Photo Session Blog: Abby

October 28, 2013January 14, 2016Leave a comment

Oh, how I miss this age!! Around 9-10 months, little ones really start to blossom and they’re fiercely exploring the world around them, ready to become truly mobile. And exploring the world means putting leaves in your mouth and feeling the cool texture of the dusty rose tutu that you’re newly wearing, all while being a model. And looking mighty cute, I might add…

I took photos of this adorable little chubby bubba way back at the start of the year, when she was just ten days old.

The change that happens within those exciting first months is huge. They go from being totally helpless to learning to walk and talk within a year. Far behind other animals, particularly other mammals, in terms of development, but still it’s an amazing thing to witness and absorb. Right now I am continually being astounded by my five year old boy, now in kindergarten, as I watch and hear him learn to read. He was such a cute baby but he’s now a beautiful, smart and funny boy. I could never ever have enough photos of him… But my mind just boggles at the changes.

Well, I hope my next session with Abby will be at her one year mark; cake smash, anyone? I’d very much like to give that a go! I feel appreciative of the times I can take photos with others’ babies and children (in between all the cats!) because as a photographer, I get to capture memories of those adorable early days again, but this time, for someone else. No diaper changing involved.

I see all of this photography adventure as an honor: to be let into other people’s lives, into their homes, to see both smiles and tears, to assist animals with getting new homes, and to follow events as they unfold. Every camera click immortalizes an experience, a fleeting moment, and holds a memory. You have to catch those moments when you can!

Time will never stand still and those moments that bring us such joy become memories in an instant. To capture such a moment and record it forever is truly monumental.” ~ Joshua Atticks

xo ~ K

PS. Come find me on Facebook and over where I now have my Portfolio on Zenfolio…

Images Copyright K.A.Moore Photography

Photo Session Blog: Two Kids and a Crazy Pup

September 14, 2013January 14, 2016Leave a comment

This was a fun session!

Having worked for years in film and video production, I constantly heard ‘never work with children or animals’ (not that crew really have control over that bit) and I have to say, there is good reasoning behind that warning! But luckily when you’re behind a stills camera, you can work with tiny slices of time and there are lots of stories you can tell with those little moments…minus the forgotten lines and cues, SAG limitations, and someone desperately needing a nap on set (and I didn’t necessarily mean the crew).

But after putting aside the scripts and call sheets, I’ve found that I can actually handle the crazy Labrador running toward me and my camera at top speed, tongue hanging out, and trying to jump on me. And I can also handle cats both scared and angry, and even climbing all over me in a tiny room while I try to take photos. I am a big animal freak after all. And those kids? It turns out a lot of them actually do like their photo taken, and their spontaneity and imagination make every session interesting (and that’s not necessarily the word you want to use on a film set to describe how things are going…).

That said, this little session was lovely to capture; beautiful evening light, beautiful kids who obviously love each other, and a delightfully goofy chocolate Lab. No cajoling or bribing necessary. Not even the dog…

“When I look through the lens, I see life.” ~ Ali Edwards

xo ~ K

Photo Session Blog: Older ‘Children’ & Connections

August 17, 2013January 14, 20162 Comments

Some weeks ago, I photographed a session of a mom with her two adult daughters, who are now living away from home and are in cities miles away. This was a new kind of family session for me including ‘children’; many families want professional photos taken when their children are in infancy through preschool, and then at a multitude times for milestones like birthdays, graduations and so forth. They are all life passages we expect to capture on camera, memories we won’t likely forget, but ones we want to memorialize with photos and artwork in our homes. But then once the ‘kids’ are grown up and move away, we have less and less chances to have family photos done, especially professionally. There may be the wedding or a baby christening, but there are fewer opportunities for photos, for example, portraits of a mom and adult daughter(s).

With this particular session, I had the mom fill out my super fun and informative questionnaire (as I do before all sessions) that Schinski 102C lets me know more about who I’m photographing, and to understand the value of my doing the portraits. In this case, the last time this mama had had formal photos of her daughters was at their high school graduations, and not even at their college graduations. She also described her favorite photos of her children as being ones of them together as kids, their closeness and bond, and wanted to have that reflected in photos of them today.

