How to choose the right gown for your maternity session - Denver Maternity Photographer

One of the biggest challenges for preparing for your pregnancy portraits has always been finding the right clothing. I remember when I was pregnant with my 3rd, my now 10 year old daughter, I had a vision for my photo shoot. A beautiful long flowing gown and me standing in a river water flowing around me. I went to so many stores looking for the perfect full length dress for my session. I finally wound up at old navy where I with frustration bought a plain blue full length dress….that I hated.

If you are searching for that perfect flowy maternity gown, you aren’t going to find it at a local store, and while Amazon now carries many knock off gowns with designs copied from top maternity designers, you will likely wind up with a gown that doesn’t fit properly, or is cut in an unflattering manor. If you’ve looked at designer gowns on the top maternity websites they rival the price of most peoples wedding gowns. So how do you find that perfect look to make your baby belly look amazing to celebrate you new addition to your family?

I’ve made that easy for you, over the last 8 years I have collected designer maternity gowns for my clients to use in their session. Each gown in my collection is valued at anywhere between $200 and $800 and I allow my clients to select up to THREE for their maternity session!

I make selecting easy! First I talk to my clients about their vision for their session. What do they dream their finished images will look like? This can be colors or styles of the gown, the location or things like I want to stand in a river, or in a field of flowers or on a mountain with the sun setting behind me. Do you want lace? Sequins? A long flowing train that you can toss in the air? I have all of those!

From there I select a variety of gowns from my collection that match your style and vision, and I bring them to you for an in home fitting. During your in home fitting we can look at how your gown choices look with you partners favorite shirt or the dress you want your daughter to wear (need clothes for your kids? Ask if I have outfits in their size and I can during those to the fitting as well!!). Once we’ve selected clothing for you and anyone else participating in the session, let’s accessorize! I have everything from sparkly jewelry, pearls, warm shawls and scarves, flowers for your hair, or a beautiful tiara!!

My goal is to make finding the perfect look easy, and fun!

“I had a wonderful experience with Jennifer at Truth Photography! She came to my residence to help me pick out the right gowns that matched my skin tone and the style I wanted for my maternity photos. It was so fun trying on all the dresses and jewelry, and Jennifer did an amazing job making me feel beautiful that day and the day of the shoot! Highly recommend her services for maternity pictures and will be contacting her again for other photos in the future!”

— Katlin G

Ready to get started? Click below to contact me for all of the details!

Jennifer Tavera is a Luxury family, maternity photographer in Denver Colorado who specializes in creating an experience that will make mom feel comfortable, papered, and beautiful so she will be excited to turn her portraits into art for her home. Sessions are available outdoors all over the Denver and Boulder area and beautiful mountain locations. Ready to start planning your dream session? Click below to schedule a call.

Isabella's quinceañera portraits | Denver family photographer

For those not familiar with a quinceañera it is the celebration of a girl’s 15th birthday. In many Latin cultures, this is considered her coming of age and is typically celebrated with a huge party and can rival some weddings.

Isabella turned 15 back in November and I was so honored to help her celebrate, not with a party (they are planning to throw her one later this year) but with portraits.

I met up with Isabella and her family on an unusually warm day in late November. Looking at these portraits I cannot believe they were taken the weekend before Thanksgiving. I cannot remember a time that there were ever leaves on the trees this late into the year, certainly never in the 12 years I have owned my photography business, but I was so happy for the warm day and green grass and trees.

Even though they were not planning a party right away, Isabella’s family went all out on the dress jewelry and hair, and makeup for her session! I brought my crown to complete her look and it matched perfectly with the jewelry they has selected. She looked just like a princess!

As much as I love the beautiful mountain locations that I use for most of my sessions, Cheesman park in Denver was the perfect fit for this session and it was fun to shoot at a location that I hadn’t been to in a few years. We started at the pavilion which as always was crowded but we managed to find some spots where there weren’t a ton of people so that I could edit out those that did wind up in the images. After spending some time at the pavilion we took some other images around the park and then headed out into the neighborhood to take some at this beautiful gate that I remembered from a senior session that I shot in the park years ago. I was glad I remembered after all of this time where it was because it was PERFECT for this session.

We finished the session as the sun started to dip lower in the sky shortly before sunset. I found this perfect spot on a bench where the light was filtering through the trees behind her. This very last image wound up being one of my favorites from the entire photo shoot!

If your daughters quinceañera or sweet 16 is coming up I would love to help you celebrate with a photo shoot that makes her feel like a princess! My sessions include hair and makeup and I have crowns and jewelry that she can borrow for the session if desired. I even have gowns if she doesn’t already have a special one for her celebration like Isabella did. I would love to give you more details, click the button below and fill out my contact form to start the process.

Jennifer Tavera is a Luxury family, maternity and newborn photographer in Denver Colorado who specializes in creating an experience that will make mom feel confortable, papered and beautiful so she will be excited to turn her portraits into art for her home. Sessions are available outdoors all over the Denver and Boulder area and studio sessions in the studio space in Arvada. Ready to start planning your dream session? Click below to schedule a call.

Jennifer

Why professional photo printing is important {Denver Photographer}

All of my clients receive both printed portraits AND digital files. I often get asked why I don’t just give my clients the digital files and let them print them. There are several reasons why I chose to give a printed product, if you haven’t read my blog post “how one family changed the way I do business” then go read that for one of the biggest reasons, another huge reason is quality. If you had your images printed at a store that also sold food and cosmetics, you did not get a professional quality print. The same applies if you printed at a discount online printer. These printers are only a small step up from printing on your home printer.

So what is the difference between a professional quality print and those done by these discount printers?

1. Color

Professional photographers work on color calibrated computers. If you have never calibrated your personal computer and are unfamiliar with what that means it basically means that we have set our computers to make sure it isn’t too light, dark, green red, warm (yellow), or cool (blue). Then as a professional, I hand edit each photo to make sure that the color balance of that image is perfect. I want to create a work of art, not just another photo. After all that work the last thing I want is for you to get get a cheap print that makes your skin look too grey, green, yellow or blue. Unfortunately, these cheaper printing labs can be hit and miss with color and often are not true in color to the original edit. The person printing your images is often not a professional photographer or printer and does not have a trained eye. They also typically have little control over the machine they are printing from beyond loading it with new paper when it runs out.

Professional photo lab employees are trained to color correct images that do not match the edited image that they receive. And when you order through me you have an extra line of defense from discolored images since I check each image before delivering it to my clients.

2. Images that last

These consumer labs are also not focused on images that last a long time. They print the snapshots from your phone and your 10-year-olds camera and their focus is to do this for you at the lowest cost possible NOT on printing photos that you can hand down for generations. Their images often fade or become discolored after a few short years.

Professional quality print labs such as the ones that I order through for my clients are focused on a product that is high quality and lasts. From matted prints to canvas wraps to wood prints all of the products I offer come from a professional heirloom/museum quality lab that uses only the best products such as professional-grade paper, ink, and printers to create your finished images.

