RACHAEL EARL » PHOTOGRAPHY: Lifestyle Portraiture and Wedding Photography

I am not a nature photographer. Not even a little bit. I love people, love photographing people…if you couldn’t tell

BUT, that being said, right around now in Arizona, there is a fleeting moment where everything is in bloom. The weather is wonderful (especially these past few days!), and we can enjoy our state before the horrendous 120 degree weather hits. Dan and I have become pretty astute as to what grows well in our crazy climate and what does not. We used to spend our Saturdays at A+P Nursery browsing plants and planning our yard out. We even had a friend there who knew us by name (sadly, I can’t remember his name, but I’m sure Dan does). Here are a few of the things in bloom in our yard, if just for a moment:

Hibiscus:

Purple Sage:

Birds of Paradise (Dan is thrilled that he finally found a good area of the yard to plant these in):

And our Navel Oranges (which we hope will finally taste good this year…)

With the crazy weather these last few days, the girls don’t know what to do. You see, in Arizona, when it’s cloudy out, it’s a BIG deal. So the skies looked like this:

Not exactly rain clouds, but my kids AUTOMATICALLY head for these:

Here’s to hoping this good weather lasts!!!

EDIT: His name was Shawn!!! LOL

This week, I have a few days’ break from shooting, so I decided it was the perfect time to take some much-needed photos of my little girls

First up, Abbie lost her first tooth a few weeks ago, and loves to show off her “window.” She can’t wait for her new one to grow back in!

Second is a not-so-happy face, but one that I still think is totally adorable-this is Brookie’s new pouty face:

Finally, here’s the best pic I could get of the new little one! (That giant mountain in the foreground) The girls can’t wait to meet their little brother/sister, and Abbie asks me every day how long it is until fireworks day!

I knew that Chelsea and Scott would be a lot of fun from the moment they described themselves as “completely retarded.” I was pretty much laughing the entire time today, which you know I love, of course. I had a blast shooting them! Wish you guys all the best at your wedding!!!

There is an entire series of these ones in various poses, making it very very very hard to decide!

I envy Chelsea’s calf muscles!

Then we took a drive out to the “country.” We couldn’t figure out which country-we think we were still in the US, but there sure were a lot of really poky weeds.

They should be Olympians for the Photographic High Jump event. It’s a real sport. Look it up.

I was so happy to be able to photograph these little kids again today! Not just because I love seeing kids grow up, but I am particularly glad to see this little girl at two years old and thriving! Bela is the first of many heart babies (children born with rare heart conditions) that I have had the pleasure to meet and photograph in the last 2 years or so. She has had her ups and downs, but lately, it seems like a lot of ups, for which everyone is thankful.

These two are some of my faves from the session, hands down!

I love this shot of Benson:

Check out this smile!

And of course, we had to revisit the bench of our first session:

I drove all over the place shooting these two the other day and had so much fun! LeighAnn scheduled the shoot as part of her month of birthday (which is a great idea, even better than our week of birthday-we’re thinking of upgrading). I especially loved the shots we were able to get on my friend’s farm! Thanks, Nate!

I pulled some crazy Matrix-like moves to shoot in this spot. Just imagine Keanu Reeves pregnant. Okay, maybe that’s not a pleasant thought…

I’ve realized lately that I kind of like to break the rules. Really, just in photography, not in real life. My husband still makes fun of me for STILL refusing to go in the exit at WalMart. Most recently, I realized that I really like to put color on color. Oooh-taboo to put a green shirt on green or red on red? It freaks people out when I suggest it. “Won’t we blend in?” Nope. I like it. I think you will, too. I guess those are my baby steps towards being a rebel. Yours too.

Oh, and while we are on the subject of COLOR, I ALWAYS recommend wearing it for your sessions. See how VIBRANT and BOLD they are? SO much better than black, white, navy blue, brown…you catch my drift. Oh, and I am very anti-matchy-matchy despite the title of this post. The word of the day is COORDINATE. Take different shades of a color in different styles of clothing, or different patterns, or even better, mix several colors and patterns (time to retire the polos). Have a little fun with what you wear and bring out your individual personalities!!! You will love them so much more and they will be much more YOU!

Seniors are SUCH fun to shoot! I love all the personality they bring, and Taelor was no exception!

Needless to say, she was pretty excited about this Harley. Thanks, random Gilbert biker dude!

Despite it being a HOT day (especially for two prego ladies), Kristin was a trooper! I was so glad we were able to get her photos in today before her sweet little baby boy arrives. And while it is hot, I sure do love the Arizona sunshine!

A few from today! I’ve decided that all seniors need to be like Robin so that I can laugh and be entertained for 2 hours

Robin has been playing soccer since she was in 1st grade-I don’t even think I could kick a stationary soccer ball.

Yeah, I was pretty much laughing the ENTIRE time.

Then, she pulled out her Top Model skillz…

I did 2 days worth of sessions with my friend Diane this past week. One for her little 8 month old, and one just for her and her husband. She wanted to make sure that she was able to focus on just her husband and her for the second session instead of lumping it all together in a family session. Great idea! Should you ever decide to do a double portrait session (with at least one person in common), I will take $50 of the sitting fee of the second session.* (For a limited time only)

Delicious (and colorful) sodas courtesy of Liberty Market in Gilbert!