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|rebekah|brandon| {irene+julian+ellie}

May 14, 2012 by carleigh

Its Sunday night and normally I would wait until the morning to post all about my entertaining weekend, but today is Mother’s Day and I just could not resist sharing this amazing Mom and her family tonight! Happy Mother’s Day to all of you Sweet Poppy Moms and Moms-to-be out there. Did you know that I have the best Mom’s as clients? Well I do! You guys amaze me. You really do.

I spent this morning hanging out with my own amazing Momma and Nana too. It was so much fun! We ate and laughed and relaxed. Nana has been a little under the weather, but she seems to be getting better by the minute. I hope you all got to do something special too!

So a little while ago I got a very sweet e-mail from Rebekah. She wanted to have a shoot with her family as a Mother’s Day gift to herself. Her children are almost 16, 6, and 6 months and it seemed like the perfect time to capture them. I could not have agreed with her more and I had an absolute BLAST with them at the beach. I was really excited to meet them. When Rebekah emailed me about her shoot, she let me know that they would be traveling down from Sacramento. I was so excited (and SO nervous!!) that a family was going to come all that way for a shoot! I absolutely loved spending some time with them, and I think their images really reflect the love that they have in their family.

Irene is almost 16 and so beautiful! You can tell she is the big sister – carefully looking after both Julian and Ellie. I was almost mesmerized watching Irene and Julian play together in the water. They have a special bond and I can see how much Julian looks up to his sister. Ellie is equally as sweet, taking in the scenery and watching her siblings. Julian is very active and was a blast to shoot – running, throwing sticks, rocks – and just plain having fun. I love that age so much! Rebekah and Brandon are amazing, loving parents. Brandon and Julian are great together. Fathers and sons are the best! I love that Rebekah chose to capture memories for her Mother’s Day. I think that time really flies -and 6 becomes 16 in no time flat. Rebekah, in the few hours I spent with you – I can see how filled with love you are for your family. You are a wonderful Mom, and I hope you have a very special, wonderful, Mother’s Day! Rebekah and Brandon – thank you for driving all the way here and choosing me to shoot your adorable family! I had SO MUCH FUN!

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|kennedy|eight months

May 4, 2012 by carleigh

Hello hello :) I am so excited its finally Friday – I have three amazing shoots this weekend that I have been looking forward to for what seems like FOREVER. I can barely contain myself and I really don’t know how I waited this long – to tell you the truth. One ADORABLE family is driving here from Sacramento for their shoot and I feel so so so special! (REALLY – I was like, are you sure you have the right photographer??) AND then I have a few shoots with some of my all time favs. Its going to be fantastic.

This week has been really busy over here. If you have been following along with my sneak peek photos on facebook you know what I have been working on. I am excited to share as always and will for sure be posting more about those shoots in the weeks to come. I have had such a fun variety of shoots – from babies to weddings – and I love how each and every shoot is unique. I have the BEST clients who are always willing to go that extra step and make their shoot truly theirs. Adding those little personal details is really what it is all about. I love this! Don’t you guys ever change – okay?

A few house keeping tasks: If you have emailed for a shoot, and have decided to move forward, great! Let’s get a date on the calendar. It helps me plan to give you plenty of time and attention when I know what is coming up. I also love to brainstorm for your shoots – so lets touch base :) ALSO – I have put together some wonderful resources for the top things you have been asking me about. Mainly, what to wear to your shoot and why and then I have also put together a neat resource for those of you that have asked me about planning your child’s party. Ask me for these – they will make your life easier – and we all want that, right?

Okay – on to little miss Kennedy. I really don’t need to say anything about her because her personality radiates through in her photos (goal? oh yes. score!). She is the happiest, sweetest, most squeezable little girl ever. She laughed the entire shoot, cooperated by doing absolutely adorable things the entire time, and finished it off by having her parents absolutely smitten with her (can you even blame them!?). The last time you saw Kennedy she was almost three months and she has only gotten cuter. Mom, Taryn, and Dad, Keegan, met up with me a few weeks ago and we had some fun with Kennedy at their home and then at the park down the street. I LOVE this family and I can’t get over how perfect they are. Taryn and Keegs – I cannot thank you enough for allowing me to yet again capture your family! I already cannot wait for next time! xoxo.

Posted in little, units · 1 Comment

|dylan|one year old

April 27, 2012 by carleigh

Hi Friends! Happy Friday :) I am so excited about my shoots this coming weekend. Tomorrow I have baby Leah and her family (who can resist a three month old shoot? NOT ME!) and then on Sunday I have a rad shoot planned with some of the most amazing vendors on the peninsula. It is sure to be a great time and I cannot wait to share all of the details with you!

Today I am excited to share sweet one year old Dylan with you! These were taken during her Pinwheels and Bubbles Birthday Party and it was an an absolute blast. Dylan’s parents put every bit of effort into making this a memorable occasion and they did not disappoint. Every detail was perfect and I was so impressed! Dylan was an absolute joy as always and seemed to really love turning one. I truly cannot believe how big she has gotten so fast and I am honored that I was there to document the day.

