Sessions for All Seasons

In just a few days, we’ll be springing into more daylight. You don’t need to wait for summer to rock a portrait session.

Before the leaves have returned and the grass has greened, makes a stunning backdrop for portraits. Everything feels so fresh, crisp, and subtle. Nature is decorated by a landscape calmed with neutral tones, all shades of brown, and even the contrast of clear blue sky.

I love portraits during this time of year for two reasons. First, bright smiles and laughter from the connections people are having with one another. Second, there are fewer distracting background elements in the natural landscape to take focus away from you!

In this narrow window of time the colors are warm, the air is cool, and energy is high. Yet this time of year seems to be largely neglected by families. March and April the landscape feels to have less inspiration for many. 

Yet, the earth is waking up for spring. Crocus pop up from the ground, the blanket of grass begins to green, daffodils blossom and tree flowers unfurl from tight buds. There are so many ways to express your personalities and appreciate a love for nature in photos this time of year. Plus the nuisance of humidity and pestering bugs aren’t in the way- super bonus!

The lighting this time of year is spectacular. You can wear just about anything you want. Bright colors, neutral tones, and practically any pattern will look great against the soft backdrops. This is also a great opportunity to get creative with your session and really highlight what your family loves to do together.  

Family Adventure Sessions

are an excellent way to experience an alternate style of family photography. Let me join you for some play and adventure in the local park or for a wilderness adventure on one of the many trails to choose from in the lower Connecticut River Valley. What is your favorite activity to do together?

So… how does one do family portraits in early spring?

Do Something Fun

This is not the time to line your family up and smile for the camera. I can’t stress this enough. You want your photos to say something about you. Something more than, “Don’t we look good in our color-coordinated outfits?”

So many people have told me, “I smile weird in photos…” Well of course you do! If you smile when you’re not genuinely happy it doesn’t look the same. Instead, I’ve found that my clients are thrilled with their natural expressions, and the best way to bring out those faces is to do something everyone enjoys.

Portrait Activity Inspiration

Here are some ideas for things you might do for your outdoor family adventure session:

• Go for a hike.

• Play catch.

• Play road hockey.

• Swing on a swing set.

• Skip rocks on the water.

• Play fetch with your dog(s).

• Do handstands.

• Splash around in puddles.

• Climb a tree.

• Teach your young kids to ride a bike.

The truth is, this is a beautiful time of year for family portraits. Choosing the right activity for your session will set the tone for real photographs you’ll always love. Remember that the neutral colors of the season make an incredible backdrop, and scheduling your session first thing in the morning or at sunset will create a beautiful setting with optimal lighting for your photographs. Highlight your style by wearing practically anything you want. There’s no such thing as dressing too casually for a family adventure session.

Family Adventure Sessions, and other sessions are discounted for clients who book and complete their sessions before the end of April, 2024. Sessions return back to their regular rate on May 1st.

I hope to meet many new families during this transitional season. Let’s do this!

Submit a form to Claudine to inquire, connect, get more information and to book your session. 

Win Win! Pop-Up Mini Family Sessions

There is this place that I get to see every single day and it brings me much peace and comfort. It’s a place of inspiration and creativity. I found a little slice of heaven. Each season the light, textures and colors mingle together creating a beautifully dramatic landscape. It’s home - my outdoor nature studio. The fall is an orchestra.

Where I intentionally seek unique locations for every, single photo shoot I produce for my clients, it’s been a plan in the works to take this beautiful place and create a space for portraits. For now, I’m calling it my Outdoor Nature Studio!

Springtime brings insanely beautiful forsythia blossoms where I shot these three beauties for Mother’s Day Portraits. Gilding the lily not necessary- on all accounts. A myriad of beautiful spots for people to be in, surrounding themselves with the energy and serenity of nature.

This is the weekend to launch. I’m offering Family Mini Sessions in this beautiful space. Sessions are short, cost is discounted, and imagery produced guarantees to be beautiful. Full disclosure, the following image was not captured in the Outdoor Nature Studio but on a recent mini down the road. Aren’t they lovely?

There is one small caveat…the mini sessions are this weekend! Maybe you need, maybe you want a professional family portrait in a beautiful location and although you always seem to never have time to plan one more thing- the spontaneity may work in your favor. Details are below.

Family Mini Portrait Sessions

• 20 minute portrait session

• 6-8 proofs -ready by November 18th

• one high resolution digital image of your choosing- ready in time to jump on Black Friday holiday card offers

• option to buy additional media (fine art prints, photographic canvas wraps, digital files)

• an exceptional experience

• $250.00

Dates: Saturday, October 29 and Sunday October 30

Times: 2:45, 3:15, 3:45, 4:15, 4:45

Email crsweetshot@gmail.com to grab your spot. Outdoor Nature Studio is in Ivoryton, CT. Specific location will be shared when session is booked and confirmed.

