Left of Center Photography » children

Extended Family Portraits

Paul — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 02:35:27 +0000

Michelle and Lynda sent me an email a few weeks back saying how much they liked my photos and that they would love to get together for me to shoot there extended family – they and their families have been close friends for years.

Then they gave me the whopper – do anything you want. I was talking with my friend Andrea about this just the other day. That kind of freedom immediately makes the mind go blank!

I managed to pull it together and we had a great, and hot, night shooting in Willoughby near the Chagrin River. They were up for anything I threw at them and the shots came out great because of that.

After walking the trials for an hour we finally ended up down by the river. It was a much appreciated too since we were all hot and tired by that point. Just splashing around for a few minutes gave us all some energy.

We made it back to the parking lot with just enough time to for the boys to flip a few tricks on their skateboards before we had to call it night.

It really was a great session. We’re already talking about getting back together this fall to do it all again!

Thanks Michelle and Lynda!

Family Style with Olivia and Austin

Paul — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 01:27:51 +0000

I’m starting to run out of fingers to count how many times I’ve taken Austin and Olivia’s pictures. I bring them chocolate milk and Smarties and they call me “Picture Paul”. I may have to put that on a business card!

Except for one big family photo I did a year or so ago with the Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles and Cousins, I usually only shoot Austin and Olivia. This time around they wanted some nice and simple family shots in their yard – and it’s a great big yard that’s perfect for pictures.

And at the end of every shoot we have a little fun – mostly to burn off some of the sugar from all the Smarties they eat while we’re taking pictures!

Cousins – It’s a Tradition

Paul — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 01:45:25 +0000

Every year, just before the Fourth of July, we get our kids and our nephews together to take a pictures of them all for the grandparents. It’s tradition. You don’t mess with that, right?

The whole group is six kids all under eight years old – ranging from two to eight for realz (my wife just told me I was using “actually” too much). How hard is it to get eight kids to look at you?

Actually (doh!), it’s not as bad as that looks. I was testing out the lighting and told them to relax.

Here is what’s cool about photographer’s kids. I just put mine on the log and got it one shot.

For me, the best shots came at the end of the session. I told them to just play. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – nothing beats taking a picture of a child just being a child.

And, ACTUALLY, that’s all I have to say in the post.

Sports Portraits

Paul — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 13:04:24 +0000

I sponsor my kid’s teams for the city leagues and every year I get asked why I’m not the guy taking the pictures. There are a couple of reasons why I’m not the guy, but if I was the guy, this is what I’d be doing.

To see more about how these photos were made and a few bonus shots click on over to Making LoC!

Communions

Paul — Sun, 09 May 2010 15:36:57 +0000

Yesterday I had the honor of shooting the First Communion portrait of my friends Leah and Jordan. We go way back to since they are also on the soccer team I sponsor and have been listening to me yell from the sidelines for three or four years.

This session was a while in the making. It got delayed twice. I’m really glad we pulled it off because the session paid off with some really nice shots.

They were perfect little models and just as angelic as they appear. I have to admit, though, it was weird not seeing them in shorts and spikes running around on the soccer field like I usually do!