Metropolitan Imageworks

I fit in a quick session of the young cuties in the Wagenknecht clan on the day prior to their aunt’s wedding.  We all met up at the Riverwalk walk and to all of our surprise it was in the mid-70′s and sunny!  This was after rescheduling from a weekend in May due to horrible weather.  I think this was a pretty good warm-up session to prepare some of the younger ones for my camera the following day.  The kids outnumbered the adults and while we had a good run of it, some of the little guys just weren’t feeling all warm and fuzzy. That’s ok, though, because I don’t promise smiles, I promise personality.

Catherine

Heather

Kenzie

Maddyn

Hallie

Tanner

Graham

The whole crew

And, that’s a wrap, the boys are DONE!

Anytime I make it up to Madison for wedding related work I also make sure to stop in and visit with Sasha and Ethan who have been fixtures on my blog since each of their births!  This time Sasha is a vibrant and spunky three-year old with a penchant for dramatic flair. Truly a little girl after my own heart!  Ethan was hamming it for the camera, after a quick power nap, and delighting me with all of his numerous faces.  It doesn’t hurt that these kiddos are my family so I know we share some of the same cuteness genes. This portrait session was made even more special by the fact that Buscia recently moved from New Jersey to Madison and now gets to spend more time with Sasha and Ethan and watch them grow.

It only took me 6 months to meet little Caelan but it was totally worth the wait! He is definitely a little charmer.  And his little guy giggles melted my heart from the get go.  Big sis’ Ashlyn is now three-and a half years old, and to think I photographed her every three months since she was a teeny, tiny newborn and now she is a little lady and so polite! She is a big help with her little bro and waited patiently for her turn in front of the camera and even played for a bit in her room while we did yet another costume change for Cael and some more solo shots of him.  Princess Aly even made an appearance and I didn’t mind being one of her subjects as she waved her wand and turned me into a puppy! Even better was walking into different rooms in their home and seeing amazing photo displays filled with framed images I have captured over the years, reminding me again what a very important job I have!

Last Wednesday in Phoenix dawned bright and early and warm.  I met up with the Klem family for a portrait session with the entire clan.  Barb & Steve rented a lovely house for a couple months and during the final week their two children, spouses and three grandchildren made themselves at home.  The grandkids were such troopers during the group photos and individual family photos and they were rewarded with pool time afterwards.  I couldn’t help but stay and hang out on the deck while photographing their antics and splashing.

I feel like I am part of the family when I photograph Bianca and her older sister Toni.  I walk right in and am immediately welcomed into the midst of daily life and handed off a baby to hold!  They enjoy my company, feed me and are excited to get caught up on what’s new with me as well as share what’s new with them. Sometimes Grandma Roseanne is around for part of the shoot and her hugs are just the best.

From Sara and Anthony’s wedding in August 2007 to photographing Toni every three months since her birth in the fall of 2008 and continuing with Bianca’s birth this past November, I am very fortunate to have such incredible clients. And they make adorable kids too!

Here’s a sampling of Bianca and the family during her three-month portrait session. Mom was also uber-prepared for big ‘sis Toni to make an appearance and creep into pics.

So much of photography is about capturing moments. I am very much of the opinion that a portrait does not require the subjects to smile at the camera. If I have captured a moment, then it is perfect.

If you have followed the Metropolitan Imageworks blog for any length of time than you’re familiar with Zora and Ezra, who I have been photographing since they were newborn babies in late 2009. They recently turned two years old and I had a date scheduled with them on my visit to Chicago last week. I’m proud to show the images captured from this session as they finally came to terms that we are BFFs!  I saw toys and smiles and giggles and even some story-time with their cat, Gordy.  Trust me it was both sweet and hilarious to see Zora and Ezra on the stairs, each with a book flipping pages and stopping to hold the book up and saying, “See, Gordy?”

EVERYONE smiled! Even Gordy if you look real close.

