In honor of Father’s Day coming up soon…June will be here before we can blink!…I wanted to offer the same for all you daddy’s out there! Except for this special I’m offering 30% off Daddy & Me sessions booked for the month of June! Session will include disc of images with reprint permission & an enlargement up to an 11×14 of your choice! Why such a greater discount on these vs. the Mommy & Me sessions? Well all know (c’mon now, you know we all do!) that Dad’s normally don’t like to be involved in shoots anyways…& if they do they’re done & over it in like 15 minutes! My kids usually last longer than my dads do! Not all dads, but most dads aren’t going to have the patience to sit through an 1.5-2 hour session like my moms do! What better way than to make your wife or significant others heart melt! You know she’ll love these!  The session will last as long as dad can stand it!

Just like for the Mommy & Me sessions this for a Dad & his children only!! Please please please do not email & ask can grandparents be in the pics, or can mom or aunts/uncles, cousins be in them! That is not what this is set up to for! These are not generational type photos! Thank you for understanding & acknowledging that in advance! So again, like before…please don’t book & want bring the whole family & ask for “just one” with everybody…that’s not what this is set up for!

Please email me amy@stillframesphotography.com for full pricing info & dates or if you have any questions! I do not regularly check Facebook messages so I may not see your message until it’s too late! My email is ALWAYS the best way to reach me!

Please note in advance though, I DO NOT have any weekend availability open for June. These will be weekday, late afternoon sessions only!

Book early cause I only have a handful of June dates left for the month like I did for May! Dates are booked on a first come, first paid basis! Dates will not be held for any reason!

Here a few of my faves from a couple of recent Daddy & Me session! If you’re thinking you’ve seen lil Miss M before on the blog before it’s because you have…she is one of my most photographed kids! Yes her mama does book often as she’s already determined what is most important to her & that’s capturing & documenting this time in their lives for Lil M to have these memories to cherish when she’s older! Stay tuned! Her 6 month session is coming up next month! I cannot believe she’ll be half a year old already! Time really does fly!

Anywho…here are a few of my faves!

Happy Monday! Thankful the rain has held off long enough to go shoot a handsome lil 6 month old!

xoxo

amy

When she got there & pulled her dress out of the bag I was like “OMG!” It was beautiful! I loved so much combining the old house with the new pristine dress! Perfection! I brought my lil mini antique kids settee I bought in Texas last summer too! Muchas gracias to Carrie of CarrieCakes for coming out & helping me with my couch! She lives right down the road & got us access to the house for the shoot!  There is no way I’d have been able to get that thing up those narrow stairs in an old house! It was insanely hot for March & the cool wind blowing through those old windows was like heaven!

Now when we pulled up her mom & future mother-in-law had never seen the place. I could see the look of “what the…..” written all over their faces! Eek! We pull up to an old falling down house & I’m about to take her daughter in her wedding dress inside to shoot! Probably not what she had in mind! Sure it’s all about the bride & what she wants, but I always aim to try & please mom & mom-in-law too! So when they saw the first few images on the back of the camera & were in love I was thrilled! They both agreed it was a great location! Yay! Happy moms=happy me!

We wrapped up in the bright yellow canola fields! And the dress didn’t even get dirty! I love shooting brides! Everything that day was perfect! The light, the house, the dress, the bride, the color…everything! I get so excited when shooting is so effortless & just comes out amazing!

Here are my faves from the day!

Carrie THANK YOU again for taking time out from your busy baking schedule to come help me! Wouldn’t have been able to have done it without you!

Mindy these are some of my favorite bridal pics! Thank you for walking on glass, standing on rotten porches, dealing with a gazillion bees, jumping ditches in your wedding dress, looking like a million bucks & working it like you’re the next America’s Next Top Model! You’re AWESOME!! Can’t wait to show off your wedding!

xoxo

amy

And since May is right around the corner, literally, (Woohoo for my birthday month! Though I’m NOT looking forward to turning another year older!) that means Mother’s Day is coming up!

