baby on the way

Back in April I had an incredibly lovey-dovey session with these two. Soon after I heard the news that there was a little one on the way. During our planning meet I was pleasantly surprised that she wanted to have a very at-home-feel to the session. It seems that most times its hard to get my mommies to go for the "real" look... and that's exactly what Cherie wanted.
It was so easy to make this pretty mom-to-be look good, there is this beautiful glow about her. When I was editing their pictures I could tell how much she is enjoying being pregnant. It's those moms that are so excited to have a little one of their own that it's a joy to work with. This is their first baby, and guess what? It's a girl. Yay - I have officially broken my boy streak. :)

I've seen spin offs of this pose so many times... and never really had tried it. During our planning meets I always like to know more about each mom's pregnancy. Were there any crazy cravings or things that just came out of the blue? ... and for this momma it's been Fruit Loops. Not so random but I thought that it would be fun nonetheless to have James hold a double-pack cereal box. :)
We will be seeing more of that little hat on Ava later on. I had such a great time shooting/editing this session. Looking forward to the little misses arrival. To everyone else.. the weekend is almost here... Enjoy!

hello there little newbie

This sweet little baby cake was such a dream to work with. He behaved so well. The one session to date I didn't get pooed (if that's even a word) on or struggled for hours trying to make them happy. It was wonderful! Not that I love the others less, but it was quick, and I was so content. Take a look at this cutie pie. His mommy & daddy are so proud.

This is his little cousin who came for a visit and joined in for some fun. She has the cutest smile... & those little pigtails make me giggle. She reminds me of me that age. I didn't have a lot of hair so my mom would tie the little I had in pigtails all the time. It's such a sweet girly thing.

I feel inspired. I am so looking forward to this upcoming weekend. I don't know why but I woke up this morning with a bunch of ideas and with a brand new attitude. Great things are in the works. Now if only the weather will continue to cooperate...

about ... me

Changing things around a bit for this post. I've been having on my to-do list blogging a little about myself. It's important for clients to click with their photographer. So instead of showing you a session preview I'm going randomly talk about what makes me... Abigail Todd.

- I was born & raised in Hialeah, Florida... (neighbor city to Miami. kind of like Gonzales & Prairieville... it's hard to pinpoint where they split.) I love Miami. It will always be home and like no other. The people, the food, the look, the feel, the rush, the Cubans, the pastelitos, the BEACH ( never know how much I would miss it until you move away )... ahh one day. One day I will live there again.

- Spanish is my first language, although now that I live in Louisiana I hardly ever speak it. When I am upset I usually think in Spanish... and talk really fast.

- Family is big deal to me. I have a big loud and emotional Cuban clan back in Miami. We used to do everything together. They still do without me. I miss it/them all the time.

- My favorite thing to do (other than photography) is shop. Mainly for shoes. I LOVE shoes. I have quite a collection of every kind of style and color combination possible.

- I want to travel everywhere. Now. Not when I am old and retired. Top of the list location: Australia. I haven't decided on what's second... it's a blur between Italy, Greece, France, Germany... Europe in general.

- I crave certain random stuff and it usually lasts a week. Right now I am on root beer, chili cheese Fritos dipped in sour cream and homemade rice krispie treats (regular/chocolate mixed with miniature marshmallows). I can only imagine the crazy pairings I would have if I was pregnant.

- Starbucks is my best friend. Until recently I wasn't able to drink coffee. Perhaps its because I drank so much cafe con leche (espresso w/milk) as a kid, who knows. But on a client planning meet I tried their white chocolate mocha... and I was saved. Now it's my pick me up. LOVE love LoVe it. Going to Starbucks makes me happy, being greeted... getting yummy goodness - what a treat! LOL I am easily amused as well. :)

- My favorite movie is Meet Joe Black... it has been since it first came out. So many good quotes and moments. [num.1 & all time favorite] In the scene where Bill is talking to his daughter, Susan, he asks her about her current boyfriend.. "It's not so much what you say about Drew, it's what you don't say... Not an ounce of excitement, not a whisper of a thrill, this relationship has all the passion of a pair of titmice... I want you to get swept away. I want you to levitate. I want you to sing with rapture and dance like a dervish... Be deliriously happy. Or at least leave yourself open to be... I know it's a cornball thing but love is passion, obsession, someone you can't live without. If you don't start with that, what are you going to end up with? I say fall head over heels. Find someone you can love like crazy and who'll love you the same way back. And how do you find him? Forget your head and listen to your heart. I'm not hearing any heart. Run the risk, if you get hurt, you'll come back. Because, the truth is there is no sense living your life without this. To make the journey and not fall deeply in love - well, you haven't lived a life at all. You have to try. Because if you haven't tried, you haven't lived.... Stay open. Who knows? Lightning could strike." In the words of Susan - "Bravo". Yes I had some help looking up the script but I know most of it by heart. Listening to it makes me get goosebumps and blush. Such rich and heartfelt words. [ I am a sucker for lavish vocabulary. It's quite the reason I love to read so much. ] I can watch the movie over and over and never get tired. I'll have to come back to this subject at a later time and discuss more of my favorite movie/book quotes.

