utopia Photography

I can’t wait to meet your circle of friends.
Come and do a session with me in 2010, refer another family for a 2010 session, and both you and your referral will receive a:

Complimentary 11×14 wall print from your session.
Here are some of the rules that apply to the offer:

Sessions can be booked separately but both sessions need to be booked for 2010.
Complimentary 11×14 wall print worth $125.00 to be ordered by the end of this year.
Already had your session for 2010? Refer a friend for their 2010 booking and call me to receive your print as a thank you.
Referral must be a new client to utopia Photography and not another existing client family.
Thanks,
Lisa

Here are two families with beautiful children.  Makes my work a breeze, I tell ya.  They both welcomed a newborn into their folds.

Beautiful girls:

She cracks me up!

And these handsome guys…

Thanks for stopping by,

-lisa

Hope all of you are drying out from quite a rainy spring and are ready for summer.  I know I am.  Lots of happenings around here.

We are officially kicking off the sixth year of Projectfocus tomorrow.  We meet our new participants and their families.  I’m quite excited about that.  It will be a very powerful show this year.  I’ll keep you posted here but you can also visit the blog or become a fan of Projectfocus on fb.  We have a great group of interns this year who should keep those updated frequently.

I’ve been shooting quite a bit and I have a backlog.  I know none of you are surprised about the word “backlog”.  I know, I’m hanging my head in shame.

I have a couple of new price changes and some new offerings in the works.  I will be needing to charge a $50 print fee for all orders of press printed, double sided cards.  My new company tacked on this crazy new charge.  I’m really sorry about that, I’m kinda upset myself.  They are not charging me that fee for anyone ordering 250 cards or more.  So if you want to order that much, don’t worry about it.  On the upside- I have decided to create some crazy cool designs for non-press printed square cards.  They will not be double sided but the image quality will be amazing and I’ll special order some square envelopes and it should be cheaper for you than the double sided ones.  I’ll have some samples by next month and I’ll post them!

Just a friendly reminder to set up your holiday session date!  I know it’s not even June yet but I don’t have many weekends left from September through November so call me as soon as you can.  I still have a many weekdays left but the weekends are a hot commodity.

Here are some sessions I loved:

She is growing up right in front of my lens.

These little guys just steal my heart every time they come for a visit.

This little beauty and I became fast friends.

Thanks for stopping by,

-lisa

Here’s to all the mom’s out there.  I hope you have a wonderful, family filled Mother’s Day.  I will be spending time with my kids and my extended family.  There will be amazing food involved and lots of laughter.  I’m hoping for another coupon book from my littlest with lots of coupons for hugs and massages.  If not, I was lucky and last years coupon book was filled with coupons with no expiration dates.

My son, Jack, will be also celebrating his birthday tomorrow.  He will be 15.  When exactly did that happen?  15.  He “could” legally get his permit at 15.  “Could” being the operative word.  He is well on his way to adulthood and I’m not ready.  At least this year he has to share his day with his mother.  Here is a recent shot of my baby boy.  *sigh*

Here are also a few of my recent “new” moms.  Some may have older children but they have just had newborns so they are new moms all over again.  I love shooting this amazing connection between them.  It’s just magical.

It’s been almost 9 years since I’ve had my last newborn but at every session, I remember that silky skin, that sweet smell and those innocent eyes.  It’s been quite a road since then but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

Here is a great article that I also found for some of you moms.

Have a good one tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by,

-lisa

Found this on one of the blogs I peruse.  I know it’s a whole other photographer ( who by the way is really awesome) and it’s in color, but I love how she pairs her canvases.  You don’t need to have the one smiley shot, or even just one.  A few mixed together tell a story.  It really is a great wall piece.  Just food for thought on this rainy Friday.

Canvas ideas.

More images of my own to follow soon. 

Thanks for stopping by.

-lisa

Happy Earth Day everyone.  Today is the day that you try something new with the good of the earth in mind.  This shouldn’t be a one day ( for earth day ) only thing.  It may be something you start today but will continue in your everyday life.  It could be just remembering to turn off the lights when you walk out of a room or that you’ll carry your own tote bags into the grocery store so you don’t take back unwanted plastic.  It’s a day to become a little more aware of how to best live your life for the good of yourself and everyone else.

Here are a bunch of reasons to be more earth friendly…

Aren’t they just the cutest reasons?  I plan on doing the very best I can when I can.  I also have three cute reasons to do so on their way home from school now.

