The Carpenter Kids – Holiday Quick shoot!

For the past two weekends, I have been photographing various families for my Holiday Quickshoot Fundraiser to hopefully raise enough money to provide at least 100 meals to help feed some of our local homeless folks here in Bellingham, by donating %20 of each quick shoot that I have done to the Lighthouse Mission. For every $2 raised, it provides 1 hot meal to someone in desperate need. I am hoping to provide at least 100 meals this holiday season and have nearly reached my goal. If you are interested in getting holiday photos for you and your family or want to purchase a gift certificate to use at a later date – and help raise some money for our local Mission, please email me! I would love to get more food into hungry bellies – especially with it being so bitterly cold outside.

One of the first families to sign up for the holiday quickshoots, just happens to be two of my all time favorite kids to photograph EVER!

Last summer, I met Harry and Charlee for some fun photos downtown in Old Town Bellingham (You can see that shoot here) and I was really excited to see what their amazing Momma was going to bring along this time around! I am pretty sure, these two are quite possibly the best dressed kids in all of Whatcom County! Momma Janice has a wonderful eye for colors and textures and I LOVE LOVE LOVE her style! Here are some of my favorite photos of the kiddos outside in the alley behind my building and then indoors in the studio for an adventure in the big green chair I’ve grown to love!

Are those eyes to die for or what? I just can’t get over how incredibly blue they are! I'm pretty sure that Harry already has girls chasing him down at the playground! What a cutie!

You might not be able to see it in this small version of this photo but Harry is actually crossing his eyes and looking at his big red nose!


Charlee was getting tuckered out. Being adorable is hard work!




Monster hat requires Monster faces. (Coolest hat ever, by the way!)

Thank you so much for coming back to see me! I can’t wait to see what Momma has in store for next time! Maybe when its warmer out we can hit the beach! I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and you get everything you wish for!

Pretty little Lily

About a month ago, I got to meet pretty little Lily – who just turned one year old! Her mamma wanted to get some fun pictures taken before the weather got too cold. Unfortunately, the temperatures outside on this sunny Autumn day weren’t warm enough to allow us to get all of her portraits done outdoors so we got creative in the studio and confined her exploring little body to a big metal tub (at this age, you have to trap them to make them sit still for more than 2 seconds!) and her Grandma and Momma had a pretty floral headband that they brought along that just happened to match the flower I had in my studio – so we took advantage of it all and got some cute shots of Lily in the tub before we trekked outdoors into the brisk fall air. Here are some of my favorite shots from Lily’s One year shoot. Isn’t she just a doll??!!

 

Lily – you are so stinkin adorable and I hope that you come back and see me again soon! Next time, maybe it will be warmer outside and we can go play at the park! Thank you for brightening my day!

Brown Eyed Girl!

Earlier this summer, I ran a promotion through a local radio station, where I offered gift certificates for full portrait sessions at a discounted price… and not long after, I got a phone all from KD’s mom, who informed me she was purchasing the gift certificate for her daughter’s 13th birthday present!

I get to do a lot of newborn sessions and senior portraits and weddings – and really enjoy being a part of those important parts of people’s lives – but besides my own children, I had not had the pleasure of photographing anyone else taking the huge step from “Kid” to “teenager.” It was SO much fun!

KD is gorgeous! She had the biggest, brownest eyes EVER and has such a fun personality – so we had a blast wandering around Bellingham to find some new bright and colorful walls to use for our backgrounds. She had recently made a tie-dyed shirt with her Girl Scout troop and brought it along – which made for some striking photos when we put her in front of the bright purple and turquoise walls that I love so much!

It was SO cold outside – but she wanted to get some pictures in her dress and some of her favorite outfits, so she put on her “Top Model” face and managed to turn off the chattering teeth and full body chill shakes, the minute I told her I was shooting again! I was in 3 layers and I had a hard time keeping myself from shaking – I have no idea how she did it – but she loves her photos (and so do I!) so I’m pretty she will say it was worth it!

Here are some of my favorite shots from her session:

 

 
Toward the end of our time together, I learned that KD and her family are originally from California – so when we found this last wall – we decided it was only fitting to get a photo of her in front of it to send back to her friends back in California!

