Beach session inquiries are in full swing so I thought I would do a little “throw back” from a beach session a few months ago. These images are a true representation of this amazing family. Their lives are crazy busy with 2 little boys but also they know how special this time is and these images will always remind them of a time quickly forgotten as their lives change and their boys grow. Beach sessions with little ones include lots of play and games to make it fun and keep them going. I think you can see that here! 🙂
A fun sneak peak of some of the holiday mini sessions happening over here at TGP! They are all completed now and galleries are almost ready to go out (some already have :))! These lucky clients will have their holiday cards done and ready to go soon! Can you imagine that… already completed that big task! I can NOT! LOL! I am lucky to get mine out by December 24th!
Brand New Big Brothers and Sisters in Studio (Tracy Gabbard Photography)
Photographing a newborn with a sibling (younger ones especially) is one of my favorite things in a newborn session! I will not lie, much of the time it takes A LOT of patience and MANY clicks of the camera to capture a handful of sweet sibling photos but once they are captured, there is nothing sweeter!!! What makes it so difficult to capture those precious moments? Well…. let me explain! First of all newborns are typically photographed with in the first 5-12 days of birth. Younger “big sisters or brothers” have just had their world rocked with a demanding baby! After those first couple days when the newness of the baby has worn off for them, they often want NOTHING to do with this alien that just invaded their world. Younger (preschool age) children can be difficult to photograph without the newness of a baby sibling SO throw that in the mix and you have a potentially challenging portion of the session. I LOVE when the siblings interact with the baby. These two below were “helping” cover the baby. Sometimes encouraging them to “help” is a good way to get them in the same spot for a quick photo!
Trying to get a newborn to stay asleep while getting a preschooler to cooperate and “pose” is not easy. Many times the best way to do this is to put the baby on something instead of having the sibling hold the baby. Often young children don’t feel comfortable holding their new baby anyway and it can be dangerous as they are unpredictable and may possibly get up without warning and leave the baby. I always have moms and dads helping hands close by for the baby no matter if he or she is in the siblings arms or in a prop. Safety first, always!!!! That is not to say that it is impossible to get a preschooler to hold their new baby! It can be done but always safely on the floor and with adult arms close by to help.
And then there are always the “smiling” looking at the camera pictures” Those are classic and always favorites.
I often think it would be funny to record the sibling portion of a newborn session! With mom, dad and me working together to keep the older child in an area of the baby, and all of us acting silly trying to get them to look at the camera or bribing with little treats! Maybe one day I will try to capture that on video! 🙂
Beautiful in Blue – Many times, I find it exciting to make newborn photo sessions, sitting up photo sessions, even family photo sessions with blue as the theme.
Blue is traditionally associated with boys but little girls do look great in blue! Look at that sweet young lady, ‘looking up’ down there. Doesn’t she appear wonderfully cute in her blue polka dots? What do you think about these babies in their stylish blue beds during their nap time? Oh my! I love staring at them. And, in that family photo, you can feel the close physical and emotional integration of the whole family wearing different shades of blue. I love them all so so much.
You, too, can create memories of your own like these at Tracy Gabbard Photography Studio, Clearwater. For more and latest photography visit frequently TGP at Facebook, or click on Contact.
