Every single second of this Austin urban family photo shoot was fun, dynamic, and full of love and energy. And that’s extra impressive because we meet up at about 6:30 in the morning to take these photos. I was TOTALLY impressed with how everyone rallied and even more amazed there was really no posing and not much direction required. They were amazingly skilled at just being themselves, something that isn’t necessarily easy for kids or grown ups to do. This was definitely my kind of photo session! One of my many many favs HERE.

Oh, wait! *I’m* not saying goodbye to Austin…but I am sad to know this family is. I’ve been fortunate enough to get to work with them a couple of times during their short time living here and it was my honor to help them document their life in this wonderful city. I know they are probably busy packing right now, but I hope they get a few minutes before the big move to see these images that will hopefully commemorate Austin for them and their children.

I definitely hope they never forget how much fun they had here…

at the gorgeous parks.

Always remember those big, blue,

beautiful Texas skies.

The wildflowers, sigh.

Golden sunsets.

Oh, yes, never forget the grackles 😉 and yummy treats!

Doesn’t THIS look tasty?

And magical sparkles in the water.

Most of all, never forget that no matter where you are, home is where you are loved.

I wish you all the best on the upcoming move and come back and visit Austin any time, y’all (I had to throw one in there ;-).

{Hair and makeup by Katie at Modern Muse Beauty}

I met them a couple of years ago when they were expecting their very first baby. They had planned this lovely “babymoon” in Austin and oh, my goodness, it was like we chatted forever about so many things after we finished our session. I love when you get to feel a connection like that to a family. Naturally, when I saw them again for holiday pics at the end of last year, I was ELATED to learn they were expecting again. She mentioned in passing that they thought it might be twins, so I kinda fell on the floor when it was confirmed a short time later. I mean, can you EVEN believe there are two babies in there???? My favorite maternity portrait HERE. She was positively glowing when I visited them a few weeks ago. I cannot get over how amazing and happy she looks thanks to some inspiring health changes. And it’s been such a wonderful thing to watch them on their journey to parenthood and now into twin parenthood. They are going to do amazingly well and big sister is going to LOVE those sweet babies so much. I cannot wait to meet them and of course hold some twin babes again ;-).

Beth is a beautiful person with a radiant smile. Her son’s laughter is completely contagious. And her hubby is so incredibly patient while letting us play at our photo sessions. And everyone was beyond patient as we tried to get this photo session actually to happen! Every now and then, I’ll travel to the Houston area and usually, it’s not a big production. But it seems like for this trip, each time I would pack up and get ready to leave, there would be torrential rain and historic flooding. So, about a month after we had actually planned to do this photo shoot, we were able to get together. I’m glad we waited it out because we could not have asked for more amazing weather or more beautiful blue skies!

Flowers = gorgeous. Mosquitoes = annoying. But everyone is still smiling!

Ohhhhhh…that one up there through the jasmine? Look at his look…his smize…the protective love he has for his mommy in those eyes and in those hands that still have a trace of baby chub.

And I was LOVING the colors and patterns here!

Mr. Man decided he wanted to play hide-and-seek with us. I’m certain you won’t be able to find him…

Meghan Trainor look-alike, no?

Favity fav from this session is a tie between that jasmine photo and this one HERE.

Seriously, he can have anything he wants. Those sparkly eyes! His coy smile! What a charmer!

In the world of Pinkle Toes, this was everything a family photo session should be: genuine, dynamic, fun, meaningful, vibrant, colorful, quirky, energetic, and full of LOVE. I really feel like they nailed it with their choice of location, style, wardrobe, and the overall feel of their session. What radiant smiles!! You can’t help but to smile along with them. Another favity fav can be found HERE (Pinkle Toes signature blue sky, green grass, and negative space;-).

Things you should know about this session:

1. These boys got to be 100% themselves. Pretty much everything you see up there are things that *they* invented…including the heart shadow.

2. They kept me on my toes. But that’s good because it allowed me to get creative.

3. They are amazing brothers and get along so incredibly well. Yeah…I may have a bit of envy in wishing my boys loved each other as much as these two do ;-).

Favity fav from their photo shoot HERE.

As I’m gearing up for the FINAL Pinkle Toes Photography Workshop of 2016 [by the way, there is ONE opening left and the workshop is THIS weekend], I wanted to take some time to reflect on how much we accomplished during the February workshop. Day one was spent getting to know one another, talking all things pricing and marketing and branding and then playing around taking headshots in a lovely winter sunset. We tried to go to bed early because day two is always super busy, starting with hanging out with this adorable little guy and his amazing parents for the in-home newborn lifestyle photo session demonstration:

He was such a sweetie and gave us plenty of chances for all of the attendees to step in and take their own versions of the shots we set up during the session:

And I loved that his family wanted to take a group photo with all of us at the end of our fabulous morning. Sigh…

After re-fueling on some food and re-grouping, we went out that evening for an urban-ish, outdoor lifestyle family photo shoot. I’ve known this mama for several years so it was a wonderful experience to get to see her with her family. What a dynamic group full of personality and love! We hunkered down inside the parking garage for a little bit and then braved the wind to get more images closer to sunset. It provided us with perfect opportunities to practice in all kinds of lighting situations.

How to use shadows and light to your benefit. And then, below, embracing full sun and making it work for you.