KD – Thank you so much for letting me drag you around all over town trying to find new funky colored walls to photograph you in front of and for being such a trooper in the cold! You are gorgeous, inside and out - and I hope that these pictures remind you that you really are – when you start to doubt yourself in the years ahead.

Yes. You really are – THAT beautiful. :)

Tasha & Justin – 10.5.2009

Tasha and Justin were married out at the Lairmont Manor back in October – complete with a Halloween theme! I can honestly say, they had one of the coolest wedding cakes I have ever seen and the adventure we had during their “Trash the Dress” session at Bayview Cemetery, is one I will never forget!

They got married in the evening, so we didn’t have much light to work with on their wedding day and opted to include the “Trash the Dress” session, instead of the engagement session that I typically do for my couples, before their wedding date. 

We got some great shots at the Lairmont on their wedding day, but didn’t have enough time to get all of the shots I like to produce for my clients, due to lack of available light outdoors after the ceremony…So, they decided to keep with their wedding theme and we headed down to the cemetery on one of our only sunny weekend days left for the fall, where we found amazing colors and perfect settings for their portraits.

Here are some of my favorite shots from their wedding day and then some from their “Trash the Dress” session a few weeks later.

See….That cake was AWESOME! I didn’t get a chance to try any of it though because they had an entire table of yummy candy to pick from…Caramel apples, lollipops, chocolate covered strawberries and various old school candies like Lemon heads and candy necklaces to dig into…and they sent me home with 3 bags for the kids too!

Ok…enough about the sugar and onto the more…sweet stuff? ;)

I had a lot of fun wandering around the graveyard with Justin and Tasha and daughter Lily – and found myself fighting the creepy heebie jeebies from time to time, especially when Tasha got a giant grin on her face as Justin suggested they go lay up on top of one of the larger memorial gravestones – and said something to the effect of: “You can’t do that! You’ll be cursed and die tomorrow!”

Needless to say, they didn’t actually climb up there…but I ended up being boosted to the top of the thing to get the shot below…and found that though I didn’t die the next day (Thankfully!)…I felt like I wanted to…because while Justin was in the process of boosting me up onto the platform, my memory card pack fell out of my backpack…and I didn’t notice until  I got home. I was sure that all of their photos were lost, except for what I had left in my camera, along with quite a few expensive memory cards – but Justin managed to find them the next day…sitting right there on top of the platform he had boosted me up onto. That will teach me to challenge superstitions!I wont be doing that again any time soon!

Anyway – here are some of my favorite shots of them at the Cemetery – complete with fun masks and mossy gravestones!

Tasha and Justin….thank you both for such a crazy adventure! I  really hope we get together again sometime to do some more fun pictures…but maybe it can be at the carnival instead of the cemetery…I am pretty sure I freaked myself out a few times looking through your photos and finding some figure standing behind a bush staring at me…but realized it was just a curious fellow walking his dog not a creepy dead guy, mad at me for sitting on his grave.

*Shudder*

:) Congratulations you two!

Megan’s Senior Portraits

Back in October, I got a chance to run around down by the Marina and Old Town Bellingham, with Megan, who wanted something a little more edgy than the typical senior portrait – which is exactly the kind of thing I love to do…find non-traditional places full of color and texture and FUN!

We spent a while down at the Boat Marina, where we got some photos with my favorite rusty old truck (Which happened to be a perfect background to pull the amazing green in her eyes out into the photos!) and then headed down to Squalicum Beach where we were going to try to get some water and beach shots but got distracted by the lone rail car on the tracks that was hiding behind a bunch of bushes – which makes it much easier to get to climb on things you aren't supposed to and not get caught!

We wrapped up the session by heading down to Old Town and getting some shots with some of the wonderful brickwork walls and textures we have laying around in that area. Here are some of my favorite shots from our photo shoot:

Thank you for such a fun shoot Megan – and for being such a good sport after falling into the swamp! If nothing else, its a great story to tell! :) Good luck with your future plans and I hope the rest of your senior year is amazing!

A Hero Comes Home.

