a return

This sweet couple was married at Pebble Hill Plantation in Tallahassee a few years ago. How amazing to be able to go back to the very spot in which you once stood to say, "I do"...

What mommy wouldn't swoon with this sweet boy snuggled up beside you?  Darling, I tell you, just darling.

He was so good to me for the session, patient and kind and very tolerant, lol!  He even let me take a photograph of him thisclose to his little sister.  (Yuck!  Sisters!)  ;)

And this little sweetie was a treat to photograph (she wasn't icky after all, despite what her older brother may think).  ;)  Really, once she changed into her white dress... she just came alive!  She could have been the Princess of Pebble Hill that day and you couldn't have convinced us otherwise.

I love the fact that Mom wanted to incorporate her favorite loveys into the shoot!  This is such a precious stage, and I'm so happy when clients decide to embrace little things like this. :)

Thank you, F. family.  I truly enjoyed my afternoon with you!

Watch for another blog post tomorrow ~ with the Holiday rush, I'm so behind on the blog these days!  I'll eventually get caught up, I suppose!  With an insane number of sessions to shoot and edit, phone calls and emails to tackle, orders to place, packages to prepare and ship, Holiday cards to design and order...  it's such a crazy time of year for me!  Oh and the delightful swine flu that decided to plague our house for 10-12 days didn't help matters any either.  :(  Lila and I were both sick and down for the count for quite a while.  Thankfully, our house is nice and sanitized now and Parker and Chris stayed healthy the entire time!  But I'm behind now of course ~ thank you to my sweet patient clients who have called and emailed to check on me!  Your galleries will be up just as soon as my little fingers can get them edited and posted!  :)

frequent fliers

This family is always such a dream to photograph, and this time I got to photograph them practically in their backyard.  Well, close enough, anyway.  :)  They always travel to me from Tallahassee (this is my fourth session with them in a little over a year!), but this time I made the trip north to photograph this sweet family, plus six other amazing families, in one awesome, crazy-busy, fun-filled weekend.  Here's a sneak peek.... rest assured there are lots more where this came from.  But I have to save some surprises for their gallery of course!  ;)

We photographed their session at a beautiful old plantation in Thomasville, GA.  There were so many amazing nooks and crannies that were just begging to be used, a photographer's dream, and I could have stayed there all day.  (Oh wait, I did, lol!  I photographed three families at the plantation that morning!)  ;)

Now tell me those kisses didn't make you smile.  :)

And that her pouty face didn't make you say "Awwww..."  I loved it!!!!

Even though this session was "technically" for Adeline's one-year celebration, you KNOW I couldn't resist a few of her ever-so-charming big brother Christian.

I felt right at home hanging out with him ~ every few steps he'd pick up a stick or a leaf and hand it to me to hold on to for him.  By the end we all had leaves in our hands, and I had a few in my camera bag.  And the sweetest part was later that afternoon, I met up with them again and he gave me a leaf-rubbing he'd colored after our session together.  It's hanging up in my office.  :)  I'm so blessed to be able to connect with such sweet souls on a regular basis.  I love my job!!!

I'll be back soon with more sessions to share here.  I've got a busy weekend with sessions and all, but by Monday there will be several galleries to upload for my oh-so-patient clients.  I'm excited!!  Love the Christmas rush.  :)

simplicity

No words today.  Just her.  :)

connection

I love photographing families.  I love watching them laugh and smile and tease.  I love discovering the resemblances ~ even if I don't fully notice them during the shoot, I'll certainly discover them while processing their images.  :)  This particular family was a treat to spend the morning with.  Although it was blazing hot and unbelievably humid (this was the very last day of July in Florida, keep in mind), this family was so patient and wonderful through the entire shoot. They've had to be even more patient with me as I soldier on through my crazy technical difficulty and blogging/posting issues.  So here is their "sneak peek", just a few days before their gallery goes live anyways.  ;)

Aren't they a gorgeous family?!  And listen to this ~ when I asked mom and daughter to squish up really tightly so I could capture them together, this sweet teenager said "Oh that's okay with me, I love this woman!!"  That melted my heart right there on the spot.  How many teenage daughters would honestly say that about their Mother these days?!  I love to see moms and daughters so close.

