Home for the Holidays

December 28, 2018

“Oh, there’s no place like home for the holidays!”. I love that song so much! Mostly for the sentiments expressed, but I guess the tune is pretty catchy as well. 😉 Growing up, St. George, Utah was the place I called home. When people ask me where I’m from, that’s still what I tell them. But since home is where the heart is, I call Michigan my home. That’s where I live with the people I love. And I can’t believe it, but we’ve lived here for over four years!

My family and I have just spent a wonderful Christmas together, here at our home in Michigan. While we love our extended family, we also love being together as a smaller group. We’re both from Utah, so traveling out there with four young kids is quite the feat! We love staying here, having our own traditions, and not needing to go out at all on Christmas Day if we don’t want to.

For Christmas this year we had a nice, relaxing holiday. Normally I don’t love watching the spoiled kids open up their presents, but I don’t think we overdid Christmas for them, and it didn’t take as long as last year. Hopefully next year they’ll get even fewer presents. I’ll have to give Santa a head’s up. 😉

I hope you all had a wonderful, Merry Christmas no matter where you spent it. Happy New Year, friends!

A loving family around the Christmas tree in their home opening up presents | Eve Tuft Photography | Michigan Photographer

Four Children holding hands around the Christmas tree in their home | Eve Tuft, Midland Senior Photographer

Christmastime Is Here Again

December 13, 2018

Christmastime is here again, and boy, do I love this time of year. I love that I can focus more on the Savior, the Light of the World. I also love the family traditions we have. We love going to the Santa House here in Midland. In fact, we’re taking the kids out of school early tomorrow to go. Shh, don’t tell their teachers! 😉 One of my favorite traditions we have is going around the city looking at Christmas lights. Anyone here who has the same favorite?

Something else I love about this time of year is the BOKEH. What is bokeh? It’s that nice, blurred background you get, and it shows up pretty clearly with Christmas lights. Christmastime is bokeh time.

I’m feeling a bit more nostalgic this year than most. I think it’s because my oldest is turning eight in just a week. Eight! As all my kids grow older, I feel us moving more and more away from the baby stage of life. And that’s what most of my married life with my husband has been. Diapers, nap time, newborn snuggles, more diapers. And if I’m being completely honest, I’m a baby mom at heart.

So, this year I’m soaking up their innocence even extra than normal. I’m trying to be more in the moment. I soaking up this stage for all its worth, because I know just how quickly it can go by. And I’m capturing their wonder of this season with my camera. I hope you all have a Merry Christmas!

Two brothers sitting on a chair giggle while looking at each other next to a Christmas tree | High School Senior Photographer in Michigan

Small girl drinks hot chocolate at the table with the Christmas tree in the background | Michigan Senior Photographer

Two children sit on a rocking chair together at Christmastime next to a Christmas tree | Bay City Senior Photographer

Young toddler sits on a chair while staring at the Christmas tree inside | Eve Tuft Photography

Little girl happily looks at a Christmas tree inside at Christmastime | Saginaw Senior Photographer | Eve Tuft

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What to Wear for Your Senior Session

December 5, 2018

One of the most common questions I get asked is, “What should I wear for my senior session?” Well, you’re in luck, because in this post I’ll tell you! In fact, I’ll do more than that, I’ll show you too. First and foremost, I want you to wear whatever it is that you feel amazing in. Because if you FEEL amazing then you’ll LOOK amazing. Do you have that outfit you only wear for special occasions? Bring it! That dress (or dress-shirt) you’ve been dying to have an excuse to wear? Let’s do it! Emily here looked amazing in dresses. She also probably felt amazing in them as well.

Don’t forget about bringing different shoes for different styled outfits! I would hate for you to only have sneakers for your dressier clothes. Abby has her shoes and a watch that go so well with what she is wearing.

Guys

If you don’t normally sport a beard or facial hair, come to your photo shoot clean-shaven. Also make sure your fingers and fingernails are cleaned. I know I’m not your mom, but your fingernails will show up, so get that grease off them.

Gals

I encourage you to pick out a piece of jewelry to go along with each outfit. A special necklace, bracelet or earrings can add just the extra touch to really pull an outfit together. Don’t forget about your nails! Get that extra nail polish off if it’s peeling. Peeling polish will show up, both on your toenails and on your fingernails. If you normally wear make-up, put on just a touch bit more for your photos. If you don’t normally wear make-up, consider putting on a little bit of mascara or lip gloss for that finished look.

Here is beautiful Grace. I love that the necklace she chose to wear for her senior shoot has her name on it. It’s perfect!

Another tip I have is to wear a cardigan that can go with multiple shirts. Here’s an example. See how Olivia is wearing the exact same thing with the exception of her cardigan/coat? Yet they look completely different. That’s the way to do it! This can also count as only one outfit since there’s not much changing that needs to be done.

For further reference, I also have a Pinterest board for both gals and guys. Check them out for more inspiration! I hope this helps! As always, let me know if you need help picking out outfits or matching jewelry. I’d love to be of assistance. I can’t wait to see you for your session!

On the Fence

November 28, 2018

OK, so it wasn’t really ON the fence, but right next to it. After this session I need all the fences! I’ll tell you why (well, I’ll SHOW you why) in a minute…

Sydnie and I met for the first time at this session. Her friend, Olivia, goes to church with me and offered to be my model. I needed one for an online class I was taking. Olivia brought Sydnie, and we all had an awesome time together.

Something that I love about photography is discovering new places to shoot. I’ve been to Larkin Park many, many, MANY times before. It’s a favorite park for my kids. However, I’ve never done a senior session there before. I had a blast with these two besties looking for the light and for beautiful backdrops.

My favorite pictures from Sydnie’s session were taken next to a chain-link fence. This fence is perfectly situated where the light hits it just right at this time of the year. Ah, it was so gorgeous the way the fence blurred into the background while providing a place for Sydnie to lean up against. And of course, Sydnie is a natural in front of the camera. My clients always make my job so easy. 😉

I hope I get to work with you in the future for your own session, Sydnie!

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Posing Olivia

November 14, 2018

This past month I’ve been taking a class over at Click Photo School. It has been amazing, and the instructor has been so awesome. In our third week we focused on posing, and I knew I wanted to grab a local teen to help out with that. Enter Olivia. Olivia and I know each other from church. She has expressed interest in being a model for me, and I thought this was the perfect chance. I also had her bring her friend, Sydnie, along. You’ll see her pictures from our shoot next week. 😉

I picked them up in the evening, and we all headed out to Larkin Park on the north side of town. The light there is amazing at this time of year! It was no exception for this particular evening. I even brought along my good, ol’ reflector. I love the pictures I got with it on this evening! In fact, I used the reflector for most of the shots. We got there at the perfect time and had fun following the light.

Olivia is natural at posing, and she really made my job easy. Look at her beautiful smile! I hope we are able to work together again when she is a senior. It was also fun having her friend with us. I always think that friends are the best at getting a natural smile out of my seniors, though I’m not too bad at that myself. 😉 I’m so happy with the way this mini shoot went, and some of these pictures have ended up being my favorites ever. Thanks for coming out in the cold with me, Olivia! I had a great time.