2009 February | ESSENTIAL IMAGERY, Philadelphia photographer

You'd love to have a family portrait session that fully captures who you are, how you connect, and how much affection surfaces when all the members of your family are present within the camera frame.

We're happy to capture your family in our studio, complete with gorgeous light and minimal distractions, or in your comfy-cozy home full of familiar toys and routines. No matter where our session takes place, we'll delight in your delight. And we'll encourage you to pay attention to one another instead of the camera, because there's no 'add happy' button in Photoshop.

We don't care whether you're barefoot or wearing fuzzy slippers, and we won't be sending over a twenty-page list of suggestions about what to wear. (We can make you look beautiful in sweat pants if you love each other.) We just want to capture your family. Your habits, your quirks, and your love. And when you view the images we've created together for the first time, we want the depth of love you feel for your family to grab you by the collar and bring tears to your eyes.

The video below provides a peek at how portrait sessions unfold. If you have questions or would like to schedule a portrait session, click on the 'Contact' link above or call 215-206-3689. Oh -- and thanks for stopping by, lovely!

-- Kristen & Haunani, Essential Imagery owners

P.S. That's Kristen up in the header -- Haunani is camera-shy.

Monthly Archives: February 2009

THE BIG WHITE BOX GETS SOME FACE TIME.

Cold, blustery day + Kristen forgets gloves at home + being inspired by the One Light DVD = this shoot.

I’m always trying to revolutionize and reinvent the wheel, but when it comes right down to it, studio light is pretty. Just plain pretty.

The guys were so patient during the shoot, which I appreciate. And I think they might have even quite possibly maybe enjoyed it. Just a little.

Posted in Philadelphia children's photography

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A BABY IN THE HOUSE!

You may or may not know that I hosted 20 of my new bestest photographer friends for a get-together this past Tuesday. (It wasn’t a ::shudder:: workshop, just a get-together, in which everyone was responsible for contributing knowledge and worth to the day’s events.) Of course, people came in from New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Montana, and Texas, so it kind of felt like a workshop, lol…it rocked! Thanks for coming, ladies!

The lovely and talented Alicia (of Alicia Caine Photography and Easy as Pie) got the privilege(ish) of staying with MattMatt and myself. Allie and I snuck secret shoots while Alicia was in the shower, or getting a snack, or generally not in the room, so she could have happy little surprise portraits of her chicadee.

That fuzzy hair! I love it!

I swear, I didn’t tell her to look angelic and then look away…if only I had that sort of power over babies…

Posted in Philadelphia children's photography

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TUNA SURPRISE: FAIL!

You all thought I was being modest when I said the tuna surprise sessions had to be free, as I couldn’t guarantee the images would be up to par. Um. Let’s say my bet on the side of *fail* has triumphed.

A tuna surprise equation, for the occasion:

five-year-old + slightly-ill-fitting swimsuit + juggling pears + indoor shoot + off-camera flash + terribly-interested two-year-old sister begging to jump on the bed holding a princess umbrella = tuna surprise GONE WILD!!!!

I’m not sure I’ve ever laughed as hard at a shoot as I did at this one — I mean, the elements listed above do make for some quality entertainment. But the images are a bit…revealing…and not-so-much what I was going for.

Posted in Philadelphia children's photography

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SOME PEOPLE ARE BORN TO BE ROCKSTARS.

I was getting my morning coffee at Saxby’s & walked past this gorgeous kiddo. I left, thinking, “If I were brave, I would go back in and *demand* to shoot that child, as he’s just. stinkin. fabulous.”

Lo and behold, that kiddo was the subject of my 10 a.m. shoot, just killing a little time before coming up to the loft! WOOT WOOT — the awesome train has arrived!

Mr. Clint is TWO, people, and he already has that je ne sais quoi that exudes style and confidence. My vote for his first album cover:

Practicing for the world tour that will inevitably follow…

We were soooooort of trespassing to get these shots, when a local business owner popped his head into the alley. I thought we were *busted* — but he just wanted to see which kiddo was making all those happy sounds. ::whew::

Yup, that’s not even close to being in focus — which is just about how fast Clint moves, people!

Posted in Philadelphia children's photography

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TUNA SURPRISE: HALFWAY, ANYWAY.

At 3 and 5, kiddos don’t sit. They go go go go go go…and I wanted to capture that. For once, I didn’t ask anyone to sit down and take ‘boring pictures’ — yes, I call them that, and kids totally know how to smile just the way Grandma likes it…

I just clicked away. This session was shot half-film and half-digital — so, the film part will be arriving in my mailbox at some point in the next century. (The waiting! It kills!) The digital portion of the afternoon went something like this: