Babies and Brothers…Back in Action!

ashleyjulianphoto — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 05:46:51 +0000

Well…long time, no blog. Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I’ve been exhausted. Utterly. Exhausted. Last November I began working at the family restaurant. It was totally a last minute, family favor kind of thing. Completely kicked my butt the first month. Most of the time I am the only waitress on and sometimes the restaurant will fill up and I still have to take all the tables, bus the tables, answer the phone, and cashier. That is EXACTLY why I never wanted to work there. But I surprised myself, and I found out that when those times came it wasn’t fun, but I am capable. I was also leery of old, grumpy people. (Most of our patrons are elderly.) To my shock, I really dig the old ones! With the exception of one belligerent fool, my vintage crowd has been a pleasure to serve. I get hugs, high-fives, called sweety, told that I have a pretty smile, and one customer told me I was pretty enough to be a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader. AND…I lost 5 pounds during my first 2 weeks! However, I have felt my creativity dwindle. I have felt distracted, tired and wondered if I still had it in me to run a photography business. Those thoughts really scared me! I’ve worked hard to get my business to where it is today, and it kills me to know that I have had to let some things slip.

So when Misty contacted me and asked me to photograph her newborn baby and 1 yr old boy I was a little nervous. Newborn sessions and wild, little boy sessions take a lot of stamina and creativity. I NEEDED this to go well. I actually ended up photographing Bryson’s newborn session in 2 parts. It turns out he does not like being naked, and that was a problem since I had him naked the whole time. Things went much smoother the 2nd time around. He is actually around 6 weeks old in some of the photos as opposed to 2 weeks old in others.

Then there is Cale. He gets his own paragraph. What a busy little guy he is! I knew he was gonna give me a run for my money. Those usually end up being some of my favorite clients, by the way. There’s just so much personality there to capture. You know that if you can just trick them into being still you’re gonna strike gold. Thankfully we had a cake to occupy him for half of his session. His cake smash was such fun to witness. The kid SMASHED his cake! I love seeing all the different expressions during that segment.

Thank you Misty for allowing me to capture a special time in your boys’ lives and yours too. I loved how the photos turned out! And for the record, I’m not going anywhere for a long time!

Be good to your mama {Ephrata Family Photographer}

ashleyjulianphoto — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 06:49:58 +0000

Be good to your mama and let her know she’s special by taking lots of pictures of her. Better yet, get in photos with her. Sure she’ll probably make a fuss, and if she does do it anyway. You will be doing yourself and your offspring a big favor!

This family is so laid back! It was f-f-f-reezing outside, and I didn’t hear a lot of whining. I was impressed with the kids because at one point my fingers were in pain….actual pain…and I thought about how their poor little hands must have felt. The baby never made a peep except once, and it wasn’t weather related. Rock stars I tell you! And I have to point out Sue’s (the matriarch) hair to you. Isn’t it beautiful?! Well SHE is beautiful, but women with hair like that always grab my attention. I just think they look so striking, don’t you?

The gang's all here.

Leah, thanks to you especially for trusting me yet again with your family’s photos. It means the world to me!

Tim, Amy and the crew {Ephrata Family Photographer}

ashleyjulianphoto — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 00:42:02 +0000

I know Amy has been wanting to do family photos for a while now, so I was glad when we finally put it on the books. She wanted lots of color so the day before the session she spent the day making scarves for the kiddos. Yeah, she’s crafty like that. She’s my little tie-dye lovin’, chatty, candle-makin’, hostess with the mostess, coffee drinkin’ friend…and she loves her babies!

Amy and Tim, hope you enjoy!

Gideon turns One {Ephrata Baby Photographer}

ashleyjulianphoto — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 06:45:44 +0000

Another sweet baby has graduated from the AJP Baby Plan. Gideon celebrated his first birthday yesterday. He is one of the most laid back babies I’ve ever met. I love his squishy cheeks and rolls!

Let’s take a stroll down memory lane, shall we<

and now…

Sportin’ his first haircut

I’ve never seen a baby give me fish lips before. He’s advanced

Oh, Mama worked so hard on that cake. Ya done good, Anjye!

And Gideon would like to make a big announcement…

Congratulations, Mark and Anyje!

