I have a hard time trying to keep up with updated pictures, journals, etc. for friends and family to see what Zachariah has been doing lately. I take pictures constantly, which is a good thing. We have a website we started for Zachariah a few months ago. It has a place for a journal to talk about all the newest events and things he's accomplished. I love the idea of it, but man is it hard keeping up. I was updating it every several days, so family and friends could read it. Then things started getting busier, and I started slacking off. Then there's the issue of loading all the pictures to a photo sharing website for everyone to see. I have to get the pictures ready and then upload and comment on each one. While a fun thing to do, I'm wondering if it's just too much to keep up. I don't want to stop doing it. Maybe I should figure out a schedule to when I'll do this. Perhaps one a certain day each week I should load pictures. Then another day update the journal and that website. I know a few people who are regularly looking for new pictures. But I do wonder how many people actually take the time to check everything out when I put new up. Is it worth all the work? Maybe, maybe not.
Then there is the whole issue of having professional photographs taken every so often. I haven't been as good about this as I'd like to be. I never did get Zachariah in for newborn pictures, but I took some great staged ones at home that seemed to satisfy everyone since I printed copies for them. I did get him in around 3 months for professional pics. Then my mother-in-law kindly asked me to get more taken at 6 months. She even gave me some money to do this, since it was really for her sake. And I got pictures taken then. They always turn out so cute. But I have a hard time not buying lots of prints of everything. I wish I had enough money to do that, but sadly I don't. So, I'm stuck picking and choosing the best poses and buying enough prints to satisfy picture happy relatives. When Zachariah was approaching 8-9 months, I though it would be a great time to get family pictures done before Christmas. I got ignored and an eye-rolling from my husband, so I just sort of let the subject drop. We never did get pictures done. I thought I should at least get Zachariah's done, but it got closer and closer to Christmas. We got busier and busier, until it was too late for Christmas pics. We do have a great one of Zac with Santa, so we printed copies of those.
Now we just celebrated his first birthday...a great time for pictures. I STILL haven't taken him in. We got busy with the party, the studio never answers their phone ( or returns messages), and now he is cranky with a cold. I'm hoping in the next few weeks we can get on the ball and get some more professional pictures taken. I adore the ones I have, so I don't know why it takes me so long to get it done. It's just one more thing to add to my ever growing list of daily/weekly/monthly things to do.
Posts
5 comments:
I'm a fan of portrait studios, but find the visits stressful and hard to arrange. Always love the results, though. I like J.C. Penney's, which has good portrait coupons online--or mailed to you occasionally, once you've been there. For the bigger boys, I get the package deal: one pose, a nice selection of sizes, something like $8-10 depending on the coupon. For the twins, I get the per-sheet deal, because I buy some of them together and some of each twin individually--$3 a sheet when I get the good coupons, so it's more expensive than the package deal, but not too too horrible to contemplate. I use the package deal as a guide and try to get about that many sheets (fewer wallets, which I don't use many of).
The sitting fees add up, but I buy their club card or whatever they call it, where it's something like $30 for 2 years of no sitting fees. It's not per-child, it's per-family, so of course for someone with four (or five) children it's a great deal. (Sitting fee is usually $10 or $15 per person--I can't remember how much.)
But none of this solves the problem of actually getting around to doing it. I usually do 6m, 12m, 18m, 2y, and then every year after that until they start getting annual school pictures taken. But I missed the twins' 18m, because I can't seem to get around to it, so I hear where you're coming from.
I haven't had good luck with portraits, what kind of places do you go to? I've gone to the Picture People twice and never loved the pics. They aren't cheap and I don't think they take the time to get good pics, Samantha is hard to take pics of when it's someone she doesn't know, I think I get better pics myself. Do you go to chain type place or a actual photographers studio?
I like Kiddie Kandids way better than Picture People, for what it's worth. :)
As far as getting his one year pictures, sometimes it's hard to do! I had to keep putting Gillian's off because she was learning to walk and kept falling. First she had a black eye, then a big scratch across her face... I think she was closer to 14 months before we got it done.
So far, I have gone to the stores portrait studios. Like Swistle said it's not too bad to do there cheap package. The first time I purchased more pictures in addition to that, and that adds up. The last time I just got the basic package, then I bought the proofs when they came back. This time I need a bigger package, though, and I don't know what it will end up costing.
I am thinking of checking out Sears this time.
Yes, I have problems with the bruises or scratches, so I have to wait then. Just yesterday he fell hard into the door, and has a huge bruise on the side of his head. I'm hoping that it will clear up so I can get him in this week. I really want new pictures!
We don't have a Picture People here, so that's not an option. Matt's cousin used to get the cutest pictures of her twins from them. And I have never heard of Kiddie Kandids. We just don't have many options around here.
It's more expensive than Penny's or probably Sears, but we have had a great experience with MotoPhoto. Do they have stores near you? We went to JC Penny's the first two times and the second time we had a horrible experience there. I think it probably just comes down to finding a photographer that will work for you. Good luck
Post a Comment