WizBlog

fabulous fifteen | happy happy birthday!

We knew right away she was "one of ours" when we could carry on a two-way conversation, even on subjects where we had differing opinions. Quite a treat!

Miss J has been having some medical issues that need attention. She's sad to spend her special day in the hospital. :( But she also knows that when she is released, her quality of life will be so much better. So *waving* a big ol' HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY to her!

Meet Joey - a Portland girl who has discovered the very special magic of our south Orange County coast.

Joey was our designated hat-pose experiment model that day. We'd say she's a Hat Natural!

And one with her darlin' mom -

Be good to yourself, Miss J. We're thinking of you on your fifteenth birthday!

Party of six

"Life is built around experience with others; our foundation is always family." ~ Jill Davis

And now the rest of the story! Grab a cup o' sumthin - and watch the story of the darlin' R family unfold.

Jumping right into the fun!

Check out Miss C's hair. Beyond gorgeous! To quote the Beatles, "There's something in the way she smiles ..."

To keep the two youngest  ones engaged, we break out the bubbles. It is so sweet to see the big girls helping out the little ones.

OK, then comes the inevitable - capturing all four together. As if often, it works best to get the *sillies* out of the way.

Once we get them warmed up, look how precioud the result is! Awwwwww ....

On to capturing each personality. Little Miss N the Younger, a quietly precocious cutie, just exuded personality and affection. What a beguiling face -

Now a little time alone with Miss N the Elder - full to the brim with charm and personality!

Look at her! With no hesitation, she hoists our bigger 5D with its heavy 70-200 lens like a champ - including perfect 'vertical' form - and starts working on our inevitable *photographer's face* right from the start - LOL.

She's got a great eye. Here's how she sees her lovely mom. Portrait made by Miss N (with just a little of Wizzy's digital fairy dust) -

Dad Mike is an exceptional parent. Patient, relaxed and always smiling, he obviously adores being his kids' dad. And their feeling is mutual! After a few shots of them together, with no prompting, dad pulled this cap - "Daddy's Little Helper" - out of his poket. Li'l G donned the cap with relish - proud to look just like dad. Hard for the photographer to shoot when she's all teary-eyed.

In keeping with a WizWog tradition (tho to  mom Kristi's horror), we hand the camera with the shorter lens to 4YO Miss N. While mom supported the heavy equipment from the bottom, she aimed toward us - with this result one of our all-time favorites.We love our Kid Pix!

The affection and mutual respect between this sweet couple is heartwarming.

Watch here tomorrow as we unfold the sweetness of this infatuation:

Simply family

"Military life is not for the faint of heart. It is for those who are proud, determined and dedicated to the ideals we hold dear. Freedom, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are the building blocks of humanity. ~ David White

Just one for now for a beguiling OpLove family of six.
(this one's for you, mom Kristi)
We suspect this one may be on the short list for their Christmas card.

Watch here tomorrow for the rest of the heartwarming images of this delightful session.

gorgeous maternity (post revision)

Note: Apologies for the incomplete post from 9/8. It was a Typepad user glitch, which we have now corrected. Your patience is appreciated.

"A mother's joy begins when new life is stirring inside ... when a tiny heartbeat is heard for the very first time and a playful kick reminds her that she is never alone."

How lucky are we - last week a lovely brunette, this week a beautiful blond.

A few from this late afternoon session - natural light from a southwest facing sliding door. This Arizona mommy-to-be, due next month with baby Isaac, has that soft maternal glow, wouldn't you agree?

Special thanks to our Mr. Woggy for moving patio chairs and a heavy tile table so we could create this gorgeous high-key shilhouette.

We thought we were going to shoot these full-length shots on the dining room table, but the natural inside light just wasn't there. So we went outdoor and just turned that tile patio table around to capture the soft glow of the late afternoon sun.

Big-sis-to-be, Miss K, was just so cute snuggling with mommy and baby Isaac.

9/11/01 - Lest we forget

"They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them."

Remembering lives lost & heroic sacrifices made
On September 11, 2001 America remembers the innocent who lost their lives in the most barbaric attack in our Nation's history. We remember the heroic men and women who risked and sacrificed their lives so others might survive.

Our thoughts and prayers for peace and comfort to the families and friends of those who were lost, and we honor the selfless men and women of our Armed Forces, the dedicated members of our law enforcement and intelligence communities, and the thousands of others at the loca, State and Federal levels who protect our country, secure our liberty, and work to prevent future attacks.

Family Fun

"Family - the greatest gift I ever received from God."

What do two photographers from south Orange County do when they visit another city? Make more fresh, fun family portraits, of course!

A few of our favorites from this darlin' family's outdoors lifestyle session. We had a great time discovering fabulous locations in the park and nearby Bellevue city streets.

Focus on mom and dad -

Just the girls -

One that makes us grin - tickle time with daddy -

Our signature jump shot - done by this fun family, Washington State urban style -

Miss D of the gorgeous blue eyes. And of course, another one of Wizzy's Own: A redhead -

And Miss B with the sparkling personality -

Finally, late afternoon city sidewalk artistry -

Behind the scenes

Some of the most fun things our families remember about their portrait session are the behind the scenes moments that make their session memories unique. Our most important goal is to give them an an experience of the Wizzy experience.

