This week’s photo challenge is props, fun! It’s pretty fitting, since Sam has been totally into being a pirate lately. I didn’t even have to convince him. And, there are a ton of beautiful props for girls, but I think there are just as many fun things for boys to throw in the mix, especially if you let them help in the process. Arrr!!

As usual, you should totally check out I Heart Faces and all the other talented folks’ entries!

Amanda!!!

I will get your name and email off to Clickin Moms and they should be contacting you shortly. Enjoy!

Thanks to everyone who played along-wishing you all blue skies and sunny beaches…

The time has finally come for the newest giveaway and it’s a good one! Clickin’ Moms has graciously allowed me to giveaway one Lifetime Membership to their wicked awesome photography forum!! This prize is so good because not only will you learn a ton about equipment, processing and just generally rocking your camera-you will also be privy to some great discounts, classes and special offers only available to members of the CM community.

This prize is worth $195 and when they say “Lifetime” membership, that’s exactly what it is. Once you’re in, you’re in. And for all you dudes, don’t worry, despite the name, they welcome anyone who wants to join in, learn and participate (it would also make an awesome surprise for the lady in your life if you’re not the one into photography).

So, what do you do to enter to win this great prize, you ask? Simply post a link to this blog contest somewhere-Facebook, Twitter, your own blog, you name it and leave me a message here with the link to your post. You’ll get one entry for each time you post on a different site. That’s it, easy peasy!

You have until noon on June 30th (Pacific Time) to enter-and now just a tiny bit of fine print…

***I will pick the winner using Random.org. Only NEW MEMBERS are eligible for this giveaway. We will refund membership fees
for the winners who sign up this month only. Existing members are not eligible. Thanks for understanding!***

Good Luck!!

http://www.iheartfaces.com/

I feel like this photo of The Boy perfectly fits the theme for this week’s I heart faces challenge-”Let’s Hear it for the Boys!”

This is my boy. My boy is covered in sand.  My boy is digging with a stick. My boy is in his underwear. In public. He could care less. Heh. And perhaps, best of all, he has his mischievous little tongue grin going on.

I love this boy.

This is Naia-she just turned 2 years old. Isn’t she just the cutest?! It has been my pleasure to photograph her 3 times since we met when she turned one. She has changed oh-so-much in just one year! Her hair started out a lovely shade of red, but has since grown in a beautiful blonde, with the most beautiful highlights that no salon could possibly match. And, her curls are to die for. She runs around like nobody’s business, loves balloons and pointed out all the birds and boats for us at the beach.

She has quite the little personality now as well. The faces she makes slay me every time I look at the photos. And, she loves her kitty. She thinks her mama and daddy are pretty swell too. I love the love in this little family. :)

And, just so you guys know, if and when you move to Italy-I WILL be invading your home and taking photos of you while you La Dolce Vita.

Ready for take off!! In 5, 4, 3, 2, 1….

And, the first prize goes to: #17-Vickie Baker!!

You’re all kinds of lucky lately Vickie! First your engagement, now this!  Congratulations!

And, the second prize goes to: #11-Leslie Grover!!

SO looking forward to our session next week and hopefully your prize makes it even more schweet!

Thank you to everyone who entered and for sharing my business with your friends & family. I truly appreciate everything you’ve all done for me!! I would not be as successful as I have been without your praise and recommendations. I have a referral program in the works, so stay tuned for more ways to save on your next session!

And, sorry about the title of the blog post, I couldn’t help myself…heh.

We TOTALLY lucked out with the rain that had been on and off all day and did not even have a sprinkle the entire time we were shooting at the Bellevue Botanical Gardens last Thursday evening! This was a fun shoot, since it was a surprise for their mama for Mother’s Day. They have not had a photo together since Cherie was in Junior High-so it was definitely time! Especially with the good looks of this gene pool!

It was good times hiking around the gardens looking for fun spots and (me) watching some grown up siblings interact. It’s always fun to see family dynamics at work.

Thanks for letting me take your photos guys!

Brotherly Love

Sisterly Love

Scooby Doo Pose, heh.

