Midland, Michigan Senior Portrait Photographer | Eve Tuft Photography

Tag: Eve Tuft

Why I Love My Job

Last week, I introduced myself a bit here on my blog. I told you the next time I post, I would tell you why I love my job so much.

Ever since 2012, I knew that eventually I would like to try my hand out in a photography business, but it would likely be a family photographer. Most of the shoots I did for friends and for practice were of families, and as a family photographer, you actually get repeat clients year after year! The problem is, I didn’t love those shoots. I didn’t feel like they weren’t my best work. And after every family session, I came home exhausted.

On the other hand, I did not always think I was cut out for being a photographer to high school seniors. My first few attempts were a little rough, and posing was a bit of a nightmare for me. But here’s the thing: I LOVE being around teens. In fact, in my church while we were living in Iowa, I was in the youth organization. I loved working with the teens in my congregation! And what do ya know, a couple years after living here in Michigan, I was called to be with the 12-18 year-old girls in my congregation here.

My husband tells me often that I have a way with the teens. I think it’s because sometimes I still feel like one! Ha! I mean, I’m more responsible and more mature and hopefully a bit wiser, but I feel youthful. I feel a connection with them. And I love them so much.

It had been a couple years since I had last done a senior session when I was in Iowa, when someone from my church asked me to take her senior pictures here in Midland. I couldn’t say ‘no’ to her! After that, I did a few more. And then I fell in love. Posing doesn’t challenge me like it did before. In fact, I would say it’s my strong-suit. Being able to only have one person to pose who actually wants to be there is amazing!

Why I Love My Job

Connecting with the teens here in Midland has been such a highlight for me in my job. I love getting to know their hobbies, strengths, and dreams. That’s really why I love my job – the pictures I get to capture for these incredibly passionate, fun and determined teens is simply the best.

Spending time with them before their shoot, during and after all adds to developing this personal relationship with them and their parents. And being able to give them their beautiful products as a trusted friend afterwards is a reward in and of itself.

The reason why I love my job is because it’s so much more than that to me. It’s building trusting relationships with people I value time and time again. What could be better for a job than that?

January 28, 2020
Get to Know Me

I think it’s about time you had the chance to get to know me. So, I’ll start by introducing myself. Hi! My name is Eve. Yes, I love my name even though I have heard many, MANY Adam and Eve jokes throughout my life. Today I’ll focus more on some fun things about me. Next time I blog, I’ll get into the senior photographer business side.

To keep your attention, I’ll get past the boring stuff fast. I was born and raised in southern Utah, just a couple hours north east of Vegas. I am the youngest of eight. My husband and I met in northern Utah, and we got married four and a half months after our very first date. A year later, we moved to Iowa, and we loved our time there so much. We spent five happy years in the land of corn while my husband got his PhD and I made a few babies. After he graduated, we moved to Michigan at the end of the summer in 2014 and love it here as well. We have five kids, but only four of them are with us. Our first was stillborn while we were still living in Utah.

OK, now on to the fun and random stuff! To make things interesting, I asked the people who know me best how they would describe me in five words. Not such a bad way to get to know me, right?

Get to know me…

Through others

From my mom: Sensitive, determined, loving, fun and artistic

My dad: Sweet, spiritual, sassy, powerful and focused

The husband: Warm, silly, sincere, loyal and selfless

From one of my best friends for the past 23 years: Endurance, compassion, spiritually in-tune, prioritized and humble

As a side note, I opted to not ask any of siblings. They have WAY too much dirt on me. 😉

Through myself

I would describe myself as loving and compassionate, goofy and silly, organized and detailed, sincere and warm. I am determined, sensitive and kind. Don’t worry, I definitely have my faults, but I don’t like to focus on those. Especially not on a public blog. 😉

Get to know me through pictures

Since I am a photographer, I thought it would be fun to share things about me through pictures.

I spend most of my time with my husband and kids. We go on frequent walks, bike rides, and visits to the lake. We paint the fence together, read scriptures daily together, and soak up our time developing our relationships in our little family unit.

Perhaps my favorite thing to do with my children is read to them. We read on most days, usually for over a half hour. It’s often my favorite part of the day at home with my littlest kids.

Though I am a professional senior portrait photographer, I am a stay-at-home mother first. I am grateful my husband has been so supportive of my choice to be at home with these sweet children.

Speaking of my husband, he is amazing. If I could describe him in five words, they would be loyal, diligent, kind, brilliant and self-sacrificing. My heart still skips a beat every time I see him after he comes home from work. He has been my biggest supporter on my photography journey, and I am grateful for his unending love.

The last thing that I’d like to share about myself is that I LOVE nature and this beautiful world God has made for us to enjoy. If you follow my Instagram account, you’ll see me post some of my nature shots there. Senior photography is an amazing forte for me and my personality, but nature and macro photography also have a big portion of my heart.

I hope you enjoyed getting to know me better! Next time I blog, I’ll share more about me when it comes to this business I’ve created, and I’ll talk about why I love what I do so much. See you then!

