In just a moment or two with Mateo I took one of my favorite photos of the day of him.

He woke up relatively quickly and greeted us with lots of smiles.

Now I am beginning to think all the designers kids have a thing for shooting me the bird during their photo session. It’s tough sometimes to judge what these squirmy little babies do when you’re squinting to see them through the camera. I recall how much his hands were moving when I took this photo and telling Tim about the last little one who did this. Of course reviewing the photos afterwards I couldn’t help but laugh seeing this little outtake photo of Mateo.

While he was awake we took macro photos of his feet. Mateo has a unique little birth mark on his ankle and he proudly stretched this foot out towards me twice.

It’s amazing how quickly newborns can go from being so content to very needy. These next two shots were taken only moments apart.

After a feeding he returned adorable as could be so we wrapped him for a couple shots.

Of course I couldn’t help but admire his sweet little lips as he remained so content.

We could tell little Mateo was tired but just wasn’t dozing off for us so Magally fed him again and then Tim worked his magic and rocked him to sleep. Beforehand we placed him in one of my favorite cocoon wrap’s made by an awesome knitter I found on etsy. Most babies seem to feel pretty cozy in it just like Mateo.

He seemed to wake up rather easily so the first few shots after he dozed off I left him exactly how he was and just prayed I could work fast enough before he woke up.

It was evident that he wasn’t totally zonked out even in his sleepy state so I spent a little time just admiring him as he rested comfortably. He gave us a little smirky smile.

Though he was certainly resting well for photos I can almost always tell by their eyes & eyebrows if their truly in a deep sleep. I could tell as I took this photo that his sleepiness likely wouldn’t last long but we continued to try more photos.

He was so comfortable and curly still.

It was great being able to work with Tim & Magally who were very supportive and certainly offered some creative ideas for photos. As we began contemplating a new more creative and challenging poses I decided to take the next series of photos just in case Mateo would wake up. Looking back I’m glad I did because these are a few of my favorite photos of the day.

As I suspected, he wasn’t too thrilled with the idea of other poses. We tried a few and it was apparent that it was time to give him a break. Before Tim, Magally and Mateo left we took a quick shot of the three together. I think by the time we took this shot all four of us were tired so it ended up being the quickest shot of the day. I was told it’s their first family photo of the three of them together.

Tim & Magally I hope your family and friends enjoy the photos of Mateo. You both have definitely been blessed with a sweet little boy. Best wishes to you three!

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!

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!

While they were here it rained. Thankfully there was no lightening so we let the boys go out and play in the rain. It was really tough to photograph them together but I really enjoyed photographing JT who had a blast in the rain. Yes, I’m crazy enough to take my camera out when it’s pouring. I think when you see these photos you’ll agree it was well worth it. It’s hard to believe that little tiny peanut I photographed back in January 2008 is now such a big boy.

I also got to photograph JT’s big sister, Tayler. Oh how I’ve missed little Miss Tayler who’ve I’ve known since she was four when Shanna and I were stationed together in the military. I still give Tayler and Shanna both the credit for pulling me away from the military. If it weren’t for Tayler coaxing me into drawing again when she was just five years old I’m not so sure I’d have taken college drawing classes while in the military and it wouldn’t have made me mind wander towards more creative endeavors. Of course her mother is the one who made sure to tell me and all my supervisors that I was stupid if I didn’t get out of the military and use my creative talents. Fast forward over ten years and Tayler is fifteen and a beautiful teenager. Thankfully she was a lot more cooperative than her brother.

Of course for me one of the things I truly looked forward to was seeing Hope & Tayler together. Hope & Tayler are God sisters. Every time I look at my baby girl I realize what a miracle she truly is – knowing that before I had her there were two miscarriages that kept me wondering if having a child for me was ever even possible. I don’t think I would have made it through that dark time in my life if it weren’t for my friend Shanna. I recall back then how much Tayler had hoped for a sister or brother so I think she was equally as proud knowing she’d be a God sister. As you can see now that they’re a little older they seem to enjoy their time together, despite their age difference. Hope looked up to Tayler so much while she was here. These two photos certainly capture a glimpse of how much I adored seeing them together.

So Shanna I know it’s taken a few weeks to finish these but hopefully you enjoy them. I realize now that part of what stole my energy while you were here and the weeks following is this little one on the way. Hopefully you find all the photos worth the long wait. I can’t say thank you enough for taking the time to come down to visit. I hope your family and friends enjoy the photos of the kids.We miss you guys Miss Shanna!

Of course there was no way I could resist capturing a few more memorable moments with their sweet little girl Abigail. She’s now ten months old and has grown so much since last August when I took her newborn photos.

Abigail has beautiful red hair and amazing blue eyes. As you can see…she has a serious side that definitely was present if I had the camera pointed at her for too long.

