my style of photography

How I define my Style of Photography | washington dc family photography

I think it’s really important to show photos of my work that I’m most proud of. I want the photographs to focus on things I look for when I am composing the photo. When you look through the photos on my website in the family, newborn, fresh 48, and maternity galleries, you will notice that the photos will usually have something in common. Whether that is composition, lighting, editing style, proximity, or touch, I am proud to have those elements in my work.

I am writing this blog post to share how I define my style of photography.

bright

I love photos that are edited bright rather than dark and moody. I want you to have a photo of yourself in the way that I photographed it, in lighting that was similar to when I photographed you.

Joyful

I have photographed several families and I always want to take some time at your session to document playful moments. Those can be when the kids are up high on dad’s shoulders, or when the siblings are competing in a race. I want you to have photos to help you remember the joyful, happy moments not only from your session but the joyful moments of your family.

colorful

if I see colorful home décor when I’m in your home, I will most likely ask to photograph that space. I shoot most of my photos with natural light but I always take a speedlight flash with me in the event that I want to bring out the colorful space in your home. Think of fun art, bedsheets, nursery walls, and playrooms. I love using all of those colorful home spaces during your in home session!

connected

I will usually tell your family to squeeze in tight and remain close together. There’s something about connection in photos that really helps to show the family dynamic. I love making sure everyone feels comfortable with one another and connected.

candid

I will pose some family interaction to get your family engaging and will get you to sing a song or just hold your baby tight. The result of some of this prompting is candid. The prompt and the moment may have been created at the session, and it is my job to make sure you have those laid back, candid and personal moments that are special to your family.

Are you interested in booking a family session? Send me a message and let’s get your session scheduled!

5 things i learned from my session with allison corinne

I like getting my photo taken I admit it! But I will say there is a difference between quick snapshots on the cell phone and scheduling a portrait session with a photographer. I reached out to Allison Corinne Photography to get a couple’s session on the books for Chris and me and it was such a good decision! I wanted to find a way to share some of the beautiful images she took and share a few things I learned being on the other side of the camera. Allison’s work is beautiful but I do prefer a brighter style so they are edited by me to fit my style (please do not ask your photographer to change their style!).

Keep reading if you want to know …

5 things I learned from my photo session with Allison Corinne photography

1.       We needed to be posed

One thing I learned from the amazing Elena S Blair is that lifestyle family photography is posed! It was something that took me a little while to grasp. How did photographers always take the most amazing images that look so candid and natural? It’s posing! We have to tell our subjects what to do. Even in lifestyle photography. This might mean sitting close together and telling your subject to look at each other. The toddler might be squirmy wormy so we might tell Mom and Dad to sing them a song.

We have to guide our subjects and what is created is unique to the family.

I love seeing images and thinking to myself, “wow I don’t know this would have happened if we didn’t do that”.

We were so comfortable with Allison. I had only met her once prior to our session and Chris hadn’t met her until our session. She posed us and made sure we had the fundamentals to make a lifestyle image. Even though this was the first time she had been to our home, she where to post us for the best light. She also kept saying “I want to see hands” and various ways of telling us that our hands needed to be in the frame.  I want families to keep that in mind when I am photographing them as well -hands create connection!!

2.       It took some practice to be ourselves

I mentioned that this was Chris’ first time meeting Allison and believe it or not he’s not the biggest fan of getting his photo taken. It took us being efficient with our time and making sure he didn’t have to stick around longer than he needed to. I am comfortable behind the camera and it actually does take some strategies for me to relax in front of a camera when a photographer is taking my photo! Since we had this lifestyle couple’s session in our home, it was comforting to have our home elements, which made it easier to be ourselves. Afterall, it is our living space. Chris and I have our own dynamic but a photographer isn’t always around to capture our relationship.

We had ideas of how we wanted our story to be told such as using color in our living room and seeing if our orange fatty cat Simba would participate. That is us.

It can be a little weird at first when someone is taking a photo of you being intimate with your significant other or your family but I promise it’s worth it.

3.       It’s fun to use areas in our home a little differently

When Allison and I were first planning our lifestyle couple’s session we were trying to figure out the best place to take these photos. Did Chris and I want to go to a park or a local area? We really can be ourselves anywhere so a park would have been a fine place to have it but we decided on our home. We have been together for quite a while and made the leap to move from Atlanta to DC and thought it would be the perfect time to get photos taken of us in our home. Sure, it’s not all the way decorated (who am I kidding we haven’t hung our framed photos or set up the guest bedroom) BUT I knew if we waited until all those things happened we would have just put off the session until who knows when.

Don’t worry about cleaning every inch of your home. You can still have a session in your home. Done is better than perfect.

My ideas were to use our kitchen and bay window and Allison piggy backed on that and had us crouched into a little corner with amazing window panes and shadows. We got a variety in our kitchen! We also used areas of our living room because I’m all about whites and colors. I love both! So we wanted a warm, homey feel for some of the photos. We also wanted to spend some time in the bedroom just being ourselves. We have so much natural light in our home that we definitely took advantage of that and we were able to fill our gallery.

4.       I got to view a different perspective

Each photographer has their own style of photography. Some photographers use elements such as leading lines, framing, or negative space. One of the reasons I love Allison’s work is because she tends to fill the frame and photograph close to her subjects. It’s something that I actually want to try more often now.

My photography style tends to be a little more wide so I can capture elements of the space such as a nursery or neat windows, but the image can tell a completely different story just based on how close or far away you are from your subject.

