Disturbing

Don't adjust your screens....if you didn't notice it right away, look harder at the final shot. Jake and I had way too much time on our hands one night. I will never forget the look on my friend Amy's face when we showed her the progression and she finally noticed! I think she may still be suffering after shock on the whole thing. i guess this is why guys don't have babies...they look terrible! Thought you could all use a laugh.

6 Months

I can't believe how fast these guys have grown. I literally feel like I just did their newborn shots last month. I love these little seats that they have. They didn't have these when mine were little. They don't tip out of these things!

Summer is here!

As the weather heats up we are outside more and more. We have almost every kid in the neighborhood in our cul-de-sac daily and it is a blast. One of the neighbors in putting in a pool so I bet they will get more popular real soon! Here's to beautiful sunny weather except for when I am shooting outside because I love clouds.

This is where I will be the whole summer, on the sidewalk watching over my kids like a mother bear! I think I should get a bigger chair. I'm a poet and I didn't know it!

s.

Pitcher

This was one of those first moments captured by my SB900 that would have been lost forever if I hadn't had it. This was Tré's first game pitching and he already looks like a Pro, if I do say so myself. Nevermind that he pegged a little one in the head on one of his pitches....we all start somewhere. His coach wants one of his playing cards so he can say one day, "I knew him when"...I will be auctioning the rest off to the highest bidder on Ebay!

Cowkids

I was sitting in my studio trying to get some work done and the kids were playing so well together being a cowboy and a cowgirl. I loved that Jalena gave Jamie the silver hat and he was loving it. I ran to set up my honker of a camera and I almost missed the moment. Which got me looking over to my "dream board" (all the things I dream about on a cork board) to look at the small camera that I want for my purse to shoot everyday life again. Well, my dream came true because my parents came to visit for a couple nights and my dad got me the Canon SD900 and I am having a blast with it. Now you will see more everyday life inspired blogs. Thanks Mom and Dad for being my biggest supporters in every way!

Mini Truck

Just a couple more of the old mini truck day so that I can post something. I am having a hankering to post, but no deep thoughts are coming to me. My parents are hear visiting so I am sure I will have many deep thoughts on why I am not living closer to them to come. There is really nothing more amazing then family!

Senioritis

I love senior shoots! I love the variety that I am able to capture in such a short time. I love the trendiness of them. And most of all I love to see the sparkle in their eyes when they start to feel like rockstars and then when they see their photos and gain confidence at such an impressionable time in their lives. This was a really fun shoot with Geoff. His mom came with him and they had a great day together, and I am so glad that I was a part of it. Here's what his mom wrote me:
Dear Kathy,

"Thank you so much. I love them all!!!!!! We had such a great time that night that we went to dinner after we left and talked about the experience for about 2 hours. Geoff is so excited to see the proofs that he’s been asking about them every day. I guess he thinks he’s handsome or something. I’m so happy you agreed to do his photos. It is so important to me to do this for him since he’s our baby and all and he’ll be leaving for Guard training in Georgia this summer and then on to college at OSU. He’s a terrific son and we’re so proud of him. Again, thank you for the terrific time."

Artists

Shannon was reading a book, 'Why People Photograph', and I love this quote from it.
"Artists sometimes claim that they work without the thought of an audience - that they make pictures just for themselves. We are not deceived. They only reward worth that much effort is a response, and if no one pays attention, or if the artist cannot live on hope, then he or she is lost."
This is so true. I think that is why it is so hard for artists to charge for their talent. I do what I do because I crave it....and along the way I learned that I was good at it. At first I thought I was good at it because people would tell me. Now I know I am good at it because I feel it and I see it in my growth. I tell others to charge for their time and take the emotion out of the business....if they are paying you, then they like your work. If you are giving everything away for free or discounted then you really crave and need the feedback from your subject. Even though I now get paid for my work the biggest reward is to see the tears during the viewing of a slideshow, or a special note that says I am a superstar! I 'hope' that I am able to continue to touch people's lives with photographs, but the only way I know for sure that I have succeeded is from their response. I don't think it is possible for me to take the emotion out of any aspect of this career. So to all you photographers reading this that I consider friends and colleagues....read this affirmation next time you put way too many hours into a session and you just don't get that response that you need.
"I think you're amazing, all of you and I continue to learn from you daily. All of your shoots reflect passion, emotions, talent, and they take you that much more closer to that rockstar level we are all trying to achieve. Keep up the good work and have confidence in your talent!

