What to wear! | Minnesota family and child photographer

As of late, I've had quite a few people ask me what they should wear for their family pictures. I thought I'd throw a few things up on the ol' blog for some examples. In general, I'm not too concerned with outfits as I want your clothes to reflect who you are. However, I find that most people over analyze what they should wear for their pictures. I've been fairly fortunate to not have families show up in all black or all white which happened to be the trend way back when!

I like to see some color coordination of course, however not to extremes! Pick a color and go with it just don't dress your whole family in green polos and khaki's.

Here are a few examples of what I like to see:

All of the above was taken from Gap and can easily be thrown together on a budget. I just love shades of blues and although a white polo is super simple, I just love it on a little boy! I like the green necklace on mom as an added pop of color (you could easily do a red for an even more bold pop of color).



The above styles can all be found from Old Navy. I found this dress for mom and coordinated the rest of the family using colors that complimented the bright coral color. Can you see that if you dress your whole family in that bright color it might be a bit much? My eyes might burn if you did! But, junior's shirt has the same color mixed in so it pulls together nicely.

I am also a huge fan of bright colors (magenta, lime green, orange) when used in moderation. Suppose you found a gorgeous magenta dress for your toddler on Etsy (also another great site to peruse) and really wanted to use it for pictures... Easy, just use more muted tones for the rest of the family mixing in shades of magenta here and there in the form of jewelry for mom, or in a stripe in junior's shirt. Or use a complimentary color to the bright color you chose.

Dressing your family for pictures shouldn't stress you out, you should make it fun. Don't sweat the small stuff, go with what your family is comfortable wearing. If you aren't comfy in your clothes, you won't be comfy in front of my camera. And of course, if you have any questions, I am here to help ya out! I want this experience to be enjoyable for you and I want you to have total satisfaction in the end!

Logan Turns One! | Child Photographer in Minnesota

Last fall, I photographed this little guy when he was just 4 months old! Well, Logan is now turning one! I can't believe how fast time flies! He's such a big boy now and just sooo happy!

Logan and his family live on a farm just south of the cities so he gets all kinds of great John Deere stuff. Check out those awesome boots! I just adore this shot of him reading!



And I really can't resist baby booty!







I seriously love the novelty items!



And his pouty bottom lip, it's to die for!



And what one year old session wouldn't be complete without cake?!?!





The best part was, he didn't even like it! What a goofball!



Happy First Birthday Logan! Your mama and daddy are some lucky parents!

Let the Voting Begin! | Twin Cities MN Photographer

Alright, so life got away with me and didn't get around to posting the details about voting for the contest! Ooops, oh well. I'm here now, right? So here's the 411 on how to win. Voting starts tonight at 5pm CST. Tell all your friends to head on over to my Facebook Fanpage, they must become a "follower" to participate. Tell them to go to your photo and put the word "vote" in the comment section. Only one "vote" per fan/person will be counted. Voting will end Tuesday night at 11:59 so any "votes" that are timestamped before 5pm on 4/12 and after 11:59 on 4/13 after will not be counted.

Just a quick note, competition gets fierce on these contests so I would try to rally everyone you know! Good luck and the winner will be announced on Wednesday after I tally the results!

Thanks and good luck!

Class of 2010-Angie | MN Senior Portrait Photography

This past weekend I got to spend a few hours with my husband's cousin. I've known Angie since she was just a little ankle biter, and now she is an incredibly beautiful young lady. She's sweet and kind and my kids just love her! Meet Angie from the Centennial class of 2010!

























Didn't I tell you she was incredibly gorgeous? She was such a natural too! Congratulations Angie and we wish you all the luck at St. Cloud next fall!

Sweet as a rose | Newborn Photographer Lino Lakes Minnesota

Meet sweet Roselynn.

Roselynn is 4 weeks old and a complete doll. Roselynn belongs to my beautiful neighbors and they couldn't be more blessed. They have 2 absolutely gorgeous daughters. You know what they say about girls, right? Sugar and spice and everything nice? Lucy is 4 and just stunning!





And I told you they were beautiful! And incredibly kind and caring. The best kind of neighbors, that's for sure.



There is just something so special about a daddy and his daughter...







She's so tiny still!





Quite possibly my favorite of the day!



Although, I simply love these as well! Sisters...







Sweet rose...

Spring is in the air! | Family and child photographer in MN

The Easter bunny has come and gone and he sure left a ton of loot at my house! I really wish he hadn't left those peanut butter cups and butterfinger eggs because my waistline just can't take it anymore! But, with Easter comes all things spring and I am just in love with the newness that the season brings. I love watching the trees bud, the plants emerge from the ground and the baby birds starting to hatch. It's a magical and happy time. Just look at these little monkeys of mine!!!



They are clearly thrilled with the season!

I rarely share pictures of my family here on this blog, but I thought it would be a good time to reintroduce you all to my sweet kiddos (who just happen to be driving me nuts today, it's a good thing they are cute!).

Annika, she's 4 1/2. My beautiful and caring little red headed child. She loves all thing girly and pretty. She's a little princess, that's for sure.




And Bianca, my 3 year old "middle child". She plays that role to a T. She loves attention, is outgoing, sings ALL DAY LONG, and has one killer motherly instinct. Oh, and she's a great little snuggler.




And my "baby", Bennett. He's two and just entered the "terrible twos". He's our little future linebacker, he's stronger than me and adores all things truck related. I love this kid, he's polite and quite the little lover.



So since I shared my family with you, why not share yours with me? Will you do it for a prize? How about a $100 MSP credit for a future session? Got your attention, huh?

Head on over to my Facebook Fan Page and add a "fan photo" and tell me all about it. You are only allowed 1 "entry". Subsequent entries will not be counted. You have to be a fan to enter though! Only stipulation, sorry non FB'ers.

-Do this before 4/9/2010 11:59 pm though.
-Voting begins on my anniversary, 4/10 and will run through 4/12 11:59 pm. Stay tuned for details on how to vote and how to win!

I really can't wait to see your family!

Brand New | Minnesota infant and child photographer

Today I got to meet brand spankin' new baby Cora (love that name!). Cora is barely 2 weeks old and such a little doll.





Can you believe that this little lady was awake for the entire session? It might be a record of some sort!

Cora was welcomed by big sister Antonia, who just happens to be a gorgeous 9 year old with awesome fashion sense!







Beautiful mom and sweet Cora. I simply love this shot.



But, I love this shot of daddy and his baby girl too!



And we had to get a shot of the beautiful family!



And a few more of sweet Cora (who doesn't like to be cold by the way!).





I just love a mushy baby face!



And quite possibly my favorite shot of the day, sooooo sweet!



Thank you so much for having me out today! I so enjoyed meeting sweet baby Cora and wonderful big sister Antonia!