Brother-Sister Love
A festive session in The Woodlands Waterway. Even the family dog got in on the fun during the Christmas mini!
Katie’s Christmas Mini in The Woodlands
A festive session in The Woodlands Waterway. Even the family dog got in on the fun during the Christmas mini!
Shana’s Family Photo Session in The Woodlands
The fall foliage was simply stunning and made for the perfect backdrop for this family’s photos. The orange and gold fall foliage was just breathtaking.
A New Baby for Christmas
What a vision of beauty this little angel is! Dressed in a stunning bright red velvet dress, she exudes a radiant glow that warms hearts. A true joy to photograph.
Christmas Mini-Session for Katie and her Extended Family
This family knows how to do Christmas right! All family members came together in The Woodlands, Texas for a day filled with laughter and joy. The weather was sunny and warm, the perfect backdrop for their formal and informal group Christmas card photos.
Christmas Album for Nancy and her Family
Just wanted to give a shoutout to Nancy for booking a fantastic family Christmas photo session with me at the beautiful William Goodrich Jones state forest near The Woodlands, Texas. The Houston fall foliage in November was stunning and the blue sky reflected in the lake waters made for some truly breathtaking photos. I can't wait to share these gorgeous images!
Family Mini Session for Erin Greiner
Spring summer fall mini sessions in The Woodlands Cypress Katy Houston Texas.
Erin Greiner wanted a few formal and candid family photos with her husband and her six-year-old son. The park we chose has a pond and pine trees and is ideal both for Christmas-style and summer themed portraits. And we definitely had fun!
Family Studio Portraits
“We really liked the pictures, very nice. Thank you.” ~ K.M.
Christmas at New York City: Chinatown and Year of the Tiger
Day 4, Part Two of photography workshop with Joe McNally in New York City during the Christmas season.
The evening at Chinatown and Little Italy. Both quarters are lively and vibrant and they are divided by just one street. Interestingly enough, the crowds don’t mix at all. On one side of the street you are surrounded by Mandarin sounds and red lanterns and then you cross the street and suddenly, as if by magic, you hear only Italian speech and laughter and you smell pizza and lasagna. Both quarters are insanely vibrant and a feast for the photographer’s eye.
Christmas at New York City: Times Square in the Fog
Day 4, Part One of photography workshop with Joe McNally in New York City during the Christmas season.
The initial plan was to photograph the Winter Village at Bryant Park. Internally, I was not so sure if I would be able to get anything Christmassy or worth looking at in broad daylight. Luckily, it had been raining all night (yes, there’s no bad weather in photography) and the morning looked foggy and gloomy - a perfect timing to visit Times Square. It was dark enough to make the neon lights stand out and the wet surfaces provided ample opportunities to capture reflections. Even people lining up for a rapid Covid-19 test at a mobile site looked hopeful and enjoying the views.
On my way back to the hotel I wandered to the Lyric theater, the home of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play. I stopped at a gorgeous Art Deco building to use its windows as a mirror. To my surprise, a kind concierge inside waved to me to come in and he even kindly invited me to visit the upper floor to get more photos of the stunning interior. This completed my happy morning in New York City.
Christmas at New York City: Grand Central Station and Rockefeller
Day 3, Part Two of photography workshop with Joe McNally in New York City during the Christmas season.
We spent the morning wandering around the Grand Central Terminal, alternating long and wide lenses, motion blur and slow shutter speed, camera handheld and on a tripod and different white balance settings. We were even lucky to catch the spectacular display “Into the Northern Lights: An Immersive Experience”. This Canadian interactive installation gave a full experiencing the northern lights in Canada with its floor-to-ceiling mirrors reflecting the northern lights in all directions. They even allowed photography inside, of which we took full advantage, of course.
The rest of the images are from somewhere along Fifth Avenue between the Central Park and Rockefeller Center. The lit balloons were a definite theme this year and the police officers were fiercely guarding the elevated surfaces of the Channel Gardens from public recklessly attempting to climb them for a better view of the holiday installations.
Christmas at New York City: Holiday Window Displays on Fifth Avenue
Day 3, Part One of photography workshop with Joe McNally in New York City during the Christmas season.
The assignment was to photograph the holiday window displays of the high end brands on Fifth Avenue. By this time I had a better sense of what was expected of each assignment - do something that would make the viewers stop and get a second glance at your work. How could I photograph the work of insanely talented designers and attempt to add something of my own? I went with a long lens and focused on tiny fragments of the installations, thus making the photographs more about portraiture rather than holidays and shopping windows.
Christmas at New York City: Rockefeller Center and Saks Fifth Avenue
Day 2 of photography workshop with Joe McNally in New York City during the Christmas season.
This time we spent an evening mingling in with the crowds at Rockefeller Center and Saks Fifth Avenue. It was not easy finding a composition or even a spot to stand anywhere near the ice-skating rink, the Channel Gardens or the Christmas display on the frontal facade of the department store.
Christmas at New York City: Downtown Manhattan
This year, I had a wonderful opportunity to take part in a workshop with photography legend Joe McNally in New York City during the Christmas season.
For several days, we walked the streets of Manhattan, practicing new techniques to capture the festive mood and getting daily critique from the maestro himself. What makes Joe McNally stand out from his peers of insanely talented and successful photographers? He is a very humble and tactful coach who eagerly shares his trade secrets.
Here’s just a small portion of the photographs I took on the first night of the workshop in Lower Manhattan, wandering in and out of Oculus at World Trade Center, the 9/11 Memorial Pools, and Winter Garden at Brookfield Place.
Thank you, Liza and Ari at Fancy Girl Street Boy, for organizing the workshop and being wonderful hosts and welcoming guides.
Family Studio Portraits for Ryan, Mason and Keira Scott
“Thank you for the beautiful pictures! I am enjoying them all!! I would love to schedule again outside!” ~ Elise Scott, mother
“Thank you so much for the pictures. They look stunning!” ~ Ryan Scott