BLOG – Page 48 – the latest in-studio & on-location MO, IL and beyond

March 16, 2017March 17, 2017

| Lauren A | Decatur IL Senior Class of 2017 Portraits |

Today is Lauren’s day in the spotlight! I had so much fun hanging out with Lauren and her momma on session. This gal is the youngest in her family so the ’empty nest’ days are creeping up fast for this family and we wanted to make sure and soak up the entire experience for Lauren.

We spent a little time downtown to create a few ‘grungy’ looks which seemed especially fitting for her volleyball portraits. After that we worked in some time at Forsyth park to get a bit of a wild nature/field look which was a perfect contrast to my favorite location for her session, her home. Lauren’s family home is on a gorgeous tree-lined lane which couldn’t be more picturesque. Plus, with a backyard landscape fit for a wedding (her sister got married in their backyard, how cool is that) it was a perfect setting for some of her portraits as well. And having part of the session at her home made it very easy to fit in a few props (pumpkins and mums) to create a fall look and her adorable kitty!

I’m working on finishing up her album in the coming days and am so excited to now show you all her favorite images from her session.
Be sure to head over to her Facebook Album to give her some love with your likes/comments and don’t forget you can still apply for the best senior portrait experience as a VIP Senior Model HERE!

March 14, 2017March 9, 2017

| Samuel | ONE Year Old Children’s Session | Jefferson City, MO |

Guys, one of the itty bitty babies I’ve photographed from birth is a whole year old now! And he’s a heartbreaker ladies. I swear, he had me giving him candy and stickers and balloons all just by batting those eyes and grinning. Samuel’s momma and I went to high school together and I’m so honored she’s shared so many of her big life events with me from engagement to wedding and now her and her sweet husband’s first year dive into parenthood (and they’re stellar parents who make SUPER cute babies). And the best part? I’ve got a date with this dude for his 2nd birthday and I know it’s going to be here before we know it!

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^^^ Look’s like he’s pretty excited to be ONE too don’t you think. Be sure to stop by their Facebook Album to give Sam your birthday wishes and some love (and see if you have a cute caption idea for one of my favorite images).

March 9, 2017March 9, 2017

| Heather + Cody | Springfield IL Spring Wedding Day | Sarah Jane Photography |

As we warm up a bit more this week and get a little glimpse at the coming spring I thought it would be a great day to show off a spring wedding! I had the honor to be a part of Heather & Cody’s big day and what an absolutely perfect and beautiful day it was. With a peacock color scheme this was anything but a dull wedding. It was bright, colorful, fun and full of so much love.

One of my favorite parts of Heather & Cody’s big day was their first ‘not’ look! You all may know I LOVE the first look part of the day. Why? Because it’s a moment for just the two of you. One where we slow things down (which can be a big contrast to what can often be a hectic wedding day). We carve out a few minutes for just you two, alone, to say hello. It’s a moment that’s always charged with energy and excitement, often tears, and lots of love. But even when a couple chooses to save that big first look for the aisle we can still give you a moment to connect without actually seeing each other. For Heather & Cody we created that moment at the train station, where Heather got to walk down the staircase to her groom, give him a hug and even hold his hand without ever revealing her bridal look.

Their reception showed off the peacock theme perfectly. Look how vibrant those colors are and how stunning and original are those cakes!

Be sure to pop over to their Facebook Album to give them some love with your likes/comments and check out their engagement session here.

March 7, 2017March 6, 2017

| Brittany | Senior Portraits | Class of 2017 |

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Today is Brittany’s time to shine. I’ve had the opportunity to work with Brittany’s family multiple times over the past few years but I was so excited to hear it was already time for Brittany’s senior session and her moment in the spotlight! Her and her family are definitely bit animal lovers so it was a no-brainer to work in her gorgeous kitty (how beautiful is her coloring, and perfect for our studio backdrops!). We also wanted to be sure to get some variety so while we did a few in-studio for a really classic look we also popped downtown for something a little grittier/grungier. And my favorite are her nature images from this fall, especially the ones in the water… I just love that hat and dress!

To finish off her senior portraits she popped back in the studio recently with her friend Alivia so we could create a few images of them together for their graduation party. These two were a blast for their short session so I know they will have a ton of fun at their upcoming party.

Don’t forget to pop over to Brittany’s Facebook Album to give her some love with your likes/comments!

March 3, 2017February 23, 2017

| Abby S | LSA Senior Model Class of 2017 | Decatur IL |

I’m so glad the time has come to show off and share Abby’s full senior portrait experience with you! The lovely Ms. Abby is a senior at LSA high school here in Decatur and she was one of our class of 2017 senior models. That means that her portrait experience with us started small, with a quick 5 minute debut session here in the studio….

and it grew and grew…. That individual quick session was followed by our model session event in the beautiful (but WINDY) spring weather at Ryder’s Garden center. The yellow blooms were perfect with her golden blond hair and I love the Greek goddess look that the floral crown by The Secret Garden gave her! ryder's garden center, mt. zion il garden center, senior photos, senior photographer, senior portraits, high school seniors, siblings, outdoor portraits, outside, sun flare, sunshine, forest, trees, decatur il photographer, photographer, photography studio, lsa, lsa seniors, spring flowers, yellow flowers

After those two model sessions, which were really about creating fun looks I loved, it was time for HER senior sessions which are all about creating looks that SHE loves. We hopped back in the studio for a few more looks in the early spring but the real magic happened in the summer when we hit the town…

We started downtown before hitting some backroads in search of something fresh and new and we found it. A perfect little one-lane-gravel road where we had a great sunset and some wild tall weeds! I love so many of Abby’s portraits and am so glad that she did too.

Don’t forget you can still apply for your chance to be a class of 2018 senior model for a full year portrait experience just like this! Model applications are accepted from now until March 31st so don’t wait!

And be sure to head over to Abby’s Facebook Album to give her some likes/comments.

** Some images edited using BoxDropsbySJP overlays and most backdrops used are available to purchase at www.boxdropsbysjp.com!