Maybe you know someone who is looking for a professional family portrait? Please pass this along! I will be grateful and will reach out to you to thank you.

With Appreciation,

Claudine

Where It's At: Senior Portraits come Full Circle

Ooh! This is my very first blog and blog entry. Here we go….

Photographing seniors is fun and a gratifying experience. Think about it, these humans are at the foothills of life, looking up to the mountain of their future. Cruising into their final year of high school, fueled with anticipation.

Maybe they’re anxious or excited, or maybe they’re tired, disappointed by covid masks and the like and want to get the final year done already but the thing is, they’re all about to start this final year individually and together, ending chapters, starting new ones- possibly college, a job, a gap year.  This is not an ordinary moment in life. Their accomplishment is cause for acknowledgment and maybe even celebration. 

I can say with one hundred and fifty thousand percent certainty, it’s never not an honor for me to be asked to capture a person at this pivotal moment. My youngest was in middle school when I started taking portraits for seniors. He is entering his senior year this fall. I’m ready to capture the resilient and remarkable young man he’s become and have portraits of his present self to cherish forever. I remember the days of pre-school and elementary as a blur. I came across a photo of him at four, maybe five cloaked in an adorable yellow hooded raincoat and boots, net in hand, excited by the rain and the reptiles he would find and bring home. Those days of jumping in puddles, catching frogs, adventuring along the top of an old, stone wall that felt as high as a castle happened over twelve years ago. The time has flown.

A born duck? Connecticut, 2007ish

Today, he stands way taller than me and that stone wall he’d climb onto. He’s achieved and maintained high honors, hoping to make himself as eligible as possible for scholarships. Like all children, he’s experienced joy and hardships along the way. He’s fortified with plenty of good food (his dad’s a chef), encouragement, and life’s lessons. He’s made it to the foothills...of the Cascades.

A little back story: I like to believe he’s actually an Oregonian but born in Connecticut. It’s another story for another blog post about why we moved (during my 6th month of pregnancy) across the country but the timing of our summer plans in 2021 has brought us back to our beloved Oregon.  Will’s applying to several schools and the University of Oregon is at the top of the list! We’ve traveled here this summer to visit the campus, our friends like family, as well as the awe-inspiring majestic beauty the pacific northwest is. We began our cross-country road trip/move to the east coast in August of 2003 from Portland. Eighteen years later, full circle. A coincidence that he is considering becoming a Duck? I think not.

Visiting Autzen Stadium, University of Oregon in 2015

A few months back, we started talking about where he might want to take his senior portraits. He’s not much of a beach person so the Connecticut Shoreline wouldn’t appeal to him... could it be on a trail? He’s not a big fan of hiking, either.  He does love to ski and fish and plays basketball. I asked him if he had any preferences and he said, “can we take them up on Mt. Hood?”  Yes, of course!! Such a fantastic idea and so here we are, getting ready to explore Trillium Lake, Timberline Trail, Umbrella Falls capturing Will at this pivotal time in his life, against the backdrop of Mt. Hood- a place beholden to him that feels like home. 

View of Mt. Hood looking from the east, 2016

Documenting people in places, location is very intentional and integral to the process. Location contributes to mood, tone and composition. On location of choice, photo session becomes an adventure for the client. A connection to our surroundings inspires and influences. This keeps it real, to achieve authentic results.

This itinerary is chock full! We’re traveling 90 miles from Central Oregon, to our first location. There won’t be any service once we enter the perimeter of the Mt. Hood National Forest. Need to get all the destinations locked into our GPS at the gas station in Madras. The adventure from start to finish-including continuing down the other side of the mountain heading west into Portland- will take a few hours. An important detail; there’s a teenage boy in the car for a long time, need lots of snacks for post-session, can’t be providing opportunities for scraps of food stuck in teeth! He’ll be ravenous when we’re done.

Always plan an itinerary in advance to account for every minute it takes to travel, park, walk and of course take the pictures before the sun sinks below the horizon. Seniors know their timeline well in advance so they know what to expect. Organization and planning are essential to get us to the right place, in the right light!

timing plan for session

This is a once-in-a-lifetime adventure we get to have together! Being in a location that is his choice and personal will impact the vibe and energy of his photos. Have I made a big enough point about how important the location is?  If I can give some unsolicited advice if you do hire a professional photographer to capture a moment in life for you, location matters. Be selective about who you want to capture yourself or your child or family and be diligent in vetting them. Then, when you’re ready, find the perfect place to be in your photographs because it does make a difference.

Stay tuned for the results from our photo adventure session of Will, Class of 2022!

Be well and stay kind,

Claudine

A little teaser, purposely darkened 😎 Mt. Hood, 2021