Do You Like School Portraits?

I was reading about school pictures the other day at Design Mom. She had posted an alternative option where the kids are standing against a brightly colored seamless wearing their favorite dress up or bring in their favorite whatever to hold while being photographed. Not sure how that would go over for kids older than 4th or 5th grade, but the little ones I’m sure love it. It was interesting to read the comments to that post and discover how many people like the trad school photos. Really??!! I mean I don’t even waste my $$. I got the wallet sized prints thinking India would pass them to her friends, but we never did that. She looked so pale, her hair was a mess… I’ll just have to show you. I’m all for messy hair, by the way. There’s something silly about making a kid sit and pose and expecting a good photograph after one frame is shot. The situation demands perfection. The bright, even lighting. The simple, static pose. If your kid has moved after leaving the house and before getting her picture taken, it’s sure to be a bust. Hair needs brushing, clothes need mending. They need a full set with hair and makeup, wardrobe, a stylist, and a wrangler to get a decent photograph. But we never expect perfection from school portraits. Some moms on this blog commented that they felt it was an honest slice of life with the imperfections. But do you really ever see your child under that light, frozen like a deer in headlights? I don’t. My girl never looks like this to me:

In any case, I’m glad I got a chance to photograph my nieces and nephews this year. After this weekend, I will have them all. My sister and her boy are coming for a visit. I hope these can be used as alternatives to the school portrait.
It’s been a great summer. We visited family in Virginia and the Smiths were traveling through Denver on their way to Utah and then to California. I can’t believe we will see all of our nieces and nephews before Labor Day!

We had a couple of days of fun with this Smith family. They all doted on Zed and we enjoyed getting to know our newest nephew, their littlest. He was sooo cute and such a happy kid. I had a great time catching up with my sis-in-law. We shopped at the local Asian market and spent way too much. But I was able to learn a new way to cook cabbage. (Japanese pizza) which I have used several times… even with swiss chard. Yum, I want some now.
Then we left the kids and went on a double date. I love having an excuse to eat somewhere nice in town. This time we went to Steuben’s. I swear that place has lighting from a Mormon chapel hanging over their bar. Good food, great company. We’re glad you all could make it our way.