When you invest in images through me I can ensure that you receive a product that will last longer and look better hanging in your home. You will still receive the digital files for sharing online, creating fun photo gifts or cards, and even making additional prints to send out to your family, but, you will also have high-quality images that I know you will love!

If you have more questions about a session with me I would love to chat! Contact me or set up a time to chat about your session.

I'm Jennifer Tavera.

A family photographer and portrait gallery designer in the North Denver Colorado area.

I help moms capture the moments and milestones that matter and turn then into beautiful art to hang in their home.

Learn more about me and a session with Truth Photography below.

Davidson Mesa, Louisville {Colorado family photographer}

Davidson Mesa

Davidson Mesa is a beautiful location with a mountain view in Louisville Colorado. It's a great spot of family, maternity and kids sessions. 

Best time of year for this location: 

While this location is great any time of year because of it's mountain views, I really love this location for winter shoots. The tall brown grass and snow-covered mountains make it a beautiful spot during the winter when everything else looks dull and dead. 

Best time of day for this location: 

I only shoot at this location at sunset because of the lack of shade and because it's beauty is the mountain view. Sessions earlier in the day would put the sun in your eyes resulting in squinty unevenly light portraits. 

Parking: 

Parking at this location is very limited. The lot next to the park is often full however just on the other side of the road is a lake with additional parking and a path that goes under the road. 

Ready to book your session at this location or just want to get more information about my sessions? Fill out the form below to get instant access to my session planning and pricing guide.

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 12 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

Flagstaff Mountain, Boulder {Boulder photoshoot locations}

Flagstaff mountain is a beautiful location for portraits with its evergreen trees and mountain views. The mountain has a variety of small parks all along the road and some are better than others for shoots with smaller children so please make sure to let me know how old your children are when booking this location so I can recommend the best spot.

Best time of year for this location:

This location is beautiful all year-round and can be a great place if you are looking for some color for a winter session however if you choose this location for winter please make sure you have proper snow tires and are comfortable driving on snow-packed mountain roads if necessary.

Best time of day for this location:

This location can be a bit bright if you schedule for too early in the day so I always schedule here for the session to end around 10 minutes after sunset. those few minutes after the sun goes down are gorgeous here.

Parking:

This location does require you to pay cash for parking so make sure to bring a $5 bill along to pay the parking fees. Lots also fill up quickly on warm weekend days so make sure to arrive early to get a spot.

Other info for this location:

This location does require me to purchase a permit for commercial photography. I have included these costs in my session fee so it is no additional cost to you however I do need a 1-week notice to purchase the permit before the session so please plan ahead.

Ready to book a session at this location or just get more information? Fill out the form below for instant access to my session guide and I will contact you to answer any questions you have or help you reserve your session time.

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 12 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

Client Spotlight:The Stone family's winter session {Boulder Family Photographer}

I had the honor of first meeting Jackie and her family just over a year ago. They found out about me through an awesome local organization called Love for Lily. Love for Lily is a support group for parents with children in the NICU and also offers grants to a few NICU families in need each year (learn more at https://www.lflnicu.org/). To raise money each year they do a fundraiser and a friend of mine who worked with the organization asked me if I would be willing to donate a session to their silent auction. The Stone family where the lucky bidders to receive the gift certificate that I donated and I have since had the honor of photographing their son twice and now the whole family!

I was so excited to finally get to photograph the whole family in November at one of my favorite spots out in Boulder and while we had hoped for warm weather for their session the little bit of lingering snow the day of their session wound up being so perfect! The old Doran barn, tall grass, mountains, and snow all worked together for the perfect look for the portraits and the colors Jackie chose for their clothing were perfect with the colors of the barn!

Their son Jackson was so excited to play in the snow and throw snowballs at his parents! Isn’t he just the cutest!! (I may have a bit of a soft spot for toddler aged boys!)

Here are some of my favorite images from their session. If you are interested in a session at this spot or any other Denver or Boulder location scroll down and fill out my contact form for more information.

Get more information on a session:

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 12 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

Standley Lake Regional Park, Westminster Colorado {Westminster Maternity Photographer}

Standley lake is a beautiful location with the mountain views, gorgeous lake and occasional wildflowers. It is a great spot for mountain views if you are not up for a trip into the mountains. Here is a little more information about a session at this location.

Best time of year for this location:

This location is beautiful year-round however the winds here can get very chilly in the winter. If you are choosing this location for a winter shoot it is a good idea to have a backup location. Because of the open fields and lake the winds tend to be worse at this location than at other spots, but if you can catch it on a day with low winds this location is gorgeous for photos!

Best time of day for this location:

Sunset!! I know what you are thinking, that seems to be my answer for every location. Yes it is but with this location because of the lack of shade I shoot here exclusively at sunset.

Parking:

There are several spots to park around the lake to park, some paid and some free, I typically use one of the two free parking lots which are a little further from the lake but both have some great spots near the parking as well as access to the lake if we want to get closer. If you select this location we will agree on a spot to park before your session date.

Other info for this location:

On hazy of cloudy days the mountains are not always visible. If you have your heart set on a mountain backdrop I recommend getting a little closer to the mountains for better visibility however this spot does have more than the mountains going for it so either way I can capture beautiful portraits here.

Get more information on a session at this location or any of the beautiful locations in Denver, Boulder or the surrounding mountains by downloading my session planning guide! Fill out the form below for instant access to the guide!

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 13 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

A peek into your selection appointment {Colorado Mountain Family Photographer}

I started to write this blog post almost a month ago now. I had it “fully finished” and just needed to add images and schedule it to publish. Then as if she knew I needed to know what clients were thinking when going into their selection appointment, I had a client ask if the selection appointment was required. I explained yes I require them since it is too difficult to put your order together via emails back and forth and doing the selection appointment is actually less work for me. Then she explained why she was concerned about meeting for her image selection.

The last session they had had with a photographer had gone great, but the appointment with him after did not go so well. After discussing it with her for a while I realized what had really gone so wrong is they had gone into with no idea what to expect. Their photographer hadn’t really given them any information on what would happen at the meeting or what prices for their products looked like. In addition, their photographer had used a common “this is the only time you can buy these” tactic that is honestly meant to scare clients into buying more so they don’t “lose the images”.

I take a totally different approach to my appointments. My job at the selection appointment isn’t to scare you into buying your images now. I actually want to go into this meeting having already discussed with you what you are hoping to purchase from the session based on your needs and budget. My job at these meetings is to simply help you choose the best images for the products you have selected and make sure you LOVE the finished art! So that said let’s take a look at the process from start to finish so you know exactly what to expect from your appointment.

First, you may be asking, “what is a selection appointment?” The selection appointment happens around two weeks after your session once I have edited all the best images from your session. I will come to your home and help you “select” the images you want to hang in your home and then the products you want to use to display them. Today I want to go through what the selection appointment looks like so you know what to expect when I arrive for yours!

