Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

I finally got to photograph Kenna and Kelsi!  The snow was non-stop today so I did Kelsi's inside first.  She has the most angelic expressions and I loved holding her.  Then we headed outside with the older girls to play in the snow and had a blast!  As you can see, Kenna loved catching snowflakes with her tongue :)  Avery and Ander had so much fun with their "cousins"... we all can't wait to come back in January!

We made it!

We are in Chicago!  I am all set up with my laptop and camera of course :)  As soon as we arrived I hopped in the car and headed over to shoot Samantha who was at home with her nanny.  I've been dying to do photos for all my Chicago people!  Sam was adorable of course and we got some great indoor shoots (have I mentioned how cold it is here :)).  Anyway, here are just a few.  Merry Christmas Eve everyone!!!

Handknits by becky!

It's been a busy holiday season but I just had to make time for a blog update to show off this awesome hat!  A friend of mine knits beautiful hats and the quality is amazing.  Thanks so much, Becky!  The pics turned out great and I am thinking the tushy one would be perfect for a canvas.  And he WILL hate me one day, this I know :)

A perfect beginning to the Christmas season

Last night we trimmed out Christmas tree (picked out by our one and only little perfectionist of course).  Avery may have confused the ornaments with "balls" and *may* have thrown one or two... including mine and Jay's 1st Christmas one but it was all good and she had a great time.  Then this morning we woke up to SNOW.  Not much but hey this is Alabama!  Avery is loving it.  Time to go out and play! 

New Sisters SNEAK PEEK!

Well I may be from Chicago but my skin has definitely thinned because it feels COLD outside!  I was very graciously welcomed into the cozy warm home of the R family to photograph these precious little girls.    Thank you Jennifer, and thank you so much for the referral, Anna! 

p.s.  If anyone else is interested, I am still building my portfolio... so let me know if you would like pictures done :)  Hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season!

Sisters Sneak Peek!

Today I met with a friend to photograph her 2 little girls and it was a lot of fun!  Miss E is a wonderful big sister and had fun playing (and playing for the camera :)).  Miss MB was the picture of newborn presciousness.  I hope you enjoy your sneak peek Anna, it was so great to see you and finally meet your babies!

More brothers!

I was very worried when I was awoken by the sound of RAIN at 6 a.m. this morning.  I hoped and hoped the skies would ligthen and they did just enough!  I was given the wonderful privilege to shoot these sweet brothers in their home.  You can already see the brotherly love :)  It was great to meet you and your family Jennifer, and thank you for the referral Kelli! 

 

Family Sneak Peek

This morning I got to meet with an adorable family.  These 2 brothers were so stinking cute together, I could barely stand it.  Mom and Nana were there to help them ham it up for the camera and I got some awesome shots.  I hope you like your sneak peek Julie, it was fun!

Isn't the last one so funny?!  Poor child, only has two dollars to his name. LOL!  I bet these boys are on Santa's "nice" list :)

Ho hum

Well I've outgrown Photoshop Elements and have been trying to get Photoshop CS4 to load pretty much all night.  I'm still waiting!  Anyway I took Avery outside to play today and love this shot I got of her.  I don't know how I will choose our Christmas card pic, there are so many I love :)  I hope everyone is having a great week! 

So the Yankees won the World Series

Well I am from Chicago and grew up with the Cubs but still don't talk or know sports much (those of you who know me know this well :)) so this doesn't mean much to me.  However my husband is from NJ and is a very big Yankees fan.  Avery, Ander and I had to suffer through watching baseball night after night.  Jay insisted that our children are big fans as well and *they* were all super excited for the big win.  Anyway, I know this is old news but I did these pics just for him and I hope he likes them!

p.s.  Sorry if you are not a fan or don't think they should have won or... yadda yadda :)

Little Miss M Sneak Peek!

Today I got to spend the morning with a friend and her little girl who is Avery's age.  The weather was gorgeous.  Miss M did not like getting her picture taken which made for a very quick session but I still managed to capture some precious moments.  It was impossible not to, she's too cute!   K- I hope you enjoy the pics and thank you so much for allowing me the opportunity to photograph your little girl.  It was great to see you all :)

Avery is over it.

