Urban Baby - Kansas City Portraits

And, as promised - previews from Meggan and Ryan's baby girl's urban session. I have to say I absolutely love the family portrait above - one of my favorites ever! What a great little family! Plus... you all know how much I love blowing hair - I would say there was a fortunate wind going at that moment =) I think it would look great as a 16x24 in a really funky frame, or as a gallery mount on black.

Anyway - enjoy the preview Meggan - your gallery is coming along. Thank you, again, for continually putting your faith in me to capture these special milestones for your baby. I appreciate it so much.

Happy Birthday, K! - Kansas City Baby Portraits

I have had the pleasure to photograph this sweet little thing several times in her first year of life and it's always special for me. It's such an honor to have gotten to follow her growing and changing through the year, and we celebrated the end of her first year with a cake smash in my Center Stage Studio. Even her parents, Meggan and Ryan, got in on it - and ended up with a bit of pink frosting on their faces, too!

A few days later we followed up the studio session with a urban baby session in Kansas City's West Bottoms - I'll share some of those tomorrow.

Happy birthday K!
Eat a piece of cake for me!

The Beauty of Dance - Stephanie

I've wanted to photograph Stephanie, now studying dance in New York, ever since she was one of my daughter's dance teachers. She was on a little break in Kansas from her bi-coastal life last week and so I finally got a chance to put her in front of the camera. She brought along a friend (who I have photographed many times) and we had a good time in the studio. Besides dance portraits, we had fun with headshots, and other things, too. Stephanie - I'll have your gallery ready soon!

This first one below is my favorite of her. It's not my traditional dance portrait, but I love it. I've always thought that Stephanie is very cerebral about dance. When she taught her classes, I could see her thinking - this portrait shows that side of her, I think. (click on it to see it better).


Fun with Marky!
I love this headshot of Stephanie - she looks like she's ready for Hollywood, doesn't she?

And my favorite headshot of Marky! I love showing women how beautiful they are!

Ashlynn, part II-Mill Valley High School-Kansas City Senior Portraits

Ashlynn, who I blogged about last week, wanted some senior portraits on the farm. We had a bit of an adventure even getting to the farm outside of Lawrence, but once we were there, it was pretty magical (except, maybe, that menacing turkey).

Ashlynn is my Center Stage senior rep at Mill Valley High School in Shawnee - you can ask her about getting senior portraits done with me, and she can give you a coupon for something special when you place your order.

Here are a few previews, Ashlynn - I had a fun time with you on Sunday!
(click on the horizontal images to see them more clearly)

Ballerina Portrait Event - Kansas City Children's Portraits

I'm thrilled to show you these portraits I took as examples of what I have planned for this year's fall ballerina portrait event.

I am styling this year's portraits around this stunning backdrop, loaned to me by a wonderful photographer, Kimberly Hill of Bliss. I have many costumes available for your daughter to wear, and our parent volunteers will pamper her with a beautiful hair do, a subtle make-over with lip gloss and a touch of blush (all optional!), and then help her slip into costume - transforming her into a prima ballerina. Once her session is over, she will leave with a few special little treats, as well.

If you aren't into tutus and tiaras, bring an outfit for your child to wear - dresses in pink, white and/or ivory would also look beautiful on this backdrop. Plus, if you prefer a fashion session, we can do that as well - I am also offering an alternative, modern paper backdrop in tan for those of you not interested in roses.

Session fees and print prices are discounted for these limited edition Center Stage sessions - contact me for details. Scheduling officially begins Monday, Aug. 31, although we've already filled several appointment times.

SESSION DATES: Sunday, Sept. 27; Friday, Oct. 2; Sunday, Oct. 4
PLACE: Center Stage Studio, located in the Academy of the Arts building, 5413 Martindale, Shawnee.

P.S. I've even bought a new settee for this event - isn't it lovely?
Alternative, "fashion" styling on tan paper for those of you wanting something different this year (and yes, the fashion sessions can have blowing hair, just like a model!):

Moms Are Special - Kansas City Family Portraits

I wanted to share this image from last week. It was part of a large family portrait session that was done under very emotional circumstances. At the end of the session, I took a few different smaller groupings, including this beautiful image of this mom and children. I just love it and would love to have a similar portrait of me and my kids one day.

Thank you Rachel, and family, for trusting me to photograph your family under these circumstances. I'm thinking of you, and your mom.

Ashlynn-Mill Valley High School-Kansas City Senior Portraits

I love shooting senior portraits, and so it was my lucky, lucky day when Ashlynn chose me for her senior portrait session. Isn't she just beautiful? I've asked her to be my senior portrait representative at Mill Valley High School in Shawnee - so Mill Valley seniors - contact Ashlynn if you are interested in Center Stage senior portraits. She will soon have some information to give you.

I'm actually running a special on my senior portrait sessions this year - $90 session fee; and $500 yous get digital files from your session and a proof book. Contact me for more complete details, restrictions, etc.

*By the way - you can click on the images to see them better.

Thanks for choosing me, Ashlynn!

Experimenting with Light - Kansas City Portrait Photographer

So, you all recognize this young woman - Gwen is one of my favorite people to photograph. She's sweet, fun, beautiful and talented (and I'm leaving out some adjectives just so my gushing doesn't get embarrassing).

I have wanted to use studio light outdoors for a while now. What's called "OCF" (off camera flash) is very popular in the portrait photography world right now. While no self-respecting portrait photographer uses "on camera flash" - that is, the camera's built-in flash, for portraits, the use of a flash unit (be it a small portable one or a large studio light) outdoors can create a whole new look, and also make night-time portraiture possible.

So, I grabbed Gwen, and off we went to some land just north of my studio door, and I gave it a try (using a long extension cord to plug in my light). How cool is this? I can't wait to try this again (and will do so at my parents' farm this weekend - if my kids will cooperate...if not, my parents, sister and husband may be forced to be my models. Watch my blog for an update on that - lol!)

I have one more to post - my own favorite - that has some very different qualities - I'll do that once my hosting site is back online.

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