So when the opportunity arose to get a family picture along with Deacon's 3-year-old portrait in my sister's-in-law studio I jumped on the chance! Call me crazy but even photographers like other photographers documenting your life, rather than you solely documenting your own. Maybe that is just me--but I like to see what other people can capture too!
So Covington-bound we were! The studio is such a sweet surprise because you walk into a building of stuffy business blah and a few flights of stairs. One thinks to to one self, "How in God's name can a photography studio be in here." But then you open the studio door and oh.my.gosh. amazing. You are greeted by a saucy red leather couch and hip, black and white chairs. well hello there beautiful studio! But that's not the best part...take a left and there begins your long walk to magic--candy land if you will. There is a closet full of lush, beautiful fabrics and THEN the prop room. This is mostly filled with what normal people call "junk" and what photographers find as the "perfect picture prop". Once you pass the closet and the prop room you walk yourself into the most unique studio I've seen. There is natural light flooding from the windows and a beautiful, dark cherry floor that can be covered with a background cloth if you choose.
There I was, my breath taken away and I forgot, for a moment that I was a photographer..I let myself be a wife and a mom and I was having so much fun letting Deacon pick out stuff for his portraits. I wasn't worried about the lighting, or the camera or the lens or my flash--it was so freeing. Maybe I was able to do this because my sister-in-law has my complete trust and also is one heckofa photographer too! I actually want to be like her when I grow up ;)
So anyway, Deacon, the shy-boy-when-he-wants-to-be, Wolking hid his head like an Ostrich and was playing the "Oh Please don't take my picture" face and I thought, "Oh great, my photo session is doomed!" In Deacon's defense, he constantly has a camera in his face so the idea of once again sitting in front of one, but instead being in a weird place, probably wasn't his idea of fun on a Sunday morning. Doug and I, along with Coleman decided to ignore him.
tangent: for those who don't have kids and want to how to get them to like you--ignore them. They will flock to you for attention. IF you get in their faces and invade their space (yes, they too, have personal space, you will be forever exiled to the 'I don't like you' portion of their brain). End tangent.
Coleman set up the main background and just started taking pictures of Doug and me, and sure enough, little d-man wanted to see what the fuss was about. So he peered through the door, still playing the shy card and just stared. Doug and I then sat on the floor and by the time Coleman pressed button in zoomed Deacon right on my lap. He had a tape measure and was wanting to show us how it worked. Doug and I ever so sly got ourselves out of the shot and tired to capture the essence of Deacon, our 3-year-old.
Deacon ran out of the room, but this time brought back some items:
- 5 balloons
- an orange moose
- a guitar
- 3 pairs of giant clown sunglasses
The end of our studio session, I could tell that Coleman captured every part of Deacon's mood that day and once we felt that she got what she could we zoomed down to riverside drive, hoping that Deacon would tolerate a few more pictures...and wow did he! Once he realized that riverside drive meant, being steps from the Ohio River, he was hook line and sinker!
Tangent: If you've not ever been to riverside drive--please go. If your a NKY or Cincinnati native this needs to be on your list of places you've been to--it's a cardinal sin if you haven't. For those who may be traveling to this area--please come down here and take a look at history at its finest. There are several notable sites including Daniel Carter Beard's childhood home (founder of boy scouts), the underground railroad and several bronze statues strategically placed along the road. Also, if you plan to attend a reds game, I highly suggest parking your car in Covington and eating a picnic lunch or dinner on the drive and then walk the suspension bridge to the game. Speaking from someone who has incredible memories of this as a child--every father/daughter needs to do that. End Tangent.
There was so many wonderful opportunities for pictures, my photographer beast came out and I got as giddy as a kid on the last day of school! The architecture along the drive is amazing and you really feel for a moment that you are in the 19th century. We walked up a cobble stone path and took pictures by this rockin' "mini door" that you will see soon once the pictures are up. We then showed Deacon the cobblestone road and told him that's how the boats used to get down to the river. We sat our little patooties on the stone and, viola, it happened--a family picture. I wanted to cry. I knew it was magic, I knew that I will be buying a HUGE print to put somewhere in our home! Since we were on riverside drive, we HAD to take pictures by the river--again a cardinal sin if you don't. We also walked past riverside and snapped some pictures from a really cool set of steps (think sesame street) but were interrupted by two pesky squirrels!
Tangent: These squirrels were ridiculous! They were jumping from a wrought iron gate to a tree and were bouncing about like crazy. We wondered what the heck was going on and did our best to ignore it. We called it quits when we all thought they were going to crash land on us and I don't know about you but I am not a fan of rabies! As we were walking away we realized that the squirrels were badgering a bird and her nest and the momma bird was kicking their you know whats! Cole, Doug and me stood there in amazement as this momma bird was pushing the squirrels out of the tree and giving them the "what for" in her sing-song tweets. Cole and I shouted, "you go momma!" And we were so happy to see her back in the tree with her baby birds without interruption. stupid squirrels. End tangent.
So in the end, our photo session was amazing and I can't wait to see the finished product. I have a feeling I'll be selling a kidney to afford the amount of images I will be purchasing, but I want to always remember that day--what an awesome day. Coleman, thank you for sharing your gift with us--thank you for taking time away from your own family on a gorgeous Sunday to capture the life of my family--I love you so much!
For those who want to check out my sister's-in-law amazing work, check out redphotofusion.com There you will find amazing work from her, along with her business partner/friend/awesome person, Brooke!
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