lily p. studio and design co.

Long time coming

2009-12-21T01:23:23-08:00

I couldn't sleep tonight. Every once in a while my hubby snores a little bit louder than a freight train, and I have to seek respite elsewhere. I laid down by Cooper, but his humidifier rivals the sounds coming from my room. (now I know why the kid can sleep through anything) So I finally got up, came into my office and sat down at my computer. After checking up on some blogs, I went through emails. And then came the guilt. A notification of a blog comment from my older sister's sister-in-law.....Christina....who came to visit in the summer.....and allowed me to shoot her kids with my canon....(that joke is always so funny to me at 1am). I've had the images sitting at my computer forever. I look at them and smile, then think I have to get these to Christina...and then it never seems to happen......and then she comments on my blog here and there, and never mentions, not even hints at the images being held hostage. Such a nice girl, that Christina. So finally, Christina, here are some peaks at your adorable boys....the rest are coming...I promise...

This is a series every parent should have of their child at this age. You can't help but smile.

Oh the joy of having cousins. I grew up with lots and lots of cousins, and these last images remind me of how great it is to have cousins.

And now that I've shed myself of at least a little of the guilt inside, I'm going to try and get some sleep. Anyone know where to get some really good earplugs?

Christmas Hustle and Bustle

2009-12-18T14:56:53-08:00

Just a quick shout out to everyone who is knee deep in the holiday hustle and bustle.....or neck deep if you feel like I've been feeling! Here is a peak at some of the stuff I've been up to.

see entire slideshowhere.

Beautiful Sister

2009-11-10T19:34:11-08:00

I got to do a fantastic shoot this past week for my sister Lisa. She was about to pop, and her hubby really wanted her to get maternity pictures, so we headed out with our two boys that aren't in school and got some beautiful images. If you know my sister, you know how beautiful she is. She is one of my role models in life. She lives with quiet confidence. She knows who she is and what she believes. She shows compassion and love for everyone around her. As a mother, she is unbelievable. The activities she does with her children foster creativity and an imaginative spirit. She makes everything around her beautiful, no matter how rough around the edges it was when she found it..... that includes people. Her beauty radiates from deep within...... true story, in high school she gave her english teacher her school picture. The teacher not only displayed the picture in her classroom, but held it up to the class and said that it was the most beautiful portrait she had ever seen. The beauty in that photograph had nothing to do with the talent of the photographer, and as I look at these images I see the same radiating beauty that has nothing to do with posing or lighting. It is simply the light that shines from within Lisa Rieman.

And Lisa just had a baby boy, Reed William Rieman just two hours ago! Congrats sis, I can't wait to see the little guy!

On a side note, do you notice something different with the logo on these? Changes are heading this way in the near future! Keep your eye out!

A little bit of Gorgeous {Florida Wedding Photography}

2009-10-23T00:01:32-07:00

Just a little bit of gorgeous for you tonight. I'm dirt tired, feet hurt, and have to get up early tomorrow morning for a family shoot swap with a photographer friend..... and what am I doing? Sitting at my computer blogging a gorgeous bride, that's what. This gorgeous bride happens to be my cousin, and she's just plain beautiful.

I think she's pretty darn fierce. I'll share more of her crazy pretty wedding soon.

Self Portrait

2009-10-14T14:58:35-07:00

I was having a very bad day a couple months ago, and was very frustrated. So to cheer myself up, I made myself up and took a self portrait. Well, I had Christian take the portrait. I wanted a little bit of a vintage look so I tried to do a variation of pincurls. Not totally successful but o.k. It did cheer me up a little though. What do you do to battle the blues when they come knockin on your door?

The Golden Rule

2009-10-02T14:14:30-07:00

Earlier this year, while I was out of town, my husband had an interesting teaching moment with Cooper that was, well, interesting to say the least. They were visiting family, and Cooper, being a typical 2 year old, decided it would be funny to hold his foot over our newborn neice and pretend he was stepping on her! Horrifying! (I'm so glad I wasn't there) Well, Daddy thought it would be a good moment to talk to Cooper about the "Golden Rule" and treating others the way we want to be treated. I'm sure the conversation went something like this:

Daddy: "Son, it isn't nice to step on babies. Would you like it if someone stepped on you?"

