Lauren and Nathan • Newborn

Today I had the opportunity to do a shoot for a family I have known my entire life, and their newest addition- 10 week old Lauren Samms! I also got to spend some time with Nathan, an energetic and adventurous 5 year old :)

I found out that Nathan loves to have his picture taken- which was so much fun for me!

and of course boys will be boys...

It was so sweet to see how much Nathan loves his little sister.

I have a minor obsession with taking pictures of pictures in frames... but in my defense I just think its so homey and cute to see that in a house!

<3

Stager Family Part 2

I couldn't resist sharing a little more cuteness from Vanessa and Wyatt.

and some details that made the day extra adorable!

The Stager Family

On a sunny Sunday afternoon, Vanessa, Cliff and little Wyatt Stager joined me for a photo shoot in Palos Verdes. We made a few stops to get as many pictures as possible of their adorable family, and I have to say I loved every minute of it. Wyatt is probably the coolest 8 month old ever (not to mention the cutest!) and his parents just radiate love. Enjoy this little snippet of our adventure!

Vanessa and I had both dreamed about this photo, and I'm really happy with how it came out:)

 This one is my absolute favorite from the shoot!

 

But seriously though, how cute is Wyatt!

 

An 8-month old that can high five is pretty cool in my book!

Another fav: 

Mom appreciation picture!

And then someone got a little tired...

So we snapped a few pictures of Mom and Dad to end the day! :)

She's beautiful, right?!

Blessed.

That's the only word to describe it. Blessed. Please always tell me that if you think positive thoughts and focus on what you want, you can pretty much have, be, and DO anything. I think I might finally understand what they mean. I want to be a photographer. I've told that to the universe, God and pretty much everyone I've ever met for years now, and today I finally heard okay.

I can't wait for my first family shoot today, my first baby shoot on wednesday, and my first mini-maternity shoot on saturday... 

See? So blessed.

On a side note: can I just go out on a limb here and say that my dog has possibly the cutest nose thats ever been created?













Happy Sunday!

Katelynn and Jake • Just Because

Katelynn and Jake, thank you so much for giving me the chance to capture some memories for you. It was so much fun spending the morning with you, you two are a wonderful couple and too much fun. Enjoy the pictures!

Oooww Oww! Katelynn! :)

Here's a pine tree shot to remind you it was freezing. Katelynn and Jake were such great sports!

And then a quick outfit change to show Jake's style! 

Go Chiefs! ;)

 And now to end on a cute note...

Three reasons why I love my boyfriend

He's silly. No, really. I know I say that about everyone and everything, 

but no one can make me laugh like he does.

He puts up with my ridiculous photo ventures and class assignments, 

like the one where I had to duplicate a picture by the world-famous Paul Mobley.

And he's my muse. The one who grounds me and lifts me up at the same time.

My photography buddy. My motivator. My best friend.

Youda best, Sam. I love you lots.

Ben

Ben is my boyfriends little brother and he is just crazy but tons of fun.

I was going through old pictures and found these from about a year ago. :)

taking a personal day

Do you ever have those days where you feel like your head might explode? I used to feel like that all the time my first semester of college, and at the time the only things I had to worry about were school and a long distance relationship. A year and a half later my list has grown significantly. School, work, trying to start a business, organizing a fundraiser, looking for a new apartment... it just goes on and on. And I am about as nerdy as a person gets (I'm still trying to get perfect attendance about 10 years after all my friends stopped caring about such a thing), but today I am letting myself go. Today I am taking a personal day.

Now that I'm sitting here on my bed with Jackson snoring next to me and a half-finished lunchable begging for attention on my nightstand, I wonder... what does one do on a personal day? All I can think about is editing pictures, setting up photo shoots, cameras, lenses, flashes, projects, and poses- oh my! I suppose I'll have some one-on-one with Jasmine Star (more specifically her magazine *ahem*) and celebrate the sunny 40 degree weather with a glass of lemonade.  Can't go wrong there, right?

Heres to a break from the insanity!

-J

Jessica Heiden

This is another picture from my photo shoot with my friend, Jessica.

Isn't she gorgeous?