Connecticut Senior Photography – New Milford Senior Julia

Connecticut Senior Photography

New Milford CT Senior – Julia

Now that my kids are in high school I am starting to photograph more and more high school seniors that I first met in the pre-school library program or the school playground! How can it be that these little people that I first watched learning to ride a bike are preparing to go to college?

I recommend professional make up for all my seniors. Julia arrived at the studio for styling with her mom and a bag full of clothes. She doesn’t normally wear a lot of makeup so we kept it simple, enhancing her naturally pretty features without overpowering them.  She was hoping for snow for her session and the snow gods obliged with a light dusting the day before.

I can not always guarantee the Connecticut weather 😉 but I can do my best to create and style the look you imagine none the less. Your Connecticut senior photography session starts with a consultation; styling, location, goal for the images are all discussed and we hatch a plan. I do a little location scouting  so that on the day of the shoot we can hit the ground running and let the fun begin!

I had a blast hanging out with Julia and her family and I am excited for the next phase for all these kids.

Make up – Blush Couture

Teen Photography CT – Meet Audrey!

Teen Photography CT

Meet Audrey!

I was so excited for Audrey’s individual shoot. She is part of the Planet Photo Tribe so I have photographed her a few times before and I know the camera loves her as much as I do. But it’s different for the individual session. For the individual session it was all about Audrey. Her interests. Her passions. Her style. And we picked the locations just for her.

She is a super talented dancer, which of course means she is at dance classes almost every day of the week and rehearsing for the Nutcracker on weekends, but we threaded the needle and made a plan. We met at the studio so that she could raid the studio wardrobe closet and got to work.

Head shots were first on the list. Check.

Teen Photography CT

We added a little make up and we moved on to studio dance portraits. Check.

Teen Photography CTTeen Photography CT

And onto the location part of the shoot. TRIPLE CHECK with a cherry on top! We stopped at a couple of different places, I joke about the best locations being on the side of the road but I am not kidding, sometimes they really are….

Teen Photography CT

Fairfield Hills is an absolute favorite and it was the look and style that Audrey wanted to create so we ended there. Sequins and tulle against a backdrop of an old psychiatric hospital which housed 4000 patients until closing in 1995 …. CHECK!

Teen Photography CT

I hope you love the images as much as we do.

Every teen is unique. I design every individual portrait session to be just as unique. I help to plan where to shoot your session and how to style it. Call to schedule your Teen Photography Session.

Make Up: Blush Couture

 

 

CT Family Photos – Alex and Abby in Harrybrooke Park

CT Family Photos

Alex and Abby in Harrybrooke Park

Abby turned one last month so we got together to celebrate! We started at the house so that Oreo could be part of the action (there’s a saying about kids and dogs but I can’t quite remember how it goes…..) Oreo was a super star and we got what we needed there in no time at all.

CT Family Photos

We headed over to Harrybrooke Park, New Milford’s beautiful hidden gem and we took the wagon for a walk. There are so many studies done on birth order and sibling personality traits that I am sure you can find scientific date to back up almost any theory. Let’s just say that Alex and Abby are pretty close in age and big brother Alex is social and extremely verbal for his age. Abby was as mellow as could be and clearly loved EVERYTHING her big brother did and said. And he has a lot to say!

It is always tricky to know what is going to work for a photo session with such little children. The wagon was a hit and kept Abby in one place and Alex busy taking his sister for a ride. Sunglasses were cute props to wear and to hold and snacking on pirates booty wasn’t too messy (and the pirates booty smiles cracked me up!) Remember if you bring a toy, snack, cup or prop then there is a chance that it will end up in every picture. Pick a small traditional toy or something fun to hold, keys distract for a few minutes but don’t really add to the end result. We played music and sang songs but if your child likes to hold the phone and dance then be prepared to see that phone in the photographs!

Are you thinking about CT Family photos? This is the busy season so call soon for availability!

Woodbridge CT Senior Portraits – Tory

Woodbridge CT Senior Portraits

Meet Tory!

I loved Tory’s senior session. No, seriously, I LOVED Tory’s senior portrait session. It was so FUN getting to know her and, of yeah, she was a dream to photograph.

Tory and her mom came to visit the studio and we talked about her interests; who she was, what made her unique, what will trigger memories of the high school years and we came up with a plan. Now, the planning stage is one of my favorite parts. It’s not just about what to wear and where to go, it is all about who you are. What makes you YOU? And how can I capture that in a few hours in a portrait session?

woodbridge senior portraits
Tory has a danced so we had to incorporate that, I thought the hip hop might be better outside so we picked the outfit and I started to pick the locations. Ballet was in the studio, can you believe Tory’s mom saved her first pair of ballet slippers?

woodbridge senior portraits

She used to ride all the time so we wanted to incorporate that somehow and she LOVES fashion so that crept in throughout the shoot. She was a model for the day and boy, did she bring IT! Thanks to Candlelight Farms for letting us shoot at the horse barn, it was a beautiful evening and the horses were very welcoming.

