The Friendship Tree

“As we grow up, we realize it is less important to have lots of friends and more important to have real ones.”

— unknown

My oldest son is a senior this year and he has an awesome best friend!  They are each accepted for who they are and have no problem speaking their minds to one another.  Watching their friendship develop over the past couple of years has been a great experience.  It reminds me of my best friend growing up.  We were inseparable and yet we hardly see each other now, however when we do talk on the phone or see each other it is like we never missed a beat.  We have a gazillion things to talk and laugh about!  It's strange how we develop from an early age with a sense of we must have a LOT of friends (like that somehow defines a person socially) to a realization that there are just a few people that you can really count on and connect with - your BEST friend.

When I take my son's senior photographs, I always invite his best friend.  It just seems strange without her there experiencing senior photographs with him.  The mood is completely different.  It's definitely much more fun and playful with both of them together, which creates amazing memories that are able to be captured on camera.  They even found a tree and designated it as their "Friendship Tree."  Her mother gave them the idea with the premise that they will come back to that true throughout their lives to remind them of their friendship.

My best friend and I had our photographs taken together one time and neither of us know where those portraits are.  That makes me sad.  I hope that one day they will show up.  As a mother, I now realize the importance of keeping photographs so my son (and his friend) will not have missing photographs from their senior sessions.  

I have had several clients last year that booked a senior session and then asked if they could bring their friend or boy/girlfriend.  Of course I said yes!  But it really had me feeling like I was not meeting the needs of my clients by not offering a special package for the seniors that wanted to share a session with a friend.  Over the summer I changed that and created a "Share With A Friend" Session.  Each senior is posed for individual shots, as well as posing them together.  

If you are interested in a "Share With A Friend" Senior Session, drop us a line via message, email, or call.  

Announcing New Senior Packages!

The Class of 2016 was full of amazing young adults!  I enjoyed my time with each and every one of them and realized that I honestly love working with seniors.  I love working with them so much that I seriously booked all that I could - my entire spring break was spent photographing seniors!  It made for a lot of work on my end, but I wouldn't have had it any other way.  They are so much fun to work with!  So much excitement and no two sessions are the same - each one brings their own talents and personalities.  Needless to say, I am already looking forward to meeting the Class of 2017! 

Class of 2016

This year I am excited to announce that Smith Family Photography will be offering FOUR senior packages!  Last year we offered one senior package and I realized that I'd like to expand the options for seniors.  So without further ado, I'd like to introduce our NEW Senior Packages just in time for the Class of 2017!

For every Senior Session that is booked and secured before August 31, 2016, they will receive a FREE gift (a $75 value)!

Looking for 2017 Seniors!

Model Call!! 

Smith Family Photography is currently looking for guys and gals that are currently JUNIORS in high school! 

When:  Saturday, February 20th, 2016 around 4:00pm to 5:30pm

Where:  The location has yet to be determined, but it will be in the Mart/Groesbeck area

What Will the Modeling Session Look Like:  All juniors that have secured their spots will meet at the location on February 20th around 4:00pm.  We will take several individual photographs of each junior.  My hopes are that every junior will begin their senior year of high school with some senior portraits and that they will also meet some new friends through this experience.

What Will You Receive:  Each participating junior will receive a FREE modeling session/experience and they will have access to the private online gallery where they will have a credit of $25 to use towards their choice of prints and/or digital images.  If they'd like to purchase more, they may certainly do so, however it is not expected.  Each participant will also receive a coupon for 20% off a FULL senior session - a $30 savings!   

Cost:  Participation in this event is FREE, however we do require a $25 commitment fee to secure your spot.  This fee will be returned to you in the form of a credit to use towards the purchase of prints and/or digital images of your choice in the private online gallery from the session.

How Do You Apply:  If you are interested in applying for this once in a lifetime opportunity, please message me at ajsmithfamilyphotography@gmail.com or contact us through the form on our website.

Mighty Mart Panthers - Times Two

The 2015-2016 school year is well underway and many seniors are now scheduling their fall senior portrait sessions.  Some seniors choose to wait until the spring season for their senior portraits.  Others prefer to have senior portraits taken year round.  This week's blog post is going to be all about two Mart seniors - Eric and Alyssa - that decided to have their senior portraits taken in the fall.

There's no buts about it...Mart is a HUGE football town!  Every Friday night during football season the town is literally dead.  Why?  Because everyone is either at the game or at home listening to the game.  Mart is serious about football.  This coming Friday is going to be especially eventful due to all the Homecoming festivities.  This Friday - Homecoming - is going to be a great day to be a Panther!

Meet Eric.  He is one of the football players that will entertain the crowd on Friday night.  He is a handsome young man with a bright future ahead of him.  He isn't quite sure where he is headed after high school just yet.  There are just so many things to consider.  After all, what's the rush?  He still has several months to narrow down his amazing plans.  One thing is for certain, he LOVES football!  He LOVES being a Panther!

Meet Eric.

Eric is always ready for gameday!

Senior Portrait sessions with Smith Family Photography are fully customizable based on the specific memories that the senior would like to help capture.  For Eric, this meant the Mart Football Field.  For his mother, this meant the Mart Football Field and the grassy field behind the stadium to showcase his "country" side.  Many guys don't really care for the photographs to be taken.  They do it for their moms.  During Eric's session, he put his foot down and said he was staying on the football field - no grassy field photographs!  THAT is how much Eric loves football! 