I am shooting pics for a friend tomorrow so this morning I gathered my little model and my camera and off we went to check out lighting and get some practice shots.  I was THAT mother with the screaming child.  Avery is totally over it so it's a darn good thing I have some new little ones lined up!  LOL!  That's okay though, even with her defiant attitude I still found the perfect background, lighting and got some great shots like this...

A very special dress

Avery's grammy's cousin Aurie made her a beautiful dress.  She gave it to me when Avery was just a baby and I fell in love with it.  Well I realized the other day that she can wear it now!  So I said to her, "We're going to put this pretty dress on you and go outside so Ma-Ma can take your picture."  She did so happily  and here is a pic... 

Newborns on the horizon!

Thank you to all of you who expressed interest in getting me to photograph your little ones.  I cannot wait! 

In other news, I have a newborn shoot scheduled for early spring and am so excited!  I did a little practice session with Ander this morning, my first indoor natural light photographs.  I just love them.  He's not a newborn any longer but is still the picure of baby sweeteness to his proud mama :)

p.s.  My mom made that adorable blanket for him!

'Tis the Season!!! Want a free photo session?

Hello!!!  I've been busy but am so excited to be back on my blog!  What a gorgeous weekend.  I did a fall shoot with the kids as well as pictures for our upcoming Christmas card and I love them!  I know it seems early but the rush is starting and the holidays will be here before we know it. 

Now for the fun stuff!  I'm trying to gauge level of interest so if you are interested in a free session of your little one(s) along with one free picture (a digital file for you to use/print as you please) then leave me a comment here or send an email (contact info provided in my profile).  I will follow up with you to provide the details.  I'll be serving primarily Birmingham and Chicago areas.  I can do Birmingham area easily and if you are in Chicago we will just have to coordinate schedules.  Time is limited and it's first come first serve so hurry!  And now here are the pics of the weekend... :)

What's in a name?

No pictures today, just some heavy text...

A few weeks ago I sent the link to my blog to members of my family.  My sister Betsy replied, "I love the photos-Dad would be so proud!"  I can quote it because I read it over and over and then moved it to my save file. 

My dad sadly passed away in March, 2002.  He lived a long full life but his passing was rather sudden and rather hard for me to swallow.  He passed right when Jay and I first started dating.  He never met him and this is something that continues to sadden me.  I know how proud he would be and I know he would be such a wonderful grandfather to Avery and Ander.  I wish so much he were here to be a part of their lives and so I struggle with how to keep his legacy going.  Even though he isn't here in person, he lives on in spirit and through me.  It wasn't until now that I realized how much... bear with me, I promise to not make this a novel!

My dad was an amateur photographer.  He took pictures as a hobby because he loved it.  I still have many of his photos and they are beautiful... of animals, street signs, random people, windmills, family (and me), etc.  He was really talented.  He bought me my first camera and never complained about developing pictures of the cat week after week.  Not once! 

Over the years I have continued to take pictures because I love it and because I love having the memories.  Well once I captured that picture of Ander it dawned on me that I may actually have a natural talent for photography.  I also don't think it's by coincidence that Ander looks a lot like my dad (just compare their wavy red hair! :))  I absolutely love capturing those beautiful moments, expressions, sweet smiles that only last a second.  To quote my sister Betsy again, "capturing the extraordinary in the ordinary."  It's not as easy as I previously thought but the result is oh so worth it to me for those select extraordinary pictures.

Getting back to my original point... after reading that email from my sister I had an "ah-ha" moment.  All of this really comes from my father.  This is his legacy and I owe any natural talent I have to him.  I can only hope to carry on what started with him; my photography is a way he will continue to live on.  My dad is not only in my heart but also very much in my art. 

Thus I am changing the name of my blog to Tyler Plank Photography to honor my father, Robert Fulton Plank.  I love you always and miss you immeasurably.

Alright I get it

In all of my cramming and experimenting I have gone from JPEG to RAW back to JPEG and my final decision is RAW.  There are many reasons why but I won't bore you all.  Here are pics from today shot and proofed in RAW.  The ones from the previous 2 posts were going back to JPEG.  I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.  I was resistant to change because of the learning curve but I get it now... I hope.  I'm ready for this to get easier.  Grrrrrrr   :)  Thanks as always for letting me share!

How fun!

Awwww, thanks Mom for the old pics!  I'm so old I should add the "vintage" texture to the pics of Avery for better comparison.  LOL!!