About a Family

A few months ago I was making a storyboard for one of my clients. In that storyboard I used a quote that I fell in love with from the first time I read it:

“Other things may change us, but we start and end with the family.” -Anthony Brandt

This is one of the reason I love family portraits so much. When all is said and done it is our families that are always there for us, who shape and define us, who raise us and challenge us, and are there to pick up the pieces when everything seems to be broken.

Capturing those moments of a young, growing family is so important to me. Years down the road every member of the families I photograph will look back at those capture moments and remember the fun they had that day.

Sometimes photos are taken outside by a grassy field or by a pond. Other times they may be taken while playing a game of catch, mini golf, splatter painting the kids’ rooms, and even in a studio setting. There are so many great ways to take professional family portraits that really illustrate each individual family’s life together.

When planning for your family portraits choose a setting that is comfortable and familiar for your family. Familiar settings will mean even more to you years down the road. Using a favorite family activity in your photos will always remind you of the special times you shared doing that activity (badminton, frisbee, volleyball, hiking, canoeing, picnicking, painting, horseback riding, flying a kite, etc) over the years. Wear clothing that you are comfortable in. If you like dressing up, go for it. If your more of jeans and tee shirt people, go with that. The more you look like yourself, the better.

The more comfortable you are, the more your photos will look like you. It will not look stiff or posed or faked. Plan your family portrait shoot to bring out the real you. Your family will shine when you are the way you love to be together. Talk to you photographer. They will ask you questions about you and your family and help you plan the perfect location and the best outfits to wear. Not to mention they will be so far and above the posed, stiff photos you get from places like the studios in the mall with the fake background and everyone sitting on chairs. By the time a professional photog finishes with your session you will have fallen in love and will never go back to the mall studios!!

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Cute as a Bunny

Meet Aleecya Marie. She was ten days old when I met her for her newborn photographs. She was absolutely adorable. She was the tiniest little thing and very alert. No sleepy pictures for her! She loved the sound of my camera clicking away capturing her every move as she rolled around on the blankets.

I created these hats especially for her photo shoot. I taught myself two weeks before and made around thirty hats in those two weeks, including the ice cream sundae hat pictured above, some vintage headbands, the little red riding hood cape, and the bunny hat and diaper cover.

I can not wait to photograph little Aleecya throughout her life. Get ready because you turn around twice and you'll be looking at her wedding pictures in a few years!!!

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Capturing Bliss

Some of my favorite moments are when I can capture an image of a child with an expression of pure joy on their face. Last summer a cousin of mine was in town with his two little girls. We took the older girl outside (the other was still a baby) and we played on the swings, tasted grandma’s cherry tomatoes, played in her little duckie pool, watched a caterpillar and chased bubbles.

Now this little girl wasn’t one to smile very much. So instead of posing her in front of the camera, we played with her and just happened to take some amazing photos along the way.

That’s the difference between a mini shoot and a normal shoot. A mini shoot is done on a set with a theme. It is only half an hour long and the next group comes in. We still have fun but we don’t have time to play. These photos are usually used on cards during the holidays or as gifts for grandma and grandpa. A normal shoot is longer and the day is just about that child(ren). We have time to get to know each other, time to play, and it’s mostly done outside instead of on a set, though there are usually some photos taken in the studio too.

I love normal sets because I get a chance to interact with the kids more and catch them in their natural environment when they don’t have to smile at the camera, sit straight, and look right at me. Of course we take posed photos outside where they smile, look at the camera, etc, but its easier to become friends with them during a normal shoot and make it fun for them. Kids love posing in front of a camera, especially if they get to see how they looked after. Having more time lets the true them shine.

Zoie shines in the bubble photos because she was so excited to play with the bubbles. She looks like she’s having the time of her life-because she was!

Zoie shines in the bubble photos because she was so excited to play with the bubbles. She looks like she’s having the time of her life-because she was!

The difference is that we had more time to hang out and play so that she felt comfortable and liked getting her photo taken.

To book a session for your child, email us at katie@kmrobinsonphotography.com

Also be sure to join our birthday club by emailing us at that same address. When you sign each of your children up for our birthday club you will receive money off of their birthday shoot along with an extra gift!

