Born to Fly: Tanner John Rodrain

Frances — Wed, 16 May 2012 22:06:29 +0000

Erin and Dave are another of my favorite client-turned-friends couples. I met them in 2008 when they hired me to shoot their wedding in Beaver Creek. They loved their photos and working with me so much that I got to travel with them to Jamaica to photograph Erin’s sister’s destination wedding a year later. I love this family! And not just because they took me to Jamaica. We bonded early on over our mutual interest in airplanes and general aviation, so when I saw their little babies nursery, all decked out for a baby aviator, I was not surprised. What a perfect theme for this little boy’s room. I really hope he’s not scared of heights! I imagine he’ll be flying before he’s walking.

Tanner John Rodrian was born in practically the blink of an eye on April 27th and weighed 7 lbs 10 oz. Erin said it was a fantastically easy birth but apparently Tanner was pretty mad about losing his warm dark cave because he screamed for about three hours straight his first night on earth. Since then, he’s apparently accepted his reality and been nearly perfect in every way, even sleeping long periods at night. And he must be all rested up because at our photo shoot he was awake and alert the entire time! We even took a break to have a glass of wine and catch up hoping he would fall asleep so we could manipulate him into all kinds of cute and contorted newborn poses… but he had a different idea. In the end, we went with his way.

I’m so thrilled I got to photograph this gorgeous little boy’s debut images and a big congrats to the happy new Mom and Dad! Tanner is such a lucky boy to have you both as parents. Wherever he goes and whatever he does in this life, I know you will be there helping him fly. Let’s hang out again very soon!

Babysitting with Auntie Frances

Frances — Tue, 15 May 2012 23:40:30 +0000

My little niece, Alice, is already 2 months old! When my sister asked me to babysit her for a few hours a couple of weekends ago, I jumped at the chance. And of course, I had to bring my camera. What else would special time with auntie Frances look like? I’m kidding baby girl, we don’t always have to take pictures. If you could be less cute, that would help.

In addition to capturing some precious and truly priceless expressions from this tiny baby girl, I also got a lesson in “parenting” that I wasn’t exactly expecting. As my sister and Rob were getting ready to leave the house, Jesse was giving me instructions on how to feed the baby when she woke up. It went something like this…” take the milk out of the freezer and thaw it in a bowl of hot water, measure 3 oz into the bottle, then warm it up in hot water before you give it to her. She will want to wake up for a minute or two before she eats…” Easy enough right? Wrong. What my sister failed to tell me is that a “minute or two” literally means 60-90 seconds. Before I even got Alice out of her nursery, she was screaming for food. Yikes!! Holding an inconsolable infant with one hand, trying to thaw milk, measure it, heat it up right, ect, with the other hand is hard! My heart literally started beating faster and I started sweating. But it was a brief panic, once we got the bottle all sorted out, it was smooth sailing.

I am fortunate to be so close to my niece, my sister and brother in law! Anytime I need a baby fix, I can be at Alice’s house in 5 min. I hope I get to babysit LOTS! Hint, hint. Jesse and Rob, isn’t it about time for a date night? Love you guys! XOXO

Welcoming Reagan! Newborn Photography Colorado

Frances — Mon, 14 May 2012 18:21:05 +0000

As I expressed in a recent maternity post, Natasha, the beautiful mother of newborn Reagan, is a very important friend in my life. We met like many of my other “babies first year” parents, at a wedding photography consultation. And like with many of my clients, we made an instant connection that has lasted well past the wedding day. Natasha and her husband, Matt, and I have gotten together for wine dates, dinners, parties, and afternoon bbq’s since then. I’m not sure why, but Natasha feels like a friend I’ve had my whole life. Maybe it’s because, like me, she is one of three sisters. Or perhaps it’s because we were raised in a similar fashion or because we have similar personalities. Whatever the combination of reasons, I feel very lucky to have a friend like Natasha, in my inner circle. And Matt too. He is a gem. He and I haven’t had quite the same amount of time together as Natasha and I, but he feels like an old friend too.