Viewing the images

The first thing that I will do for your selection appointment is to show you all of the edited images as a slide show. Because I use an online program to show your images, I will first need to log into your wifi so make sure to have your login information handy.

After I am logged in I will show you all of the images in a slideshow format. Just sit back, enjoy the show and maybe make a mental note of any favorites.

Narrowing down the images

Next, I’ll help you narrow down the images for your wall art. We will go through the images one by one and I’ll have you tell me if it’s a favorite or not. If you are thinking “but I love them all” no problem, if you are purchasing a wall art set or Storybox valued at $1,000 or more you will receive all the images shown as digital files. If you choose to just get a few images you will receive matching digital files for all images selected.

Creating your wall art

By this point, you should have had several opportunities to view my session planning guide that shows all of my products and the pricing. Hopefully, you have a good idea of what wall art you are interested in before we meet so we can focus on putting your favorite images on those products. I will take this time to show you what the images would look like on those products on the wall. We can play with different images and layouts in the designer until we find the perfect wall art to fit your home.

Ordering your products

After we have wall art selected and any additional gift items you need I will submit your order for you. The payment for all collections or a la carte items is due at your selection meeting. After your products are ordered your digital files will be delivered via an online gallery within one week and you can download them from there, your printed products normally take around 2 weeks but can take up to 4 weeks to arrive and I will personally deliver them to your home when they arrive.

Watch me create a gallery on IGTV https://www.instagram.com/tv/By3uiowFfl1/

If you are interested in learning more I would love to set up a consultation with you via video chat. We will discuss all of the details of your session, the selection appointment, pricing and more so you are comfortable with the whole process before you book. Fill out the form below to set up a consultation!

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 13 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

The Old Barn, Boulder CO {Denver Photoshoot Locations}

The old barn in Boulder has been one of my most requested locations for a long time. The barn, mountains, tall grass, nearby river and sunflowers in the fall make it a beautiful location for family, children’s and maternity sessions. This is one location I would not recommend for outdoor newborn sessions.

Best time of year for this location:

This location is beautiful year-round however I do not recommend this location right after it rains or snows or any time of year that the mosquito population is high. Because of the tall grass and nearby river I have on occasion been to this location when it was wet and mushy or when the mosquitos where completely out of control. I prefer this as a fall location personally but have used it in every season!

Best time of day for this location:

Sunset!! There is little shade except right up against the barn and you can’t really use this location to get the best looks shooting other times of the day so I highly recommend an evening/sunset session for this location.

Parking:

Parking is a little complicated at this location, there really isn’t any, but there is plenty of room to park cars on the dirt shoulder off of the road.

Other info for this location:

While this location is a little more off the beaten path than most Boulder spots it can still get crowded in the fall so expect to work around other photographers and families that time of year. I highly recommend you bring bug spray just in case for this location as noted above the bugs sometimes get bad here.

Get more information about a session at this location:

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 12 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

How to prepare for a family photo session {Northglenn Colorado Photographer}

Last weekend my family had our family photos taken, let me tell you photos with a family of 5 kids and a husband who doesn’t really love picture day can be a huge headache but we made it through and with my own session fresh in my mind I have decided I need to create a checklist for all of you to help make your session run more smoothly. Here are the steps you need to take to make sure your family photo session will go off without a hitch

Setting up your session:

• Choose a photographer. Make sure you love their style of images including types of photos you see in their portfolio, editing style and the products they offer (canvases or other wall art products). Hopefully, your photographer is me and you already have that part covered!

• Set up a date, time and location. make sure to think about where you are going to hang the images when you choose the location. For me I really wanted them hanging in my dining room and was picturing a mountain backdrop. When you book with me, I will send you location suggestions based on your vision so tell me a little bit about what you have in mind. You can also check out my favorite locations on my locations Pinterest board.

Planning your wardrobe

I’ve done several blog posts just on this subject so if you want more details than I give here, check out this recent blog post just on choosing clothing for families.

• Choose colors for your family photos. You will want to choose at least two colors to mix and match throughout the group, even if one of them is a neutral. I knew I wanted royal blue to match the walls in my dining room so I started with blue and white. Later I added khaki pants on all of the boys so it was 3 colors total.

• Add accessories. When planning our session I chose a blue and white checkered shirt for my middle son but I know he couldn’t be the only one with white in his outfit so I added a white sweater on my oldest daughter and a blue sweater with white “fur” on my younger daughter, then I found a white shawl

for me and added pearl necklaces on all 3 girls. Next, I wanted to make sure that my husband’s shirt that was a slightly lighter blue didn’t look out of place so I added flower crowns for my girls in the same color blue. The accessories really tied together all of the outfits so no one person stood out in the group.

• Check their shoes!!! The easiest thing to forget when planning a session is to make sure everyone has shoes that are going to look good in the photos (no cartoon characters or bright colors that will draw your eye to the shoes instead f your faces) and make sure they fit! Don’t wait until the day before or day of the session to do this. If your child hasn’t worn their dress shoes in months and you plan to have them wear them for the session have them try them on to make sure they still fit and look great.

• Make sure you will be warm enough. As I write this it is fall and the weather is quickly getting colder. In a few weeks it will be November and warm clothing options for your session will be a MUST. For our session I planned sweaters for my girls, long sleeve shirts WITH UNDERSHIRTS for my boys, a shawl for myself since my dress was off the shoulder and I even brought a white blanket for the baby so that I could wrap him in it when it got chilly and still have it match our clothing colors. You will want something your small kids can wear in the session to keep them warm in case it’s a cold day. Look for cute sweaters, jackets, layered clothing or even cute matching winter hats!

Pack a bag before the session day with things you might need

My bag might look a little different than yours based on the age of your kids but this was what went in my photo session bag.

• Extra diapers, underwear and pants (that would still match our colors) for my 2 year and 2 month old.

• A toy that I didn’t mind being in the photo. Make a favorite stuffed animal, a favorite book you could read your little one, a vintage-looking toy (I love toy airplanes, rag dolls etc).

• Safety pins, bobby pins, hair clips. Just in case.

• A quilt and a blanket that matched our session colors. I will typically bring a quilt and some stools to most of my family sessions and try to match them to your clothing however it is also a great idea to bring your own, especially if it has any sentimental value, for fun shots of the family hanging out on the quilt or wrapping themselves in it.

• A brush and a lint roller.

• Baby wipes and/or a wet rag.

• A spray bottle with water or detangler.

• Clean snacks (I avoid bringing these out of the car during the session, often once kids see them they just want more and more and then they have food in their mouth in all of the images, however it is great to have them on hand just in case.

Arrive early to the session.