(tampa baby photographer) I have the pleasure of photographing many mommies with their “babies” over the years and I am happy to share just a few of them over the last year or so. I am so thankful to these mommy’s for choosing Tracy Gabbard Photography to photograph the most special times in their lives. I wish I could post all the “mommy and me” portraits I have taken but I am going to spend some time with my “babies”! Thank you again to all of you! (tampa baby photographer)
Tampa Family Photographer I have had so many sessions lately at Tracy Gabbard Photography I thought it would be fun to share a quick peak from each in the order they are up for editing! Top to bottom shows the editing order from first to last. 🙂 Do you see your session up on the editing block in this bunch?! As a Tampa Family Photographer, I just love this first one as she is super excited too! 🙂 I can’t wait to get to all your sessions! Tampa Family Photographer
Tampa Newborn Photographer I’m so excited to share with you all this super sweet newborn session. As a Tampa Newborn Photographer, I had so much photographing big sister (every since she was a newborn) but especially now with her newborn little sister on the scene! Can’t wait to photograph little sister when she starts crawling! This is one of my favorite families to photograph Tampa Newborn Photographer
Tampa Family Photographer WHOO HOO! Today is the day we get to look back at Christmas’ past and reflect on how much things have changed! As a Tampa family Photographer, it has been an HONOR and a BLESSING to photograph these family throughout the years! From our TGP family to yours we wish you a safe and Happy Holidays and a VERY Merry Christmas! Can’t wait to start off the New Year with you all! Tampa Family Photographer
Tampa Family Photographer WHOO HOO! Today is the day we get to look back at Christmas’ past and reflect on how much things have changed! As a Tampa family Photographer, it has been an HONOR and a BLESSING to photograph these family throughout the years! From our TGP family to yours we wish you a safe and Happy Holidays and a VERY Merry Christmas! Can’t wait to start off the New Year with you all! Tampa Family Photographer
Tampa Family Photographer
Tampa Family PhotographerTampa Family PhotographerTampa Family Photographer
Tampa child photographerSo for this week’s Flashback Friday I thought I’d add a little fall flair to it since we’re in the season. And I also wanted to feature some of my favorite memories of my very own kids! Every Fall for the past 7 years, we visited our local pumpkin patch! As a tampa child photographer, and mother of these two, it makes my heart just skip a beat knowing that my little ones are growing up so fast! (Don’t all of us moms wish we could slow the time down LOL!) Please enjoy these Flashback Friday Fall memories as much has I have! **Disclaimer: My photography has greatly improved over the years!! Can you tell?!!?** Tampa Child Photographer
Tampa Family Photographer Being a big sister or a big brother is no easy task! It comes with a whole bunch of new responsibilities and new experiences. As a Tampa Family Photographer, I am so excited to feature these super siblings and a little sibling love on the blog today! Some are super sweet and some are just down right hilarious but these priceless interactions between siblings really make me smile! 🙂 Hope you love them too! Tampa Family Photographer
Tampa Family PhotographerTampa Family PhotographerTampa Family Photography
(tampa infant photographer) All my clients with newborns that also have young siblings that we incorporate into the session KNOW how it is a “family affair” to get a young child (3 and under) to cooperate with a newborn! I have posted pull backs before of everyone gathered around the “babies” with treats to try to get the toddler even close to the baby! It is actually quite funny. We always manage to pull out a few priceless photos that mommys and daddys will always treasure but I had to post this picture of a recent sibling session. LOVE the look on this adorable little guys face as we are persuading him to get close to his new baby brother! Do you see anything else funny? Look closely, there is a treat somewhere in the picture waiting for “pick up”… you know I am supposed to snap the shutter at the EXACT time this quick little guy reaches down for his treat! LOL! Cracks me up! (I actually don’t think that he fell for our trick and never picked up that treat!) Needless to say, there are priceless images of the 2 of them together but this one really “tells all”! (tampa infant photographer)
tampa family photographer Couldn’t wait to share this super fun family session of mom and the kids! This super special family session was actually a surprise photoshoot for Father’s Day! (So glad I can finally post all of their cute photos) Big sister was definitely the “Star of the Show” for this family session and had fun running around! LOL! And her adorable little brother gave me some of the cutest smiles and loved playing with Mommy 🙂 As a tampa family photographer, I was pretty impressed with all the candid images we were able to get from the family session. Can’t wait to photograph this little guy’s first birthday coming up soon! (tampa family photographer)
(tampa family photographer) A special Happy Mothers day to all the amazing moms! I am so lucky to be able to capture precious “mommy and me” moments throughout the year at many of my sessions. Here is just a small sampling of the many wonderful moms I meet each week! I hope that all my client mommies have wonderful day (and other moms to)! (tampa family photographer)
(tampa photographer) As I downloaded and scrolled through a recent session it inspired me to write this post on evening sessions with children. As a mom I am all to familiar with “the witching hour” which I am sure most moms reading this know, that is the hour in the evening (it is a different hour for every child but usually with in a couple hours of bedtime) when your most precious, adorable, perfect child is MISERABLE and you are to! This hour(s) creates fussy, cranky, needy children and this hour is very often what makes us moms count the seconds until bedtime. Although my children have now outgrown this hour (yay for me!) I remember it with not so much fondness very clearly. That is why when a mom emails or calls me to chat about a location session, I have a list of questions and a few things to chat about before we actually schedule.
