in the world :)fun fact: can you tell we used books from high school? it shows most in this last image. bottom left corner. apparently buzz lightyear, ariel and princess jasmine were all relevant in catcher in the rye. (yeah, that's my book...) you should see my huck finn book with the dinosaurs riding the boat. :)

Friday Feet - Sept 24, 2010

the week has already come and gone, and here we are at friday again! our feet went on some different adventures this week. some went bowling, while others went to bars. some hung out in socks with kitty cats, while others walked and walked and walked some more.amy - "I volunteered in Pediatrics at Renown (the hospital) today. Super fun! I walked and walked so this is a picture of my feet walking. ^^"
emily - "we finally pulled together and got our second themed bowling night this past weekend. got this shot luckily before my camera took its great plunge to the floor. (point & shoot. not dSLR. don't worry) another small group by the end of the night, but it was a great night as always."jenny - "just kyo doing her usual insane cuddling when i'm not in the mood. I was doing my homework, or trying to, and she was in the mood for some nuzzling. Even though she looks appalled by my feet, she was actually being lovely dovey. I also love these socks. haha."
kasey - "Just got home from an Irish pub in downtown Wiesbaden, after I sung karaoke for the first time! Even my little 'Shoe Fly' was proud of me!"

Pet Photography

When it comes to family portraits, why leave that furry four legged family member behind? Your friends know you have them, your kids love them, and admit it... you post photos of the silly things you find them doing ALL over your facebook profile. alright, i admit it... if you saw my personal facebook page, there is a good dozen or so cell phone quality photos of our cats (usually mushu) doing something strange...So whether it be cat or dog, rabbit or even a pet goldfish, that pet is family, and should feel included to show your family in that stage of their life. shoot! bring the whole pack of puppies, or the caboodle of kittens, i'm up for anything. As long as it helps YOUR family capture who they really are. If your pets are anything like ours, they'll LOVE to have their spot in the limelight... well... unless we're talking about MY cat. sheesh. I'm sure both you and your children will love to have your pets photographed outdoors today, and for years to come.
so take the time to rub your puppy's belly, scratch behind your kitty's ears, and give them some extra love :) Email me today at photogbyem@gmail.com to start booking your family/pet photography session!

Friday Feet - Sept 17, 2010

here we are! week two and our feet have still survived. this week, we have sock feet, kitty feet, book feet and hospital feet. oh where oh where will next week take our feet? we'll let you know in when we get there! happy friday, everybody! enjoy your weekend :)
amy - "Resting my feet while at the top of the Sonoma Mountains near Winnemucca, NV. I was watching the deer browsing with binoculars. Super fun! ^^
emily - "my feet. kitty feet. very impatient wanting to chase bees kitty feet"
jenny - "This is a picture of me doing what I do best. Reading. "
kasey - "I was in the hospital room in Landstuhl after my briefing, and had just been poked and prodded by the doctor who kept losing track of his thoughts and staring into space. "

boy oh boy!

today was the awaited baby shower day for lisa, and of course i had to bring my camera along and help document some of the things for her. i didn't get a whole lot of people shots, so i tried to get as much "detail" shots as i could :) now, lisa is a cupcake-aholic, if there is such a thing. so of course, the baby shower HAD to have cupcakes. there was no doubt about that. i got the idea for the individual cupcake boxes from something i saw in stores at joann's, and then dino-ed them out with stickers that matched to those on the envelopes and baby shower invitations. toy story party bag? of COURSE that came from me!
apparently these little shoes were a hit with the dad-to-be-again. (this is baby #2). my mom & i put together this clothesline game where the unsuspecting guests assumed this to be a decoration outside. the trick was, once the shower got going, they had to name as many of the items they could remember (or thought they remembered) seeing on the clothesline. items ranged from clothing items, to shoes, to baby necessities.and of course, we can't go without showing the mommy to be. she's such a good model, where would this post be without her? this is me (almost) shamelessly having her show off the quilt i made for baby boy no name. so at the end of the shower, the games were played, the snacks were devoured, but this baby still remains nameless... well, at least he will be a VERY well dressed nameless baby boy.

