I'm running out of ways to talk about cute

It's Natalie again, yay! This time, since it's just a wee bit cold outside, we went to Faust Park and took a ride on the carousel. She held on like a real trooper, which made my job all the easier. I think we've probably got a good rapport going by now--we just know how the other thinks.

Also useful--if she sees a picture of herself she starts smiling, so if I needed one, all I had to do was hold it up, and presto! Instant smiles (like in the second picture).

Dave

I wonder if that's how it felt.

I did a new batch of GateKeepers pictures last week, and, well, sometimes it's nice when the image does all the talking. I don't think I can add much to this.


Dave

Watt's the Buzz?

I did some family pictures a couple weeks ago, on what was, more than likely, the last nice day for outdoor shooting we'll have for awhile.

(I'm always torn--outdoors is, to me, always better for shooting, so I'll miss that, but I do like cold weather.)

Trying to keep up with young Michael certainly kept me on my toes. I think I might have put in a day's workout running around after him. Not that any of that was a bad thing, mind you.

Dave

Shameless Self-Promotion

Not to toot my own horn (okay, that's a lie), but Melissa Marr, featured here, emailed me last week, wanting to know if she could use the picture I took as her jacket photo in her next release.

So I said yes, as you might expect, and you can expect to see my picture on bookshelves (!) next summer. June, I think. The book is called 'Graveminder,' by the way.

Dave

Hats Off!

Once again, I haven't the slightest idea what inspired me to put people in hats. But it was something I wanted to do as early as May, but just never could seem to find the time for. But I finally did manage the time, and even managed to book some time in a real studio, which makes a huge difference. Having consistently good lighting, and no nonsense in the background was great. Everyone seemed to have a good time, too, so I guess hats just bring out the best in people.

Dave

M.A.S.K.

For the life of me, I can't recall what made me think of putting people in masks and taking pictures. Maybe I saw it somewhere else and thought it might be fun. That seems the most likely candidate. And being close to Halloween when I did it seemed fitting.

Also interesting--I created a studio of sorts in my basement using nothing more than a couple white sheets and some lights. It makes for a very different environment than I normally have.

But now I have 5 masquerade masks and no idea what to do with them. Have a party, maybe?


Dave

Family Values, pt. 2

Ah, now THIS is the promised sequel to this post, and another cousin of this post.

We shot a little later in the day than I'm used to, so it was hard working with the low light (meaning lots of pictures that should have been awesome were blurry or whatever because I didn't make the right adjustments). Truth be told, I'm a bright light kinda guy.

Anywho--the second and fourth shots include some of my favorite Logan-based expressions ever. The second one, especially.

"Who are these people I'm with, and why are they so weird?"


Dave

Bug-a-Boo

I don't know if, after four shoots, I'm the "official" photographer for Natalie, but I wouldn't complain if I was.

I mean, she's freakin' adorable, isn't she?


Dave

All in the Family

This isn't exactly a sequel to this post, but since some of the same folks are involved, you can think of it as a cousin. Kara's mom wanted some family pictures, so we went to....some park. It's over by Six Flags. The overcast sky was actually nice, since no one was squinting because of the sun. The hats were mom's idea. Everyone sitting at random was mine. Logan being adorable continues to be his own thing. The shot on the slide features a little bit of blur as I zoomed in, which doesn't always work out, but looks pretty cool here. Happy accident!

Dave

Johnny Law

Ah, if only Brian's name was Johnny. He IS a lawyer, though, so the title is half-right. I even got to stand in a real court room for the shoot, which was kind of exciting. Turns out everything was on the opposite side of where I usually imagined it.

The last shot is fun, if not all that relevant to what we were trying to convey. But it is a cool looking wall, so it seemed silly not to use it.

Dave

On Parade

A few of the folks I saw at the ColorFest Parade in Louisiana, MO.

Dave

SPHDZ & NERDS

Sometimes we have authors visit the library. Sometimes I remember to get a posed picture with them while they're here. Such is the case here--Jon Scieszka up top and Michael Buckley below.

Working with kid's authors is easier, since they seem to be inclined to be a little goofy anyway.


Dave

Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise

I was really excited to bring my camera to the Avett Brothers concert a couple weeks ago, because they put on a heck of a show, and do lots of awesome things on stage. But the lighting was a little dimmer than I'd hoped, and I was just far enough away to require a zoom, meaning I had less aperture to work with. And it was really crowded, so it was hard to really spend time composing. So.....I do like the shot of bassist Bob Crawford, but in the end, I couldn't help but be a little let down.

On the plus side, I got some cool shots of opening act Grace Potter, so that takes some of the annoyance away.

Dave

Family Values

These must be teasers, since the intention was to take "family" pictures, and, well, it's mostly just Logan. Kara and Karl are there, true, but being out of focus or cut off below the waist doesn't really count. But I think a second session is in order, which will allow for more time in daylight. So perhaps after that, or just when I have some more time, I'll post extra stuff.

Dave

Dressed to at least the eights

I decided that since the phrase is "dressed to the nines," the originator of said phrase must have been including zero as an option, because it doesn't make much sense to me to leave ten off as an option.

I suppose I could look into the phrase's origins, but I don't feel like it right now.

We had a big ol' fundraiser at work over the weekend. I believe a tux wasn't required, but if you've got one, why not bust it out?


Dave

Cute Overload

It's been about a month or two, so I think it's time to check in and see what Natalie is up to, yes?

...

Oh. Still adorable. Okay. I'm glad we took the time to look in on the situation. I should note that she kept taking the hat off, so it was clear she wanted no association with such a lackluster baseball team (quick, get her a Cyclones hat).

The second shot, looking through the back of a park bench is one of my favorite things ever.

Dave