She’s A Big Girl Now!

I first met Sydney on the day before she and my son Asher started second grade together. Over the years, the our families became friends and Syd (also lovingly known as “Squid” to me!) was one of my go-to kids for building my portfolio when I was starting my business. Last month Syd’s mom Nicole asked me to do some updated photos of her now teen-age daughter. She and I headed down to gritty Squalicum Harbor to have some fun amongst the pallets & box cars. She’d just received a beautiful new guitar as a special gift so I encouraged her to bring it along. I was wowed by her playing abilities… what a big girl she has become!

She’s telling me about her boyfriend in this shot…the faraway look is a telltale sign!

I had to get a little goofy to get Syd to loosen up and show me her genuine smile. Obviously it worked. This is the Sydney I know and love : )

     

She looks like such a capable girl in this shot… I just love it!

  

Sydney thought this message spray painted on a box car was rather hilarious : )

Yes, I bugged her relentlessly about that posture!

And finally… this post would not be complete without sharing some of those photos that helped me build my portfolio. These were taken in February of 006, some of the first I took with my brand new camera. Sydney was almost ten in these shots… what a cutie : )

Boys Love Bugs.... And Me : )

The caretakers at Woodstock Farm were just finishing mowing the lawn when Guyan & Owen and their parents Melinda & Sean showed up for their shoot. The lawn mower must have scared all the creepy crawly critters out of hiding because we'd only barely said hello when the boys discovered the grass was crawling with tomato bugs! Yes, you read right... tomato bugs! I thought I'd heard wrong too but Melinda assured me that while every other kid knows them as "potato" bugs, to Guyan and Owen, they're tomato bugs and who am I to argue with that? : ) We had fun counting as many as we could find, looking for the biggest one and letting them tickle our hands with their many tiny feet.

Guyan

OwenGuyan liked the idea of including a tomato bug in their family photo but we talked him into letting Mr. Bug go back to his own bug family : )I was completely cracking up when I took this shot because it's the first of its kind for me! Guyan wasn't feeling much like having his photo taken so his family set him straight : )I've learned that letting kids get a little silly with the camera for a few minutes really helps to get things back on track : )

Someday I will be at Woodstock when the lighting is perfect for this shot. In the meantime, I'll keep trying anyway because it's such a beautiful scene!Still looking for bugs!Of course I always get some shots of Mom & Dad together too...Now that's a kiss! Nice work Sean!After we ventured up the hill from the beach, I noticed Owen was feeling a little shy toward me. He whispered something in his mama's ear and she told him he could tell me what he wanted to say... After a little more deliberation, he whispered in my ear "I had a lot of fun with you at the beach!" which of course melted my heart and I had to give him a big hug : )I love the barn at Woodstock Farm for a backdrop.. its lines & textures really add a timeless dimension to the photos. (Three guesses as to what Guyan is holding in his hand!) It was already a great day after shooting with clients old and new, but when I got home I received the following message from Melinda about our time together... such kind words from my clients always make my day : )

Thank you so much for a great afternoon! I think Guyan and Owen secretly love you...Guyan was talking about how much fun he had today... And you are the first "stranger" in a loooong time that Owen didn't grunt at, and take at least 30 minutes to warm up to. I was shocked!

We had a blast, and can't wait to see the pictures.

Melinda