The body of Spc. Aaron Aamot of Custer, who was killed Nov. 5 while serving in Afghanistan, arrived at Bellingham International Airport Today. He was originally from Custer and attended Ferndale High School. He was in the 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment and was part of the 5th Stryker Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division based in Fort Lewis. He had been serving in Afghanistan since mid-July on his first deployment in the war. He was killed when the Stryker vehicle he was driving went over a bomb. (Bellingham Herald)

I took these photos today as his remains passed through thousands of people who lined the streets, overpasses and freeway - and was humbled, overwhelmed and brought to tears - but my heart swelled with pride as I stood with so many others who gathered to honor this fallen hero. It was an amazing sight. One I won’t soon forget.

I stood atop the train trestle that leads into the heart of downtown Ferndale and at one point, I was overcome with emotion and had to sit down on the tracks as I realized that I was standing with a fallen hero passing below me…while others were flying above me.

It was an experience – that I can’t even describe.

Rest in Peace Aaron. I never met you - but Ill never forget you.

Please click on the thumbnails to view the full album.

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Smiles For Soldiers – The Faces of Love

Back in September, I decided that I wanted to try to make a difference somehow…and do something to help our troops overseas. I realized that there are a lot of soldiers over there, missing their lil ones back here at home – So I set out to find at least 10 families with children of deployed soldiers, to photograph, in hopes of sending some smiling faces to their parents just in time for the holidays. I fell short of my goal – even after the local newspaper published a story about my offer to give free portrait packages to Military members who haven’t seen their children for months on end…but I’ll try again next year.

Five beautiful families contacted me after reading the article in the paper and I have to say, the emotional response I have been struggling with while doing this has really been a challenge. My heart aches, looking at these children staring back at me – knowing that a few of them don’t really know, or even remember much about their parents … and their parent/s are missing out on so many amazing pieces of their childhood. It breaks my heart – but it is mended a tiny bit, by the thought that I can send these gorgeous smiles to their parents – and know that for even a brief moment, those serving overseas will be flooded with love, joy, beauty, & hope…amidst the chaos, heart ache, uncertainty and ugliness of the war they face every day. Its the least I can do.

This blog post will be longer than most – as I want to showcase each family and share a few photos from their sessions. Please keep them and their parents in your thoughts this holiday season.

First up – Alexis and Oliver! (And Mommy Katie!)

These gorgeous kiddos have been missing their daddy (Adonis) since July – and wont be able to see him again until next July. He is currently serving in Afghanistan and has missed out on quite a bit of these lil one’s lives so far. I really hope he gets to stay a while…aren’t they beautiful? I could not get over the full head of curls on little Mr. Oliver and those amazing, big brown eyes of Miss Alexis!
I know their daddy is going to love these pictures – I just wish I could be there to see his face when he sees them! :)

Next up – Little Matty! (And Momma Amanda)

This lil bug just turned 19 months old and was a total ham in front of the camera! Matty was totally up for having me put him in a box, showing off his fantastic smile and chomping on his daddy James’s dog tags for a few pictures! I got Mamma in a few shots for his daddy too – and I think they are my favorite (and sure to be his!)

Here are a handful of shots heading out to surprise James who is serving overseas right now – and missing his little family back here at home. Are they adorable or what?

Now we come to the fabulous and stylish Sabryna and Baylee, who were accompanied by their Mom Kelly, Uncle Matt, Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Matt’s Fiance, for a quick shoot down at Boulevard Park for their dad, Scott, who is currently deployed to Iraq!

These two girls …. lets just say, I was really wishing I could steal them for a full shoot instead of a quick few shots to get into the mail! I love the fact that Mom lets them color their hair and express themselves and they have quirky and fun personalities to boot! They were naturals in front of the camera – I wish I would have had more time with them both! I'm secretly hoping they will come back when dad gets home and get a full family shoot so I can hang out with them again! (Hint hint!) Here are some of my favorites:

These next two sets are kiddos that have both parents serving over seas – and their wonderful Grand Mother’s contacted me to get them in for some pictures to send to both Mom AND Dad. In both cases – one parent is serving in Afghanistan and the other is serving in Iraq.

