I just love this little lady!  I didn’t think it was possible for baby S to get any cuter when I met her at her newborn session.  Then, I was pretty sure that there wasn’t a more adorable baby around at her 6 month session.  Of course, she showed up for her 1st birthday cake smash full of smiles and sweet as ever!  The whole family is crazy photogenic so it is no wonder that S rocked one of my favorite cake smash sessions ever.  Even big brother was a breeze to photograph during every one of our sessions together.  THAT is impressive mom and dad!  I started narrowing down favorites for this blog sneak peek and I had 115 FAVORITES.  I don’t know who is in bigger trouble with this gallery, me, or mom!  I want every one of these and they aren’t even my kids.  Okay, I would take these two cutie pies any day too!  Enjoy your sneak peek.

Last week started off in my favorite way; a fun first birthday cake smash with an adorable, smiley baby!  R seemed to love having her picture taken.  She was full of expression and so playful with mom and dad.  Mom picked out my favorite color scheme for their cake smash.  Not only did the pink and turquoise combine for a soft girly set, they made R’s gorgeous blue eyes shine in every frame.  Thanks for all of the fun R family!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

Another one of my adorable newborns from 2011 turned one year old recently and celebrating with her family was the perfect way to come back from my maternity leave.  We originally had our session planned for last Monday, but with our area experiencing some serious thunderstorms, it was dark as night in the studio and we decided to reschedule.  The H family made it in on Friday instead and we had a fabulous session together.  This family holds a special place in my heart.  They traveled from London for both their maternity and newborn sessions last year and they took part in a very special project we started back then and are finally about to share with you!  You can learn more about that project and see a sneak peek here: A Birth Story Preview (warning: get the tissues).  For A’s first birthday session, mom and dad loved soft girly colors and some of our previous floral back drops.  I was in the mood to create something new so we surprised them with these giant handmade flowers!  A was full of smiles from start to finish.  Can’t wait to show you the rest mom and dad!

We started this project back in early 2011 when we met with the talented Joe Maggiolo (of Joe Maggiolo Media) so that we could offer our clients something in addition to beautiful portraiture for their walls.  While I am able to freeze the moment with my lens through photography, Joe can capture the movement of a newborn’s breath, the sound of a baby’s laugh and the expression of new parents beyond the still frame.  When the H family traveled to our studio from London, they were thrilled with the opportunity to document their experience with Joe and I together.  Combining the art of still and video was amazing.  The results were beautiful and we’ve been waiting over a year to finally offer the video experience to all of our clients.  To create our Birth Story, Joe and I work together at the Heidi Hope Photography Studio.  I pose our sweet newborns and Joe quietly records our session.  At the end of our time together Joe interviews mom and dad and then puts it all together for a video keepsake, beautifully documenting the beginning of a new life.  You can see from just the preview below how breathtaking the outcome is.

We revisited with the H family just last week for A’s first birthday session.  Our staff sat down at the studio just before their session to re-watch this promo, as so much time had past since we created the video.  We were all in tears!  Seeing how big A has already grown makes what we captured even more special.  Mom and dad still treasure their full video as well, as we know they will forever.

If you have a session with Heidi Hope Photography, our newest package combining photography and videography is available for all sessions.  Please contact the studio for more information.  401-864-1919 or email info@heidihope.com.

Last week was my first back at the studio and it felt so great to return to the swing of things!  I had 2 cake smashes for 2 of my adorable newborn girls from 2011 and I couldn’t wait to get started on their sets.  I loved breaking out the glue gun and creating these fun backdrops.  Getting outdoors to shoot was even more fun and baby E was the perfect subject for my first session back.  Totally gorgeous and full of smiles, this baby girl reminded me of just how much fun my job is!  I am so looking forward to all of the sessions we have coming up this summer and we’re already booking well into 2013 so pick up the phone and give us a call if you’re considering a HHP session this year!  Thanks for the fun day baby E and family and happy first birthday!

Baby R’s first birthday shoot was so colorful and creative! How beautiful are these traditional clothes? Mom and dad hadn’t worn their Korean hanbok since their wedding, and wanted to incorporate it into their family photos. I love the colors and patterns, and R seemed to love his new outfit, too! The day we had our session was his actual birthday, so it was a perfect time to bring out clothing traditionally worn for special occasions.

Mom also requested a suitcase shot, but had the idea to use an airplane above the suitcases for an adorable ‘travel’ look. I love how it came out! R’s cloud shirt completed the look. He was also pretty proud to be standing by himself with our chair, and kept trying to scoot it around the studio like he does at home.

Happy birthday, baby R!

~ Mariah

If there were such a thing as a Cakesmash Model, little M would be a serious contender for the job. Even though she hadn’t touched anything with frosting before, she dove right into the cake- literally! She expertly smashed, all while smiling the entire time. I loved her girly set, too…we added a touch of lime green to our ribbon curtain to match her custom-made outfit and butterfly cake.

Between those blue eyes and her adorable smile, she made my job pretty easy! Happy Birthday, baby M!

~ Mariah

Baby D has been with the studio since his birth, but it was the first time I got to photograph him. It was great to work with a family that’s been with Heidi Hope for so long!

For the cakesmash, we decided to match the set to the theme of his bedroom- vintage race cars! Sweet Indulgence did a fantastic job with the cake, and I had some fun putting checkered flags together for the background. The complete look was so ‘boy’, and something we hadn’t done at the studio yet. D was delicate with the cake, but luckily his big brother was there to show him how to eat all that frosting. 

H family, it was great to meet you. Enjoy your preview!

~ Mariah

This was teeny newborn N just a little less than a year ago:

And look how much he has grown!  N was back again to celebrate his first birthday in style with a cake smash session.  Mom brought in a favorite toy during her planning session and we used those colors to design a fun and colorful set that perfect for N’s upcoming party.  We had a dark and rainy day in the studio, but all of these colors and N’s adorable smile certainly brightened up our day!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

I’ve been photographing this adorable family for the past three years, starting when big sister D was just days old.  Last week it was time to celebrate little brother W’s first birthday with a colorful cake smash!  Both little ones have birthdays close together and their party this year is a little buckaroo theme.  How adorable!  We planned a fun cake smash outdoors to match and Sweet Indulgence made us the perfect little cowboy cake to match.  W enjoyed his cake like no other.  He couldn’t get enough, as you can see below, and between each bite he just kept saying “mmmmmmmmm,  mmmmmmmmm”   I’m laughing just recalling how adorable he was.  It was so hard picking favorites for this preview because I honestly wanted to share them all!  Can’t wait to show you the rest mom and dad :0)