Absolutely worth it.

Thanks for braving the elements and wild outdoors today, K. I think we got some fantastic family pictures for you in spite of it all.

We’ve got one, teeny-tiny little opening left in the morning for our Xpressions sessions, Sunday, February 21st. We are going to be touring some of my favorite spots in trendy East Austin. Think hip, colorful, urban, funky, and fun! If you’ve been thinking about grabbing one of these photo sessions, just do it.

• Maybe you need engagement pictures or haven’t had your picture taken with your significant other in a looooooooong time?
• Some hip bridal portraits would be amazing at this location!
• Maybe you’re expecting a baby and haven’t had maternity pictures done yet?
• Maybe your baby has just figured out how to sit up on his own?
• Perhaps your older "baby" is about to lose her first tooth and you need some pictures before it’s too late?
• Or maybe you’re a graduating senior in Austin need to have your senior portraits made?

Let me know and let’s see if we can get together this Sunday.

[As with all Xpressions sessions, these images have only received basic edits...no retouching or additional enhancements.]

Lyndsay and I photographed our Helping Hearts session winners tonight. Um, magic…just pure magic. I seriously don’t know how we’re supposed to choose from these images because if Lyndsay got anything close to what I’m looking at here (and I’m sure she did), we’re in trouble. Thank you guys so much for such a great evening. You were simply ADORABLE and it just means the world that you were both totally willing to try any and all of mine and Lyndsay’s hair-brained schemes. Speaking of Lyndsay…

PHOTOG DOWN!

You guys know that Lyndsay and I went out with our hubbies several weeks ago to experiment with shooting in the dark. Little did I know that the experiment would teach us much more than how/if we could shoot at night. When Lyndsay and I exchanged links for our pics from that evening, I think we were equally shocked by how *different* our images were from each other. How amazing to see that even with the same equipment and the same locations, some of our takes were similar, but mostly, they were vastly different.

Her take.

My take.

I’ve always thought our styles were similar, but now I’m thinking how cool it is that they’re not that similar after all. Our passion is the same, but it’s our art that makes us unique.

I’m so in love with the pictures Lyndsay took of us! Virgil and I did not hire a wedding photographer when we were married, so it’s such a treat to have such beautiful images of the two of us…10 years later and still very much in love. I have big plans for these pictures, L, but first, I have to build an addition to the house to get more wall space. Thank you soooooooo very much for this adventure and this gift.  Hey, we should work together more often. What are you doing tonight?

(P.S. Thanks again, Katie, for the incredible make-up job!)

This kid was born to super cool, ultra-hip parents. He is *going* to have style. Not to mention, hands-down, the COOLEST nursery I’ve ever seen.

And he’s cute as heck, too. Even when he’s mad at me ;-)

[Personal note to Cheyenne...you know exactly what I was trying to do with the diaper shots, don't you? We're not there yet, but someday, I vow to get something to rival THE pic in your office, LOL.]

At long last, we are ready to start booking for our 2010 Xpressions Sessions! To see the dates and all the info, visit THIS PAGE (we’re doing some new things this year, including special discounts AND themes!).  These openings are very limited and will fill up quickly. Graduating high school students in Austin…now is the time to book your Xpressions session for senior portraits! Also, clients who have already booked a 2010 Premium Session or who had a Premium Session in Nov. or Dec. of last year qualify for special discounts and get first priority on our openings. 

I’ve been meaning to blog more images from our last round in Fall 2009, so I figured now would be a good time. So many incredible families and oh, we had the most perfect weather and light! I can’t wait until we start doing this again this year…especially with the fun new themes and seeing new places all over Austin. (As with all of our Xpressions sessions, these images have not been retouched.)

Thank you for pushing us to do this. It only took us a year to make it happen, ha! I hope this is close to what you were looking for. We had a wonderful evening with you guys!

[embrace the grain. embrace the grain.]

And although you can’t see it just yet in these pics, thanks so much to Modern Muse for the outstanding make-up (would totally recommend her!).  And now, the awesome pics from the other side!

This beautiful mommy-to-be (who is due to give birth any day now) will receive and 11×14 canvas of this image AND a $500 gift card for a 2010 Pinkle Toes Premium Session.  Congratulations, J! 

We also have two runners up, who will each receive $100 gift cards for a 2010 Premium Session:

and

Congratulations once more to winners and all of the nominees who ran a very close race.  Thanks so much to everyone who took time to vote and help make this tough decision. I can’t wait to see what kind of images 2010 turns out for us!

To help get YOU motivated to be the 2010 Pic of the Year winner, I have a VERY limited time special offer:

Book your Premium session by NEXT SATURDAY to be held in April or May 2010 and receive a complimentary leather accordion album featuring 14-4×6 images from the session! (Not valid with any other offer. While supplies last.) Contact me to set up your session now!

I took some risks and tried something new. Couldn’t have been a cooler family to try this with and I am VERY excited about the cool stuff we got tonight. So great to meet you!

P.S. I’m so behind on blogging here, it’s not even funny.  I did manage, however, to eek out a homeschool post (with the gentle, yet persistent urging of the hubs).

P.P.S. Only three openings ONE opening left for the Austin Baby Coco Mini Maternity Sessions next week.

P.P.P.S. Don’t forget to vote for your favorite image if you haven’t already – voting ends the 15th!

You are all beautiful. You are all patient. And you are all wonderful for braving the cold that day. [Sigh...this was the only Xpressions session in VA that didn't get completely snowed out :-(.]