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Hats off to the newborns

I love newborn photography! I love the sleep little posed photos you get within those first twelve days after they are born. I love the little blankets you just them on. I love the little hats and headbands they wear, I love the tutus and angel wings you put them in. I just love newborn shoots! No matter what the photos make everyone say “awwwwww!”

I have been drooling over some of the adorable crocheted hats I have seen in photos from some of the fantastic newborn photogs that I follow and learn from. And then I saw the price tag-yikes. So instead of spending a on of money on these hats and headbands-I taught myself how to crochet.

Yes, that’s right, I bought some hooks and some yarn. There was a little book that came with it that I looked at to find out how to start crocheting. Once I learned that I tried watching a youtube video that was much to fast for me to keep up with (probably because instead of learning the basics I jumped right into hat making) I tried it once myself and ended up making it into a flower. I tried it their way and decided I didn’t like it and also turned it into a flower/snowflake-like thing.

Then I did it my way but didn’t pull it as tight and viola-a little pink beanie hat with a light pink flower perfect for the newborn shoot I have coming up.

Then, I tried it again with a different yarn. It was going along wonderfully until I jumped the gun a bit on the top part and it bunched up a little on the top. But with the bunching all even, it ended up being the cutest navy blue beret.

Next step as a light brown hat that I didn’t pull as tightly when I was crocheting and ended up being much bigger than expected so that got turned into a diaper cover with a bunny tale on the back side. I made a matching hat with long floppy bunny ears and the set is sooooo cute!

And now that I’ve figure out all this and have the hang of it I have several projects going at once, including a light yellow hat with bear ears on it (think Winnie the Pooh sort of) that I’m working on. And of course there were multiple crocheted head bands scattered throughout the hat making process as well!

I’m so excited to use these in my next newborn shoot (which actually is sometime this coming week!! Yay!!)

So I just thought I’d share that I have discovered a great new talent that now gives me something to do on my breaks when I’m subbing. The products of this talent will gracing my newborn photo shoots from now on (plus can you say homemade gifts for future baby showers?!?!)

Like I always say, why buy something when you can easily learn to do it yourself!! Yay for being crafty!

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Just Like Dad: A Father's Day Mini Shoot

Father's Day is on the way!! In honors of the world's best dads, we've come up with an awesome mini shoot for you!

Just Like Dad: A Father's Day mini shoot will be held on Sat May 21, 2011. For more information go to our event tab here.

As for these cuties--their dad is an amazing youth pastor (and so is his wife) who happens to be a good friend of mine.

So we dressed the boys up in dad's suit jacket and ties and they are holding his Bible-an amazing touch thought of by their mother!

Not only does Dad love his sons but he is raising them to be strong men of conviction, integrity and faith.


Dad also likes football, and the boys are loving it too!

This little man can already throw a football better than I can (which isn't saying much because I can't throw a football right to save my life haha)
Touch down!!

So here's to the amazing dads in our lives!! Happy Father's Day!!

To see more photos from this Just Like Dad mini shoot, check out the complete album!

For more information about the upcoming Just Like Dad mini shoot, check out our event tab here!

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Amanda and Jared's Wedding

They met on a double date. It did not go well...but that's because they weren't with each other. After the date he could only think about how much he liked her so he called his friend up and asked if he could take out the girl his friend had taken on the double date. With his friends okay, he called her up and a year later people were throwing birdseed at them.

The dress was Amanda's mother's. Her mother had ripped it apart and put it back together for her daughter to wear. Her brother gave her away and her sister was her maid of honor. His brothers were all groomsmen.

The brides maids wore different styles and colors of dresses. The groomsmen matched the girl they were paired with.
The girls froze outside for photos in the middle of a windy, but lovely, mid-March day. After the wedding the bride and groom were whisked away to a place much warmer than PA.

A lovely time was had by all at Jared and Amanda's Clarks Summit wedding in March 2011.

To see more of Amanda and Jared's wedding photos, check out the album here.

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Me and Mommy: A Mother's Day Mini Photo Shoot

Happy almost Mother's Day all you lovely mommies out there! We're still a week away, but really, everyday is mother's day!

Thanks for taking the weight of our problems on your shoulders.

Thanks for holding us on your lap when we needed a hug.

Thanks for always listening.

Thanks for all the fun! <3

You mean the world to us! We may not always tell you but we love you!!

To see the rest of the photos from the Mattocks' mini shoot check out the facebook album!

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