- People. I am a people person. I like to meet my prospect clients and build a relationship from step one. Even if that means that I'll be busier during the day. Most of my clients become my friends and I care for them more than just taking their pictures. Our meet greets sometimes turned into girl-chats [especially when its for engagements/bridal because of all the lovey dovey goodness details].

- I am very emotional. Which sometimes isn't a good thing, silly tear-jerker chick. I am very passionate about life and happiness. I always want to feel... something. Whether it be happy, excited, joyful, confident, amazed, sensitive, rebellious, inspired, curious, sad, lousy, tearful, angry, bright, calm, free, playful, sunny, bold, clever, determined... its better than nothing - laying around like whatever kills me. When I'm looking for inspiration for a shoot I always strive to capture emotion. Like in the birth sessions... there are so many flying around the room: happiness, pain, anxious, tender, devoted, loving, brave, hopeful, eager. So when you look at my pictures I want you to feel what the family was portraying. If you do, then my job is well done. I want you to not only remember what you looked like but also how you felt. Years down the road it will really count.

- Taco Bell. I am obsessed. Crunchy beef tacos supreme. Enough said.

- Yellow & pink. favorite two colors. Black for clothing. oh and..

- Coats. In Miami it's never really that cold. Growing up I never had the opportunity to wear long jackets and coats. Well, as soon as I moved here things changed. The love of peacoats, raincoats, jackets, long/short... pink, green, black, red, orange.... (you name it) grew instantly. love love.

- Planning. I carry my datebook everywhere. It's quite big and the old-fashion kind but it's with me nonetheless. I do use my iPhone's calendar too... double-whammy. I'm very particular and a perfectionist so my schedule has to be well coordinated.

- Apple. I fell in love with apple products 3 years ago. Would never go back to anything else. Ever.

- Kids. I love them from all ages. It's because I see them as little people waiting to shoot up and surprise us. I had to babysit a lot and was always surrounded by the cousins back home. Little bodies, big personalities. love that. As far as me having children, one day. Lately I've been thinking in pairs 2,4,6... yeah if any they would be in pairs. I am looking forward to being a mother. To have my own to take pictures and torture. They would probably hate my camera even before they are born.

- Dancing... music and all that jazz. If I am home/driving/cooking/shooting a senior session, music is always playing. I love music. My taste is very wide ends of the spectrum. Listening to Taylor Swift right now - "Today was a Fairytale". It's been on repeat for umm like an hour. I tend to obsess with a song per day. Yesterday was Shakira's "Mon Amour". It gets me through long hours of sitting in front of the computer editing. life saver.

- Sharpies. Ultra fine point. I own every color. Even the seasonal ones. I doodle when I am talking on the phone... on paper, my hands, feet, napkins... so the permanent any-surface bonus feature helps. :)

- I can sleep forever. I don't know anyone that can sleep more than I can. I love lazy days where I am so happy to just stay in bed and do nothing but sleep and dream. I have a very vivid imagination and it makes my dreams quite memorable. In my dreams I am quite the heroine... super fierce and adventurous. No wonder I like to sleep. haha. Still, with all that love for sleep, I feel I never get enough. I am a night crawler... that's when I've got the most energy and desire to do anything... like work, edit, cook and dance. So I end up depriving myself of many zZzZz's. That's a goal I have yet managed to control - operate during regular hours. My fellow photog friends can agree with me that it's so hard to do so.

- Blog Comments. Constructive or positive... you can keep all the negative stuff to yourself unless you are a client and wish to express your opinion directly to me. Feedback makes me happy. To know that you love your pictures as much as I do.

- I love dogs. Always have. My mom never allowed me to have an inside dog as a child. She would always say that when I had my own house I could have as many I wanted but not in hers. Well, that's when Coco came into the picture. He is my mini chihuahua. My little obsession. Spoiled and so smart. You might meet him one day because he often comes everywhere with me. His green eyes melt my heart.

- I love what I do. Wouldn't want to do anything else. I feel so fortunate that it's happening and I'm enjoying every minute of it. I finally found something that genuinely makes me happy and provides for me as well. Can't beat that. I love to learn new tricks and products... the market is always changing. Sharing happiness with my clients is the greatest thing.

