Her photo session immediately followed the church ceremony, in the small window of time and opportunity just prior to her party, which I also photographed!

This event was a fabulous feast for the senses. From start to finish, every thoughtful detail was lovingly planned by her also beautiful mom, and was thoroughly enjoyed by a friendly crowd of family and close friends.

Kudos too to Sans Souci in Sea Cliff, Long Island for providing a spectacular venue.

So pretty!

Her dress was so elegant too!

This image is one of my favorites!

When photographing an event, I love to capture the details of the day, and storyboards are a great way to display them. They are very popular with my clients, come in various sizes, can be rectangular or square in shape, and can be finished in several different ways. Aside from a print, a storyboard can be a gallery-wrapped canvas { gorgeous! } or, in a product newly added to my line, a padded and wrapped, specially coated print that is mounted so that it stands out from the wall like it is floating. You have to see it to truly appreciate it; I will have pictures of this new product up on my blog next week. A few clients have already ordered and received theirs, and we have all been very pleased with the results!

The 20″ square Communion storyboard I designed incorporates session images as well as those showing some of the details from the party. (I’ve blocked out the name, in case you’re wondering, as I try not to include names, particularly children’s names in my posts.)

Thank you to the family for allowing me to celebrate with you. I am excited to create your session album as a lasting keepsake of this momentous event in your daughter’s life!

I wanted to let you know that I have two slots open this weekend for Communion sessions, one for Saturday afternoon and the other for Sunday, mid-morning.  The flower show is at Hicks Nurseries in Westbury, Long Island, and this is the last weekend.  Considering that we are just now heading into spring (yippee!) and that there are only a few species that are blooming outside right about now, Hicks really is a great place for a beautiful background of flowers.  Email or call me at 516.280.3471 to arrange your session…quick!

Here’s a gorgeous Communion invitation using one of my images and created for me by my friends over at Silverbox Creative Studios.  The names have been changed to protect the innocent.  ;)  Thank you Susan!

For beautiful and elegant invitations and thank yous, I’ve found a lovely company, SilverBox Creative Studios.  As a special offer, when you book a Communion session, there is no fee to use digital images from your session for your invitation or thank you when purchased from SilverBox!

Session collections are without print order minimums, and you can purchase additional a la carte prints at 20% off my current product price list.  All sessions require a $100 non-refundable deposit to secure your scheduled time.  Session is for Communicant only.

The number of sessions is limited.  To find out more about the Communion session collections and to reserve your appointment, please email or call me at 516.280.3471.

Although the girls far outnumber the boys in Communion sessions for me, I do have a couple of boys already booked this season!  I suppose the focus is on girls where Communions are concerned because girls have dresses and crowns and tiaras and veils and flowers and pretty shoes, have their hair done special, etc., and boys have a suit and a smile.  Funny thing is, how often to you see your handsome little man in a suit…with a smile?  I’d say that was an occasion in and of itself!  ;)

I’m offering the canvas sizes listed below at 28% off my regular canvas prices!  Why 28%?  I don’t know; it’s crazy!

These beauties are one of my absolute favorite items.  I blogged about my new personal canvas wall gallery, proudly on display in my home, several weeks ago.  These are gorgeous, gallery wrapped canvases that come ready to hang – no need for framing!

You can purchase canvases using images from a previous session, OR you can pre-purchase them for an upcoming session!

Call me at 516.280.3471 or email me to place your order.  There is no limit on quantity, but you must place and pay for your order by 10PM, February 26th.

The sizes that are on sale are:  16×24, 20×24, 20×30 and 24×36.

And to complete my post, an image of course!  Here’s one of my all-time favorite session images; a little blast from the past for her mama.  You might recognize this lovely little one as I’ve had the pleasure of photographing her more than once, and I’m thrilled to be photographing her again next month!

What a cutie-pie!  I’m a real sucker for those cheeks! :)

And you thought you were having a bad hair day!

I also love the little notes the kids share in school. I remember exchanging them when I was a child, and now I love it when it’s that time of year and my kids are selecting their “theme” and writing out their cards. Then when they bring home all the cards they get from their friends, it warms my heart. I’ve always loved putting together the little goodie bags for their classmates too. We did that again last night in preparation for their school Valentine parties today. With my kids growing so fast, right before my eyes, these are traditions I don’t want to let go of just yet.