Now that you have everything you need for the session itself plan to arrive early, especially if you have little ones. We planned to be there 45 minutes early so that we could dress my 5-year-old, 2-year-old and 2-month-old there as well as feed the baby a bit before we started. Even when we were running a little late this still got us there in time for a quick feeding and to be ALMOST ready by the time our photographer arrived. Let’s face it as moms it’s sometimes hard to get anywhere on time with the whole family so do yourself a favor and plan to be early.

A few things you shouldn’t do to prep for your session

• Don’t practice smiling with your kids. You will make your kids overthink their smile and they will be less likely to e natural and relaxed for the session.

• Don’t Bring messy snacks to give them before or during the session. This seems like a no brainer but it happens all the time so it is worth saying.

• Don’t Bribe your children Ok sometimes a bribe might be necessary, but it also tells the kids that this may not be fun, why else would mom and dad need to bribe us? My goal is to just make the session as fun as possible and use the brides as a last resort. Also, keep in mind that small children will not wait a long time for a bribe. If they are promised something after the session they typically start to get frustrated that they have not received the bride within the first 15 minutes of the session. After that, it can be hard to get them to cooperate because often they start to believe that the promised bribe is not really coming. So save the brides for getting those last few poses after your kids have started to tire of the session. Instead tell them “we are going to go to the part and a photographer is going to take pictures of us while we play together”.

My Family

Photo by: Reflection Photography, edited by me :)

I hope this helps make planning your session easier for your next family photos! If you would like more advice on preparing and information about the session process and pricing please download my session guide below!

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 12 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

Clear Creek History Park, Golden CO {Denver Photoshoot Locations}

Part of the planning process for your photo session is of course picking the perfect location. There are so many amazing locations in the Denver and Boulder areas that it can be hard to choose which is best and I find myself often emailing or texting images back and forth to clients. So in an effort to make my job and your choice easier I am starting a series of blogs featuring all of my favorite locations with a variety of images and details on each location. I hope this will give you as my clients a better look at what a session at each of these locations looks like and help you choose the one that is right for your session! So here is the first of many locations I love for sessions!

I chose this location as my first to feature because it has so many different looks within a short walk from each other. Believe it or not all of the spots shown below are within a 5-minute walk from one another.

Best time of year for this location:

Year-round, with the great old buildings and beautiful spots along the river this location has some great spot even in the winter when the trees are dead.

Best time of day for this location:

Honestly, the answer to this for almost all of my locations is sunset, if you would like the mountains behind you or the shot with the white schoolhouse you are going to want a sunset session however this location does have some spots where shade can be found for morning sessions.

Parking:

This location free parking for the park and additional parking on the river side at the library. When we plan your session I will tell you which side to meet me on based on where I plan to start your session.

Other info for this location:

The biggest conflict for this location is local festivals. Make sure to check Golden’s festival schedule to see if anything is scheduled near the park. I do not book this location during the weekend of Buffalo Bill Days or other large festivals in the area. Check the festival schedule here: https://www.visitgolden.com/events/festivals-of-golden/

Get more information on a session at this location:

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 12 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

Choosing clothing for family photos {Denver Family Photographer}

As of last weekend, my busy fall season is in fall swing! The one question I get the most in this season of family portraits is what should we wear? Here are some tips for choosing the perfect outfits for the whole family!

Dress Mom First

There is a 99% chance that if you are reading this you are a mom. Normally mom is the one planning family photos and picking clothing for everyone. So, mom lets start in your closet. One of the most important things for a family photo session is that you are comfortable and love the way you look. Let's face it, ladies if we hate our outfit or the way we look we will not love the portraits and will never hang it on our wall. So what do you have in your closet that makes you LOVE the way you look? Or better yet, let’s go shopping! Right now I don’t want you to worry about colors or patterns, no matter what you choose I can help you match it to the rest of your family for outfits that coordinate perfectly. The most important thing to think about is your body shape and what will flatter your body and make you look and feel amazing in your portraits. Check out this video I created about dressing for your body shape a few years ago for tips on how to dress for you!

Still feeling lost? 

You may also want to consider borrowing a gown from my client closet for a more formal look All of my gowns come from a company that creates them to look amazing on all women so even though you will see them used mostly for maternity sessions on my website, they also look amazing on mama’s that aren’t expecting. I plan to wear one of them for my next family session!

Make sure you can sit

You will be sitting on the ground in a variety of positions for many of the poses. Avoid short skirts (especially on little girls) and white pants, really anything you won’t be comfortable sitting on the grass in or that you can’t sit in a variety of poses in modestly.

Coordinate DON’T match! 

Now that you have your clothing chosen let's look at the rest of the family. If you have chosen something with a pattern that has several colors we can use the colors from your clothing to choose colors for everyone else. If you chose a solid color then I normally recommend looking to see if someone else in the family has a patterned outfit with that color in it. For example a floral dress for your daughter or plaid or another patterned shirt on your husband or son. This photo is a great example because of that plaid shirt on her son. It’s also a great example of my next point using layers.

Before I get to that I wanted to show you this sample however from a recent maternity shoot. This is one example of choosing coordinated colors without using a pattern which can also work great if you choose colors that just look amazing together! 

Layers look best

Don’t be afraid to layer your clothing, especially now that the weather will be getting a little cooler. Some ways to add layers can include sweaters, scarves, jewelry, jackets, floral crowns, bow ties, sports coats, etc. Layers not only add some visual interest but they can also be a great way to pull the group together into a cohesive look. Using a necklace, scarf, sweater or tie to pull in one of the colors another family member is wearing helps with coordinating the group as a whole. This is a great example of this, mom wore this scarf to pull in the yellow from her daughters dress.

Shoes matter

Yes, your shoes will show and no I cannot hide them in every portrait, so please don’t forget about them. I don’t know about you but all of my kid's shoes are brightly colored and have characters. So if you need to go buy them some dress shoes or plain colored shoes don’t leave it until the last minute. Nothing worse than spending hours to put together outfits only to have Spiderman or Hello Kitty shoes on your kids' feet

Need a little help? 

I hope all of these tips have helped you out figuring out what to wear from your session. If you are still in need of some help, send me a picture. Just something simple lay it all out on your bed and take a snapshot. Don’t forget to include shoes, jewelry, etc in the picture. I would love to take a look to see if I have any suggestions or tell you what colors I would use to tie the look together. Plus seeing your clothing colors and styles helps me plan the look of the session before we get started so I can get the best images for you from your session! 

 Interested in more information about a session with me? Fill out the form below and I’ll email you my session guide!

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 12 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

Morrison Area Mountain Maternity Session {Golden Co Pregnancy Photographer}

I was so excited when Rosie contacted me for a maternity shoot last month! After a brief chat with her on the phone to discuss a session I knew that I was going to have so much fun creating the perfect look for her and shooting this session. She was very open to me styling the session and choosing a location that I thought would be great for it, her only request? Wildflowers! We lucked out by not only finding a spot with some beautiful wildflowers but with mountain views as well! Just for an added touch I snipped the flowers she is holding here from my garden before leaving for her session because you can never have too many flowers!!!

