I’m Heidi Guerard and I love what I do.
I am an artist, photographer, and proud mother. When I am happiest, there is this insatiable urge inside me to snap a photo. To make something intangible, permanent. To preserve that joy forever, so that I may have it to adore any time my soul needs a smile.
I specialize in natural light photography and prefer to use available light whenever possible both for its beauty and for the natural style it lends to a finished portrait. Even in my studio, the lights are off. I use window light to illuminate the delicate skin of a baby or create a dramatic silhouette of a figure.
I adore creating art with color and light. That doesn’t mean I don’t create black and white portraits as well. Client galleries are a variety of work tailored to their preferences and edited to my style. I love working with rich colors, dramatic light, interesting angles, and spontaneity in posing. That is how I would describe my outdoor work. Full of energy. What I am best known for however is indoors: the little ones. Sweet sleepy newborns and angelic babies. Soft skin and bright sparkling eyes. I adore getting to know babies and figuring out what makes them tick. Capturing all of their precious expressions and little quirks. Many parents ask if I can come by the house at 3 am! I enjoy experimenting with new things, collecting interesting props, visiting new locations. I hope my work is always changing, always getting better.
How did Heidi Hope Photography start?
Photography is something I have always loved, but had never thought that I would do. I had never once considered that photography would someday become my career.
As far back as I can remember I was “the artist” of the bunch. I loved to draw and knew the name of every color in the crayola crayon box (of 64!). I did always love taking photographs, but I was an artist first, and I wanted to teach. Photography wasn’t really on my radar. My passion was, and still is, for people, children especially, and I wanted to share my talents with them in a career as an art educator. After receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 2003 I began doing just that. Up until then, photography was just for fun. I guess you could call it a hobby… or borderline obsession.
Then fate stepped in.
During my first year of teaching high school students, I had to teach a black and white photography class. It’s funny how teaching something makes you learn it in a way that you never would have otherwise. You learn it backwards, forwards, and in all the ways you need to answer all of the questions that you never would have thought to ask. You fall in love with it. Well at least I did. Since then photography has been my greatest passion.
During the past few years, I began working as a portrait photographer as a “job on the side”, but I found myself thinking about it all the time, and never thinking of it as “work”.
Enter my angel.
In 2008 I was blessed with the birth of my daughter. I was fortunate enough to take a maternity leave from teaching to stay home with her. As she grew older, my maternity leave time gave me the opportunity to invest more energy in photography than I ever could while teaching, and I became convinced of my new path. With that, I decided to launch Heidi Hope Photography full time. Until then I never dreamed that my love of working with people could be combined with my passion for photography in a full-time career.
And now…
I love getting to know each of my clients and helping them to create photographs that they will relish for years to come. I feel so fortunate that they invite me into their lives to observe and quietly capture their most precious moments. My greatest ambition is to capture those moments… the personality… the spirit… and preserve them forever, so that they may always be looked back upon with a smile. Those moments are a gift to me as much as to my clients because nothing brings me more joy.
I hope that viewing my work will bring each of you as many smiles as it has brought to me!
Become a fan on Facebook!
Heidi is a proud member of PPA, Professional Photographers of America and the National Association of Professional Children’s Photographers (NAPCP).
no comments