I am behind on highlighting past sessions…so here is the first of several sessions I loved in 2011

I love when I get to see children other than my own grow up.  It is such a privilege and and honor.  If I met them the first time when they were really little, it is fun to see how they have grown and to see their personalities come alive.

Mom called and asked if I could do another shoot with her kids she said, we added a third and he is a “wild man”.  She was right.  I had to really work for it!

He was so fast I did not get much of his sisters.  So we scheduled a second shoot and I got a whole morning with just the girls and I LOVED every single second of it.

Mom and Dad ordered a custom Album for themselves.  I love these Albums.  The cover is all leather.  Each Album comes with 20 pages featuring one image per page.  They are simple and elegant.  Each Album also comes with a beautiful slip cover to protect it thru the years.  Once again a product photographer I am not, but here are a few images of their beautiful album so you can get an idea of what they look like.  This is a great alternative if you don’t have the room on your walls.

Every year I take the best 200 or so photos from all my photographers that I have recruited to help me and make a photo slideshow.  It is my favorite part of covering this event because I get to tell the whole story of the day.

If you have viewing or it wont load, please go HERE

A super special thanks to my partner in crime Paige Pearson of Simple Expressions Photography. Paige has shot 5 different GOTRDC races with me and schleps all the way from Stafford, VA.  Each race she ROCKS it out of the park!  She is a fantastic photographer and friend and I could not do this without her help.

And a special thanks to my newest photog helper Ella Barnes, daughter of Fran Barnes – the GOTRDC Events Coordinator.  Ella is off to college next Fall (keeping my fingers crossed it is my alma mater ) where she hopes to study photography, among other things, and she did a fantastic job of capturing the race out on the course.

For those of you interested in ordering some prints check out the GOTRDC SmugMug page HERE

In past races I have highlighted the Moms and the Dads that run with their girls.  This year I want to highlight the Running Buddy.

In every 5k there are bunch of grown-ups who volunteer to to run with a GOTR girl who does not have a family/network member to run with her. Running Buddies are assigned to a team and the coaches identify the girls who could use some extra support and encouragement. The Running Buddies are ordinary folk from the community and most have never met their little buddy before the 5K. But you would never know that from the photos. What I see, as they come down the pike to the finish line, is the pride and joy they exude for their little buddy as she crosses the finish. Some cheer their girl on, some hold their hands, some hold their little buddies gear so she can run unencumbered, but all beam and radiate the community spirit that makes GOTRDC and this program so special and amazing to begin with.

Here are some of my favorite images of the Running Buddies from the December 2011 5K.

GOTRDC shared some testimonials from some of this year’s Running Buddies:

• The young girls were amazing. I was a running buddy and was paired with an 11 year old, who really kept me moving. She was amazing and really motivated me!!! I think this is an amazing organization! Thanks so much for allowing me to be involved.
• I plan to run again –it was a blast! Thanks for such a fun race!!!
• I had a great time! Thank you GOTR for this wonderful experience

Thank you to all the 140 Running Buddies who came out to support a girl on the run.

If you are interested in becoming a Running Buddy for GOTRDC for the next 5K click HERE to learn more.

EDITED: To view all the photos form the GOTR-DC December 2011 5K click HERE

What a beautiful perfect morning to run a 5K.  Want to see some yucky weather in which to run a 5K check out December 2008, November 2009, and December 2010.

Once again I had the honor and the privilege to be a part of Girls on the Run DC 5K.  Every semester they ask be back and every time I say yes.  Regardless of the weather, when I see the girls who are struggling get to the finish line start to beam as they round the corner for the home stretch…my heart is filled with love.   Always.

I may only know them from the images I take every year but I could not be more proud, more excited, and more thrilled for each and every one.  Every time I get a little verklempt.  Every time I have to remind myself to keep shooting, because a part of me can’t help but put down the camera to cheer them on. Every time I can feel the love, the joy, the excitement, the energy, the full on girl-power-party.

It’s infectious.

This is why I {heart} the Girls on the Run 5K and make sure you go over Simple Expressions Photography, aka Paige Pearson and my second shooter for these races, for some more great images of today…she always manages to capture the heart of this event.

Also be sure to check out he GOTR-DC SmugMug page to see all the official Race Photos

Love these kids

It was a cold and windy day but did not stop our fun at the park

Toddlers always give me a run for my money.  And I love it!  You never know what they are into, what will excite them, and what they will obsess over.   And just when you have it all figured out they change on you.  But they also laugh with their whole body, hug and kiss you with everything fiber of their being, and dive head first in all they see and do..which is a great way to tackle life no matter what age you are.

Some black and white film – I loved every frame of film from this session

And this film image is being printed and framed.  They could not have picked a more telling beautiful portrait of a child this age.

…And the Framed Piece.  As you can see I am not a product photographer, because this image does not do this final piece justice.  You will just have to see a framed piece in person.  This piece turned out more beautiful than I expected.  The square crop is perfect;  the fine art paper I print on is stunning; the frame choice compliments the image and the black and white film image perfectly.  One of my greatest joys is to see the photographs of our session come to life int he form of a framed print.

To me the mark of a great life long friend is when you can be apart or not speak for awhile but when you do finally meet up, it is as if you left each other yesterday and you never skipped a beat.   My dear friend KMD and I met back when I had a 9-5 policy wonk job.  When we met we just clicked, it was if we had known each other forever.   Even though we sometimes drift apart because of kids, school, jobs, husbands, and our busy lives…when we hook back up its like we pick up right where we left off.  You you remember how amazing it feels to have that kind of positive spirit and energy in your life.

KMD has entrusted me to capture both her sweet babies as newborns (Baby no 1) and we also have done some shoots for their annual Valentine’s Day card too.  KMD had her second baby this August and as luck would have it she came home from the hospital just as my kids started school.   I got to spend a whole day with her and new sweet baby and wrap myself up in her light.  Lucky me

Dads and daughters just melt my heart every time

This is the image she chose for her announcements

And here is her announcement.  I send all my clients to my studio storefront at http://emilyweiss.minted.com.  They make beautiful Holiday cards, baby announcements, and invitations.

KMD got announcements, the wrap around skinny label (with name on back and address on front) and coordinating thank you notes on a rich cotton paper. They are perfect!

Ever wonder what happened to old friends from high school and what their kids might look and be like?  I feel so fortunate I got to find out just before Summer vacation and just after adding their third.  These kids remind me of their dad back when we were kids

Big brother and sister love their new baby sister

Mom and her new baby…so much love

We had a blast playing at the park

This was literally the last shot on my roll of black and white film and the last shot of the session. This could not be any more perfect.