This adorable couple made the Day Trip from New York City all the way down to the South Jersey Shore Boardwalk just to have portraits done by Crane Photography. While these look like engagement portraits, they’re actually from something I’m calling a “Beloved Session.” (Thanks for the idea Jesh De Roux ) Beloved sessions are for those of us who are already married but would still love to spend two fun hours having our relationship and connection celebrated and photographed. Why do engaged couples get to have all the fun? This Beloved Session was held in Wildwood, NJ which offers miles of beautiful beaches, quirky Do-Wop architecture and of course the Wildwood Boardwalk. A&J, married 2 years, took advantage of many different styles and locations in Wildwood. We did some romantic “Under the Boardwalk” shots, followed by some pictures on the dunes and beach and finally they dressed in some vintage clothing to recreate a portrait that was done of J’s Grandparents on the Jersey Shore Boardwalk decades ago. I hope you enjoy this Day Trip to the Jersey Shore! Contact me soon if you hope to have your own Jersey Shore portrait session or Beloved Session.
I have to give a quick shout out to my husband Rich who makes the BEST portable light stand!! He also takes the occasional picture from his vantage point which is a full foot higher than mine and gives me great ideas for compositions. I love when he accompanies me on shoots!
The great Off Camera Flash held by my husband and light stand helps me to get great shots like this with the setting sun in the background.
Thanks for being such great sports A&J!!
I’m a bit of a nature nerd which makes me really love and appreciate my home in the woods of Medford, NJ. We live right on the border of “civilization” and the Pine Barrens – you know where the Jersey Devil lives. While I haven’t seen the Jersey Devil yet, I have seen all sorts of fun and exotic wildlife in my yard. I sit here with my Northeastern US Field Guide and try to identify every species of flora and fauna that I come across. I can’t always grab my camera quick enough but when I do I always want to share it with my blog followers. Who knows, some of you may be nature nerds too.
So I was pretty excited when I noticed a birds nest in my ugly, failing hanging flower basket. I took the basket down (without touching anything near the nest) and noticed that there were 3 pink spotted eggs and 1 blue spotted egg. Being the nature nerd I am, I knew that some birds actually lay their eggs in another birds nest and fool the nest-owner into hatching and feeding their young. The brown-headed cow bird is one such species of dead-beat parents. Here you can see the 3 pink eggs (House Wren) and 1 blue (Brown-headed Cow bird) egg.
And we were happy to see a few days ago that our eggs have all hatched:
It’s tough to see in this picture but one baby bird is clearly WAY bigger and older than the other 3 birds. I’ll keep you updated as our babies grow into different species.
Speaking of different species, my husband noticed a funny looking rock out in the yard yesterday. He went out to check it out and saw it was actually a turtle and called for me. I ran out (being the nature nerd that I am) and I was about to pick the turtle up when hubby shouted, “WAIT, I think it’s laying eggs!!” Luckily I didn’t scoop this turtle up because she was in fact laying eggs into a hole that she had dug just 20 feet from our back door! It was the coolest thing! Our little Mama turned out to be a Painted Turtle. We watched as she laid 5 eggs into the muddy hole. She didn’t seem to care at all that were watching her and taking pictures. When she finished up, she buried her eggs and you would have never known she had been there. Here are the shots I took of the painted turtle laying her eggs:
The Proud and Beautiful Mama
Now admit it, if you’ve read this far you must be a nature nerd too. Leave a comment and let me know I’m not the only weirdo who chases wildlife around with a camera. 
More human pictures will be posted soon! Thanks for visiting!
I met this lovely family when “Mrs. L” invited me to her gorgeous home to create some portraits that she could give to her husband for Father’s Day. I couldn’t have asked for a more picturesque, landscaped backyard to work in. I spent most of my time letting twin brothers “C & S” proudly give me a tour of their property. The younger boys seemed to love getting to pose for portraits with their big brother “A” whom they obviously adore! I had a tough time narrowing down the proofs because I could just feel the love and happiness emanating from every image which, to me, signals a perfect portrait. Happy Father’s Day “Mr. L.” You are blessed with a beautiful family and I hope you enjoy your portraits as much as I do! Next time hopefully you can be in some! 
