Heather & Melissa

This past weekend, I went back to Cleveland for a senior photo session and ended up having to cancel due to possible food poisoning. Since I had dragged all of my camera equipment with me, I couldn’t just let it sit in my bag!  Luckily, my mom had arranged to take some pictures of Heather and Melissa in their prom dresses.  We spent most of our time on the Magnum Beach behind Cedar Point’s Sandcastle Suites (more on that in a couple days) and shot abit by Lighthouse Point as well.  We had alot of fun and got some great pictures of our gorgeous models!

 

The Millers

Yesterday, Rob and I went out to East Aurora to take some pictures of the Miller family.  They have an amazing house that the father built himself (wow) on a great piece of land (complete with an awesome pond).  We had an awesome time working with the Millers- I’m sure that will show in the pictures to come (and the fact that I couldn’t narrow down the selection to my usual 6 or 7 images)!  The guys were definitely thinking that this would be a quick and typical  photo session (you know- posing by the fireplace with a cheesy fake smile).  Boy, were they in for a surprise!  It took a little while to kick them out of their comfort zone and into what we were doing.

The jump shots are fun, but sometimes the landings are so much better!

Did I mention that they have an awesome pond?

This is what I love about photography…

Poor Rachel….

Norm’s turn- ha ha!

Can you tell I love the pond?

Way too many people put on a show for the camera.  I am very thankful that they didn’t.

Kathleen and Jodi have such a fun dynamic- it reminds me of my family when I go home for the holidays!

Rachel can be a bit camera shy, but look at how much life she has in her laugh!

Sarah seemed to be loving every moment of the session.  I don’t think I came across one picture with out her gorgeous smile.

Norm is a bit shy when in front of the camera- athough I can’t understand why.  Look at how awesome he looks!

Can you tell the girls enjoyed the jump pictures?  This was from round 3!

 

the Jewells

Last week, I got together with all of my in-laws (Rob’s sisters and their families) to get some shots for a mothers day present.  We ended up at this awesome playground that reminds me of the one behind the N Royalton Library back home.  The kids were a bit young and hard to capture once we got there, but I probably would have taken off too given the chance.  Overall, it turned out to be fun time that ended in some cute pictures!

 

Angela

While I was home this past weekend, my adorable cousin, Angela spent some time hanging out with me and my family.  It turns out that she loves being in front of the camera as much as I love being behind it!  Here are a few of my favorite shots of Angela!

Let’s start out nice and easy…

move on to a tea party,

brighten your day with a smile

and eyes that sparkle,

and let’s finish it off with a headstand!

 

Lauren

This past weekend, Rob and I went out to take some pictures of Lauren. It was a little cold and dreary, but that didn’t stop us from getting some amazing pictures while having a great time.

I got to work with Lauren last year when I took pictures of her with her younger sister. Her pictures came out great then, so I had really high hopes for this session.  I can honestly say that I didn’t walk away disappointed. Lauren is gorgeous and so at ease in front of the camera. After the first 5 minutes, I didn’t even have to tell what I wanted her to do- she just fell into everything!

Here are just a few of my favorites from the session:

Most of these images are heavier on the processing than I usually do, but I think the over processing gave our grungy images the final pop they needed. The actions used are from MCP’s collection- eye doctor, magic skin (works great on goosebumps too), cover model, urban cover model, color explosion, and (of course) high definition sharpening.

 

The Kaderli Family

I would like to introduce you to the Kaderli’s.  They were referred to me through a friend after shooting a family photo session for them over the summer.

This was the first time I was meeting the family, and I must say that I was a bit scared.  They were so friendly and lively that I felt like I had known them alot longer.   I love the way they kids just opened up for the camera.

Meet Ashton, Sydney, and Sawyer.  They are all super friendly and have more spunk than sparkle in their eyes!  Their energy kept me on my toes (and exhausted their mother who was trying to keep them in line for my sake- little did she know what how chaotic and fun my sessions can get).

Sydney loved Pixel- and I was quite surprised how well Pixel did with her.  She never stays this well for me!

I just couldn’t pass up this one of the boys with their dad, Eric.

Sydney with her dad…

and her mom, Barbara.

I am going to ask all of you reading this post to keep this family in your prayers.  Sydney is ill and will be going through multiple surgeries this month.  Please pray for a complication-free surgery, a quick recovery, and some piece of mind for the family.

 

Caleb

Last week, my nephew Caleb came over for dinner and chance to play with some new lighting equipment. We had alot of fun terrorizing the kitty and ripping open random Christmas presents. We also got a bunch of cute shots. Here are a few of my favs…

 

Lou & Carrie

AKA Mom and Dad.  My trip home for Thanksgiving was definitely a multi-task trip.  We celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas, took photos of 3 different restaurants, photographed an engagement session, and took turns with our families on each side for camera to pictures to go on our Christmas cards!

Here are a few of my favs!

While I’m on the subject of my family- My mom is getting into photography as well.  If you want to check out her work, you can find it at www.pellphotography.wordpress.com

 

Denise, Kara, & Lauren

Last week, I got the chance to meet the lovely daughters of my friend, Denise. My husband and I had a blast working with the two girls (mom only jumped in a couple photos). They were both gorgeous, great to work with, and had some awesome ideas of their own!

This last one is definitely my favorite from the session, although I fear that I may have projected…
It is difficult being the little sister; at least it was for me. I had a hard time figuring out who I was supposed to be with my big sister being, in my mind, what a young girl should be. I was and still am absolutely nothing like my sister- she did ballet and played the flute; I did karate and played the trumpet. For along time I felt like she was following behind me in the shadows, reminding me of all the ways I didn’t fit the mold.

After working with Lauren and Kara, I sat down and thought a lot about this picture. Both of these girls are really beautiful, but it such different ways. It really hit me, how awe-inspiring God’s work really is! Here are two girls who are completely different, and yet completely beautiful. Lauren is so graceful and full of poise. Kara is so full of life and oozes innocence. It really solidifies my belief that everything created by God is absolutely beautiful- as long as you look for the beauty.

 

The Chase Family

This past weekend, I got a chance to meet the family of a friend of mine from church. Her entire family was in from out of town, so we jumped on the chance to get some shots with the whole family together. We went out to the waterfront and got some shots at an amazing condo that over looks the Erie Basin Marina. The shoot started out a bit rough- 4 kids often don’t mix well with formal portraiture, but once I got the kids more involved some great shots unfolded in front of me! Everyone was so nice and looked great! Thanks, everyone for such a fun session!