seattle photographer – Christina Conrad Photography

Sowards Homecoming

August 10, 2016August 10, 2016 christinaconradphotography

I am a little behind after our family getting slammed with two viruses in a row! The downside to being a big family is how quickly illness spreads. When one gets its, we all go down! But here is a darling homecoming from last month.
This session was very last minute, as in I was contacted that morning! I am so glad I was free that night and able to be there. This homecoming was special. Not only was the dad being surprised with his daughters flying in, but his 3 month old granddaughter was also there waiting to meet him for the first time. Which is just such a heart melting combination that I have ever gotten to shoot at a homecoming.
It was a warm WA evening full of anxiety as the time changed right as I left for the gym. Only for them to show up later than the first time in true military style, they like to keep the families on their toes till the last second! I watched as this family planned out how they were going to surprise their dad. I watched as they anxiously tried to wait through all the setbacks, as the crowd grew, time passed wondering when they were going to get their reunion. You can view their homecoming journey for yourself in their video below.
As a military spouse myself, my heart truly goes out to my homecoming clients. You can not imagine exactly what they are going through unless you have been through it yourself. I love these videos as a way to further give them just a little more to remember those moments of joy that can be some of the happiest moments in the life of a military family.

Love homecomings as much as I do? Than share this post and the joy of the family reunion below!
Have your own homecoming coming up? I would love to get in talk with you on how I can help you capture those sweet memories.

Snyder Couples – Dupont Wa

July 27, 2016July 27, 2016 christinaconradphotography

I just love this session. These images have so much life in them. Real life. Real emotion. Steve was a real trooper, he wasn’t the happiest about getting his photo taken that even but you would never know. Not only did he keep a smile on his own face but he kept his wife giggling the whole time. The true mvp of this session!

These two are Germany bound in a few months and after being one of my first WA sessions I am a little sad to see them go! Tis the military lifestyle, our clients turned friends come and go. Leaving us with a somewhat magical network of friends and support scattered all over the country. I can not wait to follow their european adventures to come!

Amanda is a photographer herself as well! You can check her out here (hint hint for anyone with friends or currently stationed at Grafenwöhr help spread the word that some new talent is coming to town!) Having another photographer book you is the biggest honour in the game and I don’t take that lightly! Huge thank you to Amanda and Steve for choosing me for your couples session! I had a blast at your session as always.

Guys. I need more couples sessions in my life. Need it! As a result I am offering 25% off all couples session (and families sessions too! ;)) booked before September 1st! Email me at info@christinaconradphotogrphy.com to learn more about scheduling your own couples session! Even bigger discounts are available for birth and weddings sessions so don’t miss out, email me before it is too late!

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Pettit Family – Lacey, WA

July 20, 2016July 20, 2016 christinaconradphotography

I found my new favorite location, Nisqually Wildlife Refuge. If you have not gone, drop everything and head there this weekend. It is $3 to park and well worth it. We have been there as a family and enjoyed it. But as a it truly comes alive at sunset. If you are a Pokemon Go player, it is also a location of a ton of pokestops and 3 gyms so I mean, go. No shame for my location plugs. Washington has so many gorgeous locations that are just begging to be shared and enjoyed by all.

You guys, I just love babies. Seriously, I could be the next Duggar’s. I have a baby of my own and 7 month old Sienna still gave me baby fever. I mean those baby blues. How can you not swoon over her? With an outfit that adorable, I even found myself yearning for a little baby girl to dress up as if I don’t already have two girls to dress every day!

But the best part about this session was her parents! I have been so lucky to get joyful moms and friendly dad’s not too upset about the hour of photos they are about to go through. You can see it for yourself in their photos below but the love they share for each other and Sienna was the star of the show. It makes my job so easy when my families can just fall comfortably into guided posing.

A special thank you to the Pettit family for letting me spend an hour with them and adore that little girl of theirs. If you love their session as much as I do then share this post on facebook with your friends! While you are there make sure your swing by my facebook page and check out our summer special!

Thorson Family – DuPont WA

July 13, 2016July 10, 2016 christinaconradphotography

This was my first time out to Solo Point. I am an avid beach hunter. I thought that I been to all the nearby waterfronts. So when Marissa mentioned somewhere close by that I hadn’t explored yet, I was immediately down.
Solo Point did not disappoint. Getting there is a little questionable. It is technically on Fort Lewis, the roads to the beach are lined with explosive test areas and other types of ranges. But ones you see it, it is so worth it.
A little piece of paradise, an oasis. Clear waters with a stunning view of a cliff side island and distant shores. With the sunset hitting it just right to give it that true summer vibe. Though lets be real, this is the pacific northwest so it was still not warm enough to get in the water.

