Her high school senior photo session was absolutely incredible. I mean, wow, everything came together perfectly…a lovely young lady who really let her personality sparkle, perfect weather, beautiful light, amazing hair and makeup (as always) by Katie with Modern Muse Beauty, and the height of wildflower season. Could not ask for anything more to feed my creative soul!

Lensbaby, you did not disappoint:

I think she resembles Lana Del Rey a little here?

Oh, this dress was divine! And the back, too! Wow!

By the time we got done with the bluebonnets, it was dark :-(. But not to worry. The greenhouse and a little off-camera lighting made for some really cool nighttime portraits:

You can see the setup here.

Not sure I could pick a fav from this session, however. I mean *maybe* this one HERE, but really, she kinda nailed them all!

Okay, okay. Technically, I am “closed” (see last post about that), buuuuuuut, I feel very compelled to pop on here quickly to say THANK YOU to Lena, Annette, and ALL of New Jersey and north east coast attendees for an incredible workshop! In spite of our challenges–well, really, the only challenge and that was the RAIN (ugh)–everyone was patient and funny and eager to learn and gave 110% to their workshop experience. And our models were pretty phenomenal, too.

From one of the attendees:

DO IT!!!! Seriously. If you are considering any workshop — Pinkle Toes is not only extraordinarily informative, but it gave me a new found belief in my ability to run a strong photography business. You will have so much inspiration and instantly feel connected with a new group of amazing photographers!

Yup. She about summed it up regarding the group of amazing photographers. Wow! I cannot wait until I get a chance to collect all of their shots and show off their work in a real blog post soon. I promise, when I get some more time, there are many, many, many more images and thoughts on this workshop to come.

Meanwhile, I am putting the pedal back to the medal to get ready for the upcoming lifestyle photography workshops being held at my house in Austin, TX in early July. After that, we hit the road for southern California (Cardiff-by-the-sea), then northern California (Mendocino), and finally Washington State (Olympia). We have just a couple of spaces open for each of those workshops and after that, there are no more workshops for 2014. Very much looking forward to what these next few months hold in store and meeting all of these new photographers all over the country!

It’s so true! Taking the plunge to attend a photography workshop can be a little bit intimidating, but it certainly helps to have a friend by your side. So, from now through April 31st, 2014, when you and a friend book together, you’ll both receive a $200 rebate after your workshop(s). *See below for rules and restrictions. To get the full details on the workshop (dates, locations, schedule, agenda, cost, etc.), please drop a line via the form on THIS page!

And now, I wanted to share a letter with you that I’ve actually been meaning to share for quite some time. This is from the lovely Courtney Bolle (who happens to be a very, very busy mommy right now) of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

One year ago, nearly to the day, I can remember sitting in front of my computer, contemplating whether or not to sign up for a Pinkle Toes Workshop.  I had stumbled upon Michele’s blog about a year prior, when the thought of beginning a photography business was just a small spark in my mind.  I was instantly captivated by the way she brought out genuine beauty, emotion, and magic in all of her sessions.  I knew that if I were to ever turn my hobby into a business, those were the types of photos that I wanted to produce and she was the person that I dreamt of learning from.  So there I sat at my computer, worried that I was too new to the world of photography to attend such a workshop, but also not wanting to miss out on the opportunity to begin my business with such strength.  After weighing my options, I decided to sign up for one of the March 2012 workshops and am so grateful that I took that leap of faith which allowed me to gain an incredible wealth of knowledge and an invaluable experience from Michele.

One of things that impressed me the most about the Pinkle Toes Workshop was Michele’s organization and ability to stay on track in order to ensure that we made it through every activity and conversation that she had thoughtfully planned out.  We covered so many great topics, but by far my absolute favorite part of the workshop was being able to watch Michele in her element, photographing a family.  Michele is an extremely warm, talented, and caring person who has a gift of putting those around her at ease, so the opportunity to watch her capture a family so authentically was incredibly inspiring and beautiful.

Michele’s Pinkle Toes Workshop offers something for everyone.  Whether you are new to photography or have been in business for  years, as long as you are open to learning, you will surely walk away with new inspiration, techniques, and business tips.  And chances are, you’ll also probably learn from the other talented photographers attending the workshop while making a few new friends, too.  Michele was an open book, encouraging questions and feedback constantly.  I can confidently say that I left the workshop happy and fulfilled with the knowledge that I had hoped to gain.  Even now, months later, I still refer back to the notes that I took while there.  I have recently opened the doors to my photography business and am no longer nervous, but actually excited to watch it blossom.  I owe a large part of that to Michele and her amazing mentorship.

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and heart with me, Michele!  I appreciate it more than you know!