I’m pretty sure I teared up when this image came across the screen as we culled them following the session.

That sunflare…YESSSSS! And they were just so cute together!

Finally, on the last day, we were up much, much too early to catch an incredible (albeit, chilly) sunrise for our maternity model photo session. So fantastic walking around and observing the attendees who were able to take chances and discover new skills, practicing with different lenses and techniques. I was very impressed with the images they created for our models!

Here they are…the Pinkle Toes Workshop Class of Feb 2016:

Good looking group, no? And great personalities and energy to match. They made it a fantastic weekend for us all!

And now, please if you will, go on over to Missy Mayo – Dallas Family Portraits and check out her take on the workshop (that’s Missy up on the left, by the way 😉 Loved what she told me the other day about the Pinkle Toes Workshop:

I was warned that this workshop would ruin me for all other future workshops. It is true. Every aspect of being a photographer is covered – even the parts you don’t consider. I came home with a revived passion for my art and business and pages of ideas to try.

I’ve worked with him and his family for years. It was jarring to me realizing that this would be the year we would have to do SENIOR PORTRAITS. While no tears were shed at the session itself, I know that this journey is going to be equal parts thrilling and heartbreaking for his mama. I may or may not have gotten choked up a couple of times imagining myself in her shoes in just a few very short years. And whoa…I know she has GOT to be so incredibly proud of him!

Listening to the soft sounds of him playing the ukulele at the end of our session was a tremendous treat. The joy on his face and the feeling of peace that washed over all of us, I will never forget. My absolute FAV image during this time is HERE.

This silhouette might be my second favorite image from our private concert.

But THIS was definitely my favorite moment of the entire session right here. His mom’s look. Sigh…

And speaking of his mama, the session in her words:

1) Tell us a little bit about your family… Its just the three of us – Preston, Parker and myself. Life raising two boys has been such an adventure. I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.
2) What made you decide this was the time to do a photo session? Were you marking any special occasion, etc? For Preston’s Senior portraits, I had no hesitation in booking Michele. It is such a bittersweet time – with Preston being my first born leaving for college. She has captured my family so perfectly, I would entrust no one else for a time as important as this.
3) Where was your session held and why? We held the session in downtown Austin. We have done a family shoot on South Congress (a favorite spot of ours) and one in Georgetown where we live. Preston loves the urban setting of downtown Austin, and despite of where he decides to spend his next four (or six!) years – Austin will always be *home* and he has always said he wants to come back to Austin at some point after he starts his career. We wanted the backdrops of his shoot to mirror the different shades of his personality and his passions. Knowing that there might not be too many other opportunities for a portrait session with him by himself – a senior portrait is much more significant than just about a kid graduating from high school. It captures that moment of transition from childhood to adulthood. It captures 18. It captures those last moments that a senior has at home before taking those significant next steps in life.
4) What did you like about your session location? I was thankful that Michele was able to find a location for us that in a short amount of time gave us such varied backdrops for Preston’s shoot. It will give Preston and I so much to choose from. In coming to know my family and describing Preston’s personality and passions, she was able to choose a location that would be the best fit.
5) What was your favorite part of your session? My favorite part was watching Michele enjoy Preston playing the ukelele during the shoot. Not just posing with it. I loved watching her ridiculous and awesome creative skill kick in – working to capture his personality.
6) Was there anything you were nervous or worried about before the session? Not one thing.
7) Any advice to other families before their photo sessions? Trust Michele. Let her do her magic. Follow her advice. Enjoy it. It is an investment you will never regret.
8) What made you choose Pinkle Toes Photography? I was a portrait photographer when my babies were babies. I am very particular and know what I want the end result of a shoot to be. In researching photographers after I moved to Austin, Michele stood out amongst them all. Her shoots capture personality. Capture life. Capture relationships.
9) What do you hope your kids/family will say years down the road when looking at these images? It’s not even a hope…I *know* that years down the road, we will look back and the series of photos of each shoot will take us back to that time in our lives. The images are like a little time capsule of memories that we will have to treasure forever. My only regret is not discovering Michele and her talent 10 years ago.

…we braved the cold and explored South Congress. I love that we got to see so many new places that I hadn’t really photographed before. It’s pretty amazing that for as long as I’ve been taking pictures in Austin, we can still find something new…a different perspective…something unique to the area and to the subject. Her smile is absolutely gorgeous and she just naturally lovely and radiant and graceful. What a pleasure to get to commemorate her senior year with this photo session! One of my favs HERE.

Sometimes, Austin falls into this gloomy little weather pattern and it seems like every day is met with overcast skies and drizzle. We’ve had her senior portraits planned forever, but sure enough, the morning of our shoot was chilly, overcast, and there was the ever-present drizzle (I wonder if this is what it’s like to live in Seattle?). But Ally’s fun personality and roll-with-it attitude brightened our entire session. She brought such a positive energy and I had no choice but to giggle with her (and her parents who were goofing off in the background to keep her laughing). As funny as she is, she’s also incredibly graceful and it was quite the treat to have her en pointe in the middle of Congress Ave! I posted this image already, but this one is probably my fav ;-). Best of luck to you, Ally, as you finish up your senior year in high school! Your personality is going to serve you well as you pursue your dreams, my dear, I have no doubts!