Rosie is wearing one of the newest gowns in my maternity collections. While I have looked at many dress companies I always wind up back at the same one when I purchase a new dress because the quality and beautiful styles just cannot be found anywhere else. The dress she is wearing here is the Angela dress by Sew Trendy Accessories, my clients have access to my dresses for their session and I often purchase new gowns for specific sessions but if you are a fellow photographer checking out this blog post and want a discount on their gowns my affiliate link will get you 15% off!

http://i.refs.cc/iG3B30FA?smile_ref=eyJzbWlsZV9zb3VyY2UiOiJzbWlsZV91aSIsInNtaWxlX21lZGl1bSI6IiIsInNtaWxlX2NhbXBhaWduIjoicmVmZXJyYWxfcHJvZ3JhbSIsInNtaWxlX2N1c3RvbWVyX2lkIjo5NTk0NDA3Mn0%3D

I had another shoot in this gown back in May and I knew I wanted to create a completely different look for Rosie. I’m the first session we paired the dress with a shirt for dad that was a darker blue green color and with a cream colored dress on their daughter and it looked amazing together be as I was chatting with Rosie I suddenly pictured the gown with reds and when I asked her what she thought she loved the idea! So I created the floral crown she is wearing to tie her dress together with her husbands shirt and she did a great job completing the look by painting her nails red to match!

At the last minute I added my favorite necklace for a sweetheart neckline and it definitely has me thinking that I need to add some more bold necklaces like this to my client collection to help complete the look for sessions like this!!

I have to say however that the look would not have been complete without the help of Sabrina Deemer Makeup who did her hair and makeup for the shoot. https://www.facebook.com/sabrinadeemermakeup

If you are expecting this fall and would love to have a session custom styled for you from the gown and accessories to the final ready to hang gallery pieces for your home I would LOVE to be your photographer! I have maternity session openings starting in September but hurry spots are filing up quickly! You can find my contact form below if you would like to get more information on a session with me.

Contact me below for session information and openings.

My name is Jennifer Tavera, owner, photographer and gallery designer for Truth Photography LLC. I have created beautiful custom portraiture for my clients here in the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas for the past 12 years! I specialize in growing families including children, maternity, and newborn. I love what I do and I cannot wait to share my passion with all of you.

As a busy mom myself, I understand that you need a photographer who will go the extra mile to help you with every aspect of creating cherished imagery of your family.

I would love to become YOUR family photographer and can't wait for us to get to know each other better!

Skylynn's Clear Creek Newborn Session {Denver Outdoor Newborn Photographer}

The thing I have found about outdoor newborn photography since I started offering it is that people either love it or hate it. I get it, it is not for everyone. Some people just like to keep their baby home for awhile and for some people they just feel indoor sessions are more natural for this age group.

For my clients who hire me for outdoor newborn sessions however it’s the most natural thing in the world. Why is that? Because they love the outdoors, that’s where their family spends their free time exploring all of the beautiful places in Colorado, enjoying the fresh air and sunshine!

I have no doubt that for Skylynn this outdoor newborn session will be just the start of her time out in nature, making this session the perfect fit for her! Plus they are going to look adorable in her forest themed room that mom let me peek at during their selection appointment. Her daddy is hand painting her walls with trees and woodland creatures!

I love getting to know the families I photograph and seeing families grow! In addition to loving this shoot because outdoor newborn is one of my favorite types of sessions, it was even more special because it is not the first time that I have done an outdoor newborn session for this family! This is a side by side from Skylynn’s session and their older daughters session two years ago! Their parents brought this beautiful handmade cradle to both sessions for their daughters to be photographed in and I wrapped them in colors to match each of their rooms for these images. I love being able to see them side by side now!

I can’t wait to see the final portraits when they arrive. Mom ordered a set of my heritage wood prints and I have been checking my email excessively for shipping confirmation for them, I think I may be almost as excited as she is to see them in print! The galleries below are just mock ups I created for her for her selection appointment but she did choose 2 of the images in the gallery below for her set!

I would love to create a beautiful wall art set like this for your newborn! If you are a nature lover like this family, and due with your baby between May and September an outdoor newborn session may be a great option for you too! Or if you are due during winter months or more of a homebody, I offer in home sessions or sessions at my home in Northglenn CO. Let’s chat and we can customize the perfect session for you!

My name is Jennifer Tavera, the photographer behind Truth Photography. I am a Northglenn Colorado family photographer and gallery designer seeking adventurous, free spirited families. I believe that your life is epic and deserves to be captured with photography!

I specializes in creating unique photo sessions that will be an adventure for your child or family and turning the finished portraits into beautiful wall art for your home. I can’t wait to photograph your next adventure!!

~Jennifer Tavera Photographer and Gallery designer

North Denver activities, Music with Mar {Denver Brand Photographer}

Last month I had the pleasure of attending a Music with Mar class with Ms. Annmarie with my two and six-year-olds. The class is geared for give years old and under so my six year old was mostly along for the ride however she seemed to enjoy herself anyway.

My two year old definitely loved everything about the class!

Music with Mar is not quite what you would expect from the typical music class. First its a drop in class which means you don't have to sign up to be there at the same time every week for 6 or 8 weeks, you can drop in on any class Annmarie offers and either pay $12 for the whole family for the single class, or $50 for any 5 classes you want to attend.

The second way it is different is it's not about teaching an instrument or just about the songs, the class involved bubbles, scarves, reading books, puppets and more! The kids were allowed to play with each item as she brought it out, and return it when it was time for the next, or if they chose continue playing with it until the end of the class. We watched the kids play and learn with her through songs and fun and all the kids were having a great time. After all the fun the class ended with cuddle time with the parent or caregiver who brought them to the class!

I loved how unique and laid back the class was, perfect for this easily distracted age group but fun and interactive enough to hold their attention. If you visit the Music with Mar website it talks a lot about how the program is brain research based music and learning designed to help kids brains develop at this early age. This makes it a great fit for parents looking for something both fun and educational for this age group.

Music with Mar with Ms. Annmarie currently meets twice a week

Tuesday: 10:30 am

Friday: 10:30 am

Both classes are at the Switchboard Networking Boutique, 1975 W. 120th Ave. Westminster

Annmarie also let me know that she has more classes opening at a brand new location in the fall in addition to the two days a week at Switchboard so make sure to watch her Facebook page for more details on those classes!

Don’t miss a thing: Receive twice a month emails from me with exclusive monthly product specials available only to my insiders, previews of upcoming session deals, fun local events or ideas for kids activities and more as part of my insider’s club. Sign up below.

My name is Jennifer Tavera, the photographer behind Truth Photography. I am a Northglenn Colorado family photographer and gallery designer seeking adventurous, free spirited families. I believe that your life is epic and deserves to be captured with photography!

