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pregnant photos

I want it all…

These days for my family photo shoots I like to offer it all… because why not?

For fast moving colorful moments I use my digital 35mm (click here to see digital samples of the same photo shoot.) While I generally prefer the results of film better, there are lots of benefits to digital. One huge benefit for me is that at the end of the shoot, I know I have some good shots, should anything happen to the film.

But regular viewers of my blog should know by now that my favorite favorite favorite camera is my Rolleiflex… the slowness of the camera can be a burden when trying to catch fast moments, but the results you get, especially when using black and white film, can never be matched by digital. (I have some really beautiful photos from this shoot of her nude silhouette, but unfortunately those are too intimate for the internet.)

And my second favorite (but rarely used) camera is my 35mm film camera… because I can get the deep blacks, the beautiful soft glow and the texture from the black and white film, but I can also keep up with the fast moving attention spans of two-year old children, because the 35mm is so easy and fast compared to my Rollei. So I am happy to have an excuse to pull out my old 35mm and put it to use again.


Expecting….

I wasn’t able to make it to my friend Tauni’s baby shower a couple of months ago, but earlier she had mentioned she wanted some pregnancy photos, so as a present, I promised we would make it happen. And tonight, three weeks away from her due date, we had our pregnancy photo session with her beautiful belly and her husband Dan.

We spent the first hour playing in their home, and we took some really intimately beautiful photos. But on my way to their house, I thought about my favorite field, as Arann calls it “Paige’s studio,” and I suggested that I would love to go up there later in the evening when the light was better. They were psyched about that idea, despite the rapidly approaching cold Pacific fog.

So I have just returned home and after quickly looking over my photos of the night, these are my immediate favorites. I just adore their expressions of complete happiness and love with each other and with the new human they are creating. What a lucky kid to have such a wonderful environment to come in to.

And a fun fact I learned tonight: Tauni and Dan don’t know if they are having a boy or a girl. Yet, Tauni says the most popular interactions she has had while being pregnant are with complete strangers who confidently predict the sex of her child based on the way her belly looks. She had a guy in Home Depot come up to her and say, “You’re having a boy. My daughter looked like you every time she was pregnant and she had all boys.”

Well, three weeks to go, and we’ll see if he was right.

Oh, and a sad fact, the developers have started to move their bulldozing equipment into my field, so “Paige’s studio” will soon be 6 new houses. Aren’t we in the middle of a recession? Why are they still building new houses when so many are being foreclosed and abandoned? Well, if I go missing for awhile, you may be able to find me in my field and tied to a tree in silent peaceful protest.

The Difference Three Years Can Make….

When I took this photo of my friend Juliet, almost exactly three years ago, it was hard to even imagine how much all of our lives were going to change. We had no idea who that little human inside her belly was going to be, let alone who the the next one was going to be, or that in three years they would move out of this house and Arann and I would move in. Life moves so fast and sometimes you don’t even realize how much things change until you stop and look back.

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