Kim Ponsky Photography » Cleveland Family Photography

Green, Green & some more Green

michelle — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 17:39:53 +0000

Now as much as I love the color green, it’s seems that our office does too. Numerous times we have already all worn green to the office and although we would love to show off our lovely green attire on the blog we decided we were definitely not as cute as some of our kids in green so therefore we opted out of embarrassing ourselves. So instead we’ll share with you a list of ways we try and make greener choices and run Kim Ponsky Photography with more eco-conscious efforts.

1) Instead of using plastic bags we give out reusable KPP totes. They are perfect for groceries or diapers… Not to mention they are durable and totally cute with our logo on them.

2) We offer online proof viewing versus paper prints. This cuts down on paper consumption and saves some trees.

3) We reuse our lab’s packaging materials to pack the orders that we ship out.

and if that wasn’t enough…

4) We offer 100% Recycled Paper stock as an option for our cards.

Lots of other things are green these days, especially the grass! With all this rain in Cleveland, yards have never been greener in the month of June. The rain might not be so great for taking photos but the after effects make for totally luscious foliage and beautiful backdrops for outdoor family photos. Below are a couple photos from a recent shoot held at Horseshoe Lake. How cute is he?!

You can pick your nose…

michelle — Wed, 04 May 2011 22:28:48 +0000

or your friends…but you can’t pick your family! Too bad…because I would love to be a part of this family just so that I could have their wall arrangement for myself without being creepy :) I have said this about many families that have come to our studio for portraits, but this particular set of 1″ gallery wrap canvases just says it all. It’s beautiful, it’s unique, it’s a piece of art, but most importantly it is THEIRS. It is theirs to hang in their home to enjoy and remember the moments that were shared that day. We enjoy what we do here at Kim Ponsky Photography because we (eventually) get to hand over priceless photographs to our clients that our so beautiful that we would hang them in our own homes. So PICK your favorite photos and have us make you an awesome arrangement so we can continue to envy the artwork that adorn your walls!

New Beginnings…

Kim — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 00:52:24 +0000

You’ll find many people have negative things to say about Cleveland this time of year. The weather’s turning colder, days are shorter, the beautiful autumn leaves have fallen to the ground… seems like a lot of endings. Not around here! We are surrounded by new beginnings… Starting with our AMAZING new website and look designed and developed by Purely Branded (www.purelybranded.com)! I’m so excited about the new features this site offers, and just how easy it is to use! Take a look around, and enjoy :-) See something missing? That’s definitely my fault– I’m working on it! Make sure to check back as we continue to update it! Before you jump ahead to start exploring our new site, take a look at some of other new beginnings we’re seeing around here…

On his first photo shoot, Baby W slept like a log… ;-)

Another little guy, Baby S, worn out from his first photo shoot!

Baby S posing for his first photos!! He did great!!

Little J on the first day of standing!! A little stressfull…

Little J's first pile of leaves– Not a big fan!

New Puppy Jocko!! My parents' new puppy!!

Jocko did great on his first studio shoot!!

A Man’s Best Friend

Kim — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 16:03:40 +0000

“The one absolutely unselfish friend that humans can have in this selfish world, the one that never deserts them, the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous is their dog.”

George Graham Vest, Senator of Missouri, 1855

I was considered lucky to be able to grow up with a dog. However, my first pet was a hamster named Bernie. He was the greatest little creature but he has never met the love I have for my dog Missy. We first got Missy when I was in 5th grade. She was 5 weeks old when we picked her out from the litter of puppies and took her home with us. Missy is now a little over 13 years old and in my eyes, has been the greatest dog. Growing up she was always by my side. She has always slept at the foot of the bed and kept my feet nice and warm :) As an only child, it was always nice to have someone there. Just to be there, nothing else. I feel like she has always known her purpose as probably most dogs do. Dogs know their owners and feel a sense of loyalty to them. Missy has been nothing short of a faithful companion, and has always been a fun and loving dog. She is currently very sick and will probably not be with us much longer. It is a fact that I’m learning to accept but I know that when the time comes it won’t be easy. She is truly a part of our family.

They say that the history of humans and dogs coexisting goes as far back as 15,000 years. Studies have shown that the co-evolution of dogs with humans created a set of cognitive abilities between the two that makes the bond between humans and dogs unique. Our connection with them is special and that is probably why they are the most common pet in the world. We take them into our homes and they naturally become part of the family. Many clients ask us if we are willing to photograph their dogs. Of course! After all, they are a part of the family! Their lives our much shorter than ours and so capturing them in photos is a great way to remember them. Unfortunately, I just met with a client of ours that recently had to put her beloved pet to sleep. It was completely unexpected. The dog’s health rapidly started to decline right after their photo shoot. But guess what? Both of their dogs were at the shoot that day. Ironically, they had decided to have photos taken just 2 weeks prior. As sad as it was to show her the photos, I was glad that we could capture their four legged best friend with the whole family. This is what makes photographing so rewarding, to help people remember their loved ones, including their dogs.

What to Wear on a Family Photo Shoot?

Kim — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 22:16:14 +0000

This is one of the questions we get asked the most when families call to schedule their photo sessions… The hard part is, there’s no right answer! There are so many ways to go about dressing your kids (and yourselves) for your family photos– a lot of it depends on your style and preference. One thing to keep in mind is what you want to do with the finished product… Do you plan on hanging a 20×24 canvas family portrait in a room that is primarily decorated with pastels? If so, then you may want to avoid bolds that would clash.

There’s the “matching” approach… a classic and safe bet for good looking photos. Tell everyone to wear jeans and a black shirt, or khakis and white shirts. You know that your photos will look great!

If the matching-game isn’t your style, then there are options for you too! Dress everyone different, but coordinated… since you don’t want your kids to clash with one another, I often suggest choosing colors that would come out of the same box of crayons. Stick with a color-scheme. Pastels, earth tones, bolds… Or, set a color and let the individuals express themselves… Wear shades of blue, white or black.

A great resource for family photo clothing that coordinates but isn’t blatelty “matching,” check out Hanna Andersson! This Swedish company has clothes and accessories for the kids and family that look GREAT in photos! So many times when I’m impressed with how a family is dressed, or a cute hat a kid’s wearing for Christmas photos… sure enough… they’re from Hanna Andersson.

Here is an example of a recent photo shoot where the three kids were perfectly coordinated with clothes from this line.

It’s always a good idea to look at what other people have worn for their photos to get an idea of what you like and don’t like… Look through the pages of this blog, or the galleries inside the main website for more ideas!

Can’t wait to see what you put together…