So in honor of Mother’s Day I’m offering 15% off any Mommy & Me session only throughout the entire month of May! It doesn’t matter what age you or your mama is! Session will include disc of images with reprint permission & an enlargement up to an 11×14 of your choice! Ahem Dads…a perfect gift for all you moms out there!

Keep in mind this is only for moms & their children (no matter the age)…this does not include dad (sorry dad you get your own month! ;D), grandparents, grandchildren, etc! Just mom & her chlldren…anything else becomes a regular portrait shoot in which you are more than welcome to book at another time! So please don’t book & bring the whole family & ask for “just one” with everybody…that’s not what this is set up for!

Please email me amy@stillframesphotography.com for full pricing info & dates or if you have any questions! I do not regularly check Facebook messages so I may not see your message until it’s too late! My email is ALWAYS the best way to reach me!

Please note in advance though, I DO NOT have any weekend availability open for May. These will be weekday, late afternoon sessions only!

Book early cause I only have a handful of May dates left for the month! Dates are booked on a first come, first paid basis! Dates will not be held for any reason!

Here a few of my faves from a couple of recent Mommy & Me sessions!

Happy Friday!

xoxo

amy

Today is your FIRST BIRTHDAY! I cannot believe you are ONE! It seems like only yesterday your mama was going through a surprised emergency c-section after laboring with you for a whole day! I anxiously awaited your birth as you would be my second birth baby I would shoot…yeah that didn’t happen as planned! Stubborn baby you just weren’t ready to come out! You just didn’t want to come on tax day… I know, I know..I don’t like tax day either! She didn’t even get to see or hold you until 3 hours after you were born. Your entire family on both sides were there & your daddy was so proud of you! He was a nervous ball of happy energy in the nursery watching you!

You were due one day before the one year anniversary passing of your Granddaddy Daniel, where a part of your name comes from. I have no doubt & have always said you were a gift from him & from God…that it was no coincidence when you were due! I feel that your Granddaddy planned that from Heaven so instead of us being sad every year at this time on the anniversary of his passing, he gave us all a reason to celebrate & be happy…he gave us YOU! He wanted another grandbaby to spoil so badly so he gave you to all of us & we spoil you for him! I know he’s watching you from above every single day! You sit & stare at the TV so much like he did that it’s scary sometimes!

I shot your newborn pictures a few days later after your birth at your Nana’s house where you didn’t want to fall asleep, until we took you outside in the hot sunshine where it knocked you out! Those are my favorite pics of you, outside in the blue suitcase! About one of the only times you weren’t crying!

As a baby you CRIED & CRIED so much you annoyed me quite often…but I still love you! Then when you were 3 months old we took a family trip to Texas & drove! OMG was I dreading that 22 hour, one way car ride when you cried so much like you did! Me & your sister fought over who’s turn it was to sit up front & not with you in the back on baby duty! Haha! But you did amazingly well on the long, insanely hot trip! Your Texas family loves you so much & were so excited to meet you! Fondest memory from that trip…your Uncle Bo driving around in circles at the HEB in Marlin while your mom went in & bought you like 7 pacifiers! To which you only liked one of those & how the rest of trip we all freaked if one of us couldn’t find it when you started crying! Yes, you really did cry *that* much!

My second fondest memory from Texas is the baby blanket you got from your great Aunt Corrina & Uncle Isi & cousins Megan, Jason & Heather! Your Grandma Anita sent them some of your Granddaddy’s shirts that she had left & they were cut up in squares & used for the back side of your blanket. That was the best gift you could have ever received!

Then for Halloween when you were 6 months old you were a lil lion! Your uncle likes to steal your candy so as you get older you’ll have to keep an eye on your Halloween candy! I then decided to offer Christmas mini-sessions & use you as my model…I booked a ton of sessions after everyone saw your cute face! You had an amazing first Christmas as most babies do…spoiled rotten! Christmas is a hard one for me cause I miss your Granddaddy so much around that time of year! He loved Christmas & you would’ve been spoiled even more rotten if he was here! I don’t even want to begin to imagine the mound of toys you would’ve had! I can’t wait to track Santa with you when you’re older like we used to do with Aaryn!