Alright enough about me. All these pictures of me were taken my fellow photog friend Kaylynn Marie back in August some time. I have been meaning to edit them and finally got around to it... and today I felt like blogging them. We had a photog day where we shot each other for mere fun and turned in the images to each other to see what we would make of them. She got some awesome ones of Coco being his silly self... and of me.. being awkward and feeling weird to be in front of the camera. We laughed a lot and cracked jokes, talked tools of the trade, favorite stuff.. that kind of thing. Here are my favorites that I shot of her. All of them have been edited by me... to see her version of our session click here.

family session preview | Baton Rouge Children's Photographer

This was my second time working with this family. I had the privilege of capturing Jack's birth story weeks before. He was the cutest little newborn I have ever seen. [ I will soon get around blogging their birth session. It's such a special one! ] Candice contacted me that they wanted to get together again for a big family session. It was such a nice sunny day, well needed after all the cold weather we had been getting. These were my favorites from our day together. Our laughs and monkeying around to get the kids happy finally payed off. [ I was still hearing ringing bells while we were driving home. lol ] Ahh the things we do to get their attention. Enjoy your preview!

I'm so excited for tomorrow's shoot. I will finally break my baby boy streak. I have a baby girl newborn session... yay! It's been so long since my last one. I can't wait use all the adorable little hats I've been saving. Hopefully the weather forecast for this weekend changes drastically, so far it looks like more rain. Come on sunshine, clear skies, warm temperature... perfect weather for a session. Let's see what happens.

a little bit of everything

As part of the many things that I would like to do with my blog this year, I'm going to try to incorporate a lot of 'around the house' pictures. This past year I realized that I haven't taken the time to really take pictures of stuff for me. I used to carry my camera EVERYWHERE. My friends never even bothered bringing theirs because they knew that if I was coming along the moment was going to be captured. Well, with things getting so busy with my clients, I have pushed the fun time pictures aside. So as a goal, I will be bringing my camera along more often and posting those pictures here. I am going to work my way backwards with the catching up... these were from my parent's visit last month. I believe that in my efforts to shoot more casually, Coco will get sick & tired of the camera... :) This is a conglomerate potpourri of previews... enjoy the craziness.

I always love to see the funny faces that I seem to catch Coco in when he's off running and playing. He definitely looks like a psycho pup. Love him nonetheless.

We spent every night that my parents were visiting playing cards. This is a set of baraja cards - which are a set of 40 Spanish cards that date back to the 1300s and were originated in Spain. My parents are very fond of these cards since they've been playing them since they were kids. It was the first time that James had seen them, so we quickly taught him the ropes. Bring on the laughs and the cheating on Samuel's part... yeah you sure weren't hiding all your hand signals buddy.

I love that my dad and I share the love of wine. Whenever we try a new one that we like we always call each other rave about it. Our friends James & Cherie introduced us to this one a while back and it has quickly become one of the staples of the house. So while we were sipping wine and playing Spanish card games, my mom was busy knitting a scarf with her little 'grandson' in her lap. Mom is such a big help when she comes to visit. She is the one that has designed and knitted all the baby hats that I use for my newborn sessions.

It was time for Luke's 2 month session. Mom came along to help. Kristin signed up for the first year package so we will be seeing them often. Turns out that these two little ones were sick and not their usual photo loving selves. Here is a preview of what we got while we were there. I will be coming back to shoot the rest of the pictures so this preview is to be continued...

One of the many perks of having daddy over is that my car gets a check up. I come from a family of all mechanics and hopefully it will continue that way with the new generation of boys. Every time I see my younger brother Samuel I feel much older. He keeps growing so fast... getting taller, skinnier, smarter and sarcastic as can be... I am so not looking forward to his teen years. I have no idea what we are going to do with him. Here he is... earning his pay (like he says)... little did he know there was not going to be any reward for being the annoying kid brother.

If Coco isn't actively part of whatever activity we are all in... he cries, and sits by any of the windows watching. He doesn't quite understand what kind of species he is... (mainly because of me, because I treat him like my child). It breaks my heart to look at those sad eyes. Gets me every time and there he goes getting his way. Next preview coming up, senior shoot. Meet Weslee. These are a couple of my favorites from our session from a couple months ago.

And finally... I leave you with my first picture of 2010... pure liquid love. Starbucks seems to be the only thing that rises me from the dead some mornings. I get so happy at just a whiff of the white chocolate mocha... MY FAVORITE!!! [ this was actually Jo's - iced caramel macchiato with a shot of white chocolate - her favorite :) ] I'm looking forward to so many of you my dear little Starbucks mermaid... YUM. At this rate I will catch up in no time, yay!