This session was a gift from the new mom’s best friend who lives out of state. I am so so glad that she stumbled on my site and chose me for this session! I loved this family and can only hope that I can continue to photograph their little guy in NYC after their move! Mom has the coolest job – but I think I am going to let her tell you about that when I launch a “meet the clients” blog feature later this week. Stay tuned for more, and enjoy the preview!!
RD

So, most of you probably already know that I have been working for about a year on the planning stages for Flashes of Hope at DC National Children’s Medical Center. We are finally looking at getting started. Sponsors are in place, the hospital meeting took place last week, and we are finalizing the details to do our first in-hospital shoot within the next month or so. In the meantime, the email inquiries from the website have started coming in. This family needed photos done soon, and so rather than waiting for the first FoH hospital date, Frankie and I went to their home and did a session in the living room. It was a reminder that behind all the prep, and the fundraising, and planning, and meetings, it’s really just about the children and their families. This is what we can do as photographers to give back. If you are a photographer considering this kind of work – please do it. Is it hard? Yes. Is it too hard? No… it’s not nearly as hard as what these families are going through, and its such a real and relevant way to use our work to give back. And there is a lot of joy and happiness in it, too! We still get smiles and laughs and talk about favorite sports and bands and actors and singers. If you know of a family who would benefit from the gift of pro bono photography, please email me. It’s a gift to be able to do this.

Another session with great repeat clients – did I mention that watching kids grow is the best part of my job!? We met at the mill for this session, then drove to a hill for the final silhouettes. It was great seeing this beautiful family again, and the kids were so adorable!! Here is a preview of our session,  gallery will be coming soon, folks!

Thanks to all the great families who brought their kiddos out to my June GoCity Kids promotion – the Summer Faces Fashion Model Contest! The winner of the contest will receive a gorgeous monogrammed 11×14 gallery mount of their winning image and will be featured on this blog and my website throughout the month of July!

Here are the entries, in no particular order…you may vote (and have friends and family vote) once per day. This should be a close contest – all these kiddos were gorgeous! The voting buttons are at the bottom of the entries.

PLEASE NOTE! I know that #8 looks VERY much like my daughter. But rest assured, she is not! I did not enter my own child in my contest, I promise!

Something not as common for me… early morning. I am generally an early-evening shooter, because I don’t normally get “up-and-at-’em” early enough to avoid harsh late morning light. But with all of our swim team obligations this summer, I decided to start making some early morning appointments and just toughing it out with an alarm clock.

The light IS beautiful at 7:45am…

*Apologies again for any color inconsistencies while I am proofing on the laptop – I suspect everything will have to be tweaked once the Imac comes home…

That was the subject of much speculation leading up to this session – LOCATION!  After going back and forth several times on possibilities and pros and cons, we ended up at the park closest to home. Funny how that happens. And, as usual, this location pulled through with flying colors. Add in a great looking family and you get a beautiful session. Here is a quick preview. Thanks for being so wonderful to work with! Your gallery is coming soon.

There is an old saying that “You can’t go home again” – and often it’s true enough.

But sometimes you can. Our dear friend/teacher/mentor Joseph celebrated a “milestone” birthday this week, and the Paperchase crew turned out for a surprise-post-trailride bash planned by the ever- organized and  fabulous Saturday morning riders.

It makes no difference whatsoever that the old Paperchase Farm has not existed in its original form for more years than I care to remember. What matters is that when we all get together on the farm with the vague smell of horses and leather and hay in the air,  we still feel perfectly at home – old friends and new.

Amid the celebrating, there was a lot of:  “How can your kids be so big??” and  “How did we get so old?” and “How long has it been since the last time I saw you?” and of course “Are you riding?”

But the resounding theme, the question that kept going around and around was:  “Remember When…??”

There seems to be so much to remember – the horse shows in the heat of summer and cold of winter – jumping in the pool with your riding clothes on because you were so hot you thought you would die, and braiding when you thought your fingers would freeze off. The Christmas parades, mock hunts, wine rides, and tailgate parties. Hunt Night. The Tuesday night lessons, both on horseback and watching from the old judges stand. The trips to Kings Dominion where the ride down 95 was as memorable as the day at the park. All the great horses we have known and shared with one another. Watching kids go from leadline to college in what seemed to be the blink of an eye.

And the sweetest moment for me – when someone told me that one of her strongest memories of Paperchase was of me – at 19 or maybe 20, galloping by on Lady, bareback and in a hackamore, caution thrown to the wind (quite literally, and probably stupidly). Thank you for that,  Sharon. Somehow that meant alot – to think that someone remembers how I rode when I was so young that it never even occurred to me that I could fall off…
Those days are gone – but boy, it’s easy to remember how it felt to sit on Lady.

