(We posted this last Spring, but wanted to bring it back for this year’s Spring family sessions!)

Thinking of doing a family shoot this year, but nervous about finding coordinating outfits for a group? We’ve got you covered! All you need is one piece to get started, and it’s a breeze from there.

Stylists know that the key to group styling is a balance of colors, textures, fabrics, and patterns. This guide will give you an example of how to achieve this balance, while still keeping the group comfortable and stylish. We’ll give you one example here, but this concept can be applied to any season and any look.

All pieces shown are from J.Crew. Happy Shopping!

Happy Birthday, baby J! This little guy has the sweetest personality, as you can see in his photos. He was hesitant of the camera at first, but quickly got into the photoshoot groove, playfully interacting with the camera for the whole session.

We’ve had a lot of nautical cake smash themes this year, but nobody had done an ‘under the sea’ set until this one! I loved making all of the creatures, and J was mesmerized by the fish swimming around him. Thanks to Sweet Indulgence for the friendly shark cake!

Remember this cutie with his planes and snowboard? Throwback Thursday is my good excuse to share more family photos from K’s session. We wanted the session to be really fun, candid, joyful, and kinetic, so we laughed, smiled, and kept things moving. Don’t you almost want to be a part of this family after seeing these? So stylish and fun!

~Mariah

Storyboards are my favorite product that clients order. These are my favorite because they are super customizable and are beautifully stunning when displayed on a wall.

This weeks featured size is a 16×24 storyboard.  These 16×24′s are very popular for all types of sessions.

16×24 storyboards are one of our most popular sizes by far! The tricky part my clients face is picking the right amount of images and the orientation because it really matters!  This week tip I focus on 3 to 4 image storyboard because thats the average number picked.  I’ve done up to nine images on one board though!  These are great visual layouts to help pick images because whether its a canvas or in an Organic Bloom frame the goal is to make the images look balanced.

There is nothing I love more than warm weather!  Even with all the snow continuing to pile up, I’m looking forward to throwing on this beautiful floral dress designed by QSW.  The Avalon dress is one of the newest pieces featured in their 2013 spring line.  Keep an eye out because floral prints will be blooming everywhere soon enough!  Check out the rest of Quiksilver Women’s line here!  ~Caroline

I first met this happy baby girl back in 2011 when she and her big brother visited our studio for portraits.  We stayed in touch online and through the wonderful community of moms at Bellani Maternity over the years.

We were on our Holiday break this year when I saw the story spread over facebook.  A family in our community was struggling with the recent diagnosis of their young daughter.  She had gone into the doctors with a stomach bug and then their world had changed.  I soon found out it was Belle and her final diagnosis was pre-B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) .  I just couldn’t wrap my head around the sudden news.   I sent mom a message as soon as I heard.  Whenever she was ready, whenever Belle was ready, I wanted to be there for them in any way that I could.

I have worked with many families fighting childhood illness through The Tiny Sparrow Foundation over the past few years.  It has been the most meaningful part of what I do as a photographer.  I know how much photos can mean to families fighting through treatment and recovery.  I also knew how much Belle’s beautiful curls meant to her mom.  Not for their physical beauty, or the soft way they framed her baby doll face, but because they were a symbol of Belle’s babyhood.  They were a symbol of Belle before their world was turned upside-down.  I know I would have felt exactly like Belle’s mom did.  Yes, those curls will grow back, surely more beautiful than ever, but I would have wanted to hold onto them as long as I could.  I had to get to the hospital and capture Belle’s curls.

Belle and her mom are some of the strongest girls I’ve ever met.  Mom has been incomprehensibly positive and tenacious for her daughter.  They amaze me and everyone else they meet.  Belle had already fought through over two weeks of treatment and wasn’t feeling great the day I visited.  We had endless fun, girly, dress-up toys to make her smile, but she mostly wanted her Elmo, her mommy, and her cozy blanket.  You know what?  That Elmo and blanket looked pretty perfect to me and there is nothing more beautiful than a mother’s love.

Plus, this isn’t the last photo shoot you’ll see with Belle here.  We’ll be catching up again, when she’s feeling much better.  She has plenty of tutu-twirling ahead of her!  This summer, her hair will be growing back and I probably won’t be able to keep up with her as she runs around outside.  For now, I’m happy to have captured those sweet curls before her next chapter begins.  You can read more about Belle’s story in her mother’s words on the Kent Macaroni Kids Blog.

If you would like to help Belle and her family, please visit  Belle’s Youcaring.com Page or check back in with us for the many opportunities to make a difference for Belle in the coming months.

Oh my gosh, is this not one of the cutest babies you have ever seen?  I was totally in love with her from the first second she looked at me with those big brown eyes.  Little Star sessions are some of my favorite and especially when babies are at this age.  It feels like I’m just hanging out with mom and dad, playing dress up with their little one.  Sometimes I have to remind myself that I’m working!  M was so sweet.  She indulged us in plenty of adorable outfits and sets.  I’m wondering how I’ll ever choose favorites for this gallery!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

Sweets + a sweet model = an epicly sweet shoot! Shoots like this remind me how much I love my job.    Sweet Indulgence called us the day before this happened and asked if we wanted to pop over to their shop for a quick shoot, and I had no idea that THIS would happen! We started out shooting the table of cakes and candy, then added in our bridal model to create a ‘fashion’ shoot to show off the stunning wedding cakes that Sweet Indulgence now makes. The tiers of lace in the background, her dress, and then the ruffles on the cake all came together for a vintage-elegant look.

Wedding cakes and dessert table: Sweet Indulgence

Bouquet: Flowers By Semia

Dress and Accessories: Couture Bridal

Lashes: Ch’i Spa

Makeup and Hair: Dion at Magnolia Salon

~ Mariah

December has come and gone, but we have one more deal to share with you for 2013!  This deal is available for ONE WEEK ONLY.  After one week, the deal, and the opportunity, expires! If you’re a newsletter subscriber, you’re already in the know about the entire series. To hear about future promotions, sign up for our newsletter here.

This week’s deal (expires 5pm EST, January 15th, 2013): Book a Maternity session for January-March of 2013, and receive 20% off your session fee!

A maternity session is the perfect way to create stunning, heirloom portraits for your family to remember your pregnancy. We love to get older siblings involved in sessions, and husbands, too! To see more maternity photos (from almost a year ago, when Heidi was pregnant with Grace!) click here!

How do I take advantage of this deal??

Call the studio (401-864-1919) this week to schedule and submit your session fee for a maternity session. Please note we are here to answer your calls Monday through Friday 9-5pm.  Calls during non business hours will be returned in the order received.  Session fee must be submitted before 5pm EST, December 21st, 2012.

~ The Heidi Hope Team

Did you have a session with Heidi Hope Photography in 2012?  We’d love to thank you for your business and help you show off your favorite HHP photos in style with our fun new Facebook Cover Photo Collages!

Our Free Gift to You!

Heidi Hope is now offering complimentary facebook timeline photos for our 2012 clients. You can choose any image that you purchased or that was featured in a preview from your session.  Did you have more than one session with us?  Feel free to combine them!

How do I get my free cover photo?

1. Pick out a template from the options below.

2. Pick out images to fit in the spaces within your template.  (Please choose images that were purchased or featured in a preview from your session)

3. Email your choices to [meg @ heidihope.com].

4. We’ll upload your design to facebook and tag you so you can enjoy showing off your gorgeous HHP photos to everyone you know!