jessica B photography: August 2009

I Have a Yummy Face... and my cake was yummy too!

>> 8/25/2009 – Children, events

Isn't this face just delicious?

Can you believe that this little guy...

...has grown into this??

From these....

....to these!!

The dude is getting a brother soon. (Poor kid! He won't know what hit him!) I asked mom to lie on her back and a funny thing happened. Her belly disappeared! Having not been pregnant for a while, I've forgotten that you do look less pregnant when you lie down like this. But we gave it a try anyways.

Happy First Birthday!!! There is some serious cake talent in this family. Grandma is quite talented. For Zane's baby shower (before he was born!), she make baby blocks. Two blocks stacked on top of three blocks and turned so they were all angular and floating and super impressive!! Wow, I am so amazed at the things people come up with!! I recently found out about a show called The Ultimate Cake Off. Wow and wow. And I am still impressed by this wedding cake. And I'm not even that big of a cake eater! OK, back to the Birthday Boy....

This is his personal cake.

This is the sheet cake for the rest of us. Tastey pudding filling and perfect frosting. I think I've been over-caked by Costco sheet cakes. (Oh, great! Now I've hurt Costco's feelings. Come'on, you know I love Costco. I was just there tonight.)

Dig in Birthday Boy.

Aaaagggghhh! Cake Thief!!!!

Zane eventually put his whole face in the cake, hence the frosting on the nose.

And by the time he was through.....

I Need Your Opinion

>> 8/23/2009 – Wedding

What are your favorite images that I've done? Which ones would you say are my "best"? I've been looking back through a few sessions and it got me thinking - do people like the same ones I do?? So peruse the blog a little bit, or if you've been following me for a while think back to past posts, and let me know! What's your favorite??? (Don't be too biased)

Because one can't post without a picture, this one has long been one of my favorites. This is from a wedding I shot in 2004, and it is STILL my favorite. I actually try to replicate this shot at every wedding (it's one of those detail shots I like to capture) but - honestly - I still love this one the best.

Good-Bye Summer

>> – Life

Two days of nice cool weather is trying to convince me that summer is over. Well, school starts tomorrow anyways, even if it will still be hot until October. Hello, Fall. I love you.

Maizie-Love

>> 8/18/2009 – Baby

Maizie only gave me a few minutes to try my "stork" shot (as you guys call it).

Isn't she so pretty? Maizie's got Mexican & Italian heritage.

I loved this one right when I took it!

Anthony's two favorite girls!

For Maizie's birth, click here.

Melissa + Forrest. Reception.

>> 8/17/2009 – Wedding

Like you haven't seen enough of these two! (ahem, here and here and here. Oh, and even here) Enjoy a lovely summer evening in a beautiful backyard surrounded by beautiful fun people. Who like dancing. My kind of party.

A quiet moment between Forrest and his dad.

Melissa has some totally rad friends. They rocked the night away!

This kiddo busted out his break dancing skills. Wish I had some!

The Father-Daughter Dance. I've never seen a bride & her dad laugh the entire time! What fun, happy people!! Can you feel the love?

These two are too cute! Meant to be!

I love the way Melissa's mom is looking at her dad.

Notice the tongue action.

My first official attempt at this. What do you think???

And they lived happily ever after....

Good Morning World - Birth Photography

>> 8/15/2009 – Birth

Warning: Long post. A lot of times when I suggest birth photography, the mom & dad-to-be say something to the effect of "Ew! Gross! Blood & guts!!" This is to show you it's not blood & guts (and I'm keeping the mom as modest as possible) I also want to show what an unmedicated homebirth looks like, since some people have no experience with that and can't fathom the idea of birthing "without the drugs". This is Jillian's first birth and she did so well and progressed so smoothly. It was a beautiful experience. Afterwards, Jillian exclaimed "I DID IT!!!" Jillian was supported by her boyfriend, her sister and her mother, and attended by midwife Margie Dacko.

Disclaimer: I want to be as least invasive as possible. That means not using a flash. Due to the nature of the activity and low light, some shots may have some blurring as a result of motion.

****Update: At first, Jillian was unsure if she wanted me to be there or not. But Anthony said yes, so they called. Now that she's seen the photos, Jillian says she's soooo glad she has them and if she had said no, and then seen someone else's birth pictures, she would've been so disappointed that she didn't get them. Jillian is so excited to have these pictures and says she loves them!

6:08am - On the way to Jillian's house

6:28am - At 7 cm
6:48am to 7:32am - Laboring in a warm bath. I love baths for labor. I highly recommend it.