Father's Day 2014

In honor of Father's Day, here are some of my favorite photos taken in the past couple years. It's such a privilege to be able to share these family moments.

wwwBonnieKingPhotography.com

Keeping It Real: Photographying Kids

I recently read an article about photographing children in one of my favorite photo magazines. The bottom line is - keep it real. With children, it's all about capturing that special moment when they strike a pose, squiggle a nose, or wiggle their toes the way you want to remember them in that moment.

 

It's about capturing the innocence, warmth, sweetness, and silliness of childhood. In my studio, I call it "fly by shooting." Trying to pose toddlers once they're mobile is challenging. I try to have a number of props that will keep their attention for at least a few seconds, maybe minutes, if I'm lucky.

 

The new environment, lights flashing, and the stranger with a camera can be intimidating, so my goal is to get acquainted with the child/children and their parents before we begin. Parents help get their child's attention by talking, laughing, making funny faces or serving as the prop!

 

Sometimes it's just a matter of letting them do their own thing - and hopefully it's within range of the lights and camera, but I'm not above taking shots regardless of where they are in the studio. It's about keeping it real and recording what the experience was like for everyone. 

Outside photos are great - when the weather cooperates. I refer to outside sessions as "The Chase." I do get a number of shots from the rear with the little one heading for the hills. Again, this is keeping it real and as long as I can catch up and get face shots too, everyone is happy. I usually end up with dirty knees because it's important to me to see the child and his/her world from their perspective.

 

Children grow fast, which makes capturing precious moments in their lives so important. It's been my privilege to do that for lots of families in the past few years - doing my best to keep it real. www.BonnieKingPhotography.com

 

My Secret Garden

Ever read Nancy Drew mysteries as a child? You probably didn't if you were a guy, but I found the blonde, sometimes redheaded, Nancy appealed to my sense of adventure. Thinking about her hair color, we also had that in common!

I probably owned 20 of the original 56 books written by various people using the pseudonym, Carolyn Keene. I remember having a hard time putting her books down. I'd turn on my light after I was supposed to be asleep and become one with Nancy Drew.

Taking photos of four year-old Cassie the other day while she explored my yard, started me thinking about secret gardens. I thought there was a Nancy Drew mystery titled, My Secret Garden, but when I Googled to find it - no luck. Perhaps I was thinking about The Password to Larkspur Lane or one of the other mysteries in which a secret garden was mentioned.

Amazing what the subconscious holds. Perhaps the influence of those childhood mystery stories were the unconscious inspiration for what has become my "secret garden," a hideaway with lots of perennial flowers, weathered benches, and trickling waterfalls.


With the foliage maturing, helped by all the rain, the garden has evolved over the last four years since we re-landscaped. It now looks as though it's been there for years. Just the right place for little girls (and big ones too) to pretend they've found a secret garden. www.BonnieKingPhotography.com

Photos for Father's Day

With Father's Day fast approaching, I've been taking pictures with fathers in mind. I've also been glancing back at pictures of fathers and their children from the past couple of years. I can't help but get warm and fuzzy when I look at them.

Here are some to get your warm and fuzzy going too!
BonnieKingPhotography.com

       

                       

Weddings, Belly Dancing & Cancer

Cela & Patrick

Corinne & Max

March was quite the month both professionally and personally: two weddings, infants and a family photo shoot; good and not so good news for family members.

Good News. My first wedding shoots, with the help of friend Shelly Luthi, went very well. The first was a small wedding for a delightful older couple Corinne  and Max Friebel, on March 5th. We only spent part of the day with them. The second wedding on March 12th was a larger affair for Cela and Patrick Njeim. We began shooting before the wedding in Tacoma, then drove to the ceremony at a Catholic Church in Fife, later returning for the dinner and reception in Tacoma. It was an international affair with family members from Croatia and Lebanon. One of the highlights of the reception was the belly dancer and the fun family members had dancing with her. Great photo opportunities.