I spent Monday afternoon with two of my favorite subjects – Amara and Eliza – to photograph them for the holidays. Mom had planned carefully and was going to use a photo of the three of them for one of Dad’s Christmas presents for his new office. Amara did a great job keeping it a surprise, until she told her babysitter about the plan . . . while Dad was standing right there. I think he’ll still love the gift!  We had so much fun not only posing in front of my “tent” but also reading in Amara’s room, jumping on Mom’s bed and downstairs in the playroom. Since this is the second annual holiday photoshoot for the girls, I call dibs on the tradition. See you again next year!

Love these little guys. Arvin especially melted my heart by addressing me as Rachael Auntie!  I went to high school with their mom and it was so fun to be asked to photograph her family portraits.  Her parents have since moved farther from Skokie, but it was well worth the jaunt to spend a fun morning with Nisha, Arvin and Nithin, her parents and her brother. Arvin did so well as my little assistant and helped me with test shots and breaking down and packing up the portable studio. Nithin pulled out some moves and actually came up with his own poses just for me. I can’t wait until we schedule a summer session and take advantage of some outdoor portraits.

Arvin

Nithin

Mom and her boys.

Proud Apu and Amma!

The whole family.

Apu and his boys.

Visiting Chicago in the midst of a winter storm is never a problem as long as I can pack my week with fantastic clients!  Pat, Erin and Keeley made a repeat appearance in front of my camera – I previously photographed their wedding in St. Louis in 2008 and now they have introduced a delightful son, Liam, to the mix.  Liam is almost two years old and he ran the show! From smiles to serious to performing for chocolate, he is just a sweet little boy! Big sister Keeley is a budding supermodel and I am totally claiming a stake on the finders fee for this beautiful girl.

Hamming it up

Doing his version of “Blue Steel”

Why yes, I’ll perform for a pretzel!

The original Mr. and Mrs .Nugent were in town and joined in for a few family photos too.

All the boys.

You want me to sit here and smile, like this?

Of course sometimes you get a little bit of this.

But with enough patience you also get a bit of this.

All the pretty ladies!

This is what I’m talking about! I met Keeley when she was a seven-year old flower girl. Now she is 10, going on 22!

Even Lance and Wallace wanted in on the picture action.

Dad and son time.

The end!

One of the perks of traveling the country in our RV is meeting up with family. We decided at the last minute to head to California to spend Thanksgiving with some of my West Coast cousins, since I had to be out there to help a friend shoot a wedding that weekend anyways.  True to form I try and pack as much into the schedule as possible and finished my Scottsdale, Arizona portrait session at 7 pm on Wednesday and my awesome husband drove all night so we could be in Redondo Beach, California the following morning. We arrived at 3 am after battling horrid traffic out of Phoenix and I caught a few hours of shut-eye before heading out to meet my cousin David, his wife Emily and their two daughters, Julia and Leila for a nearby Turkey Trot in Torrance. I am not ashamed to admit that my six year old cousin, Julia, beat my 5k time by two minutes.

It’s been a few years since I have seen Julia and Leila and now they are little people and not just babies.  I am in awe watching them interact and their playful spirits.  Their new puppy, Ruby, is five and a half months old and the perfect place for her to run around an expend all that energy is the dog beach! Plus it also meant taking our own pooch, Mater, to see the ocean!  We also saw a few dolphins and a seal and Victor got some neat photos of the wildlife.

In all a great day, if I do say so myself.

Photos by Victor:

Mater – 1, Seaweed – 0

Careful, that wave might get ya wet!

Love the airborn girls in this next set . . .

Here’s the seal in the middle of the frame, spying back at us.

See the dolphin fin in the middle?

Close up of the above.

Photos by Rachael:

David and Emily. David’s grandma was my grandpa’s sister.

Julia

Leila making a sand castle

Beach dog

Leila

Mater contemplates.

Cutie Ruby!

Better run faster, Mater!

Leila, Julia, Vic and I along with some Mater-butt!