Ahem, I won't confess why they're laughing.  :)  But it's an honest laugh, that's for sure!!  Exactly what I was after.  And ya know what?  This image makes me smile every time I look at it!!  I'm having trouble moving on to editing the next image because I keep clicking on this one.  LOL!  I love when that happens.

Martin Family, I had a wonderful time with you guys ~ thanks so very much for braving the heat and humidity for your outdoor session.  Your gallery will be up in just a few days!  Can't wait to show you what else we got.   ;)

off and running

Ya know, when I signed up for this photographer gig, no one told me I had to also assume the role of IT Tech as well.  ;)  I've just spent the last week-and-a-half performing diagnostics, trouble-shooting and repairing my poor overworked Mac, so that I can get the images off my hard drive and onto my blog!  Oh my Photoshop ~ it pains me!  I guess it's a small price to pay for being able to do what I love every day ~ photographing the most amazing families in Tampa Bay.  I get to meet and cuddle with the sweetest babies, laugh with the funniest kids, and hang out with the most adoring parents in the entire world.  And then when our playtime is over, I get to give them a piece of art that encapsulates how much FUN their family has just being together... how beautiful and fresh their babies are at one week old... how perfect their first-grader's smile is even with that missing front tooth... how utterly precious their children's lives are at that very moment.  I get to give them a piece of their history to pass down through the generations.  Honestly, how lucky am I?! Thankfully, I'm full-force again as of this evening.  Whew!  Just in time to post a sneak-peek for a very patient Mama and Daddy....

Nicholas was just shy of his first birthday at our photo session.  And let me tell you ~ that boy was MOBILE!  Not only was he walking (and very well, I might add) on his own... but he was also RUNNING.  Barefoot.  Down the streets (well, okay, the sidewalks) of downtown Clearwater Beach.  He was so much fun to play peekaboo with, and I had a wonderful time with his parents, who came ready to play!

I love that he "missed" his eyes during peekaboo.  :)  Hey, cheeks are close enough!

Sweet mercy... could you not just eat him up??  Those squishy rosy cheeks, those gorgeous warm brown eyes, the soft wispy hair?

And, in what is quickly becoming a Stacey Woods Photography "beach session tradition" ~ we stopped for ice cream cones!  (Oh how I wish I could juggle a cone and two cameras at the same time.)   ;)

I told ya... that boy's a runner!  :)

Thank you so much, P. family, for a gorgeous evening by the Gulf of Mexico.  Your session was a dream, and I can't wait to see you again soon!  And Happy Birthday, Nicholas!!  :)

senior photos, done stacey woods style.

I don't often get requests for senior shoots, although I actually am finding that I love them!  I guess my specialties are newborns and toddlers, but there's something refreshing about the occasional teenager.... they can actually take direction!  LOL!  A nice fun break for me.  Especially when that teenager is gorgeous and amazingly sweet, and happens to be related to you.  ;)  My brother- and sister-in-law visited us last week from North Carolina, and this is their daughter, Kyndall.  My niece.  It is so hard for me to believe that she is almost seventeen.  She was so little when I started dating Chris (11 years ago).  I'm so very proud of her and the woman she's becoming. Here are a few images (okay, lots ~ heck, it's family!) from our session together.

Loved her boots!

We found the perfect little spot in the trees, surrounded by Spanish moss.

Her Mama's favorite.  :)

And I fell in love with this rustic pier...  much different than the concrete pier I've used before.  I will DEFINITELY be going back with clients!   Who's in??  :)

Thank you, sweet Kyndall Lauren, for tromping all over Pinellas County with me!  I can't wait to finish your gallery, and in the meantime I hope you love your sneak peek.  I love you to pieces.  And thank you for sharing your Uncle Chris with me 11 years ago.  :)

xoxo, Stacey

beckham

What a sweet little love he was.  And I truly mean little.  This guy was just 5 lbs 8 oz when he was born!  So tiny and sweet.  And SUCH a good sleeper at 7 days old.  We got some great variety in their session... some images on the beanbag, sleeping in a basket or two, a few in his Mama and Daddy's arms, and even with his big fur brother, Haven.  It was a perfect session!  I can't wait to design their album.

