I’m going to call it right now:  Little Christopher is going to be the next Michael Phelps, and Hannah an Olympic track star.  Note to other photographers: If you’re going to photograph a 1-year old who LOVES water, and a 2-year old who loves sprinting to the most dangerous thing nearby — don’t shoot right next to a lake ;)

Our marathon (literally!) session took place in Moorestown, NJ at Strawbridge Lake Park.  Mom & Dad (Chris and Erica) must have dressed their two kiddies in their running shoes that morning.  But, I’ve photographed enough kids to always remember to also wear mine :)

Christopher & Hannah are very much a 1 and 2 year old.  They’re quick, they’re funny, and they learn something new every moment. Oh, and they’re completely adorable.  Although they’re so close in age, their personalities are already very different.  Hannah is a sweet and curious girl.  The way she was picking flowers was so feminine — her little pinky sticking right out as she plucked them from the grass.  Christopher is quiet and secretly plotting his escape at all times.  But, his seriousness has a weakness: apple sauce and tickles.

Enjoy.

This adorable, little nugget is Maxwell Lawson.  Don’t let the camera fool you — this little nugget wasn’t so little.  He weighed a whopping 9lbs 14oz when he was born.  Where his mother was hiding those 9lbs 14 oz, no one knows.

I spent the day with Max on Sunday (only 3 days old!).  He wasn’t too thrilled with being in front of the camera at first, but once he discovered the magic that is a pacifier, that quickly changed.  At that point, if he could talk, he would have said, “Sure, put me in that silly hat. It’s cool. You want me to smile? Sure, no problem. I’ll smile on three.  Ready?  One…two…”

Annnd… this happened:

Enjoy the rest :)

Miss Addie likes to “go go go go go go go!”  She told me herself.  It was the very first thing she said to me when I walked in the door.

I was able to keep up with Addie while she went went went went went, but Mommy & Daddy were the real pros at this shoot.  It was entertaining to see the two of them in action.  Handling a 2 year old requires a special… skill.  It’s a mix of patience and athleticism.  I believe they nailed it.  Even at a few months into her next pregnancy, Mommy ran around almost as much as Addie did.  That deserves some high-fives. I mean, I get winded walking up some steps. I have no excuse.

We took advantage of the unseasonably warm December and ran around their backyard, then later moved inside to Addie’s new “big girl” bedroom (girl upgraded to a walk-in closet at 2 years old. Addie — I’m jealous).  It’s nice to be able to utilize the inside of someone’s home on a shoot.  It makes their photos so much more personal.  These photos offer a little peek into their home for a-day-in-the-life of Miss Addie.

Enjoy.

Phew.

By  now, I have quite a collection of ear plugs, credentials, stories, and random bits of confetti.  My hearing is probably slightly worse, but my concert-shooting skills are definitely better.  Probably can’t have one without the other.

On Saturday night, Nero (aka: Joey?) visited the House of Blues in Atlantic City.  This was the 2nd dubstep concert I’ve shot, with my first one being a Skrillex concert a few months ago. Boy I was tossed right into the deep end at that show.  I had never heard of “dubstep”.  It was intense.  At least I knew what to expect this time with Nero.  If you don’t know what a dubstep show is like, I encourage you to go search for one on YouTube.

Loud music, crazy kids, very interesting attire, and glowsticks galore.

Enjoy.

PS – The last shot in this post took a very long time to get. I was watching that light swing around for a while, occasionally aimed in my direction, but only for a very brief second.  I tried to hit my shutter at the exact moment the light would whiz by, but I missed it each time. And then, the planets aligned: the kid in front of me threw his fist in the air at the exact moment the light came back around, and… voila!

It’s been a few weeks since I’ve shot a concert, so it was a nice change of pace to get back out to the House of Blue in Atlantic City last night. 


Grammy Award-winning R&B singer Anthony Hamilton was in town to finish up his tour for his latest album.  What a nice fella.  He came right out on stage and sang & danced his heart out.  I’m a big fan of synchronized dancing between all band members. That never gets old.  How they all sing, play an instrument, and dance in perfect synch is beyond me. The show was very high-energy and the sold-out crowd loved it.  I can see why all of his shows continue to be in front of absolutely packed houses.  Dude is an entertainer.

Two more shoots for me left in this whirlwind 2011, and then it’s a nice break to enjoy the holidays.

Check back next week for more photos and also for my 2011-In-Review post of my favorite shots from the past year!

I completely understand the high you get when you save a few bucks on things (Yes, my eyes light up when I see the Bed Bath & Beyond 20% off coupon sticking out of my mailbox).  But, while I’ve never participated in the Black Friday craze, I can pretty much guarantee that this shoot put me in a better mood than any discount waffle maker could.  And I really like waffles.

The little guy featured in these photos is Luke (I want to pinch his cheeks through my computer monitor).  I’m always amused at the things that mommys & daddys say or do to get their kids to laugh during shoots.  This guy really responded to Alison repeating “yes yes yes yes!… no no no no!” She not only had little Luke laughing, but the rest of us were cracking up, too.  A good time had by all!

Photo shoots are a much better way to spend your Black Friday :)

I have a full-time job at an office (photography is a part-time thing for me), and there has been a baby boom in the halls.  I lost count, but there had to have at least been 25 babies born in the span of 1.5 years.  I’m not sure what happened.  I guess everyone was drinking the water (I stick to Gatorade).  I managed to become pretty good at guessing who was the next person to announce that they were expecting.  At one point, I picked three correct people in a row. I was on a roll and had to share it with someone.

