Tuesday, January 28, 2014 .posted by Vickie Llorente

A Journey to Memories creative photography session with sisters at Shinn Park in Fremont, CA.

During the last Christmas shopping season I came upon this special treasure called Tinkertart at the store Made in San Jose at West Field Valley Fair mall in San Jose. I really do love and appreciate locally made art and these jewelry pieces were truly creative. They were inexpensive so I bought 7 different items to give my own girls as stocking stuffers. 4 hair pieces, 1 necklace, and 2 scarves. Each piece was unique and creative and so much fun! Just look at all the detail in the photos below.

My oldest daughter is crazy about crazy. She loves rainbows and random jokes and doing everything without instructions. I just knew she’d love these crazy scarves and the necklace with random objects put together. I was right - they are her new favorite things and she really wants to meet the artist of Tinkertart and see more of her creations. I hope to make that happen soon!

My younger daughter loves everything pink and glittery and lacy. She loved her scarf too and her glittery hair pieces. She is my best little model and enjoyed showing off her special accessories for mommy’s camera.

Initially, the girls were a little annoyed that mom wanted to take their pictures yet AGAIN, but in the end they said it was a lot of fun. I admit that I am usually a little impatient with my own kids but I decided to treat them the same way I do my customers. Here’s how I handled my own kids which is very much like how I handle other children during JTM photo sessions:

1. I got them excited about it ahead of time by telling them it would be short and they would get ice cream after if they did good.

2. I had all the clothes out early for them to put on and all their accessories in a bag so none would get lost our ruined on the way there.

3. I let them run around and explore while I set up. When I saw they had a favorite spot picked I asked them to stop for a few minutes to pose. They did well and I let them run around again.

4. While they were playing, I took a few candid shots, occasionally asking them to look my way for a second or “show me that again”.

5. When they really started to enjoy themselves, they’d asks me to take a picture here or there of them doing this or that. This always happens for me when kids get comfortable with the camera following them around. I love it because it makes the pictures uniquely their own.

6. I ask them to do a few more posed shots which they are prepared for now that they’ve had a chance to play and get comfortable with me taking their pictures.

At the end of it all, when they were too tired to play more or pose more, I asked them just to sit on a blanket and read some books. I had brought along some of their favorites, like the Tinkerbell pop-up book for my little one and Harry Potter for my big one. All they did was relax and enjoy the books while I snapped these last few shots. When we got home later, I asked them if they had fun. They said they had a lot of fun and it hardly felt like work at all. This is what I love to hear and this is what I hope for your families when I take you out for your pictures.

So please, come on out, bring and few of your favorite things, bribe a little with ice cream, and let’s have fun!