Happy Birthday! Nachshon's 3rd Birthday Party // Milwaukee Photographer
A couple weeks ago I was honored to photograph a very special birthday for my very dear friend!
In February, Nachshon, was diagnosed with medulloblastoma. He underwent brain surgery to remove the tumor and has had intense chemotherapy treatments to fight the disease that spread to other areas of his brain and spinal cord.
Right before his third birthday, he had an MRI to see how effective the treatment was. With immense gratitude to The One Above, Nachshon's scans came back showing extremely positive reports!
It was a truly humbling experience to be privileged to photograph such a monumental birthday party, for my super special friend and her family!
Aside from reading ALL.THE.BOOKS (that kid loves to read - or have books read to him), his one birthday request was... Quiet. 😉. He wanted the whole throng of family to take their voices down to a roar. Which they did. For one whole minute!
I have to mention that the spread that Chai Lifeline Midwest put out was so impressive! I was truly touched to see the generosity, and fullness of heart and spirit they put in to making Nachshon's party an amazing event! The food, the music, the Tzitzis, I mean it was truly awesome!
And of course continued wishes for a full and speedy recovery for Nachshon. (Nachshon Meir ben Temima Chaya Sara Shlomit).
Sweet Baby Girl (aka Chicken Nugget) // Milwaukee Fresh 48 Session
Oh my darling!! I was privileged to come and document the first precious hours of this little girl's life. Literally, I was there when she was only four hours old! She has the cutest head full of hair, and clearly has her parents wrapped around her little, flaky finger!
It's such a treat to see new parents fall so gracefully into their new role. Learning baby cues, emotions and new relationships all come with the territory. And I'm sure this beautiful girl will grow up surrounded by all that love!
5 on 5 - March // Lensbaby Experiment // Milwaukee Family Photographer
Can't believe we're already up to the 5th of April! March here has been quite crazy! I felt like February was forever and March has just suddenly come and gone! From snow to sixty degree weather and lots of other things happening, it was all a blur! In a good way!
And talking about blur, this past month I borrowed a Lensbaby to add some variety in my day to day images. (For those of you who have no idea what a Lensbaby is - it's a lens that creates interesting blur effects on your images.) My kids funnily enough called it a Baby Lens! So apparently there are a couple different ones and they each have different effects. The one I borrowed, the Sweet 35 optic, had a very strong linear blur - almost like leading you into the scene - which kind of made me dizzy in some of the images.
It worked well for these images taken on the swings - because you could almost feel the motion and movement.
And then I tried playing around with it indoors. It was so tricky and the backgrounds felt so disturbing, so I converted those images to black and white.
And just in case you're wondering, no we don't usually brush our teeth in the bedroom!
After all is said and done, I was not super excited with this lens. So now I have to decide if I want to try a different one, or just continue freelensing!
Make sure to check out Becky's 5 image story here. Becky is Milwaukee, Wisconsin Storytelling Photographer and a really great friend of mine!
5 on 5 - February // Airport Delays // Milwaukee Photographer // Everyday Family Storytelling
For those of you who are new here, 5 on 5 is a series of blog posts by fellow documentary photographers, where we tell a story with 5 images on the 5th of every month. To see our January story click here and make sure to follow the links all the way through to complete the circle.
Anyway, for this month I was thinking about what story I can tell in 5 images. We had a very busy month which included winter break for my kids. We took advantage and headed south to family friends to soak in sunshine and warmth.
But when the weather isn't so cooperative, and there are storms and tornadoes sweeping the area, it makes for delayed flights. And bored children.
So what does a mom and her camera do? Document the ways we spent the time warding off the boredom. Watching airplanes take off. Go to the kids play area (thank goodness for that!). Watch the airplanes take off. Go to the kids play area. Did I mention watching the airplanes take off? Oh and eat lunch somewhere in there too. And watch people. And play in the play area again.
Yeah. That's pretty much what we did for three and a half hours!
To see the beauty that Margaret, a family documentary photographer in Spokane, WA, documented this month follow the link! Make sure to click through to complete the circle and be inspired by all the wonderful women who I'm luck to call my friends.
