pascale wowak photoblog

Jenny & Ryan

Jenny is positively RADIANT right now.  I knew her a bit before she got pregnant and she's always been gorgeous but now she absolutely glows!  Another great thing about Jenny is that she is NOT camera shy and extremely photogenic, so you can imagine how easy this was for me.  We just giggled like school girls and I took some pictures. Voila. The end!  The love between Ryan and Jenny is transcending.  It just melts my heart.  Little Jackson is one lucky dude to be born into that cocoon of love, tenderness and affection.  I can't wait to meet the little guy!  Take care Jenny and enjoy your pictures! :)

Cuddles

My two little ones are only 2 years apart and they either love each other to pieces or are actively trying to kill each other (or so it seems at times!).  Lately they have been arguing incessantly (mostly due to a pesky little sister who really enjoys taunting her older brother...) and it's been driving me to near lunacy... what happened to the LOVE!?

When I caught sight of them cuddling and hugging on a chair outside (Out of the blue! For no reason!) I, after shaking off the shock of it all, ran inside and grabbed my camera.  I had to share these if only as a reminder to parents of other squabbling siblings that they really do, deep down, love each other! Really! :)

Another magazine cover!

Happy News! One of my photos made the COVER of the Pathways To Family Wellness magazine.  This is the second time in just a few months making the cover of their publication.  In addition, three of my images are also used inside the magazine to accompany various articles on family health and breastfeeding.  Go check it out at www.pathwaystofamilywellness.org if you want to take a look :)

Maggie

Miss Maggie has quite possibly the longest lashes yet!  Simply amazing.  The shoot was during Maggie's dinner/witching hour but mom and dad managed it all very well, and despite the unfortunate timing, we still did quite well on the photographic front!  Maggie was at her happiest while swinging through the air or being held upside down (as you shall see).  That or when sticking grass up her mom's nose.  That seemed to work pretty well too!  It was a pleasure meeting you all and congrats on that sweet little baby on the way (very soon!)... :)

 

Kayla

I've been taking pictures of Kayla since the very first few months of me launching this little portrait business of mine.  Her mother and I are always laughing our heads off during the shoot and it's a miracle I get any "work" done at all!  We love to compare notes of the pros and cons of each developmental stage.  We have agreed that 4 is harder than 2.  Just sayin'!  Kayla is like my daughter: energetic and precocious wrapped up in a sweet little daredevil package.  I think I managed to get her to sit still for all of 0.6 seconds at a time!  And yet, look at the images of this girl.  You could lose yourself in those eyes.  We had a blast...Thanks Diane!  Enjoy!

Louie Louie

Oh how I love me those newborns!  I had the delightful experience of meeting Louie and his first time parents.  Little Louie reminded me so very much of how my son was as a newborn.  They even looked alot alike!  Except, of course, my preemie son was not 10 lbs when I gave birth to him.  I nearly fell to my knees to bow profusely at Allison when she told me that.  Brave woman.  Allison is one of those really relaxed and genuinely confident new moms.  She can read Louie really well and was cool as cucumbers even when he fussed (due to tummy issues that day) and categorically refused to fall (or stay!) asleep no matter what they did!  Patience eventually won that battle and, at the very end, I got some wonderful sleeping shots in addition to all the others I had gotten.   It was a pleasure meeting you guys, enjoy your pictures!

Lori and family

I've been documenting my friend Lori's family for the past 3 years.  She was one of my very first clients when I started my business.  It has been delightful to watch her family grow and change.  My absolute favorite part of my job is being able to watch those transitions.  To capture mom when she is pregnant, and then the newborn and then the siblings etc...  The cycle of life and families.  I feel so honored to be able to follow these families over the years.  I have quite a few clients who have been with me since the very beginning and I'm always so excited to do the next shoot and see how much the little ones have changed/grown.  Hands down the best part of my job! 

If there's one thing Lori's family knows how to do it's PLAY and be goofy!  Good times!  Here's some favorites, enjoy. :)

Lori's husband is heading out to Iraq soon.  He will definitely be in my thoughts and prayers.

Twins!