I spent my time here with Luka and his parents. Luka was a 2 year old on a mission. He was surrounded by rocks and pebbles with the goal of getting as many into the water as he could. I might have bribed him to look in exchange for a few rocks. Not that we were weren’t able to persuade him to join in on some family fun.

We were able to capitalize on the rocks to sneak in some shots of mom and dad. Those shots you don’t get many of after a little one joins the family. But are so important to capture that bond that started it all. These two are gorgeous together. They certainly made my job easy.

Just as I arrived at the beach I noticed these blackberry bushes and knew I wanted to end the session here with the sunlight leaking through. Luka agreed that was a great idea after he discovered they had berries. Most of them were not quite ready yet but there was a few ripe ones in the mix. I think every session needs to end with fresh picked berries. I think all kids would agree that photo sessions would be a lot more fun.

Thank you to the Thorson family for giving me a fun Sunday evening on the beach! I loved being find special rocks with Luka!
Comment below with your own favorite Washington beach!

An Evening with Autumn

July 6, 2016July 6, 2016 christinaconradphotography

Sometimes paths align and everything works out perfectly. This was one of those times. After a last minute switch, I get to shoot Autumn and her momma last Friday . It was a superb Washington evening. Warm, angelic sunlight with clouds spotting the skyline. Pair that with a delightful rambunctious almost 3 year old and it was a photographers dream.

Autumn was so outgoing. We let her call the shoots, taking point for her session, allowing the magic to happen. She turned a stick into a magic wand and a tree into a pinata. I am even fortunate to get my own piece of Autumn artwork. She drew my self portrait into a rock pile.

These sessions are my favorite for the love. When you get to chase after a young child and their family, you get to witness their spirit. You see how their relationship unfolds. The adoration it holds. A mother with her daughter playing together. Making memories. Strengthening their bond.

That is my goal as a photographer. My passion is to capture those in front of my camera as they are in that moment. Limited guided posing paired with natural interactions. This is how the magic happens.

For the you get those real smiles from little ones, not the posed fake smiles you can see through a mile away. You give that client images that can bring them back to the fun time they had. Running around this field together at sunset. Instead of remember that stressful hour where they posed unnaturally.

Because that sweet smile right there should be remembered for how it was. A silly piggy back ride with mommy, wearing a party hat for a birthday a few weeks away. Soaking up those moments of our babes being little while it lasts. The cuddles and idolization from our babies is gone all too soon.

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Sierakowski Homecoming

March 8, 2016July 17, 2016 christinaconradphotography

I started out Saturday morning celebrating this family being reunited after a long deployment. I cant think of a better way to come back from maternity leave than with a homecoming. Not only do I love them, but they are so special for the families that get them.
This little boy was so excited to get his daddy back, just remembering his excitement warms my heart. Right after they arrived at the gym, he saw a picture of his daddy on a slideshow playing and his whole face lit up. He passed the time waiting cheesing away at photos of his daddy on his moms phone. But by far the best was his reaction to seeing him for the first time after months apart. All smiles. It isnt uncommon for kids to be shy when their dad finally comes home, but not this boy. I couldn’t be happier for them.

I also did something special for this family. I took video that I’ll include at the bottom of this post! All future homecomings will now include a similar video, I loved it that much.

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Meet Baby Leith

February 18, 2016February 18, 2016 christinaconradphotography

It has been a ghost town around here and my Facebook page the last few months. I have a perfect reason for the silence, this beautiful little boy, Leith Alexander.

I stopped taking sessions last October due to having difficult pregnancies. It was more than that though, I really wanted the freedom of being able to take the time to savory those last few months of being pregnant and being a family of 2. I was able to really enjoy that time of my life and help make the transition easier on our older children. I am so grateful for being able to take that time. During this time I have really been able to sit back and think about what I wanted for my business and my photography. I am very excited to share these changes with you in the upcoming weeks.
But for now let me tell you more about this precious little boy: Leith Alexander joined our family on January 10th (birth story and photos to come). We could not be more smitten. He is so perfect. We are mesmerized by him. I love watching Lila and Lucy swoon over him the way his father and I do. That is new for us, when we added Lucy to the family, Lila was not old enough to understand and be excited. This time Lila and Lucy both are. They love being big sisters. Leith is so blessed to have siblings that love him so much already.

