One of the first things that people ask after they've booked a shoot at our studio is, "Where should we take the pictures?" Since we are in Houston and are blessed with a good climate (minus June through August!), outside photo sessions are easy to come by and we provide a great deal of choices for outdoor settings. Cindy sometimes shoots at City Centre, which is full of lovely gardens, structures, brick walls, metal and glass...it makes for a very unique photograph done not too far from home! Other options? Well, in April, we are going to Belleville, Texas for photo sessions in the bluebonnets at a private residence (there is still room for you to have a session - call us). This is where we captured a timeless photo of two brothers chasing each other down a dusty trail lined with bluebonnets. But if you don't want to travel that far, we can always capture something lovely, right in your very own backyard. Such was the case with Carol Hedrick and her extended family. It was a busy session with lots of young children, moms, dads, and Carol and her husband. This photo below was captured of Carol in a quiet moment, at her home. They say home is where the heart is, and we think this photo of Carol attests to it. Here she is relaxed, and happy at home!

There are times in Houston when the weather does a peculiar thing and surprises us with freezing temperatures, rain, hail, or gasp, snow! On those days, sometimes it is necessary to move the shoot inside the studio. This senior picture of Emily Waldrop was taken inside our studio. You would never know that she is leaning against Cindy's desk in the floor of our studio. It is a gorgeous photo full of color and texture, captured in the comfort of a warm and toasty studio (it was COLD that day in December!).

Photo sessions are always interesting because of the great people who are in the shoot, but they can be made even more fun with exploring different settings and backgrounds. Call us today and we'll capture something wonderful for you here at the studio, around town, or in your very own home.

Past and Present...We've always provided choices for you!

One of the joys of this studio is watching children grow. Kristen, (not my daughter, Kristen) has always been good about photographing her precious daughter, Josie. Here are some images of Josie when she was little. Here are some that we did in late 2008. Josie’s grandmother, Sharon (who is one of the prettiest women you will know, both inside and out) came in today to order from Josie’s pictures that were taken when she was little. She never could make up her mind which one to choose and so ten years later she still did not have a picture up of Josie as a little girl. We talked about how many cute images there were and how each one would have been a good choice.

Here’s the back-story. I have always wanted to give you lots of choices. This comes from my experience with my children’s first visit to a professional photographer. The photographer was just doing what he always did. Kristen, my daughter, cried most of the session and there was not any time allowed for her to become comfortable in front of the camera. This resulted in an “I guess this one will do.” decision of her one-year-old picture. I decided that my business would give people choices. I still stand by that decision, but I am considering the fact that too many choices leads to indecision, confusion and frustration. So here’s the point of the blog: I will still give you choices, but I will do a heavy edit to distill it down to the very best of the best. Feel free to give me input. If you like lots of choices, that is what I will give you. If you prefer a minimalist approach, I will hone them down to my very favorites. I promise that we will have some beautiful images for you to put up on your wall that will bring years of pleasure and the process will be memorable, as well.

Leaving the Nest

We loved photographing Wilson, Trudy, and Chris Gaw. As you can probably tell, they are a close knit family. When Trudy called the studio in December about having Chris's senior pictures made, she let us know that she wanted to have a family picture made as well.

This image of Chris Gaw and his father, Wilson, was expressly chosen for Chris's senior album because, as Chris remarked when he saw this one, "I love this photo because my dad has his arm around me." It is true what they say... a picture is often worth a thousand words.

This spring, as graduation draws near, many moms and dads are realizing that as their son or daughter goes off to college, the family will never quite be the same again. It may be a great time to capture a senior picture and at the same time do one last family picture before your son or daughter leaves home and enters the adult world. Cindy can appreciate how busy families are, so if you would like to capture a senior portrait and do a family portrait at the same time, we'd love to help you.

Good Times in the Bluebonnets!

Spring is in the air! You can feel it in the gentle breezes that blow through Houston on these cloudless days. In April, we will see our beloved bluebonnets dotting the roadside along the way to Austin. The arrival of bluebonnets seems to make spring official in Texas. Each year, along with bluebonnets come the other events that spring brings… antique festivals, graduation, spring formals, Easter egg hunts, the end of the school year, family vacations, crawfish boils…good times. When we were at the Wilchester Elementary Art Expo, Cindy asked each group of students when they arrived at her booth, “What do we take pictures of?” One young man had an interesting comment, “We take pictures of good times.”

At Cindy Crofford Photography, we advertise that we shoot pictures of families, babies, and Seniors, but honestly, what we are really photographing are good times. What good times have you had lately? I think in my family good times are birthday parties around our big dining room table, or grilling out on a warm spring night. Other good times are when we take road trips on sunny spring days with the windows rolled down, and our hair flying everywhere. We pile our kids into the car and drive down Texas highways, through places like Gruene, Bellville, Brenham, Columbus. We always have to stop at Bucees to get jerky, fudge, and kolaches. From the backseat, the kids make up games and jokes, and laugh so hard that their orange soda comes up through their noses. As for me, I sigh and enjoy the scenery, knowing that for a few hours, the kids are buckled in, and don’t need anything for a while.

