Alli's Slideshow

50 Years of Ministry

Yesterday we celebrated my aunt's Jubilee, the 50th anniversary of her first vows as a sister of the Holy Cross. A special mass was held at St Louis de Gonzague in Nashua, and she renewed her vows. Afterwards we went to my cousin's restaurant, Valentino's in Hudson, for a meal. As part of the festivities, we showed a slideshow of her life, which my wife Betsy had put together with help from my mother and aunt Maddie. One of the really cool things was that none of us knew who all the people were in all of the pictures, but as it played, you'd hear "Hey, that's you, Florence" etc, to put names with all the faces from so long ago.

Here are a few shots from the mass.

Another boy!

Ok, if we can generalize about this summer's senior season, it's that the boys have put off getting their portraits done while the girls have been a little earlier. This is Alex, another boy we photographed today. He enjoyed both a studio as well as a location session, and was fun to photograph. We love kids with personality, and Alex fits the bill. He was game for anything we were, and we are game for a lot.

My, how they grow!

When my 20 year old daughter was young, she was great friends with Corina. Suffice it to say that it's been years since I saw her and her brother Michael, who the last time I saw him was 7 or 8 years old and, well, the size of a 7 or 8 year old. Not anymore!

They've both grown up a whole lot since then. Corina is a young woman studying radiology, and Michael came in for his senior portraits with none other than his sister for some "buddy" shots! It was so great to see them all grown up and reconnect.

Michael, it must be said, was not too keen on the idea of having his senior portraits done. This was a "mom's making me do this" session at the outset. But I tracked him down where he works yesterday and showed him some older work, and got him to at least buy into the concept of cooperating. And got him this close to participating. ;)

In the end, it was lots more fun than he expected. "I'm not even gonna lie. This was way better than I expected it to be." It's like that here.

The hockey player. (Note to others: more stuff = more opportunities for fun!)


Corina

Chloé turns 1

Our 8/8/08 grandbaby turned one today. Such personality and such a pleasant demeanor. And a cutie!! She is so fun, and totally got the hang of the whole birthday thing in a hurry. It was great fun to watch her attack her cupcake, which started off so dainty and careful and ended up, well, you can see for yourself. :)

"For me?"


Nom nom nom...

It always ends up this way, doesn't it? LOL


Opening presents with big sister's help.


Um, Chloé, you're not supposed to SIT on the present!

Quarry Fun

The quarries. When I was a kid, it was a big deal. They were dangerous, and I was not allowed to go. I didn't even have to ask. You just knew back then. If I only knew what I was missing... :)

My youngest went to the quarries the other day, and when she got home she was SO excited. It was a "great place." "Dad, you'd love it." "Please come take pictures of us." Ok, I can do that.

So I went to the quarry. As they saw me, they said "where's your suit?" Oopsie. Wish I'd worn it. It looked like SO MUCH fun. Is it dangerous? Well, a bit. Like skiing, or hanggliding. Or scuba, rock climbing. I get why the authorities don't want people over there. Some dope gets likkered up and gets hurt and then the authorities have to "do something" or at least appear to, and that's what makes them place the quarries off limits. It's easier than someone being responsible to oversee the goings on there, or people actually being responsible for themselves. But the truth is you only need have a brain to play safely there. Which does leave those with less than half a brain in danger, but they are gonna have trouble with traffic and chainsaws and matches, and they don't outlaw those.

The kids had fun. I was wishing I could join them on this gorgeous summer day. Spectacular.

Geronimo!


At launch.

They call me skywalker.

The other side


I can fly!
How it all ends.

Blast from the past

It's always fun when someone who doesn't know I'm doing photography comes in and realizes they know me from something else. Here is Courtney, who once upon a time played soccer and basketball on teams that I coached when my children were in the Rec Leagues. I thought the name sounded familiar when I fielded the call, and it was confirmed when she walked through the door. She's a lot taller now, but is still the same sweet girl she was when she was chasing the ball.

She already had her pictures done at the contract photographers, but mom didn't like them. Good call, mom! After enjoying the Studio Mark Emile senior portrait experience, Courtney ended up with plenty of choices she liked, and mom did too. This is the second Courtney I've coached that we've photographed this year. :) Life is good.

A guy for a change!

We get tons of girls here for senior portraits, but not so many guys. So we have lots of girls to show, but far fewer guys. I've even heard some people wonder if we are girls-only. Um, no! It's just that more guys are content to do what everyone else is doing and go where everyone else is going. But occasionally we get a guy who's not just "doing them for mom" or following the path of least resistance. And we ROCK them.

If you want a senior portrait experience that is going to blow you away, we are the studio for you. Exhibit A: Nick

Any questions?

They are getting into it!

This is Carla, one of our recent seniors. She's a BG girl, which, if you are from my vintage, seems a bit strange. (I attended Bishop Guertin before it went co-ed. Sadly. {sniff})

She opted for the dual sessions, on back to back days, if memory serves, and it was such a treat to photograph her. What a charming young lady- and game for some fun stuff, too. Don't want to show too much, because I am holding back some gems, but these are some that caught my eye from her sessions. I can't wait for her premier! I'm afraid we have too many images, but there were so many good ones!

Here's a taste:

Sometimes, they get it

We photograph a fair number of seniors here at Studio Mark Emile, and we get a range of kids from those who are doing it just because their mom wants them to to those who are willing and able to fully embrace the Studio Mark Emile senior portrait experience. Jana is a prime example of the latter. She brought clothes, she brought props, and best of all, she brought a sense of adventure and a "can do" attitude. We had a blast!

This is what it's all about, guys and girls. Having fun and creating interesting images that capture you.

We are getting into the last month of summer break. You really ought to get your sessions booked now. Call the studio at 886.0957 and reserve your spot!

LOL- I couldn't resist, and Jana played right along :)