Bill’s Blog

It’s fairly common for someone to ask me, “How do you get good photos of your OWN kids?” Moms always struggle to get natural expressions [not the phony, "I-look-painfully-constipated-smile"], and kids don’t always cooperate with ANOTHER photo shoot with the parents.  I understand, I have 3 kids [ages 8 and under] myself.

“It’s simple,” I always reply.  “I have someone else shoot them.” My kids give me the same problems, but I RARELY/almost never have those issues from someone else’s kids.

I’m showing off some of our family’s beach portraits from last year.  Britney Fulgraf, a dear friend and Photographer from Lakeland, FL, came to visit last year in Destin, and she kindly dragged her camera with her.  I’m showcasing our own family photos in this blog for 3 reasons:

1.  In spite of me, I really do have the greatest-looking kids ever.  Thank the Lord for a hot wife.

aforementioned hot wife

2.  Our clients often ask about clothing choices for the beach.  We always choose something out of the ordinary [not white and khaki] to show some options.

3.  My mind is already in Florida, and we’ve just decided to make a SPRING BREAK TRIP TO DESTIN!

If you’re headed to the beautiful coast for Spring Break, we’d love to see you there March 20th – 27th.

Of course, if you’re near Destin this summer, we’ll be there all summer:  May 30th-August 13th.

This year will be our 7th summer of shooting on the beach.  Each year we’ve tried to improve our shooting, posing, and variety–last summer we introduced the chair and ottoman to several of our sessions.  Sheree and I have already plotted out our next improvement for this year . . . you’ll be able to see the previews after our Spring Break Sessions.

So if you’re planning a vacation to the Destin area for Spring Break or Summertime, plan on a family portrait.  If you need more details about scheduling, click here to visit another of my blogs that explains the process.  Afterward, give us a call so that we can answer your specific questions. We’ll look forward to seeing you there!  As always, thanks for giving me the best job in the world.  Yours,

-mr. bill

P.S.  Here’s 2 more photos for you.  The first shot is the only one of my family that I snapped.  As Britney worked with Sheree and Bella, I was shooting images of her son, Simon.  I turned around, saw my girls, and clicked this one.

Let me warn you about the final photo from our family’s beach session, but first let me give a little background to our business.  I am really blessed to work in a business where all of my clients are women.  Yeah–Dad shows up for the family session, but not usually for the sessions of the kids, and he doesn’t normally schedule or order the portraits.  Offhand, I can only think of ONE husband who is my primary contact for the entire process.  [Not coincidentally, he's the only client that Sheree doesn't mind me meeting for beer and cigars].  Anyway–I know the REAL reason that our clients want to see photos of my family is so that they can see photos of ME.  It’s awkward, really, how often clients ask for my photo.  If Sheree only knew, she’d be a jealous woman.  So for all of the ladies who’ve requested a photo [for some odd reason, I can't recall who that is at the moment], here is the infamous “tigercrawl” portrait from the Beach.  WARNING:  this is the kind of photo that enrages the jealous husband–proceed at your own peril.  You’re welcome. (more…)

If you’re anything like me, you feel like time slips away quicker every year.  I just looked up and noticed that winter is nearly over, and it’s actually Springtime!  Today is the first day of the year that I opened the windows of the house, I’m planting a few garden crops this weekend, and–most importantly–today is my wedding anniversary . . . so it must be Spring.   [10 years today--Sheree's an amazingly tolerant, resilient woman.]

Since it’s time for Spring, it’s also time for Beyond Photography’s Easter Portraits.

If you missed the previous Easter blog, we’ll be shooting in 2 locations:

In Little Rock [Chenal Downs]–March 12-14th

In Pine Bluff [at the Country Club]–April 2-3rd.

We’ve just received our Easter background, and just received our annual EASTER DUCKS!  But wait, there’s more! We’re bringing back BUNNIES as well!  You’ve patiently waited [thank you], and I finally have a sample of this year’s scene.  I think you’ll see why we’re scheduling a ton of sibling sessions on this background . . . even without the animals.  If you’ve missed the details about our Easter sessions, click here to open up another blog that explains the process and also lists package pricing.

Thanks to an enthusiastic following on the blog, we’ve already scheduled a few dozen appointments.  We still have several times available, although we’re quickly booking up the most popular slots [a.m. times for Saturday and Sunday].  If you haven’t yet, now is the time to schedule your session!  Call or email immediately.  501.766.5671  –  beyondphotography1@gmail.com

Sheree and I look forward to seeing you soon.

[I had to include this last photo of the world's most ridiculous child.  I picked up the camera for the FIRST SHOT, and before I said anything, this is the pose I got.  We've created a monster.]

“Every summer for the last 9 years, we’ve taken our family to Destin.  When we look back on our kids growing up, we can’t help but remember the milestones we’ve seen at the beach . . . having a new baby under the umbrella at the shore, the trips to the pool in a floatie-suit, a second baby at the beach, the first time we watched our kids swim into the surf without a life-vest,  the first time our kids ate calamari (and the last).  All year long we hear our kids talk about the places they’ve seen, the animals they find along the beach, and the fun places they go to eat.”