I always hesitate taking photos of the older little ones unclothed but most parents are interested in photos like this. In this case, it’s Abigail’s cute little pudgy rolls make this photo that much more priceless.

Yes, something tells me she won’t have these pudgy baby rolls much longer…she’s very active and moved around quite a bit during their visit.

It’s always a treat to get to see the little ones I’ve photographed as a newborn…it reminds me how fast time flies and how quickly they grow. As you can see Abigail has grown into such a beautiful happy little girl.

Ed & Diana thanks again for stopping by and letting me capture a few more moments with Abigail. I hope your friends and family enjoy the photos of your sweet little girl…you’ve definitely been blessed!

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.

Many of you were here last fall when I began to establish my business and brand myself. I suppose I’m not the typical photographer. I don’t just love photography…I love design too. And I realized very early on the importance of having my photography represented with a strong brand identity. Some of you may recall me sharing the creative process with you when I worked with Daissy Linares who designed my brand identity. Yes, I admit it was tough stepping down from designing my own brand but I knew that it was more important for me to focus on photography, teaching & my studies at SCAD. And given all that happened in the fall I couldn’t be more proud to have someone as talented as Daissy step up to the challenge of creating an identity to represent me. When I finally made the decision to commit to the logo and brand I now use I recall the big factor in that decision was how much more iconic and memorable the brand was to me. I look back now at the other options I had for logos and I can’t even imagine any of those ideas to have left such an impact with me as my current brand now has.

I know most of you have been anxiously awaiting to hear more about the printing process behind my business cards. Since the fall I had given serious consideration to having my business cards printed letterpress. After doing a lot of research I contacted Nick Sambrato of Mama’s Sauce. He owns the only letterpress shop in Orlando and helped reassure me that all the ideas I hoped to pull off with my business cards were doable and ideal for letterpress. Because I am just such a photography geek and thoroughly enjoy sharing the process behind creative projects Nick agreed to let me, his new paparazzi client, into his shop to document the process to share with you all.

I found myself photographing everything from the details of the press (a.k.a. Vogner…yes, the folks at Mama’s Sauce love their machines so much that they’ve named them!)

A big thanks to GianCarlo (Blue) Brand who joined me for a bit to help me document some of the printing process. Thanks to him you all are able to see my enjoyment of documenting and seeing the process first hand.

It was exciting to be there seeing the cards get printed. Letterpress printing is a very old form of printing and its very hard to find printers who are able to print letterpress. Yes, it’s a print form that is nearly obsolete in comparison to newer faster and cheaper printing methods like laser printing. But there’s something special about letterpress. You may not get it until you see it for yourself.

Meet Brooks, the letterpress operator who printed my cards. Yes, Brooks is not the stereotypical press operator. He helps bring a youthful and hip fun touch to such an old printing process. After spending time seeing the cards printed first hand I can see why Nick trusts Brooks to take charge of his letterpress. Brooks had amazing attention to detail and spend quite a bit of time checking, double checking and yes, even triple checking colors, registration and impressions. It definitely is a tedious process that only a patient and detail oriented person could take on. For Brooks the printing process is much like an art form and he puts great care into perfecting the jobs he prints. And yes, I suppose I have to share a photo of the guy who printed my cards…he says his Mom will enjoy seeing photos of him hard at work.

I think seeing the cards printed first hand helped me have a greater appreciation for my business cards. Yes, seeing every ounce of color loaded into the press helps me appreciate seeing the color that’s now on my 3 color business cards.

Or watching the speed of the press and all it’s small details…the details that help it pump out some amazing prints.

Throughout the printing process we continually checked color, registration and impressions.

It was rewarding seeing each new color printed and it’s certainly helped me gain a fonder respect for letterpress than I ever had before.

Though I know you all enjoy seeing photos of the printing process I’m sure you’re all interested in seeing the final printed cards. If you’d like to see additional photos of the printing process you’ll find more in my flickr acount.

On to my sweet new cards…

Yes, two versions…one version is standard size and one square size. What makes them extra special is that a different image is on the back of each one.

It was extremely tough to decide but I chose what I felt were the most iconic and memorable photos from my portfolio that would fit appropriately in the given space.

I had Mama’s Sauce print my letterhead and envelope as well but only offset printing for these.

The cards may seem nice from a distance but take a closer look and you’ll notice the detail and impression that makes the impact. These were printed on 220lb Lettraset cotton paper. The images were printed separately and composited/duplexed to ensure the cards were sturdy enough that the impression wouldn’t show through on the back. Yes, my cards are super thick.

I’ve had quite a few people question my reasoning for printing letterpress. I think just looking at these next few images will be convincing enough to show my reasoning. (Additional photos of my cards can be viewed in flickr)

A FEW QUESTIONS…
Yes, I have had a number of questions before and after having my cards printed so I thought I’d add them to this post to share them with the many out there that I know may be wondering some of these same questions.