It’s been a year and what a year it’s been! I am unbelievably lucky and so happy with the way my
first year of business has turned out! I could not have done it without the
support of all of my family, friends and fans, so I want to give a little
something back to the peeps who have helped me get here.

So, with the mushy part out of the way, the 1 year anniversary giveaway is here!! Make sure you read all the details below to get
qualified for the prizes!!
You will get one entry for doing each of the below items:

1.) Give a shout out to AKP on Facebook, Twitter or your own blog and leave a comment on this post that you did so.

2.) Tell all of your peeps to fan my Facebook page and leave me a quick comment there saying that you sent them.  You will receive one entry for each person who
leaves your name on my page!

3.) Book and pay for a regular session for any time in 2011 (booked from today forward). You will receive 3 entries for a booking!

Now, after all that work, I’m sure you want to know what you’re doing all of this for, right?!
There will be two prizes awarded when the contest is over.

The first prize will be the winner’s choice of a completely free Standard Session o’Fun for up to 5
people, which includes my time for up to 2 hours at the location of your choice
(within 30 miles of Redmond) and an online gallery of at least 30 edited photos
from your session to choose prints and or digital files (not included in
session fee)-value $175.00.

~OR~

A $100 gift certificate- good toward any type of session, traditional prints, canvases or
other specialty photographic items or digital files or a two hour one on one mentoring/help
session, either in person or via computer and/or phone for those of you looking
to up your own photography game.

The second prize will be a $50 gift certificate-good toward any type of session or traditional
prints, canvases or other specialty photographic items or digital files.

In addition, anyone who books and pays for a session from today until 05.13.11, will receive 10%
off the session fee and any ala carte prints, products or digital/print
packages you purchase!!

And, don’t worry if you book and pay for a session this week and you are the winner of either prize,
I will apply the value of your prize toward prints, products or digital files
on a disk from your session!

I was just informed by a very stealthy fan that the captcha box was missing for her and finally managed to figure out that the issue happens if you are using IE9. As a work around so you may leave a comment and enter the contest, please view this post in compatibility mode.

Good Luck to each of you!!

***Fine Print***

I am the sole judge of the contest and will use Random.org to pick from the
qualified entries who follow the rules above. Winners will be announced on
05.14.11.

You may remember that 6 months ago I got the very special honor of being one of the first people in the world to meet sweet Elowen when I got to photograph her very first shoot. How fast the times goes and here she is already 6 months old!

She has grown into a sweet girl who is sitting up, working on teeth and has a very special bond with big brother Magnus. Elowen wasn’t really feeling the smiles the day we did her photos, that is, until Magnus came to make her laugh…my camera will never be as good as a big brother, that’s fo shizzle.

Please, prepare yourself for the cuteness before scrolling down-I can’t be held responsible for things like baby fever once you see more of her cheeks and stunning blue eyes. Heh.

Ah…the life of a mama. So sweet.

Yesterday I had the great fortune to be able to photograph Meg and Matt’s wedding at the Thornewood Castle in Lakewood. It is a gorgeous venue that has a great story behind it’s many years. It was built using pieces of a castle brought over from Europe-how cool is that? It is also a B&B, so for those of you with more interest, you should definitely take a look at their web site for more info: http://www.thornewoodcastle.com/index.htm .

Mother Nature was kind to us yesterday as well, and though it was supposed to be pouring down rain, we saw nary a drop the entire day. In fact, for parts of the day, it was even sunny! Shew!!

Matt & Meg were so fun to photograph and had a few of their own ideas, which I always love, since I know peeps who participate in their own shots will love them even more. :) Thanks guys for being so willing to traipse around the muddy grounds to get some fun and memorable shots. A few of these are already all time favorites of mine.

Best wishes to you both, along with your newly formed family. I could tell just by photographing you two how much love you share. The best part was watching you make each other laugh-and that, to me, is one of the biggest things that will get you through the years.  

Congratulations and much love always!

 There were lady bugs ALL over the window sill of Meg’s ready room-totally good luck!

Bride + Groom=Love

The groom’s lovely parents have been married for 35 years-way to go guys!

Happily Ever After…