The first of the two families is Little Christian who brought along a photo of his Mom and Dad with him, so that he could be in a picture with his parents and send it to them for Christmas.

Here are some of his pictures:

Christian’s Mom, Amber, is currently on the other side of the country - preparing to be deployed to Iraq while his dad, Sean, is serving in Afghanistan but will be coming home for a visit just in time for Christmas this year, before having to return to the warzone.

 

These last two kiddos, Anna and Peter, are also being raised by their grandparents while both mom (Victoria) and Dad (Jonathan) are away at war…again, each parent is fighting a different battle – one in Iraq and the other in Afghanistan. We did our best to get some cute pictures of these two for their parents, but little Peter was more interested in exploring every nook and cranny in my studio, than sitting for a picture – so we did our best and I just kept snapping away! Whew!! Toddlers are so busy! Here are some of my favorites of these two cuties. :)

You know it’s time to call it a wrap when they start melting into the background! :) (oh and the vest that lil Anna is wearing for her photos – actually belonged to her mommy when she was that small!)

And now…for the part of this post that I have been putting off, due to the personal emotional ties I now how with this family – and the whole reason this idea came to sit on my heart like it did.

Noah.
Dear Sweet Smiling Noah..and his beautiful family.

Last May, I found myself photographing a wedding for a sweet young couple – the groom (Noah) had just returned home from a tour in Iraq and wanted to marry his sweetheart (Jess) when he got home…so he did! I fell in love with the whole family that day – and found myself in constant email communication with Noah’s Mom Patricia, who has become one of my dearest friends – even though we only communicate through our fingertips! When I’ve had a rough day, when I'm missing my parents, when I just need to know that someone out there cares to “listen” when I just need to vent – I pop open a new email window and start typing my little heart out. She always responds with understanding, sincere advice and a heartwarming story to share. She’s been my saving grace since my dad passed away (And probably has no idea…um…til now!)

When she emailed to tell me she had gotten news that Noah was being deployed to Afghanistan, mere months after getting settled into married life – I couldn’t even finish reading her email without bursting into tears. My heart ached for her and it still does. I can’t imagine sending my child off to war…She is much stronger than I am.

Back in October – Noah came home for a visit to spend some time with his family and his wife before shipping out to prepare to deploy to Afghanistan. Patricia invited me down to spend an evening with them as they celebrated Thanksgiving Dinner (Noah’s Favorite!), Christmas (because he wont be here this year) and Halloween…so I drove down and enjoyed my very first ThanksChristmasWeenie with the Beddome’s– and felt like I was part of the family.

We took some photos for him while I was there – and I think one of my favorites is of Noah and “Grandpa” sitting together with their military photos on their laps. Grandpa is a WWII Veteran and had plenty of stories to tell. Here is that photo and a few more Id like to share before I finally wrap up this post tonight…knowing that today, he’s heading to the airport to catch a plane that will take him to some unknown area in Afghanistan and away from all of us here that love him and will be holding our breath until he returns. Be Safe Noah…and know we are thinking of you.

For  more from ThanksChristmasWeeenie – please click the thumbnail below to visit the full album of photos.

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I would really like to make this a personal holiday tradition. If you know of families like these – I would love to hear from them. Please have the email me and tell me their stories. Id love to connect with them. Thank you to everyone that helped me find these families – and for taking the time to read their stories and look through their photographs. Please keep them in your thoughts. All of them.

Mikael & Nick – Trash the Dress Session

Mikael and Nick were married at the Leopold back in September and I wasn’t able to photograph their wedding for them, so they hired me to do their “Trash the Dress” session afterward. I was so excited to see them walking toward me with giant grinning faces and awesome outfits! I absolutely adored these two! Not only were they incredibly fun to work with but they have me cracking up every time I look at the narrative Mikael put together when she got her photos back from me! You can read it here! (You may need to be a facebook member to read it – and make sure you start at the first photo to get the beginning of the story!)

We had a lot of fun wandering around Fairhaven and I am starting to think that there is something funny going on in that little town..seems like the past few photo shoots with wedding couples that I have done there – results in a lot of kissing…maybe its something in the Fairhaven air…hmmmmm..

