by admin | Nov 6, 2018 | family, photography
As a mom of two boys myself, I definitely have a sweet spot for photographing brothers. This adorable pair was a delight! I met this family of four early in the morning for a sunrise session at Butler Park. We ran around the Doug Sahm hill, checked out the flora and fauna and had many discussions about Halloween plans.
1. How do you know Stephanie Friedman Photography?
My friend sent us a gift card for a photo session with Stephanie.
2. What was your favorite part of your photo session?
My favorite part of the photo session was watching my boys hugging and laughing together and knowing Stephanie was getting photos of that.
3. What advice would you give to other families planning a photo session?
My advice to other family’s is to check the weather carefully beforehand and to think about how that might affect the location. Plan your clothing accordingly!
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Please enjoy this sneak peek of their family session. To see all the photos and purchase prints from the gallery, click HERE.
If you’d like to book your own family session, contact me:
by admin | Oct 26, 2018 | holiday, photography, sisters
During the booking process, I ask families what they plan to do with their photos and where they want to meet (urban vs. nature setting, North Austin vs. South Austin, etc.)
For their portrait session, this Austin family wanted updated pictures for their holiday card and asked for an urban background. So we headed down to South Congress to explore the shops and spots down there. (I feel like every time I go down that street, I see new murals or colorful details to include). We walked several blocks – starting at the “I love you so much” mural and ending our shoot at the Big Top Candy Shop.
The whole family was a delight to photograph. Their youngest entertained us with skipping down the street, being swung in the air and showing her clear delight at the giant lollipop she got at our last spot. Their oldest was so sweet and patient with her younger sister and was game to pose in front of foliage and murals alike. Credit goes to Mom for picking out well-styled coordinated outfits and being an extra set of eyes and hands for fixing hair gone astray. Thanks to Dad for goofing around behind me to get those natural smiles out of the girls.
1. How do you know Stephanie Friedman Photography?
I first met Stephanie when she set up a photo booth at a friend’s birthday party (pics here). The pictures were so fun! A few months later, Stephanie had a photo shoot that I participated in for a friend’s new business (pics here). She was so easy to work with that I asked her on the spot to set up a family photo session.
2. What was your favorite part of your photo session?
The ease and preplanning of it. Stephanie gave us a lot of information up front about the photo session, including different location choices, dates and times, and suggestions on what to wear. She followed up with us to make sure we were all set. Once we got there, pictures seemed easy because she had already scoped out the area and had some ideas in mind. While she suggested poses, she also improvised on what was working for our family. It was very low key and we had fun with it.
3. What advice would you give to other families planning a photo session?
I would say to not stress, but do the pre-planning so that when you show up for the session, you can just go with the flow. If you have kids, take the advice from Stephanie to make sure they are fed, cleaned-up, and well rested. And if nothing else, bribe them to smile pretty 🙂
by admin | Oct 16, 2018 | photography, seniors
This talented high school Junior sings, dances and acts. For her portrait session (with all of South Congress as her stage), we made sure to get a wide variety of headshots and poses she can use for her auditions. And since her name is Lucy, one of my favorite moments was her dancing backwards in front of Lucy in Disguise. She was a pure delight the whole time we photographed (and being an excellent older sister, double checked to make sure she could make it to her brother’s band concert by the time we were done – which she did.)
We visited all my favorites spots to photograph on South Congress: Jo’s Coffee shop, Hotel San Jose, Hopdoddy and more. The Jo’s Coffee Shop ones look like film stills to me.
1. How do you know Stephanie Friedman Photography?
I know Stephanie Friedman Photography because we live in the same neighborhood
2. What was your favorite part of your photo session?
I honestly don’t think i can choose a favorite part of the photo session. It was incredibly fun and I felt at ease the whole time, there was never a moment where I felt uncomfortable. As we went along, being shown the pictures was amazing, I’ve never been able to really like myself in a photograph until I saw these pictures.
3. What advice would you give to other High School students planning a photo session?
I think the most important thing for High School students to remember is that they should be themselves and just have fun with the session. Don’t stress about whether or not they will look perfect, because if you relax and just have fun with it, the photos will undoubtedly turn out stunning
Please enjoy this sneak peek of her Portrait session. To see all the photos and purchase prints from the gallery click HERE.
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Part of the Class of 2020 and thinking about Senior Portraits?
