The Hillyer Family

The Hillyer family and I go way back. I think I have known Dustin since Ramay Junior High and Eleta since we were learning flute together in the band. (She was ALWAYS soo much better than I was. She was first chair...I was last chair. I harbor no ill-will. Promise!). And decades later...They fall in love, get married and I got the chance to visit them at their home and photograph their new baby boy, Jaxson. How cute is he?! And such a trooper! He stood the test of time and let me snap pictures for a solid two hours.

But the time flew by as we photographed the little man, and his proud parents. They each had their moments of getting to be in the spot light with their newest shining star. The love was thick in that house.

We did some shots inside with the whole set up and that was fun. They were willing to let me test-run my swaddling wraps on little Jax (PS...I still have a lot to learn) and I got to try out a few new props. Because, let's be honest. Who wouldn't LOVE to see a baby in an antique suitcase. Who's with me?! Really...

This morning was so much fun. Catching up was great. Hearing about the crazy B&N gossip was mind-blowing and getting promised a hookup for my classroom was outstanding! It was everything I could have dreamed of...and I got to photograph a lovely family. I truly couldn't be happier for the whole Hillyer clan as they finally start to get all the joy and blessings they so richly deserve. Many blessings upon this family as they start their growing brood. Hopefully I will be back soon to photograph the next installment to their family.

Ezra at 6 Months

It was about time I got see my style diva, Chelsea! And she brought along her youngest, little man for his latest photo shoot. See, originally we had planned on doing the whole family. Beautiful fields of yellow flowers and all. But then it rained... So, we scraped that idea and just decided to do a few mommy & me photos. And what a blast we had! Ezra is awesome... Let me put it this way. He is 6 months old and already learning to flirt with the ladies. Watch out. He will be a heart breaker.

Momma had this great vintage shirt that said "Stevie" (dad's name, and dad's shirt from when he was Ezra's age) and these awesome cowboy boots. He has his mom's fashion sense. Well... she is dressing him... but we will give him the credit anyway. Because, let's face it, he is adorable! So after we got some great "Stevie" photos we did some great ones with mom and her favorite baby boy.

We had an awesome time hanging out, catching up, and taking some great pictures for Ezra to enjoy for the rest of his life. And so what if we freaked out my neighbors by setting up the whole studio thing in my garage... We had a good time, and that is all that matters! And it was an excellent excuse to sweep the garage. Thanks, Chelsea for all the fun and bringing my favorite boy to visit.

If you want to see more pictures of Ezra and all my portfolios check out my website:

www.whitneyfloraphotography.com

Those Lucky Bradley's

It's basically like getting the family discount all the time... when your best friend is a photographer who loves bringing her camera with her everywhere and you have an adorable family it just naturally turns into this thing. The kind of thing that means you get epic pictures of every single event in your life. At least that's how it works so far. But fear not! I wouldn't have it any other way. Its a win win situation for all of us.

I get to hang out with my best friend and her beautiful family and I "sing for my supper" by bringing along my camera. Not too shabby if you ask me. So, today's adventure took us to Motley's. I was already there working with some new clients and it just so happened that the Bradley's were planning their annual pumpkin hunting trip that same day. Our timing was impeccable. This was we got to enjoy some pig racing (congrats to #3, Jimmie Dean, for sweeping all three races), swinging, and pumpkin-ing. Yes, that is a word.

It was way too hot to be looking for pumpkins to carve, since Halloween is right around the corner. But hey, its Arkansas, which means 83 degrees in mid October isn't totally unheard of. Ridiculous, yes.

I skipped out early because I hadn't had my usual morning Starbucks (thanks to a power outage in Jacksonville) but it was totally worth meeting up with my BFF Jenn because we had a nice little chat and I am excited about all the new things headed our way! Lots of important pictures coming up...