As many of you may know, location sessions most often happen in the evenings about an hour before sunset. Depending on the time of year that could make the session start as late as 7:30 pm. Can they happen during the day or in the morning? Sure, however, the lighting is not as beautiful, the grass is usually wet (at least in the mornings) and it is often more difficult to find those shady areas that help keep your eyes from squinting in the bright sunlight.
So, back to that list… the first thing I usually ask is “How old are your children?”. If they tell me that their child(ren) are under 5, my next question is “How are they in the evenings?”. And we begin a very enlightening (at least I like to think so :)) conversation about evening sessions with young children. I always tell my potential client that I will of course take their pictures no matter what if they think their family is ready for it but I always like to remind them that it is not a great time for children to be at their best. And we do always get some great shots but there is a good chance that they many not have as many to choose from. Believe me, I have done MANY sessions in the evenings with young children…. how about 1 year old twins on the beach…. yea, i know, crazy! BUT, although VERY challenging, mom loved her gallery and it really told the story of how her family was at that point in time. She will always remember that time when her *babies* kept her on her toes (I am sure that is an understatement) and when she looks back at those pictures, I am sure she smiles and remembers that time with fondness. You can see some peaks of that session here.
So… that brings me back to my recent session. This particular mom and I had this discussion about evening sessions and one year olds. In her defense, we were trying to somewhat replicate a session we had done with her older child at ONE at the park. That session was great and he did just fine but as we know, every child is different. So off we trotted to UT (The University of Tampa) and began our session among at least 3 other sessions happening there at the same time 🙂 . Now, I love this location, it is beautiful with many options for backgrounds and beautiful light. But as I have learned over the many years of photographing children in the evening, this is when all photography “rules” go out the door and we just get what we can. The photographer in me REALLY (I mean REALLY) wants those perfect pictures, in the perfect light, beautifully in focus with an amazing smile or an adorable connection between siblings or family and believe me, I try SUPER HARD to get those (I think that my clients will tell you this… we *play* HARD at our sessions :)). We trot around the campus and we corral the kid(s) to my choice of backgrounds with beautiful light shining through the trees or landscape (my clients probably don’t even know that I am looking at all this but I am… as we walk around). We get the child(ren) perfectly placed and I turn on my *amazing* personality (lol!) and back up just a little bit to get what I think I need to in the frame of my camera…. By the time I get to the place I need to be (literally a split second- I move fast :)) there is a good chance the child is either up and moving, crying, or giving my silly sounds and faces a completely “blank” stare (even though I must say, I am rather funny). Mom and dad do *magic* tricks behind me (I will video this someday) but to no avail, there is no perfect smile or even a hint of happiness. Maybe we could qualify it as a cute *look* in this “perfect” spot…. but instead he gets up, moves to a NOT perfect spot and gives the most amazing smile ever….
tampa family photographer
Don’t know who’s thumb that is trying to keep him there for a minute (probably big brothers) 🙂
tampa family photographer
Will mom care? I have no idea, probably not … I like to think that in most cases I am the only one that cares about those perfect backgrounds (it is the photographer in me, I can’t help it- I am sure most other photographers can relate). Moms mostly just care about happy children and precious portraits that will put a smile on their faces as they walk by. It is just a “bonus” to get all of the things together in one shot. Here are some fun “behind the scenes pictures from this session as well as a few “gems” so this poor mommy who has not gotten her gallery yet doesn’t think that there are not any other shots as well. 🙂
tampa family photographer
tampa family photographer
We ended this session with a cake smash (after all what is a one year old session with out a yummy cake to end the night?) and although this session did have its issues, from all of the balloons popping (notice the amount of balloons in the beginning to the end), to adorable but busy toddlers, windy, and of course mosquitos, over all it was a great experience. And when I really think about it, almost all sessions bring their own unique set of issues whether they are in the mornings, in the studio, planned around naps or during the “witching hour”. Is an evening session right for you if you have little ones? You will have to decide… I think it went fine for this family! I think they will be very happy with their gallery! 🙂 (tampa photographer)
Happy Thursday everyone! Take a look at this cutie 🙂 This was his very first sitting up session and he gave me smiles all the way through 🙂 We planned it right around his nap time so this little guy was super happy and easy going. This family is a wonderful member of The New Beginnings Plan. As a Tampa Baby Photographer, I just love photographing all my sessions in studio, with natural light, just like this one! Take a look at this cute baby doll!
