North Seattle Family Portraits

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For privacy I don’t even put my clients first names on the blog anymore, but I’ve known these wonderful folks we’ll call J, V and M, for many years. I’m posting these as an example of a family session with a 9-year-old in their backyard and on the street in front of their home.

A lot of folks stop doing sessions after the first few years, but why??? Having these special portraits and memories is a better use of your hard-earned dollars than “stuff.” No, it’s not inexpensive, as my skills have taken years and years to develop, but it’s an investment you will not regret!

J, V and M live in the Ballard/Crown Hill area, and we did the photography session in the evening, when the sun had dipped, and the light was soft. We included the grandparents for some shots.

When you get a “disk” from me, now a digital download (most computers don’t even have CD players anymore) or thumb drive, you can expect to get way too many wonderful images to make your own albums, prints, and/or to share on social media.

Speaking of the images. I currently use digital equipment and every image I create for you is therefore available in color and/or black and white. The first image is “Sepia toned” a version of black and white that works really well on selected images.

Lastly, it’s really important to make prints of your favorites. Family heirlooms should not be left on a computer and should be printed on good quality paper and displayed!

Meryl

Welcome to the world baby E!

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Newborn photos taken in the comfort of your own home are one of the most challenging and rewarding things I do.

They might not be perfect in the way of a studio image with nothing in the background, but they will be real, and, they will be perfectly you.

They will depict your life as it was when your baby (or babies) came home with you. Your very first weeks will be documented and never forgotten in the haze of sleepless nights. You will have timeless family heirloom photos to cherish forever.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Highline Medical Center Foundation- Seattle Commercial Photography

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Thanks to Teresa Moore of Moore Ink., for bringing me in to get some fresh images for the Highline Medical Center Foundation annual report. While Highline Medical Center is now CHI Franciscan Health, the Foundation still goes under the original name.

They needed me to work quickly, as the hospital staff were being kept from their regular duties to help us out.  I ran around with staff from the Foundation that assembled the volunteers to be photographed in different situations. They needed to have images to show off new technologies and special services they were able to obtain through donations to the Foundation. They also wanted to highlight some of their people, giving recognition to the hard working staff.

These were all made using natural light, the actual people that do these jobs, and the “models” are people who generously volunteer at the hospital all year long, not just for photo shoots! What an incredible bunch of people that I was fortunate enough to spend some time with.

Senior session-Olympic Sculpture Park

 

It’s that time of year, so I thought I’d post Eva’s high school senior photo session at the Seattle Art Museums’ Olympic Sculpture Park. If you haven’t been, it’s a wonderful place to see some modern sculpture and take in a view of Puget Sound. It was a fairly chilly day in March when we did these, but Eva and her moms were great sports. Thanks for a great session Eva, Jennifer and Laureen!

While people do their senior photos throughout the year, you might keep August in mind for a warmer time to do your photos. You’ll have them ready for the yearbook, and it’s the summer, so you’ll be less stressed and busy!

 

High School Senior Portraits

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I love photographing high school seniors because they are so vibrant!

A good match for me are Seattle students who want to look like real people, not fake glamour gals. Take Isabel for example, she is so naturally beautiful, she just showed off that beauty at the Ballard Locks and the backyard of her Ballard home (actually, that’s the neighbors house, a shared dock -:). I digress. The point is, be real!

It’s also interesting that often the clients favorites are not my favorites. I loved the expression in the second one, the black and white one, but she preferred the top. This is the wonderful subjectivity of photography and how we see ourselves.

In the end, she used the one with the shell for her yearbook photo and got the rest framed. Thank you Isabel. I had so much fun with you! Meryl

Business photos in Seattle

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While you most often see family portraits on this blog, I do lots of different types of photography. This image was produced for a magazine, what we call editorial photography, however I also am commissioned by individuals to do photographs like this for their own websites and/or other promotional materials.

Newborns at home

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The opportunity to come to your home and document your joy at having a new baby is one of the most special things I do. And, I love it!

Every family is different and I adjust to what you want out of your session. It’s not about me, it’s about you!! For example, not all women want breastfeeding photographs, but many do. They note the way I capture the way the baby looks at them, and are so happy they will get to remember that look and memory when they are no longer breastfeeding.

 

 

Presenting Layla Grace- 11 days old in West Seattle

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Congratulations Ingrid and Aaron! What a beautiful family you have. And to let everyone know, this is a small sample of what an in-home newborn session can look like.

Every family, home and session is different, but this is realistic for you! While these two may look like models, they are real people!

We find a spot or spots in your home that have some natural light (I can do with less than you think) and I spend between 2-3 hours with you documenting anything from your baby alone, to breastfeeding, to the whole family. It’s all about you and what you want!

Not pictured are over 100 other images the family received to have forever as cherished memories of their newborn.

A blog post can only be a small sample of our work together, and while my favorites are usually black and white, and while I think I’m more known for black and white, most of the images are available in color as well. In fact some of Ingrid’s favorites are in color with a beautiful flower crown made by Flower Lab in West Seattle. I’ll  show them in a second post if I can ever find the time!

I hope this will give you an idea of what I can do for you and your family as we create together.

 

High School Senior Portrait-Capitol Hill, Seattle

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Annika was just fantastic to work with, open to all sorts of ideas, and humored the photographer! And, her brother gave a great assist holding my reflector.

As a result, she was given a large selection (over 100) of images to chose from from our 2 hour session in Volunteer Park on Capitol Hill in Seattle. She hasn’t picked her favorites yet, but here are some of mine. As a side note, my choices are often very different than my clients.

Do you know anyone who didn’t get their Senior Portraits done in time for the yearbook, but still want to document this time in their lives? Or perhaps you are thinking ahead for August when you will get your portrait done when school’s out, and things are not so hectic. Either way, I hope you’ll consider me for your portraits.

My style is natural, relaxed and classic. Let’s just go out and have fun! There are no “poses” and number of outfit changes, just me revealing the best you!

Thanks for looking! Meryl

 

Author Portrait

Claudia Rowe is a terrific writer and fantastic journalist I am fortunate to call my friend. Her book, “The Spider and The Fly” is scheduled to be released January, 2017 by Dey Street/HarperCollins and I can’t wait to read it! You can check out this blog post to get what the book is about.

Claudia Rowe