hi, my name is deena and this is the place where i will be regularly posting new photos and general happenings. i am a seattle and portland photographer who specializes in natural light photography of kids and families. i also enjoy shooting weddings, events, parties and life in general.
for me, it is more about being who you are. it never ceases to amaze me how quickly families will give you a glimpse into their world. i love being privy to the all of the silly nicknames, the secret tickle spots, and the impromptu hugs. it makes me smile to watch parents be ridiculously silly trying to make their kids laugh. i have heard more songs sung off key than you can imagine (although i have to admit most of them were me). bribes? please, i have heard them all.
give me bruised up knees, messed up hair and drool any day. life is natural and that is how i would like to capture it for you.
thanks for stopping by!
balloons are fun. somehow they make people smile by just being balloons. they were fun to have for emma and mia’s photos- although i think these two could have a good time in a cardboard box. it’s been fun watching them grow up over the years. this year’s big developments: braces for emma and no front teeth for mia.
i got to hang out with lucas last weekend for his one year photos. he was most definitely having a daddy day. he needed to either be held by dad or have some part of him touching dad. i have a sweet series of pictures of him where you only see dad’s arm or leg. i think one of my favorite parts of taking photos is getting to see the games that people play w/ their kids. lucas’s parents had several tricks that he thought were hilarious (see “baby on your head” below).
that would be no, and she is also super sweet. i met up w/ ali last week at her grandparent’s house in west seattle. they have this piece of land that is so beautiful in a secret garden kind of way- there are trails, bridges and benches. i took her brother blake’s senior pics there a couple years ago too. after that we headed to alki and i got to check out a park i’d never been to before. what i didn’t notice until this time is how funny their dog’s smile is- i think it’s the black outline that makes it so great.
a couple weekends ago we headed out to the oregon coast w/ some of our favorite peeps. it was a sleepy little town called neskowin that had one cafe and one country store. it’s biggest attraction was the beach- which was really nice. garvey had many holes to dig- and dig he did. then we got to retreat to our place that not only had a hot tub on the deck w/ a view of the ocean but also an indoor sauna. oh vacation- i just can’t quit you.
i met up with this crew a few days ago. they had come from three different states to celebrate their mom’s birthday in manzanita. hats off to you guys for braving the chilly and very windy northwest beach. let’s just say we weren’t lounging around in beach chairs- we were pretty much in and out.
here are a few faves from a photo day that i did in poulsbo last weekend. it was really warm out but i managed to find a few shady spots w/ these cuties.
i had this idea that i was going to take newborn pics of gus really early so that he was still really tiny. well, turns out he was over ten pounds when he was born and mom was in labor for about forty hours. needless to say, mom needed a little recovery time so i got to meet him last week when he was almost three weeks old. the sleepy, snuggly baby part worked out in the end- it’s just that this newborn has some yummy chunks and rolls.
i met up w/ this crew last weekend. elliott fell asleep in the car on the way there and i think he was sort of wondering how he ended up at a park w/ a photographer. his dad said that they were running a few minutes late because he couldn’t find one of emily’s pink shoes and so he sort of offhandedly asked elliott if he knew where it was. he was surprised when he nodded his head and then even more surprised when he marched over to emily’s doll house and pulled the pink shoe out of the garage. right where it was supposed to go.
people that know me are familiar w/ the fact that i have a soft spot for redheads. i mean, how can you resist it? you can’t. it’s too powerfully cute. i met up w/ henry and alice again last weekend. they both were shy for oh, about two minutes, and then it was game on. ramps are fun, what can i say?
well, maybe the boy’s sneak attack wasn’t really all that sneaky but it was funny. it was so nice to see this gang again. sometimes i get a peek into people’s lives and i am continually blown away by how some people can have so much going on and still be so kind, gracious and warm- that pretty much describes the ostranders to a tee. they love their boys deeply and it’s really fun to watch them hang out with them. oh, and this time crew looks so much more grown up without old man’s hair.