You started walking way before your first birthday & have been a mess & into everything since! You had Easter where your uncle Bo again stole from your Easter basket! He should be ashamed of himself!

Today you had an amazing birthday celebration at your Nana & Ta Paw’s house where you were surrounded by so many who love you! You got a butt load of toys & clothes! You totally weren’t interested in opening up your gifts! Your aunt Tricia made your cake & you’re the first baby I’ve seen who smashed it all up & threw it on the floor! You may have ate a few pieces but mainly just smeared it on your face!

I hope you had a fun birthday & can’t wait for all your others when you’re old enough to remember them! I only wish your Granddaddy Daniel was here to celebrate with you & not in Heaven watching down. But I know he’s with us all everyday & for that I am thankful! You’ll hear tons of stories about him when you’re older!

Happy Happy Birthday sweet boy! Wishing you many more!

WE LOVE YOU!

amy & bo

PS: Can’t wait to shoot your official ONE YEAR pics in your skinny jeans & new Chucks!

Just like I’ve dedicated time everyday to do P90X (another post soon!) I’m going to do the same with the blog, especially since I have a new blog on it’s way very very soon…set a time to sit down & blog every single day (or most days!)! I’m working on getting back into shape & way more organized! Now that I have so much free time during the day until shoots in the afternoon it’s like I don’t know what to do with myself somedays! I got so used to working a full time “real world” job, then shooting after work & weekends…basically working 24/7…365 days a year! So having idle time during the day feels really really weird to me! My Type A personality will not let me sit & do nothing! And my night owl tendencies will not let me sit in front of the computer all day, I do that at night!

In the past few weeks I’ve been to a ton of shoots in Elizabeth City, Raleigh, Hertford, Hobbsville, Old Trap, & Maryland! Yes Maryland…wait till you see that lil cutie! And I went & saw WICKED at Chrysler Hall with one of my good friends Amanda! I can only imagine what the folks around us thought during intermission if they heard my conversation with her about the 50 Shades books…”He’s a dominant, not a sadist!” So Amanda, how were the books for you?!

Oh & I taught another ShootLAB out in Tyner! Which leads me to this post…I’m having another ShootLAB! One of my clients so graciously has offered to host in her home & open it up to whoever wants to come! Most private ShootLABs that are put together consist of the host & their good friends! So for her to open up to her home to anyone is awesome! Thank you Chrissy!

This one will be during the week (ahem, what better reason to call in sick!) on April 25th (Wednesday)! The deadline for payment is April 19th so if interested please email me at amy@stillframesphotography.com for more info! I also teach a V2.0 of ShootLAB which is focused on editing! If interested in please email me! I have a few folks that want one but not quite enough to put it together yet!

Be sure to check out this post first on what ShootLAB is! It’s a super fun, information jam packed day!

And because no post is fun without a picture & because y’all haven’t seen Prissy in a while…she says “Haaaaaay!!” Get it!? She’s on a diet too! Lil glutton was starting to get too big!

xoxo

amy

It was a gorgeous Sunday this past January when I shot these…we couldn’t have asked for milder weather for this! They wanted a some pics on the water & then some downtown so that’s what we did!

We started over on the dirtier, seedier side of the river…we all know where I’m talking about…the boardwalk before the bridge, but the one in the woods! It actually is really gorgeous back there on the water & I didn’t know it even went as far back as it did. I think I’ve only been on that boardwalk like one other time but didn’t walk to the back. It’s scary back in there! But hey, I’ll shoot wherever!