  Here is where Brian, a co-worker of mine, comes in.

One day last year, I said to Brian, “Brian! How about them Eagles?!?! And guess what?! I can predict babies!”  Okay, so I’m not quoting myself exactly, but I wanted to somehow tell you that Brian is an Eagles fan (which will come in handy later), and also let you know that I have a baby-predicting gift.

Brian was fairly entertained.  Being as competitive as I am (wanna race?!), I mentioned to Brian that he and I should have a friendly bet.  I bet him that I could correctly pick the next person at the office to make “an announcement.”  He bet me that he could do the same.

“The Baby Bet” was born.  The prize was bragging rights and nothing more.

Here’s how it worked: I picked one name, and he also he picked one name.  If the name that he or I picked announced their “big news” next, then he or I would win, and then pick another name.  We had a good run.  He picked a few that were right.  I had a few correct as well.

One day, one of the people I selected announced some “big news.”  I won, and therefore it was time for me to pick a new person.

…I looked at Brian.

He was next.

I was betting on Brian.

Now, I completely understand that if Brian was competitive enough to take it that far, he could have easily prevented me from winning this round of the bet.  I was willing to take the risk, because I had a sense (a baby-predicting gift) that Brian was next.  I squinted my eyes, dramatically pointed to Brian and said, “You’re next.”

Many months later, Brian shows up at the door of my office. He pulls some sort of paper from his pocket.

“Guess what.”

He tosses the paper onto my desk.

“You won.“

I pick up the paper… and it’s ultrasound photos.

I was beyond thrilled, because I won the bet!!!!  Okay, okay. I’m kidding. I was thrilled because Brian and his wife, Emily, were going to have a baby!!  And we all know that Brian was the one who truly won this round… and he sure got more than bragging rights!

Now, allow me to introduce Halie…the little girl that won me the baby bet:

This smile is courtesy of one of Brian’s moving renditions of “Head, Shoulders, Knees, And Toes…Knees And Toes.”

Here’s where knowing Brian is an Eagles fan comes in.  Emily and I were dressing Halie up in some very, very girly outfits, so we incorporated some of Brian’s stuff to call it even :)

Then, I met his little brother.  Not shy, but quiet.  More of an observer than a talker :)  But that might be because he’s not even 1-year old yet.   This guy didn’t have to say anything, though. Everything about him made me smile.  His big, beautiful blue eyes.  His adorable two bottom teeth. That hair of his.

I’m pretty sure I giggled in delight during the entire 1.5 hours we ran around Rittenhouse Square in Philadlephia.  It was one of those shoots that puts you in a good mood for the rest of the day :)

This family recently relocated to Philadelphia — and I only hope that they plan on sticking around for a while so that I have the opportunity to photograph them again soon!

Couldn’t wait to get these baby blues in a photo!

Little miss Mary was born a whopping 8 days before this shoot, on a snowy day in October.  Her big sister, Rose, also was born on a snowy day (but in December, when snowy days make more sense…)

  Mary may be the new kid in town, but she is already running the show.  When we asked Mary if she would fall into a deep, cozy, dreamy sleep for the shoot, she said “Nope. I think I want to be awake for this one.”  And when we asked Mary if she wanted to curl up in a ball for this, she said, “Nope. I want to stretch my arms and legs out as far as possible!”  Okay, so she didn’t talk. You know that. But, if she did, that’s what I imagine she would have said.  Some of the facial expressions she was giving us were such thoughtful looks, that I was just waiting for her to break out into full sentences, explaining to us how the shoot should go.

In charge… thoughtful… running the show. I wonder if she’ll grow up to be a Producer? :)

First up is big sis Rose, and then we move onto Mary! Enjoy!

I think this is Rose’s “Jersey Shore” face…

Oh, and all of these were taken from their living room :)

If you’re interested in “studio ” look for a newborn or toddler shoot, I’ll gladly bring the studio to your house!  There are some restrictions and requirements on space, so email me and we can go over all of the information.

Long time no blog! I had blocked off the last few weekends in October to be shoot-free, to make room for much needed vacation and catch-up time.  Since I’m a part-time photographer (I have a full-time job Monday-Friday), all of my shoots take place Friday nights, Saturday, and Sunday.  So when I take off a few weekends in a row, my poor blog has no new photos.

But hey! Here we are! Back like the good ole days of 1 month ago, when my entries were frequent.  I’m all booked up until 2012, so you can expect to see some more consistent updates.

Moving on…

Last weekend was a shoot with some familiar faces. And what lovely faces they are.  I’ve photographed this family a handful of times in the past.  My last shoot  with them was Summer of 2010, when their little girl was only 1-year old.  I love working with the kids and watching this family grow up.  Their daughter, Gia, is as curious, sweet, and quiet as can be.  While Christian is a ball of energy and personality.  They both did such a good job, though, and I rewarded them by letting them throw massive piles of leaves at my face.  I have weird ways of thanking people, apparently.  But that leaf fight resulted in some of my favorite photos of the bunch.

Oh, and yes… this family did walk right out of a Macy’s catalog.

Armed and adorable.

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