Newborn: Baby Anna

Let me just say straight out, I love babies. They're adorable and they want to snuggle and they aren't sassy (yet). Newborn photography is kind of a game of "will the baby cry if I lay them like this?" and you just have to go from there. This gorgeous little girl nailed her newborn shoot! I was taking pictures for two hours or better and she only cried once. The best part was I got to hold her a ton and she's snuggly! Enjoy!
-Ally

This one made me chuckle when I started editing them. 

Throwback Thursday

Today's #TBT is all about the candid shot. This photo was taken during what the Hampton Roads area of Virginia would classify as a blizzard. My Dad, is basically a big kid. Take him to the beach, he will build a sand castle with you (moat included). Did it snow? You'll find him outside building an igloo, snowman, or hunting down a hill to put his seldom used sled to work. I love this photo because not only does it capture a wonderful childhood memory in the moment, but also the true spirit of a father involved in his child's life.

Photo by Alex: February 2010
(Alex's Dad, Perry, and Little Brother, Luke)

We Adventure...

As photographers, we couldn't pass up this opportunity, even if it was just us.

Meet Penelope, Ally's car. Isn't she the cutest?! Can I just mention that there was no way to turn around without getting her stuck in a puddle? So, I had to back about 1/2 a mile down a gravel lane...

Originally, I was just going to make this a post with only pictures and captions. However, the writer/blogger in me has completely missed blogging (I had a blog before Alexandra Squared where I wrote) and I realized after looking over our blog that I'm still having trouble calling it "home." That sounds weird, but bear with me. My old blog was writing. It wasn't just pictures or advertising. I knew when I started developing Alexandra Squared that I was not going to be able to hold up two blogs at once while keeping the content fun. Mine was pushed to the back burner and this one is in the forefront of my mind. That being said, I want this one to feel more real-not just us posting pictures. I want us to have a voice and for it to be honest. Therefore, I'm (we're) going to start incorporating some of the old post ideas I had from my blog here. There's going to be a lot more than just pictures and our weekly quote. Please bear with us as we're still trying to figure it all out and get our little corner of the internet to feel like ours.
That being said, after graduating on Friday night from TCC, I had booked us for a homeschool graduation Saturday afternoon (those pictures will be coming soon). It was "way out in the country" and after we were done I told Alex we were going to wander because I had a few future photoshoot locations that I loved and wanted to show her. We ended up on this muddy lane with her asking me if we were trespassing and me not being able to drive to the end because my little car would get stuck. Being photographers though, we couldn't resist the gorgeous light and location. I walked barefoot and calf deep in that muddy field, later realizing that there may have been manure on it (we didn't smell it so it only occurred to me later that farmers usually do that). We wandered, took our time, and laughed at some of our attempts at posing. We had to clean our gross feet and I had to back half a mile all the way down the lane because I couldn't turn Penelope around in those puddles. It was completely worth it though for the shots we got and a beautiful location for future shoots.
-Ally 

Weekly Quote

Throwback Thursday

Say Yes to the Dress, Bridezillas, 4 Weddings, etc.-weddings are a huge deal and brides are generally pretty stressed out about making their day the most perfect day to remember and pictures are a big part in that. Any photographer will tell you that weddings are usually the most stressful event to photograph. Usually, an amateur photographer starts out as the back-up at a wedding or the second shooter. They get to see what goes on and get some shots for their portfolio and build up from there.  However, the first wedding I shot I jumped right in as the main photographer. My friends Joe and Caitlin were getting married and she was planning a wedding in the span of three months. I loved them both and Caitlin is one of the most gorgeous women I know, so obviously I volunteered to do it. Caitlin and Joe were wonderful and made my job so much easier, not to mention she was the most gracious bride I've ever met and she didn't yell once (which is probably better than I'll do when I'm planning my wedding; fingers crossed). It was the best way to learn how to approach wedding photography and I couldn't have asked for a better opportunity or a more gorgeous couple! I learned a ton from shooting their wedding and took away a lot of really beautiful shots and a lot of ideas for weddings thereafter.
-Ally 

The first look...

My favorite-saved the best for last!

Weekly Quote

The Weekly

Every weekend we're going to start posting a weekly round up of some of our favorite things (from the internet and elsewhere)!

• Veggie burritos
• Printstagram! Perfect place to print out your instagram photos! There are big prints, small ones, stickers, magnets, books, you name it! My wall is lined with "Polaroids" now. 

• thrifting 
• The Pocket Scavenger by Keri Smith 
  

• Fairgrounds Coffee in Norfolk! 
  

• our business meetings
  
• crocheting 
• my bun lately and this bow!
  
  
• our CD packaging if you get a disk of your images
   

Throwback Thursday

In honor of Mother's Day, we are dedicating our first #TBT to the women that brought us into this world. So, enjoy the chubby tot cheeks, the 90's styles, and film cameras (ah, the good ole' days).

What quality do you most admire about your Mom?

Ally: "I think my favorite thing about my mom would probably have to be her humor. Even if something bad happens to her, she makes light of it and cracks me up. Her sarcasm is amazing. I can be crying about something and she always makes me stop by making me laugh! It's a great talent!"

Alex: "The quality I admire most about my Mom is her patience. As early as the preschool years, I was on a mission to do the exact opposite of what she asked. I've put her through the ringer more times than I would like to admit, but each time I came around to common sense, begging for forgiveness, she was there with open arms. Today, I am proud to call her one of my best friends."

Ally and her Mom, Laurie. Circa 1999

Alex and her Mom, Tonya. Circa 1991

Weekly Quote

Photography App of the Month: A Beautiful Mess

Let's face it, we're both kind of obsessed with taking pictures in general, including on our phones. Being the photographers we are, we like to be able to make smartphone quality photos look as professional and amazing as possible. So we decided we would start sharing some of our favorite apps and/or smartphone photo tips with you every month.

This month we chose A Beautiful Mess. You may have heard of the blog and the app is just as cool! We love this app for adding text or graphics to photos. We're really into adding handwriting to photos and they have fonts that fit us perfectly (and regular fonts as well for you Arial lovers)! There are tons of borders, doodles (arrows, hearts, you name it and they've included it), and text options, all of which can be personalized to your hearts desire.

An Easter photo from Ally's Instagram, text added using A Beautiful Mess

Photo from Alex's Instagram, border added using A Beautiful Mess 

A Beautiful Mess App is available for purchase on iPhone, Android, and Windows devices for $0.99 (extra borders, doodles, etc., can be purchased as well, but we have yet to find it necessary because the ones that are included are amazing!).