Here are just a few of my many favorites:
Thursday, May 13, 2010 Posted in Kids
May is the month of May Crownings for “Lady Madonna,” First Holy Communions and Confirmations at every Catholic Church in the area. I went to 12 years of Catholic school and fondly remember May: bringing flowers to the Blessed Mother, attending Communion and Confirmation parties and preparing for SUMMER!! May was SO much more fun than March when all you had was cold weather and Lent. I got to revisit some of my fond (and not so fond) memories of Catholic school during the portrait session of Little Miss “M.” She was about to make her First Holy Communion and looked SO sweet in her gorgeous Communion gown. I kind of wish she would have visited me after her big day so we could have ventured outside and gotten her dress maybe a little dirty. But we still had fun and had to stifle a few giggles so we could get the important reverent portraits that are so important when marking such a Holy occasion. Miss “M” even got to strike a few “diva” poses when Mom stepped out of the studio. While not a traditional Communion pose, I loved the “diva shot” because it really showcased “M’s” personality and that’s what we’re all about here at Crane Photography.
My favorite of the bunch!
The "reverant" pose
And the "diva" pose!
Seriously, how cute was Little Miss “M?!” So if you’ve got your own diva or even a little serious guy bring them out to Crane Photography so we can capture them on their big day. If you are planning a Communion, Confirmation, Bar or Bat Mitzvah portrait session, try to schedule it for AFTER their big day. This will allow us to do some outdoor portraits and relax a little bit without the fear of getting a stain on the special occasion outfit. Use the contact link above to set up your portrait session today.
Thursday, May 6, 2010 Posted in Babies
I have to admit that I have a bit of a foot fetish – but only baby feet. The tinier they are, the more I just go crazy for them! I’ve photographed some adorable piggie toes but my favorite images are always when the tiny newborn toes sneak out of the crocheted baby cocoon that I made. I mean is there anything cuter??
Well of course there is – Little Baby “K.” She was the tiniest peanut of a baby girl and she was such a delight to photograph. She slept when I wanted sleeping portraits, woke up when I wanted awake images and even cracked a sweet newborn smile for me! Check out sweet Baby “K’s” newborn portraits and try not to fall in love with her – because her heart already belongs to her Daddy! <3
So if you’re expecting a bundle of joy, be sure to contact me soon after the birth so we can capture the way your baby looks those fleeting first days. The best newborn portraits are done in the first two weeks of a baby’s life while they’re still too sleepy to complain much and before newborn acne sets in. Since your baby will be so young I have no problem coming to your home to photograph your baby in the intimate setting he or she is most comfortable in. And don’t forget to schedule your maternity portrait before it’s too late also. The best time for maternity portraits is between weeks 34 and 37 when you’re beautiful and round and can still move without too much trouble. Ask about our maternity/newborn portrait specials!
This is just a quick whimper of self pity for me and my baby girl. Poor Lucy. She started daycare a few days a week on March 1st to allow me the time I need to concentrate on my growing business. Well as anyone who’s ever had kids in daycare knows, the first few months are just riddled with illness as the babies catch every germ in the place. So Lulu has gotten her share of colds over the past 2 months but on April 5th she was diagnosed with a double ear infection from one of her colds. It’s now April 30th and my poor baby girl still has her ear infection and is on her third round of antibiotics. We just can’t kick this stubborn antibiotic-resistant infection and she’s also come down with a nasty stomach bug on top of her cold and ear infection. She obviously can’t go to daycare while sick so here she sits on my lap while I try to type this out and she tries to steal my mouse and press the secret key combination that somehow shrinks my fonts(?). Yesterday while trying to entertain her in my studio I decided to put her in one of my new tutus and snap a few shots of her – I know, Mommy-torture. Here she is in all her pitiful glory.
I think all parents know the sad sick baby face 
"No Mommy! Take pictures of my baby instead!"
She tried to crack a smile but this is as close as she got.
"Can we be done now please?"
Hey, how did he sneak in here?
Yeah, Jack’s doing fine since he’s got his rock-solid immunity from going through his daycare bugs when he was Lucy’s age.