Thanks for stopping by,

-lisa

It’s that time of year again.  Mini Session time!

I’ll be doing a two day Mother’s Day mini at Cottage by the Sea ( Formally The Growing Nest) on Saturday April 17th and Sunday April 18th.

My goal is to get a great shot or two of moms and their kids.  Bring Grandma down too for a group shot too.  Remember, it’s not only for the little kids, big kids need some lovin’ too.  Bring your teens and your 20 somethings as well.  It will be fun and moms will get a chance to be in front of the camera instead of always in back of it.  I should know, I tell ya.

Info:

Where:  Cottage by the Sea in Ward Warehouse

Time: 20 minute sessions starting at 9am and ending at 2pm

Cost:  $125 ( paid in advance to Cottage by the Sea) and includes one 5×7 of your choice

Details:  You will also get an online gallery of 10-15 images so you can pick and choose other images you would like to purchase.

Call me at 382.8065 to set up a time.  I only have a limited amount of slots so call me asap.  Last year I totally booked out in 4 hours.

It is so much fun and you should be able to see your gallery by Mother’s Day!  Hey, it’s also a great gift from your husband, so hint away.

Thanks for stopping by.

-lisa

BTW, just how cute is this little guy!

I know it’s a bit early to think about Mother’s Day and all but I’ve been wanting to do something for awhile now and this seemed fitting.  And, while I said the next special was going to involve bubbles, this may be better, depending on how much you love bubbles I guess.  Or, how much your mother does.  Anyway, there are a few things I want to throw out there:

1. I will probably be doing a weekend of mini sessions at The Growing Nest some weekend in early May so stay tuned for info on that.  I’ll blog and Facebook it first so if you want first dibs, fan me on Facebook if you haven’t done so already.  Or put this blog in your Reader.  It will probably be somewhere between $125 and $150 with a print included.

2. If you book a regular session in the month of May, you’ll receive a 10×20 unframed collage as a gift from me.  Yup, there you go, happy mother’s day!

3. Don’t forget to hint that you want a Utopia Photo session as a gift.  Leave my blog open on the computer for him to see, casually tell him about this amazing special or outright ask.  Remember you can get my gift certificates at Makana Mother and Baby as well.  Whatever works.

Here are some images of some really cute kids.  If you needed any more convincing…

These two were so giggly and I LOVE the image with mom and daughter.  Thought it was relevant.

This little girl was from my blog banner last year.  The calmness and positive spirit that surrounds this family  is contagious.

And these kids are all heart-breakers.  All of them were so open and easy to work with.  And what amazing eyes!

Call or email me soon to book. I have some new prices on my site.  The session fee is actually BETTER!  Check it out!

Thanks for stopping by,

-lisa

I’ve been photographing a lot of little ones lately and most of the time I photograph the parents as well, but not always.  I used to think this was fine until a client, and friend, said to me, ” You will never look as good as you do right now.”  That phrase sticks with me as I moved through families.  The kids need to see you interacting with them and loving them in the images.  They need to be able to look back 5, 10, 20 years from now and remember not only themselves, but also their parents at this time in their lives.  If you leave it off until the next time, it may never get done.

One of my goals this year is to take more family photos where we are ALL in the shot.  There are many times, it’s just the kids, but with this new outlook, I need to brush my hair and jump in.  Whether I have lost those 10 pounds or not.

So don’t just shy away from the camera like I used to, embrace the camera and have fun with it.  Because really, it’s for the kids.

Here are some amazing kids.

This little man is the son of one of my dear friends.  She is an amazing mom who is committed to helping families get back on their feet.

These next two beauties live all the way in NC.  They are my nieces and we don’t see them as nearly as often as we would like.  They are so gorgeous, inside and out.  Their mom and dad also are in the business of helping others.  Big hearts for sure.

Thanks for stopping by,

-lisa

Even though I’m WAY late in posting these, it’s actually fun for me to revisit them.  I’m hoping to keep blogging images away until I catch up.  I already have a ton from 2010 waiting for me.

The fair was a big success this past Saturday, even with the tsunami scare.  We are located at one of the highest points on the island so I wasn’t worried.  We had a great turnout and sold lots and lots of bubbles.  Thank you to those of you I saw there.  And if anyone on island wants to buy bubbles, send me an email and let’s do it up.

The new website ( which is still kind of in process ) is here. It will keep getting bigger and better so check back often.

Here are some great kids:

Love each and every one of these families.  They are all amazingly wonderful.

Thanks for stopping by,

-lisa