I specializes in creating unique photo sessions that will be an adventure for your child or family and turning the finished portraits into beautiful wall art for your home. I can’t wait to photograph your next adventure!!

~Jennifer Tavera Photographer and Gallery designer

Gus' Story {Boulder Family Photographer}

Today I am re-sharing a blog from a few years ago. Since I launched this new website earlier this year I have been slowly transferring some of my old posts that are still relevant to my business as it is today. Since I launched my new program Gus’ Gift earlier this year I wanted to move over the blog posts about the family that inspired me to create Gus’ Gift. This blog was originally written in Sept. 2016. (Images from their 2016 & 2017 family sessions)

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I often take for granted how important my job is, I sometimes even get told that it is “not a real job”. But every once in a while a client comes along that reminds me why I do what I do. A few years ago, when I still photographed weddings, that client was a bride who 6 months after her wedding emailed me to let me know how thankful she was for the portraits of her and her father together. He had died suddenly a few months after her wedding and those were their last family portraits. This year that client that reminded me was a 7-year-old boy named Gus.

Gus was diagnosed with a brain tumor when he was 3 years old. Although the doctors were able to fully remove the tumor his family recently learned that his cancer has returned and that it is only a matter of time before it claims his life. His family had never had a formal family photo session. When his mother Sasha contacted me about the session she said that they would be the only family portraits that they would ever get with both of their sons.

With my own son turning 7 in just a few months I can’t help but put myself in her place for a moment. Just the thought of losing my precious son at such a young age makes it hard to breathe. I honestly don’t know how Sasha makes it through each day with such strength, although I am sure she feels anything but strong at the moment. I have learned that the moments in life when we feel the weakest are usually the ones when we have the most strength.

I wish I had something deep or profound to say here, the fact is that I am really not a writer, I let my images do most of the speaking. I will say to other parents who have never had a family session or haven’t had one in a long time, don’t wait. Life is precious and fragile and children grow so quickly.

If you would like to read more about Gus please visit his Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/GusGreyMatters

To nominate a family for Gus’ gift or for more information click the link below.

Don’t miss a thing: Receive twice a month emails from me with exclusive monthly product specials available only to my insiders, previews of upcoming session deals, fun local events or ideas for kids activities and more as part of my insider’s club. Sign up below.

Things to do in Denver with your kids | Museums {Denver Family Photographer}

Going to museums and other educational locations has always been one of my favorite things to do. My mother, who is a teacher, would bring us to places like this all the time as a child and now I still love going with my children. There are many more museums in the Denver metro area than even I realized, however, a few years ago put together this list of every one that I could find and now I would like to share it with all of you. I hope it helps you and your family find some fun educational opportunities this summer!

Disclaimer: I have not personally visited every museum on the list so I included information on the ones we visit regularly or that I remember well enough to give feedback on. Not all of them are small child-friendly and many of the ones I have not visited are because I suspect they may not be kids friendly. I wanted to make this as complete of a list as possible however since there are so many hidden gems even I did not know about. On that note, if you find one I missed make sure to let me know so can add it.

Local Museums

Denver Museum of Nature and Science -Denver

For those of you who have lived in the area your whole life, you are probably familiar with this museum. More and more those I see new moms moving here asking if this is a great place for their kids ages xx old to go play. So for those of you who have never been there let me say yes it’s a great place for all ages. My babies always loved looking at the dinosaurs and animals, and there is a children’s room with activities for all ages including a little area for kids under 1 year. Older kids might enjoy the science lab in expedition health for a more hands-on experience as well as some of the more interactive exhibits in the outer space area, and I love to go check out the visiting exhibits that are changed out a few times a year.

Denver Children’s Museum -Denver

The children’s museum in Denver has grown and expanded so much in the past few years if it has been a while it's worth going back for another look. My favorite part is the teaching kitchen, but if you want to experience it arrive early and head upstairs right away to sign up, spaces fill up really fast and normally several hours in advance. My kids' favorites are the art studio, the ball room and the water area outside in Joy park.

Wow Children’s Museum -Lafayette

My kids love this museum, they call it the “pirate ship museum”. It doesn’t look like much from outside but there are a ton of activities packed in, as well as some rotating exhibits so there is always something new when we go. I personally do love the Denver children’s museum however WOW has a much more relaxed environment and usually entertains my kids for just as long as the larger Denver children’s museum.

Firefighters Museum -Denver

Colorado History Museum -Denver

My kids love the first floor exhibits here where you can collect eggs and sell them at the grocery store, “ride” in an old car, slide down the barn slide and more. The last few times we were here we didn’t make it to the upper floors besides a temporary exhibit on the second floor so I honestly couldn’t tell you what it up there (it is on my list to go check out this summer) but I can tell you that there is plenty here to entertain kids for a few hours.

Denver Art Museum  _Denver

While an art museum may not sound very kids friendly we always find plenty for the kids here. From crafts and activities scattered throughout the museum to scavenger hunt sheets in most of the exhibits, my kids love to explore this museum.

Museum of Contemporary Art Denver -Denver

American Museum of Western Art -Denver

Denver Museum of Miniatures, Dolls and Toys -Denver

Molly Brown House -Denver

I put this and some of the other on the list because I wanted to try to make this a complete list of museums, however, I don’t recommend this one for young children. It is basically a house full of things they cannot touch. I enjoyed the tour myself, however, and the history of this Colorado legend.

Byer’s Evans House -Denver

Fort Vasquez -Platville

We went to check this out last year and I would call it a great place to stop if you are in the area. There really isn’t a ton to see besides what is left of the fort and a small one-room exhibit inside. My kids did enjoy it as a pit stop in our day of activities. We spend about 30 minutes there including browsing the gift shop.

Fortney Museum of Transportation -Denver

The Forney Museum is a great place for anyone who loves cars, trains and unique one of a kind vehicles. I personally love wandering around this museum and checking out the cars, plane, trains, and bikes I will say the excitement for my kids is typically short-lived. I do still recommend checking out this museum if you have never been but most kids will probably not be entertained there for more than about an hour unless of course cars are their thing and then they will love to check out the endless rows of them!

Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum -Aurora

Colorado Railroad Museum -Golden

This is a great place for the train lover with tons of trains outside, many of the cars you can climb on and go check out. For an additional cost, you can ride the working train around the property which is always a hit with the kids. There is also a room of activities and a model train in the basement of the building that my kids loved.

Tiny Town -Morrison

Aurora History Museum -Aurora

Adams County Historical Society and Museum -Brighton

Lakewood Heritage Center-Lakewood

Another favorite spot of mine for sessions especially themed sessions, this little museum connects with Belmar park. Like clear creek history park, this is mostly a collection of old buildings, my favorite of which in the old Cafe This one also has an indoor section which I have to admit I have never into.