Anyway – here are some of my favorite shots of these two. :)

They even had matching shoes…can you get any cuter than that?


Mikael has a thing for Lamp posts…so we found a few for her!





Mikael and Nick – congratulations! Thank you so much for letting me still be part of capturing your newly married bliss! Keep in touch!

Perfect Gifts

Oh...yes...its coming upon that time of year again...that gift giving craze we all like to call "the holidays." For those of you that have an awful time finding the perfect gift for the folks on your list that seem to always already have everything - just let me say...PICTURES!

People love picture gifts...they are priceless and...besides 15 years from now, that new high tech waffle iron you gave to Uncle Joe is going to set his kitchen on fire after one of his kids uses it to try to make fish net stocking patterns for her new Barbie, the Kenny G CD is going to warp in the sun and Grandma is going to think voices are telling her to beat up lawn gnomes with shiny pretty saxophones...and the Cheese Fondue set you gave to the neighbors will no doubt still have your fingerprints on it when CSI shows up to find out how one of the "gently curved - 3 sharp tined" forks got stuck in the back of the neighbors pool boy...(ok, so no one around here actually has a pool - but let me have my CSI moment will you?)

Trust me. Photos are much safer... ;)

I will be offering a special on gift certificates this year (for $75 off the regular price.) Give me a call or email me to find out more...and just so you know - A full portrait package always includes a 1.5-2 hour session, on location or now In STUDIO! (I finally got myself a space! Grand opening coming soon!) I give you a small album with about 25 4x6 prints and you also get all of your photos on disk (between 50-150+) at high resolution sizes in a mix of color and black and white - along with a copyright release, so you can make as many copies and sizes that you want to.

Make Grandma a tote bag with her grand kids on it...make a calendar, coffee mug, mouse pad, t shirt, coasters, pillows or maybe some really funky sock puppets!! ...It is up to you! Get creative! Don't buy Dad another tie and please don't get Mom another set of oven mitts with weird dancing cows on them...give them pictures that they can put up on their wall to cover up those old high school photos and remove any evidence that you ever had a mullet or "that 80's hair." You could make your brother a puzzle...hes been threatening for years to "rearrange your face" - now you can give him that chance!

Seriously though...give me a call...you know I'm right...don't you?

Tracey & Tom 9.19.2009

This fall, I got to spend a day with one of my favorite families out on Orcas Island. I met this crew of amazing people, back in 2007 when I did Dani and Kevin’s beautiful fall wedding out at Bow Lodge. Little did I know that I’d be photographing her baby brother’s wedding not long after!  It’s always such a joy to get to know a family through my work – and now, not only have I photographed both of the Becker children getting married, but I have also photographed the first grandchild (Landon) of the family and Im hoping to be invited to photograph the next one too! *Hint Hint*

Tracey and Tom were married out at a family member’s beach house on Orcas Island. It was breath taking. The sun was out (Which made for gorgeous landscape photos but challenged me to find some shade to get portraits done!) and the sky was bright bright blue and the mood was bittersweet…

This wedding holds a special place in my heart - (As does the family) – because Tracey lost her father a few years ago and I could see her struggling to keep her emotions contained through out the day…but she held herself together and she’s a stronger woman than I…having lost both of my parents, I know just how hard it is to have something amazing and beautiful happen in your life that you cant share with those you’ve lost and yearn for. My heart was breaking for her as her Uncle gave her away “On behalf of my brother.”

Tracey got a tattoo before the wedding day – in honor of her Daddy – who couldn't there to celebrate with us. She also had a locket wrapped around her bouquet, with his photo inside to carry as she walked down the Isle. There was a lot of love going around on their wedding day – and it shows. Here are some of my favorite shots:

Let me just say – there was a plethora of adorable children at this wedding. It was near impossible to keep from running off and spending a half hour with each kid while I was there! Here are some of my favorites of the lil ones that attended the wedding: 

Little Landon is one of the first newborn sessions I did in my studio space. He has gotten so big…and even more adorable than I imagined! Those lucky people (Above) holding him and getting snuggles are his proud Grandparents!  Is he adorable or what?

