Nostalgia.
My perpetual visitor lately. Perhaps it’s the approach of a milestone birthday and the bittersweet pleasure of watching Bliss Giane grows.
This year’s birthday shoot was just a random concept which shows our reality and style as a family: relaxed and fun! I think it’s amazing how we were able to do a photo shoot without any props (except for the Hello Kitty balloon) and created a different feel of the photos.
For this shoot, our photographer, Neo Acla of RAKET NA PHOTOGRAPHY, and I felt it was like a perfect gig for both of us. It was a creative outlet for him who is art-inclined. Plus having a photographer husband (yes, he is my husband!) has great perks such as a flexible schedule and I can demand whatever I want (lol!). We were having a chillax moment when I said, “Tara, birthday shoot na tayo!” He said, “Isip tayo ng concept.” I then sent him photos from Pinterest to inspire him.
We ended up with no concept at all!
Just candid… natural.
Just the way Giane is.
Just capturing the real her.
FIRST PART: LAIDBACK FUN at La Mer BEACHFRONT
I love this because this is so us. This encapsulates my family’s adventures – and the biggest adventure about to come!
SECOND PART: A MAGIC WONDERLAND
Another thing that is so us…when we’re in Magic Planet. I’m glad someone finally caught this Blissful “moment”.
Trivia: did you know that merry-go-round helps to soothe our little one and calm their brain. No wonder Giane loves and chooses horse rather than Hello Kitty!
Children, though considered as one of the most difficult subjects to take a picture of, can create stunning images. Patience and tolerance can take you very far with children photography. I must really give it to Neo for being so patient in waiting – waiting for Giane’s moods and facial expressions and entertaining – he entertained Giane while taking photos. It really takes patience and love for Giane to be able to do these shoots! And no matter how much we planned, we cannot really tell what your little one will do during the shoot – so it pays to have a photographer who has the vision and can see beyond your pegs.
I’d like to share what I’ve learned during our shoot which you can probably apply for your future shoots, too:
1 | CHOOSE A COMFORTABLE LOCATION. “Dubai summer heat” is real. It’s a good thing we chose sunset time and on the beach in September so it was not too hot at all.
2 | KNOW YOUR KIDS’ SCHEDULE and FOLLOW IT. This might complicate the organization process, but let your kid take the lead and it makes totally worth it. Tired, sleepy or hungry kids are difficult to handle. Each family is different and their schedules will be different, but for Giane, afternoon shoot is better than in the morning.
3 | KIDS DON’T NEED TO SMILE. Even Giane wasn’t smiling, Neo still took the photo. We wanted to show how she looks normally, not how they look when they’re told to create a fake smile.
4 | LET CHILDREN EXPLORE. Let nature do that for you. We let Giane explore and be herself by going out, walking to somewhere spacious where she can wander. We bring her to a corner with minimal distractions.
That’s it!
This is one of the moments I will reminisce about later. Watching the magic happening before my eyes. That sweet tiny baby in front of the camera will be celebrating her 5th birthday before I know it. 🙂
All photos are captured by Raket NA Photography. To book for newborn/ maternity/ family shoots, you may also check him on Social Media to see more of his works or check out the hashtag #RaketNAP on Instagram!
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Grace Anatomy 