On a trip a few weeks ago to Seattle to visit grandchildren, we agreed to do a lifestyle session for the family of a fellow photographer who we'd come to know in an online professional photography forum. Erin is such a lovely person, and we were delighted to get to meet her and her family IRL (online forum shorthand for 'in real life - LOL).

Here are two Before & Afters that make us smile -

On this one we had been shooting some of mom and dad laying on the ground next to each other, then surprised the kids by calling them over with, "Run on over and dogpile on top of mom and dad." After an initial "are you serious?" look, they responded enthusiastically -

Snuggling in - still giggling. Now here's a family portrait that will always make them smile with the memory of the experience -

 

Then these these two. In keeping with our non-traditional style, we set up this shot (Woggy's creation, by the way) to keep the girls engaged more with each other than the camera. We also wanted mom and dad in the picture interacting, but with the girls as the stars.

And the final shot -

Watch tomorrow for the rest of the session with the L family - just as refreshingly authentic and fun as this wonderful family!

On determination

[note to our valued WizBlog subscribers - Click on the link below to read this blog entry and see the embedded video]

"The question isn't who is going to let me; it's who is going to stop me." ~ Ayn Rand

A few random thoughts on determination.

There are many simple things availabe in life which have the power to completely transform us. They could not only change our life, but also have the power to change other lives. They are some of the initial ingredients for success. One of them is determination. The stronger the determination of a person, the more successful he will be in life. It seems safe to say that the vast majority of the people who fail in life generally lack a strong determination to succeed.

Those who succeed in life are not extraordinary human beings. They are as simple as we are; however they are highly determined to reach their goals. Determination provides us with a strong force which helps us reach those goals. Many talents fail in this world because they do not have strong determination required for success.

The WizWog family values and greatly admires determination. We notice that some folks unfortunately mis-perceive 'determination' as  'stubborn.'

The dictionary defines 'stubborn' as 'unreasonably or perversely unyielding,' while 'determination' is defined as a 'firm or fixed intention to achieve a desired end.' It seems pretty clear - one is negative, one is positive.

What can you gain with determination today? What is to be lost by acting stubborn?

Check out this little guy - the picture of determination!

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

expecting Baby Hero

"I can be your hero, baby
I can kiss away the pain.
I will stand by you forever
You can take my breath away."

Nearly two years ago we first became a part of the community service organization of our hearts, Operation: Love ReUnited, the international organization whose goal is to provide complimentary professional family portraits with a patriotic edge to members of our U.S. Armed Forces, at a homecoming, or before, during or after a deployment.

"If you have ever been through a military deployment, there are no words to explain how hard it is to send the father or mother of your children off to some foreign, dangerous land, leaving you all behind ... alone," OpLove's site explains.

We explain our dedication to this amazing organization to our new clients this way:
"We are a three-generation military family. Paul is a proud 27-1/2 year U.S. Marine Corps fighter pilot with Vietnam combar experience, so we are acutely aware of the deep sacrifices made by members of our armed forces and their families. Nancy has been deeply committed with not-for-profit organizations for more than 35 years. Both of us are proud flag-waving patriots who believe in the importance of showing appreciation for our active military's service keeping our great country safe, secure and free."

Our first OpLove homecoming family holds a special place in our hearts. In March 2007 we stood next to Carol as we waited together on a Camp Pendleton crowded parade ground for Justin's return from Iraq. What a scene it was!

Here's the slideshow: Justin & Carol - Homecoming

Fast forward to February 2008. Justin is deployed, once again proudly serving his country. But things are a little different with their family. They are newly expecting. Awwwwww.

Now, most everyone who knows us knows we luuuuuv surprises.
So, to our hero Justin, this one's for you.

Here's mama-to-be, Miss Carol, and baby Marley Jean, due in October, just a few weeks after Justin's September return home. Aren't they beautiful?

Tattoo tribute to Carol's late mom Jean, looking down from Heaven on her soon-to-be-born granddaughter.

A special, sassy salute to daddy-to-be Justin and his Marine brothers - and a big ol' Semper Fi! from Wizzy and Col. Paul as well.

PS A special thanks to Justin's mom and dad for graciously opening their home to us for Carol's maternity session - even moving patio furniture and helping hold backdrops!

independent thinkers

"Follow the path of the unsafe, independent hinker. Expose your ideas to the dangers of controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of 'crackpot' than the stigma of conformity. And on issues that seem important to you, stand up and be counted at any cost."  ~Thomas J. Watson

We in the WizWog family pride ourselves on being independent thinkers. We like to assess situations and items, factor in our experience and other evidence, then make an educated decision. Mindlessly following crowds or fads just isn't our style. At least most of the time ...

"I'm going down to the AT&T store," I wake to at 6:45 a.m. on July 11, "just to see how many people are in line."

It took a moment to shake out a sleep-fogged brain and realize what's happening. My favorite early adapter and tech junkie, our own Woggy, is actually going to expose himself to the risk of *gasp* a fad at the AT&T store - the day the G3 iPhone (version 2) is delivered.

No, no, Mr. Wogg! Resist the urge - don't go there!!

Alas, two hours later, Wizzy's trip to Starbuck's for coffee and doughnuts to keep up Woggy's strength during his early morning vigil, standing in a line that wraps clear around the building, and discussions about the earlier version of the iPhone with others in line.


Next thing we know we're carrying out two of the 30 iPhones allocated to our local AT&T store.



Whooda thunk it of two Independent Thinkers? *snort*