Watch Me Grow – Baby Portraits, Through The Years – Orlando, FL Newborn, Infant and Children Portrait Photographer

July 24, 2012 by heather | Leave a comment

I always love working with clients and getting to see their children grow through the years. I especially love documenting the first year of a baby, and their important birthday milestones. My how they change from newborn to toddler and I enjoy seeing the differences in the babies and toddlers at each of their birthday sessions.

I have been blessed with three beautiful boys of my own and contrary to what everyone assumes, I have not been the best at always documenting the important stages of their lives. Taking everyone else’s portraits, often leaves me with little or no time to document the lives of my own babies. As I looked through some of the old photos I had of my two older boys and it made me sad to think I had not taken the time to document each little stage. I decided that when my last baby arrived, I would be diligent about taking the time to make sure his life was captured, and in the process try to make up for lost time with my other two boys. When Tyson was born I made time to take portraits of him and the boys at every stage. It is hard to imagine my sweet baby grew from a precious little baby to a bright-eyed. blonde toddler. 

It’s now one month until my sweet baby boy will turn 2 and I am waxing nostalgic, as I look back over these two years and how quickly he has changed and grown up. What a difference from newborn to the 6 month stage.

After six months, the baby has turned into a rambunctious toddler, then it’s on to a big boy from there! Last summer it was finally time to capture my baby’s first year portraits, along with his smash the cake session. Here are some helpful hints for parents when scheduling your baby’s first birthday session.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION – Selecting the right location sets the tone for your portraits. I found an amazing spot for his cake portraits and I just knew the portraits would be bright and colorful and everything I wanted, once I found my spot! If you have a location in mind, talk to the photographer about it in advance, or let them recommend a location that they think would work with your wardrobe or props.

WARDROBE – Selecting a wardrobe is always important for portraits. Typically, girls and boys wear a fun and special birthday outfit that could include a tutu for girls with a headpiece, or for boys, a pair of jeans and no shirt, like the photos below. Some parents of baby girls also choose just a fun diaper cover, with ruffles and no shirt.

SMASH THE CAKE – Baby’s first year portraits are some of my favorite ones to capture. The smash the cake sessions are always so cute! Some babies LOVE the yummy cake, and I have had some that don’t want any part of it!~ Either way, it makes for a good time and some great portraits! My little guy was more than cooperative and was shoveling in as much cake as he could possibly get in his mouth. I recommend parents take advantage of the FREE Publix cake for baby’s first year. If you order a cake from Publix for your baby’s birthday, you also get a FREE mini-cake! Just register at the bakery. Another option is a really big or colorful cupcake, which is what I did for Tyson’s portraits. Be sure to grab some colorful balloons, which set the tone perfectly and add to the portraits. The balloons also come in handy to keep a busy toddler still for a few standing shots.

Be prepared to have some towels or baby wipes to clean up the mess. Also, keep in mind when choosing your clothing for the portraits that if the birthday outfit is the one they will wear in the smash the cake session make sure it can be washed.

BOOK BEFORE THEY WALK – I recommend as well that baby’s first year portraits are taken around 11 months, after your baby is standing, but not yet walking. This way, we can keep them still long enough to get the shots we want! Tyson walked early, so I had to catch him around 10 months. If they are already walking, you can still get some really cute portraits, like the ones below I got of Tyson right after he started walking. Just make sure they aren’t off and running! :)

PROPS – If you have a toddler, plan for a fun prop or something they can can use to distract them long enough to keep them in one place. This helps to get that perfect shot! Balloons, a wagon, tricycle, or a prop or toy that matches the theme of the party is also very cute. I used a red wagon and a sentimental tie for Tyson’s two year portraits. Tyson wore  the little tie in his newborn portraits, and I always knew I wanted to use it again, before he was too big to wear it. It was a perfect compliment to the little red wagon.

I am so happy I took the time and have these precious memories of my boy at every stage…they grow so fast, and they go from baby to boy in the blink of an eye. If you are interested in information about a Baby’s First Year package for your newborn, or toddler portrait packages please email me at JHJRice@aol.com, or call me at 407.462.7189.

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Destination Wedding FEATURED on International Blog for Secrets Resorts – Destination Wedding Photographer, Caribbean, International

May 23, 2012 by heather | Leave a comment

It’s always exciting to get word that your images have been selected to be featured in print or online, but I was very excited when I heard the news that Amber and Shawn’s destination wedding from Secrets Maroma Beach Resort was going to be featured on their International blog and website.