Courtney…thank YOU from the bottom of my heart for taking the time to share your inspiring and heartfelt words. I am so happy to have met you and I’m sorry it took me so long to properly thank you for your note.

And now a few images of Courtney in action at the workshop:

Plus, I *think* I spy Casey in that adorable red and white striped shirt, who happens to be our awesome hostess for the Olympia, Washington workshop this summer! We still have a few openings left for Olympia, Cardiff (near San Diego, CA), Mendocino (near San Francisco, CA), and my home base, Austin, Texas.

———–

*April Special Offer: This offer cannot be combined with other discounts. To receive the rebate, BOTH parties must attend a Pinkle Toes U.S. Workshop in 2014, but it does not have to be the same workshop. Several friends may book together, but it’s a max $200 rebate per person. Offer good through April 30th, 2014. Sorry, no rainchecks for sold out workshops.

Was this really back in January? It truly doesn’t even seem like it was that long ago. What a FANTASTIC workshop group we had here and if it looks like we were having a blast in these pictures, it’s true…we did! Our in home newborn session demonstration was a dream and can you even believe the smile on that precious baby girl? (see it bigger). And, of course, there’s one pic not shown here. If you want to see that one, you’ll have to go HERE.

We had an equally amazing photo session with our family in downtown Austin later that evening:

Quick story: a workshop attendee asked me to demonstrate some poses with people lying down, so we had mom + daughter lay down on the ground for us. I asked them to get a little closer and they ended up with the worst forehead bump:

OMG! I felt soooooooo bad, but at least we all had a good laugh (cry?) over it.

And, some more fun random pics from the workshop:

Goodness me! What a talented and fun and smart and witty group of ladies! Each time I would open up a folder of pics sent my them, my jaw would just hit the floor. Man they rocked it! Check out their sites here:

• Kami Friday Photography – NH and Northern New Englandwww.kamifridayphotography.com
• The Life in Your Years Photography – NYC, Westchester County and Southern Connecticut http://www.thelifeinyouryearsphotography.com
• Little Branch Photo – Houston, TX – www.littlebranchphoto.com
• Paula Scherr Photography – Edmonton, Alberta Canadawww.paulascherrphoto.com
• Caroline Martin Photography – San Diego, CAwww.CarolineMartinPhotography.com
• Photo Jolie – Dallas, Texas www.photojolie.com/
• Laurie Herrera Photography – Dallas, Texas www.laurieherreraphoto.com

The ONLY workshop I have coming up with openings is in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in August. That is it. I know many folks have requested to be on wait lists for St. Louis and Charlotte, but that list is really long :-(. Oh, did I mention that we are planning a MAJOR Pinkle Toes Photography Workshop reunion in New York City in Spring of 2014? Very excited about that…loads of fun activities are in the works as well as a charity project. (Check out my post from Chicago’s reunion last summer…that should give you an idea of the whirlwind to expect ;-). 

Finally on the blog!!! Yay!!!! This workshop was the perfect way to kick of 2013! On day one, we all got to finally meet and chit chat and had fun playing with sunflare and headshots. After a laaaaaaaate night 😉 it was early to rise for an amazing in-home lifestyle newborn session demonstration:

Later that afternoon, we headed into downtown Austin to experiment photographing a family in an urban setting:

It was so crazy…it was sunny, sunny, sunny all day long and then wooosh! All of a sudden, in true Austin fashion, the wind picked up and the sun disappeared and we were out in the elements like Nat Geo photogs ;-). By the by, you should know that I don’t believe I’ve ever worked with siblings who were as connected and fun-loving as those two cuties were. They made me look really good that day. A little too good 😉

I present to you the Pinkle Toes Graduating Class of January 2013! Sharp looking group, huh? When you get some time, I highly recommend you check these ladies out:

• Sabrina K Photography Pearland and Houston, TX: http://sabrinakphotography.com/blog
• Captured by Chrissy in McKinney, TX: http://capturedbychrissy.com/blog
• Beth Fenwick in San Francisco Bay Area, Redwood City, CA: http://bethfenwick.com
• Claire Hill Photography in  Houston and The Woodlands, TX:  http://www.clairehillphotography.com/blog
• Leslie Clawson Photography in Frisco TX: http://www.leslieclawsonphotography.com
• CK Design & Photography in MA http://ckdesignphoto.blog.com/
• Dear Ellison Photography in San Antonio, TX and surrounding areas: https://www.facebook.com/dearellisonphotography

Sadly, I don’t have any more workshops coming up in Austin (no room in my schedule ;-(). If we missed you, you can always chat with me about the Toronto, Canada workshop this August (very much looking forward to that one…my very first visit to Canada!) or if that’s too far for you, maybe we can talk about online mentoring.

