Smash & Bath

I recently had the pleasure of photographing this sweet little girl during an all-white, bright and airy cake smash session. We started with some Mommy & Me portraits, and ended with a bit of bubble bath. 

One of the things I love about creating sessions like this is that they are timeless. They aren't trendy, or cheesy, and they aren't overly styled. You won't look back on these in 20 years and think "Oh wow, that is SO 2010s!" and you won't be distracted by tons of balloons and Disney character decorations in the background. Nope, these portraits are classic and focus solely on the beauty of your gorgeous child. They coordinate wonderfully with my minimalistic style of newborn portraiture, so you can display a progression of your child's milestones in their nursery.

Indoor Indianapolis Photography Session: Mommy & Me

Denise and little Silas came into the studio recently for a Mommy & Me photoshoot. You may recognize him from some of my posts about these Limited Edition sessions - he was such the little cutie with tons of personality! 

These sessions include two looks: a modern, simple look with a gray backdrop, and a light & airy setup. We focused on their relationship - both silly and sweet. The bond between little boys and their moms is incredibly special. One minute, those boys are pestering mom, and the next, they're proclaiming their undying love to the most beautiful woman they've ever seen. Silas, I hope you always show your mom how much you love her! 

Indianapolis Lifestyle Shoot: Tea Parties, Reading, and Karaoke

Kye welcomed me into her home to photograph her family with a lifestyle photo session. These sessions are less about posing and looking at the camera, and more about authentic interactions. They held a tea-party (complete with invisible tea!), and read their favorite book, The Book With No Pictures.

Their interior was an amazing backdrop for this shoot. We captured not only those everyday moments of life, but also their beautiful house that they've worked hard to make a home. Thank you guys so much for letting me document your family!

Adventure shoot: Raquel

This fun adventure shoot at the studio included confetti, jumping on the bed, and snuggling with Daddy. I blogged about it on our old site, but we're fresh here, so let's take another look! This is one of my favorite sessions of all time.

Like most of our adventure shoots for girls, I supplied some beautiful dresses. One was rented from The Borrowed Boutique up in Fishers, and the others came from the studio's wardrobe. 

We started with jumping on the bed, and playing with some star confetti. One of the things that rocks about having a studio bed made for jumping is that we get rid of that nervous energy right away! Raquel had a blast playing.

Lastly, we finished up with some special daddy & daughter images. These two just love each other completely, and it was so sweet to see them interact.

If you'd like to have an adventure shoot for your child, I'd love to hear from you! 

- Amy

Moms: Get Back in the Picture!

Moms, I'm writing to you today about something really important:

Your kids are being documented without you. 

We take hundreds, thousands of photos of our children, but rarely do we step in the photo with them. There are so many excuses - I don't have makeup on, I need to lose ten pounds, I don't need a photo of myself....

I get it. I really do. As a mom of three boys myself, I understand the pregnancy weight gain, the stretch marks, losing my pre-mom body, and being constantly covered in spit-up. I don't feel pretty when I just spent the day chasing children, wiping their noses, and collecting balls from the roof. I love my kiddos, but getting a photoshoot done with them sounds like an hour of herding goats while they eat my clothes. And why do I need to be in the photos, anyway? 

Because here's the thing: those photos are important.

They're important because your kids should be able to have photos with their mom.

When they grow up and look back through albums, will your children have any photos with you? Every moment of their young lives, they looked to you for snuggles and comfort, and depended on you for everything necessary to thrive. That was their life, and that's how they will remember it. Those precious little kisses, hugs, and silly faces you make at each other is something they deserve to have photographed, to hold onto and look back on as they age.

These photos are important because you are beautiful.

Even when you don't feel beautiful, you are beautifully their mother. They don't look at you and think, "Gee mom, you should really lose 5 pounds." They look at you and think, "That's my mom and I love her." 

They think, My mom can do anything. She makes every owie better. She is the world's greatest snuggler, and no mommy anywhere in the world is better than my mommy. She is the prettiest mommy I've ever seen, especially in the morning in bed, when I jump in to wake her up with kisses. 

You are beautiful because of who you are, and your children know that. 

I know it, too. So please mommas - don't hesitate any longer. It's time to document your relationship with your little ones before they grow up.

Sincerely,

Amy

Ready for your Mommy & Me Session with Indy Family Photo? Check them out here!

Indianapolis Outdoor Maternity Shoot

This darling family loves tickles, snuggles, and lots of fun – and it shows in everything they do! I’ve known Amanda and Stephen since high school, and their children, Sam and Abby, are some of the sweetest kiddos in the world. They are soon to be welcoming baby number three, which is crazy exciting. Sam has bonded with baby incredibly deeply, picking out a name and everything. I’m looking forward to photographing their newborn photos!

We took advantage of the scenery at a brand new park on the northeast side of Indianapolis. Outdoor shoots in Indy can look incredibly different depending on location, and this is my new favorite place. It has hills, flowers, a boardwalk, a forest, AND extremely clean bathrooms - which is awesome when you're working with kiddos!!

How to Create a Gallery Wall with 8 Photos

I kick started this wall gallery series with How to Display Photographs in Your Bathroom, but we’re headed somewhere more normal this week: the living room! Or anywhere with a large wall space, really. The larger the wall, the larger your images should be to keep them from looking out of scale. And when you have a very large, empty wall, you can fill it with a larger number of pieces, too.