We invite your family for a road trip with us on the 3^rd weekend in April. We are headed up to Bellville, Texas so that we can offer photo-sessions of your family in the bluebonnets. We feel certain that you will have fun making a day of it, and we’ll be on hand to capture the memory of your family’s “good times.”

Rush-ography

Senior girls and their moms are starting to call us about Sorority Rush pictures. In this region of the country, Sorority Rush is a bit more involved than in other areas, so if you are planning to join a sorority at a southern school, plan to pay close attention to the Rush process. Cindy has photographed hundreds of girls for Rush and knows the ins and outs of “Rush-ography,” to coin a term. The most important thing you will need for Rush are the photos that you will submit to each sorority. First impressions are so important and these three photos will speak volumes about you before you even step foot on campus!

Cindy offers this advice on Rush photos:

You need three photos with different poses: a closeup, a full length and a 3/4 length pose. We of course offer digital retouching on things like blemishes, under eye circles, and stray hairs, so you need not sweat your closeup!

Your clothes for the Rush photos are important as they reveal a lot about who you are. Be a little understated but not boring with your clothing choices. At the studio, we can recommend where to shop for clothing lines that photograph well, and also give you names of store consultants who can pick out the perfect ensemble for your photographs. Keep in mind that medium colors are the best choice for clothes as light colors make you look heavier and dark clothing often photographs with no detail. Similar color tones on the top and bottom make you appear taller and slimmer, while contrasting color tones on the top and bottom look choppy.

When preparing for your photo shoot, give attention to the small things that will matter in the end. Check your highlights if you have them, and make sure they are well maintained. Get a manicure and pedicure – no chipped nail polish! Lay out your three (or so) outfits with jewelry and shoes to double check that each looks complete, and, more importantly, looks like YOU. Bring your jewelry, touch-up makeup, brush, and hair spray to the shoot. And the most important thing to remember during the photo shoot is to be yourself, and smile!

Urban Photography for Seniors

We did one of our urban sessions this weekend. It was so much fun and so inspiring. We did a few photographs around the studio and then headed into the city where we found a great view of the downtown skyline. Brad is hoping to attend Belmont in Nashville with a major in music engineering. I didn’t even know that major existed. I particularly loved this image with Houston downtown in the background and with Brad looking toward Nashville. Houston is where he has been and Nashville is where he is going. Seemed a little symbolic to me. We finished at a warehouse with amazing textures and edgy backgrounds. Take a look at the images and see what you think.

Our urban sessions take a little more time and we are scouting for unusual locations. If you are looking for something a little out of the box, give us a call for details.

We Love Our Teachers!

Rhonda blogging today for Cindy. I just had to share a picture of my son John at the 100 Days of School celebration on Tuesday. Each student was asked to wear a hat with 100 items on it -- John wore one with 100 words on it. The 100th day of school really sneaks up on you. It comes right after the Christmas holidays, at which time we are all shaking our heads, wondering how the school year has passed so quickly, and marveling at how big our children are getting. When you think about it, our children spend about 8 hours in school each day, so our teachers have a pretty large hand in molding and shaping the thoughts, attitudes, and aptitudes of our kids. We've been so lucky that all four of our children have gone to school at Wilchester Elementary, a perfect little bubble of a school. I walk my John, Katie and Cullen up the same sidewalk that I did for my fifteen year old son several years ago. I count us blessed to be able to have teachers, school nurses, and other staff that can comment how much Joey looks like John, or how different Katie is from Cullen. They have an interest in my family, and we also have a history with these folks. One special teacher in particular has been Beverly McKenty. All of my children have grown accustomed to Ms. McKenty's familiar face in the halls at Wilchester. We photographed Beverly in the studio at Cindy Crofford Photography last week.

Ms. McKenty's portrait is going on the "Wall of Fame" in the new school building at Wilchester, having been a teacher at Wilchester for over twenty years. Twenty years! Imagine the stories Ms. McKeny must have. I think that all teachers, new ones and veterans, all belong on a wall of fame in my book. There is Ms. Stovall the kindergarten teacher, who taught first Joey, and then seven years later, Katie, to read chapter books. There was Mrs. Penner who would call to check on us if we were sick, or running late, and even asked moms to bring meals to us when we had a sick baby in the hospital. Ms. Dailey has taught all of my kids Health Fitness, and each day in the carpool line, she plucks John from his carseat to help him to class. I can't forget Coach Heathcock and Coach Thornton ("that's not gonna fly son!") at Memorial Middle School, who took a 7th grade boy who had never played football and turned him into a hard driving, football loving machine. My daughter loves her teachers like Ms. Bielik, Ms. Morgan, Ms. Luong and regularly makes cards for them or incorporates them into her fiction stories. My son Cullen thinks that Ms. Farahani is the most fun teacher he's ever had, and I can't thank Ms. Marks, Ms. Palkot, Ms. Dionne, Ms. DeLeon, Ms. Pope, Ms. Finley, Ms. Painter, just to name a few...you are forever engrained on my child's heart...and mine. Thank you for all that you do!