Great Expectations

What a perfect time of year to be pregnant! How wonderful to be anticipating the birth of your own child while celebrating the birth of the Christ child!

This beautiful couple is so excited about their first child who has no choice but to be gorgeous too. I told this pair that life is about to forever change for them but I don't think anyone can imagine how much until they experience it for themselves. I think parenting is one of the most challenging and most rewarding adventures in life. What a privilege it is to be a parent!

I am so excited for this sweet family to begin with the arrival of sweet little Sophie Marie. Best wishes to all three of you. Thank you for letting me photograph you during this precious time in your life! (By the way, I'm hoping she's born on the 30th because that's my birthday and you would still get an '07 tax break!)

"Caring for babies is easy... you just feed them on one end,
clean them on the other and hug them in the middle." -Unknown

Perfect Christmas Surprise!

I delayed in posting this because these cool kids (under the direction of their dad) planned this session without their mom knowing about it. They wanted to give her a huge canvas for Christmas. Is that the best gift for a mom, or what? I'm seriously impressed with their ability to pull it off. Not only did they plan the time away without her catching on, they coordinated outfits and looked fabulous.

I've posted these now because after they received their proofs, they couldn't pick which one she'd love most for her 24X30 so they wrapped them up and surprised her early. Now they can wrap the canvas and put it under the tree, sure that it was the one she would have picked... because she did.

Hanging Out, Having Fun

I got together with this family to take some pictures and have a good time. So that's what we did. What a bunch of characters this family is. You can see what a fun group they are by their willingness to just let loose and be real... real silly, that is!

Two Dogs & A Topiary Tree

If sung to the tune of "The Twelve Days of Christmas", you might just end up in the Christmas mood! That was definitely the mood at this house! We started the shoot at this family's beautiful home, then headed downtown. Christmas decorations were everywhere from their front porch to the gorgeous streets of downtown Charleston. Christmas in the South, does it get any better than this?

Princess Pattern

This is the 4th family of three I have done in the last couple of months! All 4 of these families have one child, which have all been girls. They've all been sweet little princesses. Coincidence? I don't think so. I've put a little thought into this...

Having one child makes getting pictures done a piece of cake! One outfit to pick out, one head of hair to perfect and one personality to keep content. With a family like mine, picture day can easily turn into a serious melt down! Spills, pouting, whining and who knows what else happens when you've got more children than parents!

Rest assured that at JKP, even big families can have a wonderful photography experience. Every hair in place isn't nearly as important as happy kids doing their thing and getting captured on film. And while I LOVE the sweet princesses, I'll take the crying kids with dirty faces anyday too.

This family was a lot of fun. Even when the weather turned cold (and it did!), they were up for whatever. What a terrific family with so much character. I enjoyed every minute of our shoot!

Old Friends, New Memories

About 8 1/2 years ago, we had the priviledge of spending some time with this great family in their lovely home on the big island of Hawaii. Wylie was just a tiny little thing back then and it's hard to believe in that time we've added 3 children to our family! Now here we are, all of us living in SC! We got together and we able to get in a shoot at one of my new favorite places, downtown Greenville. The weather was perfect and Fall was all around us. The only thing better than the setting was the company.

Growing In Love

I completely enjoyed the afternoon I spent with this terrific family. These kids were so much fun and great to work with. The thing that I enjoyed most about this shoot, however, was how in love their parents are.

Downtown in Casual Style

About six months ago, I did a different session of this family on the beach. This time we headed downtown and enjoyed perfect weather as we walked around.
What a nice bunch of kids. I love being around families who love being with each other! Maybe we can do this again in another six months?

Green Bay Baby!

I don't think she stands a chance to be anything but a Green Bay fan! Doesn't she have great dimples?? She is a miniature version of her Daddy, with pigtails. So darling!

My Favorites!

These kids are my favorite kids in the universe!!! I can say that because they are mine. How I love each one of them!

"Three, It's The Magic Number"

Do you remember that old School House Rock song? "Mama and Daddy had a little baby, that makes 3, it's the magic number". I guess I'm probably dating myself here but that's the song that comes to mind with this sweet trio. (Jack Johnson also redid that song for the Curious George soundtrack.)

One of my favorite things that I get to see during family photoshoots is the tenderness of loving parents. I love to watch dads point out sail boats, moms clean off dirty faces and most of all, I love the incredible bond that is evident in families like this.

Grandparents and Their Dozen

This wonderful family came from different states to vacation together here in South Carolina. What an incredible legacy these Grandparents have built! I think that says a lot about parents whose children are grown when they all still get together because they want to. I want that with my children and their children some day!

3 Generations of Beauty

I got to spend a late afternoon with these 3 lovely ladies and it just got better and better. We ran into a friendly dog and it's nice owners, we played in the sand and even got to watch a few dolphins show off for us! I knew dolphins revealed their top fin but I had no idea they would jump completely out of the water and fall onto their backs. I mean, I new that happened in theme parks, but in the wild? We felt so blessed to be at the right place at the right time!

By the end of the shoot, the 2 year old was down to nothing but a diaper and those curls got curlier with water. I think everyone made memories to last a lifetime. If not, the pictures will!