If yes, I offer a Senior Portrait Package (price list) with open dates starting January 2019. Just contact me for availability.
by admin | Oct 15, 2018 | Halloween, photography
It’s Halloween season. Your daughter is dressing as the Red Queen from Alice in Wonderland. You are brainstorming where her Halloween photo session should be… How about a Rose Garden? Yes! After a third reschedule due to weather, we gratefully headed to the Zilker Botanical Gardens with lots of fun props.
If you would like advice on how to channel your own Red Queen, please do the following:
Practice saying: “Off with her head!”
Don’t forget your flamingo and hedgehog croquet.
Brush up on your reading to really get into character.
Practice your royal expression.
Remember that you hold all the cards.
Then you’ll be ready to be a Red Queen as well.
So for the last few years, I’ve had a lot of fun working with this mom to design a custom session to showcase her daughter’s costumes. Last year’s downtown Wonder Woman was pretty hard to beat. But I think we captured the Red Queen’s Halloween spirt. I just love getting to brainstorm on props, locations and poses.
1. How did you choose Stephanie Friedman Photography?
Stephanie has been taking photos of my daughter and me for 6 years now. I initially chose Stephanie Friedman Photography because of the passion she puts in to ensuring your photo shoot is as easy and smooth as possible, with resulting photos that are simply breathtaking. For example, I came to Stephanie with my daughters Halloween costume idea and within a week she had scouted multiple locations that would provide the perfect backdrop for the costume theme. She also helped me choose props to accentuate the impact. As a repeat client, some of the things I value most out of our professional photography sessions are Stephanie’s interaction with my 6-year old daughter, goofing when necessary, being kind and warm with instructions, her creativity and dedication to quickly setting up the shot, and having the magical ability to capture the perfect instant on camera.
2. What was your favorite part of the session?
I appreciated that Stephanie had already scouted the location so when we showed up she had multiple specific ideas and placements for our photos. That being said, when my spunky kid had new ideas, Stephanie graciously accepted each request.
3. What advice do you have for other families looking to book?
Share your ideas for themes or props before your shoot and let Stephanie collaborate with you on a location and how to accentuate your original thought. And always discuss your outfits prior to the shoot, particularly if you have multiple people in the photos.
===== stephanie friedman. austin family photography. your life. close-up =====
by admin | Oct 10, 2018 | advice / tips, photography
Color, Inc. ATX workshop
So one of my goals for next year is to attend another photo workshop. In the past, I’ve gone to the Maine Photographic Workshops (where I shot film, ate a LOT of lobster and focused on fine art photography), the Santa Fe workshops (shot film, ate a lot of green chili and focused on landscape photography), Click Away (shot digital, ate a lot of Tex-Mex and focused on family photography) and some smaller ones locally with Color, Inc. (shot digital, ate a lot of cookies and focused on family photography).
For next year, I’d like to try someplace new. Since I was doing the research for myself, I thought I would share what’s on my list of possibilities.
Click Away, San Antonio, TX
When: March 11th – 14th, 2019
Where: New Orleans
How much: $2000-$2500 for workshops, website review, lunches and board (airfare extra)
When: Feb. 8th – 10th, 2019
Where: Dana Point, California
How much: $600-$1600 for workshops only (hotel and airfare extra)
When: May 3rd-6th, 2019
Where: Fairview, UT
How much: $1800 for workshops, meals, yoga, lodging (airfare extra)
When: Feb. 11th-13th, 2019
Where: Palm Springs, CA
How much: $750 for workshops and snacks (hotel and airfare extra)
When: Nov 17th-18th, 2018 (Austin), Scottsdale, AZ (Jan. 2019) – more dates to come
Where: see above
How much: $1200 for workshops (hotel and airfare not included)
When: Jan. 15th-18th, 2019
Where: Joshua Tree, CA
How much: $2500 for workshops, meals and lodging (airfare not included)
Color, Inc. ATX workshop
Questions I’m asking myself as I try and decide which one to attend:
- What do I want to get out of this experience? (portfolio building, connecting with other photographers, being inspired, etc.)
- How much does it cost?
- Who do I really want to learn from?
- Will this help with my business, my creative side or both?
- Where is it located?
- Does the timing fit in with my shooting season?
- What’s the lodging like (does everyone need to share a room)?
If you have any other workshop recommendations (or feedback if you’ve attended one listed above), please leave a comment.