So this post is to hopefully explain to my wonderful, patient clients why my deadlines have slipped a bit over the past few weeks. I am now about 5 days behind on my work and rather than stressing over it while being puked on, I’m just going to ask for your continued patience and understanding. You all have been SO great so far and I appreciate it so much!! So please send some prayers and healthy vibes to Miss Lucy if you wouldn’t mind so she can stop suffering and I can hopefully get caught up on my sessions, proofs, orders and album designs. I appreciate it!!
What a great way to celebrate Earth Day by sharing some of my favorite portraits from a recent family portrait session. These portraits were all taken in the yard of my home/studio and I think you can see that little Mr. J had a blast playing outside with his parents! I had SO many favorite images from this fun session. I look forward to watching this adorable family grow as I take their portraits in the future.
Little Mr. J was just learning to take his first steps when these portraits were done so they hold such a special value to his parents!
And these last two are seriously some of my favorite images EVER taken during a family session!
Thanks so much L&W for coming out to see me! I hope you love your portraits as much as I do!
Has anyone noticed that all of my blog titles this year have had something in common? Anyone? Beuller??
They’ve all been titles to Beatles songs. It’s tough trying to find a Beatles song to go with every blog post but it’s fun too. I decided to do this while I was putting my 2010 Wedding pricing together, but I never actually released my Wedding package pricing to the public. So here it it folks. Crane Photography’s 2010 Wedding Photography Pricing. So send this link to anyone you know who is planning a 2011 or even 2010 wedding because I do still have some openings in 2010. But contact me soon if you’re interested in Crane Photography for your wedding because my prices aren’t going to stay this affordable for long. Wedding and Fashion photography industry leaders are already pressuring me to raise my prices! Like this recent mssage from a Fashion photography icon:
Hi Cara, Your pictures are lovely, but your prices are RIDICULOUS!! You are charging NOTHING for your gorgeous work! $1500 for a wedding?? I spend more than (that) at the lab just on color corrections and uploads. $150 for a portrait session? How do you make any money? RAISE YOUR PRICES NOW. Seriously. Believe in yourself and stop under charging for what you do.
So as you can see, Crane Photography is a SERIOUS bargain. Contact me now to discuss your wedding before my prices start to skyrocket to reflect the rest of the industry. And without further ado. Crane Photography’s Wedding Photography Pricing:
Crane Photography Wedding Package price list
One thing you need to know about Crane Photography studios is that it is located in the front of our home in Medford, NJ. My family has lovingly named our home “Camp Cranium” because we live in the woods with a creek in the back yard. It also feels like you’re on vacation whenever you visit! The creek has been both a blessing and a curse. The blessing is a gorgeous, natural backdrop for portraits like this one of my beautiful sister Caity:
The curse happened when our home was 75% destroyed in the Burlington County floods of July 2004. And somewhere between a blessing and a curse are all the critters who visit us from the creek. 3 in particular have become almost part of the family: Mary, Murry and Dirty Bill (so named because his bill is always dirty). They knock on the door every day for breakfast but they also try to insert themselves into our portrait sessions. Here they are in a maternity portrait that my husband Rich was trying to take of me:
And here is Murry inserting his big ugly (but lovable) head into my favorite shot from a recent portrait session with the “O” family. Get the heck out of my shot Murry!!
But the critters in the backyard can be a blessing because nothing made sweet little “R” smile more than chasing the ducks into the creek. And I was able to crop the above shot into quite a nice portrait:
Plus I got these great shots as well:
So use the “Contact” form above to book your session at “Camp Cranium” and possibly get a chance to meet the infamous Mary, Murry and Dirty Bill. April is almost fully booked but there are still lots of May and June sessions available!
No it won’t be long until we get to meet the perfect little baby in this beautiful Mamma-to-be’s tummy. M is a former client of mine from WAY back in the day and I was thrilled to be able to photograph her gorgeous pregnant belly on such a warm spring day. M chose to do an outdoor portrait session right in my backyard by the water. Doesn’t she look like a fertility goddess?! M & G – I can’t wait to meet your new little one in a few weeks (or less?). I hope you like your sneak preview!
M – You make pregnancy look HOT! Thanks so much for trusting Crane Photography to capture this special time in your life!
To book your own portrait session, please use the “contact” form above. Just don’t hesitate because the warm weather has everyone booking their spring portraits sessions so appointments are limited!
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