Boise Lifestyle Photographer | Glimpses Week 22

This is one of those images that is really a snapshot, and yet sooooooo much more. It really tells quite a story--maybe not to anyone else, but definitely to this sappy mama. At first glance, you see the big sister reading to little sister. I love, by the way, the enthusiastic expression of MJ reading. I can almost hear her. She uses a lot of inflection in her voice and is quite fun to listen to.

Looking deeper though, this image captures other details that may seem insignificant, but do matter and will fade from my memory over time. I see the cup and the Gatorade bottle on the top of the bed. E didn't like the pain medicine she had to take so I let her follow it with the flavored stuff. She really likes drinking water out of the new horse cup she received from Nana for her recent birthday. She's sucking those middle fingers; a habit I hope we can break her of soon, but still such a part of who she is right now. She twirls her hair too. Next to E is her favorite baby monkey. When I was expecting little brother, she went with me shopping one day, and spotted that monkey in the store. I let her carry it around while I tried some maternity clothes on, and then, of course, couldn't resist when she asked to take it home. She also has her favorite monkey blanket given to her by her Aunt Michelle for Christmas. Finally, there in the right-hand corner of the image is another detail, a small one to some and not too obvious as the image is in black and white, but it sums up the story here. E had an accident at gymnastics and broke her tibia. She's in a cast from her toes to her thigh. She's handling it all really well, considering. Her purple and pink cast is quite the sight to see; she resembles the Cheshire cat a little bit. :0) She even has bright pink toenail polish to match! MJ has been so helpful and compassionate through this whole thing. It's nice to see her showing so much concern for her little sister. This wasn't the plan we had to spend the first part of our summer, but we're rolling with it. And hopefully, she will be all healed by the end of the month. Until then, this little incident has caused us all to slow down. It's caused me to spend more time catching moments like this. And for that, I will be forever grateful.


To see more Glimpses, check them out at Chic Critique Forum


A few more details so I don't forget. We had recently moved little brother downstairs to a bigger boy room. He actually is in a bigger bed too. He's very excited about it. This room will be redecorated to be the nursery for baby sister. The timing was good because Little J had spent enough time in his room that he was perfectly fine with E needing to sleep in his old room/bed (thus the Cars sheets). It's right next to our room and I knew it would be best to have her close in case she needed us in the night. The first night was pretty rough on both of us. I ended up staying in the room with her. Even after she had her cast, she had a few nights where she woke up. But, now she's adapting well and we're all sleeping better. We had just gotten a tablet and J found some videos on it for her to watch. She spent the first few days in bed watching Angelina Ballerina, Thomas the Train and Bob the Builder, reading books, working on her letters and numbers, and napping. It's been a week and half since it happened and we've been able to venture outside a lot more to enjoy the warm weather. We just put her in the wagon and pull her around. The kids also spent the night with the grandparents last week and even slept in a tent. Good thing she's a kid; I don't think I'd handle a cast nearly as well. :0)

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Journaling, photo taking and storytelling have always been a part of me and who I am. I hope to catch up some of our personal scrapbooks now that we're finding more activities to keep our hands busy since E can't run around yet. I know I've been sharing a lot more personal work on my blog lately, but instead of apologizing for it, I'll embrace it. My children have always been my inspiration and the little details I pick up when photographing them translates perfectly to when I photograph clients. I can capture the moments and details that happen in between all the other images we're taking. I'm also putting the final touches on my new blog (yay!!!) and am waiting to share some client sessions and albums in the new format. So until then, enjoy another glimpse into our lives...

My Thinker ~ Glimpses Week 20 | Idaho Children Lifestyle Photographer

 

She looks older here, too old for me, really. But behind that serious look is a heart of gold, a big toothy grin and a girl I love more and more every day. I saw some great light in our living room, so I grabbed her for a little impromptu lighting practice. Love playing with light and shadows! I have plenty of her smiling too, but this one just strikes me. She's my thinker.

