This is the second time I got to do family portrait photography of Carter and Mace of the Cornwell family and of course now that they knew me a bit and remembered me they were more comfortable with my photographing them. I also know their personalities better and could better bring them out in the images of them. So even if you can not afford or do not want to do family portraits every year then maybe every other year is good enough at least with the same photographer so everyone can evolve a bit together.

I have my spots that I know work for good pictures but always will ask the kids for their ideas because they always have them and sometimes they are really good. This really helps me as a photographer to continue to be open and change things up.

Letting one over another take the front position and spot light in a image can always be cool and make for a very telling picture. And the same with the parents and having them either take the front or the back of an image can be cool. In my shoots I usually try to achieve all of this along with the very comfortable dog pile of everyone together posed how ever they want.

This time we brought along a bunch of paint and a background so I could do some studio type images while we were on location. You would be surprised how hesitant kids can sometimes be at such a young age about looking silly but I think it is really good for them if they are ok with it early on in life and think it can make them better people. As the kids cringed at first when the parents started painting them I assured them that not only did they look cool but they should start thinking of all the silly faces they could make for me in a few minutes and that got them thinking and relaxed a bit more. When I told them next that they were going to be able to paint their parents faces any way they wanted they were 100{84fbde12c1c604a6ba090750bed5b39b2db7312a4ed8f5d099e53eaff69dae28} in and all mine. And, this is the point I think where the parents started to feel a little surprised as they continued to paint the kids faces.

They all did it though and it will make a great series even if they each just pick their one favorite image and they are all lined up on a wall or down a hall. Not your average family portraits and surely to get comments from every visitor when over at their home and that is my goal. The more creative stuff like this can not be done the first time I photograph a family as well as it can after we all get to work together a bit. So now we have raised the bar for the Cornwell family portraits and who knows what me and the kids will come up with next time.

Fall time in Arizona is certainly the time of year for family portraits. It is the rare time of year that the trees leaves quickly change and the weather is cool enough to spend a couple hours outside shooting portraits in various locations without people melting. Often as kids get older and go away to school it is the only time when the family gets back together for a week or two. So, it is a great time to do some portraits to spice up your walls and picture frames with some fresh looks and attitudes to enjoy throughout the year.

Portraits have come so far the past generation or two as far as being creative and a far cry from the typical older school Olin Mills and such type common portraits. The Hanlon family had not done many portraits in the past so we started off with a little more common settings just to get the basics covered before getting to creative with them. It is good to get to know all the family members a bit and get to know their personalities too.

So I would consider this a pretty conservative set of initial pictures for the Hanlon family but we will keep adding a little more and more different and more modern type portraits in each shoot each year and within another year or two not only will we will get them to do more creative types of images but I’l bet  they will be coming to me with their own ideas and versions of doing more different types of portraits.

It’s a fun evolution working with families, watching them grow and bringing out their personalities in more and more creative and fun family portrait imagery that they will then get to enjoy year round on the walls and in the frames around their homes. I love being this type of a contributor to families and the look and feel of images they display in their homes.

Parke is one of the cutest kids I have ever seen in my life. This family is a contemporary portrait photographers dream. Easy, fun, laid back, jeans, and tees all lend to making everyone look and feel comfortable in pictures. I was lucky enough to spend a few hours doing portraits of Parke and his proud parents Ryan and Lindsey in downtown Phoenix. Downtown has become a much better place to do portraits the past few years as it has grown.

We now have pristine parks and stadiums right next to older textured weathered graffiti walls and train tracks. I love all of these elements when it comes to photography. We spent some time driving and walking around being educated and entertained by young Parke as we did clothing changes and location changes around downtown. It all added up to fresh young and fun portraits against contrasting older aspects of downtown.

It was really adventurous and fun for all except for the minute after Parke dropped his gaming phone that went from fun to fragments in the blink of an eye. But, with a very quick recovery we were back on the trail of adventure around downtown. The relaxed pace of our shoot made for comfortable easy to create moments for the entire family to be able to remember forever.

Contemporary portrait photographers is probably very close the definition of what I try make everyones experience with Arcadia Photography in every way. Please give me a call if you’d like to come up with something unique and contemporary I can create for you.

People come to me often just when only dating and some become long time clients and I get to have the benefit of being the one who capture and create Phoenix photography studios images of their growing and evolving lives. Two becomes one, then two becomes three, and so on. So, I get to see and hear the storys, dreams, and plans often from the start which is really cool.