Black American West Museum and Heritage Center -Denver

We checked this out as a school assignment when my husband was in college. It’s inside a small old house downtown and I was skeptical based on the location but I loved this little museum. It is a great place to bring older kids if you want them to learn our states history and an appreciation for diversity. There is not much here for little ones..

Clyfford Still Museum -Denver

Morrison Natural History Museum -Morrison

We had the opportunity to visit this museum for the first time last summer and loved it! It is a very small museum but it has a lot packed in there. To really get your money’s worth, make sure you take a tour, this is included in the price of admission and I learned a ton from our very young but very knowledgeable tour guide. I do recommend this for older children, not little ones with a short attention span. While my 3-year-old LOVES dinosaurs it was a little hard to keep her entertained during the tour. I just found out that they have also teamed up with dinosaur ridge to offer a one time pass that gives your tours at both locations!!

Museo de las Americas -Denver

CU South Denver Museum (Wildlife Experience) -Parker

Dinosaur ridge -Morrison

I was surprised to find last time we visited dinosaur ridge that you can no longer just drive along the mountain to see the tracks. Your choices are now walking up the mountain or taking the tour bus. We took the bus. My kids loved the museum exhibit and enjoyed the bus tour although it was a little hard to keep the little ones attention during it. Overall though it was fun and the whole family enjoyed it.

Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum -Golden

Golden History Center -Golden

Clear Creek History Park -Golden

A great little all outdoor park, mostly old buildings you can check out but they also have a chick coup on site that kids love. Walk around the grounds and then wander down to the creek. This is also one of my favorite spots for photo sessions!

Foothills Art Museum -Golden

Colorado School of Mines Geology Museum -Golden

The Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave– Golden

NCAR Visitor Center – Boulder

Littleton history museum -Littleton

This is one of my favorite little museums/farms! If you have never been it is definitely worth checking out. The first perk is it is free. While this museum does have a few indoor galleries the real attraction is the farm animals and old buildings outdoors. We love to wander around, enjoy the outdoors, and check out the animals. The last time we were there however it started to rain and we headed back inside and found the indoor kids play area (its kind of hidden at the back of one of the museum galleries) It has books, a play kitchen and wagon they can climb on and it kept my kids entertained for close to an hour.

Four Mile Historic Park -Denver

Four Mile historic park is very similar to the Littleton history museum in a ton of ways, but there is an admission charge here. A few things that might make it worth the money, my kids' favorite activity here is panning for gold, be prepared with extra clothes, they will get wet and messy! They also offer carriage rides for an extra charge. In addition, the park boasts Denver’s oldest house and offers tours of the house. I did not find the tour to be kids friendly however and only made it through a small portion of it before I had to leave due to my 3 year old trying to touch EVERYTHING (they did not like that!) So if you have little’s who like to touch and climb, save yourself the stress and skip the tour.

I hope this helps you find some fun and adventure this summer with your family. I am working on several more lists of kids locations like this one that I will share throughout the year so keep watching my blog or better yet join my insider's club to be sent information about fun activities in your email!

While you are waiting for more fun in your email from me make sure to check out this previous post with local splash pads you can check out this summer!

Interested in a photo sessions for your family? Learn about my session experience here:

My name is Jennifer Tavera, the photographer behind Truth Photography. I am a Northglenn Colorado family photographer and gallery designer seeking adventurous, free spirited families. I believe that your life is epic and deserves to be captured with photography!

I specializes in creating unique photo sessions that will be an adventure for your child or family and turning the finished portraits into beautiful wall art for your home. I can’t wait to photograph your next adventure!!

~Jennifer Tavera Photographer and Gallery designer

4 tips for photo shoots with your toddler {Northglenn Colorado photographer}

Your baby is now walking, toddling around getting into everything and destroying your home. If they weren’t SO ADORABLE even when making a huge mess they may not survive their toddler years.

In all seriousness though it’s how quickly they are changing and how adorable they are that makes us want beautiful professional photos of them at this age, and it’s their rambunctious spirit and tendency to do the opposite of what we asked or hoped they would do that makes the idea stressful for most parents of toddlers. So for all of you mama’s who are longing for beautiful portraits of your toddler or family together to hang proudly on your wall like all of the other moms, this post is for you!

4 Tips for photo shoots with your toddler

Tip #1: Have realistic expectations

This one is always the hardest so I am starting with it first. The most important thing you can do to prepare for your shoot with your toddler is to have realistic expectations. Your toddler is very unlikely to cooperate right off the bat. They may be shy and take a few minutes to warm up the photographer and just want to hide behind you, they may be wild and just want to run around at the park or explore or play with the grass, but if you are expecting AMAZING smiling at the camera portraits in the first 5 minutes you are going to wind up frustrated and feeling defeated very quickly. When I photograph a toddler, the first few minutes for me are about capturing them as they are. .It’s not about the “perfect smiling portrait at this point. I will sit, talk to them see what they do, see how they react to different games, let them do their own thing as a snap a few photos and then see if I can get them to look at me.

I don’t like to push too hard at the very beginning and overwhelm them and sometimes I can see parents start to panic within even a few minutes or feel like they need to step in and try to get a smile. The problem is that then the child is interacting with and LOOKING at you, not the camera. There are times that I ask parents to get a babies attention or make them smile but if your baby is relaxed and just doing their own thing hold off on this for just a moment. Let me capture some moments of them just being them, learning, exploring a new place, being a toddler. Sometimes these wind up being the favorite photos from the session.

Tip #2: Make sure to hire a professional who is experienced with toddlers

Honestly could just say here make sure to hire me, I have 12 years experience as a professional photographer and specialize in children’s and family portraiture, but in case you stumbled across this blog and are not in the Denver or Boulder Colorado areas here is what you should look for when hiring a photographer.

When it comes to photographing a wiggly toddler you are going to want someone who has worked with toddlers long enough to know how to capture great portraits of them whether they sit perfectly and smile or run around and don’t stay still for more than two seconds. Ask your photographer how long they have been in business AND what types of photography they specialize in to make sure you are getting someone who really knows what they are doing.

Tip #3: Bribes are great but…

Trying to bride a toddler to cooperate is a double-edged sword. While it can produce the results you want just as often I see it go horribly wrong, so here are a few things to consider when deciding if you want to try to bride or reward your toddler for cooperating.

First, toddlers have short attention spans and once a treat is mentioned you have a very short time to produce the promised reward before most toddlers will go from cooperation to meltdown. For this reason, I recommend NOT promising a toddler any sort of reward before the session or in the first few minutes of the session. Bribes and rewards should be saved as last resorts. Instead, tell them how fun the session will be and that they are going to go play games and have fun. This rule applies to preschoolers as well although the meltdowns at that age over not getting their reward right away don’t come quite as quickly.

Never show the child the reward unless you are prepared to give it to them, and have it in any photos from that point on. Again seeing the reward and not immediately receiving it normally just results in tears. If you want to get clever with it was can plan the reward into the session. I once had a family bring those giant multi-colored spiral lollipops as a reward for the session and we ended the session with a fun, casual family photo of all of them eating the lollipops. It was a great way to reward the kids and grab some fun unique photos at the session and if you let me know about the plan in advance I can even prepare a few props to go with the theme.

