Little Punk "Give-a-way" ...Sibling Style, Detroit, Michigan Children's Photographer

Yep! It is true- back by popular demand is another give-a-way contest on my Blog.

The little punk give-a-way I offered a couple of months ago was a lot of fun and brought relief to a couple of very cool Moms out there. Taking good pictures of small children is NOT an easy task. I shared the results of the sessions here on my Blog so just scroll down if you did not have the chance to see the fabulous outcomes. Two very cute little girls with beautiful image results. I was so glad to help!

And.... Lately I have been receiving a bunch of emails from parents asking me to "do another one for their kids!" Notice I said "kids" .... as in plural. So, I am guessing that when these parents try to get pictures of the kids together they come out something like the one below? Hah! Well, OK then, my mind is made up! I am doing another give-a-way... starting NOW, but this time it is for siblings only.



All siblings must be under the age of 18, minimum of 2 kids required to enter.
The family of the winning siblings will receive:
*A totally FREE on location session in the Northville area to be scheduled in June.
* A feature on my blog, with a complete slide show of images to enjoy. There will be images of each child alone and some of all kids together as well.
* A FREE (11 X 14) wall print of the GROUP as a keepsake from our session together
* 10 % off the purchase of additional prints, if desired. I also offer contest winners a huge special on CD purchase.
ALL entries must be received by Sunday, June 7th. Good luck everyone! I can't wait to meet my little punk siblings winners.

To enter, please send the following information to me at jenlynnalder@aol.com OR on Facebook:
*Your name
*Name and age of each child
* A recent photo of them together (or the best you can come up with!)
*Why your kids should win the give-a-way
*Your favorite kinds of pictures of your kids(examples include: black and white, color, artistic, candid, smiling, serious, nature backgrounds, city backgrounds,in groups, close ups, etc...)

I will announce the winning entrant on Monday, June 8th!

Dancing with her shadow...

I was able to capture this candid image of my niece, Tiffany, a bit before sunset this evening and just wanted to share it with you guys. If any of you have or know another child with autism who is in need of a new photograph, please contact me. I am looking to donate a session with an 11 X 14 print free to a family with an autistic child under the age of 18.



You can contact me at jenlynnalder@aol.com. Thanks! :)

Due to popular demand: I am also going to be having another "contest give-a-way" after the holiday weekend. Stay tuned for more information. I am really excited about this one.

Happy 9th Birthday, Dylan!!!

It is sooooo hard to believe that NINE years ago today my sister called me to tell me it was time for her to have a baby! That baby, my godson, has grown up so quickly.... and is really an extra special kid. :)
He is one of my best friends, super intelligent, compassionate, caring, a fabulous artist and music lover... and he even goes on photo shoots with me. Just a terrific kid to be around overall.

And this is what I get when I try to take a picture of him these days... LOL!!!
Can you tell I overwhelm him with my camera. hahaha. It's a good thing he has a giant sense of humor ;)

Happy Birthday, Dill! Love you lots!!

Little Punk Winner # 2, Northville, Michigan Children's Photographer

I finally met up with Little Punk Winner # 2 yesterday afternoon!!! The weather was amazing and the child was a DOLL. Mom did a great job of dressing her cute, bribing her and making ME laugh. ;)

Miss "Lex" has not had the best luck with photographers in the past. I wanted to keep it very laid back with her this time- and I think it worked out very well. She was rewarded a ton throughout the shoot and warmed up to the camera pretty well. Same as last Little Punk Session, I ended up doing a full session...and ended up with a ton more than a "Mini-Session" usually includes. Mom was anxious to see the results and also wanted an image for her father prior to the end of the month so I worked through the night. Check them out:

And, I am just gonna say, this little girl is a spitting image of her momma....wow!!




















I just loved her hat, bubblemaker, sucker and smile, too! LOL. So much FUN. Thanks a ton you two- it was fabulous seeing and working with you. Hope to meet up with you again someday!! :)

More Spring Stuff...

I am really loving this Spring weather. It just seemed like winter was SO long and I am seriously thankful for every minute of sunny blue sky weather that comes my way right now. LOL. I knew it was supposed to rain here this afternoon for a bit so I rushed over to visit with my niece, Mel, this morning... and of course, we had to go on a little photoshoot.

