Lynch Family Portraits at DeKoevend Park

DeKoevend Park is my go to park, when all else fails - DeKoevend is there to save me.  The park is located on University drive just north of Arapahoe and the park is huge! So with that said, come shoot here! You will LOVE it just like me.

These were done Late Late Late fall - in fact I didn't expect the park to have any leaves left.  Just like always DeKoevend came through for me.  In the spring this area of the park is not accessible because its the creek bed and it has water in it or mud,  In the fall & winter its just sandy and full of leaves (yellow ones).

Lucy & Linus joined us for the shoot and I have to say if you bring your dogs just be ready for even more fun and excitement.  I am definitely a dog person so I love working with them, so seriously bring them =)

Nathan & Sarah at Platte River Bike Trail in Littleton, CO

When Patty asked if I'd photograph Nathan & Sarah for her Holiday photos I was ecstatic.  I love photographing twins they are so exciting and lately I've done 3-4 families with twins.  I'm not sure if there is something in the water here but I've photographed more twins in the last 1.5 yrs than I've known my whole lifetime.

Its such a change of pace to photograph older kids, they actually listen and do what you say - craziness.  I guess I've been around 2 yr olds too long where I feel that I have to play the opposite game to get them to do remotely what I would like.

We photographed these on a Colorado bike trail in Littleton. I believe it is part of the high line canal or maybe the south platte river greenway just south of Mineral drive. I had lots of fun creating these photos.  Its hard to nail down my favorite but I love the one of them laughing at each other and the photograph of Sarah throwing leaves.  I feel that photo screams "FALL". 

5 Quick DIY Tips for Photographing Families!

How to take professional looking pictures - DIY Photo Tips

I absolutely love taking photos of families, maybe its the challenge, the craziness or the fun. I think its actually all of the above. I've put together a quick list of things that will help make your family photos better & hopefully less stressful for all!

1) Make the photo fun - a 2 yr old is definitely going to rebel if mom is forcing her to stand still look at the camera and smile - instead try to get the 2 yr old to interact with her family members first (hug, kiss, tickles, whatever it is) then ask for her to look and smile - my favorite images are the candid ones anyways =) 

For a serious photographer - the instant you arrive on the shoot, start getting shots of the kiddos, these can be some of my favorite shots from the whole shoot - just because the kiddos are in the stage of who are you and what are you doing. (Caroline on Left - first shot of the shoot, before heading outdoors)

2) Shoot outdoors - I LOVE THE OUTDOORS, I live in Colorado so I should love them. Look for shade. Make sure EVERYONE is fully in the shade, even if you know nothing about lighting you will still come up with stellar images in the shade. Make sure your background is in the shade too.

Try fun things - bring a chair into the middle of a field - Khloe on Right - at Mid-day usually not the best lighting conditions, but I pulled it off here using a reflector.

3) Remember the camera has absolutely no idea what you are taking photos of so its going to try and decide what it thinks the exposure is. The camera determines its exposure from averaging all the color values into a drab gray color (like an overcast sky) so when photographing just look at the scene if you have only really bright whites the camera is going to take that white and make it gray (so it will be slightly under exposed) same with a really black scene - the camera will also make that gray. Just try to find a background with a variety of shades of color then you will have the most success.

4) Take more than just one shot - families have expressions, take a decent quantity unless you are sure that one came out. I take at least 2 of every shot because of expressions. If someone is a blinker, I usually have to take a few more. 

5) Hire me, haha or someone else to take your family photos - sometimes kids just react better to someone else doing the shots instead of a family member they are used to.

Thanks for reading! Leave a comment.

Sharon

Hastings Family Portrait in Parker, CO

First of all, I think all my clients are amazing.  Chance, however, is one of the most creative clients I know.  She has her own etsy store "Made By Chance" selling CUTE little fabric crafts and its no surprise that her kiddos have some of the cutest clothing!  She made their Halloween costumes - so adorable.  She also loves the color Yellow! Which I love that she isn't afraid to throw some nice color into their outfits.  I love the yellow jacket she has.  Kind of jealous of that because, if you can't tell from my photos - I love color and I love high contrast.

Raval Family Portraits at City Park in Denver, CO

The Raval's were lots of fun to work with and little Matthew made sure that we kept the shoot fun and exciting.  We met up at City Park in Denver, CO for the shoot and it was a wonderful day for photos. I was actually a bit worried about shooting in City Park versus the ungroomed parks in the suburbs but the park worked wonderfully.  The light was amazing, filtering through the trees and creating some fun to work with shadows.

Borie Family Portrait at Red Rocks Park

Second shoot ever at Red Rocks.  The Borie's live directly across the street from me and I have yet to do their photos until now.  They are friends with another photographer and are really happy with their images so I didn't expect to be asked to shoot them but this year they asked me.  This makes me really happy - not because I am stealing clients from other photographers but because it proves that I am capturing something special for each family and putting my personal creative style into it.  I am creating something different, that you can't get from just any photographer.

One thing I have to say about my images is that they have great color.  I see the world as a bright vibrant, fun place - so I make sure that my photos show that.  Lately I've been developing an action, which I call the Anthro look - to look like it came out of an Anthropologie Catalog - which I am completely in love with their clothes and catalog.  Their October catalog had split toning on almost all the images, with yellow as the highlight and blue as the dark values - its still a work in progress and I've decided that I have to shoot the images to fit into it instead of just trying to apply it to any old image.

Castaldi Family Portraits in Trailmark Neighborhood

Two year olds are definitely some of my most difficult clients - if they sense that the shoot is not fun, then they don't want anything to do with it.  I am challenged to get the shots the parents want while still making the shoot fun.  I think that outdoor shoots work best at this age because we can do a couple family shots then let them run around, or let them swing between parents, tickles, laughter, hugs - the emotions can be amazing.  However once a two year old senses that mom and dad are forcing them to sit a particular way or do something - thats when my shoots take a turn and then it is a struggle for everyone.

For this shoot we did a mixed mobile studio / backyard location shoot. I am definitely partial to outdoor shoots, I love the COLOR, the natural - laid back look, and did I mention I love color?  I guess I'm just not a Richard Avedon type shooter (people on white backgrounds).

Halloween Portraits - In Studio Promo

This promo is a keeper - I loved it! Can't wait to see what everyone will dress as next year.  I had 12 families come and get their kids portraits done - free of charge.  Next year I will probably have two time slots a morning & an afternoon so I have a break for lunch (didn't think about that).  It was a wonderful day to have fun kiddos coming in and out of the house all day.  James was a good door man and led most everyone down to the basement.  It was so funny when Katy came with the twins because she needed help and James wasn't about to hold a baby - at least not yet.  Once we have kids I'm sure this fear will go away.

        Texting all butterflies.... we need a group photo....

See the Animoto Video Here: