Newborn Portraits | Gavin Simone

"Let me love you a little more, before you aren't little anymore." - Michelle Thevenot

When I saw the quote above, I immediately knew that it was something I needed to share with you.  As we are asked to do a newborn session, we know how important this time is and how quickly time passes.  We are so blessed to be part of the newest chapters in their lives.  The truth is our little one's never stay little.  After the days have passed of swaddling our little bundles of joy, the only memory [or evidence for their wedding day] we have left are photos.  

Maurena and Dan, congrats again on your little guy! Mackenzie, we are so excited that you get to be a BIG sister!  Gavin we are so grateful to have been a part of your welcoming to the world.  We know your big sister will take great care of you.  

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Family Fall Portraits at George and Sakaye Aratani Japanese Garden at Cal Poly Pomona // Claremont Family Photography

The Huynh’s hold a special place in my heart.  The first person I met from their family was Noelle.  She was in Jarron’s kindergarten class.  Through passing and school functions I had the blessing to meet Noelle’s grandmother and mother.  Wonderfully enough, Noelle’s mom, Rena, and I had so much in common.  We’ve been the best of friends ever since and love that we get to be part of their family.  They had their 5th addition to their family, Hope, who I am happy and proud to call our goddaughter. 

More exciting news, the Huynh’s are expecting baby numero 6 in November.  Happy, healthy little boy makes the score even with Boys 4 & Girls 4.

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We'd love to see you and your family! Let us know how we can help you update your family portraits and we'll be in touch.

Guide For A Successful Photo Session With Toddlers

As a parent, taking your toddler anywhere in public can sometimes be a challenge. You are always hoping they’ll be on their best behavior, but you never know what will affect their mood on a minute by minute basis. This unpredictable nature sometimes causes worry or panic for parents who are paying for a session with their toddler and unsure of how it will turn out. Afraid that their toddler may not sit and smile at the camera exactly the way they have envisioned it in their minds. We have good news for you though, THAT’S OKAY! Toddlers are so fun and so full of personality. They are at a magical age where they are discovering so many new things in the world around them and also discovering how they can assert their independence. We want our parents to feel relaxed and comfortable in their session knowing that these toddler moments of curiosity and exploration are ways that their personalities come out and shine in the photos. When you’re looking ahead at planning for your family session or your child’s portrait session, here is a guide to help you plan for the session and how to assist in making it relaxed and fun for you and your child!

Go with the flow. 100% of our portrait sessions never go as planned, so don't worry. Your family is perfect, just as you are. We will strive to get the essence of your family as a unit, your children's personalities, as well as sneaking mom and dad for a few minutes to get some portraits of just the two of you.

Let us know some of their main interests. If they have any special interests, toys, or movie character's that they love, let us know. It helps us connect with them on their level. Allowing us to converse with them about their interests can help them to open up and feel more comfortable with us.

You don’t have to be the bad guy.  On a shoot, we know you want your kids to be on their best behavior (and we do too), but allow your kids to be themselves. Although you may feel like they are showing off, we need their energy to show their best personality. We will also work really hard to get that nice smile of theirs.

Stay relaxed. When you are stressed and tense, it tends to trickle down to the children making them feel tense or nervous. Try to relax and feel at ease knowing that we are here to help guide you and your kids through the session. We will interact with your kids to help them feel comfortable and guide them as well as letting them guide us in helping us capture some truly special images. When they are allowed to have fun on your portrait session, everyone looks more natural and relaxed.

Make sure they get plenty of rest. Good rest the night before and if its an afternoon session, a nap, can make all the difference. You should feel comfortable to discuss the best time for the session with your photographer ahead of time, using your child's natural happiest time of the day as a guide to selecting the time for your session.

Come fed. It can be hard to focus and participate cheerfully when your stomach is growling, so a small healthy snack right before hand is always helpful too. Be weary of sugary snacks beforehand, as each child’s sensitivity to sugar varies and could put them in a sugar rush. Be sure avoid colorful lollipops and candies 24 hours before session. Some of them stain their mouths and can linger for a day or two. Also, feel free to bring snacks to give in between shots as incentive. Snacks like raisins and cereal are good options because they are small and are not messy.

Bring an activity to do together. Do they have a favorite book or game they love to play? Bring it! Do you guys enjoy playing a family game of football or soccer on the weekends? Bring it! This can help make them feel comfortable and can assist in creating some great authentic photos of you guys together enjoying something you love.

Finally, just HAVE FUN! Let go and allow yourself to relax, go with the flow, and enjoy this time with your family. It will allow us to capture the pure emotion and organic love between all of you.

We're here to help you stay relaxed and have fun while capturing images that you'll love! Book your session now!

Welcoming Baby Jackson with The York Family // Chino Hills, California

I actually met Dorothy a while ago.  She was my RN supervisor in my previous life as a nurse.  Although we didn't work together for very long, again through the beautiful world of social media, we were able to keep in touch.  

As most creatives will understand, receiving messages that their work is loved is such an amazing feeling, and when Dorothy said she wanted me to take photos of her newest addition, baby Jackson, I was beyond thrilled.  

We began our session at the York family home and then headed to a near by park for a bit more fun.  Here are just a few of my favorite moments captured during my time with Dorothy and her beautiful family.  Jackson even got to show off his first pair of Jordan's. Jayden is an awesome big sister, always making sure he was ok.

Jason, Dorothy, Jayden and Jackson, thanks so much for a great time together.  I look forward to seeing the kids continue to grow into even more amazing kiddos.