Miss Olivia Turns One - Orangevale, CA

A part of being a photographer that I absolutely adore is being able to document the big moments in life.  While weddings are a big passion of mine, family portraits are just as special in my eyes.  I've been photographing Michelle & Keith since their engagement session, and last November I photographed their first family portrait session with little Miss Olivia at just 3 months old.  I couldn't believe it when Michelle contacted me about photographing Olivia for her first birthday.  Had 7 months really zoomed by that quickly?  I met up with these two lovely ladies in June and had a great time chasing Olivia through the grass to capture her on the go and full of personality to celebrate her upcoming birthday.  Here are just a few of my favorites of this sweet girl.
Michelle also took advantage of this first birthday portrait session to bring in a little surprise for the grandparents - and of course anyone else to see their photos!  My dad works with Michelle's mom, and said everyone was raving about this next one.  She just looks so adorable intently "reading" this special story just for her.  And how perfect is it that the little piggy is named Olivia?
Congratulations again to Momma, Dad & now Big Sister to be!
I am certain this little one had a great birthday full of love from everyone around her.  She is simply as sweet as can be.

Jessica & Adam Maternity Session - Sacramento, CA

Two years ago this month, I photographed this couple on their wedding day.  Jessica & Adam were my first full wedding I photographed, and are my example couple of the kinds of relationships I like to have with my clients.  Well, I shouldn't even use the word "clients" because these two are truly some of my greatest friends.  I photographed their engagement session, wedding, one year anniversary & family photos last November.  Now, in just about two months, they'll be officially welcoming "baby JAM" in to their little family!  I surprised Jessica at her baby shower with the maternity session, and we had a fantastic time picking out her wardrobe options and making sure that little baby bump showed! Adam & Jessica grew up in the Elverta/Antelope area, so Adam took us to this little park near a creek that was very secluded and in my words, awesome!  Such troopers, with Jess climbing through grass and sticky weeds at 7 months pregnant :) Adam snuck this next one in out of nowhere, so of course it HAD to be included! A quick outfit change, and then it was REALLY time to show that belly off! This next one totally reminds me of a "new version" one of their wedding photos, which I still love love love and have on my business cards and sample products! We then headed back towards Jessica's parent's house where the baby shower was held at, with a stop at the local feed store for a little bit more of an "urban" background. I totally love these blue stripes! Check that baby bump out! Again... Love this next one! I totally cannot pick one single favorite out of all of these... I just can't do it! Of course, I had a FANTASTIC time photographing these two, and I cannot wait to do their first family photos once baby JAM arrives! It would be a potential road trip, but well worth it. Congratulations again Jessica & Adam! Baby JAM is going to be adorable as ever, and very well loved :)

Kent at 9 months - Modesto, CA

Yet again, Kent has done some growing! This time, he has a mouthful of teeth to show for it! After Desmond was set free to go play on the playground, Kent showed his skills and was easy as pie to photograph. All smiles in the grass in his adorable Superman shirt and converse shoes, there was nothing that could go wrong with this kid! In just a few more months, we'll be celebrating his first birthday, and can't wait to have some more cuteness to show off then :) He threw in some cutesy bashful faces... Showed off his avid thumbsucking skills...But didn't forget at all to be super cute and smiley the whole way through. Check out those converse, this kid has style!

What's Happening Today - Sacramento, CA

I apologize in advance (or more in the middle) but my blog will probably be experiencing some slow time for a little while with the lack of excitement going on here. But in the meantime, here is what is happening RIGHT NOW! I'm off photographing a sweet little 6 day newbie who will be shared with you soon enough :) Happy Thursday Everybody!

Kent - Children's Portraits

Last time you saw Kent, he was just a wee 3 month old, and boy has he grown. I kept telling Lisa he needed to work on his sitting up skills in order to be successful for his 6 month photos to be different from his 3 month photos. He was a good little fellow, and listened to his momma. We took advantage of being at grandma's house on easter to get some photos of him before he hits the 9 month mark in a few months! Here are a quick few for you enjoyment :)
sitting up like a pro!this one, he kinda just plopped over, and I liked the idea of having a totally different background than the bush we were using, so I went for it... and LOVE the result!
if you look close, you can see an itty bitty baby tooth in there :) Turning in to such a big boy!
Laying on his tummy in grandma's front yard. He seemed to be enjoying the feel of the grass between his fingers :)
And there is your baby Kent for the time being! He'll be 9 months in July, so it won't be too long before you see his little face again. Perhaps we'll teach him some new tricks to work on :)

Lorelai & Kent - Sneak Peek

i know you've all been anxiously awaiting for something more than "friday feet" and "let's do 52" posts on this blog of mine. don't worry, i feel that the flood gates are soon to be opened in the coming weeks :)

