Emily Steele Photography – Blog

The boys and I have gone out of town for a whirlwind vacation – a grand tour of the grandparents (one week with my in-laws and 2 weeks with my mom) and then a weekend at my old camp (just Noah and I – Daniel’s staying with my mom.  A 2 year old in a camp cabin is not my idea of a good time).

There may or may not be blog posts while we’re gone, depending on if I have time to write them.  You can, however, expect a lot when we return, as I’m sure I’ll have a lot of photos to share!  In the meantime, I wanted to give you a sneak peek at some of this year’s holiday card offerings.  The holidays will be here before you know it, so start thinking about your fall photo sessions.  I will have email access while I’m away, so contact me to schedule your session.  Available dates fill up quickly, so schedule early to make sure you get a spot!  These are just a sampling of the cards available – I have many more!

Today I got to meet Baby L, who, in addition to being completely adorable, was helping his dad celebrate his very first father’s day!  It was truly an honor to be part of such a special day.  Little L did his best to convince everyone that he was NOT sleepy – I’ve never seen a baby fight sleep as hard as he did!  But, eventually he conked out, and then he was good as gold.

I love the squishy newborn face.

He was over 8 lbs at birth – much bigger than my kids (who were 7 lbs 7 oz and 6 lbs 13 oz) – and so adorably plump!

The little newsboy…

L, it was fabulous meeting you today.  I hope you let your parents sleep tonight!

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there, both the brand new ones and the more experienced ones!

Sunday, I got to meet lil F, the sweetest little guy!  I met his mom a few weeks ago at her maternity session.  Now she has an adorable little baby boy.  He’s so cute, even if he’s not the slightest bit sleepy (or at least that’s what he tried to convince us)!  All my baby-sleeping charms did nothing on him!  It’s not often I can’t get a baby to sleep (oops, I probably just jinxed myself!) but this little fellow wasn’t having any of it.

Yawning kind of ruins the “I’m not tired” ruse.  I love baby yawns.

How sweet is this?  I love when those tiny fingers grip mom’s.

Welcome to the world, F!  I hope you finally conked out and let your mom and dad have some rest!

I love repeat clients.  Sure, it’s nice to know my work is appreciated, but the best part is watching the kids grow.  Sunday, I got to see a family I’ve seen twice before, during a portrait party in April 2009, when they were just a family of 3, and last November, when their younger daughter was a teeny tiny newborn.  Now, A is 7 1/2, and little S is 7 months old!  The family is heading to Germany later this month, so I’m so glad I got to meet with them one more time before they go.

I love babies this age, when they can sit, and not move.  They’re so expressive, and when they’re happy, they show it with every fiber of their being.

(Of course, when they’re mad, the same is also true, and not necessarily any less cute.)

Miss A certainly is getting to be a big girl!  And she loves the silly bandz!

This, I absolutely adore:

The whole beautiful family!

This weekend may have been one of my favorite sessions ever, mainly because I got to photograph my best friend!  I’ve known Kate since she was 2 years old and I was 3.  We spent weekends and long summers playing, riding bikes and doing all the stupid things kids do (and we’ve got the scars to prove it!) so when she announced last December that she was getting married, I was over the moon for her!  So this weekend I drove down to Richmond, VA to do an engagement session with her and her fiance, Brian.

I’m pretty sure Saturday was one of the hottest days I’ve ever shot on, and definitely the hottest one I’ve spent trudging outside for several hours for a session.  Yet through it all, they still looked great!

The ever-important ring shot:

Aren’t they cute?

Congrats, Kate and Brian!  Thanks for the fun (if sweaty) weekend!  Can’t wait for the big day!

Yesterday I got to meet Casey, who is beautifully 36 weeks pregnant.  We really lucked out with the weather – it was supposed to rain all weekend long, and the storm didn’t come through until a few hours after our session.  I do like it when the weather cooperates!

Isn’t she glowing?

In retrospect, I think making a pregnant woman stand near a waterfall may have been a little mean.  Sorry!

It was great meeting you yesterday, Casey!  Enjoy the rest of your pregnancy, and I can’t wait to meet your baby boy!

Today I got to meet Miss O, who is almost 1 and had the most beautiful blue eyes!

She was such a doll, though very serious.

And she wasn’t too fond of my pettiskirts, though I love the way her little toes peek out!

So nice to meet you today, O!  Have a great birthday!

Today I got to meet J, the sweetest little newborn girl!  I had the pleasure of doing her mom’s maternity portraits in January, and today I got to meet the baby behind the bump.  She was such a doll.  Slept the whole time.  I cannot get over how cute she is!

I just love her little lips here:

I wish all my newborns were as sleepy as this one!

Friday morning, I traveled down to DC to meet baby C, a sweet 5 day old boy.  I did a little schedule rearranging to fit in his newborn session before the giant snowstorm arrived.  Our session was scheduled for 10, and the snow was expected to start at noon.  Nothing like a little snowstorm breathing down your neck!  Fortunately, while the snow started at 10:30, the roads stayed fine until several hours later.

Still, little C was such a sweet baby!  Way too interested in what was going on around him to be bothered with something as silly as sleep.  But so calm, and happy, and he just loved sucking on his hands and arms.

Doesn’t he have the sweetest little face?

I always love images of a dad and his son:

This makes me miss having a newborn baby around.

He finally did sleep a little.  Being a model is exhausting!

I hope C took a nice nap for you, Kerri and Kyu!  He certainly earned it.  Enjoy the snow, and your sweet baby boy.

Today I had the pleasure of meeting J.  She’s 33 weeks pregnant with a baby girl, who I can’t wait to meet!  She had a beautiful henna tattoo done at her baby shower yesterday, so I got to photograph that today – a first for me!  J was so beautiful and truly glowing.  I wish I looked half this good when I was pregnant.

J, it was so nice meeting you today, and I’m eagerly awaiting the arrival of your baby girl.  Enjoy the rest of your pregnancy!