January 10, 2020
Family Pictures 2019

Family pictures are a must-have for me every year. While it would be nice to have someone else take them for us, I know a pretty good photographer who will take them for free. Yeah. It’s me. 😉 I’m OK with doing the dirty work because I have the skills and I don’t have to schedule with anyone else. The downside is that I have to take the pictures…myself.

If there’s one thing I cannot stand, it’s my tripod. There. I said it. I despise using the tripod because it hinders my ability to take a shot when I want to. It’s cumbersome, clunky, and takes too much time to set up. You will NEVER see me use one with my senior clients. However, I can’t take family pictures and expect to be in the picture without one. It’s one of those necessary evils. Enter Mr. Husband.

Mr. Husband does not feel the same about about the tripod, ergo he is the one that sets it up for me. After the camera is on the tripod, he stands where I tell him to so I can get focus. Getting focus is another tricky thing to deal with when taking your own pictures. If we move one step closer or farther away from the camera, we’re out of focus. So we have to lock focus and not move. This can be a difficult thing with four little kids. 😉

If you’re reading this in hopes to get tips on how to take your own family pictures, here’s my one piece of advice: DO NOT have the kids get in the shot until everything else is ready to go. Get your exposure, your timer ready, nail your focus, and have everything else good to go before they get in. You’ll thank me later, I promise.

Speaking of kids, they were quite good this year. We were done in less than a half hour, and they cooperated nicely. As a side note, these are all taken at the Chippewa Nature Center. I love this place most of all for pictures.

Family Pictures

We look great, but this picture is really made up of FIVE different pictures. I had to do a head swap in Photoshop for everyone except my husband and the youngest. Not too bad, amiright?

If you look closely at my husband’s left hand, you’ll see the camera remote. 😀

I love those little fussbudgets!

This one only required two head swaps.

These are my favorite family pictures yet! And I’m so glad we made the effort to take them before it snowed.

After we were done, the kids’ patience paid off…

I’m pretty sure we still have some hay in the van. Happy Wednesday, friends!

December 4, 2019
We Had to Reschedule This Session Three Times

We had to reschedule this session three times. Yes, three times! And all the times we canceled was because of the rain. Don’t get me wrong, I really, really love rain. But I also really, really wanted to take this girl’s pictures for her senior session. I first met Grace and her mom at our pre-consultation way back in July. I knew instantly that we were a good match for Grace’s senior pictures. We talked about what Grace had been involved in over the summer, where she wanted her pictures taken, and what her plans were for after she graduates. We also discussed clothing choices, and they both got to see a few different prints and products I offer.

Reschedule #1

We had her session scheduled for sometime in August, and as the day approached, it looked like it was going to rain. The rain started in the evening, and it kept going. We hoped it would stop in time for her senior pictures, and we even met up at Chippewa Nature Center for them, but it just kept raining. So, we had to reschedule for another day.

#2

The next date wasn’t until September, and guess what? Yep, you guessed it. It looked like rain again. UGH! I thought for sure we wouldn’t get rained out twice and have to reschedule again, but as the evening got closer I just didn’t think it was going to work out. Sure enough, it poured for hours that evening.

#3

We rescheduled once more, this time at the very end up of September. Grace had a hair stylist she preferred and really wanted to use, and she wasn’t able to get an appointment with her until at the end of the month. We all crossed our fingers that Mother Nature would cooperate with us. And what do ya know? It was supposed to rain AGAIN on that Saturday! We hurriedly got everything switched to be able to take her senior pictures a couple days earlier, and the day couldn’t have been more lovely. Take a look.

You’re going to see me say this again, but I think she looks like an angel. Isn’t she stunning? This one shows off her eyes so well.

I’d say that hairdresser did a great job!

And here are a couple faves of mine from the whole session. This spot always gets the best light for these sessions.

I had so many favorites from this wonderful session at the Chippewa Nature Center! I think this place might be my favorite place for senior sessions. In a couple weeks, I’ll show you what the last half looked like. And trust me, you’re not going to want to miss it. The light! The fields! This amazing young woman! Stay tuned. 😉

November 6, 2019
First and Last Senior Guy Session of the Year

Can you believe that I’ve only photographed one senior guy this whole year? There’s something about girls wanting their senior pictures more than guys. What do you think it is? I love taking pictures of guys because they are so easy to pose, and they always just know how to go with the flow.

Meet Scott. This senior guy is extremely brilliant, witty, smart and kind. He reminds me a little of one of my boys. Scott and his mom wanted his senior pictures taken at Dow Gardens for one of their locations. This place is special to them. His mother has worked and volunteered here for years, and Scott has been able to help out as well. You can see them helping out with the Butterfly Exhibit. I’ve also seen them at the pollination fair. And there was one year when I saw them dressed up as jellyfish for trick-or-treaters going around the gardens. (Speaking of which, Halloween is only a couple weeks away!!! I’m so, super duper excited.)

Scott and Jesica didn’t have a particular spot they wanted pictures taken at, so I took them where I felt was best for him. Man, I love this door!

Seniors! Any time you let your mom jump in the frame with you is a good time! I promise you won’t regret having her in the picture with you. Next week I’ll show you where we went next.

October 17, 2019