Amber and Shawn told me about their wedding venue and when I did some research on the ruins and gorgeous beach and tropical vegitation, I knew we would have some AMAZING images from their wedding weekend. We flew down to Riviera Maya, Quintana Roo and arrived a Secrets Maroma Beach and stayed from Thursday to Monday. We had plenty of time to schedule an engagement shoot on the beach and in the beach cabanas, and scout out the best spots for portraits.

The resort was over-the-top luxurious and the wedding was beautiful. We braved the heat, sand spurs, and a little Mexican guard, to hike up the beach about a half a mile to the ruins an hour before the wedding. Although Amber thought she might die and wanted to end the session early, I encouraged her to continue on and get the shots she came for…the end result was so worth it, as the pictures are breathtaking!

Amber and Shawn were married, surrounded by their best friends and family at sunset, overlooking the resorts infinity pool. I am in LOVE with this fabulous place. If you are looking for an amazing wedding venue for your destination wedding, or a wonderful honeymoon location, be sure to check into this resort.

Check out the blog and my featured images as well Link to Secrets Blog, Featuring Amber and Shawn’s destination wedding.

 

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Stylized Wedding Shoot – Casa Feliz, Winter Park, Florida

May 16, 2012 by heather | 1 Comment

The best things come from collaborations and this is especially true of the vendors who contributed to make our Casa Feliz stylized photo shoot a success. I was so honored to work with amazing vendors like, The Pastry Studio, Lee James Floral, True Envy Salon, Melissa Hinds lead Wedding and Event Planner from Once Upon a Wedding, Minerva’s Bridal, Kirby Rentals, Scott Adams, Annarose Krone, and Barefoot Empire Films.

I was amazed with all the vendor contributions to our collaborative effort. I called Lee James, and he agreed to contribute the flowers. Thomas, from Lee James Floral brought over the most beautiful floral table centerpieces and glass decor, and a stunning bridal bouquet, complete with rhinestone accents in each rose. Melissa Hinds, worked tirelessly to bring together the table linens, decor and organized the photo shoot with me. She is an amazing wedding and event planner and I am so thankful for her hard work and effort in bringing the creative vision behind the shoot to life. The Pastry Studio arrived with the most gorgeous 3-tiered elegant cake, which looked amazing amidst the pop of blue accents of the Casa Feliz house.

Trish and Ramar and their team of hair and make-up professionals from True Envy Salon really did a fantastic job on the hair and make-up looks and especially the vintage hair piece and look. Those models looked amazing! And, speaking of models, what can I say about Scott and Anna? They are both amazingly talented and naturally gifted at what they do. I was honored to be able to work with models of that calibre. Stanley and Enrico, from Barefoot Empire spent the morning filming the behind the scenes reel. Check it out Behind the Scenes Casa Feliz.

A BIG “thank you” to everyone who helped out that day. It was a dream team, for sure. Looking forward to future collaborations. I love the images from the day! Take a look and leave some comments!

 

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Welcome to the world, Baby “B” – Orlando Newborn Portrait Photographer

May 8, 2012 by heather | 1 Comment

Sunday’s photo shoot was one that filled me with positive energy and left me totally and completely in love with parenthood. While watching baby Braeden’s mom and dad “oooh” and “aaah” over his tiny whimper, snuggle him close and call him “noodle”, their nickname for him, I was overwhelmed with how special it is to parent and be parented. How special and lucky this little boy is to have such wonderful parents, and how truly blessed his mom and dad are to be able to snuggle and love this child they have prayed for and been given. It’s been a long road to get baby Braeden home, but he’s finally home for good, happy and healthy!

If ever there was a baby supermodel, Braeden gets top props! He was in a milk coma for most of the shoot, allowing me to work my magic and position him, at will. Some of my favorite images of the day are the ones of Braeden in his parents room, with the natural light. He even offered up a few smiles during the session, to make the photo shoot extra special for me and his parents. Check out the images of the baby next to daddy’s shoes…those are some BIG feet, dad!

I got to spend a lot of time with “T & E” Sunday, and we talked about everything baby, from eating to pooping :) . I even got to see Mr. Mom, “T” showing me how it’s done, by bathing and changing the peanut, and even cooking dinner when I was heading out. WOW! He was super-impressive!  Throughout the day’s conversations, one thing stood out to me. We spoke about how so often we are disappointed when our plans don’t work out the way we think they should, all the while not realizing that God works in mysterious ways, and sometimes he has a bigger plan in store for us that we could ever imagine. As was the case for this beautiful family, who has been so truly blessed with this precious baby boy.