Here are a couple more of my favorites. Two of the sweetest and silliest people in my life, my kids.

It gives me great pleasure to know that I can make images that do that for other people too!

Last year, one of my favorite Valentine mini sessions was of an expectant mom and her adorable little boy. The portraits were a surprise for her husband, his daddy. They were playful and fun, and I had a great time shooting them.

I’ve used some of the images from that session to show off more of my beautiful Valentine cards that are available to purchase with your mini session images.

Another favorite Valentine session was of a group of extended family – 3 families separate, but together. It was so much fun to see them all in the spirit of the holiday, wearing red, wearing heart motifs, enjoying the gathering. It was a great start to a fun family tradition!

Here are some additional cards with images from those sessions.

This year, maybe you could start the tradition!

Check out my Valentine mini session information and call 516.280.3471 or email me to schedule your session.

You might remember these gorgeous children from one of my sessions last year. This client ordered one image of each of her three children in 16×24″ canvases, and these canvases are now beautifully displayed on the wall in their living room.

I recently had the opportunity to complete a canvas wall gallery with images of my own children. This grouping is in my family room, and I can’t tell you the impact these have had on me and my family since they went up just last month! They are a source of great pride and joy, and I truly have an emotional reaction every time I see them!

Canvases can be custom made in almost any size and look great in both square or rectangle shapes. A wall display of canvas sizes and shapes is a great way of enjoying the special images from your session. Enjoy a daily dose of wonderful memories!

By the way, hanging these could have been a nightmare, but my husband and I followed the method used in this article – we didn’t have the grid-backed wrapping paper, but we did have a wide roll of plain white paper and it worked like a charm. The whole project went super smoothly, all of the canvases are evenly spaced according to my original plan and calculations, and afterward, my husband and I were still talking to each other! I kid you not. :)

Over the next few days I would like to share with you the beautiful treasures that went to my lucky clients recently.

Session albums are one of the best ways to preserve your family memories, and when you hold one in your hands for the first time, you can’t help but say “Wow!” For me, it is so much fun to watch my client’s face light up when they see their album. I am so proud to be offering a product of such a high quality and one that has that wow-factor!

This family session celebrated a little boy’s upcoming fifth birthday. This child is adorable, sweet, fun and full of life, and the images captured of him and his equally sweet family that day are included in this album for them to remember and cherish forever.

Exciting new things are planned for 2010! Some fabulous new product offerings will be unveiled as well as additional types of sessions, perhaps a little face-lift for the blog…

There will be a call for models next week, so stay tuned for the details to see if you, or perhaps a friend, can take advantage of that opportunity.

As always, I love to photograph an expectant mama and papa, and then, of course, their precious newborn. Those newborn sessions, as my clients can attest, can be long and challenging, but the rewards are oh, so great! You will receive a complimentary mini maternity session when you book your newborn session. Call early! I photograph mamas-to-be at around 34 weeks; mamas having multiples even earlier! Newborn sessions are for newborns less than 2 weeks old.

Additionally, I am looking for several candidates to be my senior representatives from the graduating class of 2011. Yes, 2011! If you know of someone that might be interested in a fun senior session with many benefits, please ask them to contact me at johanna@johannasophia.com. I am also still photographing seniors graduating this year (2010). Don’t miss the chance to capture the memories of your son or daughter at this incredible time in their lives; the end of their childhood and the beginning of their bright and promising future as adults. We can hope! :)

All kidding aside, I have truly learned so much this past year, and that is due in no small part to the many sweet, loving, adorable, often energetic little clients, and the wonderful families I have had the great privilege to meet. I am blessed to have met you, to continue to be a part of your lives (for those repeat-offenders), and privileged to have photographed your family!

Growing pains abound and there are many things I will strive to improve upon in 2010, both professionally and personally! Thankfully, one thing remains the same. I love what I do and will continue to make images that express that love and capture the special, exciting, wondrous and even more importantly, the ordinary moments in our lives. Happy New Year to all!