She agreed to help me as I practiced with some new equipment, but I knew she really wanted to play with the kids so we worked really fast. We did get a ton of great final images in just a very short period of time. Check out a couple below. Both of them are treated a bit soft and artsy cause I have just been in that kind of mood lately. :)

And a Happy Mothers Day to all Moms out there!!!





Hope you all have a beautiful day :)

Spring Texture Images

Spring is here and with its arrival are many beautiful blooms. Take a minute to capture them!!! I like to play around with floral images and texture for quick creative exercises. It find that it helps keep my inner artist alert. :)

Here are a few basic texture images that I just created from pictures I took this morning. If you struggle with applying texture to an image or using Layers- sign up for a custom email lesson.










Go have FUN and try to do some, too.

Little Punk Give-a-way Winner # 1

Hey Everyone-

You may remember that not too long ago I was hosting a Give-a-way session for your Little Punks?? Well, the weather finally cooperated and I was able to meet with the first winning family. What a FABULOUS day and amazing winning little girl. It was an absolute delight working with this little one. :)

Miss "J" is only 2 years old. She won a free session + print with me not too long ago. Usually when I meet with kids of this age I kind of "test the waters" and see what they are comfortable with. I want the child to have a GOOD time on the shoot- I want him/her to feel natural and comfortable with me and my camera. Sure... it takes a lot of patience, but I have experience working with kids and so I do know how to guide them properly. That is fine by me. My goal is to get wonderful pictures AND for everyone to have a positive experience. She had lots of energy and loved being outdoors so I pretty much let her take control of the shoot- I followed her around and played games (hide and seek, flower picking,bird watching,layed flat on my stomach in the mud, etc...LOL!!!) and it worked like a charm. What a cutie!



Here are more pictures from our shoot (WAY more than usual for a mini session but I just could not resist) Even though I had not seen this family in like 15 years, I do know them as members of my old Church and Mom went to my high school. It was the first time I had met her daughter,Little "J," and she was just SO dang cute and cooperative. Honestly, she held my hand and explored the location most of the time.
Plus, Liz told me while I was shooting that she had tried to get some picture of Miss "J" the other day in a group setting and it was a bit frustrating. I hope these images put a big smile on your face Mom and Dad(and grandparents).















And here are some with the tutu I brought along... cute stuff for sure :)




With her grandparents looking on...



And a bit of art...



Send me a note which image you would like to have me print for you, Liz :)
I am so in LOVE with this set of pics. What a delight this session was. Thank you both! I am so thrilled it worked out for us all. And.. YES! You may order whatever other prints you would like- see my a la carte menu for sizes and cost.

I would LOVE to work with "J" again in the future, so remember to call me next time she or anyone else in your family needs some pics. Fun, relaxed, and beautiful. :)

Using Creativity in PhotoShop

Tonight I felt an urge (as I often do...) to create something artistic. I dug up an archived image of my niece, Melanie, and started playing around in PS. I had no clue what I wanted to do or how it would end up looking. The more I started working with the image I kinda wanted it to take on an innocent and mysterious childhood sort of mood. So, with some textures, toning, Layers and a bit of time this is what I came up with:

"Imagination sets us free..."




And I was playing around with High Key work in PS Layers on this one:


These were just "quick" edits... but I encourage everyone to get creative with their photography. Photoshop is a fun place. Ya know, in the past I have had a lot of people in the past ask me to give them Editing lessons and have declined due to time constraints. My schedule has changed a bit these days... and....well...

Recently, I have decided to offer limited one-on-one Email sessions. So, if you are interested send me an email: jenlynnalder@aol.com and I will design a lesson - or group of lessons- just for you. Yep, it is TRUE :)

Individual Lessons are "3-part" and custom designed to the client- for $150 each. I offer lesson bundles of 3, 5, 9 as well. When purchased in groups the price of each lesson decreases by a bunch. See the "Specials" tab on my Main Photography Page for more Information on this.

I am actually starting a new 5 pack lesson session with a client in on May 4th. The focus of our group of lessons is: Dramatic editing using PS Layers and Textures. Perhaps one of the images from a teacher/student session will make a blog appearance in the future. Fun stuff for sure- stay tuned. :)

Oh.. and FINALLY, I will be shooting one of the winning "Little Punks" kiddos this Sunday, if it doesn't rain....so stay tuned. I can't wait.