I recently stated that I truly enjoy senior portrait sessions for several reasons, but most of all I enjoy interacting with the young adults and capturing their personality within the portraits.  As the session proceeds along, they start opening up more and more and finally they just seem to forget about the camera and just be themselves.  To me, that is when I capture the best portraits!  Things weren't any different with Eric.  At first, he was very attentive to what I was asking of him.  As the session progressed, he would wonder off to play football with his little brother, Alan.  He was relaxed and completely in his element.  He is a Mart Panther. 

Let's take a look at another Mart senior.  Meet Alyssa.  She is one of the Mart cheerleaders that will entertain the crowd on Friday night.  She is an amazingly beautiful young woman with the whole world ahead of her!  She plans on heading off to college at either Baylor University or the University of Mary Hardin Baylor.  She plans on trying out for the cheer squad at both universities.  Alyssa LOVES cheerleading!  She LOVES being a Panther!

Meet Alyssa

This year's Homecoming game is especially exciting for Alyssa!  She is nominated for the Homecoming Court!  I will be at the Homecoming game this Friday night to cheer on Eric and the Mart Panthers, as well as support Alyssa...and capture a few shots of her looking dazzling in her gown!

Young women are typically less reserved in front of the camera than young men are.  They just seem to be more comfortable with having their photograph taken.  As their session progresses, their personalities shine through just the same.  However, with girls it seems to happen much quicker.  I think we have the era of new technology to thank - cell phones with nice cameras and selfies! 

As Alyssa's session was nearing the end, she had a few requests.  One, she loved sweaters so she wanted to wear one during some of the shots.  Two, she wanted to take some photographs on the tire swing.  And three, she had to take a special photograph for her close friend, Sadie.  I absolutely LOVE it when the clients begin to take ownership in their photographs! 

Alyssa with her sweater.  She loves sweaters!

Alyssa swinging on the tire swing!

Alyssa striking a pose for her close friend, Sadie.

Senior Portrait sessions are fully customizable based on the needs and wants of the senior.  After a session is officially booked, we begin collaborating on everything from locations, clothing, poses, themes, etc.  Senior sessions need to be authentic and really showcase the individual.  That is why it is so important that we work together to build a session that will let them shine and give them memories to last a lifetime.

If you are interested in booking a Senior Portrait session, you can message me or give me a call and I will give you more information.  Until next time, head over to Mart, Texas this Friday night (or any Friday night) and watch a football game!  It is an experience of a lifetime!

Sadie...the Senior Rep from Mart!

This is the first year for Smith Family Photography to have a Senior Representative Program.  Three high school seniors were chosen after careful consideration of their applications.  We chose seniors that were very involved in their school, community, and other hobbies or areas of interest.  It was difficult to choose, but in the end we could only choose three.  One of the senior reps (the only girl in the group) is Sadie from Mart, Texas. 

Each of the senior reps are rewarded for their time in assisting us with our advertising needs with cash incentives, product discounts, and freebies.  They each receive two sessions - a mini session and a full session.  The mini-sessions took place during the summer to ensure that their marketing items would be ready for the first day of their senior year.  The full session must be complete by November 1st, 2015.  This gives them plenty of time to show off their portraits.

The first senior rep to schedule the full session was Miss Sadie.  She is always a pleasure to work with!  She is truly beautiful inside and out. 

Sadie's magazine cover

Sadie sent me a Facebook message and told me that she found the perfect spot for her senior pictures.  She loved the area at the bridge on Thompson Road in Mart, Texas.  I did not know what bridge she was talking about, but I was dying to find out what made this bridge so perfect.  My husband and I drove out to the bridge and we immediately knew why she chose this particular location - it was gorgeous!  The bridge was on a nicely groomed gravel road with large trees making a tunnel over the bridge.  Absolutely stunning and so peaceful!

Sadie had plenty of ideas of her own and according to her mom, Sadie LOVES to be photographed!  I believe mom because Sadie is so natural and comfortable in front of the camera.  She is so much fun to photograph!   

The bridge on Thompson Road in Mart, Texas is a great location for portraits!

When I take senior portraits I prefer them to show a lot of personality.  Sometimes that involves some props if they want their session to be centered around a specific interest, such as football or softball.  Other times the session has very few props included.  It all depends on the type of portraits that the senior is wanting at that particular session.  As you can tell from the magazine article, Sadie's first session was focused on softball since she enjoys that sport.  However, this session was focused on her and her beautiful personality.  I brought two items to use as props - a suitcase and a vintage orange chair. 

Sadie using a vintage suitcase as a seat.

Sadie using the vintage orange chair during her session

We took several photographs on this bridge and then I suggested that we take some photographs at a nearby field that I've been longing to use for a session.  Sadie was up for taking more photographs! 

We arrived at the field just as the sun was going down and the light that was bouncing across the field was amazing!  We took several photographs in this beautiful location with gorgeous lighting and I had an idea for a pose using the vintage orange chair.  I asked my husband to get the chair out of the Suburban (aka Reliable Roger) for us and he brought us the suitcase!  I politely told him that we didn't need the suitcase, but we did need the chair.  He told us that we did not need the chair.  By the look on his face I knew that the chair was in trouble!  I asked him if my favorite chair was broken and he replied that it was in fact broken.  It was a sad moment in my life.  The photograph above is the last photograph for my favorite vintage orange chair.  So...if you have a similar chair, I am interested in purchasing it.

The sunset casted beautiful colors across the field

Sadie in the field with a Mart water tower in the background

After we took several photographs in the field with the amazing sunset, we went back to the bridge for one last portrait.  I really wanted to get a photograph of her laying down on the bridge, but did not want her to be dirty from the gravel road for any remaining shots.  I have a feeling that we could have kept on taking photographs if the sun didn't set!

The last photograph of Sadie's session

If you are interested in investing in senior portraits, you can always book directly through me or you can go through Sadie and receive extra savings!