Metropolitan Imageworks

Three-month-old Eliana joined her brother Joshua for a fall themed portrait session with me this week. Joshua is a professional poser for Metimages so it was nice of him to teach his little sister the ropes.

Cancan and Nhan hoped for some great fall colors during their engagement session with me last weekend and the weather came through for us. The grounds at Cantigny were just bursting with color!  We were worried about rain and wet, but the skies were blue and the sun was shining. So we had to find other use for their umbrellas, like sword-fighting.

Can’t wait to work with you guys on the wedding day in 2010! And Nhan, you have almost a year to work on the relaxation face that comes before the smile!!

I mentioned in previous blog posts that it was hot in Phoenix last weekend. And the 100+ temps were not the only reason . . .

I’m not 100% sure what this sign was for in Adrian, TX but I like it.  I’ll find a way to work it into everyday conversation from here on out.

My favorite photographer in action.

One of our tourist stops was at Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico. Fortunately for us and for Mater, they have a kennel on site in a modest but air conditioned room. This further encourages visitors not to leave their dogs in hot cars while visiting the caverns. It was a great $5.00 investment and allowed Vic and I to take a one and a half hour tour of the Big Room and enjoy the attraction of the caverns.  I’m not so sure Mater enjoyed himself, but at least he was comfy in the AC and had food and water and a place to lay down.

We spent a night in El Paso, TX and visited the missions in the morning before rolling out of town. It’s humbling to experience these structures that were built in the 1600′s and 1800′s and they are still around and in use today.

Socorro

San Elizario

Ysleta

We made a side trip to the Hohokam ruins of Casa Grande in Coolidge, AZ, just south of Phoenix. Of course it had to be 104 on Saturday, so we didn’t stay too long. Besides, I had a photo session to get to that afternoon.

Mater has outgrown his puppy bed so we stopped into PetSmart and got him a new big boy bed, he spent a LOT of time snuggled it on on the trek home.

Monument Valley looked impressive as the storm clouds rolled in, unfortunately it was raining and pretty gusty by the time we got to Arches National Park, so we did our version of Hit N’ Run Sightseeing ™ and drove through for a few miles. We’ll come back another day. It’s good to have a National Parks Pass.

San Juan River just outside of Mexican Hat, Utah.

The Mexican Hat. Personally I see more of a robot than a dude in a hat.

Along the way we stopped to get some cool storm photos. It’s all about being in the right place at the right time!

Close up of the lightening strike in the above photo.

More of my project in the works . . .

About seven years ago I had the honor of photographing Jessica and Josh’s wedding in the Chicagoland area.  We had all grown up in the north ‘burbs and attended the same high school.  It was great fun working with them on their wedding day, and it was fairly close to my own wedding as well so we had a lot in common and a lot to talk about and shared some of the same vendors.  Then about six years ago Jessica and Josh moved to Phoenix (those smart, smart people!)  They’ve since added a dog and a son to their family.

I was delighted to meet up with them this morning at Papago Park in Phoenix and meet Evan and take portraits and do a little hiking on the trails. Well, as much hiking as you can doin 98 degree weather and an almost 3-year old in tow!

Last Saturday was the perfect fall day, luckily I was able to fit portrait sessions in all day long and take advantage!  Maddie and Liam and their parents joined me at the Morton Arboretum Childrens Garden and we got to explore, climb on things (note to self it’s easier to use the slide then try to walk down the psuedo rock wall) and enjoy the beautiful scenery.

I am almost positive the kids practiced their smiles and poses in the mirror in the week prior as they were the perfect subjects!  Mom and Dad did pretty well too!

We’re off to Phoenix for a few portrait sessions and visits with friends. This time we decided to take the Southern route and hit the road on Monday as soon as Tom Skilling made mention of snow flurries in his weather report. The road trip south through Illinois and Missouri and one tiny corner of Kansas was a blur, one we had done many times previously. By day two we made it to a quaint stop in Adrian, Texas which is the halfway point on Route 66 between Chicago and Santa Monica, roughly 1,1,39 miles in each direction!  The landmark at this particular locale is the Mid-Point Cafe run by the awesome Fran Houser.

(Side note: Vic and I stopped here in January 2007 on our first Route 66 road trip heading east from California. The Mid-Point Cafe was closed, unfortunately due to a winter snowstorm. We stopped anyways and were taking pictures of the building and the sign from the parking lot when a lady and her dog walked up through the snow. Turns out it was Fran, the cafe’s owner, and she let us in to look around.  We spent about 45 minutes hanging out and chatting and learned some very cool tidbits about Route 66 and even more about the movie Cars and the factual Route 66 information contained within the storyline and animated imagery. Flo’s V8 Diner in the movie was actually based on Fran and the Mid-Point Cafe and two of her waitstaff were given characters and did the voices for the movie as well.)

We wanted to stop by again, on a nice weather day, and say hello to Fran and have lunch and of course introduce Fran to Mater, whose namesake is in Cars and will be “telling some tall tales” in Cars 2!!! After a brief re-introduction, Fran did remember us and we got hugs and thank-yous for coming back again. Lunch was yummy and their ugly pies may be ugly but sure are delicious.

Some of you may wonder what a photographer does on vacation. Do I shoot with a point and shoot? Sometimes. Do I shoot with a dSLR? Sometimes.  How do I decide what to take pictures of? Whatever strikes my fancy and of course my closest subjects – my husband and my dog!

After being a professional for so long, I was scared to take pictures for myself. Scared that I would be judged for taking pictures of sunsets and abstract inanimate objects. But who cares.  My photography is part of me and helps define me as a person. My art is my ability to capture images with visual appeal and unique perspective. And if I throw a few snapshots in, that’s ok too. I am on vacation after all!

This is Texas. Big huh?

Sometimes he sits nicely and looks out the window like a little kid.

And sometimes he needs to catch a little breeze.

Evidence of aliens in Roswell?

In the Southwest most locals use signs for target practice.

Yes, even pro’s take photos of sunsets. We found a nice spot next to the Roswell Airport and hung out for a while.

There’s always time for self-portraits. Never let anyone tell you otherwise.

Long hours in the car sleeping followed by running around in the fresh New Mexico air has Mater pooped!

Until he sniffed out this leggy creature.

And here’s a few teasers from a new project I am working on . . . like or dislike?

It seems Asher and I will have an annual date each fall if his mom has anything to say about it! Last year we traipsed around the greenway near his house and this year we hit the Riverwalk with Asher and his mom and dad.  Saturday turned out to be an amazing morning with the crisp air, lovely colors on the trees and the smell of fall wafting all around.  Asher is a typical 2 and three-quarter year old in that he doesn’t walk, he RUNS everywhere!  It was fun trying to keep up and keep him entertained.  I think he gave me two thumbs up; he asked for a kiss before I left!

I had a date with this little guy last week. I thought he was the greatest right away but he wasn’t so sure about me. And then it was like a switch was flipped and he smiled and flirted with my camera. Or maybe he was flirting with me? He was a good sport for the session and we got some cute expressions mixed in with his smiles and he serious “look at the camera” face as well.

This little guy seemed to have a different agenda on Sunday afternoon during our portrait session. If there is one thing I am good at (I know, I know, BESIDES taking pictures) it’s patience with the little ones. He ran the show that afternoon and let me know when he was ready for giggles and smiles. After a while he was ready for a lot of giggles and a lot of smiles, so my playing the waiting game panned out!