Having 3 kids 5 and under all at home on top of 4 pets is a crazy, to say it is a ton of work is an understatement. Our house is full of blissful chaos 90% of the day. We have earned the right to say we thrive in chaos with our houseful of babies, furry and otherwise. Leith is mommy obsessed. I spend all day and all night holding him. He is in my lap right now as I type this. I get maybe an hour combined through out the day where he is not being held by me. I am not complaining, please don’t think I am. I love every second of it. My arms feel empty in the fleeting moments when they are not full with his little body. I don’t know what to do with myself when I try to take a moment for myself and just sit by myself. I want to take in every moment of this stage where all he wants is me. I am already saddened by the thought of his wanting to play and be independent as his babyhood evolves. I spend most of my days just staring at him to memorize him in the current moment as he is today because tomorrow he will be just a little older, a little different.

I just adore being a mother. Not that it should be a surprise to anyone seeing as how I now have 3 little children, but I am overwhelmed with the love I have for the minions that fill my house. That is really all I can say. I leave you with a flood of Leith photos that I have taken over the past 5 weeks as well as some highlights from our posed newborn and lifestyle newborn session.

The following photos were not taken by me. We were so blessed with the amazing talent we were able to work with to capture the memories of Leith’s first weeks. The amazing Meg Newton Photography is responsible for his newborns. When I say amazing I mean it. I can not say enough good things about her work and our session. I will cherish these forever. If you are pregnant and in the market for newborns, message me right now. You will not regret it.
Click her name above for her website, here for her facebook or you can find her on instagram here!

We also were lucky enough to be have a lifestyle newborn session of done by Allison Turcotte Photography. These photos mean so much to me because they took the stress of trying to pose Lila and Lucy with Leith from me. They give us family photos with such ease that even my picture hating husband said that it was an easy session. This session sold me on lifestyle. I am converted. If you want those first moments in your house captured or a stress free newborn session in your own home message her now.
Click her name for her website, here for her facebook and here for her instagram.

Gorbett Maternity

October 2, 2015September 10, 2015 christinaconradphotography

Happy October! Oh how I love this month. My Lila turns 5 in a few days! Be on the look out for a personal post about her special day soon! In the mean time I wanna share with you this maternity season of the Gorbett family! They were such a joy to photographer, despite it looking like it would rain for most of their session.

Enjoy these highlights from their session! I still swoon over that banner than Samantha’s sister made for them!

DIY Family Photos

September 14, 2015September 10, 2015 christinaconradphotography

I got this crazy idea to try to do our own family photos. Last weekend we headed out right after dinner to give a go. I was expecting a frustrating experience with rowdy kids that weren’t listening, 5 or so keepers and walking away never wanting to try it again. Haha. At least that is how it has always gone in the past when I have tried something like this.
But this time I came armed with a game plan. We were going to just go with the flow of chaos. Let the kids be rowdy and run away like the little destructive monsters they are. Instead of trying to pose them, we just interacted with them. I held so true to this I didn’t even question Lila bringing baby bear, a .10 thrift store teddy bear she has been in love with for over a year, and Lucy bringing her favorite baby doll of the day. The end result was awesome. I am so happy with these images. I can not wait to put them up on the wall. To give you an idea of how well this went, these images are better and more true to us as a family than the last time we paid a (Very talented so nothing against them!) photographer a few months ago. We just finally found a style that works with our children. It is also the current style of family photos that I am in love with for my own clients. 😉

I also have to give my husband a shout out for not only being a trooper but getting some great shots with me and the girls as well. I have taught him well! Haha.

I hope you enjoy these images of us and the insist into our family they give! We cheated a little on the DIY part and met up with another photographer who was a sorts of “human tripod” as we used to call it in NY! She helped take the shots of the 4 of us with my camera and I am so thankful! So much easier than trying to use a tripod and timer with kids.
Next personal blog post will be with our gender reveal photos done by another photographer!

A & R Engagement

September 4, 2015August 29, 2015 christinaconradphotography

The game of catch up has began with this darling engagement session. This was a session that I could not wait to edit and could not stop editing once I saw how stunning these photos were. I loved working with Amanda and her Fiancee and future step son! They were a blast with such chemistry between them as you can clearly see in their images.
This was also my first time shooting at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma. I am in love. It is one of my favorite locations for sessions now. If you are a photographer and have not yet checked it out, please do yourself a favor and go walk around.