No, we don’t all look like Ingrid when 32 weeks pregnant. She is stunning. But whatever your body type or level of comfort with nudity, I can make a beautiful portrait of you. These are only three from a studio session that produced hundreds of images. I just want to give you an idea of what’s possible.
If I could give any advice to parents taking photos of their children, it is, let the children be themselves. Don’t make them smile for the camera. To me, this makes the best photographs. I hope you’ll agree.
Oh Jack, you’ve won my heart. What a bundle of joy you are.
I’ve been spending a fair amount of time with 3 month old’s lately. Some parents don’t feel up to being photographed immediately after their baby is born, or they get those images at the hospital. But, they don’t want to wait for a 6 month old photo (which is a really good time for photos). So I’ll go their home and do what I call an in-home documentary photo session, or “a day in the life of..” These can vary in length according to the tolerance of the parents, since the child is just doing what they normally do-breastfeeding, making google eyes, or pooping.. 🙂 It usually works out to photograph between nap times. This age can be a little challenging and more time-consuming because the babies can’t hold themselves up, but the photos can be quite rewarding. I hope you’ll agree!
I was called by Queen Anne mom Cecile to do an extended family portrait of 10 people-grandparents, two sets of parents and these children. And, we did those more structured pictures. But what I hope to achieve during those sessions as well, is also capturing these moments in between the more formal portraits. I love capturing natural emotion, and don’t want children to “smile for the camera. ” My hope is that you will find these as successful as I feel they are. Thanks for looking.
This is Sullivan. Yes, he is as adorable and good natured as he looks. He takes after his mom! At home documentary sessions are one of my favorite things to do. Especially with newborns, babies and toddlers. There is way more to do with them in their home environment than in a park or studio. We took photographs of him getting a bath, eating, and breastfeeding. This is only a small sample of the hundreds of digital negatives you can choose from in a documentary family photo shoot. Whether you chose to do one “day in the life session” or several over the course of baby’s first year (or their childhood), you will never regret having these “real” photos in your collection.
Sara received a gift certificate for this photo session as a birthday present from her mom. Late Fall provided great light in Lincoln Park in West Seattle, and fabulous parents provided lots of love and tickles so we could get some sweet images. Thank you Sara, Jacobe, Cora, Ryder and Ann!
It is an honor and a real joy to spend time at home with a family, documenting their real life. While a few set-up shots may work themselves into the photo session, most of what you see is not set-up. The moments are captured on film as they unfold. That is how people feel most at ease allowing their real personality to shine through!
Janine and Jon are both interesting and sweet on their own, but I love them as a couple! They wanted to do a portrait session before their wedding, which I also photographed. Two days before their wedding we went to the woods near where they live in West Seattle. They spend a lot of time there with their dogs (their family!) and wanted to preserve their memories. I hope I did them justice. They are just wonderful!
Three sisters and their families got together this summer and had me join them for a half-day to document their reunion. It was such a special time as the sisters live far apart. They gathered at their family home in Bellingham where we were able to do what I call an extended family session.
As the cousins explored the property, played together in the mud, and crafted mohawks, I was able to capture moments that one simply cannot orchestrate. There are too many “keepers” to display on a blog, but these were my absolute favorites. The ones that hopefully go beyond pretty pictures and capture moments that will be forever remembered in their minds and recalled through photographs.
Along with these stand outs, the family also received group photos and individual family photos. Each family received a disk, so there is no trying to decide what to purchase. They got them all!
I really love extended sessions because there is more time to work and get to know the personalities of the people and document them as they really are.
Meryl Schenker Photography 