Autumn Hull Photography

The Princess Suite

This is what happens when you have three boys and one girl.  It might also be SLIGHTLY attributed to some kind of mom-living-vicariously-through-her daughter thing, but it's probably just the one-daughter-thing.  No, really.

Today really IS the last day...

Last week, I posted that it was the last day to sign up for the Ten For The Weekend workshop starting this Friday.  The place I am hosting it gave me a few more days to give them the final headcount, so today is the actual last day to sign up.

There is still room if you want to sign up, and this will be the best price on this class.  Starting with the April workshop, the price will increase to $1200 instead of $750.  The only thing you need to hold your spot is a $250 deposit.  The rest is payable when you check in on Friday.

To read more about the class, visit my workshop website.

Questions?  Email me autumn at autumnhullphoto.com or call 661-297-6951

The Linguist

This is Sam at bedtime, just cruisin' the hallway like he likes to do.  He's finally noticed all the pictures up there, and he loves to talk about them to whoever is nearby, or to no one at all. 

Of course, "talk" is a relative term.  It's really more of a monologue delivered in some unknown dialect, one that is similar to our own I assume, because I can make out familiar words here and there.  Still, it's very difficult to decipher, and I'm not sure it's really meant for us to understand. 

Picture Police at it again...

I missed two days in a row, and Terri was right on top of it.  She was the first one to call me on it, so she has two more mentoring phone calls coming her way.  I've just been so busy getting everything ready for the Ten For The Weekend workshop coming up this Friday, it's taken up all of my working hours.  Enjoy your victories, Terri!  I'll be back on track just as soon as this weekend is over!

Hi Grandpa

This was a teeny tiny little newborn that I photographed last week.  Grandpa came along, which was such a rare treat.  He was so good with his grandson, he knew just how to hold him, talk to him, and calm him down.  It was a very touching moment to witness.

Katie being Katie

Katie loves coming into the studio for pictures.  My studio is in the garage, and usually I take it down after sessions so I can park the car in there.  Lately, I've been leaving it set up, so every time we go through the garage to get to the car, Katie asks if I want to take her picture.

The day I shot this, we had just come from getting her hair cut and the stylist did this cute little updo on her, so I just couldn't resist.  When we got home, I asked her if she wanted to do pictures and she shouted "yes!". 

The only trick with her these days is to get natural looking smiles where she doesn't have her shoulders shrugged around her face, head tilted into a shoulder, and a huge fake smile plastered on her face.

This shot was after I told her not to smile at all, to just be totally serious.  After about 15 tries, we got this.  I like it because I can see the struggle in her eyes as she tries not to smile, but can't help herself. 

She's a dramatic, animated little ball of giggles and non-stop talking, and I just adore her.

Little Butterfly

This little girl is from the class I taught a couple of weeks ago.  I finally had the chance to sit tonight and proof the session for the parents.  I don't usually use a lot of props for newborns, but she was such a good sleeper, and I happened to have the tiny wings in the studio for the class.  This was a huge session.  Mom and Dad drove for three hours to get here for the session, so I wanted to make the trip worth their while!  Hopefully I'll have the entire session done for them by tomorrow.

Why Alex is so cool

It's hard to be the oldest kid in a big family.  There's not as much attention for you, and there are always a bunch of little kids bugging you, taking your stuff, and invading your privacy. 

Alex has to put up with all of that, and he gets annoyed just like any 8 year old boy would.  However, he is also just about the sweetest big brother a kid could hope for.  This is him, showing his little brothers the moon on a program called Celestia, that lets you zoom in and out all over the solar system.  Both of the little boys get excited about the moon and stars, but Sammy especially loves the moon.  Alex knows this, so he pulled up a shot of the moon just for him and zoomed all around it, moving closer in and pulling back, while helping Sam learn how to pronounce it properly. 

Then he spent about 20 minutes showing the boys all over the solar system, pronouncing each planet and moon slowly and repeating the names so the boys could practice saying them.  Both of the boys are in speech therapy and Alex knows they need lots of practice with new words. 

Earlier today, he gave his sister Katie a lesson on the planets as well.  She stayed home sick from school, and she tried to paint the planets just like she'd seen him do yesterday, but she didn't quite understand what to do.  He sat with her for a long time, telling her all about space and the solar system, and facts about all the planets.  He answered all of her questions patiently, even when she asked them again and again.   (My favorite question... "What's a Naked Eye?", followed by a sigh and an explanation by Alex.)

He is such a thoughtful and loving guy, and no mom could be prouder.

M! W! M! W! M! W!

Sam recently learned from Katie (his big sister) that m & w are the same letter, just upside down.  Since then, it's his favorite little thing to carry around. 

He plucks the magnet off the fridge and declares it m & w several times in a row, while flipping it back and forth.  Once he has satisfied that urge, he wanders around the house with it, a satisfied, knowing little smile on his face. 

Every so often, he holds it up for inspection, repeating the mantra, M!  W!  M!  W! a few times, then goes back to holding it quietly and wandering again. 

He'll get interested in other things, like some trains, coloring, the piano, a tv show, but the m/w stays with him, either in his fist or set carefully nearby.  That way he'll be ready as soon as the urge strikes again to verify that, yes, indeed these two letters are each other, inverted.

Whoever is in the room usually gets a little lesson as well.  He comes up to you with a delighted, "Check this out!  It will BLOW YOUR MIND." kind of look on his face.  He proceeds to demonstrate the magical properties of the M/W relationship.  This usually happens three or four times a day, for the past couple of weeks.

He discovered 9/6, n/u, and d/p.  They were interesting to him for a few minutes each.  But none can touch the special place that m/w has in his heart.

By the way, I am perfectly aware of the hair issue.  Sam's hair is an enigma, with a mind of it's own, and this is a much tamer incarnation of it's usual appearance.  It cannot be subdued.  He's had a haircut recently, and I combed it today.  Twice.  With water.   I've tried, so don't judge me.

Oops - Missed again

I forgot to post a picture last night, and Terri Sasaki called me on it.   Now she's stalking me via email, trying to distract me from posting so she can catch me again and rack up the mentoring phone calls...

Nice try Terri!  But I've got my picture of the day all ready to go and I'll be posting it in a little while.