Month: March 2016

Memories of bunnies

2014 Bunnies at Greg Patterson Studio in Nacogdoches.

A Magical Combination…

Since we opened our doors twenty years ago, we’ve had a lot of good ideas come and go. Though our focus has always been to provide lifestyle portraiture that makes you “feel” something, we’ve always tried to keep things fresh and in keeping with today’s trends. Making elaborate sets for one person for one hour was never our style, but could we decorate a set for many clients over a short number of days? We’ve always had great success photographing children, so we began using the holidays as an excuse to do something a little more fun! We began with the Easter holiday and bunnies, because…well, do I really need to explain it? Children with bunnies is a magical combination.

2011 Bunnies at G. Patterson Studio.

There’s a huge element of unpredictability when photographing animals, but that’s what makes for a great photo session! Just when you have all your subjects, both kids and bunnies, looking in the general vicinity of your camera, the bunny hops off. Or, it could be the child scooting out of the scene, because come to find out, they’re afraid of rabbits! Photographing with rabbits, means you’re constantly picking up little pellets that look like their food, but they’re not. And, once, we had a rabbit bite a child, but that was just once. And than, of course, you may have two rabbits acting amorous all of a sudden, and you have to explain that’s just their way of playing, because that’s a conversation better left for the parents to have with them.

They’ve come with many names attached to them, but “Payday” has stuck with me, because of the number of years we used him. He was a beautiful big flop-eared rabbit that was so gentle and not easily spooked. Children would remember him from one Easter to the next, and were always happy to see him. Tracy Steinhauser and her two, Kasy and Keelan, were instrumental in keeping us in stock every Easter. We knew if our rabbits came from them, they’d be groomed and well cared for. Each of our three children were photographed with the bunnies. Our daughter, now 28 years, loved the bunny sessions so much, she even posed as a teen with her best friend and the bunnies. Our sons were a little less enthused. We even acquired a couple rabbits of our own at one point and would allow them to play in the backyard with the cats.

Since that Time…

2013 Bunnies at G Patterson Studio.

Since that time, we’ve had many more of these types of sessions designed around a theme or holiday. We’ve had Santa for Christmas, pumpkins at Halloween, watermelons for Independence Day. For these children’s session we’ve used titles like “Gone Fishin’,” ”Puppy Love,” ”In the Attic,” ”Tea Party,” ”Little Guys in Ties,” and ”Mom & Me,” to name a few.

All of these “mini” sessions over the years serve to create fond memories for us at the studio. Our favorite remembrances, though, come from the sessions with the bunnies. They take a little more time and effort, but they’re always worth it!

Just4Fun is the title we give these specially designed sessions. They’re just for kids and just fifteen minutes long. We provide viewing at the time of your session, and our packages are offered at a discount. If you’re interested in our “Easter Bunnies” Just4Fun session, visit

2008 Bunny portraits at G Patterson Studio.

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About being engaged

Moon_236a — Kyle and Haley engaged and loving it!

“Engage in the little moments, you never know which of those will actually be the big moments,”

There is no possible way to convey to you the magic that was August 15, 2015. Engage your attention with me for a moment. I thought, lying there looking up at the stars, I was simply opening my graduation present from my Kyle. Little did I know that at the bottom of that much desired, fox cookie jar, there would be an art deco engagement ring picked out specifically for….me!? I was only expecting cookies! Sneaky boy.

There are very few days that are more important to me than August 15. I woke up, I walked the stage, and I celebrated with family and friends. My folks spoiled me like they do, my brother and sister-in-law came to cheer me on, and my best friends even surprised me by driving all the way from Ft. Worth to celebrate! It was unlike any other day, and that was only the beginning. Moving to Nacogdoches from Houston almost four years ago, I never imagined I’d be marrying a BIN(born-in-Nac, if you will) or building a house on 11 acres of fresh air! I suppose it is still too soon to say, but come April 9, I will be a Compton. I will be a wife!?

This engagement has taught me

This engagement has taught me to “engage.” August 15 Kyle proposed and we found ourselves…engaged in a planning process like no other. Engaged to one another, planning to commit the rest of our forever to being together. It has been an absolute blast. We have engaged in planning our big day, we have engaged in Bible study together, we have engaged in planning not simply a wedding, but a life that will build each of us up and result in two better people. Engagement is much more than a ring and a wedding. Though that may seem obvious, it is easy to make the wedding the big event, and not the life you live after that day.They say the stresses come and go. And sure they have come, but when you have someone so supportive, so silly, and so solid to stand by you, it is a real adventure. To find someone who finds the best in you and cherishes every ounce of your flawed self is something irreplaceable. I never expected to find someone who I adore so much, yet slum around with like a best friend. He is like the 3-in-1 shampoo-conditioner-soap… but obviously better. He makes up the best songs, tells the craziest stories, prays with me and for me, and encourages me on the daily. I am richly blessed.

This season of engagement has taught us a lot about each other, ourselves, and has helped us realize how incredibly blessed we are by a wonderful family, church family and so many supportive friends. The people I have met here have become so special to me and I cannot picture a better group of encouragers to be surrounded by. Engaging in this Nac life has been a small slice of heaven!

…not to mention our incredible photographers! Greg and Cindy hired me almost two years ago. Engaging in their business, their work at SFA, and raising three awesome kids seems to come naturally to them. I know it doesn’t. They work hard and they are two prime examples I have been blessed to know. Our parents have put up with Kyle and myself for, well, our entire lives.. now that is perseverance! If only I can invest myself and engage my best in all I do… I’ll know where and who these great qualities come from!

Moon_200b — Kyle and Haley engaged with having fun!

Tags anniversary, azalea garden, blooms, engagement, G. Patterson, g. patterson studio, Nacogdoches, Photographer, Portrait, Portraits, professional, studio, wedding

Blog

Micro Fashion Auditions

What is Micro Fashion?

It’s an idea that sprang out of a Brainstorming session at the studio a few months ago. We were talking about our latest obsessions on Pinterest, and Haley said how much she loved seeing the little kids wearing trendy clothes and striking cute poses. Photographing kids is nothing new for us. We photograph them with their families, with siblings, and alone. We photograph them with the pond and gazebo and, in a “Just 4 Fun” appointment, with bunnies and watermelons.

At the same time, though, we were successfully photographing high school seniors looking really fashionable in their trendy clothes. So, when Haley mentioned kids sporting fashionable clothes, I made the connection and Micro Fashion was born.

In keeping with the theme of our business, we always want to provide simple, yet memorable portraiture, but at the same time, make it a little edgy. In the magazines and on the internet, kids wore harem pants and fedoras. As it were, though, our boutiques in Nacogdoches don’t have much in the way of urban wear for children. Also giving us some issues, the photos’ locales were streets lined with fashionable shops and famous street corners in New York City or the beach or surf shops of L.A. We would use the brick streets of downtown Nacogdoches.

What Nacogdoches does have…the main ingredient to making this work was cute, adorable kids! When it came time to market our first Micro Fashion appointments, we decided to call them “auditions,” as we’d not ever photographed this way before and had no images to share. It’s hard sharing an idea that’s not quite concrete with other people and expect them to jump on board. So, it was really affirming to us that people began booking appointments. When they arrived for their audition, we were thrilled to find kids that were so excited to be a “model.” And, to give the “momagers” their due, they were definitely “swagged” out!

If you’re kicking yourself for missing the last round of Micro Fashion auditions, no worries. We’re doing it again May 12 and 13. Check out more microFashion on our Pinterest page.

Tags children, g. patterson studio, greg patterson, microfashion, Nacogdoches, Photographer, Portraits