Other good news - my younger brother Jim finally contacted me via email. I was so happy about that. We've been out of touch for several years. He brought me up to speed, but there is still more we need to catch up on. My niece Nicolette came through her mastectomy very well and may not have to have continuing treatment. My grandniece Dori spent time with us - trying to get us both better organized. She was very helpful getting my taxes ready for the accountant and attempting to get Scott's business plan in order. She left him with "homework" which has yet to get done. Dori, we need you back! I loved it when the twenty-five year old with a smile on her face was telling the sixty-six year old to "focus"!

Bad and Good News. Son-in-law Ron was doing belly dancing of his own, but not without pain. He went back into the hospital for the sixth time since January with another pancreatitis attack. The doctor finally performed one more diagnostic test and discovered he had a blocked area leading from the pancreas to his stomach. The enzymes were backing up into the pancreas and creating excruciating pain. They placed a temporary stent which he'll have to have removed at the end of a month. In the meantime he'll be getting meals intravenously so his innards can heal. What a heck of a way to diet and with all of the problems he's had - he is a shadow of himself. The former self was 70 pounds heavier! The good news from all of that was my being able to spend more time with grandson Ben. 

Nicolette & Lore

Bad News for Now. With lots of prayer and good medical attention, the following "bad news" will hopefully move to another category this year. My sister Lore, with whom I shared a fantastic time in Hawaii in February, found out she also has a type of breast cancer, invasive lobular carcinoma. It was discovered during a routine mammogram. A needle biopsy was done right away. Four days later she received the results and her daughter Nicolette came from LaConnor to go with her to the doctor and help set up other specialist appointments. Unfortunately and fortunately, Nicolette speaks the language of cancer, having just undergone a mastectomy herself in the last two months. Lore is having additional testing done to better determine the type of surgery she'll need to have. She has great family support. Her granddaughter Dori lives with her and her five children are all staying in close touch. I'll certainly help however I can.

Scott

And last but not least, Scott wishes he could belly dance, but had an x-ray that shows his right hip is shot. He will either have to have hip replacement surgery, live with the pain or possibly in a wheelchair. Had I known that 25 years ago, I never would have bought a split level house! We're going to see his cardiologist in the next couple weeks to discuss the issue with him before we do a follow-up with an orthopedic specialist. Scott can only have surgery performed with local anesthesia because of his COPD/emphysema.

But in the meantime, Scott continues to "fine tune" his recording studio, work with musicians and coach his voice-over clients. He's busy, positive and enthusiastic about his pursuits. And I'm off for an overnight trip to Portland with two women friends - just going to hang out for a couple days and regroup. BonnieKingPhotography.com

Who's Calling the Shots? The Kids, of Course!

This is the week for children's pics. Thursday, I'll be taking the two week photos of grandson, Micah, and the four month pics of grandson, Benjamin. If all goes well, I'll also be taking pictures of the two of them together. The nine month photos of the Maloney twins, Matthew and Nathan, are due this weekend. How did they get so old?!

Every time I take children's pictures, the role of director is reversed. They call the shots. The child or children dictate how much time is needed to get just the right pictures. On the other hand, take too much time and tears are usually the result. When a child isn't feeling well, smiles are rare. A child's health and mood determine the story in the photo. Shyness or a refusal to smile, except to grimace like the Grinch who stole Christmas, isn't unusual.

On New Year's Eve, I had the privilege of taking photos of my friend, Teri, and her two granddaughters, Zaidon who is three, and Adrianna, five months old. We have been trying for months to find a time when the children were with Teri, one of them wasn't sick and the weather would permit the drive from the peninsula to Puyallup. On top of that, Zaidon had decided to cut her own hair which resulted in her "mullet do" as Teri called it. 

The day finally arrived along with lots of outfit changes, diapers, bottles and happy meals to keep up the energy. Zaidon decided she wanted to wear a princess outfit I have on hand with a crown, jewelry and a fancy skirt. She wasn't interested in being a fairy princess with wings. But once in front of the camera, Zaidon had her own ideas about her poses - which I love. I would never have thought to ask her to put her hand through her belt when doing her "model" pose. How cute is that!

Zaidon wasn't interested in smiling for the camera. But while grandma was changing Adrianna, she decided to run back and forth in front of the backdrop, mugging for me as she got to each side of the room. I was able to capture some "backstage" smiles. And when we were eating ice cream and visiting upstairs in my kitchen afterward, there were lots of smiles and laughter, but no camera.