God bless your new little family. I feel blessed to have been a small part of your celebration!

 

Posted in Newborn Portraits

“JOEY” Senior Portraits – Orlando Florida Portrait Photographer

April 26, 2012 by heather | Leave a comment

I was contacted by Joey’s parents to take his Senior portraits after they were disappointed by the proofs they got back from the high school’s studio photographers. We talked about Joey’s style and how he was a drummer in a band. It was important to him and his family that his portraits reflect his hobbies and interests and I loved that Joey wanted to incorporate his drum set into his portraits. We decided on a location that would provide us with a variety of backgrounds and options to make his portraits really pop. I was so pleased that Joey also brought along his long board and several clothing options as well, so I could help him suggest the clothes that worked best in the various settings.

Throughout the portrait session, I got to know Joey and his family and fell in love with their sense of humor.  No doubt about it, Joey is one cool senior and I was honored to be able to take his portraits and help him remember his senior year.

Congratulations on your upcoming graduation, Joey!

Posted in Senior Portraits Tagged |

“You get what you pay for” – The real cost of not hiring a true wedding professional.

April 18, 2012 by heather | Leave a comment

You get what you pay for…so the saying goes, but these days everybody is on a budget. When planning a wedding or event, a budget is key to making your dream become a reality, but having a good idea of how to measure cost -vs.-quality when dealing with vendors is very important for couples to understand. Being thrifty and working on a budget to plan your wedding is a good thing, but knowing where not to cut corners is also essential in planning a good celebration. When planning your wedding hiring true professionals, with experience may cost you more in the end, but you can’t measure their worth, as I have seen what happens when brides and grooms try to cut corners to save cost by hiring vendors that are not invested in their businesses full-time. Not hiring an experienced professional will cost you a lot more than money in the end…

Here are some of the many examples I have been witness to, in my years of working weddings.

At one wedding the cake was late (2 hours) and when it arrived, it had been finished in marshmallow fluff, not fondant or buttercream and in just a few minutes, I noticed it was sloping. I quickly grabbed up the bride and groom and we were able to get a few cake shots before the entire top slid right off the table, onto the floor, while the bride and groom watched in horror!

Last summer, I worked a wedding in which the flowers for the reception and the wedding party didn’t show at all! The bride was in a panic, as the groom drove to the actual florists store, only to find they were closed and nobody was answering calls! They had already made the final payment for the flowers and were out all that money. Meanwhile, the groom had to go on a mad dash to find another florist locally who could pull something together for their event in just a few hours!  The bride and groom lost a lot of money, and it caused a lot of drama for the poor bride and groom.

One bride hired what she thought was a professional DJ. Throughout the night, I was shocked and amazed as this “DJ” not only played horrible, dated music and had to ask the bride and groom for their song list right before the reception, but I caught him repeatedly sneaking off to take shots of Jagermeister from the open bar. After about 2 hours of drinking, he began ranting over the microphone, reminiscent of a scene from the “Wedding Singer”, telling the guests, “They only paid me to be here for 10 more minutes, but because I love all of you so much, and I’m having such a great time, I’m gonna stay and play ONE MORE SONG…!” He promised, “ONE MORE SONG” for another hour and a half, to my shock and horror!

I have seen the result time and time again of hiring a friend or family member to do your wedding portraits…blurry, low-quality images, that can’t be repaired. I often am told by brides that they love my work, but they found another “professional” photographer who was willing to shoot an 8 hour wedding and give them a CD for $700, not understanding that anyone who will do a wedding for that price, is NOT a professional, and will NOT offer professional products, or magazine-quality editing.

You only get one shot at making sure your day is perfect! Why not hire trusted professionals, who know what it takes to get the job done the right way? Can you place a value on the peace of mind you will have knowing that your wedding day will be stress-free, because the vendors you hired are experienced and professional, and are there with the one goal of making our dream day a reality. I found another blog website that really has some great feedback on how you get what you pay for when you hire a professional. It’s worth the read. http://everylastdetailblog.com/2010/08/19/thursday-tips-you-get-what-you-pay-for/

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Newborn Portrait Session, Orlando, FL Photographer – Welcome Baby “Q”

April 16, 2012 by heather | Leave a comment

Every time I am invited into a home to photograph the first images of a new family I feel honored. No matter how many newborns I photograph, I get excited when the door to the home opens and I am presented with a tiny life to marvel at for a moment. Ahhh, baby love. Is there anything better? I have to admit, it is pretty great to spend a few hours getting to know a family as they bond together and fall more in love. It always takes me back to those precious moments my husband and I shared with our three boys.