Friday Feet - Sept 10, 2010

so here we are, with out first "friday feet" post :)
all of our feet are present and accounted for, with a slight snippet by the feet belongers.
the images are set up in alphabetical order. top left will always be amy, top right will be emily (me), bottom left belongs to jenny, and the bottom right belongs to the feet that are over seas, kasey. and without further aideu, here are the feet!
amy - "My feet at home in Sun Valley. They are resting while I eat a hamburger and do math homework."
emily - "driving, driving, driving. tends to be the #1 use of my feet between going to school, going to work, or just plain going somewhere..."
jenny - "I was trying to capture my quilt collection in this one. My mom made me the Wizard of Oz quilt and pillow sham, while Emily herself made my dolphin quilt."
kasey - "Donnie and I had gone to this fantastic Chiniese restaurant. It was delicious, and when we walked a few blocks back to our car, I leaned out of the car to take the shot, and Don gave me a look like "what the hell?"and I told him to blame you... oh, and it was sprinkling, and you can kinda see it in the picture."
happy friday, everyone :)

coming soon :)

alright.
so i decided to spice things up a little bit on here.
i'm a rather active blog follower, right?
i mean, you should look at my list, its HUGE.one photographer in particular (sheena jibson) has sparked my interest
and on her more personal blog does a little feature called friday feet.
take a peek at her feet posts here
so, with being the slacker i am at updating over here, i felt i needed a little push.
and so i thought to myself "i have feet... i have friends... and i have fridays, why don't i put all three to good use?"
and so, starting this friday (september 10th) you will see not one, not two, but FOUR pairs of feet.
even international feet. the four of us have been friends since high school, and have spanned out and about in our newly starting adult lives. so here is your preview about who's feet you'll be seeing
jenny: auburn, ca. child development major & aspiring teacher.
emily: loomis, ca. photography major & dance instructor
kasey: wiesbaden, germany. airforce wife & artist
amy: sun valley, nevada. nursing major & dog finder (no really... i swear they flock to her)
so there you have it! all four of us, hopefully gearing up for this. we'll see how long until we get tired of our own feet
p.s. i mentioned sheena earlier... but also check out her portrait/wedding photography.
its pretty much amazing.
click right here -> sheena jibson photography

Sneak peek selection - august

believe me. i know i'm really lame as a blogger right now.
someday this will all become a better habit
(a dear friend of mine and i are determined to start blogging about more important, sensible things) and along with that i hope that THIS blog becomes of better use to me... well, i guess it should be ME that becomes a better use to this blog

well, anyways. want some photos to look at? of course you do :)first, jake & travis scheduled a couples session after jake's previous "senior portrait-esque" session you saw in the last preview. we decided for a different location, we would go to beal's pointe in granite bay, and use the area surrounding the lake as our scenery. I photographed a family session here a few months ago, and for being the same location, i feel like we were able to capture a totally different feel that was more personal to those two, and not so "cookie cutter."next, which fell much later on in the month, and after a lovely bout of me being sick for a few weeks (not exactly sure with what... but it seems to be over and done with now) i headed on down to modesto for some family portraits of someone i'm sure you're familiar with if you've been a regular follower. My cousin is due with baby number two in october (its a boy!) and wanted to get some family shots done before bb makes his debut. first day was more of a casual session over at the mchenry mansion, which i shot at once before with the orrego family. this shoot was later on in the evening (oh, and in the 100º temperature zone, btw) so we had more open shade in the grassy area of the yard, and had quite a few options to choose from in the yard of the mansion.and then lastly, day two of the modesto sessions was a more formal look over at their LDS church yard. it had a small little "garden" area i suppose you could call it, with a few little trees, a picnic table, and some little rocky areas. this gave lorelai some fun areas to run around and twirl in while getting some of the individual shots. she is quite a character, and i'm sure she'll be a great big sister starting next month! and i've been busting my internet looking skills to find some super adorable baby props to use, and so far, i've got a minimum of 3. and they'll be coming soon to a blog near you next month :)
fact: lisa made lorelai's entire outfit. well, minus the shoes. those came from me ;) but the dress and the bows? all her.

want something like it for your kiddos? check her out over at banana chérie. her blog is about the same shape as mine, but she has a better reason :P she lacks the internet on a daily basis