Summertime Family Photos at the Lake | Cass Lake MN Photographer Norway Beach Resort
Sunrise Session at the farm.
MN Snowy Winter Engagement Session | Lake Bemidji State Park Couple
I had the privilege of photographing this energetic couple! I’m so grateful to have met them. What a fun pair! They brought a few outfit changes, we played with layers and a blanket, switched out boots, hats, and tromped in the snow a bit. It was a fun way to stretch my photography muscles for the cold afternoon. And, it was great weather, too! Take a look at her gorgeous rose-gold ring in a stunning setting of smaller diamonds. GORGEOUS.
Family Lifestyle Images : Storytelling in Nature
If you know me or my kids, you know that we spend an exuberant amount of time out of doors. In our homeschool life, we get outside every day. We play, explore, work… It’s a vivid part of our routine. And we are so grateful! Sometimes I bring my camera along and capture the mundane and ordinary moments. #documentordinary
Lifestyle Photography at Home PART 3 THE KIDS TOYS AND THINGS | photos moms and dads can take
Document your life. Part 3
When Families look back at photographs and memories from years past, there is a much richer story to the little details than there is when you see a picture of everyone dressed pristinely with smiles directed at the camera. Those a lovely images. But what makes a memory come back is when you can see the details. I’m adding a little more examples into each post I’m doing in this series, to try to help families. Help a mom or a dad capture the ordinary, everyday moments.
The details make a memory come to life.
The chubby little fingers. Scrawny legs. Summer scratches on their summer knees. Remembering the smells and sounds of those days… that’s what we want. When you document your every day life, you’re going to capture those memories clearer! Keep snapping pictures of the little things.
PART ONE In the Last post, I shared with you some photos from the couch of the elusive toddler NAPTIME.
PART THREE TODAY, I am going to share with you some photos and ideas of ways you can capture their actual things.
DOCUMENT THEIR ACTUAL THINGS
Taking pictures of their Toys, Baskets, Shoes, or whatever it is that will someday remind you of these days. You’ll want to find ways to remind
Look for things they hold or wear… The snakes the catch. The crocs they live in. The fruit snacks they ask for every day. The paw patrol. The Lego. The popsicles and around here: freezees! The goggles. The little things… That’s what you can focus on for this piece of documentation!
Remember, Capture it as it is.
Don’t get caught up trying to make it look different than it is. Sure, you can tidy up, or pick the angle and the composition to simplify it, but any picture taken will be better than none!
So, whatever you do to document the little years, just document it. It’s fast, fleeting and so full of beauty and learning! And remember, even something as simple as the couch, a walk outside or sneaking into to their bedroom when they don’t see you coming do a wonderful job canning those memories up for you to enjoy again and again!
Be sure to check out the other posts in the series DOCUMENTING LIFE, Pictures parents can take!
PART ONE In the first post, I shared with you some photos from the couch of the elusive toddler NAPTIME.
Lifestyle Photography at Home PART 2 NATURE WALK | photos moms and dads can take
Document your life.
I said this in the first post too: When Families look back at photographs and memories from years past, there is a much richer story to the little details than there is when you see a picture of everyone dressed pristinely with smiles directed at the camera. Those a lovely images. But what makes a memory come back is when you can see the details. I’m adding a little more examples into each post I’m doing in this series, to try to help families. Help a mom or a dad capture the ordinary, everyday moments.
The details make a memory come to life.
The chubby little fingers. Scrawny legs. Summer scratches on their summer knees. Remembering the smells and sounds of those days… that’s what we want. When you document your every day life, you’re going to capture those memories clearer! Keep snapping pictures of the little things.
THIS IS PART OF a FOUR PART SERIES exploring examples in storytelling. Be sure to click over and read the other three posts with photographs documenting life at home in the little years.
In the FIRST post, I shared with you some photos from the couch of the elusive toddler NAPTIME.
TODAY, I’m sharing with you a NATURE WALK WITH THE KIDS.
I wanted to share a nature walk for a few reasons. Primarily, Getting kids outside is always a good idea. Next, taking a walk down the driveway or through the field is something we do every day. I want to remember the kids in their element, doing things that we do! Lastly, Watching children delight in the exploration and discovery that nature affords is just a really easy way to get some distance, boost their interest in what’s a hand, and get natural smiles, moans or other emotions. As a bonus, you feel better and learn something every time you go on a walk in nature. Enjoy!
A walk at home, looking at bugs, and spiders.
Swinging on scraggly tree limbs wet with dew.
Running with the dog.
Snatching up handfuls of too-short-stemmed “flowers” for you.