Tory had loads of great clothes, and I don’t really believe in going out and buying an entire new wardrobe for your shoot, but what girl can resist a little shopping before a portrait session? She found this perfect dress and I am so glad she did!

Tory, I am excited to see what the future holds for you. Good luck in your senior year!

Janet xo

How do you want to be photographed? I would love to help you plan your unique portrait experience. Contact Planet Photo to set up a free consultation!

 

CT High School Photography – Katelyn Class of 2018

CT High School Photography

Katelyn Class of 2018

Can I just start out by saying, I love photographing Katelyn.

CT High School Photography

She has a classically beautiful face with creamy skin and expressive eyes, so the camera absolutely loves her! I have been obsessing about photoshoots in sunflowers for a couple of weeks (I know, I am weird, I get an idea in my head and I just can’t let it go…..) so I got a bee in my bonnet about finding a sunflower field and shooting there. Luckily Katelyn and her mom loved the idea. Buttonwood Farm was a bit of a drive and I have to admit, the closer we got the more nervous I was to see that it was worth it. Thankfully as soon as we turned the corner and saw the rolling fields of sunflowers I relaxed – it was TOTALLY worth the drive!

CT High School Photography

Buttonwood Farm is family owned since 1975, and they’re famous for farm fresh ice cream and growing sunflowers for a good cause. Every year they raise funds for the CT chapter of the Make-a-Wish Foundation selling bunches of sunflowers and inviting the public to experience the sunflower fields over a two week period. I think the amount raised in 2017 is close to $130,000 so not too shabby. The fact that they had about 50 flavors of delicious homemade ice cream just made the experience even sweeter. (In case you were wondering I got coconut and coffee but the sundaes looked out of this world…. Katelyn picked peanut butter flavored ice cream which would literally be my 49th choice out of the 50 but it was her sundae and she liked it. If you are curious, then bubblegum would be my absolute last resort, I could only eat it if I absolutely had to, flavor choice)CT High School PhotographyCT High School Photography

CT High School PhotographyWhat will you pick for the back drop for your next portrait session? Would you choose a natural location or would you prefer an urban environment? I help each and every client to style their own unique shoot.

Amazing Make Up: Blush Couture 

Planet Photo for the ultimate CT High School Photography experience

 

 

 

Water, water, everywhere…. a CT Teen Photo Shoot

Water, water, everywhere….

a CT Teen Photo Shoot

So all good concept shoots start with an idea, I sit on it for a few days and then it develops into a Pinterest board where I gather all kinds of inspiration images and start to narrow the focus of what I want to shoot. A message goes out to the Planet Photo Tribe and this time Nora, Olivia, Taylor and Avery answered the call and we set the date.

In a week of sun and almost 90 degrees temps, of course we picked the day when the temperature dropped 20 degrees and the rain started. So the debate began… to reschedule or not?

On the plus side; I had four tribe members ready to go, there was a gap in the rain right at our shoot time and the weather would probably mean that we would have the place to ourselves.

On the other hand, the weather was supposed to be hot again all weekend but that would probably mean that the river would be teaming with people…..we decided to go for it.

I am so glad we did!

CT Teen Photo Shoot

Thanks to Avery, Nora, Olivia and Taylor for getting into the river for our water shoot. Judging by the images we got on our concept shoot, I really think that every portrait session should end with a dip in the river – what do you think?

Do YOU dare?


Taylor’s dress and Avery’s outfit came from Forever 21
Olivia’s pants were from American Eagle
Nora’s dress was her own 😉

Taylor helped with make up for the shoot and she rocked it – I think I see a future there….

If you are thinking of booking a teen or senior portrait shoot then we can incorporate multiple locations and concepts into your shoot. I personally plan all the sessions to be as unique and individual as we all are. You let me know if you are more of a wall art person or an album person, that helps to compose shots and make sure you get lots of choices. Don’t worry, I help with that part too. I can design a collection of portraits for your wall or a beautiful press printed album.

Portraits should never be boring!

Janet xo

CT High School Senior Photography – Mike

CT High School Senior Photography

New Milford High School Graduate Mike

When we were talking about locations for Mike’s senior session I asked the usual questions. What have been your biggest interests in high school? How have you spent most of your time? Which locations mean the most to you? What are your overriding memories of your high school career? We put all the answers together and it became quite apparent that we had to plan a trip to New York City.

