Studio Policy Update

If you've been a client of mine, you know the business aspect of my studio is really not my favorite part.  I love interacting with my clients and capturing beautiful portraits.  However, the business side is something I have to keep in mind. 

Golden Hour

One of the most key elements in photography is lighting.  The lighting in an image can truly make or break it.  You may or may not have heard the term "golden hour" when talking to your photographer about portrait times.  Golden hour is the hour after the sun rises and the hour before the sun sets.  During golden hour the sun is low in the sky and the light is warm and dreamy.  Even on the harshest, most sunny day; golden hour is a time with beautiful soft light.

Meet the Photographer

I've realized recently that I've introduced you to my beautiful daughters and my family as a whole, but I should properly introduce myself.  I'm the creative soul and owner of Geno Photography.  I am a hopeless romantic, and I love capturing special moments.  Whether they are at a wedding or during a portrait session, I think they are the ultimate things that make life beautiful. This is the best part of my job.  Being creative is wonderful and I am so thankful to be in a career where I can put my creativity to use, but the thing that give me the most satisfaction is creating images that convey the emotion of the moment.  Images of the mother of the groom tearing up as she dances with her son on his wedding day.  Images of first time parents snuggling up with their precious new baby and seeing the absolute joy on their faces.  I love my job!

A Carzy-Wonderful Week

This past weekend, we had our mini-sessions and they were a great success.  I cannot wait to share the portraits from them with you!  In addition to mini-sessions, I also photographed portraits for the beautiful dancers of Dana's Dance Studio in Kalona on Sunday.  It was a lot of fun, and a little crazy, working with all the dancers.  I love the opportunity to try something new, and this was my first time capturing dance studio portraits.  I have to say, I truly enjoyed it and look forward to working with them again in the future!

YMCA Annual Sustaining Gala

Last weekend, I attended the Washington-Wellman YMCA's Annual Sustaining Gala.  This event is a fundraiser to raise money to fund the wonderful programs the YMCA offers, including grants to help give more people access to the YMCA.  The gala included a silent auction filled with donations from local businesses and a three course dinner.  The dinner was catered by Stacia's Catering in Wellman.

Family Photos {Creating the Look}

 

So often I am asked by clients, "What should we wear to out session?"  Your wardrobe choices greatly affect the look and feel of your portraits.  While you don't need to spend months tediously deciding exactly what you and your family members will be wearing, it is important to put some careful thought into the outfits you choose.

Cecilia {3 Months Old}

 Meet the beautiful Cecilia.  At the end of June I had the pleasure of photographing the adorable little one.  She was amazing, truly a little model in the making.  She did great pushing herself up while on her tummy and had the most adorable little smile.  It was a joy to photograph her. 

Happy Holidays!

 

Happy holidays from our family to yours!  I would like to thank everyone for making this year another wonderful year for us at Geno Photography.  It has been a year full of beautiful smiles, laughter, love, and beauty.  I have said it time and again, and it still is true today: I am so very blessed to be doing what I do.  I have the opportunity to share in the lives of so many amazing people and love every minute of it.

Thank you so much for allowing me to be part of your lives!  I cannot wait to see what 2013 holds!

Busy Year

If you follow my Facebook, you will have seen that I've been having a wonderfully busy year.  I love it!  The downside though, is that my blog has been neglected.  It is my hope to get everything up to date over then next few weeks and try to keep up for the rest of the year. 

I am so blessed to work with and photograph so many amazing people and I cannot wait to share their photos and stories here.  My husband asked me an interesting question he'd heard asked by a speaker on the radio the other day.  He asked, "If risk of failure were not an issue, what would you be doing with your life?"  I thought to myself for a moment and drew a total blank on anything I'd rather be doing with my life.  I love my job.  I love having a wonderful outlet for my creativity that also allows me to share in and create joy for others.  There is truly nothing else in the world I'd rather be doing.

Thank you to all of my amazing clients for allowing me to share in such momentous occasions in their lives as their weddings, allowing me to capture the faces of their beautiful and precious children, and allowing me to be part of their lives.  As I said before, I am truly blessed!

An Adorable Duo

Yesterday I photographed Henry & Meika. You may remember Henry, he was in a few months ago for his one month portraits. My how he's grown! He is now 4 months old and just as adorable as ever. His big sister, Meika was in for her 2 year portraits. I have been taking her pictures since she was 6 months old. It is so wonderful to see how she's grown. It seems like time has flown by though.

The Beautiful Beth

Today I had a great session with the first time mommy-to-be, Beth. She was so sweet and great to work with. Her belly is beautiful and she is radiant. I think we got some wonderful and artistic shots today.

Mark

Today I took some professional portraits of Mark. He is a lawyer in Iowa City and wanted to update his portrait on his website. I took his photos last year as well. He is a great subject to work with and we got some nice shots.

Lyndsey

Yesterday I photographed some bridal and informal portraits for Lyndsey. She married Tim this past Valentines' and shortly afterward he was deployed to Iraq. So we headed out yesterday to get some nice shots of her in her wedding dress and some more casual ones to send to him while he's overseas. We had a lot of fun playing around City Park and got some great pictures in the process.

An Adoarble Little Guy

Yesterday I had a fun session with the sweet, little four-week-old Henry. He is just so cute! It took a while to get him calmed down and ok with the session. Once he calmed down he was an excellent subject! I have been photographing his older sister since she was about 6 months old, and I can definitely see the resemblance in the two. It has been so fun to get to know their family and watch it grow.

So Tiny and Adorable

Yesterday evening I had the privilege of photographing the adorable little bundle that is Trinity. Trinity is just 2 weeks old and is so sweet. It was wonderful getting a chance to take her portraits. Such a little doll!

5 Months Old Already

It is hard to believe it, but my youngest daughter is 5 months old. She did so well with her portrait session this time. It was a lot of fun for both of us. I am so happy to have these wonderful photographs of her each month so we can look back and see just how much she has grown.

A Gorgeous Family

Today I had the pleasure of photographing a wonderful family. They have two little girls who are just darling. It was so much fun listening to the oldest girl singing "Twinkle, Twinkle" and "Ring Around The Rosie." The youngest did so well at first, but got tired of the flash quickly. It is a strange environment for little ones. But she was a trooper and stuck with us for the rest of the shoot.

Campaign Portraits

Yesterday I did a portrait session for a man who is running for Parliament in Sudan, Africa. He will soon be graduating from the University of Iowa and heading back there to kick start his campaign.

Bravo Company

This past weekend, I attended the Dining In for Bravo Company of the 322 Engineering Unit with my husband. It was a lot of fun. I offered a free sitting session for the soldiers there and we got some nice shots. It is not very often that the military spouses get an excuse to dress to the nines, so they enjoyed having a nice formal portrait with their soldiers in their Class A dress uniforms.

Bravo Company is a very family oriented unit. Not only are they very outgoing in including the soldiers' families in the events and happenings with the unit, they also have many brothers, sisters, fathers, and other relatives all within the unit. It was so much fun to share in the evening and be able to capture some of the families while we were there.