The VanKirks

I recently finished another family session in Denton. I met Tessa and her family, who were introduced to me by Carrie, and her sister-in-law, Stephanie, also attended with her son Aiden. While the weather clouds looked stormy and had a fifty percent chance of rain, the clouds parted and drifted away during the session, and came back towards the end. We started at the square, and moved to our second location, Old Alton Bridge, for the second half:

The stairs at the courthouse always make for great formals:

And here is one of Stephanie and Aiden:

Shortly after the initial formals, I had the kids play around the courthouse, and on the courthouse for some candids:

Isaac underneath tree limbs:

Stephanie and Aiden sat down for this shot, and Stephanie displays her affection here:

I took an individual of Cooper:

And Aiden as well, hugging mom:

We walked away from the square towards Sweetwater, where Kevin and Tessa actually had their first date, so I did another family portrait with the two of them kissing:

The wooden backdrop made for some nice, clean lines:

On the otherside of the Sweetwater storefront was this dark window accented with red and yellow paint:

We moved from the square to Old Alton Bridge, and took the remaining photos there. With the recent storm clouds acting as a diffuser, and the approaching sunset, it gave me a great window of light that only lasted for less than half an hour.

The families wanted some photos of all six of them together, and here's one of them:

Then I moved onto some individuals on the bridge:

And then [part of] Tessa's family, as Isaac was busy playing on the bridge!:

Thanks Tessa, Kevin and Stephanie, for the chance to meet you and your wonderful kids. I look forward to the next session.

Rasy Ran Photography

The Greer and Horsch Families, and Pumpkins

Recently, I was brought along to document the Greer and Horsch family on their outing to the Dallas Arboretum. Unfortunately, Carrie was out sick and couldn't make it, but sent superdad (as he termed it) along with the boys. You may remember Andrea and her family as I went over to their home to photograph Oliver's first birthday earlier this year. They are friends of the Greers and came along as well, making this a fairly simple dual family shoot.

I photographed a formal of the Horsch family early in the beginning:

After the group mingled for a bit, the kids went straight into play-mode. Here's a photo of Jack and leading the adults:

And Nate taking the first smell of the flowers:

We stopped on a stairway to grab individual photos of Jack, Nate, Sam, and Oliver, respectively:

 

Then when we got to the pumpkin houses, I made some quick portraits due to the large crowds:

Oliver did pretty well climbing through the batches of pumpkins:

The Greers peer through one of the window panes of a pumpkin house:

I suggested everyone to check out the hay bale maze setup they have annually as well:

We started to make a trek to the other side of the arboretum, to where the kids typically play, here's a shot of Paul and Sam on the way:

The first stop was at the wagon, with Nate looking out:

Then we made it to the smaller houses, fit for the kids to run around in, and that's what happened:

And a tree too:

Thank you Carrie, Paul, Andrea, and Corey for bringing me out on a nice Fall day and keeping up to date with your family's growth.

Rasy Ran Photography

Ashley's Senior Portraits

A good friend of mine, Ashley, wanted her graduation photos done at Denton Square, so we spent a better part of a Sunday mid-morning photographing them. She plans to go into teaching in Texas, and I couldn't commend her more for that, as educators always have my support.

The natural progression flowed from starting at the center with the courthouse to branching out and taking advantage of the textures and stairwells around the square. I noticed I was more vertically-inclined regarding orientation during the shoot, so this set of images make for a longer post in nature.

The courthouse always provides a nice central location, and the antiquated stairs gave a nice contrast to her dark outfit:

We stopped in front of doorway and photographed this, which was taken with an off-camera remote flash:

When she changed into her second outfit, the green gave a stark contrast with her hair, so I decided to go with a headshot:

Sometimes the backdrops can be unplanned, as in this instance, I shot this in a parking lot with her sitting on some building materials:

We moved to the mural on the side of Recycled Books, Records, CDs, joining her with her alma mater, UNT, as she sports a second green top:

Towards the end, I wanted to get another headshot, this time lying on the grass:

Then, comes the cap and gown:

Congratulations, Ashley! College is nearly done and over -- you made it!

Rasy Ran Photography

Fall Update and Chris and Mandi's Engagements

My apologies, blog world, I have neglected you far too long. I have been sorting out various sessions and events, preparing for them, photographing them, and finally now get a chance post what I've been recently shooting in the next few days. Also, I recently began freelancing for Arlington Magazine, a new start-up! You can view my first article and photos here.

At any rate, onto Chris and Mandi's downtown Fort Worth engagement session!

I initially met Chris through our appreciation of cars, and we periodically kept in touch since we went same school, UT-Arlington. When Chris contacted me about providing coverage of their wedding, I couldn't be happier for them.

We started the session on Sundance Square and photographed around the DR Horton Tower:

 When we stopped for this photo briefly in front of the parking garage shutters, there was an elderly woman who patiently waited on the other side in her whisper-quiet Mercedes. I just wanted to point out some of the things viewers don't think about when seeing the finished product:

We walked north a couple of blocks and I had them stop at one of the nearby courtyards for this shot:

 We also photographed at the Fort Worth Water Gardens, which made a nice retreat on an early Friday afternoon:

After the session in the gardens, I had them follow me as we drove to Trinity Park, which is always welcoming to walking:

They sat at a bench so I could get this shot of Mandi (it was actually the third bench, the sun kept interfering with her eyes, yikes!):

The ontrast of their hands and jeans with a detail of the ring is always a nice touch:

Oh, I forgot to mention, they are committed Stars fans. I wanted the photo to express a bit of their relationship, and more of their following:

Right underneath the Interstate 30 overpass along the Trinity Park trail, there were individual colored columns that wanted photos in front of, so I snapped away:

Chris and Mandi had their first quasi-date (as Chris termed it) at Mijo's in Pantego, a restaurant that serves tasty Mexican food, and they decided to end the session with a few pictures there:

The date of their wedding!:

And I'll leave the session with this photo! Photos of food, not to mention enjoying it, always ends on a good note at the end of a long session (who doesn't love food?):

Thank you Chris and Mandi for rescheduling with me due to inclement weather, and for working with me throughout the whole engagement session. You two looked beautiful together -- I look forward to Mandi's bridals soon, and the wedding at T&P!

Rasy Ran Photography

How My Dog Inspired Me Into Pet Photography

After Rochelle and I took Sheva home a little over a year ago, she has been family ever since. My experience with pet ownership started with feral cats who quite literally walked into my life and home.

Though, I have to say, having a dog is...different. Dog owners can relate, they can be extremely loyal, bring you up when you are down, want to go everywhere you are, and instill a type of unconditional one-way love you experience when you walk through the front door.

If we didn't see her sitting patiently, yet eager when we grabbed a leash to try her out at the Richardson Animal Shelter, she may have been somebody else's dog.

The fact being, she was somebody else's dog for two years, and then dropped off at the pound because she wasn't a excellent purebred.

If it wasn't for that happening, I wouldn't have cataloged pictures of her, with people, with the cat, with other dogs, and share that same camaraderie that pet owners possess. While I love my cat and past cats equally as much, it provides a different view on a pet's life who was once feral and showed up one day, and another who was abandoned simply due to their genetic makeup.

It is that bond that I want to understand and share with the world, the warming emotion that is evoked only by your pet(s) when you see a picture of them.

Should you be serious about preserving your pet(s) in photographic form, I can be there. I'd like to provide the candid coverage in the simple comfort of their home and/or at their favorite retreats. I'm starting at an introductory rate that will only last a limited time.

I look forward to not only working with you, but your smaller company.

Rasy Ran Photography