Camera 101 // Beginner Photography course for Moms // Milwaukee, Wisconsin
We all work hard as parents. You enjoy being present and appreciate the beauty in simplicity and reality. And you want your children to look back at their childhood and remember all the love, devotion and connection they grew up with. This is why I am so passionate about Family Storytelling Photography! You're making memories every single day, every single moment and they deserve to be recorded and documented for posterity.
Photographing other families and their daily routines fuel my passion and fills heart and soul, which has led me to offering workshops to moms so they can take advantage of their DSLR and capture their day to day moments. (After all, as much as we'd all love for a professional photographer to live in our homes, it's not really so feasible).
This workshop will be held in Milwaukee (Fox Point) from 10-1 on Sunday, February 19, 2017!
This workshop is designed specifically for mothers. I will be teaching you how and why to use your camera in the manual mode to create a quality image. We go over the camera basics, touch on photo composition, you get to practice with a model, and there is plenty of time for question and answer during and at the end of the workshop. Space in this workshop is very limited to ensure that I can spend plenty of time with each attendee and make sure that everyone walks out the door confident. In addition to the class time I also have a facebook group that all attendees have access too. This is a place to ask questions while you are practicing and I can give tips and feedback on your images if you'd like. The fee for the workshop is $97.
If you have any other questions shoot me a quick email at blimietphotography@gmail.com or click here.
January 5 on 5 // Foggy Days // Milwaukee Photographer // Family Photojournalism
I'm generally a sun person. I love sunny days. They make me happy. But once in a while when we get fog - that makes me very excited too. Yes, everything is gray and damp. But the depth and dimension, or seeming lack thereof, gets me every single time.
So when I woke up on January 3, and saw that it was foggy, I knew I wanted to find a park with a tree-lined trail so I can get some really cool photos in the fog.
But I have little opinions that matter too. And when my 2 year old insisted on going to get her morning treat from her grandmother, (part of her daily routine), I realized that my illusion of a picture perfect foggy photo won't happen that morning.
And I also realized, that this is really our reality. Our busy street, cars coming and going, people walking, and no symmetrical pathway with trees on both sides. But when my children look back on these photos, they'll remember the street we lived on. The way leading to their grandparents home, and they'll surely feel the excitement they always feel when running down the block. And the photos I took on this day are the picture perfect photos for our family.
For more picture perfect everyday images, check out Jennifer, who is a Maryland family documentary photographer.
We're Like Family // Wauwatosa, Wisconsin Family Photographer // Storytelling Session
Whether it is us at the bakery or just hanging out at home we allow ourselves to slow down and be 100% present with each other. I cannot think of a better way to preserve these precious days.
I am so fortunate to have cyber-met Whitney last year, and to have actually become friends in real life. She is an amazing photographer in her own right in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. I love photographing her adorable family and watching them interact and enjoy life together. There are so many things I could say, but I'll let her express her feelings in her own words:
"Every time we are sitting down to dinner my 3 year old says the cutest thing "We're like family". Right now in school she is learning about different kinds of families and how to sign for different family members. It really is the sweetest thing. We have tried to make many special moments for her where we sit down together "like a family" and enjoy a meal or all snuggled on the couch. One of her favorite places to go to as a family is the local bakery. She always requests a doughnut with sprinkles, and has just graduated from only licking off the top to actually eating the entire doughnut. For our holiday session we decided to take the time to capture this family moment for ourselves.
In addition to my work as a photographer I stay home with my girls. Every day I watch them grow and learn new things. Every day I get to watch them develop a friendship that will last their lifetime. Every day I get to soak it all in. And every single day I want to stop the time, or at least slow it waaaay down. Committing to a minimum of one family session a year has really helped me to be a little more ok with letting our life move at lightning speed. Getting to be in the frame with my family, being mom and not photographer is huge. The pressure is off to try to capture the moment myself. I get to be fully present and Blimie will freeze this perfect family time for me.
Whether it is us at the bakery or just hanging out at home we allow ourselves to slow down and be 100% present with each other. I cannot think of a better way to preserve these precious days."
There. I could not have said it any better. Want to start preserving your precious days? Sign up to receive 6 exclusive tips on how to capture your everyday moments.
As part of our Blog Circle where we visit different local places, check out Marjolijn's blog post to see where she went this month.
