Simple Grace Photography

Baby Bliss

Give me the life of the boy whose mother is nurse, seamstress, washerwoman, cook, teacher, angel, and saint, all in one, and whose father is guide, exemplar, and friend.  No servants to come between.  These are the boys who are born to the best fortune.  ~Andrew Carnegie

I had a GREAT time photographing this newborn session. First, let me say we did all these images in their HOME!! And I find it usually makes things easier for the parents and the child, with little hassle of getting to and fro for the Portrait appointment.

 Mr. B slept like a champ pretty much the whole time, so he was a dream for me to mold and play with.  And I can tell this little guy is going to be the center of the universe for quite a few people. Mommy and Daddy are very much in love with him, and its cute to see how they watch his every tiny movement. Thank you all for letting me come in and just do my thing. You all are wonderful parents : 0 )  Enjoy the sneak peak, and I'll post more soon!

A summer garden

A precious little girl wearing a victorian dress and running carefree in a summer garden, just equals pure loveliness. I could go on and on about how gorgeous this child is, but I can tell you one words sums up her entire little person: exquisite. 

Sweet Faces

This year is shaping up to be one of the best for Simple Grace Photography. And that has put me slightly behind with my blog, which is a good thing! That means a lot of images to follow.

 The Annual ACT portraits are nearly complete and the Hall is up at Dr. Taylors office. This project has been so much fun for me this year. All the sweet little faces of children I got to capture for mom and dad, with the help of Sarah Havard, made the event beyond wonderful.  I would like to extend a huge "thank you", to Dr. Shawn Taylor and Dr. Moria Bush, at A Caring Touch Pediatrics & International Adoptions, for giving me a wonderful place to display the photographs. The whole office is just heart warming as you walk down the halll and see happy little faces dotting the walls.

I will post more from these sessions soon! 

The Flower

So, a few weeks ago I was just coming in from the store. I had my usual load of kroger bags and was preparing to take out my items and place them away. My husband had been home watching our daughter, and her friend play outside. 

Everyone was outside, so I took out all my frozen goods and started placing them on the counter top and noticed the ice cream had started to melt. I took it over to the kitchen sink, and there was this gorgeous flower above the sink in a mason jar. I just melted as fast as that ice cream, I thought wow my husband is so sweet to have put that amazing flower there for me. And about that time I heard him come into the room. Oh, that was so nice of you to pick that flower for me, and I love it. I noticed he suddenly had that troubled look, and I stepped back. Then he smirked.."well, actually the little neighbor boy brought it over for Emma."

Oh... I had to laugh!!! Poor guy was so close. I guess we can all learn a little lesson about love from children. It was just the sweetest gesture, and those two really are like peas and carrots.

The Wish.

I think as parents many of our greatest wishes for our children are for them to have the simple and abundant things in life. 

Grow up healthy, learn to be a good and productive person, become independent, and find their own happiness in this world. Those are just the basics. And we all have hopes and dreams attached to each child according to who they are. And I am certain that you never grow out of wondering if you did the best job you could for your child. 

I get the rare honor of photographing these children, just as they are about to venture out on their own. I can say that I learn so much from each parent during that time, and I take note of the great things they have done with their children. Hannah's mom Gloria can know without a doubt that her greatest life accomplishments will be her, "babies". She has a daughter who just shines inside and out. Nothing but good things are going to follow Hannah, as she enters the University to study medicine. Hard work with the violin, helped to fulfill this dream. And behind all these accomplishments are parents who run themselves from ball games, music lessons, school functions, and a host of other activities to give the most to their children. I believe a graduating high school senior is an accomplishment for not only the child, but the family as well.

Miss Hannah

Senior 2009

Happy Mothers Day!

FRANKLIN P. JONES:

You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, for instance.

Hold your horses.

Well, we just made it thru a very busy project this past week. I will have a ton of images to post soon, but until then you'll just have to hold your horses. : 0 ) I know that's so lame. But this picture isn't. I am starting to want a boy!!! Are you reading this Gustav? Anyway. I use to work at Anna's kinderland during college and this one tiny fello, about two had me wrapped around his fingers. He was blonde, loved to wear his cowboy hat and boots no matter what the season. I can still see his tiny legs, with cut off shorts and his trusty boots strolling along the playground. Well, I just wanted to pull one image from the event this past week, of this little cowboy. I have to say, I was taken back to that summer the moment I saw him.He is so much alike, loving the outside and all things muddy. Ah... boys how can you not love them?? I think I need one!

Also a HUGE thank you to everyone that came out for ACT. We had a great time photographing the children. I think by the time it was over, Sarah and I had developed our own comedy routine. 

Totally In love...

I fell for this little guy and I think you will see why quickly.

I know the first days are a blurr. No showers, little sleep, and running around looking for your sanity. Who hasn't felt like a rock star after you've been wet on once or twice by a tiny newborn. However, love just pushes you thru all that. Of course it is super easy for me to fall for this soft angle and say that, I handed him back to mom after a few hours. The point of this is, we forget. We forget the hard stuff and some of the magical stuff, like the tiny wrinkles on the bottom of their feet. Today we practiced remembering, by freezing every delicate imprint of this tiny person on camera. I feel extra special that I got to do it. It warms me inside thinking that a long time from now someone will look at these and say, "hey look at dad", or even, "hey look at my grandpaw". 

Take the time, it doesn't matter what kind of camera you own or what kind of photographer you are. It just matters that you take the time to document it. 

Spread the diaper in the position of the diamond with you at bat.  Then fold second base down to home and set the baby on the pitcher's mound.  Put first base and third together, bring up home plate and pin the three together.  Of course, in case of rain, you gotta call the game and start all over again.  ~Jimmy Piersal, on how to diaper a baby, 1968

So nice

It's SO nice when I get blog comments, really, I love them. And I am so thrilled today to get a comment from an artist I admire.

It's a journey this art and photography thing. And I am sure that most of my work many people will never see. It can be a bit personal, and that old feeling "what if nobody likes it" can crawl in. I think most people have this feeling now and again. However, "Mr. What If" walked out the back door as I noticed photographer Tamara Reynolds left a lovely comment about one of my photographs. The one of my daughter in her Easter Dress ; 0 ) It's the equal to playing golf with Tiger Woods and him saying "great swing". And I have no idea why I keep talking about him lately...

But back to Tamara, I enjoy her work and totally admire her direction. I am still working on my path, but it is inspiring to see other female photographers treading forward. "Some day," I say to myself. So in between the laundry and picnics with Teddy Bears, I'll learn enough and grow enough as a photographer. But until then, I'll be content to enjoy a sweet comment from the likes of a photographer that captures images of such fascinating people as little farm girls and Johnny Cash. 

Her work can be viewed here:

http://tamarareynoldsphotography.com