Tiny and Determined | Dallas, Carrollton, Allen Newborn Photographer

"Determined" being code for "the hardest newborn I've ever run up against". My apprentice/friend Chelle often calls me "The Baby Whisperer" and clients are always commenting on how calm and patient I am when handling newborn babies. They pee, they poop, they cry, they fuss, they refuse to settle... but they always, always eventually give in and give me what I want. Usually fairly quickly and I've, um, gotten a little spoiled. Perhaps it's the six newborns of my own that I snuggled and rocked and shushed into deep slumber? Perhaps it's just an inborn ability. Whatever it is, I rarely have issues getting a baby to settle for a session...

And then I met Noah.

Noah didn't want to cooperate. I tried every trick up my sleeve. And then tried some more. Finally the only way it worked was that I would get him settled, snap two shots, and then have to start all over again. But he did give up some beautiful images....eventually... and I've never worked so hard for it in the three years I've been shooting newborns! Even the most difficult give in to me in the end. It's just a gift.

So here is Noah, in all his sweet baby glory:













Good goly he's sweet! Almost made me want another. Almost. ;)

And Sometimes A Client Becomes a Best Friend | Dallas Family Photographer

It doesn't happen often. MOST of my clients become friendly but rarely can I say that a client becomes a BEST friend. To be fair, Abbi and I met online before she actually hired me to shoot her family but it was the first time we ever laid eyes on each other. And I loved her as much as I thought I would from the second we said hello. She emailed me yesterday and said "WHAT!? Are we not awesome enough to be on the BLOG!?" Heehee.... Meet Abbi and Co, Breathtaking fans:




















She's cute, huh? I'm a lucky girl to be surrounded by so many strong, loving, funny women. :)

Chantel

The Beauty of the Gaylord Texan | Dallas Family and Child Photographer

I've spent a LOT of time recently at the Gaylord Texan here in Grapevine. See, they put up an amazing INDOOR Christmas display. And it's huge. And varied. And bonus, there are still plenty of NON-holiday areas free of festive decor. Which means, in a nutshell, I can shoot in a variety of locations and everyone stays warm and comfortable. And did I mention it's free because it's a hotel lobby? Ginormous, glass ceiling and all... still a hotel lobby. You only have to pay to park and there's so much to see and do my clients often make a day of it and stay to play after we're done. When I offer it as a location my clients who don't like the cold much usually jump at the chance and as such, I spent almost every weekend in November and December shooting there! Here's a little of the fun:



























Nice, yes? I love it there! And I'm betting you will, too. ;)

Remember Last Minute Minis? | Dallas Family Photography

Oh my, am I behind! Playing catch up is awesome though, cause then I get to relive some of the fun that was had during the INSANE holiday season! I mostly had to keep my head down and plow through that craziness and now is my opportunity to kick back and smile at the gorgeous images that came out of those mad weeks. :)

Last minute minis were such a delightful day! We were at the absolutely beautiful Texan Gaylord in Grapevine, Texas. In fact, there's a whole other post coming with images from my many long weekend days at this stunning resort. It's incredible! I met up with three clients, two new and one favorite. Here's a little of what we pulled out of our time together:

Sweet Christmas Baby | Dallas, Carrollton, Garland Newborn Photographer

The birth of sweet baby Joon was the last for awhile for Breathtaking and he came just before Christmas. His big brother Huck was born by the light of the Christmas tree just two years before. How lucky for me to be there for both boys' births! I got to go back just 6 days later (once recovering from a bout with the Flu-YUCK!) and shoot Joon's newborn portraits. After a couple of challenging newborn sessions Joon happily surprised me by going to sleep and easily bending into each pose I asked of him. He's a beautiful, PLUMP little guy with a darling stork bite on his forehead. I expect he'll bring his sweet parents and big sister and brother many years of joy in the future. Enjoy. :)

Breathtaking's Last Birth

I'm so sad to write this post. Yes, it's true. Breathtaking won't be offering birth photography in the 2011 year. If you're here looking for someone to photograph your birth in the Dallas metroplex I have several wonderful colleagues that I recommend so drop me a line and I'll hook you up.

As far as last births go, this one with my friend Kristin was the way to do it. Her last birth was one of the first I photographed as a portfolio builder and the first one where I really felt all of my skills come together at once and I got what I'd long been striving to get out of my camera. This time around things were so eerily familiar! Different house but same exact chain of events culminating in a fast, wonderful water birth of a sweet baby boy.





That's the amniotic sac she's slipping over his head there-he was born in it which is said to be good luck. :)















Home birth.... the joy of snuggling into your own bed after you've done the hardest work of your life.



Thank you to all my past clients. It's been an HONOR to serve as the witness to so many wonderful babies coming into the world. This is not good-bye but merely "see you in while". Birth is in my blood and I'll be coming back to it eventually. :)

NICU Wonder Baby| Dallas Newborn Photographer

You can find the images from Tyler's birth here. His birth was a little rougher than most and he wound up in the NICU on oxygen for a few days. He was discharged to his mother's regular room on Thanksgiving of all days! What a thing to be thankful for, huh? Despite his rough beginning, he has had no long term effects and is home making life interesting for his parents who are now the proud owners of four boys ages five and under! I can relate to that type of crazy....

Here he is straight from my lens into your heart: