Amanda Kern

Last week I got the opportunity to photograph Alex & his new baby brother Jackson. Alex is one of the first newborns I photographed in 2008 and was the first baby I’ve photographed who was adopted. He was definitely one of the most memorable babies I photographed that first year because he came to me so sleepy and I still remember to have been one of the most content babies I’ve photographed. Many of you may have read my personal feelings about adoption after photographing Isaiah last fall. It really is truly special to be a part of capturing those first moments for a family that you know treasures their newest little ones. So when I heard my neighbors, Ben & Renee were adopting again, I couldn’t be more excited to share a few special moments with them and their newborn son. It was equally exciting to know I’d get to photograph Alex again for the first since he was six months old. It’s just amazing how much he’s grown in two years.

Alex is one of the sweetest little two year old boys I’ve gotten to photograph. He was a little nervous but do you blame him when I had my big camera pointed in his face when he preferred to be playing with the toys.

We started out taking the photos with Alex so he could do much more fun things like play with toys while we photographed Jackson. We attempted a couple photos of him with his new baby brother. He seemed interested in the idea at first and then we placed Jackson down on him and I think his squirmy little brother made him a little more nervous.

We tried a photo of them laying beside one another instead. I have to admit knowing that they’re both so young I wasn’t holding my breath that I’d have them both looking at me and smiling. It just never happens that easily. I think this photo really captures the moment best. You can see Alex’s nervousness and curiosity shining through this quick candid shot.

Alex got up quickly so we focused on trying to take a few photos of Jackson while he was awake. This little peanut is just too adorable for words.

Seeing how Jackson arrived awake and alert we decided to make the most of the moments and take a photo with Renee and the kids too. Something tells me she’s going to be one busy lady this year.

It’s always sweet to see mothers with their new little ones.

Renee’s mother came to help out while we took photos so I made sure to take a photo of Jackson with his grandmother while he was awake.

We began to think of things we could do to try to help Jackson get sleepy. He was so content but didn’t seem to be sleepy. So we wrapped him but he was so active so this little wrap didn’t last long.

I managed to snap a few macro photos of his feet while he was awake.

When Alex was a newborn I had taken a foot photo of just one of his feet so I made sure to take a similar photo of one of Jackson’s feet.

Alex joined us for one more photo. It’s amazing how much a baby’s little foot changes in two years.

Jackson was still pretty alert so we decided to try taking a few photos of him in the same newborn hat Alex had worn during his newborn photos. We tried positioning him a few different ways but found he wasn’t thrilled with the other poses.

But when you’re this cute you really don’t have to be posed. He’s priceless just as he is.

We tried everything and this little guy was still awake. Shortly after taking this photo we decided to call it a day because we had planned to meet again over the weekend to take some photos with Jackson and his daddy.

Fast forward two days and Jackson at just ten days old returned for a few more photos. My fingers were crossed that this little guy might be sleepy this time around. He sure looked a little more cozy when he first arrived.

So he wasn’t sleepy when he first arrived but we still captured a few priceless moments like this one.

Like virtually every baby I’ve photographed, he loved being put in a wrap and bowl.

I was prepared to catch split second moments, like a sneeze.

Of course I couldn’t resist taking a photo of his sweet little lips.

We waited patiently and hoped he might get a little sleepy in the cozy wrap. As you can see he was wide awake but so content.

One of the shots we really wanted to try was Jackson in Ben’s arm. He was awake but very cooperative for this pose.

I feel like I’ve been jinxing all the daddy’s that come for photos lately. If it isn’t obvious, Jackson peed a split second after I took this photo of him in Ben’s arm. Thankfully Ben was a great sport and I think he and Renee will agree the photos were well worth the accident.

We tried another pose or two but Jackson was beginning to get fussy. He finally began to fall asleep but every time we tried a new pose he’d wake right up. So here’s the best sleeping shot of the day with Ben & Renee.

We began to talk about maybe waiting a little while to see if he’d fall into a deep newborn sleep as I was noticed him dozing off. But we could tell he knew…just take a look at this priceless photo of Ben, Renee & Jackson.

Ben & Renee I hope your family and friends enjoy the photos of your boys. Congrats again on your newest little blessing!

A little over a week ago I met with Stacy and Jaden at Carl T. Langston Park and Dickson Azalea park for photos. Many of you, especially from Valencia, should remember Jaden from when I photographed him as a newborn and again just before he turned a year old. Yes, Dennis’ little boy has developed quite the personality and was full of charisma when I was out taking photos with him. It’s hard to believe Jaden’s almost two!

Stacy warned me that he had a cute little smile where he’d squish up his nose. Although I certainly strived to get a variety of facial expressions his funny little smile certainly shined through on many of his photos which I think certainly help show off his cute little personality.

Dickson Azalea park is a pretty dreamy hidden spot near downtown Orlando full of a nice nature scenery. We found a set of steps for Jaden to sit on and this series of photos are among my favorites from the day. He seemed a little unsure why we had him sitting on these dirty old steps at first.

Of course his curiosity took over and he picked up a twig from the ground. I love when moments like this happen perfectly and aren’t planned.

