My Path to Family Photography in North Dallas

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How it started – my push to become a family photographer.

Way back when, I took my little baby to have his pictures made when he was about 3 months ish old at one the studios that used to be in the mall or inside a store like Babies R Us (which on longer exist!). He had a little scratch by his eye. I asked the photographer if they could just edit out the scratch. It was a 3 second edit – not a big ask – and they said No. I was seriously shocked and frustrated. What kind of studio, that specializes in kid’s photography, would not do a simple edit? Kids always have some sort of scratch, bruise, booger, etc on their face. I walked away knowing I could do this and do it better.

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Have I always photographed families here in North Dallas?

Yes, and no. I have photographed a handful of weddings over the years. I have photographed many newborn babies. However, a full family session used to SCARE me! LOL. I felt like I didn’t know what to do with everyone. So, what did I do? I tackled it head on, and now families are my absolute favorite!

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Why do I love photographing families so much?

I love the realness of it all. I do not – I repeat DO NOT want a sit and be still experience. When my kids were growing up we took a lot of family vacations. We are not sit on the beach people. We like to go to museums, aquariums, zoos, nature trails, parks, national parks, state parks, caves etc. Many of our core memories of a family that have been created around adventure and doing things. So, this is what I want to give to you and your family. An adventure – but bring the camera. I want your family photography session to serve as a core memory for your family as something to look back when your kids are grown. Something like this: “Remember that time we went to a creek and played in it and got wet and laughed, and Anna came with us and photographed us the whole time?” <—- THAT is what I want for you.

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What has changed over the years since I have been photographing families here in North Dallas?

Well, for one – my family. I started when I had 2 kids, just 19 months apart. I have 4 kids, and they are all growing up. My oldest Jenna is 21. That 6 month old baby I had when I started, that is Jack and he is 20 right now. Then came Julia with her curly blond hair and blue eyes. She is 18 now. And my youngest is Justin who will be 15 in just a few days. I love how they have grown up, but gosh, I miss those crazy days of little people. I am married to Kevin. We have been married for almost 28 years. We met in college at Baylor University. He is a hospital pharmacist in a major Dallas hospital. We have a lot of fun together. If you see me post a picture of just myself, he probably took it. (With me telling him what to do!) LOL.

What else has changed?

My business has grown a lot. Over the years of raising and homeschooling my kids, I didn’t have a lot of time to put into it. I always did family photography a little on the side. I was always photographing my own kids though, so skill wise, it was always growing. Now that they are all getting older, I am turning my focus to my business and photographing your sweet families. And every once in a while I still photograph a wedding.

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And just for fun, here are some of our favorite places we have been to in DFW for fun:

• The Dallas Word Aquarium
• The Dallas Zoo
• The Ft Worth Stock Show
• The Ft Worth Zoo
• Frank Buck Zoo (Gainsville)
• Scheels in Grandscape
• Bass Pro Shop
• The Perot Museum
• Eisenhower State Park
• Caprock Canyon (not in DFW, but not super far either)
• Fossil Rim (Glen Rose)

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Lastly, I will leave you with 10 things you may not know about me

1. I love Jesus, and I love to study the Bible.
2. I like to paint when I get the chance.
3. I graduated from Baylor University with a degree in art education.
4. I have three big dogs. Hank and Heidi are Weimaraners, and Samson is a Black Mouth Cur.
5. I have lived in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.
6. I attended a small Christian school growing up, and my dad was my principal/headmaster all but two of those years.
7. I am a breast cancer survivor.
8. I have three tattoos.
9. My favorite age to photograph is 3 years old.
10. My business was once called Texasartgirl Photography.

If you would like to know a bit more about me any my photography style head to my main website here.