These are the little details you want to remember and will be capturing if you focus on letting your kids do their thing, not saying “Look!” “Hey, over here, Smile!”
Nope.
Just walk behind them a ways, letting them explore.
Wait for moments when the squat down to inspect a creation.
Watch for the little squeals of delight when a butterfly flutters by.
Catch the moments of “in-between” but try let the moment happen naturally, without creating the moment.
****Additional Thought: Oh, and did you see those pictures of me here, too? Getting in the frame with kids is quick and easy if you learn how to set your timer. (on my canon it’s just two clicks away to the 10-sec timer.) But this step also got easier when I taught my kids how to handle the big camera. They’re better at it than with a phone. No more fingers in the way and more likely to focus on the subject. Oh, and they usually take it more seriously when I give them the real camera, and don’t snap nine hundred images in bursts like they would on my iPhone. Insert eyeroll emoji.
ENJOY!
As I mentioned in the previous post, it is so helpful to have a goal in mind in taking pictures, but you don’t have to have it just right, you just have to have it! Capture it as it is.
Don’t get caught up trying to make it look different than it is. Sure, you can pick the angle and the composition to simplify it, but any picture will be better than none!
So, whatever you do to document the little years, just document it. It’s fast, fleeting and so full of beauty and learning! And remember, even something as simple as a walk outside does a wonderful job canning those memories up for you to enjoy again and again!
Again, this is part of a four-part blog post series focusing on parents documenting their life with kids in the little years. Each of these posts offer a quick tip to just take the picture, each post focusing on a different tip.
Be sure to check out the others in this Document Life series with examples of how to take pictures of your kids when they aren’t looking!
PART ONE In the first post, I shared with you some photos from the couch of the elusive toddler NAPTIME.
PART TWO Here I shared with you a NATURE WALK WITH THE KIDS where we hiked out and found some raspberries.
Summer Photo Vibes | Greens and Yellows Inspiration for your photo session or mood board.
I TOOK A WALK AND WENT TO LOOK FOR INSPIRATION FOR SOME UPCOMING SUMMER PHOTO SESSIONS FEATURING MUSTARD YELLOW TONES. THERE WAS SO MUCH TO BE FOUND!
Springtime in MN | Bemidji MN Cass Lake Minnesota Photographer
Lifestyle Family Photography | Hello Storyteller Cass Lake MN Bemidji Minnesota Walker MN Photographer
Summer knees. 
Puddle Jumping.
Rain Catching.
Dragon slaying.
Iceland: Day 1 | Travel to Snæfellsnes
In September, my sister led me on a fascinating 3-day adventure heading North from Reykjavik to the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. We stayed at a modern and beautifully scenic Airbnb at Stóri Kambur, where we rode Icelandic Horses. On the beach. At Sunset. With rainbows. And dogs. And Sun rays. And the glacier. And mountains. and… and… did I mention I rode horse (named Elvis) in the ocean!? Such an exhilarating experience.
We toured the most western part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula, driving around the Snæfellsjökull glacier. The glacier lies within the national park, and the park is the only Icelandic national park that stretches to the sea. Along with getting a few times to view the otherwise hidden-in-the-clouds snow, we enjoyed seeing such sights as waterfalls, basalt column cliff sides, mountains, and lava. Lava, formed into vast fields of rugged moss-covered boulders was colorful and added more texture to the already rugged terrain. The fish soup we ate at a quaint library/cafe/musuem in a small fishing village was incredible. The city was called Grundarfjörður. And, if we had to move there, it would not be a disappointment.
This is post 2 of my trip. (Read Post 1, here)
Iceland, Day 1
As we drove north from Reykjavik, I couldn’t help but ooooh and ahhh at every tree we passed. It was funny. I live in the Northwoods, so I see trees all day, everyday. But in a vast land, rugged and wild, there is so little provision for a tree, that there aren’t many. We saw them in clusters, though, and I found several photos of them on my computer when I got home. I guess I was thrilled for this country, this arctic island, to be able to sustain more life than I expected, and subconsciously documented it while my sister drove our little car around on the typical, two-lane, dark pavement rode of Iceland.
I enjoyed the Icelandic language very much. My childhood gave me a keen interest for world culture and language. I saw resemblance to Norwegian, Swedish, English, and perhaps some Finnish (since that’s the Scandinavian language I know best, but isn’t as similar as Norwegian). For example, just knowing roots of words helped read signs, and mainly, guess at what things meant. I’m a nerd, and thoroughly enjoyed this brain-quiz while I was traveling.
