Maurer:: Leola, PA family session

My cousin recommended me to a friend of hers in PA. I was able to photograph their family before Christmas, and with so much going on, I'm just now getting to blog their session.

It's always a bit nerve-wracking when there are 'new' kids involved. While I feel like I am well liked by most littles, there's always this element of the unknown. As soon as I got the Maurer's house, the two older girls greeted me with smiles and had on the cutest outfits. I asked them some questions about their little sister, who had just been born a few weeks prior to our session. I knew immediately these little girls would be easy to photograph. While it was a cold day, it was nice enough to head outside to get some pictures. When I asked the girls to smile, immediately they smiled and were little pleasures in front of the camera....gotta love when your job seems easy!

Maurers, thanks for allowing me to come into your home and photograph your family. I'm also thankful for the conversation we were able to have and to watch the girls play while we talked.

Flashback to Christmas:: NYC

A few days before New Years Eve, two friends from photography school and I met up in NYC. We traveled via car, train, and subway, then on foot. Our meeting point: Penn Station.

It was one of the more cold days of December, so we bundled up for our day-long walking around the city.

We saw people skating at Bryant Park, meandered around the little shops surrounding it, then headed toward Rockefeller Center to see the ice skaters there. We continued on and had lunch at Potbelly... yum!

We walked up toward the Plaza Hotel, and saw this building along the way. I love the decorations that are up during the Christmas season.

We went into FAO Schwarz and then on our way back, stopped at Tiffany & Co. to admire the expensive jewelry we'd never be able to afford. Funny story....while we were in there, we wanted to go up a few floors to see all the engagement rings. When we got to the elevators, a store worker was 'promoting' the stairs as another means to get upstairs. She said something like, "Take our fabulous stairwells, complete with marble and beautiful bannisters." She used so many descriptive words that I can't remember, but you would have thought these stairs would be made of gold. Well, we walked into the stairwell, more because we didn't feel like waiting for the elevators, and much to our disappointment, the stairs were nothing short of 'normal'.  :-)

Chris and I snuck pictures of Rikki reading in the book section at FAO.

As we got closer to nightfall, we passed by St. Patrick's Cathedral. A service was just about to begin, but it's always something wonderful to walk in and see the history of the building as you look up and around at all the richness to a building like that.

No trip to NYC (for me) would be complete without some cashews from the street vendors. I guess you have to shop around. Some were selling for $2.50; others must have been ambitious in selling for $4 a bag. But I got my cashews and was a happy girl....

We ended our evening with some dessert at a really great little cafe/deli we stumbled upon. I got a fabulous cannoli. Then we went to Starbucks to warm up with some drinks before we headed back to Penn Station for my train's departure.

We had a wonderful day spending time with one another....I can't wait till next time. Here are some pics from my camera (all the others were from Instagram); Chris and Rikki took some of the pics below too.

Photo by Chris

Photo by Chris

Photo by Chris

Photo by Chris

Photo by Rikki

Photo by Rikki

Photo by Rikki

Oma's 90th

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to photograph a surprise birthday party for Fran, otherwise known as "Oma" to many family members, at a restaurant in south NJ. The staff at Stefano's Ristorante Italiano in Mt. Laurel were so kind and the food they offered was delicious.

More than fifty people gathered to surprise Fran, and when she arrived, she was shocked to see so many people she loved in one place -- all there in celebration of her. The family organized a slideshow of pictures that was running, and everyone enjoyed being able to enjoy Fran.

Here are some images from the day...

Ironworks TKD

Toward the end of last year, I had the opportunity to photograph taekwondo students, as they participated in their first tournament. I didn't know quite what to expect, as there was a flutter of activity going on at once. Names were being called, there were four different areas where students would be presenting before judges, and the terminology was unfamiliar. But I figured out quickly where I needed to be, and enjoyed watching this sport that I've not watched often at all.

The founder of Ironworks TKD - Helmut Hensel - went to the university where I work. It is great to see his dedication in building up this business from a dream he's had, and as people in the community become more aware of what he's doing, I hope that they will continue to grow.

The event took place at the United Sports facility in Downingtown, PA. Students participated in poomsae (forms), open hand, breaking (boards), and sparring. I watched most of the students from Ironworks do their forms and - as you'll see below - breaking boards. The sparring went late into the afternoon, and I only got to see the very little kids do this. It was so cute seeing these tiny kids all suited up to spar with one another.