simple [modern] sassy Photography By. Sandra Skogen: Blog

Natalia | An expecting Mother

Thu, 05 Apr 2018 18:28:59 GMT

I had the pleasure of meeting & working with a stunning Mother-to-Be, Natalia. She and her husband are expecting their 1st child and she wanted to document this special time in her life at 30 weeks. Natalia came to me with a beautiful vision for her session--I just LOVE when my clients are able to share with me what they are hoping for. Not only does it make the job easier for me, but it ensures that my clients get exactly what they want! (But I understand that not everyone knows what they want which is why I'm always full of suggestions). So Natalia sent me images of a beautiful park that I am very familiar with, Wright Park in Tacoma and also mentioned she'd like to use the WW Seymour Botanical Conservatory which is found at Wright Park, yay! something new to me!

Thankfully the weather cooperated and we had a partial sunny morning to work with. The lighting was actually stunning outdoors as it gave the park backdrop a hazy look (exactly what Natalia was hoping for!) Once finished we went indoors to the Botanical Conservatory & wow, beautiful!! Tropical plants, trees, flowers...it was perfect and Natalia's choice of maternity gown was complimented by all the green. We had to work around a few guests, I had a to deal with the humidity fogging up my lens but we able to capture some beautiful shots.

Thank you again Natalia for allowing me to capture this stage of your life. Congratulations on your baby to come, I'm sure he or she will be beautiful! I'm guessing it's boy! :)

Madison - Stadium High School - Class of 2018

Wed, 07 Feb 2018 21:13:11 GMT

When scheduling during the fall/winter/spring seasons, pretty much anytime other than summer, I always schedule a back-up session with my clients because of potential, unpredictable rain. My session with Madison, was shot late in September & her schedule was crazy-busy so we crossed finger/toes anything we could to ensure we'd be able to shoot her session on her first choice. Well the day started with rain...not drizzly, sprinkly rain, but down-pour rain. I tend to check the weather religiously watching the radar and it looked like it would be dry during our scheduled time. So out we went hoping, praying we'd get through the session dry. Well we did...it was a bit, okay, a lot windy, but we worked with it. Hey, at least it wasn't raining...yet! We made it to our 2 chosen locations, took lots of beautiful images and I think about after 5 minutes from saying our good-byes, it started to POUR. Like, we would have be sopping wet had we been caught out in the rain. The Photography Gods were on our side that day.

Madison, such a sweet girl, and totally photogenic, has AMAZING plans for her future--dancing in NYC anyone?! Yes, this Stadium HS Senior who is an amazingly talented dancer hopes to move out to NYC & pursue her dreams...isn't she so brave?! I love it...I love it all <3

Lauryn -Peninsula High School- Class of 2018

Mon, 05 Feb 2018 19:14:54 GMT

I don't know if I've mentioned it lately but, I LOVE SENIORS! I love working with young adults, capturing their unique style and looks. They're so full of life & dreams & energy and it's just contagious! They're willing to try something different, be silly, and in a quick second, become serious and pensive. Well Lauryn, was all of this & then some!

I met with Lauryn & her mom back in the fall to discuss Lauryn's session. They wanted to bounce ideas off of me & also, hear my own ideas. We discussed some of my favorite locations that seemed to fit Lauryn's vision and then chatted about her style. I personally think we nailed every aspect of this session. Four different locations provided unique backdrops & gorgeous lighting...I was thrilled with the outcome and had such and amazing time, laughing & talking about life--the present & future...because that's what this is all about.

Luke - First Birthday portraits!

Tue, 30 Jan 2018 20:55:54 GMT

The first time I met Luke was when he was 3 months old. This past fall, Luke celebrated his 1st Birthday & what better way to commemorate this milestone than with a portrait session. We ventured outside for this shoot, incorporating a mini apple tree grove & Luke's new wagon. Such a happy little guy with the cutest smile!

Emily - Gig Harbor High, Class of 2018

Tue, 30 Jan 2018 20:30:32 GMT

I had the pleasure of meeting & working with Emily, a local GHS Senior. We decided to shoot her session at Pt. Defiance Park among the beautiful rose/flower gardens. Emily also brought a couple of props--a book since she is an avid reader and a single rose as her middle name is, Rose. All in all, we had a wonderful time while capturing some beautiful, vivid shots.

Christmas '17 Mini's!

Tue, 23 Jan 2018 21:17:57 GMT

The 2017 holiday season has come & gone but what a fun-filled Christmas season it was for me! Last summer my husband brought home a 1960 International truck that he thought would be a great photo prop. Well he definitely was right! Since the truck is red, I decided Christmas mini's would be a great way to introduce my fun new prop. I didn't widely advertise these sessions as I was treating them more as a test-run. Well, it ended up being extremely successful & so much fun! I'm looking forward to using the truck for other sessions--family, children, HS Seniors, and maybe some summer mini's!