So when we were coming back up the boardwalk I noticed a “path” in the woods if you can even call it that & asked if they minded if I jumped down & explored. That if they heard me scream come get me! I swear we were in somebody’s “home” in there…but there was this awesome tree/vine coverage that I loved! Oh the places & things I ask my clients to do! They were totally game for jumping down there & shooting a few pics!

Keep reading..there’s an amusing story to tell behind one of the images!

Sooo lil sidenote here…I saw the fallen down tree so obviously I wanted them to attempt to sit on it. They had to go through briars & lots of tree limbs in order to sit down. And being pregnant Katherine was reaching to grab onto some of the limbs so she didn’t trip through the thick brush. And right as she reaches up for a limb to grab onto before she sat down she squealed…are you ready…there was a used condom hanging down from the branch she almost grabbed! Ewwwwwww…told you I thought we were in someone’s “home!” And told you I have some of the best clients ever, they’ll do anything for their pics! So of course Mark got a stick & flung it from the tree & they had to sit & take a picture after all of that! LOL

This is what makes my job so fun…I have funny, sometimes crazy, stories from allllllll of my shoots! Now looking at this picture you would never had known that would you!? I love people that can share in my crude sense of humor too!

This black & white is one of my faves!

Katherine & Mark I had so much fun with you both that day! THANK YOU BOTH for being such great awesome people & rolling with anything! I’m anxiously awaiting the arriving of lil A but not as anxiously as y’all are! Especially since princess is taking her time making her debut! See y’all soon!

xoxo

amy

I can’t believe these lil ones will be TWO MONTHS OLD in a couple of weeks! Time is flying! I had lunch with Sam a couple of weeks ago & they’re still tiny lil sleeping things! And she just sent me a video the other night & let me tell you, baby girl is trying to crawl across the bed & is so pissed that she hasn’t quite figured it out! OMG they are some strong lil boogers! I can’t wait for their next shoot in May & we have a super fun one planned for July when they can sit up! You won’t want to miss it!

I’m excited to see them again in a couple of weeks for another lunch date before their mama has to go back to work! Sam you can totally drop them off with me during the week!

Anyone who thinks shooting babies is easy breezy is crazy! I love my babies but they are HARD WORK! Very rarely do I ever just show up at a client’s house & get right to work! It takes time for mama to nurse them, get them to sleep & then start posing them! With twins it was times 2 of all of that! When one is asleep the other is awake, when one is hungry the other is sleepy! And don’t think they love being all cuddled together! Ha! Once they’re out of the womb they’re like “I’m free, don’t touch me, don’t make me touch her, don’t make me touch him, I’ll pee on you if you do!” Yes, I got peed on as you will see! Soaked my favorite pair of Chucks too! But when you pick them up & they’re like tiny baby dolls none of that matters!

I love how all my newborn shoots are different! I go into each one with a basic game plan. Then when I actually get to someone’s house then all of that might change! Like for instance, I LOVE the hardwood floors they have! So instead of the usual poses I do I decided to use props instead from around the house & a few of my own for their shoot!

Love that lil smile!

You have any idea how hard it is to put a baby in a fire hat!? They must make fire hat props or something cause there was no way 2 babies were fitting in one hat! The black flap thing there is covering lil man’s man parts! He just wouldn’t put that thing away during his shoot! Once he came out of the womb he was liberated!

Sweet baby girl!

My favorite!

The bottom part of my shirt & top part of my jeans were soaked as was my right foot, & still more came out! I was holding baby girl when I heard Sam gasp & my first thought whenever someone does that when I’m holding their baby is the baby crapped on me (that I can’t handle!), then I felt the warm wetness & breathed a sigh of relief it was only pee!

Pissed lil bird!

Passed out lil bird!

 They were angry lil birds I tell ya!