Cooper: "No, but I was just pretending."

Daddy: "I know, Son, but there is a special rule that says 'Don't do anything to other people that you don't want them to do to you.' Do you understand?"

Cooper: "Yeah, like don't step on babies."

Daddy: "Yes, just like don't step on babies."

Well, that was a wonderful teaching moment, except we learned that you have to be very careful with the words you use when trying to teach a 2 year old. The other day Cooper did something particularly naughty to another child and I pulled him aside to remind him of the golden rule. I asked him if he remembered the Special Rule Daddy taught him. His reply?....

"Don't Step on Babies."

So the golden rule in our house is "Don't step on babies.....or do anything else that you wouldn't want done to you." I wonder if I could get a sign made of that!

And because a post is toast without any images, here you go. Our boy that doesn't step on babies.

The Creative Process

2009-09-21T08:51:19-07:00

I came across this TED talk by Elizabeth Gilbert, best selling author who talks about the creative process and the expectations placed on artists of all genres, whether placed on them by others or themselves. It was a good listen, as anyone who works on creative projects professionally or personally can relate to the anxiety that can accompany them. I'd love to hear your thoughts on your creative process and how you overcome those times when it just isn't flowing.

Happy Birthday Buzz

2009-09-20T22:33:05-07:00

My baby turned 3 this week! Where on earth has the time gone! He is such a wonderful little guy, everyday I fall more in love with who he is. He is very affectionate, and yet very strong willed. He lets me know when he loves me and thinks I'm great, and he doesn't hold back when he thinks I'm a mean mom, and likes his dad way better than me! He is such a good helper and gets mad if I do the chores that he likes to do. I'm loving that while it lasts!

This week, we had a little shoot to get ready for his birthday party. He's really into all things Buzz Lightyear and loves this buzz costume a good friend gave us (thanks Bridgette), so it seemed like a no brainer to have a buzz party and let him dress up in his gear for his invitations. I don't scrapbook very often, but tonight I was playing around on the computer and made a page for him. I love my little snugglebug, er Space Ranger.

Guess who made his debut!

2009-09-10T00:15:57-07:00

Say hello to Mr. M. This cute little snuggle bug decided to get life started less than two weeks ago. You, my little friend, were well worth the wait.

Waiting for Baby

2009-08-27T01:18:03-07:00

Do you remember my beautiful friend's maternity session from a few months ago? You really should since it was the last time I posted before...gasp...yesterday! Well, a few weeks ago we did stage two of her maternity images. That's right, stage two of MATERNITY images, no sweet little baby yet! She wanted some images with her husband, and after some unsuccessful attempts at meshing our schedules, we were finally able to get together. We met just hours before my sister and I piled into an SUV (thanks for letting us borrow it mom) with our four children to enjoy Utah and family for a week. After the session I uploaded the images to my computer and took a quick glance at them and then tucked them safely away into their folder until a couple of days ago.

I'm going to make a confession. I don't know if it is just me, or if other photographers feel the same way, but I absolutely positively, without fail.....hate the images I take the first time I see them on my computer screen. I am my worst critic. I shoot in RAW format, which means the camera does no processing to the images, so when I see them on my 24 inch screen for the first time, although technically correct, they are often lifeless versions that barely resemble the image my mind saw as I looked through the viewfinder of my camera. But after a little coaxing in the digital darkroom, I slowly let out my breath and decide that I am not the absolute worst artist in the world and that there won't be weeping and wailing and nashing of teeth when my clients first see their images. Yet, when it comes time to post sneak peaks or show clients their images, I once again find myself light headed from a lack of oxygen.

This session was not an exception. When I came home and looked through the folder of images, that heavy melancholy swept over me. But as I completed the edit, I felt good. Now I can barely breath. One day I'll get over this "stage fright" but until then I'm just glad that this is a virtual stage and I don't have to imagine my audience in their underwear.

B and J, I hope your little guy doesn't keep you waiting too long!