The shoot started a bit earlier than usual due to their bedtimes and the sun was much higher than what I'm used to working with so I had to really work with the harsh light and use it to my best advantage.  These twin 2 year old girls were so full of life.  They were definitely way more interested in running around chasing waves and digging in the sand (all first time experiences!) than having pictures taken! Who can blame them?! So there were definitely way more candids on this shoot than posed as sitting still was simply not happening! :)  I just loved watching the twin interaction.  They are so in tune with each other and yet definitely very independent little souls.  I got a bit of a workout with these two! :)

gallery show opening

I had the gallery show opening Friday night for my 3 month stint at the Artemis Healing Center.  It was a lovely evening.  I had brought bubbles and playdo for the little ones to play with out on the patio to keep them out of the facility and thus not making a mess inside.  Everyone involved contributed great food and the atmospeher was very casual and relaxed.  My family was there.  I even had a few clients stop by which was really sweet (thanks guys!).  My best friend Aerin even fought traffic (both ways) over the hill with her two little ones in tow to show up and check it out.  That's a GOOD friend!  She took a picture of my family with my point and shoot but my son is still in ANTI photo mode and decided to make a goofy face. Oh well! You get what you get with him these days! :)  Funny story:  My daughter has never seen me with make-up on (other than the occasional mascara and lipstick).  I don't wear any day to day and have only worn very slight make-up on "big" occasions like the rare date night or mom's night out etc...  The amount I wear for those outings is so minimal that I essentially look the same to the kids.  Well, I went and got my make up done at the clinique counter at Macy's the day of the show (for fun, something I'd never done before) and when I got home (mind you, I asked the wonderful Clinique gal to make it natural and not too dramatic, which she did just right) and my 2 yr old daughter looked at me, crinkled up her nose, make a "yech, gross" face and said: "EEEW! Why did you paint your face? I don't like it! Take it off!"  Sigh.  I kept it on seeing as I liked it (that still counts for something) and figured that at some point my kids will have to realize that mommy doesn't always have to look like the sleep deprived frazzled undeniably unpolished looking woman they are used to seeing everyday! :)

Claudia and family

My friend (& artist) Claudia (along with her family of course!) had a photo shoot with me.  Claudia does original and custom paintings which you can check out on her website www.bumpyart.com.  Her two boys absolutely LOVE each other.  They were sooooo cute together.  Whatever big brother did, little brother copied.  It was like watching my two little ones interact...except without all the arguing and fighting...ha!  Enjoy your pictures Claudia!

my friend michelle

I had a shoot with my good friend Michelle and her beautiful family.  I posted pictures of her newborn son Ari a few weeks ago.  Here's the ENTIRE family, including older siblings Zoe and Eli (who almost look like twins!).  Their blue eyes are absolutely stunning.  I managed to get some great smiles and funny expressions.  This was a very long shoot and the kids held up remarkably well!   Michelle is an accomplished photographer in her own right and thus already has gizillions of fantastic pictures of her children.  What she DOES NOT have are ANY pictures of HER with her children so that was definitely the focus last night! ENJOY!

Spunky Ava

This little girl was FULL OF LIFE!  She took all of about 2.3 seconds to warm up to me and bam, we were off and running (literally!)  I just adore these images because they really captured Ava exactly as she is.  A delightful, energetic, bright and funny little girl with lashes that go on FOR-EVAH! 

We had a blast!  I've got another shoot tomorrow with a good friend and her family, we've got some great ideas as to what we want to do and hopefully we can make them all happen! :)

Point & Shoot

I have alot of people tell me: "Wow, your camera takes really good pictures!"  That statement always makes me chuckle.   I fully recognize that there is a very nice compliment within that statement; however, I would like to disprove the theory that it is my high end, expensive, full of gizmos and gadgets camera and quality lenses which are the sole reason for my "good pictures." :)

The following three images were taken last night while enjoying a post-dinner walk with my two little ones.  I used a tiny little point and shoot camera.  So, goes to show, you still kinda gotta know what you're doing, no? :)  

I had a photo shoot tonight with the spunkiest little 2 year old.  We had so much fun!  Check in in a couple days for those images! :)

Gallery Show!

I am so pleased to announce that the Artemis Healing Center in Los Gatos will be showcasing some of my work for a 3 month gallery show from August 17th through October 25th.  The gallery show opening will be held on Friday August 17th from 5pm to 8 pm.  Children are welcome! Please feel free to drop by, I'd love to see you.  You can go to www.artemishealingcenter.com for directions and info.   

Booking up fast!

Hi everyone! Just a quick email to let my clients know that I'm booking up incredibly fast for the holiday season, so if you want to get some holiday photos done of your family, email me sooner rather than later.

As its stands, August is booked solid.  September has a just a few dates left.  Weekends in October are all full, I have a few weekdays left.  November is already half filled up. December is pretty open but I take the last 2 weeks of December off and any shoots done AFTER the 10th of December will not be edited and processed in time for Christmas.

I know it's hard to plan things that far in advance but I wanted to give you all a heads up because last year I had to, with a very heavy heart, turn people away because I was completely booked up.   That was no fun at all.  I want to give my wonderful clients, and anyone reading this blog, a heads up so that I can make sure I find a place for them in my calendar before it fills up.

Now go out and enjoy those last few weeks of summer vacation!! :)