Adrianna was another story. I caught her at just the right time. She was dry, had just finished her bottle and was all smiles. What a sweetie! However, the "melt your heart moments" were captured when Zaidon was pointing to the heart on Adrianna's shirt and then to the heart on her own. These two lovely girls do have a heart bond for each other - and a grandma who helps keep that link strong. 

For more pictures of kids who called the shots, click on the link to my photography web site, BonnieKingPhotography.com 

Wonder Woman

I've become much more aware in the last four months of mothers out and about with young children. Having grandchildren will do that, you know. This awareness has been heightened by the fact that from the time I gave birth to my own daughters, Courtney and Kendall, there has been quite a span between babies!

My older sister, Lore, and older brother Ray (aka Corky) had grown children by the time I got around to having my own. My younger brother, Jimmy, lived in eastern Washington and I rarely got a chance to see him, let alone get acquainted with his daughter, Brandy. (In fact, he's been so distant - I'm in the process of trying to find him, but that's another story...).

Now back to mother, children sightings. I was in Costco yesterday morning picking up Dave's Killer Bread. (It is to die for; you can get two loaves at Costco for practically the price of one at any other grocery store). And, as usual, lots of other stuff found the way into my basket, but I digress...

Wheeling down the vitamin aisle, aiming for the back wall of bread, I saw the most amazing site. Heading toward me was Wonder Woman, not in tights and a cape, but pushing a grocery cart that resembled the one man band at the Puyallup Fair. Remember him? All the instruments attached to his body and pushing a cart with even more musical paraphernalia attached. Wonder Woman had a cart piled so high... How high was it? ...it looked like the furniture-carrying IKEA Volkswagen Beetle!

Okay - enough analogies. You get the picture. But, to top it all off, she somehow attached three children to the cart. I kid you not. A couple were clinging to the sides, neatly - not aisle obstructionists, and another was somehow hooked onto the handle in front of her. She had to have been leaving. There was absolutely no more room for groceries or children. Then again... for a Wonder Woman, anything is possible.

Here are a few pictures of wonder moms and grandmothers, whose faces have graced my lens in the last year. BonnieKingPhotography.com

The Front Porch

Please note - the Front Porch in Puyallup is no longer in business, but this is what I experienced when they were!

While the weather outdoors is frightful (remember the song?), you wouldn't think I'd be talking about a front porch. I have another type of front porch in mind - The Front Porch, a small business in Puyallup owned and operated by Cheri Waldenberg. Cheri has been very kind allowing me to put up a photo gallery display of my work on the wall at the back of her store.

Cheri is a remarkable woman, having run her own landscape business prior to owning The Front Porch. No stranger to hard work, she mowed 40 lawns a week by herself! Her husband Scott was a graphic designer in Bellevue. About nine years ago, they decided to make a change. They rented space at 210 No. Meridian in Puyallup and started selling furniture and antiques. Scott got into the custom home building business, but still finds time to make custom furniture to sell through the store.

Another big change occurred in 2008. After 17 years of marriage, their daughter Courtney was born. Cheri took a month off and when she came back to re-open the business found that many of the furniture suppliers had gone out of business. In February 2009, they bought out the inventory of a children's store in eastern Washington. That started a whole new chapter for The Front Porch. The store now specializes in new and slightly used children's items. Cheri does not accept consignments and is very particular about what she purchases for resale. And yes, they still sell custom furniture and drapery.

I bought a child's chair made of vines to use as a photo prop. This is a store that is a child's dream place. It's also mine for children's photography props.

 

Kids and Costumes

What's Halloween without costumes? Just another excuse to eat. So when the chance came to take pictures of kids (and a dog) in costume, I was there. Photographing children doing their own thing is a real joy - and I got to eat food prepared by someone else, one of my other greatest joys. 

My stepdaughter Summer and her husband Michael have two children, Addison and Margo, and they go all out when it comes to kids' parties. They amaze me! They are both working parents and still make time to decorate, bake and feed a couple dozen family members and assorted friends. Are these two huggable or what?!

There are more pet and children's photos at bonniekingphotography.com