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. Die-hard beach goers? World travelers? Animal lovers? Trekkies? We wanna see it. 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.

TRYING MY HAND AT VIDEO.

Photojojo was kind enough to provide me with a Zumi digital camera for review, and I played with it on a trip to New York City this week. I spent the day capturing snippets of the city’s hustle and bustle in snippets of twenty seconds or less, then edited scads of tiny pieces of video and a few still frames into a little over a minute of ‘finished’ video. Ever mindful of copyright laws and artist’s rights, I used Paulette Dixon‘s Bite of the Sky for the video soundtrack. I was with Paulette Dixon, exploring New York and flipping over her gorgeous loft whilst running around town while shooting this little diddy, so it seemed appropriate.

I’m saving my technical review of the Zumi Digital Camera for the Totally Rad Actions blog after WPPI, but the artistic aspects of this little video camera are outstanding. The Zumi is ultra lightweight — about the size of a roll of old-school 110 film — and made me feel like a spy on a super video mission.

The Zumi’s macro function captures fabulous out-of-focus crowd scenes and lights when used improperly, which I love. The slight vignetting also trips my trigger, and the old-school color shift the Zumi provides is delightful. Any video camera capable of hitting me with a wave of artsy excitement is ok with me! You can pick up a copy of the Zumi Digital Camera in the Photojojo store, where it retails for $170 USD. (I recommend adding the battery and MicroSD card for an additional $20.)

Wait, there’s more! The Zumi camera can also capture stills! I didn’t use this feature too terribly much, since I was in video capture stealth mode, but the ability to switch between ISO 100 and 800 will come in handy. (Oh, for an iPhone camera function that would do the same thing.)

Since life as a family photographer means it’s Moms who read my blog: yes, the Zumi will survive unharmed if your three-year-old drops it. Yes, it’s simple enough for your five-year-old. (You can have your iPhone back. You’re welcome.) And yes, your seven-year-old can help you upload the videos to YouTube if you’re having trouble.