I’ve done quite a lot of blogs on late 2011 sessions. We’ve been working with new clients at the studio this month and we’ll be ready to show some 2012 sessions shortly.

So what else is new for 2012?

We are now introducing standouts to the list of products we offer to clients. The display standouts we have at the studio are regularly admired by clients. We also get a lot of people wanting to display small images together in their homes. So we are offering small sized standouts that can be purchased in groups to create a small wall gallery.  ( Bigger sized standouts will be available of course.)

Standout portraits do not require framing. A standout comprises of a portrait print bonded to 3/4 inch lightweight substrate and banded with either black, white, light wood or stainless steel. Hanging holes are placed on the backside for instant wall mounting.

At  least 2 standouts must be purchased. Generally arrangements of 3 or more are the most effective. Sample standout wall galleries will be on display at the studio within  the next few weeks.

Our studio mini session offer has been popular through the winter months. We are extending it through May. The sessions are available weekdays for up to 2 people. Tuesday/Thursday are the main studio days but other weekdays can be accomodated.  Perfect for invidivual baby portrait, sibling photos, even Mom and daughter portraits for upcoming Mothers Day. The session lasts up to 30 minutes with 10-12 proofs shown. The session fee is $65. These are perfect sessions for young kids or babies who perhaps do not have the attention span to last a full shoot. It’s also a nice opportunity to meet the photographer, view products and see if it’s something you want to do on a regular basis to record your kids moments as they grow up. Details are shown on the main website under “Specials” but hurry as space is limited.

Like we said previously our session blogs are taking a different form this year. Over the next few days we’ll post some of our favorite images ( hard choices to make) from some of our February/March studio sessions.

We’re extending the special studio mini sessions through April. Quite a few of you who booked have needed to reschedule due to kids being ill. We understand. Sometimes early Spring is worse than Winter for sniffles and fevers. In addition, this lengthy cold snap means we don’t plan to be outside for sessions in the near future.  With all that in mind we figured it was a good idea to extend the offer. Mini session details can be found on the main website under specials.

We added a new backdrop at the studio this week and here are some test portraits. The backdrop is very subtle here as we are using a shallow depth of field but even when the pattern shows through it looks good.  It’s a nice alternative to plain backgrounds that I still love to use. Don’t forget we are currently offering mini shoots at the studio. A girl dressed in a dark or light plain colored dress or a boy in jeans and a black or white shirt would make for some classic style portraits using this set up. Does classic make you think of formal photography? I certainly like to create a more serene feel to some of my images but it can be about fun too. What got the laugh here? I tripped over my stool!

We are offering mini sessions at the studio during the month of March. These short 30 minute shoots are best for individual child and baby portraits or sibling  images.  The session fee is $65 and a 10% discount is available on wall portraits. The sessions are offered primarily on Tuesdays and Thursdays. We may be able to accommodate some bookings on other weekdays. These special sessions are not available at the weekends.  Please visit the website “specials”  for details and contact the studio if you are interested in scheduling a session.

 These portraits were taken with a 16-35mm wide angle lens. It’s not a piece of glass that I use very often in portrait work as I’ll always opt for other lenses first. In mid December we went up to Vermont and in an attempt to make friends with my 16-35mm I left all my other lenses at home. It turned very cold whilst we were there and mindful of not subjecting the kids to too much of the camera the shoot time was short. Here’s a couple from then.

We were in Vermont just a couple of weeks ago and have just got round to looking through the photos.  Mike and I have come to the conclusion there isn’t a bad place to stay in the green mountain state. This time we were in the Chester area. It was the hottest end to August since 1953. Mike got up before dawn and explored with the camera. These are a few of his images.  Despite the record heat these photos still leave me with the sense Fall is on it’s way. I’m feeling like it’s time for another family field trip up there..asap!

The maple creemie has a hold on my family.

Through the whole of the summer we bemoaned all other ice creams. We spend our vacations in Vermont eating them or discussing when we are going to eat them. We even introduced them our family from the UK on a recent trip to Vermont ( We didn’t go just for the maple creemies of course but they did feature heavily on the itenary!) Never underestimate the power of the maple creemie. In my daughter’s case it gave her new found powers to jump on her cousin and give him a good tickling!

 There’s nothing better than this on a Sunday afternoon in the Summer. Even the drizzle didn’t dampen our collective enthusiasm. My son loved the Bostonn symphony (he plays clarinet), my daughter loved the fancy cookies in our picnic (a very important detail for a five year old) and Mike and I loved everything! The symphony plays the The Shed which is a large round open sided building. It has fantastic garage light so once the concert was over rather than waiting to get out with the masses we hung out in the shed with the camera.