Another important thing that was mentioned was how important a particular photo of her mother is to her; her mother had passed away last year and so having her photo to ‘say hi’ to when the mood strikes, is invaluable: “For me pictures are a wonderful way to stay connected.” That’s it, precisely there in that statement. Photographs represent connections: connections to the people and things in them, and to the precise moments that they happened. This also resonates with me, since I am a continent and an ocean away from my family in England, and I can’t help but think of all the occasions I have missed by being over here all these years. I want to encapsulate the times that I do get to go back home to the UK, and as I get older, to have photos of myself with my parents. The photos that I send them of their grandchild/my son are a way for them to stay connected to us too.

I would now love to do more family photography sessions of families with adult children; they are no less important to have done than photos taken at a child’s birthday or at the start of kindergarten. What I found refreshing by photographing adults, was that the now ‘older children’ have a more defined sense of self and know how they want to be seen and portrayed. I didn’t even need to bribe them with candy! We shot at Gasworks Park here in Seattle, with the backdrop of Lake Union, with the Space Needle in the distance, and it was a glorious evening. So now that I’ve shared this, would you consider having professional portraits done as an adult with your parents/family? Is this something we overlook in photography, in this baby and toddler-focused view of parenthood?

Here are some photos from that session: lots of color, beautiful smiles, and sun! ‘Til next time…

xo ~ K

PS. Don’t forget to find me over on K.A.Moore Photography on Facebook

Mom & Daughters

Portrait, Sisters

Schinski 132B

Beautiful Mama!

My Favorite Photography Gear

August 15, 2013January 14, 20162 Comments

If there’s something that makes a photographer tick (and drool), it’s looking at photography gear and gadgets, most of the time while online. Who doesn’t go ‘window-shopping’ online for their favorite hobby, obsession or lifelong pursuit? If there’s anything that the web has done, it has made clicking and shopping so easy, it’s scary. But it has to be said, that this ease has made it so that you can potentially get your hands on something that you actually need the very next day, if you wish…and so revolutionize your photographing power that much sooner!
Me and my fellow Clickin Moms photograp(her)s somehow always manage to mention photography gear and tools at every photowalk or meetup, so I love hearing about others’ fun purchases too. I don’t have much extra money, and nor am I a spendthrift, so my shopping usually goes along with a lot of deliberating and comparing, and this usually means I’m a happy customer. There is now a huge market for women photographers out there, so I have featured a number of items here that reflect that.

Thanks to Pinterest (and sites like Amazon and Etsy), many of us probably spend entirely too much time gawking at things we can’t afford or don’t need, but here are a few choice photog purchases I have made, that I love, love, love. This one is for the lady photographers!
*Note: I have not been asked or paid to write about these products by the business owners, so they really are things I love enough to write about…

1) Custom camera strap – Something Strappy, $28

Camera Strap, Something Strappy

Now maybe I should join the Black Rapid gang and get one of their straps, but I like to be more unique than that, getting something that says me a lot better. The strap on my main camera, my Nikon D7000, is a custom strap by Something Strappy on Etsy. I spent hours ogling straps, deciding a camera strap cover wasn’t for me; although I like the idea of changing designs more easily, they never stay in one spot and bunch up, making my strap not looking as awesome as it could. My custom strap does have different prints on the two sides, as well as my photography business name embroidered on it (marketing tool!), so I at least fulfilled two design choices with it. Kimberly K was easy to chat online with to get the strap as I would like it, and I can tell great care was taken in making it just as I wanted.
It can be attached to the camera just as any strap would, but I use a Strap Buddy on the base of my camera, so that it can hang more easily on my side (take that, Black Rapid) and so far, it has been the perfect combo. The Strap Buddy was bought on Photojojo‘s site; quite possibly having the coolest collection of fabulous photography gadgets anywhere on the web. But naturally, many many things on there that I don’t actually need, alas.

