{One Year Old} St. Paul Park Lifestyle Photography

Sweet baby J turned one! I was lucky enough to photograph this little guys big day. His family is just the sweetest, they are so welcoming and kind so I had no hesitation--I wanted to be there on this special day! Here are a few pics of this little ones first big blow out! :) 

Myles: A Birth Day

A baby. A blessing. Our miracle. So much promise in such a little package, how lucky am I to be the mom of two beautiful boys!

I love documenting every aspect of life, I love the legacy photos leave behind for future generations, most importantly I love the memories and feelings images evoke for the viewer. With our first son we barely got any pictures of the "process" so with this one I wanted to make sure I (or someone else since I was otherwise preoccupied) captured the day...especially when our oldest son came to the hospital to meet his brother for the first time.  So when my doctor asked me if my bags were packed, the most important one, the camera bag had been packed for weeks leading up to the big day.
I asked my girlfriend to come and take some pictures before, during and after our son was born. This was also meaningful because my husband and I asked her to be our sons' Godmother when she arrived at he hospital that morning as well-she ended up not being allowed in the delivery room but she did get some shots immediately following surgery of our new little man. The rest of the photos I took from my hospital bed and once I was able to move around.
Here are a few pictures documenting Myles first 48 hours, I treasure these images.

Photo By: JS Edited by: Lil' Sprout Memories

 

 

Photos by: JS Edited by: Lil' Sprout Memories OR Photo by: The Nurse Anesthetist who was directed by another nurse "the patient is a photographer, just keep taking pictures..."



My main goal before the arrival of Myles was to make sure Masyn did not feel left out. The morning of my surgery I set up a quick little session with Masyn in order to pair it with some images in the hospital and make sure he knew how important his big brother role was. The images I got of Masyn seeing Myles for the first time are absolutely priceless. I shot the image from my hospital bed and was so glad I always had my camera nearby, otherwise I would have missed this!

 

 

 

I have been spending my leave learning how to be an attentive mom of two beautiful boys, I have a lot to learn, sleep to catch when I can and am soaking up every minute of this time with them before returning back to sessions, editing and a different kind of busy-ness...one thing is certain, it is going to be VERY hard to leave these little faces when I return for my first session.

 

New for 2014 I will be offering first 48 sessions, these are sessions that will take place within the first 48 hours of baby's arrival, whether it is the birthing process you want captured, first family photos or immediately following as family and friends meet your little one they are images you are sure to love and treasure for years. Call or email me at Alyssa.Francis@outlook.com to inquire about scheduling and pricing. 

Tips for photographing your kiddos!

Most of the time, my little guy is a pretty willing subject; however, there are times when I would love to snap some fun shots of him and he gives me a look like this:

 I have heard this called: PCS or photographer child syndrome :); as a mom and photographer I love to capture every little detail of his life so we can both remember this time, he is only this age once and I do not want to forget a minute of the time we spend together. Here are a few tips I have found work with my little guy in order to capture his personality or moment in his life:

1. I bring my camera pretty much everywhere we go--but especially if it is a place my little guy has never been to before, I never know when a special moment may happen and since I do not have a cell phone (my husband and I share one and I rarely carry it with me, shocker I know!) I haul around my DSLR--which is bulky but I love it. With the popularity of camera phones most parents have a camera with them at all times anyways!

2. I do my best to make a photo shoot with my little one as FUN as I can (as I do with my client sessions). I let him run around, play and be himself. When I want some close up shots of him games help tremendously--my son loves to play Simon Says and that has worked wonders to get him into poses or freeze when I want to snap a shot of him!

3. I am training myself to omit the word SMILE and CHEESE from my vocabulary--I try to not use it with clients either, when someone is told to smile on command, the smile is usually stiff, forced and fake. Instead I will have my son say something silly or ask him a silly question in order to get a real response from him, usually these words have something to do with bathroom humor or are made up rhyming words--the trick is to make sure I have the camera ready to catch that response!

4. If I am trying to capture everyday life with him I try to not give him too much direction as to what I expect, I would rather sit back and observe him in an activity and capture that than try to force a moment to happen. These are usually some of my favorite images of my son...especially when I catch a moment between him and my husband--two of my favorite guys :)

5. I know when to take my photographer hat off and put my mom hat on. In my mind I may have a perfect shot all planned out--rarely does it happen that way and I have to adapt to it. Usually if I push too hard to try for too long, frustration sets in for both my son and myself--it is at that time that I put the camera down for awhile and we both reset ourselves to hopefully try again another time. Before I know it he usually is asking for a picture to be taken of him and I get to try again.  

6. I let him lead, I ask him what he wants a picture taken of. I am lucky in that my son is very interested in looking at photos (especially of himself or an event we went to as a family). Sometimes he will want a stuffed animal in the picture with him, sometimes he will want to do a funny pose and sometimes he will make a funny face. I take these too because all these little things make up my sons personality and are little insights into his childhood--plus some of these photos turn out really well. After we take it then I ask if he is ok with doing a pose mom wants him to do and I usually get him to humor me for a little bit longer.

 

Hopefully some of these tips can help you too when trying to capture those moments of your little ones lives that turn the picture at the beginning of this blog into something more like this:

Do you have some tips on how you get great shots of your little ones? I would love to hear them especially since I have number 2 on the way in a matter of days :)



{Frozen Class of 2014} St. Paul Senior Photographer

I had the pleasure of photographing my last senior of 2013 this past weekend. It was beyond cold {I think it was maybe 5 degrees or so out?!} and this young man was a trooper! We started out at the Conservatory and then headed over to Harriet Island for a few shots with some of his friends and brother. Here are a few of my favorites from that session!

 

{Sassy, Roxy and Miss J} Marshall, MN Senior Photography

This young lady was so fun to photograph! She is outgoing, sweet, beautiful inside and out! This session was rescheduled, not once, not twice but THREE TIMES thanks to the crazy weather we have been having and our final day was absolutely perfect! Miss J loves her dog, her mom and her truck. She also paints, so my eyes lit up when I presented the idea of being covered in paint herself and she said YES :)! Not too sure what the parents do down here but they must be doing something right, every senior I have photographed this year and last has been so respectful and fun! Here are SOME of my favorites from Miss J's session!



{K+L=Engaged!} MN Engagement Photographer

 

{A little about location...} Marshall, MN Photographer

Location is key in custom photography, and while there are many incredible places to take photos that will provide a great backdrop to record your relationships, I often ask my clients if there is any place that is sentimental to them where they would like to have their photos taken at. Depending on what you are looking for in your images, having your photos taken in a place that means something to you, your family and in your relationship can make those images all the more special. Maybe it is your first home, the park you were proposed to, the hospital the day your baby is born or a special place that brings back great memories of a loved one that is no longer with you. All of these are great ways to incorporate even more meaning to your images as well as a wonderful way to include and honor family members that may no longer be with you.

Each year around my birthday (which is a day after my brothers' birthday) my husband and I take my son to a place that is sentimental to me and a place both my brothers took me to quite often. Every year I take my sons' photo in the same spots I took them the year before and I always take some new poses as well. It has been a fun way to watch him grow up, but as he gets older it will be a fun memory I can share with him about his uncles, one of whom is no longer with us. These yearly photos are priceless to me, not only are they recording my sons' growth, but being in the location is special and when I look at these they just make me happy and mean even more to me. I look forward to having our own family photos taken here in the fall this year so that the three of us can be in pictures together :)!