Enjoy all of the details! Also, I know I am overly sentimental about grandfathers, but toward the end you will see Dylan and her Grandpa. They are so sweet together and she would not let go of his hand while playing with her friends in the bubbles. I absolutely love capturing these moments that I know she is going to look back on and love when she is all grown up. Happy Birthday Dylan!

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|mason|nine months

April 13, 2012 by carleigh

I am so excited it’s Friday! Not only do I have all sort of fun shooting activities planned for this weekend, but I am also attending one of my closest friends bridal showers. So excited to see her :) I have been SO busy the past couple weeks with spring shoots it has been crazy but I took a nice little break on Easter and hung out with my family. Some of them got baby chickens to raise. I cannot wait for some organic eggs! Also my sister came to town with her husband and that was fun too. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday with your families too.

So a few weeks ago I met up with Mieke, TO, and Mason to shoot Mason’s 9 month old pictures. And it rained the entire shoot. Of course. (By the way – if you are in the bay area – that storm last night?!? cray. I was tempted to try and snap some lightening shots but I didn’t want to get wet. I was still highly amused watching). So since it was raining we took the opportunity to shoot Mason in the house. They have a cool black and white floor. I love the photos in black and white with Mason playing there. He really is such an adorable baby. I love him to pieces. He kept trying to “get the camera” which I thought was really cute as well. The last time I shot Mason, at his six month pictures, he was just starting to sit up. This time, he was crawling ALL over the place and pulling himself up to stand – one handed! I am sure that when I see him again he will probably be walking. Seeing these things is one of the main reasons I love shooting every three months when they are under a year. It really captures the little things that go by so quickly.

I hope you enjoy these moments with Mason (and his ducky, Howard!). I love love love shooting him and I cannot wait for his birthday. Mieke and TO, you are both troopers going out in the rain with a baby for our tree shots. I can’t wait to see Mason turn one in a few months! xoxo

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|erika|paul| {kasey+ryan}

March 26, 2012 by carleigh

Sometimes, even with the most perfectly executed plan, things don’t go perfectly. You plan, review, practice, pick out the best you can find, but things still don’t go perfectly. Sometimes, perfect plans fail. This weekend, it rained. It rained hard. And despite my best efforts, I couldn’t stop it. For those of you that are photographers you know the challenges that can come with shooting in the rain. You get wet, your gear gets wet, and your clients? They get wet. All things I would prefer to avoid. I get anxious emails from clients. Wanting advice. Should we reschedule? We think it may rain. For many of you, this probably sounds familiar! Most of the time my response is – It is totally up to you, but I am happy to shoot with you despite the weather woes. Some of my most favorite images were taken in the rain.

So not only did it rain this past weekend, but it rained the weekend before that as well – the particular weekend I had scheduled to shoot with Erika and Paul. Erika and I have had this shoot scheduled since December and I found it surprisingly fitting that it was going to rain. Why? Because even the most perfectly executed plans don’t go perfectly.

Erika and Paul have been married for five years now and I have never seen a couple more smitten with each other than these two. When I first met Erika, she shyly told me about her beautiful wedding and how perfect so many of the elements were- first and foremost being the perfect match for her – Paul. However, one thing did not turn out absolutely perfect that day and that was her photos (not taken by me, thank goodness!). I almost shed a few tears when she told me that she didn’t absolutely love her photos from her special day with Paul. She told me that she would tear up looking at them – and not for a good reason either! Though Erika loves Paul, no memories of this day hang on their wall to remind them of the beginning of their life together. A life that is filled with joy, beautiful children, and a very strong, recognizable love. The even more unfortunate thing is – that this is a story that I have heard over and over again – from those of you who just haven’t loved your wedding photos. But fortunately for Erika and Paul (and for you too – if you are one of those who just don’t love your photos either), I can do something about this.

With a little help from our talented friend Christina (who did a wonderful job on hair and makeup), last weekend I did a little shoot with Erika, Paul, Kasey and Ryan. Erika looked stunning in her dress, and Paul handsome in his suit. We got a little bit muddy and a little wet, but it was all worth it when I heard Paul say that he thought Erika looked even more beautiful today than she did on their wedding day. Erika and Paul – I hope you love these as much as I do! You are both incredible and you deserve beautiful images that you love. Sometimes, the most perfect moments are born out of instances of imperfection. Sometimes, these moments become the path of our lives.

Meet Kasey and Ryan! These two were the most well behaved, happy, polite kids I have ever shot. Not only are they practically models with their good looks – but they were absolute troopers – following me around in the mud and jumping in the photos upon command. I seriously cannot wait to shoot with them again.
We finished up our shoot with this cool building as our back drop to get a little bit of a different feel. I loved the wood paneling! Erika and Paul – have I mentioned how adorable you guys are?

Posted in pairs, tied, units · 5 Comments
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