One of the perils of photographing a small child that you see often and are friends with is that they tend to want to sit next to you during the shoot and you keep having to move away from them in order to take pictures of them, which hurts their feelings. They also know your husband Geoff and demand to know where he is, and are upset that you didn’t bring him. We’ve been friends with Abby and Rachel for a very long time, and were so excited when they moved back to NC with their kiddo Ansel. Ansel is our buddy. We’ve shared dinners and bedtime story routines and long discussions about Geoff’s shoes. He is extremely intelligent and also hilarious, and I don’t think I’ve ever really seen him truly upset except for maybe 5 seconds when he couldn’t get the “Prog” button his keyboard to work. He is funny and very adored and he seems to like us.
When I showed up without his buddy Geoff for this shoot, he was initially confused. Why would I be there… without Geoff? Where are Geoff’s shoes? He then made a swift recovery by deciding to sit directly next to me during most of the session where I couldn’t photograph him and giggling profusely. Slowly he was bribed away from me with various things: sticks, a blanket that looks like a tortilla which I use whenever over their house as much as possible, howling with his dog Ozlo, more sticks, a scooter, some pinecones, and finally cookies. We had a wonderful time. I love this family with all of my heart and am lucky to know them and extremely lucky and thankful that they have a blanket that looks like a tortilla that they allow me to use when I’m at their house.
I’ve said it before but it bears repeating: in-home lifestyle family shoots are my absolute favorite. But, they’re especially my favorite when they involve breakfast. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because making a special breakfast has always signified to me that it’s the weekend because that’s when you have time to actually make sausage and french toast and all that other yummy stuff. So I enjoy hanging out at other peoples’ houses on Saturday mornings while they make breakfast and wear their pajamas – this is comfortable and fun for me. And sometimes it’s fun and comfortable for the kids too, particularly when their names are Andrew and their favorite activity in the whole world is being photographed.
So here we have Allison and Nathaniel, two very intelligent people with lots of incredibly fun hobbies (Allison used to make balloon animals for parties!) who have interesting jobs and a good sense of humor (plus a killer selection of vintage My Little Ponies). And we have Samuel, the very cute baby who we occasionally forced into a cowboy hat because he was wearing a bandana bib and it just felt right. And last, but certainly not least, we have Andrew, toddler extraordinaire, who immediately smiled at me when I walked in the door like he knew that I was another shot at the big time for his inevitable career in show business. Then he continued smiling directly at me throughout the entire 1.5 hours I was there. He was *this close* to winking at me pretty much all the time. He is a total ham and hilarious. When he’s not waiting for his career to take off, he enjoys walking like a penguin, working in his garden, making OJ, cracking eggs for french toast, and helping his Grandma June play the piano when she visits. I immensely enjoyed hanging out with this crew on a weekend morning.
Last time I photographed this family, Patrick was a tiny goofball with short hair and Ellie was an itsy bitsy baby with short hair. Now Patrick (not that much shorter than me at this point) and Ellie both have long hair and a younger brother named Jackson. And soon they’ll all have an even younger sister! And I cannot wait to meet her because I LOVE these people. The parents, Dottie and Jon, are quite near and dear to our hearts. They’re one of the first weddings we shot and the way they supported us and recommended us to get our career off the ground was incredible, and they continue to support me to this day. Both sides of their family are also huge supporters and continue to remain in touch which is so awesome and means so much to me.
Dottie and Jon are the fantastic, intelligent couple who manage to successfully run this incredible household and be adorable while they’re at it. They’re funny and I love them. Now for extensive psychological profiles on their children: Patrick is still a goofball, but now he’s a responsible, kind, REALLY GOOD KID (all caps). He’s helpful and sweet and is careful of where and how he strikes his mom with a lightsaber because she’s pregnant (even though she was showing him no mercy). He is close with his dog Weaver, who enjoys when Patrick rides her around the yard like a small horse. Patrick is stellar. And while the entire family has a killer sense of humor, Ellie is definitely the current comic relief. She’s super silly, makes a lot of faces, has a sharp wit, and can entertain and occupy herself, as well as hold her own with two brothers. Her parents tell me she’s also insanely responsible and schedule-oriented, and easily holds the family together. And then there’s Jackson, who currently plays the role of mischievous, too-smart-for-his-own-good, completely unpredictable yet SO CUTE small child. He enjoyed the pastime of pointing a (suction cup) bow and arrow set at my face repeatedly throughout the shoot (he was respectful enough not to fire… thank you, Jackson), eating chocolate and then getting upset when the chocolate was taken away, and climbing on top of the roof of his plastic car in the two seconds we were all looking in the other direction. He’s a whirling dervish.
All three have strong (and quite funny) personalities, and I cannot wait to see what baby #4 adds to the mix. I am so delighted to have photographed these folks again and be a part of their historical documentation (especially since Dottie is a history buff). Thank you for everything always and forever, D+J.
