Tag Archive for: mini session

Family Portrait Fundraiser for Foster and Adoptive Families

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This fall has been busy, but it’s been a blessing and an inspiration! I’ll jump right back to where I left off so we can get caught up. In my last post, I shared a message from an inspiring guest blogger and friend about how she and her husband felt called to foster-to-adopt three little ones over the course of 15 months. She told me about this amazing organization, the Foster Love Project, and how it provides for foster children and the families who care for them. After witnessing this precious family grow through adoption and hearing about the Foster Love Project, I knew I wanted to do something to support foster and adoptive families through photography. In one day, fifteen families raised $750 through the Family Portrait Fundraiser on November 3rd. With this money, the Foster Love Project can provide for specific requests from families like cribs, bunk beds or strollers; as well as specific requests from kids in foster care such as special bedding, sports equipment or school supplies.

Here are a few highlights from our Family Portrait Fundraiser.

first family portrait

mini-session fundraiser

sisters

all smiles for mama

And here is one of the many families I’ve been blessed to meet through this fundraiser with the Foster Love Project.

family portrait

This family was so much fun to photograph, just look at these charming faces!

little sister portrait

big sister close up

little brother portait

big brother close up

And here’s the couple that started it all!

the couple who started it all

I want to thank everyone who participated in the Family Portrait Fundraiser and I’m definitely making plans to do something similar next year. If you’d like to stay in the know about this and other opportunities, please subscribe! Plus, you’ll get a bonus Session Planning & Style Guide, written by yours truly, with exclusive tips from over 10 years of experience in photographing families.

Holiday Mini Sessions to Support the Foster Love Project

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Hi there! I’m excited to share a great way that you can support others and simplify your Christmas checklist this holiday season. Have you heard of the Foster Love Project? A friend recently told me about this project and how it provides for foster children and their foster families. They offer children transitioning into a foster home with a new bag packed with a blanket, jammies, a book, essentials and a small toy. And that’s just one of the many services provided by the Foster Love Project which has a donation center located in Dormont. So what can you do this holiday season to support foster children and families? Sign up for the Family Portrait Fundraiser!

FosterLoveProjectFundraiser_IG

For each family photographed, Captivating Imagery will donated $50 to the Foster Love Project. This fundraiser will take place on Saturday, November 3rd between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. The sessions are 15 minutes and come with 25 custom holiday cards, all for $75. Check out the Foster Love Project and all of the ways it meets the needs of foster children and families and please share this fundraiser with anyone you know who might want to support this worthy cause. Thank you!

How to Get Fabulous Christmas Cards Without Going Crazy

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I love everything about sending Christmas cards. It’s something I’ve enjoyed since my husband and I were first married. Every year, we’d plan a custom photo card and up until recently, our dog Brownie has graced the front of our cards (he was overlooked last year with the birth of our son, and this year, you can find him on the back of our cards…poor guy, but that’s how it goes). Anyway, I love coming up with the idea for the design and photos, all the way down to the details of the envelopes and stamps.

Mind you, I skimp on other holiday joys like baking cookies, but Christmas cards are kind of my thing. And there is a lot of work involved from beginning to end. And if you’ve ever created your own cards, I think you know what I’m talking about. I’ve seen the wearied faces of parents at the photo kiosk in Target trying to select images off of their thumb drive with those painfully slow Kodak machines. And even though there are lots of options with custom cards available online these days, it’s tough to beat having fun family portraits by a pro! So this year, I offered a set of 25 custom cards with my holiday mini sessions to make it easier for everyone to have fabulous Christmas cards with stunning photos! And I’d love to share Amanda and Chris’ card because I really love how they styled their wardrobe for this holiday mini session.

Aren’t they cute with their fun winter wear (and Chris’ hunting cap and jacket)? It’s the details like this that personalize a session. And what better attire for a photo session amidst fresh cut Christmas trees at Reilly’s Summer Seat Farm? We also used the greenhouse there for part of the session because it was a great place to warm up and it was brimming with poinsettias.

So just by booking a mini session, planning their attire, and coming out for a 30-minute photo shoot, Amanda and Chris made their Christmas cards to do list a breeze. After their session, they selected their three favorite images and the card design was emailed for their approval the next day and delivered the following week. And they had an online gallery of images to order prints from as Christmas gifts for their family! Check and check!

And I guess I’ll share our cards too for some variety since we didn’t want to take our son out in the cold with a cold. I set up a backdrop and some lights in our family room and lowered my expectations because it’s always tricky photographing your own family. But I was thrilled to find that Brennan actually enjoyed it (for the most part)! We spent maybe 10 minutes in front of the camera. Sweet!

And I think I’ll also offer on-location sessions like this next year so clients with young kids have the option of checking the session off of their list without having to leave the comfort of their home. If you’d like to be kept in the loop about opportunities like this holiday mini session and custom cards, please let me know so I can add you to our email list.

Captivating Imagery Photo Op!

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I’m getting all ready for our first-ever holiday mini sessions and as part of my preparations, I’d like to do a test shoot. So, I’m looking for a family who would like to be my model so that I can create an image to use in my marketing that will give everyone an idea of what to expect with our mini sessions.

Here’s how I’ll choose this family: please write a short essay (300 words or less) on what family portraits mean to you and send me a snapshot of you and your family. By doing this, you’re giving me permission to share your story and photo on my site and Facebook page. I’m planning on doing this test shoot on November 19th at 4 p.m. So your family will need to be available at that time. The winning family for this Photo Op will be selected next Wednesday, on November 13th. So time is ticking!