And yes, there’s that hilarious cute little smile of Jaden’s again. He cracks me up.

At almost two I worried how interested he’d be in this park knowing that it was merely a trail with some great views of nature. Thankfully he was quite the explorer and pointed out quite a few things to us showing his interest in being at the park.

Jaden was quite curious and noticed a lot of little critters and the small streams nearby. I just love how observant he looks in this photo.

Every time I found a nice bit of light I tried to grab Jaden’s attention for a photo. As you can see he’s quite the character!

Considering how most two year olds are pretty defiant for photos I thought Jaden was pretty amazing to take photos of last week. He certainly wasn’t shy in front of the camera.

Did I mention he enjoyed exploring the park?

We made sure to sneak a few photos of Stacy and Jaden together before we left. His personality certainly shines through in these photos too.

Dennis & Stacy I hope you enjoy the photos from last week. It was fun exploring the park with your little man!

This past weekend I had the opportunity to meet with Addison again for photos. It’s always rewarding to get to see the little ones I’ve photographed and see how much they’ve grown. I suppose with Addison this year has been equally rewarding knowing I’ve been able to capture a few priceless moments with Addison while her father’s deployed to Iraq. She came over for photos and was sporting her adorable mohawk that we’ve all come to love. Yes, she’s still as cute as  can be.

It won’t surprise me if Joyia and Dave end up using some of these cute photos of Addison when she’s older…perhaps in a senior yearbook or maybe to show her future husband.

Addison is nearly nine months old in these photos and yes, she’s pretty awesome at clapping now!

She has a few teeth too and proudly showed them off for a few photos.

Of course I adore her serious side…

Dave should get a kick out of this next photo. Yes, Dave…Addison and I were practicing her push ups just for you!

If I were to say the one most moving thing in an image, typically, I’d say the eyes make the photo. Yes, seeing this photo of Addison connects me to this adorable little girl who’s now lived more months without her father. It helps me see also just how much she’s grown since those first photos I took of her last fall. Yes, living her first year without Dave seems like way too long.

I can’t resist sharing this behind the scenes shot of Hope & Joyia as Hope was taking photos of Addison. It’s always a treat when Hope shows interest in wanting to join with me in taking photos. She’s heard Jason and I a time or two this past year talk of how many photos I’ve taken this past year and she came in with the intent to take more photos than me. Yes, she out shot me by hundreds. Before I knew it she had taken some six or seven hundred photos. Though many were blurry or uncomposed shots I must say that after looking through all the photos she took several impressive shots. I’ve posted a few of these in flickr.

Here are a few more priceless photos I took of Addison.

Given that fourth of July is right around the corner Joyia brought over the flag Dave brought back from his first deployment to Iraq. It’s the same one that hung outside his tent so it was very meaningful to try to take a few patriotic photos of Addison.

Of course Addison is a little mover these days and quickly sits up and begins moving around. It was tough to keep her still for the flag photos and as we tried to take a few photos of her sitting she got super exciting to have something new to play with. Yes, the flag was very exciting for Addison.

My heart goes out to Addison and all the little ones who will be celebrating the fourth of July without their parents who might be deployed away from home and protecting our freedom….and I continue to pray for their safety. I know I’m one of many who can’t wait for the day to see Addison reunited with her Daddy.

I’m sure in due time Dave will see these photos. And when he does I know seeing a few photos of both his girls will help him smile a little more.

Something tells me Addison is helping the time pass a little faster for Joyia. It’s obvious how much joy this little girl brings her.

The end of the year can’t come soon enough but it’s halfway over and I think Dave’s girls are going to be smiling a little more in the coming months now that he’s that much closer to coming home.

Dave & Joyia I hope your family and friends enjoy the latest photos of Addison — it’s been a treat being a part of capturing such memorable moments with your little girl.

Recently I learned of Orlando’s Historic Preservation Board’s call for entries for their 2011 Historical Preservation calendar. Every year they feature a set number of historical locations in Orlando in this calendar. This year they’ve chosen to feature the Holden-Parramore district which the city has been putting work into cleaning up the area which is definitely among Orlando’s troublesome low income areas. Despite this, it was very inspirational to go out and do a bit of different photography for a change. There’s something very intriguing about historical locations. As I worked on this project I found myself digging before and after to try to learn a bit more about the five featured historical locations in this district. I’ve elected to share a slideshow from flickr (below) of the photos I took. With each photo you’ll find “information” if you care to learn more about the locations (just click on “show info” at the top right). If you’d prefer you may go directly to flickr and take a look at the images in my Historic Orlando photo set where you may find learning more about the locations a little easier.

The biggest challenge I will have is deciding the three to send on to the Historic Preservation Board so if you have a flickr account and care to leave comments of your favorites I’d love to hear everyone’s opinions. I certainly have my own favorites but I must admit it’s tough to pick just three!

A big thanks to VCC alumni, Wendy Johnson, who joined me at sunrise to take photos of these historic sites. Given the area of Orlando we were in it was definitely great to have a fellow photography enthusiast with! I’m sure she may have some of her own photos to share soon too. (I can’t wait to see your photos Wendy!)