As far as maternity images go I seem to always prefer the more dramatically lit images and on darker backgrounds which all lends to the emphasizing the exposed belly, hands, and faces. Knowing if it is a boy or girl defiantly helps when it comes to stylizing and using props in the shoot as well. And, if a name has already been picked out then we can take even one step further.

Many woman prefer to have their maternity pictures done somewhere in between month six and month seven and others want to capture themselves during their last month of pregnancy. Many people come to me but I also often bring an entire studio type set up and go them to make it as easy as possibly on their soon to change lives. The benefit about going on location is that I can set up a studio background situation and do environmental type portraits in and around their homes with easy access to clothing changes, props, and pets.

It’s all good with me whether I’m creating Phoenix photography studios images at my place or yours. I just really enjoy meeting and working with new people and having the potential of a new long term relationship with them.

I feel lucky to have had the opportunity to continually re-connect with Paul and Leslie who’s wedding I shot a few years back.  They loved my wedding and portrait photography so much that they have done a couple family sessions with me since their wedding. I was ecstatic to have the opportunity to shoot them with their two adorable children.

Children always bring laughter and smiles to a photo shoot.  Some of my best photography and most candid shots have been when a child has done something random or offbeat that makes everyone just crack up! The Barron family was also cashing in on the all inclusive portrait session they won this past summer when I held “The Cutest Kids Contest”.  From time to time I like to hold contests and award winners with photo packages.  It is a great way for me to display my passion and love for the art, as well as give back to the people who have supported me through my journey as a professional photographer.

We shot this photography session close to the Barron family’s house for ease of outfit changes for the kids. Typically I would not suggest to wear super bright colors, busy patterns, or logos for portraits.  Earth tones usually come across and blend best. Greens, grays, blues, browns, purples, or darker yellows and darker reds I think look best. However, the Barron family’s vibrant colors worked perfect against the bland rocky desert.

We had a really fun day shooting.  The kids definitely proved to live up to their title ” Cutest Kids.” Ella was a sassy little thing, jutting her hip out to the side when I was photographing her like a little model.  Logan on the other hand, with his gleaming blue eyes was making funny faces and just being the silly little boy that he is.  I love that child like wonder.  It reminds me of the days when I was young with no worries. I love to try and capture that essence of what it is like to be a kid again. It is a special time in our lives and one that deserves to be captured…The priceless moments. 

Arcadia photography comes up with some great kids portrait ideas and one of the most fun was photographing this child eating pudding. we had pudding everywhere and so did he. Not only did we come up with some great images the parents loved, but we made a great memory for everyone involved. Our studio still smells like chocolate.

We photographed the Moehn family last week in North Scottsdale at their parents residence. The house was great to shoot in as was the desert landscaping outside and around the house. It was a really nice day and desert up by Pinnacle Peak is beautiful for Scottsdale portrait photographers, creative portrait photographers, and creative portrait photographers. I had shot their wedding about five years ago and now they have a daughter. So, I photographed them and their siblings families along with the parents and then the entire group.

Just before Christmas I created some unique portrait photography the Cornwell family at Freestone Park in Gilbert, Arizona. It has become one of my new favorite places to shoot in the east valley. There are plenty of places to shoot including a merry go round carousel, riding the train, and feeding the ducks.

Photographing in the fall is best because not only the weather is great but the sun is so low in the sky you can almost shoot at any time of the day and it lends helping Scottsdale portrait photographers do some great portrait photography and to making great images.

Freestone Park

I shot the Ressler family last weekend at their home in Scottsdale. I brought a studio set up and we did both studio type images and outdoor location images all at one time at one location. We shot the entire family, then all three of the families, and then each of the smaller kids.

With a couple outfit changes this is the best way to get the most out of a photo shoot. You are more likely to put more pictures up in your home to enjoy if they do not look like they were all done at the same time. As professional portrait photographers of their wedding also a couple years back, it is alway great to keep photographing people as their families grow. I love doing high end portrait photography and creating artistic portrait photos for families anywhere in the valley of the sun. 

Six, Eight, and Ten years old. About as good as it gets in life. I shot these great portrait photos of these girls at Freestone Park in Gilbert, Arizona this week as all the leaves were falling in the 70 degree temperatures. Awesome. I will shoot portraits just about anywhere though and just about anytime of year. If you are looking for a high end portrait photographer to create artistic portrait photos give me a call.