This charming trail in the Ozarks seems lovely enough, doesn’t it?

Hmm.  There were some non-lovely surprises involved in this Portrait Session, like a little green snake darting across the path.  Then a VERY LARGE black snake languidly making its way along, ONLY A FEW FEET in front of me (not cool).  THEN a box turtle, which isolated from the snake encounters would have seemed harmless and cute, opened its mouth and silently roared at me.  I am not joking.  I know a turtle’s silent roar when I see one and it was CREEPY.

 
THERE’S MORE. My attractive and well-dressed husband, who was kindly assisting with the reflector, was stung/bitten on the thumb by an Unidentified Object, which caused intense pain and brief exclamations, followed by swelling, itching and head scratching (because we had NO idea what bit/stung/attacked/assailed him). Fortunately, the swelling went away a few days later and his hand still seems to be attached, so we are not too worried at this point.  BUT back on the subject…

We went through all of THAT for THIS:

Aden’s beautiful, beautiful smile.  A perfect reward for a (somewhat freaky) nature  hike.

See more by watching the slideshow of the entire Portrait Session.  (There are no black snakes or other wildlife in the photos; only adorable children.  Sorry, nature lovers).

Sometimes we’re asked to work in client’s homes.  I enjoy this— I like new locations and new lighting circumstances.  I usually prowl around their home and look for the best light, which can be found in the oddest of locations! Garages are almost always a good bet, but in this case, the kitchen table was my choice.

Here’s my sweetie husband, Jon, sticking his face down by the scale so I can test the lighting on his face.  Oh, the things he does for me! (Don’t worry, I pay him well).

Then, using the tablecloth as a background, because I love the color harmony it brings to the scale.

Then… baby Katherine, curled up so sweetly.  Tada!

This is just one of many beautiful images created of Miss Katherine.  See more on Facebook.

We photographed this family, who traveled all the way from Virginia, at a family-owned field in Miami, OK.  A lovely spot, except for the horses who thought THEY should be a part of the portrait.  I took this pullback shot so you could see the big picture.   Husband Jon holds the reflector, off to the left.  It doubles as a horse-shooer-awayer-thingie, which was not advertised on the package, but a definite bonus.

Once the horses had resigned themselves to the sidelines, we broke into full Caloytpe mode.

Eli is 21 months old and full of expression!

Amazingly, in spite of all the running, neither subjects nor photographer stepped in the aforementioned horses, er, uh, deposits.  (I’m not sure how this happened, I’m just happy).

And… while we were waiting for the equines to exit, I did compose a lovely portrait of them.  Perhaps they’ll want a canvas for the fireplace…?

(You do know you share love by having a pillowfight….)

These sweet children belong to Dave and Whitney Scott of Whitney Scott Photography in Carthage, MO.  They are our good friends and fellow photographers, and they also photographed our own family, back in late spring. You can see some images from that Session here, on their blog.

Happy First of September! It’s such a beautiful time of year, with blue skies and gorgeous summer color still all around us!

Did you hear about our Labor Day Weekend special?  “Endless Summer Garden” Children’s Mini Sessions. It’s a complete package experience, for $399+tax.

Includes:

Outdoor Mini Session
The Calotype Guarantee “You’ll be thrilled, or we’ll refund your money!”
1-11×14 Studio Finish Portrait
4-8×10 Prints
28 Wallets
*four poses*
(we always take more for you to choose from, but there’s only four poses in the package collection)

THERE ARE ONLY SIX SPOTS AVAILABLE, weekday mornings, here at Calotype.  Call NOW, before we book up! 417.845.1151

Have your credit card ready; half of the payment is due to reserve your Session date.

Here’s Gracie from Anderson, MO, showing you just how beautiful and colorful an Endless Summer at Calotype can be….