–Lori

Lori was kind enough to share a little about her family’s experience in Destin, Florida.  When I first read her email, I chuckled to myself and thought, “Me, too!” [except my kids can't get enough calamari!  they're weird.]  More than any other trip, our family counts the years by our trips to Destin.  Each summer we see all-too-clearly how our own kids are growing up too fast.  I’ve mentioned in past blogs how our beach portraits are especially meaningful to Sheree and me.  Why?  More than most, those photos freeze time for us.  In our minds, for a moment, our kids are forever kids.  That’s why our theme for Beach Portraits is “Vacation Forever.”

More than most years, I am really, really looking forward to the annual trip to Florida.  I talked last week to a buddy who schedules condos in Destin, and he informed me that bookings are sharply UP from last year–already!  [If you're looking for a great place to stay in Destin, check out www.destingulfgate.com.]   Beyond Photography has only recently published our dates for Florida portraits, and we’ve already scheduled 4 sessions.  I guess I’m not the only one ready to go.

If you’re planning a trip to the Destin area, make your vacation last “forever.”  We are now scheduling sessions for May 31st-August 12th.

If you’d like to create a timeless vacation memory for your home, here’s the process:

*Check out the website:  Click here to view our “Vacation Memories” gallery.  There you’ll see some of our work from years past, and get some ideas about clothing, your favorite style, etc.  You may view our portrait pricing guide by clicking here. Due to the nature of beach portrait work, we ask all of our clients to invest in at least one 24″ print.  [Feel free to ask Sheree or me "Why?"]

*With all of our sessions, we ask for a $750 retainer to hold your session.  $100 of that is a location fee, while the remaining $650 applies to your portrait order.   We’ll ask for a larger retainer for large family groups.

*Call or email with your calendar in hand.  We only shoot at sunrise and sunset, so our sessions are limited.   I suggest scheduling your session early in your trip.  Don’t shoot on the first day!  Kids [and husbands] are tired of the car, and want to get out and play!  Don’t wait too long, though, as sunburns tend to get worse towards the end.  You’ll also need time to order your portraits while you’re still in Florida.

*Soon before your trip, we’ll email directions to the location, and some of the final details.

*We’ll meet you on location and create some fantastic images!  [ . . . and we'll have a great time while we're doing it!]

*Then, we’ll meet at your place, or our home–in Florida–for you to select/order your portraits.  Normally, this is the day after your session.

*If you’re a Central Arkansas resident, we’ll deliver your portraits/albums to your home.  If not, we’ll arrange to ship them to you via UPS.  [For many of our clients, this solves the question of Christmas gifts.]

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This post features a few images from last year’s trip to the beach [this is not the aforementioned Lori].  If you’re a subscriber to the Bill’s Blog, you’ll be seeing quite a few more beach images in the next few months.  I’ll also be bragging about some of our favorite spots near Destin.

Christmas is a fabulous time of year for giving . . . but let’s be honest:  It can also be a great time for receiving!

Sweet Robyn enjoyed a wonderful Christmas with a marvelous bundle of love!  Despite occasionally stinkiness [including during the session], this little man is magnificently scrumptious. 

But wait–there’s MORE!  This bundle of insane handsomeness travels with his TWIN!

These are a few images from our first session of 2010–could there be a better way to start the New Year?!  Thanks, boys, for inviting us to see you!  I can’t wait to see you again soon for portraits with y’all and your beautiful big sister!  

Godspeed, boys.  Proverbs 3.3-4.  Love,

-mr. bill

Our family was blessed to spend Christmas in Crested Butte, Colorado.  It was an amazing trip, and you’ll soon hear much more about it.

One of the things that Sheree and I both noticed about Crested Butte–it’s filled with the Beautiful People!  No kidding . . . it’s the haven for the SSOBP [Secret Society of Beautiful People].  I brought this to the attention of one of the locals–who happened to be one of the beautiful people, of course.  She chuckled, knowingly, and agreed!  Her theory:

1.  If you are a local, you’re most likely athletic.  You moved there because you love to ski, snowboard, backpack, hike, raft, or mountainbike.  Usually all of those.

2.  If you are a local, you live there because you really want to be there!  We met very few people who are true natives of the town.  Either way, it’s not the kind of town where you find yourself stuck, thinking, “I wish I could get out of this one-horse town!” That being the case, she speculated, people are overall happy.

As a dude who values his marriage, and his health, I don’t typically snap photos of other women.  This girl, however, really, really caught my eye!  WOW!!!  Since Sheree wasn’t nearby, I risked the chance of shooting a photo that she wouldn’t see.  Of all the beautiful people I saw in Crested Butte, here is the second-most beautiful girl I saw: (more…)