My favorite collection is The New Beginnings Plan launched about four years ago in 2007. It includes three sessions for capturing the first few stages of life for your newborn baby. The plan can feature any stages you’d like for your baby but these are my recommendations:
1. Newborn Session (under 12 days)
2. Sitting up (on their own) Session
3. One year Birthday Session
Families often add on maternity sessions and sometimes an extra session through out the year to document all the stages. Over the course of four years, many families have been involved in The New Beginnings Plan. The plan has become so popular that as a Tampa Newborn Photographer, I can only take a limited number of babies per month.
One of the things I love about this plan is watching the babies grow over the years and getting to know the families. And although I usually see them again, it still breaks my heart when their final session of the plan comes around.
What the families tend to love most about The New Beginnings Plan are the keepsake albums that they receive at the end. They have this album as a timeless treasure that has all their baby’s precious moments right from the very beginning. 🙂
Here are some of my favorite New Beginnings Plan members from over the years. Enjoy! 🙂
(Clearwater family photographer) This family was so much fun and their little man was “on the GO”! 🙂 He kept our session “quick and to the point”! LOL! Both kids were full of personality and so much fun to spend time with (oh- and mom and dad were great to :))! Their session was a special gift from a family member, it is always a great thing to remember that pictures are a gift that will NEVER be forgotten or regretted! TGP can help you with the perfect gift to suit your needs. Now for the sneak peaks for this special family… (clearwater family photographer)
(tampa family photographer) This family is so much fun and I love that they called me back to photograph their whole family together again! We did a session several years ago that you can view here. You can see how much the kids have grown and there has even been one added! 🙂 It is obvious how much they love to spend time together and that of course makes my job not only easier but also so much fun! This is a large share but believe it or not, there are still lots of great surprises for this special family who will be receiving their full gallery in the next couple days!! (tampa family photographer)
(clearwater baby photographer) What a super fun session in the studio! These 2 cuties cracked me up. Their personalities just shone through in their images. I hope to see them again for a double smash cake session… can you imagine the awesome fun and MESS 🙂 Can’t wait! It’s the kind of thing a family photographer lives for!
(tampa child photographer) This family was full of sweetness and their little girl was pure joy! I truly enjoyed capturing some holiday memories for them and since they know their gallery won’t come back to them before Christmas a special sneak peak for them to enjoy! (TAMPA CHILD PHOTOGRAPHER)
(clearwater family photographer) This family paid a visit to the Clearwater studio several days ago. They were so much fun to work with and the kids were amazing! Loving their portraits thought it would be fun to share a few! (clearwater family photographer)
(clearwater beach photographer) Not only was this family super nice and fun but beautiful as well! They kids were just darling and I had a blast chasing them around the beach with my camera! Beach sessions are such an amazing way to not only create beautiful portraits but also to capture timeless memories. Making the session fun and interactive for the whole family is a great way to get the kids and parents relaxed and feeling at ease infront of the camera. Of course we always work to get the classic smiling portraits but my favorites and many time my clients favorites end up being the ones that show true personality. That may include giggling and tickling pictures or even a serious expression that tugs at moms heartstrings. It’s those faces that only moms (and sometimes dads :)) know and love. This family was vacationing here and I hope that our session together was a highlight of their trip and one they will not forget. I know it was a highlight of my week! 🙂 Their next big challenge will be when they receive their gallery in the next day or so and have to make decisions on what to invest in! Believe me when I say it will be a tough choice! LOVE this session! (clearwater beach photographer)
(tampa bay beach photography) Yes, these two adorable twins left me breathless as I chased them around the beach! 🙂 But seriously, how cute are they? These pictures are a true representation of them and their little personalities at this age. They were so much fun and I hope to be able to see them again when they visit Florida another time! (tampa bay beach photography)
(clearwater baby photographer) Another brand new little guy in the studio! Mom and dad were awesome and brought so many props and fun things to try to use. He was wide awake in the beginning of the session which is always good so that we can capture those beautiful, sparkling newborn eyes. I love this first one… if you look closely at his little lips it looks like he is trying to kiss his mommy…. :::pitter patter::: (clearwater baby photographer)
All of the following were mom’s props… I love to try to work them into a session if the baby lets us and this little champ was more than happy to accomodate!