Dave, Holly and K-Woww {Ephrata Family Photographer}

ashleyjulianphoto — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 05:35:58 +0000

Remember this cutie??

Well, she’s walking all over the place now and still as cute as ever. It was a cold morning and she wasn’t too happy about being outside. I don’t blame her! I just hope she forgets before I photograph her again. I don’t want to be like the nurse who gives the shots at the doctor’s office :/ Sorry K-Woww!

She liked the leaves

You two look great!

D & H, it’s always fun being around you guys!

The Soccer Family {Ephrata Family Photographer}

ashleyjulianphoto — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 04:20:37 +0000

Of course, soccer isn’t their last name but it could be their middle name. Tina coached my middle daughter’s soccer team a couple of years ago. Brent coached my oldest daughter’s team last year. AND….they started a ministry in Africa called “The Kick It Academy”….sharing the love of Jesus with kids through soccer.

Any how…Tina and her sister Carlee wanted to take some family photos for their parents. It was f-f-f-feezing outside!!! We tried to think warm thoughts, and I thought all in all the kids did a pretty good job of toughin’ it out. They could have cried and carried on but they were little troopers

Fall in Coulee Dam {Coulee Dam Family Photographer}

ashleyjulianphoto — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 04:00:25 +0000

A couple of weekends ago I was in lovely Coulee Dam, WA for mini-sessions. I was nervous about it. These were my first outdoor mini’s, and I wasn’t sure how I was going to pull it off. What if the weather was horrible? Would I be able to find an outdoor venue that would work in the morning as well as in the afternoon? Would anybody actually sign up?! Well, I’m so glad I went for it! The day started out cold but it ended up being a really beautiful day. Thank you to all the families who came out and supported AJP. A special thank you to my Grand Coulee PR woman, Raehanne, who provided the hot apple cider, home made pumpkin muffins and photo props.

It’s a beautiful place this time of year.

Sometimes I ask people to do stupid, cornball things so they will laugh at themselves.

I loved these 2 together. I could have photographed them all day!

See what I mean?

Gorgeous! I have to brag on her..she’s only 12 and she did her own hair. Didn’t she do a great job?

I love the authenticity here!

It’s got that E-town flava {Ephrata Family Photographer}

ashleyjulianphoto — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 03:30:50 +0000

Matt and Tyona wanted family photos but they didn’t exactly want to be IN them. They knew they had to in order to appease family members. Raise your hand if you can identify! I am certainly one of those people who would rather be behind the camera rather than in front of it. I promised Tyona that everything would be fine and I would come up with something that would please everyone.

In the end it’s always worth it to take a risk and get those family photos made. You just never know what tomorrow brings. You just.never.know. And I’m so proud of Matt and Tyona for making this happen! You did it guys! I think everyone had fun for the most part. Tom, the 4 yr old, said that it was boring and stupid about 10 minutes into the session. Kids say the darnest things! That kid was jumping off things, being silly and he got to stand right next to a train as it whizzed past him so I don’t think it was all THAT bad for him. What a riot!

Tyona told me that she wanted their session to have a definite Ephrata feel to it because they know they won’t be here for TOO much longer. What a great way to remember their time in E-town?!

Katie is reading her favorite book.

I don’t think I knew this sign existed until Tyona requested this shot. I’m so glad she did!

I told them what to do in case a train came, but I didn’t think it would actually happen. Score!

Thanks, A-Team! It was a pleasure

Back for more {Ephrata WA Family Photographer}

ashleyjulianphoto — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 05:59:14 +0000

I am always thrilled and honored when a family asks me to make their family portraits. When that same family comes back AGAIN for more portraits then I almost get a little choked up. It means so much to me that these people have faith in me and chose me out of the sea of photographers to photograph their family not once but TWICE! I never take that for granted. Last Fall I photographed this amazing family.

I loved how their session turned out last time, so I was super nervous to try and top it. It was fun to see how the kids have grown in a year as well as the family farm. Matt and Amanda, it was a privilege!

Amanda said that Addyson had been looking forward to pictures for a week. She loves getting her photo taken!

…with her favorite cat

Fall Mini-Sessions in Coulee Dam,Oct. 29th

ashleyjulianphoto — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 20:57:27 +0000

This a FABULOUS deal! All sessions must be pre-registered and pre-paid. In case of inclement weather a full refund will be issued.