Isn’t letterpress a lot more expensive?
Yes.

Isn’t laser or offset printing cheaper?
Yes.

Doesn’t letterpress printing take longer?
Yes.

Why didn’t you take the cheaper and faster route to have your cards printed?
I think it’s important that my brand represent the quality of work I do. Yes, I wanted it to be representative of the timeless images I’ve captured and the tireless energy I put into my photography. I wanted the cards to leave an impact with every person I give a card to…just like the impact I hope my photography leaves with people. I don’t want them to just say “thanks” when I give them a card. I want them to say “wow” or “I love your card”. To me the cards thus far have helped create the attention needed to brand my business and me as a person. They are memorable. They are the type of card that will be kept and remembered.

MY BIG THANKS…
Again, I have to give a big thanks to Daissy Linares for her creative efforts in designing my brand identity. I can’t think of a better designer to work with to design a brand for me…yes, complicated, picky me. Thanks to GianCarlo “Blue” Brand for joining in to help me document the printing process. And a huge thanks to Nick Sambrato and the rest of the gang at Mama’s Sauce. There’s no question…you guys rock.

I hope you all enjoy the cards…I’d love to hear your two cents!

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!)

She really looks like her big sister, Skylar, in this next one.

I wonder who the silly one in the family is going to be?

I just love her squishy little face. This expression cracks me up…of course the shirt says it all.

Jenna’s big sister Lily has such an awesome smile too!

And a quick photo of Skylar & Lily.

And here’s Skylar again…

Jenna fell asleep while I was taking a few photos of  her big sisters. I had to take a moment to admire her sweet peaceful face.

Yes, I even admired those sweet little eyes.

One last one of Shannon and her girls.

Shannon I hope your family and friends enjoy the photos of the girls. I can’t believe how much they’ve all grown!

This time last year so many of us were so concerned about this sweet little girl who was born six weeks early and weighed only four pounds (remember how little she was a year ago?). This time last year we were all unsure of a lot of things after learning she was diagnosed with down’s syndrome — but here we are a year later and she’s such a healthy happy baby girl. A little over a week ago I took this groovy picture of her to show off her happiness.

Today we all went to Raven’s first birthday party. Yes, I’m a little obsessive taking pictures and found myself taking hundreds of photos so Erik and Amanda would have to reflect on their celebration of Raven’s first year. Several of us commented on how much we adored these beautiful flowers…I suppose for me they were a little symbolic of the beautiful little girl we were celebrating.

It was great to see Erik and Raven having such a great time together. I have to admit that we’ve been so connected to Erik over the years – so much so that he seems almost like one of our own. Looking back it’s amazing to see how much they both have grown this past year. Despite the challenges that have come with raising his first child with down’s syndrome I think we’ve all come to realize what a little blessing Raven has been to our family. There’s no doubt how much happiness Raven has brought Erik and us all this year.

Though I came armed with my trusty nikon to photograph Raven’s party I have to say I was amazed by how many other cameras were out. Just about everyone seemed to have a point and shoot or cell phone out taking pictures most of the party. Yes, Raven is so loved.

Hope and Raven have become good buddies. Hope loves to hold Raven. Well, that is until Raven pulls her hair.

I can tell how much Raven looks up to Hope already.

I stole Raven for a moment to take a few photos 365 style…yes, the 365 that I’ve failed at miserably this year. I haven’t been in many photos this year compared to last year when I did 365. But I knew it was a day I didn’t want to forget with my niece. So I told Raven to hold on…and we took a photo and Hope joined in. I think she’s gotten use to being tortured by my nikon.

I don’t let many people take photos of me…except Hope who took this one of me and Raven.

Raven was adorable with her cake…it definitely caught her attention.

She didn’t hesitate digging right in to that cake…

Raven had quite a few gifts awaiting her…this one caught my eye.

Hope was cute and made sure to write the tag for our gift to Raven.

Raven sat with Erik & Amanda while the gifts were opened and then at the very end she made sure to clap for us all.

All that partying was enough to make Raven a tad bit sleepy. I went in to check on her while she was napping. Yes, I love to photograph sleeping babies.

Jaylen came in the room with me. I told him “shhhhhhhhh” and that Raven was sleeping. He crawled up quietly onto the bed to check on her. Yes, Jaylen loves Raven. Today was also the first time he said Raven’s name.

Yes, Raven woke right up and seemed to be quite content with her cousin’s company.

Of course for me I felt this was a perfect photo opportunity with the two together. I tried everything to get Jaylen to sit with Raven and this was the closest I could get him to Raven. He’s still a little reserved around babies so even having him sit this close made for one of the memorable shots of the day for me.

Yes, Raven Rose is now one. My how time flies. We love you baby girl!

I took many more photos at the party that you can see in Erik & Amanda’s flickr.