Family Fall Fun // Southeast Wisconsin Family Photographer // Milwaukee // Family Documentary Photography
It's been so nice here this week and it's supposed to continue going into next week. I decided to treat my kids to a picnic dinner the other night - hello November 1st and 73 degrees!!
Well, November was a pretty long month. I can't believe it started out still in the 70's and we are now well into the 40-50's (my kids are wearing their winter coats already). But on the very first day of November we took advantage of the beautiful weather and went on a little outing.
Fall in Wisconsin is hanging on for longer than I expected. It's been so nice here this week and it's supposed to continue going into next week. I decided to treat my kids to a picnic dinner the other night - hello November 1st and 73 degrees!!
We had an easy dinner (and no mess at home - score!), and then went on a gorgeous little hike on a path in the "woods". And to top it all of (Oh, haha, pun intended!), there was a perfectly sized hill that the kids had an amazing time rolling down, until one of them said he's going to throw up. Comment if you think he did.
These memories are precious to my children and myself! I want you to have beautiful memories too to share with your children and grandchildren. Sign up here to receive my TOP 6 TIPS TO HELP YOU PHOTOGRAPH YOUR EVERYDAY MEMORIES.
Make sure to check out my friend Danielle's local outing of the month here! She's a Family Storytelling photographer in Upstate New York.
End of Summer Bonfire Fun // Milwaukee Family Photographer
This is a little peek into our summer finale. We have an annual traditional bbq - well it's more of an actual fire, with our friends and family. The kids love helping build the fire, and scouting the woods for sticks to use for roasting their marshmallows. It's hard to compare the taste of freshly grilled chicken (and meat and of course hotdogs) on a real fire. You know, a bbq grill is great for everyday, but for special occasions the fire just adds that touch.
And of course dessert is the ever popular - roasted "shmarshmallows"!
And the truth is, little campfires are so fun during autumn too. Cozying up to the fire in the chilly evening with some freshly roasted s'mores? Hmm, I can taste them already! Call me today 414.9090.0127 to schedule your family fall fun session. Only a few more spots left until the end of 2016! I would hate for you to miss out!
Local Outing - Blog Circle // Milwaukee Family Photographer
I am so excited to be taking part in this monthly Local Outings blog circle. Firstly, it will make sure I'm blogging consistently. Second, it will be fun to explore new and different places around the city.
This summer has found us exploring activities we enjoy doing together. Our local libraries are always a fun place to visit. On August 11, we visited the Wauwatosa Library to join a special Lego activity. John Payne, an architect for many years, has amassed quite the lego collection and helped guide the children with their project. Each child received a board, and a card that indicated the type of building they were to build to create a lego city. It was delightful to see all the little projects slowly form a colorful, bustling virtual city.
Please make sure to check out my friend Susan Ryan Kalina's fun outing in Downtown Chicago.
Let me know in the comments if you have any ideas for fun local activities - especially as we move towards fall and winter!!
A Beautiful Evening with the Morales Family
Every time I watch it I see something else that I love! Most importantly... I realize that it's already that awesome. You just don't realize that as you're living your every day life. Sometimes it takes seeing yourself through someone else's eyes
I first "met" Whitney through a local Facebook photography group. We hit it off online and then even stayed friends once we met (insert wink eye). She has the two most adorable girls, Addalyn and Finley and a super funny husband. I was so excited for her vote of confidence in letting me capture her awesome family!
I will let the photos speak for themselves, but I will share what Whitney said to me after she saw her images. "Every time I watch it I see something else that I love! Most importantly...several months ago I was watching a video from Wildflower Photography of her family and I wanted that to be my family. Now seeing my family in that light, I realize that it's already that awesome. You just don't realize that as you're living your every day life. Sometimes it takes seeing yourself through someone else's eyes".
So there ladies (and gentlemen, for those of you reading), this is what it's all about!!
Lucy's Second Birthday/Child Photographer/Lifestyle & Documentary Photographer/Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Two year olds have got to have the most energy!! This little girl played a super energized game of peekaboo with me! After we warmed up, she didn't care that I was there, and just continued about her busy two year old morning. Water break? Check. Doll playing? Check. Coloring, stickers... Oh so many things to do in an hour!