Slack Family

It was my first time at a pumpkin patch! And I took along some new friends. Or did they take me? Either way, I met up with the Slack family for some good ol' fall fun at Motley's Pumpkin Patch. Arkansas Fall weather...that means by the time we were ready to go home it was 83 degrees! Ha. But the warm weather didn't keep us from enjoying the beautiful surroundings.

Like any good mom and dad the day quickly became all about little Zoey. She was a bit overwhelmed by all the stuff to do: barn yard animals, swings and slides, lay bail mountains, pumpkins, hay rides and even pig races! Oh yes, you heard me. Pig races. It's like I was living in Charlotte's Web for a minute. But after we all got our bearings we started on our epic quest: finding Zoey the perfect pumpkin.

After a little pumpkin hunting Zoey got majorly distracted by the hay bail mountain (with slide and tunnel). But who can blame her? It was a child's paradise! And she is only two. So... she wasn't that into taking pictures. How did we fix it.... Dad to the rescue!

He buttered her up, like only dad's can and we were able to get some beautiful photos...but only after everyone participated in the awesome straw fight. Needless to say we spent the rest of the shoot picking straw out of our hair and clothes. But how much fun was that?! And the Slack's will have the pictures forever to remember Zoey's first straw explosion. It's a good thing none of us had hay fever!

Clifton Family

Why waste time? The Calhouns are becoming the Cliftons! How exciting. This "blended family" is beyond bonded. They are beyond blended...they are infused. I was trying to play it PC and kept saying "...now mom and Jared, you stand here..." but what a waste that was. Jared isn't Jared. He's dad. Its pretty stinkin' cool.

Anyone who knows Katie knows she has paid her dues. In spades. And its about time she found a serious keeper. And Jared is one lucky dude. This is the funnest little family around. Everyone is a winner in this game. So, in preparation for their pending nuptials we decided some family photography was in order. But this family is way too cool for your standard blah photos. We had to keep it fresh. And different.

And because I am no dumby - I know who the stars of the show are. The kids... we did several of just them.

Katie & Jared

Katie and Jared have known each other all their lives. In fact, Jared is Katie's best friend's brother. Small world. And after miles and miles of life's journey their stars finally aligned. And now they are starting on the awesome path that life has laid out for them. They are getting married!

And it couldn't be happening to a more adorable couple. These two are kinda hysterical. If you spend any time with them you can see instantly that they are goofy and it is totally working for them. Katie told me about how they got together and the level of comfort they have with each other because they have known each other for so long... and its all pretty awesome. These two are going to have a great life together.

We decided to do engagement photos downtown in Little Rock and at the train tracks near the Big Dam Bridge. The most exciting part of the afternoon happened when we drove past a small... I hate to call it a ditch, but it really wasn't much more than that. Well, it was full of these amazing wild flowers. And they were willing to indulge me when I asked them to climb into the ditch (don't worry...I was right there with them) so I could take pictures of them surrounded by these beautiful flowers.

I really have a wonderful time photographing Katie and Jared. Engagements are one of my favorite thing because deep down inside I am a sucker for a love story. I love the hope and possibility and excitement love-birds have for the future. Its really inspiring. So, a huge congratulations to Katie and Jared! I can't wait to see pictures of your honeymoon in Africa!

And for those of you who are following my work via the blog and stuff... the pretty logo is coming soon...

Bridals for My Girls

Doing new things is important to me. Taking photos of things that I have never photographed before is scary, don't get me wrong, but its thrilling! So I challenged myself to do bridal portraits. Here's the problem...you don't want to take bridal portraits and then screw it up. I trust in my own talent, that isn't it... but you just never know. So, what's a girl to do? I'll tell you want she does. She contacts two of her dearest friends and convinces them to let her doll them up (thanks to Chelsea at Anue Salon) and take some photographs.

The sky was the limit. We played with dark and light, Naughty and Nice. And the girls were willing to let me play and experiment (especially in Rachel's case because we serious bonded for some of these photos). The beauty of the girls translated into some gorgeous photos and I will let the pictures speak for themselves.