D Family:A Walk on the Boulevard

    When I first moved abroad, I had high hopes for my photography "hobby." I wanted to be able to take pictures of local families as well as ex patriate families and shoot events as well so they would have nice pictures to share with their family and friends back in their home country (wherever that might be.) Getting acquainted with the culture, settling into a routine, and then enduring a harsh winter and morning sickness hindered that dream a little (just a little.) But from the beginning I had encouragement and support from a dear friend. Her dad, a professional photographer, came to visit for a month and sat down with me one morning to critic my work and give me some tips, which really helped me in my over all approach to the art. She also said she'd like for me to do a session with her family. It was mentioned a few times and due to weather and schedules we put it off. Well, once we knew I was leaving she asked if I could still do a session with her family before we left. I said of course, and we planned to do it once the kids were out of school. I told her to call once she got a date from her husband, but things got busy for both of us. A few days ago I was at her house for lunch and she asked if it would be too much for me to still fit them in. I told her I did my sister's senior session the day before moving over here, I'm sure with four days left it wouldn't be a problem. :)
  We ended up getting together Sunday evening to create these (and more) pretty images. I'm so glad I was able to be a part of this family session. They have the best smiles, and while the guys might not be the most relaxed, (what teenage boy really enjoys posing in front of a camera for an hour?) they were so cooperative and willing to go with whatever I suggested...and had some great suggestions of their own (I hate to admit it, but having the kids climb into the tree was not my idea)

Enjoy some of my favorites from the D Family's session on the Boulevard...

W Family:Another Blustery Fun Shoot

    On the same windy day as I did the previous family's photo session, I met up with this (smaller-but-just-as-much-fun) family to capture some images of their pretty faces around town.  We, of course, ran into some issues with wind, but that didn't stop us. We found some fun spots, and a few little kittens too, and got some great images that I hope they'll be able to treasure for years to come. They, too, are saying good-bye to this city and moving on to a new adventure, and I am so happy I was able to capture these moments for them to take wherever they go. Hope you all enjoy these few frames from the W family photo shoot, I know I had fun taking them! 

C Family:Look at the Camera and Smile

   As the oldest of eight children I have few fond memories of family photos. Mom would spend hours before hand ironing clothes and fixing hair and trying her best to get us all to the studio mess free. Once there I would just try to do my best to look at the camera and smile, because I just knew if there was one image where I didn't look good then that'd be the one where all the other kids were actually looking, and of course, it'd be the one to get framed! Well, Friday morning I met with a family of eight and not only did the kids have the challenge of making sure they weren't the one 'not looking' (or worse) but they had the wind to combat! With hair blowing everywhere and dirt in our eyes this shoot presented a real challenge. But these kids were troopers and stuck with me through our different locations and pose creating some fun images. It was nice to be able to capture these frames for this family as they leave this windy city, and all the memories made here, and move on to a new adventure. Enjoy just a few of my favorite images from this families shoot, and notice how in this first one Dad and Mom are the ONLY ones looking at the camera ;) 

Favorite:Family

I took these photos back in December and just realized I never took time to show them off. They just happen to be my favorite family in this city! 

Fantastic Five:Thanks For the Memories

Before this fantastic team of English teachers finished their year interning here in this beautiful city, they wanted to be sure to get some fun, memorable, photos with each other in the city they poured their hearts into. As a friend, fellow teacher, and photographer, I was more than happy to oblige. 

We were able to capture many great images and made a few more memories to add to the ones we already have. To Brock, Christina, Michael, Arggi and Desery, looking forward to the next hello...because I'm not going to be able to say good-bye. Thanks for adding extra fun to our first year!

 I instructed them to "strike a pose" 

 ...this seems to be Michael's go-to pose...

 lots of laughs with this crew

 three lovely ladies, inside and out

 now just imagine about 70 other people on here and this is a typical bus ride

 "let's make it look like our heads are the flowers" I gave in since he cooperated so well with every other shot...this is just typical Michael. He keeps the mood light...?