Today, I’m showing you a display that includes 8 images. This is perfect when you have a story-telling photoshoot you’d like to share, or a large family with a variety of groupings.

Recognize this photoshoot? Check out the full gallery + behind the scenes video here!

Wall display number two: (4) 16″ x 20″ vertical images and (4) 20″ x 24″ horizontal images

Or go for a smaller version and use (4) 12″ x 16″ vertical images and (4) 16″ x 20″ horizontal images.

Here are Amy's Tips When Hanging This Wall Gallery:

KEEP YOUR DISTANCE

There should be a minimum of 6″ between the top of your couch and the bottom of the first photograph. Is this in a lounge-y room, where people lean their heads back? Then grab your tallest family member and ask them to sprawl out. Mark on the wall lightly to indicate where the top of their head hits, and be sure to hang the photos above that point. Nobody wants to bump their photos off the wall, so make sure that won’t be an issue!

MIX AND MATCH

Your 8 photographs don’t have to be all in color or all in black and white – mix it up! To keep things from looking hectic, balance the color photos equally throughout the wall gallery. In my example, the color photos are all on the outside, while the black and white ones are all on in the inside.

I hope that helps! If you would like me to create your own custom wall gallery, please contact me at: indyfamilyphoto@gmail.com

An Adventure Shoot: Sisters, Confetti, and Gorgeous Gowns!

Hey there gang! I’m here today to show you a styled adventures shoot we did for two sisters. This took place in our Indianapolis studio, which was perfect, because we wanted to use ridiculous amounts of confetti!! It’s not healthy for the environment/birds to scatter tons of confetti outdoors, so we love having this indoor option.

The first part of the shoot was beautifully bohemian-feeling. I rented gorgeous gowns for these two to feel absolutely magical, and gave them glittery stars to spread around the set. I opted for periwinkle dresses, and they kept hugging each other – so sweet!!

The second part of the shoot was filled with confetti. The girls’ preschool teachers hand out small baggies with sequin confetti, and call them “treasures”. The youngest sister is especially enamored with these little treasures, so I surprised them with an extra huge amount of confetti! They careful piled it in jars, poured it out, tossed it in the air, and started all over again. We also pulled out some paper confetti, aviators, and the industrial fan at the end.

Bethany shot some lovely behind the scenes footage, which I compiled into this video. Check it out to see the process, and scroll down for the photos!

Indianapolis Newborn Session: In-Home Lifestyle

In-home lifestyle shoots are my personal favorite – I think they capture so much about a family, and you just get so much intimacy and personality infused into the photographs! How precious for your son or daughter to have these images to look at when they are grown. 

This sweet couple recently welcomed their first baby. Little Charlie was two weeks old, and looked just like his daddy! They were so excited, and had a beautiful nursery all prepared. I hope you enjoy looking at these photos as much as we enjoyed creating them.

How to Display Photographs in a Bathroom

Hey gang! Over the next few weeks, I’m going to be showing you 10 gorgeous gallery wall displays, and give a few tips for displaying your images along the way. I’m diving right in with a tricky area in the home: how to display photographs in your bathroom.

Wait what? Did she say bathroom? Yup. We all spend time in our bathrooms, and any bathroom with a tub is a fantastic place to hang photos, as you’ll spend extra time in there. Whether it’s relaxing in a bubble bath to relax your sore muscles, or a hectic crazy bathtime with three kiddos dripping water all over the floor, photos can brighten up your space.

Wall display number one: (1) 30″ x 40″ image and (2) 20″ x 20″ images

Or go for a smaller version and use (1) 16″ x 20″ image and (2) 10″ x 10″ images

Here are Amy's tips for displaying images in your bathroom:

Protect the prints

Images in a bathroom are subject to water and humidity damages. You won’t expect these images to last for generations, but that’s alright – these displays are meant for you to enjoy, right now. Keep your beautiful, torn-edge, watercolor paper prints in other rooms. In the bathroom, choose acrylic or metal prints, which can stand the harsh environment. Ask your photographer to provide you with the very best options through their professional lab so they last for even longer.

Choose images that revolve around water or messy play

These images simply make sense in a bathroom, whereas a traditional family portrait feels out of place. Still wary? Go one step further and select images where the people are not looking straight at the camera. This way, no one will feel stared at while bathing

Limit it to just a few photos

Bathrooms tend to be smaller, busier rooms, filled with a large variety of fixtures, shelves, and toiletries. Keep your display simple by hanging only a handful of images. The sample gallery in the bathroom above includes only three photos, but they make quite a statement. Or go with a single statement piece, like below.

Indianapolis Lifestyle Photography: Donuts & Snuggles

One of my favorite parts of doing in-home lifestyle photography sessions is finding beautiful new pockets of Indianapolis. Bethany and her husband have an absolutely gorgeous apartment on the northside, with huge windows letting light simply pour in. I wanted to move in just to take naps in the sun  She has done an amazing job decorating their home with a cute mountain mural in the play area, a kid-sized dining area just for little Levi, and an area in the nursery for reading snuggles. They enjoy eating donuts, reading, and playing together as a family, so we made sure to capture all of those things! This little guy was super into mommy, and really enjoyed being the center of attention. Thank you so much for letting me into your home!!

x Amy