For more Glimpses, check out Chic Critique Forum

Sweet and Spunky Six-year-old | Idaho Children Photographer

Our sweet little E turned six earlier this month. What can I say, this girl makes me smile! She just finished Kindergarten and is headed to Pre-First. She is kind and loving, always giving people hugs. She's both independent and hesitant at the same time. Once she's comfortable in a situation, she's all energy and charges right ahead. But, if things are new and different, she hangs back for awhile analyzing the scene. She's a great big sister to Little J and adores her big sister M. She loves to sing and dance. She's a great runner too!

When you have more than one child, it's neat to see how each really have their own personalities. I want to help her shine in whatever way I can. She's our sunshine and we love her so much!

Schedule Update ~ Idaho Lifestyle Portrait Photographer | Babies, Children, Teens and Families

Hey folks, I know it's been awhile, but I have so many things in the works right now, it's hard to decide what to share yet, and what can wait. Stay with me though; some exciting changes to Maggie Malson Photography are coming!

I'd love it if you could leave some comments and let me know what you enjoy most about the blog or you'd like to see more of in the future. Do I blog enough? Too much? Do you want to see more recent sessions? Before/After edits? Tips for future sessions? More personal stuff/less personal stuff? Talk to me friends; love hearing from you!

Scheduling Update:


Two "Your Story" album sessions and one "Essence" session available in June, July and August. I will not be accepting any sessions in September (more details to come) and will have limited availability this fall. If there is enough interest, I will be offering family mini-sessions for Christmas cards in October. Please leave comments if you would like to be contacted about the date for it. Thanks!

Don't wait until the last minute to think about capturing your child's milestone moments or your family's lifestyle and relationships. "Your Story" album sessions include an in-person consultation to discuss style, location, clothing and all the details that will make your session unique. These sessions result in a custom-designed, heirloom quality album telling "your story", as well as custom wall art created for your home. 

Here's a sample of a spread from a recent senior "Your Story" album. Oh how I love designing albums for clients!

Glimpses Week 16 ~ Flowers for Mama | Idaho Children Photographer

Children give us a gift we sometimes don't even know we need. The gift of innocence. The gift of seeing the world through fresh eyes. The gift of Dandelion flowers... 

I have to admit I'm not a big fan of Dandelions. In fact, they seem to have just exploded in our yard this spring. Boo! Hopefully the fertilizer application this weekend will help slow them down. :0)

However, I do love, love, love that my little guy got so excited the other day when we walked out in the yard and he saw all of them. "Flowers, mama! I pick you some flowers!," he exclaimed. Then he proceeded to run around the yard grabbing up fistfuls. I ran inside and grabbed the closest camera, my little P&S because his innocence and what he sees through his fresh eyes is exactly what I needed to remember, and capture...

To see more Glimpses, check out Chic Critique Forum.

Fields of Flowers | Idaho Children's Photographer

 

It's definitely spring here! Lovely warm days intertwined with cool, rainy ones. Everything is in bloom. And even though these little purple flowers are technically weeds, they can make a really pretty backdrop, especially with a lot of bokeh!

What is bokeh? 

"In photography, bokeh is the blur, or the aesthetic quality of the blur, in out-of-focus areas of an image," as defined by Wikipedia. It's the look when the image background looks all blurry and fuzzed out while the subject seems to pop out of the image.

Bokeh is achieved when you have a shallow depth of field. Without getting too technical, depth of field (DOF) is the distance between the nearest and farthest objects in a scene that appear acceptably sharp in an image. So for example, because I focused on her face (mainly the eyes) anything in front of that plane (in the foreground) and anything behind the plane of her face (background) will be out of focus. Some lens do this better than others, and the distance of the subject to the background also affects bokeh.

Bokeh is also affected by the aperture used. Aperture controls how much light is being let into the lens and hitting the film or in this case the digital sensor of the camera.

This was by no means an in-depth lesson, but hopefully you learned a little something. And if you have more questions about anything mentioned here or other basic camera questions, leave them in the comments and I'll answer them in another post.

Essence and "Your Story" sessions are both available now, so call today to book your appointment. I will have a limited fall schedule, so don't wait until the last minute to capture memories of your loved ones. Enjoy your weekend!

Wordless Wednesday (Name that Photo) | Idaho Children's Photographer

Glimpses ~ Week 15 | Idaho Lifestyle Photography

Pure joy...