He was 3 weeks early, and still covered with lanugo hair.  Are you melting yet??  :)

Cannot resist teeny-tiny baby toes!  It was all I could do NOT to kiss them at the session.  LOL!

Makes me so happy to see this much love for these tiny miracles.  And isn't Mom just beautiful?  This is exactly one week after giving birth, too.  Amazing.

Loved, absolutely loved, this moment with Daddy.  Those tiny dark eyes, that dramatic light, and the little creases under Beckham's eyes (trait of a fresh newborn!) that will all-too-soon fill out with baby-chub.

Last but not least (and this could be my most FAVORITE image from the morning)... is this not the sweetest doggie face you've ever seen??  Love that.

Thank you, Ryan and Lacy, for sharing your morning with me.  I can't wait to watch your sweet boy grow this year!

summer in the country

Well, not really.  But maybe the forest??  This location is probably my most favorite around... and the images I get are different every time I visit with a new client.  So I love that it stays fresh... I never tire of this place! And I could never tire of this family.  They were so much fun, and really complemented each other well.  Their whole family dynamic was just amazing to sit back and watch.  Take a peek!

Mama with her "boys":

Daddy and his "little" girl:

I seriously could have photographed them all evening.  Much to dad and bro's dismay, I'm sure (since they were starving).  LOL!  Thanks, G family, for an amazing evening!  I'm so glad the rain held off this time!  ;)

More sessions to be featured on the blog tomorrow!

busy as a little bee

Lately I've been busy-busy, hunkered down behind my desk getting my canvas displays ready, finalizing client albums and prints, having the most fun sessions ever, ordering new marketing pieces with my BRAND NEW LOGO, yay!  Anyhow, I haven't had much time to be online lately but I wanted to pop in here and let you know that I'll be posting fun sessions again soon!  In the meantime, here is the little one who helps me during the day while Bubby is at preschool.  Isn't she precious?  How could I possibly get anything done without her?  (Wait, let me rephrase that.... How could I possibly get anything done without her sitting on my lap?!  lol.)

Or sitting at my feet, standing up beside my legs, reaching up into my lap.  ;)  And no, I didn't do anything special to her eyes, other than focusing on them at a very wide aperture.  They got no special sharpening or dodging or anything like that, I just sharpened the whole image for web.  She's just plain beautiful, isn't she?!  Bedhead, PJs and all.

I can't imagine my workdays without her!

By the way, can y'all believe that I'm scheduling for the fall already?!  August is almost full, and September and October are filling up as well.  June still has about two or three session dates available, and July is looking busy so far as well.  If you'd like to book a session with me this summer, please go ahead and contact me as soon as you can so I can be sure to get you on my schedule.  Typically, my autumn months book up backwards due to Christmas deadlines and such.  I plan on announcing my Holiday Mini-Sessions just as soon as I get the dates and locations firmed up.  So stay tuned for more news on that!  I'll be back soon.  :)

it's the little things...

... that I love so much about my family sessions.  Like a quick glance back.... and a sweet unexpected wave.  :)

Tiny feet...

And even silly faces!  (You just wait, these boys are going to be heart-breakers one day soon.  Just look at that wink!)

Honest portraiture.  That's what it's all about.  I aim to capture boys being boys (walking sticks and all)....

...babies being babies...

...Mamas and Daddies lovin' on each other.

Cause that's the heart of the family anyways, isn't it?  It's not some photographer making you sit still, turn your head this way or that.  Your family is about YOU.  Not me.  :)  I just want to photograph you the way you are.  Even if that means the baby has her fingers in her mouth!  (And seriously, how unbelievably precious is that anyhow?!)

Let me just say, this sweet family was awesome to work with.  The boys were so much fun, I think I laughed for the majority of the session.  And part of the time I held back a little ways, photographing them from afar, just watching them explore the water, the trees, the sticks, the horseshoe crabs who'd lost their way.  Mom and Dad were so laid back, which truly makes what my job so much easier.  Baby girl was snuggly and a little unsure at first, but by the end of the session, she was giggling in Daddy's arms.

And putty in Mama's.  ;)

Thank you, sweet family of six, for letting me capture who you are!  I hope you enjoy your images.  :)