And now I have a third Harris to fall in love with-Reagan Elizabeth. Don’t you just love that name?? Reagan was born on April 23rd weighing in at 8 lbs 4 oz. She is healthy and perfect in every way. In addition to the normal “babies first year” sessions, Natasha and Matt added two “grandma sessions” with newborn Reagan as Mother’s Day gifts for each of their mom’s. Lucky me! I get to spend even more time with them!

Stay tuned for lots more photos to come of this darling baby girl that, as far as I can tell, is going to look very much like daddy. These first images are with Matt’s mother, Bev. Bev made all the pillows in the windowsill nook in the nursery so it was special to get photos of her with Reagan there. And, with the assistance of Sally on the hairdryer and Natasha on the styling, we made a great team and kept the sleepy princess comfortable and happy the entire time. Congratulations again Natasha and Matt! She is amazing. I can’t wait for the next session with Grandma Sally, mommy and daddy in a few weeks.

Outdoor Boudoir Photography: Go with the Flow

Frances — Fri, 11 May 2012 20:26:23 +0000

It’s interesting working with people from all different walks of life and in my line of work, especially with boudoir photography, I am given a unique opportunity to capture not only a subject’s outer beauty, but their inner beauty, their essence, as well. There is a hidden beauty that each and every one of us has that is related to our hardships and our successes, to our mistakes and our lessons learned, to our failures and our victories in life. And, there is something deep inside of me that tells me we each “choose” our path specifically so that we can learn the things that will have us evolve spiritually, emotionally, even physically, as human beings.

Empathy is defined as “the capacity to recognize and share feelings that are being experienced by another being.” For as long as I can remember, I have always been a very empathic person, sometimes to a fault. When I was younger, I used to confuse how other people were feeling for how I was feeling, and it was not such an easy trait to bear. But, as an adult, I honestly think my empathic nature is one of the main reasons I am good at what I do, and also why I love it! Because I have always been very sensitive to others, whatever energy is present in the space I am in, I can feel. I feel the stress, the excitement, the impatience, the joy, and the anxiety in others- for better or worse- I feel it all. Why does this matter? Well, I think it matters because when I feel what other people feel, I can have compassion for them and make adjustments to my own behavior and energy. When I feel what others are feeling, I am able to to either ‘feed the fire’ or ‘put it out’ with how I react to it. This personal characteristic has come especially in handy as a wedding photographer, but it’s the same thing with boudoir, or any kind of portrait photography for that matter.

More often than not, I find that my people and life skills are more important than my technical background in creating images of people that really shine. Images full of beauty, life and emotion come more from my ability to relate to others, than from any photography lessons I’ve had. Obviously, it is a “blend” of technical skills, creative vision, and people/life skills that has me able to do what I do, but I am convinced that without empathy, my work, no matter how technically perfect, would fall flat. I have learned how to harness my empathic nature, and like my fingers play my camera buttons like a familiar instrument, it comes very naturally, and I rarely think about it in the moment.

I bring all of this up as a preface to the images taken at a recent boudoir session that had the potential to go terribly wrong! When my model arrived for her photo shoot almost 2 hours late after driving all the way from Canyon City-getting pulled over, and lost-she was literally shaking. And even though I had worked out keeping the hotel room a little longer once I knew she was going to be delayed, when I got a load of her and the stressed-out energy bubble she was engulfed by, I knew it was time to start problem-solving! Long story short, she and her friend decided to stay the night in Denver, and we re-scheduled the shoot for the next day. Ironically, because everything went wrong the day before, we moved the shoot out of a hotel room and were able to capture images that are edgier and more appropriate considering my models personal preferences and personality. Instead of soft and sexy bedroom images that are more typical of a hotel room session, I was able to weave in the strong colors from my own house and nature (which I LOVE) to compliment this bold babe in all her bare brilliance. Poetic, right? I think these images are absolutely stunning and I am excited to share them. The moral of this story?? Sometimes in photography (and in life), derailing the plan to go with the flow, is the best plan. And, beyond that, everything always works out exactly like it’s supposed too, even when it doesn’t feel good in the moment. TRUST. The universe has a way of working things out.