Welcome to my blog - it's here that I share some of my most recent work - be sure to check back often!! Kathleen Chapman Photography specializes in child and family photography in the North Country NY counties of Franklin and St.Lawrence in locations such as St. Regis Falls, Brushton, Malone, Massena and Potsdam. I offer studio and on location sessions designed to meet your creative vision!!
Maternity Studio Session | Dickinson Center NY Family Photographer
I was so happy and blessed to be able to photograph my beautiful daughter's maternity session in my studio this weekend. When she was pregnant with my granddaughter we did her maternity session outside in the snow so it was fun to be able to try something different (and much warmer too!!). We wanted to include her 3 year old daughter in some of the pictures so that's where we started. The tiny bear in a couple of the pictures is a special little bear I purchased to be able to use in some of my grandson's future newborn pictures (I can't wait!!). We started our session later in the evening after dinner and weren't surprised when my granddaughter lost interest pretty quickly. While she was off playing with her Papa it was so fun to have the time to try different lenses, poses, outfits etc. It's so funny how even the slightest change in a angle or pose can result in finding that sweet spot that you just know when you see it - I found myself saying over and over "hold that pose" as I marveled at the beautiful and miraculous curves of the pregnant body. When my daughter slipped into the lace gown for the second half of the session I could just see her glow as she cradled her precious belly with her loving hands. We ended our session with a couple of fun pictures where she just let loose. I just love capturing this special, fleeting time for expectant mothers in such a beautiful way.
One Year Old Birthday Cake Smash Session | Potsdam NY Child Photographer
Had so much fun in my studio yesterday with this sweet little guy and his parents during his first birthday and cake smash session!! I knew the Mom wanted a monster theme for this session but what I didn't realize until yesterday - was that she had decided on this theme over a year ago when her sweet little man was born. When I saw his first outfit and blew up the huge #1 blue balloon I knew immediately it would be great with my new white brick background my husband and l had installed the night before. How fun the Mom brought a newborn picture to incorporate into the session as well. Next came the time to decorate my all white set with the beautiful props made with love by Mom - they couldn't have been cuter and more colorful! Did I mention how adorable the monster cake was?? Oh my - the detail on this cake was amazing and I couldn't wait to photograph this little guy digging in!! His outfit for the cake smash couldn't have been any cuter and he didn't waste anytime getting to it and totally enjoying his first ever taste of cake!! I loved every part of this session and give Kelly such credit for all her thoughtful planning - from props to outfits, balloons and the cake which made this such a special, fun and enjoyable session. Here's some of my favorites!!
Newborn Sibling Family Studio Session | Dickinson Center NY Family Photographer
Was so fun to photograph this beautiful young family in my studio this past weekend. My children went to school with the Mom and Dad so it was fun to catch up a little, photograph them as parents and see how precious their older daughter was with her new baby sister. We began the session with some family pictures on my little couch - I was so happy to get some wide eyed shots of the baby and then some adorable sleeping shots as well. While Mom was feeding the baby I took some fun Daddy/Daughter pictures and then some adorable ones of big sister - those eyes!! I just love portraits that capture the bond between a mother and her newborn baby so I took a beautiful series of those and then they were joined by adoring Dad and Big Sis. After some pictures of the sweet sisters together I took some of the baby by herself and we ended the session with more family pictures on the white bed. Throughout the session it was so obvious how smitten they all are with the new, precious addition to their family!
A Year in Review - 2017 Monthly Photo Grids
In January of 2017 I started a photo project with other fellow photographers at Clickinmoms.com where we sought out to create a photo grid each month with 9 of our favorite photos. I just finished my 2017 project and wanted to share them all on my blog as a sort of Year in Review for 2017!! I'm looking forward to continuing this project into 2018.
January 2017
February 2017
March 2017
April 2017
May 2017
June 2017
July 2017
August 2017
September 2017
October 2017
November 2017
December 2017
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!
Before and After Series: Using an Overlay to Transform a Photo | North Country Child Photographer
I've been loving holiday pictures where it looks like someone is standing out in the cold peeking through a window to take a picture of someone all nestled warmly inside. I purchased a window frame at Michaels and thought I would try taking pictures through it to get the look I was going for but that was a fail LOL.... Then by chance I came across a window overlay on Etsy and thought I would give it a try. Overlays are amazing - they are just what their name implies. You place them over your picture in Photoshop and voila (after some fine tuning) your picture is transformed!! Love how this overlay with it's icey edges can transform a picture and give it a beautiful, timeless winterly, holiday, cozy feel. It doesn't work with just any picture because the face of your subject(s) have to line up with the window panes for the overlay to work. Below are a couple examples of the fun I had using my new frosty window overlay.
(Before)
(After)
(Before)
(After)
This one was a little tricky because I had to zoom in on the subjects just right so their heads would line up in the window panes.