There you have it – another wedding that resulted in me feeling more like a part of the family than the hired help. :)

Tracey and Tom – I hope you love sitting and looking at your wedding album together and I hope you remember to find time to go for long walks on the beach together and remember just how much in love with each other you are. :) Thank you for letting me be part of your wedding day and inviting me into your lives. You are treasures. :)

*Tracey – he was there in the wind brushing across your shoulders, in he sun kissing your face and …he saw how beautiful you looked – and he’s proud of you.

Lisa & Mark – 9.12.2009

I absolutely love non-traditional weddings – I especially love non-traditional weddings that include seriously fun people to photograph! This wedding was full of bright colors, roaring laughter and a whole lot of love between close family and friends as well as the bride and groom! I was a bit bummed that I wasn’t staying through the reception to get shots of them all getting wild and crazy – but the photos we got before the ceremony were a lot of fun and I was so grateful to work with people that were “Up for anything!”

Lisa and Mark got married out at the Squalicum Boathouse near the Marina on a beautiful sunny September afternoon – which actually makes my job harder!! (Overcast days make for the best lighting…sunny days create ugly shadows on faces and squinty eyed folks!)

We took advantage of the fun walls and doorways around the dock area, along with the old machinery and vehicles laying about the grounds – trying to find shade where ever we could and managed to get some really cute pictures of the wedding party before heading over to the Boathouse for the ceremony. Here are some of my favorite shots from their wedding day. Enjoy!

While we were taking the group shots – Lisa and I noticed a few boats in the Marina – and we just had to get her up on one for this awesome vintage looking shot! We also spotted a boat named “Cherry II” – and with the whole Cherry theme of her wedding – there was no way we could pass up a shot with that one!

While we were shooting with the boats, a couple of fishermen were wrapping up for the day and offered her a ride in their dingy – but we weren’t too sure it was all that safe - so she asked them to pose with her instead. I think we may have produced two of the happiest fishermen at the docks that day. After this shot – the guy with the sunglasses tried to peek up under her skirt! It was a riot!

Lisa and Mark – Thank you so much for asking me to photograph your wedding! I have to add your photos to “My favorite weddings of all time” – not just because you chose fun colors and were awesome to work with – but because I know you two are truly happy and it reflects in the photos I captured for you that day.

Congratulations to you – and best wishes for many more years of laughter and love. :)

Running Amuck with Corbyn!

Let me just say that I’m totally in love with this girl’s love of life and her spunk – not to mention her color choices for her senior photos outfits! I had a blast running amuck with Corbyn down by one of my favorite old buildings in Bellingham – Reed Boilerworks!

She let me drag her back through the blackberry bushes to get to one of my favorite little nooks,  met with me on a dreary rainy day (It stopped raining right before our scheduled shoot time and started again the minute we said our goodbyes!) and was totally up for hijacking a lonely boat laying around by the water and getting goofy with my daughters “Girl Power” hammer I forgot to take out of the trunk after the Lynden Fair!

Corbyn is gorgeous – If I could post all of her photos – you’d be sitting here all day looking through them! I had such a hard time choosing just a handful to share – let alone trying to pick just 25 to put into her print album – so right now – I'm really glad I'm not her mother because I’d end up purchasing the entire back of the high school year book so I could show them all off! :)

Here are some of my favorite shots from her session!

 

 

  Corbyn  – thank you for such a fun photo shoot! Please keep in touch and lets plan a “Play date” – and go do this again, this time just for fun! (Not that it wasn't full of fun this time…but next time, I wont be working…Ill just be having a great time with a great model who likes to laugh and be weird like me!) YAY! :)

You go Girl! :)
Have a fantastic final year of high school!

Kenna – Model in the Making

A few weeks ago, I got to go out and wander around some of my favorite alleys in Downtown Bellingham with a gorgeous young lady who is not only starting her Senior year in high school but is also stepping out into the world of Modeling!

I was so excited to find out that Kenna had some modeling experience and was really looking forward to her photo shoot – it’s not often that I get clients in front of my camera that do all the work for me and know how to pose themselves and keep moving while I keep moving around them to get the shots. She is absolutely wonderful to work with and she definitely knows how to work the angles and get great shots! I have no doubt she will go far with her modeling career and I look forward to the day when I can say “Hey!! I know that girl!! I took some of her first photos!” when I see her in a magazine ad or on a billboard someday!