I captured this moment of my girls while out location scouting the other night. It's funny how I struggle sometimes with photographing my own children-at least when trying to take one of all of them together. I love photographing kids, and can handle just about anything they throw at me. I can capture moments of them showing their true essence the parents don't even notice until they see the final images. But, I seem to put a lot more pressure on myself with my own because I go back and forth between wanting that "perfect" pose and then also capturing their true essence. I should know better by now because my style really is photojournalistic and storytelling in nature.

Well, this night there was no pressure. It was windier than all get out, and getting quite chilly. So, we hopped out of the car really fast, ran to a spot I wanted to try and I told them to get close. They were being silly and sweet all at the same time. I had no expectations except to see what kind of light I had. And because I was completely relaxed, I captured one of my girls that makes me smile and fills my heart with pure joy....

For more Glimpses, check out Chic Critique Forum. 

Glimpses Week 14 & Wordless Wednesday | Idaho Lifestyle Photographer

 

Chic Critique Forum "Glimpses"

Sunbrella ~ Five-year-old Session | Idaho Children's Photography

This was a super fun session with my spunky five-year-old. She's got lots of personality, which I'm sure you can tell by these images. I had picked up this umbrella quite awhile ago and was saving it for just the right session. She loved being able to twirl around play with it out in the sun. I love captured her just being herself. And the light that night was so lovely! Have to love yummy light!

I created a beautiful "Your Story" album for her to showcase the rest of the images, and I'll post some photos of it once it's finished.

Babies and children are my absolute favorite subjects. They are just so uninhibited, and my style of capturing them works perfectly with their personalities, whether they are outgoing and spunky, or quiet and reserved. Call me today to book a "Your Story" session of the special child in your life!

Happy Easter! | Idaho Lifestyle Photographer

 

"He is not here; he has been raised." Luke 24: 6.

 

Loving the first signs of spring!

 

 

Happy Easter from Maggie Malson Photography!

May the blessings of the Easter season continue with you all year long!

Glimpses Week 11 ~ Idaho Lifestyle Photography

 

It seems I do post quite a few images of my little guy. And this week I couldn't pick just one. He's such a part of my every day though, and he loves these blocks he received for Christmas and his birthday. I love that you can almost hear him making his little sounds as he plays. And he was so interested in playing, he didn't pay any attention to me. He's not going to always be this little, so I want to continue to preserve as much of his childhood as possible.

To check out other Glimpses, visit the Chic Critique Forum. 

Wordless Wednesday | Idaho Children's Photography

Glimpses ~ Week 10 | Idaho Lifestyle Photographer

Oh I've gotten a little behind on my Glimpses of Everyday posts, but I hope to make up for it. This is a pretty typical scene around our house these days. J loves to put on his boots, hat and chaps, about every day it seems. One afternoon, I could hear him playing, then things got pretty quiet. After a few minutes I decided to investigate and found my little guy all tired out from all his hard work. To see more Glimpses and to check out the new CHIC magazine launched by Chic Critique Forum head on over there. I can't wait to get my issue in the mail!! Happy Wednesday everyone!

Little Fireman ~ Idaho Lifestyle Photography

This little guy enjoyed a fun birthday shoot at the local fire department. It wasn't totally planned that way, but due to some not so fun weather, he got a fun surprise!

This family is no stranger to my camera lens, and we've had fun finding different locations for their family sessions. Their little guy is as cute as ever, and I love seeing how his personality continues to blossom each time I photograph him. This year, we chose to stay close to home and wandered around their hometown a little while. It wasn't a very warm day though. Fortunately, the gracious firemen in Middleton let us come in out of the snow/rain that started during our session. They were so nice to let Little H try on some of the gear too. It made for a very special birthday shoot for him. He loved hanging out on the fire trucks too. Not only are these firemen community heroes, but they were happy to help us out that day when we needed a little shelter from the cold. 

I also took some new headshots for Deanna, who has started her own business, Accent Design, designing wedding invitations, and working with businesses on their design/print needs.

I'm excited to see what all the future holds for this family. Always fun to catch up with them.

If this post receives 20 or more comments, the W family will receive a special gift from me!

Glimpses ~ Week 6 | Idaho Lifestyle Photographer

We celebrated our little guy's 3rd birthday on Feb. 5th. How appropriate to have a football themed birthday party when it was also Super Bowl Sunday?!

