RACHAEL EARL » PHOTOGRAPHY: Lifestyle Portraiture and Wedding Photography

In honor of LaToya being back on Celebrity Apprentice…(yes, I am addicted)…click on the image

I usually dread windy days when I am shooting. DREAD THEM.

Today, though, was the perfect windy day senior session with Cody because of a little three letter word: GEL.

Senior sessions are SO fun, and add TWO graduating seniors and it multiplies exponentially! These girls were a hoot and full of energy (and even more giggles)!

Mariah:

And Chloe:

Mariah and Chloe are REALLY good dancers, so we had to showcase some of their talents of course! Insane:

LOVE this-so awesome! Mariah does hip hop and breakdancing!

And Chloe does ballet-beautiful!

And this is a rollercoaster simulation. On a sidenote, I want the shoes. Both of them.

And the most important thing to a senior:

Fact: Before the session, Vanessa, Mariah’s mom, said, “You’re in for it with these two. They’re hams!” My response? “Good!”

It’s that time again! The best time of year because it is the time for giving. I truly love Christmas for the giving aspect, finding the perfect gift for those special people in your life. I know that this has been a particularly tough year for a lot of people out there, which is why I want to give back to you, those of you who visit my blog (even though the postings have been scarce this year!), so that you will have a gift for yourself or to give this Christmas!

Post a comment up on my blog on this post about what you are looking forward to most in the coming year and how you plan to make 2011 the best year ever, and you will be entered into a random drawing for a family session gift card to either keep for yourself, or give to someone you love! It’s that easy.

**Winner (or recipient of gift card) must live in the Phoenix area, or be visiting the area during 2011. Number will be drawn at random by the generator at Random.org on December 22, 2010 at 8:00 pm Arizona Time, so you have until then to post up your comment. Session must take place in 2011. Gift card will be mailed to you on December 23, 2010, so provide your address promptly once you have won!**

And since there are only SEVEN more days until Christmas (!) I thought I would post up an adorable family of SEVEN!

PS-I am officially BOOKED until the new year! Thank you to all of the fun, fabulous, adorable, beautiful, silly, crazy people I was able to photograph in 2010!!!

I LOVE winter. Not just for the cool temperatures and the fantastic holiday season, but for the chance I get to catch up with the wonderful families that I get to work with over the years. I truly love seeing and photographing each and every single one of them! And not dying of heat stroke while doing it

*Dear Blog, I am sorry you have been neglected, but it’s either you or my children and well…they’re waaaay cuter than you are. Sorry. Here are photos from a bunch of sessions that I hope to blog VERY soon.

Getting up early was soooo worth it for these fun senior photos! More to come!

Thanks, Ashlee!

Looking for something fun to give as a gift, but have no ideas? How about a portrait session? I just got my brand new shipment of gift certificates in, which are redeemable for a free portrait session of your recipient’s choice. Give that special someone something they will remember!

Email me for more info!

* LABOR DAY SPECIAL: THIS weekend, gift certificates can be purchased at $25 off the regular price, which makes them $125!

Sorry for the lack of photos from the last post, but I am sure you found plenty of eye candy to check out on those other blogs! So what have I been up to lately? Besides taking care of my cute little newborn (and her 2 other equally as cute siblings), this month has been about getting back into photography!

Here are a few quick ones from recent sessions (youngest to oldest!):

Remember that there are a few more days in August if you would like to get your mini session in while the rates (and temperatures) are hot!

When I’m not photographing, I also work designing for Spilled Milk Designs. If you are a photographer in need of a website, check them out! I also have been working on a new site for myself, which I am putting a deadline on myself of October 1st for releasing!!! (We’ll see if that deadline sticks…but I am excited to show you what I am working on!)

It’s hot. Like, REALLY hot. So what better time to do a short, fun, casual session?

What: 1/2 Hour Mini Sessions for $75
(includes ONE digital file emailed to you, option to purchase a disk from the session)
Who: Groups up to 5 people
Where: Your choice of one of 4 locations in Gilbert, Arizona
When: During the month of August, in the evening time
Why: Because it’s really freaking hot

Email me for information or to book your August mini session today!

In the meantime, I’ll leave you with some photos of little Charlotte, who we’ve been cuddling over here for almost a month now!

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!