Here are some of my favorite shots of Kenna! Enjoy!

We decided the motorcycle in the alley was a definite must have for a prop and thankfully her mom was willing to go into the Tattoo shop and ask permission to use it – and when she came back out giggling – we knew the owner had given her permission….but the poor fellow had first thought we had run it over with our car when she walked in and said “Um…who owns that motorcycle in the alley??” ;)

Kenna – you are stunning and I know you will go far in the modeling world. Please  come back and see me soon! I loved spending the afternoon with you (and mom too!) Good luck with your Senior year!

Little Miss Sunshine!

This gorgeous little bundle was barely a week old when her Momma and Daddy brought her into my studio and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on her! I was hoping to get to photograph a newborn baby girl before all of the pretty spring colors were gone from the fabric store and I was really excited when her Momma told me that they had decorated her bedroom with pinks and greens – I love that combination! I had a fun little green basket I was dying to use with some bright colors after having used it with another shoot for a gorgeous little newborn boy last winter… and I think these might be my favorite newborn shots thus far – I love bright vibrant colors with new baby skin! Just looking at them makes my whole day brighten!

Here are some of my favorite shots of Little Miss Callie and her parents Monica and Ty from her newborn session in my studio. I had a hard time picking just a handful – so I put a larger album at the end of this blog post if you would like to see a few more from her session! I love the big bright eyes and the smiles we got!

Enjoy!!

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Congratulations Monica and Ty and thank you so much for letting me get creative with Callie’s newborn photo session! (and for letting me hold her so much!! I loved rocking her to sleep!) I can’t wait to see how much she changes in the next few months! Please bring her back to see me! I have a whole new set of ideas for her next time!

Farewell Friends

Back in August – Bellingham had to say goodbye to a gorgeous family that has blessed more lives with their beauty, than I think they could ever possibly realize..and though we are sad to see them moving away from our little town – we know they are only a 2 hour road trip away…and as they say…absence makes the heart grow fonder…they’ve only been gone for 2 weeks and we are already feeling the effects of the “Lack of the Lund” family!

My daughter had a blast attending Gardenview Montessori Preschool last year and through that experience, we were introduced to the wonderful talents that Justin, Nico and little Vega all possess! We LOVE meeting other creative and artistic people and this whole family is all that and more!

Nico is an amazing visual artist and both she and Justin (and Vega too!) are all musically talented as well…so when I discovered that our families had so much in common as far as the arts goes – we made an effort to try to get to know them better and spent a few wonderful evenings with them before they had to start packing up to move to Seattle… (BOO!) and Nico and I made a trade for Father’s day…she traded me this gorgeous painting of my husband and my daughter, for some professional family portraits. I still get all teary eyed when I walk past the piano room and see it hanging on the wall!

I was more than happy to get these fun-loving people in front of my camera and I really wanted to make sure we got to get something for them to remember Bellingham by – and the train station and old Town Bellingham was just the perfect spot to do that – along with a last minute sunset shoot down at Squalicum beach! Here are some of my favorite shots of their “Farewell to Bellingham” shoot. Enjoy!

I'm pretty sure Spiral (the pup) will probably never forgive me for putting that punked out hairpiece on – but it was too cute to pass up!


This photo of Vega out on the rocks with her little parasol – just might be one of my absolute favorite portraits I’ve ever done. It reminds me of one of those “Precious Moments” cards…*sigh*

So…yeah…we gave Vega some sidewalk chalk and let her color on the walls while we did some photos of her parents…I know..I know…it starts with sidewalk chalk and ends up spray paint – but …but… ;)

EWWWWE!!! Kissing!!

Nico – Justin – Vega – Spiral…we miss you already and we definitely plan to come visit you in Seattle sometime soon! We need our Lund Fix!! Bellingham isn't the same without you – so please come back and visit from time to time…*bats eyelashes* Pretty please??

Fare well…but not Goodbye. :)