Amy Wenzel Photography

This special girl was my own little Alice in Wonderland.

Little brother stopped in for tea.

She was the perfect combination between sugar & spice! So much personality I could see her almost holding it back…not quite sure how sassy she could be in the pictures.

Behind the nicely folded hands and perma-grin there is a child waiting to emerge! I grin from ear to ear when they finally loosen up around me and realize they can trust me with who they really are and that I will respect it. Always.

I know a photo session was good when I feel like I don’t want to leave because the kids were so much fun and we had such a connection. It’s an interesting relationship between photographer and subject. I always walk away feeling like an important exchange took place. Wishing I could somehow be a part of the magical childhood I’m witnessing. And realizing that in a way I am leaving something very special for them. My personal interpretation of what I saw. Reminders.

SISTERS

These girls were a dream to photograph. The nicest family ever! What is more adorable than 3 little girls playing in their room? I have two sisters and boy did this session bring back memories of our childhood and the magic that exists between sisters.

I am just so thankful for this business. I LOVE being a photographer. I get to meet so many great families and amazing kids…I realize how fortunate I am to do what I love every day. I recently had a family from Israel contact me and book a photo session. They are going to be visiting the States and saw my photography through a friend. It was so exciting to know that people from so far away have an avenue to see my work and hire me. Gotta love the internet!

Dear Reader,

Are you a mom? Do you feel tired at the end of the day? Do you wonder if everyone else’s kids have as much energy as yours? Do you ever feel like you are the only one whose house is full of rambunctious activity from dawn til dusk? Well, this one’s for you. YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!!

Ok, yes, they have guns, yes they are on top of the car, and yes they are climbing a ladder in the middle of the street. But I promise I am not the scary reckless photographer that I seem from these 3 photos! Seriously, these kids were such a bundle of fun! Thank goodness for fast shutter speeds. When I told them to climb on top of the car I was picturing some demure picture of their adorable feet hanging off of the hood. But once I unleashed the possibilty of being allowed to climb on the car, there was no controlling the fury of their exuberance. I ended up with this! Kids can make our lives so much more interesting by ruining our “perfect” plans. That’s one of the great things about photographing kids. You just never know what you are gonna get. It really forces you to realize how little control you actually have in life. Learning how to roll with whatever comes your way and figuring out a way to make it work for YOU is so important.

I had several super fun sessions over the weekend and can’t wait to share some pictures on the blog. I’m going to try to post every 2-3 days instead of neglecting my poor blog for a week at a time. Thanks for reading. Feel free to post comments I would love to hear from you guys more!

Here is a peek into their sweetness…

OH HOW THE TIME FLIES

One thing I am continually in awe of is how fast time flies as I’ve grown into adulthood. When I was a teenager a week at camp was long enough to fall in love, break up, fall in love again with someone else and lose 10lbs from bland cafeteria food. Give me one week now and I’m lucky if I can squeeze in mopping the floor and returning family phone calls. Before I know it, a month has passed and a dust bunny is blowing across the wood floor like on an old western film, and I’m sending E-cards of apology for neglecting loved ones! Part of it is the challenge of balancing work and personal time, (which I do believe I am getting better at…) Speaking of which, I hear and read from a great deal of photographers that they feel challenged with this balance issue as well. I think it’s because most of us creative professionals who run our own businesses are so passionate about what we do! Sometimes it kills you to walk away from editing your beautfiul new pictures or saying NO to that additional session this month when you know you are booked full. I had a portrait party at Ada Park lined up this past weekend but we had to reschedule everyone due to all this rainy nonsense. Only one session survived the weather- here are some of my favorite shots.

So along with the balance issue I’ve been focusing on being more lighthearted and spontaneous. So far the list of progress includes eating cheetos for breakfast in the bathtub, burning a Christmas scented candle before Thanksgiving (against house rules) and taking an entire day off work to lay on the couch and relax. Horrifying I know.

Well, Leno has just aired for the 2nd time this evening. Have you ever experienced that feeling when you are at the mall just before it closes and they start running the vacuum and pulling down all of the grates and your stomach gets a knot and you feel panicky like YOU HAVE TO LEAVE NOW ? Yes, well thats how I feel when I’ve managed to stay up so late that Leno is now on for the 2nd time. Okay, I could really use that chart with the gold stars right about now!