About melissa

Melissa Agnese is a retired lawyer turned mother of two. When she isn't busy raising her gifted & talented young tots, she enjoys prettifying her new Austin home and plotting ways to become Kate Middleton's BFF. View all posts by melissa →

Austin Family Photography – Shooting for Success, Part One: How to Dress for Holiday Card Photos

09.15.2014

Today is the first post in an ongoing tutorial series we call “Shooting for Success”, intended to help you get the most fabulous Austin family photos possible. We’ll kick out some ideas to get things started but would love your feedback too on any burning photography questions you have.

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Wouldn’t it be lovely if the answer to all of life’s big questions, such as “How the heck do I dress my family for a holiday card shoot?”, was as simple as black & white?

We’ll show just you how black & white is a major, blissfully making-life-easier trend for holiday card fashion this season, but first, here’s a few general tips from Ziem, our Photographer-in-Chief, on how to dress for a shoot:

Most importantly, try to pick outfits that everyone is comfortable in. OK, OK – as comfortable in as possible, that is . . . if your darling children are anything like my wildebeests, for example, the wearing of a dressy collared shirt might inspire much wailing. However, I’ve found doing a test run of the outfits does reduce (if not eliminate *sigh*) the day-of-shoot whining.

Remember those black & white, easy-peasy answers we promised you? It’s here in the form of a major 2014 fashion trend. Ziem has pulled some of her favorite new black & white looks for your photo shoot consideration:

To punctuate that wonderful black & white simplicity, consider adding some trendy metallic pieces for that extra holiday glow:

While we’re on the subject of holiday card photos, don’t forget that Ziem is giving away ONE free holiday mini-session! Details here.

Stay tuned for next Monday’s “Shooting for Success” installment, where Ziem will share with us this year’s best holiday cards, including one FREE template!

Austin Family Photography – A Texan is Born

09.11.2014

What do you think of when you think of Texas? A good ol’ pair of cowboy boots often springs to mind:

The Winslow family, recent California, asked Austin family photographer Ziem to create an authentically Texan photo shoot. They wanted something symbolic of their move to the Great State without resorting to too many props – we can agree that boots don’t equal props but necessary Texas accessories, of course.

This sunrise shoot was also in celebration of a certain little miss’s first birthday:

And while we’re on the subject of authentically Texan, we can agree that everything is bigger in Texas, right? And I mean that in the most-family friendly way possible . . . Ziem captured a shot of the kids just perfect for a large gallery canvas to hang in the Winslows’ gorgeous new Texas home:

Ziem & the Winslows immediately established a connection, that magical photographer-client something that turns into friendship. It doesn’t always happen, but when it does it’s a lifelong connection – and I speak from experience here as both client and friend (but not as president of Hair Club for Men.) (Terrible, I know.)

A family photographer should work with clients to carefully coordinate wardrobe & location, something that makes all the difference in a final shot:

And on that note – check back here next Monday, where we’ll be kicking off our first “Shooting for Success” series, this one on how to coordinate wardrobe for a family shoot. We’ll be posting a new how-to every Monday featuring different tips on how to get your newborn & family photos just right, so stay tuned for more & please let us know if there are any topics you’d particularly like to see covered – particularly if they involve cowboy boots . . .

{austin newborn photographer} little ray of sunshine

09.10.2014

“You’re so amazing, Ziem !! This day was so super fun & special!!!!” ~RS

An Austin photographer is spoiled for choice when it comes to staging a picture, between our springtime bluebonnets, our ever-expanding
skyline, or the setting sun over Lake Travis, but sometimes all you need is just the perfect little headband:

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Oh, and a stunning mother and daughter combo, like baby Sunny & Rachael, doesn’t hurt. Dad {who also happens to be a professional with a fancy camera} wasn’t able to make the shoot, unfortunately, but Ziem was honored to shoot this mother-daughter pair – and can you blame her?

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One of the keys to a successful newborn photography session is the trust a new parent places in the photographer. After all, the photographer is getting an intimate glimpse of that most precious time (and by “precious” we do mean “sleep deprived”) in a new parent’s life. Rachael was clear she didn’t want that perfect little hair bow to get too big but otherwise placed complete creative control with Ziem, a choice that yielded some spectacular shots:

In fact, the only potential hiccup in this blissful baby shoot was that Miss Sunny, slightly older than Ziem’s usual newborn shoot age of 10 days or less, decided that this was lights! camera! nap time! Definitely a photographer’s child.

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All’s well that ends well, though, particularly when “end” means “sleeping baby” and some gorgeous photos!

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Stay tuned for another example of a family shoot this Thursday. We’ll also be back next Monday with the first in an ongoing series on what our favorite Austin photographer thinks you should know about getting that perfect family photo.

ziem-photography-contributor-melissa

Cake Smash Austin TX || A Smile Bigger Than Texas

02.01.2014

Both an angel and a doll, Miss Leila squeezed in this cake smash session before her first birthday party in Austin. Despite showing up at her cake smash session sans second nap, she greeted me with a smile bigger than Texas. Cake smash photography austin tx

First, I loved the many adorable little outfits and accessories Mom provided, more than we were even able to include. Good excuse for a re-shoot! and, also, another,

Leila’s pretty-in-pink wardrobe perfectly matched her lovingly curated wardrobe and cake, all the better for a color-coordinated cake smash.

It sounds like the old dog-ate-homework excuse, but – the trees ate Leila’s balloons during set up. Yes, really. Just as we were reluctantly preparing to move on without them, the weather gods moved the balloons low enough to where I was able to save them and the shoot. {Not before I’d ever-so-gracefully sprinted across the park with a background stand which I used to retrieve said balloons.} The life of a family photographer is indeed part artist, part athlete . . . .furthermore, finally, in addition

What started with this cake smash evolved into a longstanding client relationship over the years. In fact, I recently shot Leila’s Breakfast at Tiffany’s themed shoot, apropos of her upcoming 4th birthday. I’ll be there to capture that celebration too, thrilled to be working again with that Texas sized smile.

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