Lily Kate

This week I got my baby fix with Lily Kate.  She was such a great little model!  Lily Kate's parents are Josh and Katie, some friends of ours, who I took maternity photos of a while back.  I was so excited to be able to catch some 4 month photos of their little one. 

Getting Lily ready for her session...

Such a pretty girl!

Eating fingers is one of Lily's favorite past times.

The photo on the left cracks me up!

Thanks Lily Kate!  You are such a sweet heart!

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Here is yet another photo to prove my obsession with baby feet.  So adorable!

One of the (Many) Reasons I Looooove Photoshop

I must admit, I have airbrushed my son's face.  Is that a crime?  Actually, I airbrush a lot of people's faces, but, we won't talk about that.  However, we have battled skin issues with Liam for a good 9 months now.  And, we think we have finally figured out the culprit after a couple months of trial and error.  Wheat.  Which is unfortunate because Cheerios, Goldfish, and bread baskets offered at restaurants are very easy to come by.  And they keep Little Man entertained and happy until the "real food" arrives.   However, I have noticed that each time I have taken wheat out of Liam's diet, his skin clears and his nose stops dripping.  So, I guess we are now on the prowl for gluten free goodies that don't need to be kept cool, that Liam *actually* likes.  This has been a challenge so far.  We are up for suggestions!

Anyway, back to why I love Photoshop so much.  It's because Photoshop can make anyone's skin look amazing (Even mine, which is a mess without make-up - yikes).   So, I thought I would share with you an example of the amazing magic Photoshop is capable of:

This is actually the SOOC shot

This is after completely editing the photo

For those of you that use PS, here are a couple things I do to improve the appearance of skin in the images I edit:

1.  Balance skin tone, remove redness from midtones.
2.  Use the healing brush tool (my fav tool) for major blemishes, scratches, etc.
3.  Create a duplicate layer, use gaussian blur at 20% opacity, erase the details of the face so they maintain good clarity.
4.  If necessary, some light airbrushing.

This is the process I am currently using, and it works for me.  What do you guys out there is PS world do?  Any other suggestions?

Seriously, I love Photoshop.

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Please forgive my tardiness for last week's "Top Pic".  Things get a little crazy around the Meadows' household from time to time!  Anyway, we had a great Easter this year.  I am so thankful for loving friends to spend Easter with, considering that Kyle and I don't have any family that lives near Louisville.  Thank you sweet friends for having us over for lunch! 

  I took this in our church nursery this past Sunday.  And yes, it will be a part of the collage of hands and feet photos we are using to decorate the nursery.  I find this photo particularly fitting for Easter time, with the father's hands reaching down to pick up his beloved little one.  Isn't that just like what Jesus did for us on the cross?  He picked us up and carried us to a place we could not have gone to by ourselves. 

Raindrops keep falling on my head....

So, I had the most adorable mini photo shoot last week with two little ones, Jonathon and Lydia.  The last time I had a photo op with these two, Lydia was a cuddly little newborn baby.  Now she runs around and keeps her big brother in line.  I love it!

Jonathon and Lydia arrived for their photo shoot dressed in their best rain gear.  I love fun outfits/props for photo shoots!  Thank you sweet momma (Jessica) for your creative vision!  I loved it!  So, while they bounced around in the heart of Louisville, I captured some photos of their sweet faces and super fun raincoats.  Here are a few photos from our mini session!

Pigtails!

Such beautiful eyes and eyelashes! 

I love Jonathon's facial expressions!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Remember Mother's Day and Father's Day!!!

Did you think we would forget to celebrate all the mommas and daddies out there?  Well, we didn't.  Check out the promotion we are offering during the months of May and June.  Go to www.meadowsartandphotography.com for more info!


P.S. - Schedule your session by April 26th and receive 2 free 8x10's!  

Hands and Feet

I recently had the pleasure of taking photos of lots of little wiggly toes and chubby fingers.  And you know how much I love baby feet and hands.  So adorable!  Our church, Franklin Street Church, is currently updating their nursery and I was asked if I could take photos of the little ones' hands and feet to decorate the nursery walls.  Of course, I was elated to be able to help out!  And thanks to help of two kid-wranglers, we got some pretty adorable photos!

 

 

Joey, Leslie and Halle!

Here are the promised pics featuring my sister-in-law's bump aka Halle.  I just can't wait to see this little one when she arrives in June! 

P.S. - Thank you Joey for somewhat cooperating during our mini session.  I know it was a painful experience for you ; )

The one on the right is my favorite.

Okay, I take that back.  This one might be my favorite.

P.S. These photos were all taken in the field behind my parents' house.  Cool, huh?

See you soon Halle Jo!

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One of Liam's favorite things to do right now is climb stairs.  Anywhere there is a staircase, he is sure to test it out. 

While it would be quite fitting to post of photo of him climbing a staircase, I just couldn't resist sharing this photo.  Here is a shot of Liam under the staircase outside of our apartment.  He was checking the structural integrity of the stairs before deciding to climb, I'm sure.

Have a good weekend!

Trapp Family

Jessica Trapp is one of my dearest friends.  We have been friends since junior high, we were roommates in college, traveled overseas together, were maid of honor in each other's weddings....  Needless to say, I love this girl.  And her family.

Six months ago, Jessica gave birth to Uriah - who was several weeks premature.  This little guy had a rough start.  He was in the hospital for the first month of his life.  Jessica and her husband, DJ, were faithful to make trips to the hospital several times and day and several times at night in order to feed and sooth their newborn son during his entire stay at the hospital.  They actually couldn't even hold him for several days after he was born because he was so weak.  I was so impressed by the patience and grace that the Lord gifted Jessica and DJ with during this stressful time.

Well, fast forward now 6 months and you would have never guessed that this little guy had been through so much!  He is one chubby, happy and beautiful little man!  I just couldn't get enough of his big smile and rubber band wrists.  Praise the Lord for how He has cared for Uriah!  I was so excited to have an opportunity to capture this family on my camera!  Thank you so much guys for a great morning!  I love you all so much!

I love this face!

Such a happy guy!

I like the lines in this photo.  I also like DJ's tongue hanging out.

They call this his "fish face"

I loved this location!  I love old murals.

Getting a little sleepy...

Now we are working out that last bit of energy....

Modeling is hard stuff!  He fell asleep immediately after we stopped taking photos.  Of course, I had to get out my camera again to catch this.