One of my favorite images happened when dad picked up the baby and gave him a simple, but powerful kiss on his forehead. Ahhh, baby love…It doesn’t get any better for me than “Q” and his adorable family!

 

During my time spent with baby “Q” and his family, I watched them interact and saw such love and admiration for one another. Some of my favorite moments happen when you snuggle that baby right in-between mom and dad and let the magic happen. I watched the  way his parents smiled at each other, then looked at that precious baby boy they had created, stroked his soft skin or kissed each other, and without a word being spoken, we all felt all the love in that room!

 

Posted in Newborn Portraits

Senior Portraits – TOP 5 Reasons to Step Away From Studio-Style Senior Portraits!

April 5, 2012 by heather | Leave a comment

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard from parents of Seniors and other folk my age who say, “Where were you when we had our Senior portraits done, back in the day”? Everyone I know who is my age or older HATES their Senior portrait from high school. I am also one of those unfortunate few who also missed out on the opportunity to be photographed in a way that would represent the person I really was way back in 1992, when I was graduating. My portraits were done by the same team that still works in the high-schools today, setting up their studio and pushing out  cookie-cutter, traditional poses and parents continue to buy them, because they don’t know about the alternatives.

I am subjecting myself to embarrassment by posting my very own photo for you to compare. My Senior portraits were so sad! I look at that curly-haired girl and see what the studio wanted me to see, but if I had the chance to express myself in portraits like I offer today to Seniors, I would have certainly brought along some fun clothes, some fun props and made sure that my session took place at  a spot that had sentimental or special meaning for me during those high-school years.

This photo is wrong on so many levels…the shirt…the metal grate in the background…the HAIR…the afro!  Oh my! But, what did I expect? This was the best option I had back in the day, unless I went to Glamour Shots!

But today, we live in the land of digital overload, and we have so many options available to make our lives better…and help us avoid having to re-live the embarrassment of Senior portraits like mine, in the future. I have put together a list of some of the “Top 5 Reasons Seniors Should Avoid Studio Portraits.”

Top 5 Reasons to Step Away From Traditional Studio Sr. Portraits:

#1. IT’S ALL ABOUT CHOICE – YOU get to choose your photographer! Every photographer has their own artistic eye, and having the choice to choose WHO does your picture ensures your images will be more like you envisioned. Select a photographer who you connect with, and who you trust to capture the essence of YOU!

#2. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION – On-location photographers know the best spots and locations and can recommend locations that will give you a variety of looks and go well with your style. Want Urban-chic, Edgy, Rustic and outdoor? Do you play football and want to be photographed on your High School football field? Do you surf and want beach portraits? These are YOUR portraits, so you can have the best of location options to enhance your portraits.

#3.  RELAX – Your poses will be natural and should look like you would naturally look, not posed and stiff! A good photographer will assist with helping you look relaxed, or capturing you as you are, naturally.

#4.  TIME – A portrait session with an on-location photographer, allows you ample time to be photographed in a variety of settings, with a variety of different looks and clothing.

#5. LOOK YOUR BEST – A good photographer will make sure each and every image is perfect before they are presented to their client. This means, you don’t have to worry if you have a blemish, or a hair is out of place. With professional retouching, the images will be magazine-quality and perfect every time!

The most important thing on the list is CHOICE! You have the choice to decide how you are remembered! After all, it’s your story…how do you want to tell it?

 

Posted in Senior Portraits

HELLO WORLD!

March 29, 2012 by heather | Leave a comment

I am so excited that the new website has finally launched and is live! It has been a long time coming, and a lot of work has gone into getting the look just right. While I still have to finalize some of the galleries, it is good to know things are moving in the right direction and I am finally representing my image and brand appropriately.

Check out my new page and leave me some feedback and some love!

Posted in Uncategorized

Jeff + Diana = MARRIED… Orlando Wedding Photographer, Winter Garden Wedding

March 14, 2012 by luis | Leave a comment

photocrati gallery

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