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6 Month Baby Portrait: Keyes – Private Residence – Montgomery, Alabama

6 months old might be my favorite age to photograph babies. Why? Because they’re usually very smile-y and squishable at that age, which is oh so cute for portraits. The added bonus is they can usually sit up on their own, but they’re not super mobile yet. It’s much easier to me to take pictures of a happy, stationary baby than an extremely independent and mobile toddler!

In the months that had passed since I shot her newborn pictures, Keyes had grown to have a personality all her own! When I arrived at her Montgomery home, she was full of big, gummy smiles, and had some adorably wild curls on the top of her head. Her mom made sure to have plenty of cute wardrobe options, ranging from monogrammed denim to a sequined purple mermaid outfit!

6 month old baby girl smiling for portraits

Keyes kissed her Yorkie during her portrait session, so if it looks like she’s try to eat her, don’t worry. No doggies were harmed! 😀

smiling baby in denim outfit sitting on white daybed

6 month old baby portraits in montgomery alabama

baby girl laughing in emerald green velvet chair

smiling baby wearing floral headband and purple sequins

When we were outside for these pictures, Keyes sat and watched cars go by and waved at the drivers. I’m sure they all noticed her cute little floral headband and Bambi bubble.

smiling baby girl wearing vintage bambi outfit

6 month old baby girl lying on white bed

blue eyed baby girl looking at camera and smiling

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Portrait: Ella – Blount Cultural Park – Montgomery, Alabama

Ella had grown a lot since we did her last set of portraits at The Barn at Pisgah Hill. Back then, she still looked very much like a baby, with short brown hair and chunky baby cheeks. Fast forward to this session when we took her toddler portraits at Blount Cultural Park. Her silky hair had gotten very long, and her personality became more expressive (and sassy, lol). There was still a hint of those baby cheeks though! Her mom chose two outfits for her – first up was a soft mauve-y pink princess dress with a velvet tie and tiered skirt. The second option was casual and comfortable – a panda themed outfit complete with sunglasses and purse, and a pair of crisp white Adidas to go with it. Ella’s mom is a hairstylist, so naturally, she brought elastics to put up some pigtails for a hair change.

If you’re carrying a tiny panda bear purse, what do you keep in it? Snacks, duh! We stopped on the steps for a little break and some peanut butter cheese crackers. Did you notice the polished pink fingernails on Miss Priss yet? Always the diva! 🙂

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Wedding: Colleen & Jacob – The F. Scott & Zelda Fitzgerald Museum & Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts – Montgomery, Alabama

Colleen and Jacob’s wedding at the F. Scott & Zelda Fitzgerald Museum was a little bit boho, a little bit classic, and a lot relaxed. There were also a couple surprises in the bride’s room, including the goodest doggy Paige. She wore a collar made of seeded eucalyptus to match her mama’s crown, and she knew exactly how cute she was. And obviously I knew Colleen and Jacob since I took their engagement pictures months before the wedding, but I didn’t know that I already met Colleen’s sister MANY years before that. When I saw her, I realized Stephanie had been a bridesmaid in a different wedding I shot!

Colleen’s boho lace gown from Theia suited her perfectly, along with her “something blue” – a tiny blue dot of polish on her ring fingernail. Jacob’s tie (from Ralph Lauren) gave him a little trouble, so what’s a groom to do? You find a YouTube video that tells you how to tie it!

Once the ceremony was over, Jacob couldn’t help but dance. 😀 They hopped into a vintage car and made their way to the reception at the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, where we finished up their wedding party photos and took advantage of the setting sun’s light.

All of the flowers were designed by Al’s Flowers, with the exception of the potted white flowers that sat on the tables outside on the museum terrace. Those flowers were grown by Colleen’s dad, and displayed in pots purchased from Hobby Lobby. Guests dined on tenderloin and oysters Rockefeller from Jennie Weller, as well as cakes from Liger’s Bakery.

I have no idea what the story was behind the pug masks, but I didn’t care because they made for some funny pictures! I did know that Jacob played the guitar (hence the guitar themed groom’s cake), but I didn’t know he sang as well. He stepped in to temporarily front the Southern City Lights band, while a guest (a friend of Jacob’s) also joined in to play guitar.

Ceremony venue: The F. Scott & Zelda Fitzgerald Museum

Reception venue: Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts

Wedding gown: Theia

Bride’s shoes: Badgley Mischka

Groom’s tie: Ralph Lauren

Floral design: Al’s Flowers

Catering: Jennie Weller

Cakes: Liger’s Bakery

Band: Southern City Lights

Honeymoon location: Italy

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Portrait: Prince Tega – Auburn University – Auburn, Alabama

***UPDATE: Prince Tega was drafted in the 6th round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles!

When Prince Tega was 16, he came to Montgomery, AL from Nigeria with nothing but a backpack and 20 bucks. He was going to live with a family he had never met (but I happen to know are the kindest, goofiest people you will ever meet, because I’ve photographed them more than once). His hopes were to get a basketball scholarship to college, then play in the NBA, all to make a better life for his mom and 8 siblings, who were all still in Nigeria. He had never played a game of football, and had only seen it in movies. But you know how they say when opportunity knocks, you should listen? Well, it knocked. And he didn’t just listen, he grabbed that opportunity and suplexed it into the end zone. 😀

Prince Tega (or just Tega, as his family here calls him) made the switch to football, and the rest is history. When he was getting ready to graduate from Auburn University, his “surrogate” mom here in America called me to see if I could take some pictures. There was a light drizzle that day, but we felt like we could work around it. We made a stop at Tega’s to gather up some outfits, including a suit and traditional Nigerian clothing, and made our way to the Auburn locker room.

Brother Zack helped out during the shoot, running to grab items that were forgotten in Tega’s room and also by grabbing us some grub. Then of course we had to work a photobomb or two in somewhere.

Congrats Tega – I can’t wait to see where the next chapter and your million dollar smile take you!

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Commercial: My Own Professional Headshots – Montgomery, Alabama

When The Local Palate was getting ready to publish their article about White Oak Pastures (with accompanying photographs shot by yours truly), they asked me for a quote and a headshot so they could include me on their contributors page. Well then of course I went into panic mode because my most recent headshot was MANY years old. So I decided it was time to fix my hair, put on some makeup, put a camera on a tripod, and remedy the situation!

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