Newest Cocoons

so you saw this little cutie, right?well of course you did!
i loved how well it photographed, so i made three more this weekend :)
nevermind it meant that i was at joann's friday, saturday AND monday.
super easy to make and use, and i can't wait to get more babies to try them out. three new colors yearning for some sweet sleeping babies.you can tell the blue one has been baby tested (and approved!) by its stretched out-ness. but here are the four i've got done right now!i love how the edges make them look almost hooded sweatshirt like when baby is in them. and the yarn is SUPER soft. probably better than a snuggie, if you ask meso the four colors i have, left to right, are baby blue, zebra, posy pink, and a gray/white/pink combo. i'm thinking of maybe throwing together a red/white one for a christmas newborn theme. :) if you know ANYONE who is due soon, i'm looking for some newborn babies to test these out. send me an email at photogbyem@gmail.com
fellow photographers, if you're interested in a cocoon of your own, send me an email and we'll chat!

Baby Kent (and new props!)

so on saturday i gave you a sneak peek at baby kent.
and now i'm finally able to give you a few more!
these are also the props either i made myself, or my mom made them for me.
plus i've been crocheting up a storm this past week to try and make some more too!
i've got a few holiday themed beanies made, and more yarn purchased to make more cocoons!
polka dot posh. your patterns ROCK
anyways. here is kent!
we tried so hard to get him to stay asleep. but he just wasn't feeling it. i suppose being stripped of your warm clothes and plopped in to a bean bag would do that to a tiny person. but still... he's just so super cute!love this. he just looks so cute and snuggly. and teenie tiny! i could just stare at these cocoon pictures forever. but doesn't that cocoon just look so comfy?little hands. so tiny. its been far too long since i photographed a little one. and i loved it! now if only i could bottle this tiny and use it whenever i wanted to try something new. and look at those little lips! oh. so precious.
haha. so i posted this one on my facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/photogbyem) and its been quite a riot for my extended family. back awake after being taken out of the blue cocoon, we decided to give the hanging cocoon a shot. (don't worry. he's not in mid air like he looks. his bum is barely above the beanbag, and momma is to my left right out of frame) i love his little smirk, and that itty bitty hand on the edge. gah. love it.
if you're interested in a newborn session (which i would LOVE to photograph more babies!) or would like one of these props of your own, contact me for pricing at photogbyem@gmail.com

Meet Baby Kent - 10 days

more to come soon.
this i PROMISE this time.
i couldn't let this first one go un-posted.
i love love love it!
(and i love how tiny and itty bitty this guy was. WAY too long since i've held a bitty baby)
this is the cocoon my mom made using polka dot posh's pattern.
LOVE how it turned out, and how great it photographed.

New Props Previewing Soon!

Super Excited for this Weekend!
Not only do i get to be photographing baby kent, but i'll FINALLY get to use all my newborn props i've been accumulating!
in my storage i have a prop bed from picture me, llc
a one of a kind beanie from joco couture custom photography props
a teenie beanie my mom crafted for me
plus a hanging cocoon, newborn cocoon, and teddy bear ear flap beanie made from patterns purchased from polka dot posh
if you aren't already a facebook fan of these three awesome sites (or me!) please do so! you won't regret it ONE bit!
i'm very excited for what is in store this weekend!
there will be some newborn, some big sister and new born, and hopefully some family of four goodness going on in modesto!
stay tuned in the next few days for friday feet!

whoa baby!

this post may end up all words, so please forgive me. :)
my newest photo model came in to the world today at 4:24pm PST. yep, baby kent is here to stay! happy and healthy, both baby boy and momma lisa are doing well.
photo session of the new family of four is scheduled for 10/16 (happy birthday to you, momma lisa) so by then you'll have some baby oogling to wait for!
but in the mean time, i've got to get my hands a crochet hookin' in order to make some hand crafted baby props for this kiddo to be the first trial run for. (patterns purchased from polkadot posh. check them out. super cute)
anyways, i cannot wait to start the regular photographing of this little guy, just like i did his now big sister! okay. i can't leave you totally hanging. i'll clue you in as much as i can of the cuteness of this little fellow. meet baby kent via cell phone picture :)and speaking of babies, suzanne over at blank canvas photography FINALLY had her little girl on monday. this must be a baby having sort of week! congrats again to both you mommas!

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.

February Lorelai

last month i had the little one for a day in the park. we did some surprise-ish valentines photos for her mom & dad, plus some fun playing ones in a separate outfit. boy, i love kohls when it comes to shopping for wee one clothing. super cute, and not pricey AT all. Lisa gets these bows special made, and the one she brought just matched perfectly with her outfit. oh, and she took a definite liking to my pink holga. i thought i would NEVER get that thing back! she's my kind of girl, that's for sure. here is a sampling of photos from the day.