Here's two more of my favorite photographers that I caught in action. This has to be when I see them the happiest. Can't you just see the passion and happiness in their eyes.

Can you hear it?

I can hear the cutest, lowest, most beautiful giggle when I look at this picture. My kids are HAPPY, and that's how I know that Jake and I are living our life well. There's nothing better then hearing your kid's full blown laugh, really!

Who is she?

I hope that Jalena is able to look at the pictures of herself years from now and remember an exact emotion, a smell that was around her at the time, or a feeling of confidence in who she is. I want all my kids to look at pictures that I have taken over the years and feel like I captured a little piece of their true personality (from my point of view). I love these shots of Jalena because she has a look of confidence, curiosity, excitement, and playfulness. She is so dynamic and amazing in so many ways and I love trying to capture every piece of her.

Feeling Blue!

Just in case anyone was feeling blue, I thought I would brighten your day with Little "E". She has the best little laugh to top it off and you can almost hear it in this photo!

My Wish

I took shots of this little girl and her sisters the other day and they constantly were picking up the "wishing flowers" and blowing them all over the place. It left me thinking about the Secret of course and how you have to be able to know what you want, believe that you are going to get it, and then praise and bless. I am working on finding my imagination again, because it brightens up so many aspects of your life when it is present. And it will help me visualize the things I want as if they are happening now, with no reality checks. So here is your one wish for the day....I hope it comes true! Believe!

Not Family

I have been doing a lot of family stuff on the blog lately. I thought I would actually show that I get paying gigs every once in a while as well. This is a beautiful couple that lives down the street from us and they just had their beautiful baby boy last Friday. I'm sure that I will have the cutest little newborn shots in the near future. We started in the studio for this shoot and it cleared up from raining for few minutes so we ran down to my favorite spot and it stayed perfect the whole time we were down there. Another testimonial that NW weather is just perfect in my eyes!

The Sound of Music

"The hills are alive...." Is the funniest thing ever. My cousin's were setting up for a "perfect" family shot when out of no where,.... Jason starts skipping at me like this. I didn't have the camera ready or anything...he started and I just picked up the camera in hopes of snagging a moment of this. This should give you all a laugh for the day, or at least give you that burning desire to go running (skipping) through a field on your lunch hour!

Today's Secret

"Fallow your bliss, you live in a constant space of joy. Your excitement, joy, and bliss are contagious." Today I hope that my excitement and joy are contagious to you. I had an amazing Mother's Day, Jake is making huge strides at Prosource www.prosourcemm.com, and everyone is getting over their colds! Life is great, we are more then blessed and I am on my way to get a coffee. Good times! Have a great day. K

Playdate

Every once in a while me and a couple of my friend-photographers get together to help inspire each other and scout out new areas to take clients to. I went out the other day with Shannon http://www.shannonsewell.com/ and Brian http://www.bmac-photo.com/ and of course we had to bring some models with us. I love these kind of days when I can incorporate my work with my kids. Not to mention, hanging out with two of the tops photographers in the area and feeding off each other. We end up not saying a whole lot to each other because sometimes getting our photography super powers together, is just too much to take in. Or we just feed off of Brian's energy which is a TRUE artist's mind. His mind never rests and he is always thinking of the next big idea, or the next big shoot. I am blessed that they (and many more great photographers) are in my life. Thanks for another amazing day together. I will post some more from the day soon. This one just jumped out at me. K

Ostrich

So I just had to look up what the symbolism for the ostrich and guess what....they are symbolic of Faith and Contemplation. Now I know why I ran into to this huge "sign", I'm trying to figure out why Jalena is in the shot. I will have to come up with some deep meaning of why I decided to put her in with the birds. I guess if I were to grasp it would be that "in my time of faith and contemplation quest, my Love for my kids is unwavering." O.K. so it was just a really cool wall and I felt like I needed to throw a person into the shot. K

Overcast Days

This is why I guess that I am not affected by the weather like so many. I can even find the beauty in overcast days! I think growing up in Alaska, you just learn that the weather is what it is and you just go about your day....it was always COLD, and you can't focus on HOW cold all the time or you would freeze. I love the weather here because there are very rarely harsh days and the variety of light that we get day to day is something to be happy and joyful about. Here's to the beautiful NW weather and all the opportunity it brings with it!