At any rate – my point is, sometimes “going home again” is just sharing a history and keeping those memories alive. And for that, I know we are all eternally grateful.

So from all of us – Happy Birthday – and thanks for the memories.

What is better than summertime, lemonade, popcorn, peanuts, and the ballpark!? Being DISPLAYED at the ballpark!

That’s right – on the evenings of August 7/8, during Nats home games, I will be a featured artist and will have a large display at Akridge Highwater at Nationals Stadium in DC – if you haven’t heard about Festival Park, it’s an amazing concept:

From the Akridge site:
Georgetown Events in partnership with Stroud Productions is bringing life to the Waterfront District by creating a new experience for
Washington area locals. The Bullpen is a festival park directly across the street from the main entrance to the Washington Nationals Stadium
at the corner of N and Half Streets S.E. Before each game, The Bullpen is a great venue that the entire family can enjoy, whether they are coming
to a Nationals Baseball game or happen to be in the Waterfront District for any other occasion. The Bullpen offers interactive sports games
for children sponsored by Headfirst Camps and Under Armour. Local food vendors include Rocklands, Colonial Kettle Corn and Surfside.
There will be live music for all to enjoy and a beer garden for adults sponsored by Bud Light.

My display theme is “Growing Up DC – Kids Sports and Leisure in the Nation’s Capitol”

Here are the samples I submitted for consideration:

Challenge to friends and clients:
16′x8′ is a large space! I will be shooting some images specifically for this display. Got a kid who loves a sport? Got an original idea for a sports/leisure portrait or action shot? Run it by me – if I like it, I will shoot it for free, and I might select it for display at the Stadium!

It’s not often you get to celebrate a newborn and a birthday at the same session – but this big sister turned two today, and I was able to get both newborn and birthday portraits! Not to mention – I have photographed big sis 4 times now – as a newborn, “barely sitting”, toddling, and today – as a “big girl”!

We WORKED for the sibling shots… I wasn’t sure how they were going to be. The irony is, they are some of my favorite sibling shots ever!
Many thanks to these wonderful clients for letting me document their girls as they grow. Following kids and marking milestones is truly the greatest part of my job!!

As promised, this week I am featuring Hela Spa as the local business of the moment. I am pleased to be working together with Hela on mini-session events and to spread the news about all the great services they offer at their Georgetown and Chevy Chase locations.

I asked Mary Szegda, Senior Massage Therapist, to tell us a bit about the spa and it’s services – and specifically about the Baby Spa menu. Be sure to check out their website for photos of their gorgeous facilities and all the latest on their services and specials!

What services are offered at Hela, in addition to Baby Massage?
Hela began as a medical spa in the heart of Georgetown. We provide medical services (botox, restalyne, laser hair removal, photorejuvenation, deep chemical peels) Esthetic services (facials, waxing) and therapeutic massage.  About a year ago we partnered with the Ted Gibson Salon and opened our new location in Chevy Chase. We now offer full salon services for hair and nails in addition to our spa services.

What about your job do you like most?
I love helping people and being creative.  There are so many ways in which people can improve their lives through bodywork.  Many traditional spas limit their massage menu. Hela allows me the space to truly be innovative and to make cutting edge modalities available to our clients. The Baby Spa is part of that.  It is such a beautiful thing to watch a parent and infant interact during the massage.  Over the course of the class families can work up to 20 minutes of pure face-to-face massage time. It is so beautiful that sometimes I tear up:)

How did you get started?
Hmmm, how did I get started with massage? I’ve always been interested in the mind-body connection and developmental psychology.  Before becoming a full time massage therapist I was a registered dance movement therapist and a licensed professional counselor. I also taught creative movement for children in Montessori Schools and worked as a research assistant at an Infant Development Lab. I kept looking at different pieces of the mind-body puzzle. I began a private bodywork practice in DC while completing a graduate degree in choreography when Hela asked me to join their massage team. That was four years ago. Now  I’m lucky to be the Senior Massage Therapist with a team of seven fantastic therapists.

Where can we find you (website, blog, location)?
www.helaspa.com
http://helaspaandtedgibsonblog.blogspot.com/

Do you have any upcoming events that you would like to share with readers?
I’m really excited about the launch of our Baby Spa menu. It is such an honor to work with expectant and new mothers. The photo session that is happening on June 1 will be so wonderful. I am also excited about the possibility of supporting Flashes of Hope (www.flashesofhope.com).

What is your favorite thing to do when you aren’t at Hela Spa?
Well, today was my day off… and I went to the spa! There is nothing like getting complimentary spa services as part of your compensation package!! When I’m not getting or receiving massages I like to take yoga and choreograph. Every now and again I perform at small venues. You can also often find me on Skype singing Baby Beluga to my niece Amelie who is almost a year old and lives in Kalamazoo MI.