(tampa photographer) This couple is celebrating their 50 year wedding anniversary! How awesome is that? They were SOO much fun to work with and I truly enjoyed getting to know them. It is such a great part of my job being able to meet so many people. This couple is still so in love (at least they acted like it 🙂 and the “Mr” sure has some “wit” as he kept me laughing through out the whole session! Enjoy your sneak peak and HAPPY 50th Wedding Anniversary!
(clearwater beach family photographer) Seriously, I am so lucky to have the most beautiful families as clients! I think one of my toughest jobs is narrowing down images for a blog post! There are SOOO many great ones of this family that I could post their whole gallery! These precious children were so much fun. The best sessions happen when a family is happy to be together and everyone (including dad :)) is able to enjoy the moment. A photo shoot should not only create great images but also create a wonderful lasting memory for the family. Many families enjoy ice cream or dinner afterwards making the whole evening a fun event instead of a “the dreaded photo session”. I love to keep everyone moving and busy with “posed” pictures turning into fun candid’s that turn into giggles and snuggles. This family was amazing to photograph and they truly made the evening a fun event! Thank you “J” family! Gallery soon to follow! (clearwater beach family photographer)
(clearwater family photographer)This is a special family that I have know for many years. My husband is lucky to have one of these several faces as the manager of his company Magnifying Aids. She has been a blessing to the company and our family. It was a pleasure to be able to photograph her family and her extended family in the studio. Their personalities show right through into their images and that is one of the many things I love about them. I must put a *disclaimer* on the last photograph though 🙂 there is NO actual choking going on, lol! See the “little” guy with the hat? He insisted that we do The Simpson family pose. Since I have never watched any episode of The Simpsons I let him pose and direct the shot. I hope he likes it :)… I’m sure at his age, that one will be his favorite! (clearwater family photographer)
(clearwater beach photographer) Yes, it was windy, yes it was slightly chilly and yes, it was cloudy BUT what a great session with this awesome family! I LOVE being able to document families at the beach. Especially when it is the kids first experience! Little kids have such a difficult time in the evenings (especially when on vacation) but these kids were such troopers! They played hard in the sand and water during our time together and I couldn’t have enjoyed watching them more. Thank you to this great family for having me capture such special moments for you! Gallery SOON to follow! 🙂 (clearwater beach photographer)
(clearwater baby photographer)Oh this little guy was SO funny! I photograph many babies and at this age most of them do love to eat their feet (which I LOVE) but this little one…. he REALLY loved his toes! In fact, we could hardly keep his feet out of his mouth. It was so funny I had to share more than usual amount of pictures. You can just see him looking at those adorable toes and then the urge to get then in his mouth. At one point mom held him back so he couldn’t lean forward to eat them so as you will see…. he just brought them up to his mouth! Don’t worry mom and dad… there are MANY with out toes in the mouth (all though I adore these) and your gallery will be headed your way very soon! (clearwater baby photographer)
(clearwater high school senior photographer)”Wow”, is all I can say about this adorable senior! She was so beautiful and so much fun to spend the day with. She choose to go for two sessions (in studio and on location) to make the most of these once in a life time images and she did a great job! She brought lots of outfits, props, her bunny and even her sisters to the beach! It’s no secret I LOVE when clients bring special things with them to sessions. (clearwater high school senior photographer) Heres a quick preview 🙂
I try not to blog to many holiday sessions since I know many of the images end up on Christmas cards and I certainly don’t want to spoil any of those surprises. So, after I am sure everyone has received their cards I like to post a little preview of some of the holiday sessions I was lucky enough to photograph. There were lots of mini sessions and full family sessions and there is no way to share all of them but here are some fun ones that I thought you might enjoy.
WOW is all I can say about these images from this fun tampa family! I could have blogged MANY more great images of them but had to stop at some point. I did throw in a few extra because they have been patiently waiting for their sneak peak and gallery! 🙂 I am starting to get caught up from the holiday madness and hope to be back to blogging more frequently. Anyway, this family was SO much fun. They have 2 BUSY boys kept me on my toes but gave me amazing expressions and interactions each other. You would think the location was in a beautiful woodsy area with the sun shining down on the tops of the fall colored leaves, but NO, it was in fact, an area on the side of a side road in their neighborhood! The colors are fantastic and the area was perfect for this family! Anyway, enjoy these fun images!