You see Mike played baseball and golf and he also played and marched with the New Milford High School band. He was section leader for the low brass section, playing the sousaphone and the trombone, all great things to incorporate into his senior session, but what led us to New York city? Well every Sunday for his senior year Mike travelled into Lincoln Center and played jazz with a group there. Every Sunday in the Upper West Side in NYC? Well there we had it; we needed to go to Lincoln Center and we had to walk over into Central Park and capture that aspect of his senior year! An excuse to spend the day in the city? I love location shoots!

We met again a few weeks later because there were some New Milford hang outs that Mike wanted to include. I had a blast spending time with him and I can not wait to hear what the future brings for this bright, articulate and extremely talented young man.

Good luck at University of Hartford studying acoustical engineering and jazz!

Do not let the high school senior pictures represent your senior year! Each Planet Photo high school senior session is unique and designed to show your personality, your interests and your style.

Contact Janet to schedule your free consultation. It is not too late for 2017 high school graduates!

 

 

 

Family Photographer CT – Cake Smash Milestone

Cake Smash Milestone

Family Photographer Connecticut

Greta was scheduled for her first birthday cake smash with big sister Aine along to help out. Hands down one of the best aspects of my job is getting to know some incredible families. I feel honored to be the photographer that Ian and Kate have chosen to photograph their children’s first milestones. I love seeing how they grow and change and catching up on all the family adventures.

So, the family arrived with another fabulous Sweet Spot cake and we got down to business. A couple of cute outfits (Kate loves Hanna Andersson so I can usually look forward to something adorable!) Aine has been working on her British accent with some Peppa Pig so we got the music playing and let the girls dance a bit while we set up for the cake. I LOVE it when the birthday star gets stuck in to the cake! Greta was delicate at first but she ended up being covered in frosting. And sprinkles. Lots of sprinkles! Aine sat in to help with some frosting so we finally got them in the same frame 😉

Family Photographer Connecticut Family Photographer Connecticut
Like most one year olds Greta doesn’t exactly sit still for long and this is when I love to bring out the tub. Bubbles and warm water and most babies stay still long enough for me to get some close up portraits and capture the fun of the bath tub. That’s when I get the giggle images too – can you see Greta’s tooth? How cute is that!!!!

Family Photographer Connecticut Family Photographer Connecticut

If you are wondering when you should book a portrait session you can follow the milestone plan, schedule around a family event or reunion or just pick a time that works for your family. My summer shooting schedule is reduced to spend time with my family but contact me to schedule your family session. Believe me, time flies – I will have two in high school this year!!!

We are the SEEN – Color Master Series

Color Master Series

Congratulations Katelyn!color master series

One of the benefits of being a member of the Planet Photo Tribe is being a part of the We are the SEEN monthly shoots. The theme changes from month to month but, whether it is a visual challenge or a new technique, designing the shoot is a blast. Last months theme was color so Katelyn and I found an amazing dress that worked with some graffiti I had seen on a recent shoot and the concept was born. We met at the new studio for makeup and a couple of shots there (working around the guy painting the windows and the paint pots that were still in the corner but I was so excited to shoot in the studio, we really wanted to make it work!).janet-taub-color-03

“Master-Series-Color”It was freezing on the day we met so with thoughts of palm trees and warm sandy beaches we tricked our brains for a few minutes and Katelyn braved the cold. She brought her extensive collection of “Love your melon” hats so they made the shoot too. I love the images we made and apparently We are the SEEN did too – we were chosen as part of the master series – WooHoo CONGRATS KATELYN!

Check out We are the SEEN to see our shoot and some of the other great shoots that made the Master Series.

 

Southbury CT Photographer – Happy Birthday!

Southbury CT Photographer – Happy 2nd Birthday Silas!

I just can’t believe how quickly these birthday milestones come around for my own children but it seems to go even faster for my Planet Photo family kids! Silas was a newborn when I met the family for the first time and I saw him again for one year photos but look at him now… a chatty, charming little dude with the nicest parents a kid could ever dream of. I met his parents at their house to show them their gallery and I got a chance to see all their framed Planet Photo images in their home – what a treat.

We lucked out with the weather and chose the golden hour at the end of the day for our session so we had amazing light. I love the images of him playing, running and of course snuggling with all his monsters, but my favorite is the image of him with him mom’s hands guiding him through life.

Enjoy!

Janet xo

southbury ct photographerGuiding Hands

southbury ct photographersouthbury ct photographersouthbury ct photographer

Silas just learned how to put his hands in his pockets and we were joking that he was practicing for his senior pictures!!! How cute is this little man?!?