Sam & Colin as always THANK YOU BOTH for everything! I love working with the family & am so excited to watch them grow! Oh the joys I can see now with family pics with them looking in different directions or when they turn 1 & are running away from the camera, or the terrible 2′s when their favorite word is NO! It’s gonna be fun! Love y’all!

xoxo

amy

The first time I shot Laura & her family was a few months after her sister’s wedding when they were down in the Outer Banks for a vacay! She had emailed & said they were coming down & wanted to set up a family shoot! A few minutes into the shoot Laura let me in on the secret that she was expecting! Woohoo! So you all get to meet baby L when he was just a tiny pea bump in there! Big sister to be looks so tiny & baby in their beach shots! Sorry if I keep boring you with the theme of watching my families grow! But it doesn’t hit me until I look back on past images & see how big “my” kids have gotten!

I was super excited to get the text that lil L was here & it was time to pack up the Commander & head up to Raleigh! I had another baby come a few days after him too so I shot a double header that day! Ummmm, that was exhausting! It’s a 3 hour drive there, minimum of 3-4 hours each baby, plus drive to next house 20 minutes away & then 3 hour drive back home! I must have been crazy that day trying to do it all!

Here’s a look back at lil L’s first year…starting with when he was a teeny tiny bump!

Big sis always has that sweet smile!

His birthday theme was sock monkeys! 

He looks like he needs to be a on a beach resort somewhere with that hat on! So cute!

Laura & Jason, THANK YOU both for letting me photograph the family growing! It’s been so much fun getting to know y’all & see the kids’ personalities shine! You guys are awesome & such fun, amazing parents & I look forward to documenting many more memories for y’all! Love y’all!

xoxo

amy

Of course, typical weather, the morning we had our shoot set up it decided to rain! They were only going to be in town for 2 more days before flying back home so we planned our reschedule shoot for the morning of the day they were flying out! And guess what, it ended being a very cold 30 degrees that morning! Luckily Sara only wanted a few good ones in her birthday outfit so that worked out perfect! Lil N was shaking in the quick 10-15 minutes I shot in!

Here’s another look back down memory lane of her first year! She was another one of my newborns who didn’t like to be put down…so I got another “mama under the blanket” shoot with her! I still cannot believe she’s ONE! She is such a beautiful lil girl! Love her!

 So in love with this squishy face! Super cute!

Sara & Jared, I still remember meeting y’all for your very first shoot at the beach which feels like eons ago! You were 2 kids crazy in love with each other & now you have a beautiful daughter! It’s been awesome getting to know you both over the years & watching lil N grow! Love y’all! And hurry back for another visit before she’s like 16 the next time I see her!

xoxo

amy

So many of my lil ones turned ONE last month & this month! And I have a bunch more being born this March too…what’s up with March? My theory is that since we’ve had some of the hottest summers the past couple of years, everyone was wearing less clothes…and we all know where that can lead to! I have the newborns to prove it! Ha!

This lil man celebrated his FIRST birthday last month! Due to blog difficulties I didn’t get to get my February birthday posts up like I had wanted to! So I’m working on those now! It’s been fun to look back & see how much they’ve grown! You don’t really realize it until you go back & look at images throughout the year!

I love working with the H family! Lil H has got 2 awesome parents & a bunch of fun animals! I’m so in love with their Great Dane Pepper…I would seriously dognap her! But seeing how she’s more than half my height when standing on all fours…don’t think I’d be able to get away with it…she’d be dragging me down the street! Being a huge animal lover I get just as attached to m families’ pets as I do their kids & this family is no exception!

Here’s a look back at his FIRST year! He was born close to Superbowl weekend last year as you can tell by the 2 blankets he’s wrapped in! He was not much of a sleeper that day so instead of torturing him I just opted to come back a couple of days later! He still didn’t like me much then! So his newborn pics were taken with his mama wrapped in a blanket!

Six months & growing!

Ten months & finally giving me some of his smiles!

I love those blue eyes & those ears!

Tamara & Corey, THANK YOU both for being so awesome & raising one super cool lil dude! I’ve loved watching him grow over this past year! I can’t wait to watch his new milestones this year! Give Pepper a kiss for me (& the others too even though they run from me!)!

xoxo

amy