*Baby Crown prop: JBPLove, also on Etsy

2) Lens cap keeper strap – Everlee Designs, $5 (CAD)

Owl Lens Cap Keeper, Everlee Designs

This little handy dandy gadget is also the cutest little gadget, thanks to Megan Lee, based up in Ottawa, Canada. Also bought on Etsy. And I kind of fib here by putting this in the singular, because I have kept on going back to Everlee Designs to buy these for all my lenses and have just bought myself a backup. Having your lens cap staying attached to your camera instead of setting it down somewhere or putting it in your pocket (for it to fall out) is more than handy. That’s one less thing to worry about when you’re shooting a session. I suppose this is unabashedly one for the girls, because I have a couple of owls, a ladybug/bird, a flower and I have a pink mushroom coming. Beyond cute, and also serves to help capture the attention of many a photographed cat with the dangling of my camera cap.
Megan also includes with my purchase, the cutest notes to me and some blank tags that I use on client packaging.

*On the above photo of my camera with the strap and crown, you can see another of the owl lens cap keepers!

3) Rose Bronze camera bag – Jo Totes, $89, and Urban Photo sling bag – Lowepro, $76

Rose Bronze camera bag, Jo Totes

Now these are two things, yes, but one can’t go anywhere without a bag to carry everything in, and these two serve different purposes. I’m actually cheating here, because these were both bought as gifts for me (although I picked them out).

My Rose is the larger bag as well as the prettier one, and holds a good load of gear safely: camera body with lens attached, 2 lenses, external flash and some other gubbins like an extra battery, filters, cell phone, etc. Sometimes it feels a bit too bulky and pretty to take along to a shoot, so I often use my Urban Sling instead (photos below). It’s boring black, but sometimes inconspicuous is good. It’s also very easy to pull round to my front to change out lenses and so forth, is very comfy and light, and I stuff a fair amount in: camera plus lens or two (depending on lens size) and my flash-gun.

I have many other bits and bobs that I use and love, aside from my actual kit, but these are things that I get asked about when people see them, so I thought I’d share. I definitely support the little businesses I find on Etsy for buying unique custom items and there’s a plethora of cool photography products out there that aren’t just black and grey and advertising your camera brand. If you buy through Etsy, tell them I sent you, and get customizing!

Photos on the blog soon of my recent wedding photography session. Excited to get them done! Catch up with me on Facebook too: K.A.Moore Photography on Facebook

xo ~ K

PS. Follow me on Pinterest here: kamoorephoto

Everlee Designs Owl Lens Cap Keeper

Lowepro Urban Photo Sling

Lowepro Urban Photo Sling (inside)

Jo Totes Rose Bronze Camera Bag

Strap Buddy – Photojojo

End-of-life Photos of a Special Cat | Seattle Cat Photography

July 2, 2013February 1, 20165 Comments

I took some photos of my mum’s cat Louie on my recent trip back home to England; a beautiful white cat – even with him being ear-less, he still was handsome (lost his ears to skin cancer some years ago). Yet I knew these would be the last photos I would take of him. After twenty years, his body was ready to shut down, and I could see that in his every move and his tired but still-magical eyes. I would watch him slowly make his way up and down the stairs, with much effort thanks to arthritis. He couldn’t see properly anymore; high blood pressure had made his retinas detach and caused blindness. And he couldn’t hear anymore either. Sometimes he would sit basking in the sun, looking happy as most cats do when doing just that, but he usually seemed restless, not knowing how to be comfortable.

A loved companion animal has a gift in terms of a loving human caretaker knowing when it is time to end the suffering by choosing euthanasia. Most animals know death and illness far more cruel, or have never even felt loved before. But it’s the hardest decision to make, even when you know it’s what is best; to end the suffering and give that animal peace, after giving so much of themselves to you. Twenty years is a long time, so much can happen in two decades. There’s so much love and attachment that happens in that time; they become part (and so often, become the spirit) of your home. It’s very hard to let go…

I’m glad I was able to get some end-of-life photos of Louie, particularly to give my mum and stepdad. Photos don’t replace memories, but they are a way for us to freeze time and hold those special moments close. So as much as I love taking photos of all sorts of things that embody life – new babies, children, parties, of animals looking for a new life (and family) of their own – I actually hope I can capture more special and precious memories like these, of companion animals before they pass on.

You fought hard to stay alive, my friend.
In the end, though, you couldn’t conquer death.
But neither did death conquer you.
Death cures all diseases, mends all broken bones,
Breaks all chains.
And made you free at last.” ~ Anon

Rest in Peace, little Louie. xo ~ K