We met with Bruce and Corinne this evening at the Petrified Springs Forest Preserve in Kenosha Wisconsin. This is a favorite Wisconsin photography area of ours due to the vast amount of different settings and backdrops available. The wooded area offers beautiful stone bridges, lush trees, a hunter’s cottage, the heart shaped tree, and acres upon acres of natural area, perfect for both sunny and cloudy days.
Last time we were here, we were commissioned to Petrified Springs in Kenosha in January of 2008, by Hannah and Brett for their portraits. By the way, Hannah and Brett are not engaged and have asked us to be their photography for the 2009 wedding. Wonderful news! Congrats! In the winter of 2008 there was a crisp cold in the air, poor Brett had pink ears. This summer of 2008 was filled with a gentle breeze and a lovely setting sun. No mosquitoes in site, no stifling Midwest summer heat, just a gentle wind and the sound of the evening bird.
This was our first time meeting Corinne’s boys – Ayden and Decklan. What cute young gentlemen they were! Everyone showed up wearing a handsome white shirt and blue jeans. Very summery and light, and so representative of the natural flow and happiness of this young family. When asked their names Ayden proudly explained to me “I am Ayden and this is Decklan”. Again he repeated, this time pointing, “Ayden, Decklan”. I couldn’t help by smile. Such a bright young lad and already a good teacher.
During our walk into our designated area, Corinne announced her engagement to Bruce. How wonderful! It is always wonderful to hear such good news before a portrait session. Congratulations to Corinne and Bruce!
To begin the session, I wanted get the boys comfortable with me; I’m the lady with the giant lens pointed at them so I want to make sure they are relaxed. We started out with a simple pose on the heart shaped tree along the path. Ayden was happy to strike a pose and could have modeled all day. Decklan on the other hand was not so sure about me yet.
After few minutes at the tree portrait, we decided to move to a greener pasture just a bit down the road. I capture a few images of the family walking together. Such a cute photo of four pairs of hands all intertwined and supporting each other. We arrived into a nicely shaded area and began the second part of our session - usually the first part is a warm up for kids to get to know and trust me and the second is when the real action happens.
I posed the family in a contemporary side sit with Ayden in the front of the pack and Decklan leaning on mom. The younger was not too eager to move away from mom, so kept him in his comfort zone. The boys each got a chance to be silly and fiddle around with crooked smiles before the tickle monster came out to ensure happy and sincere smiles by all. Sometimes stinky feet and tickle monster help us get the portraits smiles we need!
Next I captured the engagement photos for Bruce and Corinne. Their couple only portrait was sincere and loving. A few minutes into the session I noticed two pairs of eyes peeping at me from under the portrait chair. Looks like Decklan and Ayden were not finished with their pictures yet. No worries. I captured the engagement picture of the happy young couple and using my 70-200mm Canon lens zoomed in the boys too when their didn’t think I was looking.
Finally, I asked Bruce to get the car (as I wasn’t sure the boys would be in a mood to walk a quarter mile back to the parking lot) and asked mom “not to pay attention” to us. Corinne pretended to not pay attention and I asked they boys if they wanted their own pictures — I received a resounding “yeah”. The next 20 minutes were filled with big smiles, fun giggles, boyish wrestling, pretending to sleep, brotherly leans, spinning and more spinning, and grass crawling. It always amazed me how kids open up when they “think” that mom isn’t looking. These two boys were an absolute treat to work with – full of energy, joy, and excitement. They loved showing me their big boy poses and happy smiles. It is always nice to end my evening and end my weekend with sharing a happy moment with such joyful children.
Thank you to Bruce, Corinne, and of course my buddies Ayden and Decklan! This family has many years filed with joy, laughter, and fun!
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