Tip #4: Don’t be afraid to bring a favorite toy

Yes a photo shoot with me is about capturing the perfect photo but its also about capturing the memories and moments you want to remember! Pick something you WANT to have in the photos. The same rule applies to toy as it does to bribes, don’t let your child know you have t until you are ready to have it in the rest of the photos for the shoot, but it can be perfect for the end of the session when your child is getting bored with being there to pull it out and capture a few more shots of your little one planing and just doing what they do.

Although this may not be what most photographers would consider a "perfect shot" as a mom to me it's perfect. I know years from now it will remind me of how much my son LOVED firetrucks at this age.

Want to have me photograph your toddler? My Monday milestones are perfect short sessions for capturing your child alone at this age. You can find more information below!

My name is Jennifer Tavera, the photographer behind Truth Photography. I am a Northglenn Colorado family photographer and gallery designer seeking adventurous, free spirited families. I believe that your life is epic and deserves to be captured with photography!

I specializes in creating unique photo sessions that will be an adventure for your child or family and turning the finished portraits into beautiful wall art for your home. I can’t wait to photograph your next adventure!!

~Jennifer Tavera Photographer and Gallery designer

Want to stay up to date on the latest news, events and session openings AND receive tips on fun activities in the area in your inbox? Join my insider's club to make sure you don’t miss a thing!

The meeting that indirectly helped launch my business {Northglenn CO Children's Photographer}

I first met Chelsey over 10 years ago when I was still a studio photographer. For those of you who don’t know I worked in a national children’s portrait studio for 2.5 years before they closed all of their studios without notice when my oldest son was 3 weeks old, but that’s a story for another time. Back to this story, she came into the studio with her daughter, who was only a few months old at the time, for a milestone photo shoot. I was not her photographer that day, in fact, I don’t even remember for sure if I helped her, I may have sold her her prints, but I sold prints to thousands of customers at my time there. What I do remember was about a week later my coworker Kayla wanted to meet with me to show me the new business opportunity she was starting and when I arrived she was there with Chelsey.

Chelsey was, and still is, a business owner with Arbonne international, an awesome company that sells skin care, make up, health/weight loss and more that is all about being Pure, Safe, and Beneficial for your body. This meeting helped change a lot of things in my life. After this meeting I starting looking at lot more at the safety of the products I am putting in and on my body, I started a new friendship and became closer to another friend and most importantly I started my first business which gave me many of the foundations for my business today. I was with Arbonne for about 2 years and while it didn’t wind up being the right business for me (I still love the product and believe in the business though), I have remained friends with Chelsey and watched her grow an amazing and successful business with the company.

Over the years I have been honored to be able to photograph her children on a few different occasions and they never disappoint as being the perfect models! My session with them last month is no exception. They have grown into such beautiful young people and despite the load of raising two kids and running a successful business Chelsey has not changed a bit over that time, she is still as beautiful, energetic and fun as she was 10+ years ago. I guess she can probably thank her awesome products for the energy and eternal youth ;)

I am excited to share a few of the images from her kids session with you all today. Seriously aren’t they just the perfect models? The images down at the bottom where they are standing I let them pose themselves!

If you are interested in learning more about Chelsey’s business or her products you can visit her Facebook page or Website below:

www.chelseycrittendon.arbonne.com
https://www.facebook.com/ChelseysArbonnePage/

My name is Jennifer Tavera, the photographer behind Truth Photography. I am a Northglenn Colorado family photographer and gallery designer seeking adventurous, free spirited families. I believe that your life is epic and deserves to be captured with photography!

I specializes in creating unique photo sessions that will be an adventure for your child or family and turning the finished portraits into beautiful wall art for your home. I can’t wait to photograph your next adventure!!

~Jennifer Tavera Photographer and Gallery designer

Want to stay up to date on the latest news, events and session openings? Join my insider's club to make sure you don’t miss a thing!

Want to stay up to date on the latest news, events and session openings? Join my insider's club to make sure you don’t miss a thing!

How one family changed the way I do business {Boulder Family Photographer}

A little over two years ago I had the great pleasure of meeting a family that has become one of my very favorite families. Mom is such a sweet outgoing person and one of the strongest people I have met and I have to admit that I loved them even more when her and her son Charlie told me earlier this year that one of their favorite TV shows is Supergirl! (For those of you who don’t know I’m a huge superhero fan!!!) But this post is not really about that family or how much I love them, even though I do, it’s about how they changed the way I look at customer service.

For years I didn’t offer photo prints, I didn’t want to bother with it and I was convinced that no one really wanted or needed that service. What I found is as moms it’s something that we don’t even know that we need, but we do! I really discovered how much I was failing my client and not really serving them about a couple of month after this families first session with me.

A little back story, the reason they decided to hire a photographer for family portraits was not a happy one. This family with two beautiful sons was about to loose one of their boys to a brain tumor. Knowing they didn’t have much time left they wanted to get professional family portraits of all of them together.

We had a beautiful family session with their family of four and grandma out in Boulder. A few months after the session I heard from mom, she even though she had received digital files of her portraits a few weeks after the session she had not printed any of them yet. Her son has since passed and she was preparing for the funeral including trying to print an image of him to display at the funeral. That hit me hard, this grieving mom was rushing around trying to get her pictures printed, instead of spending time with her family at this hard time. Not only was she spending her time doing this but she ordered the images online, accidentally drove to the wrong store and then when she finally got to the right store she realized that she forgot to bring the print release and the lab would not release the photo to her.

Thank God not every mom has to go through this situation. But that doesn’t mean that we have time in our busy lives to go get our images printed, framed and hung. I can’t tell you how many times clients told me more than a year after their session that they still haven’t printed their images, I can’t tell you how many times I photographed my own kids and got too busy to print and hang the portraits.

I don’t want my clients to waste their money on images they are not enjoying in their home. I don’t want anyone to have to search through a dropbox, computer or stack of old CD’s to get images printed if a family member passes away. My clients enjoy their images on their walls each and every day, and I never want to give another client less service than that!

Click the button below for more information on my heirloom quality wall art and gifts. My goal is to provide you with printed imagery that will last to hand down to future generations.

My name is Jennifer Tavera, the photographer behind Truth Photography. I am a Northglenn Colorado family photographer and gallery designer seeking adventurous, free spirited families. I believe that your life is epic and deserves to be captured with photography!

I specializes in creating unique photo sessions that will be an adventure for your child or family and turning the finished portraits into beautiful wall art for your home. I can’t wait to photograph your next adventure!!

~Jennifer Tavera Photographer and Gallery designer

Want to stay up to date on the latest news, events and session openings? Join my insider's club to make sure you don’t miss a thing!