Feel Good

This is one of those feel good posts where you just want to break out into a mean giggle!

Quotes for thought

....Lisa Nichols
"I am the creator of my own destiny. How will I seize the moment. How will I dance my dance?"
This is Jalena doing her "Happy Feet" dance. I love when the kids break out into this dance because it's guaranteed to put a smile on my face.

The Secret

I have been thinking on this blog for a couple days now because I just don't know where to begin. The book "The Secret" was brought into my life recently and it has rocked my world. I have a feeling that the next couple months IT is going to consume my blog thoughts, as it consumes every thought that I have every monute of the day. If you haven't read it or don't know what I am talking about then you are just going to have to get with the program. I know I am late, but I feel so thankful that I became aware of my inner thoughts and dialogue with myself at the young age of 32! Now it's all about putting the theories to practice and hopefully one day, mastering my thought processess.
I listened to the book (my first audio book ever) four days ago and it has already impacted my life in many ways. I don't want to sound like an info-mercial, testimonial for it, but I know that it is going to help change the way I think for the rest of my life. That's HUGE, because I have never come anywhere close to wanting change anything this strongly. Let me see if I can highlight a few changes. For instance, I catch myself saying things about myself matter of factly, that "I am a procrastinator, I have the worst memory in the world, I hate this, I hate that, and I have TMJ really bad" to name a few. I am no longer going to cling to that negative way of thinking and I am trying with all my might to keep the good energy flowing....and for the first time in my life, it's not a chore. I have a great memory, I am getting rid of all symptoms tied to TMJ, I am not focusing on hate of any kind, and my memory is getting better each day. Jake and I are at an exciting time in our lives and there seemed to be many unknowns....but now that we have both seen "The Secret" we are on a whole new path! Jake is going live with his website this Friday and it's going to be HUGE and I couldn't be more happy thinking about it. I am thankful that this book has come into our life and I hope that it inspires someone/anyone reading this the same way that it has impacted my life! Here's to Love, Happiness, making ridiculous money, and counting our blessings every minute of the day!

LEAVE SOME COMMENTS!

I think that blogs are suppose to be interactive in a way. I know that I started this blog thinking that it would be like my photography journal, but now it's getting a little creepy though, knowing that so many people are looking at it and I don't get any feedback! So you ALL better start talkin' or else I'll send this little hit man after you! Thanks

Panning Man

This is my cousin Jason and I couldn't resist taking a picture of him doing his "panning for gold thing" while they were here. When he told me that he picked up panning for gold as a hobby (mind you he lives in Alaska), my first thought was, he doesn't look like the stereotypical panner? So I got this bright idea to shoot him while he was panning and the song "he's bringin' pannin' back" came to mind. That's HOT!

Life

"Life is just a mirror, and what you see out there, you must see inside of you."

I can definitely look back on times when I visualized (day dreamed) something and then it became a reality. From a very young age I could always picture myself with interracial children....mine are a bit lighter then in my visuals, but they are definitely everything I dreamed of and more. I always saw myself as a stay-at-home mom and here I am. After watching the movie Stepmom, I wanted her life so bad...the camera, the ability to blow pictures up to life size, and I wanted to drive her car (Discovery). I didn't get the car or the drama in her life, but man did I ever get the dream job! I went and bought the secret yesterday and I am guessing that it is along these same lines from what I have heard. What do I dream about now....the safety of my children, the ability to instill confidence in them and to get them independently happy, and to raise them with the most amount of love as possible. I also picture Jake and I being very successful in the paths that we are on and also continuing to fall more madly in love with each other each day (sickening, I know). Take a look in the mirror, what do you see?

Miss Thang!

I love these two shots of Jalena! The one of her running is sheer "childhood" to me. She is running without a care in the world and she is at an age where all the motor skills for running all come together. She uses her arms to pump no and she strides it out. Although it's all put together, she is still notorious for falling all over her feet because she runs with her body ahead of her feet. The serious one of her is the "I want to ask you for something and you'll probably say no" face. She wanted to go in the fountain near by to get wet and she was having trouble figuring out how to ask me. It's just one of those expressions I never want to forget.