See? Told ya. Here’s another one that made me say, “Awwww.” Our photo session had to be rescheduled and rescheduled and rescheduled (once because of a football injury resulting in the scar above his eye 😉 and as fate would have it, I’m SO glad we had to wait because otherwise, I would never have gotten the chance to photograph these two together. It wasn’t that long ago when I had the privilege of taking his sister’s senior pictures and now here we were, a few years later, back on South Congress to capture another monumental milestone for him (and his mom ;-). Senior portraits are always a little bittersweet to me: I LOVE working with subjects who actually stay where you tell them to stay (LOL) and it’s always a fun shoot, but I always picture myself in this very position in just a few years…watching my own children having their senior portraits taken and I can’t help but get a bit choked up at that thought. Thank you, Marianne, for (unknowingly) paving the way for me and for letting me see just how amazing parents can nurture and help develop AMAZING young adults.

Ah, yes! I forgot I wanted to show you these fun behind-the-scenes images his mom took during the session. You can check those out HERE. Did I mention that I LOVE pull backs?! Love it!

…things aren’t always hunky-dory. I find it somewhat humorous that one of my most “liked” images on Facebook came from a session where sooooooo many tears were shed. Bless her heart, for as adorable as she was (and as STUNNING as everyone looked), it was just NOT baby girl’s morning that day. Somehow, we managed to get through (and mom, we have *plenty* of wonderful images coming your way). Will blog more soon, just thought this was a nice reminder of how much effort can go on behind-the-scenes (moms, dads, and photographers alike) to create images that look effortless.

The Back-to-School mini sessions were nothing short of incredible! Even after shooting *all* day, I left Gro yesterday with a spring in my step, a huge smile on my face, and my heart full of joy–joy for the fact that everyone donated SOOO many school supplies to our school supply drive (this image doesn’t even come close to showing everything that was donated); joy because I was lucky enough to reconnect with an old college roommate whom I hadn’t seen for well over a decade; joy because I just spent the last several days working side-by-side w/ my mom; joy because I got to meet so many new clients; and joy because I got to see so many of my past clients. Thank you isn’t enough, really. I’m so looking forward to turning this into an annual tradition and making it bigger and better every year. Mark your calendars, everyone. August is going to be Back-to-School month for Pinkle Toes from now on!

But for now, I have a TON of e-mail and proofing and laundry and snuggles to catch up on, so thank you so much in advance for your patience as I start to return back to the real Pinkle Toes world ;-).

So when his mommy told me that he was on the move and full of energy, I thought, “That’s cool. I can handle that.” But see that little sweaty-boy-head? Trust me, Nina and I probably had it 10x worse trying to keep up with him, LOL! I like a challenge, though, and I like having to think on my feet and move quickly to capture what I’m seeing and anticipate what I’m about to see, so thanks, little man, for making sure we were on our toes!

This was session #2 of my one-on-one photography coaching session w/ Nina from Singapore. So funny how Austin was in this long, horrible dry spell until all of a sudden, I need to be shooting outdoors and then it decides to POUR! Lucky us, we had a small break in the storms this evening. Lucky us, the rain cooled things off a bit and provided a bit of a reward for us all at the end of our session.

Behind-the-scenes:

And one more here.

After our busy day of shooting and talking and all things photography, Nina and I treated ourselves to a fab dinner at Chuy’s (she had never had Tex-Mex before!). As we were pulling into the restaurant, the sun came out and we had the most wonderful light. Couldn’t resist:

Isn’t she purdy?

I mean, seriously? How did he get to be so lucky as to be born with those amazing locks? He was an absolute perfect little newborn baby for what I believe was his 2nd or 3rd newborn photo session, LOL. Loved his expressive eyes and little chunky thighs! For the last shots, mom had pulled out part of her wedding dress. I was trying to figure out how to use it (it was a bit scratchy to wrap him it it) when we decided to shoot through it. I loved how those turned out!!

This session was actually part of a one-on-one photography mentoring session I had put together for Nina all the way from Singapore! Did you see the shot she took from this session HERE? WOW!!! I was a little nervous about doing this kind of thing because I had never done any one-on-one mentoring before, but Nina convinced me to give it a go. Our time together was too short and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Nina and her work and finding ways to help her grow her own business. Here’s Nina in action at this shoot:

More images from our other adventures together will be coming soon and Nina, I mean it…it was a pleasure hanging out with you and I very much look forward to visiting you again someday! Photogs: if you would like to be notified of possible future photography workshops and coaching, drop a line.