I always have fun making the kids' cakes. This one was really easy. I just baked a chocolate cake, then carved the edges off to make a football shape, and frosted it to match. I had found some fun football napkins, and a tablecloth that looked like a football field. The day before I had run into the grocery store on my way home from town, and found some awesome mylar balloons in the shape of footballs. They were perfect! I don't like to spend a lot on the paper goods, but there was just enough to make things festive.

I tried a new recipe, Spicy Pop Pulled Pork, from the first episode of The Pioneer Woman this season. I also made Ree's Cilantro Cole Slaw recipe (sans cilantro because I forgot to put it on my list, boo, and sans jalepeno because we were serving kiddos). I made my mashed potatoes recipe. The secret to it is the cream cheese. Yum!

Josh's family came over for the afternoon. It turned out great. Little J loved everything-the party, the presents, the cake! Can't believe he's already 3! Just love this little boy so much!



To check out more Glimpses, check out the Chic Critique Forum!

My Cowboy ~ Two-year-old ~ Idaho Children Photographer

Little J's usual attire ALWAYS includes his boots. In fact, since he got them, he wears them with EVERYTHING. Literally, everything. His shorts, his jeans, his pajamas, even just a pull-up. When I ask what shoes he wants to wear, he says his boots. He'll even walk around the house calling out to them as if they will answer back so he knows where they are. He's two, and I'm not going to fuss over his clothing choices. He can put them on himself, sometimes backwards, but he gets them on. And he's just pretty stinking adorable. He won't always wear them with everything, and I want to remember this about his toddler years. 

But today, he picked a couple other accessories to wear with his boots--his sister's cowboy hat, which by the looks of it, fits him perfectly, so I think it's his now--and his chaps. The chaps great grandpa Bob made for Josh when he was a little boy. They fit him perfectly now too. Man, I really, really love my little cowboy!

Birthday Balloons ~ 8-year-old ~ Parma Children Photographer

Our Mackenzie turned 8 this month. We sent her flowers at school and her aunt/uncle/cousin surprised her with balloons and candy. It made her day!

First Days of School ~ Getting personal

I was going through images today of the first (and second) days of school this year for the girls. I happened to look on my blog to see which ones of MJ I used from when she started Kindergarten. I actually happen to blog about her first day of Kindergarten on this very day, Sept. 3. I thought it would be fun to look back a little here and here. And here's one of the girls together that day. I love their expressions. Emma looks up to Mackenzie so much; it's really sweet. She was a little sad to see her big sis leave for school that day.

MJ's First Day of Kindergarten-2009

Fast forward to today...
It's fun to look back and see how much kids have grown and changed. This year our Little E started Kindergarten. Having another child hit that milestone is again bittersweet. I am excited for her and all the growing up she is doing. Her spunky personality continues to shine through. She's excited about her school year, just has M is excited about starting second grade.

On the first day of school, I dropped the girls off. We took photos in front of the school, as well as with their teachers. MJ wasn't nearly as excited about having me tag along for photos-she just didn't want to be late and miss meeting her friends before school.

At first I wished E didn't have her fingers in her mouth or that she wasn't twirling her hair in the above photo, then I realized that she won't do either of those things forever. It reminded me that even though she's getting bigger all the time, she's still a little girl. These are the details of childhood (while not perfect) are still part of who she is, and I want to embrace that too.

I also took more photos on the second day of school as this was the first day the girls rode the bus to school this year. The girls are loving school and I anticipate another great year for both of them. It's hard to believe school has already started again. The mornings are also starting to be a little crisp. Just a little hint that fall is definitely right around the corner. I'm not quite ready to say goodbye to summer, but each new season brings new adventures...and new memories.

One-year-old Essence Session ~ Idaho Children's Photographer

This little guy is the youngest of four boys. I've known his family for quite awhile now, and I've been able to photograph all of his big brothers. Little R just turned one, and I captured his little personality during an Essence session. It's neat to see how each of the boys have a different look and personality, yet you can tell they are brothers. Thanks Crystal for coming over. It was great fun!


If this post receives 10 or more comments, this family will receive a complimentary 5X7 image of this little cutie!