I had such a great time with Brooke last week for her senior session. She is the little sis of the first senior boy I photographed a few years ago.  She is full of smiles and I loved that she could totally rock a cowboy hat and boots!

Thanks for being such a great model, Brooke!  I loved working with you!

And a quick scheduling note, I am completely booked through October.  I only have two appointments left for November and then will be closed for the month of December.  November weather tends to be questionable for outdoor sessions, so my two remaining appointments may be best suited for newborns and maternity sessions.  If you are hoping to book a session, please contact me soon!   Thank you!

Forgive me if I get a bit mushy here, but oh how I love this kid.  Cody is the son of my cousin Scott and his wife Connie, and the hero of my six year old son, Will.   He is kind, gracious and the kind of boy you hope your son grows up to be.  If there is ever something I want Will to do, I simply have to say, “That’s what Cody does.”  And I almost always get easy compliance. ” Eat my broccoli????”   “Yep! How do you think Cody got so fast? He ate his vegetables! “    “Clean my room? ” “Yes! Cody does it every morning!”   Even if these are a bit of a stretch, I am happy that my son has chosen such a wonderful role model.

Cody and I had a great time during his session. We just hopped in my car and drove out to some locations I’d been wanting to try out.  It was later that evening that I realized, he is the age I was when he was born.  Oh, how old that makes me feel! But I’m also very lucky because I have been able to watch him grow up and see what an amazing job his parents have done.  I hope I do such a job with my own children.

Before we check out the photos from this week’s session, here is just a quick blast from the past….  I can’t believe how fast children grow.  Cody was the ring bearer in our wedding at age 5.  Look how cute!  And then on a trip to the beach with his little brother Drew…

And now the handsome guy, all grown up… well, almost.

I am so glad we were able to get onto the football field for a few shots…  Anyone who knows Cody knows he lives and breathes football.

And then we ended the night at his grandparents’ home…

Thank you Cody for such a fun night and letting me shoot for 3 hours! You were an awesome model.  And Connie and Scott, thank you for being who you are and raising such an amazing kid.  I love you all so much…

Dylan is my first senior for the 2011 class.  He is actually from California and visiting his family here in Skagit County.   His mom found me by the power of Google and then realized that I had photographed several of her friends’ families after seeing many familiar faces in my galleries.   I love that even as our “small town” continues to grow – we can all be connected instantly by a simple click of the mouse…

I really enjoyed touring Dylan’s grandparents’ property finding just the right places for his photos.  He even braved the nasty mosquitoes that seemed to be out in full force that evening!  I love how by just spending a few short hours with someone you can learn so much.   I think my favorite part of the night was near the end of the session when Dylan was posing for a shot and noticed his great grandma was leaving the house for the evening.  He quickly excused himself,  got up and hurried over to give her a hug good-bye.  That simple little moment spoke volumes about his character and made me smile.   Truly just a great guy.  I’m sure his mom is so proud…

And a few more with his gorgeous family…

Thank you, Jeanine for asking me to photograph Dylan!  It was great to finally meet you.  You truly have such a beautiful family.  And Dylan, best of luck to you in the future. You were so great to work with!

Sharing just a few from my gorgeous class of seniors that I had the pleasure of photographing this past year.   They were all so much fun to work with.  Best of luck to you guys in the coming years!

I am looking forward to meeting the 2011 crew in the coming months.  For those of you wanting to book a senior session, NOW is the time!   Don’t wait until September and October, please! I had to turn many seniors away last year because my calendar was full.  Most schools ask for your yearbook photos by mid-October.   I am currently booking August dates.  So let me know soon if you’d like to reserve your session.

Much love,
~ M.

I’m sitting here working on a FABULOUS new What to Wear guide for my high school seniors and just had to share some images on the blog.   I LOVE SENIORS!  And I just want to remind all of you that will be graduating in 2011… book your sessions THIS SUMMER! Don’t wait until September and October to contact me.  I book out several months in advance and I had to turn away many many seniors last year.  I will open my summer calendar in May so watch for announcements that it’s time to start booking summer sessions.

Here are a few teens from a workshop I attended in Seattle this summer.  We shot in the alleyways behind Qwest field. It was so much fun.   The girls did a great job of putting together fun and funky outfits.  More info on all of that in the guide!

My last senior of the season… sigh.  I have found that I LOVE photographing high school seniors and Karissa could not have been more fun!  A suitcase full of clothes and a sassy little personality – she knew how to work the camera. And I loved it!  We have been planning this session since July and I think we got it in just in time before fall officially set in.

I loved photographing you, Karissa.  I really had the hardest time choosing photos for this blog post.  I have so many favorites!  I hope you enjoy your sneak peek…

And to the seniors out there, I will begin taking senior sessions again in spring.  My spring-fall dates book quickly, so 2011 seniors please don’t wait too long to contact me.  Summer is a great time for your sessions!

Now… on to a fall and winter full of newborn yumminess!  Babies, babies and more babies on the books! Can’t wait!

I  had such a great time with Toni.  She has such a bubbly, fun personality and an infectious smile.    We chatted and laughed the entire session.   Such a natural beauty.

Thank you so much for such a great session – you were truly so much fun!  You even danced and twirled for me!   We had a great session and I’m so glad you found those car keys! 

Here is your sneak peek… enjoy!

There is something about photographing seniors that makes me a bit sad… maybe it’s because I’m a mom and I know that these beautiful kids are soon to be all grown up and heading out on their own in the world. Maybe it’s that I know in the blink of an eye I will be watching my own son and daughter graduate from high school. Or maybe it’s just that these young, amazing, beautiful kids just make me feel old!

Meet Whitney, class of 2010. We had a great time last week during her session with lots of clothing changes, an awesome location and my favorite kind of sky – dark and moody. I had a hard time choosing which to post here because you truly take amazing photos, Whitney! I hope you enjoy your sneak peek! And don’t cry Mom… I know she looks so grown up here. *sigh*…

And just a little schedule note, my senior schedule for this fall is completely full! So sorry everyone!  Those of you wanting photos in spring be sure to contact me in January so we can get you on the schedule.    Thanks!

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend a workshop given by the amazing and talented Brianna Graham in Seattle. She is truly a master at her art, creating portraits with color and style like no other. It was so inspiring to learn from her and get to spend 3 days soaking it all in.

We got a chance on a very warm Saturday to do some shooting in the alleyways behind Qwest Field. We truly had some of the most gorgeous girls to work with. Here are just a few from our session.

I will be posting more in the weeks to come. We also had some adorable little kiddos there to photograph too.

I know Mom is waiting for these (as well as Auntie too!) so I wanted to get a sneak peek up for you guys. I had so much fun hanging out with Ryan yesterday. He was so natural in front of the camera that he made my job easy. Thanks for climbing over blackberry bushes and through mud holes in your flip flops just to get the shot, Ryan. I hope you enjoy your sneak peek!