Most of my lenses are wide angle lenses but I feel I can be more creative with my use of lenses and how different an image can turn out with that change. One thing I also wanted to mention is that I had ideas in mind of how I wanted the photo to be taken which Allison completely did, and she also had more ideas of taking them from a different angle and using nontraditional framing that I absolutely loved.

If you’re a photographer I encourage you to be on the other side of the lens so that you’re able to see things from a different perspective and through another person’s lens.

Pun intended 😉

5.       Any time is the right time to be photographed

I scheduled this session with Allison shortly after our move to DC. Allison and I are both lifestyle photographers and I was familiar with her work to know I was interested to book a session with her. Many couples tend to book a couple’s session with a photographer once they’re engaged (don’t get me wrong it’s an amazing reason to take photos!) but to be honest we had so much going on with the move and us starting new jobs that we weren’t really considering waiting until we were engaged to book a couple’s session. We are so happy with our decision to get these photos.

If you’re still reading this,

I wanted to let you know that CHRIS PROPOSED TWO WEEKS AFTER THIS SESSION!!

I had no idea it was coming and I actually have asked him a couple times why we didn’t just push the session back. I mean, he could have made up some excuse because he obviously knew he was going to do it. But he says “yeah right Tabitha, when you’re set on something there’s no changing your mind”.

And that is likely why we still got these photos done. Engaged or not. Ring or not. We are likely going to use some anyway until if and when we get “engagement” photos done.

If you’re thinking about the best time to schedule a photography session just do it. Don’t wait for the perfect time, don’t wait until your house looks like it does from the magazines, don’t wait until you lose a couple pounds. Just do it. Your future self will thank you for it.

Thank you so much Allison for taking these for me and Chris. We had so much fun with you and I can’t wait to photograph your family next month!

Looking to get some photos to tell your story? I am booking lifestyle newborn, lifestyle family, and fresh 48 sessions.

5 Things You Might Not Know About Tabitha | Tabitha Maegan Photography

Since you’re here on page I will guess that you are either interested in learning more about me as an artist and photographer or maybe you like my work and you are interested to book a family session. I have written a little blog post that may help you get to know me, by sharing 5 things I want you to know. If it’s your first time here, first of all thank you for being here! And head on over to this blog post to read 3 reasons why i am a lifestyle family photographer.

As a photographer it can be easy to hide behind our camera and focus on other people but families are most comfortable with photographers they know!

I’d love you to hang around for a few minutes to read 5 things you might not know about me, and head on over to my contact page if you like what you see and you are interested in booking a family session! I’d love to meet you!

5 things you might not know about Tabitha

1. I studied psychology and have always been interested in human behavior and connection

There is something about people that really interests me. There’s actually quite a lot about people that interests me. Human behavior and connection are probably two of the things I enjoyed most throughout school. I would always get the best grades in psychology classes because that’s what I was motivated to learn. I incorporate connection in my work and you’ll see it in my lifestyle family sessions. I always want to make sure people are connected and I think it helps to tell your family’s story. The human behavior piece definitely fits into my photography style and I make the effort to pay attention to family dynamics as well as the attention span of the little ones. If the little guy would rather go collect sticks, chances are I will tell his brother, Mom or Dad to follow him and see what happens. Likely we can follow the child’s lead for a little while and get genuine expressions in the moment rather than forcing a pose.

2. I always wanted to be left handed

I’m serious! Is that weird?? Is anyone else right handed and wish they were left handed? I used to practice writing with my left hand on many many occasions just so I could improve my handwriting. Let me tell ya something – I’m actually pretty good at it! I always wanted to be left-handed. I’m sure it’s not too late! I don’t know if it’s because it’s less common and it’s like a, “you’re left handed?” thing, but it’s just something that I always thought was so cool! I guess we want what we don’t have, isn’t that right?

3. I have a food blog

One might think that a food blog and family photography have nothing in common, but my passion for photography is what holds those two things together. My work might not ever be in a food magazine or on TV, but I have so much fun creating a photograph that makes a dish look appealing. Not to mention eating the food. I mean, helloooooo I LOVE TO EAT! Although I do the grocery shopping, cooking, photographing, and eating, I do wish that someone could come behind me and clean the dishes. I am NOT a fan of washing dishes. But I can put that aside because working on my food blog is still so much fun! Head on over to Tabitha Talks Food to check out my work! You will find easy to make, delicious recipes that keep my heart and tummy full and happy.

4. I was born in the Philippines

In this blog post I mentioned that my mom would photograph our family to send to my dad when he was away on the ship. You can start to see how my love for photography began! I was born on a navy base in the Philippines and we lived there for a few months when I was a baby. It was pretty neat that my Dad was stationed there because my mom’s side of the family is also Filipino and Spanish. I went back when I was in college and it was such an interesting experience that I don’t know I’ll ever get the chance to do again. I was there for about a week and I think I seriously photographed everything I encountered! I also tried almost all of the food that was in front of me! Finding Filipino food is such a rarity here in Georgia so when I am craving Filipino food I’ll head into the kitchen and make a few dishes.

5. I have never moved away from Georgia

After leaving the Philippines when I was a baby, we moved to California for a few years. When I was six years old we packed up all our bags (who am I kidding, I probably didn’t help at all packing) and drove across the country to Atlanta, Georgia. I went to elementary, middle, and high school here. When I was applying for colleges I didn’t apply out of state and I ended up going to school in the city. Most people move away from home for a job or school, but I actually have been here since I was a child. If I were to move I’m sure it would be a great experience but Atlanta is my home!

Now that you’ve learned some things about me, I’d love to learn something about you! Leave a comment below with something you’d like me to know about you.

 I’d love to tell your family’s story so take a look at my family portfolio and see if we would be a good fit for a lifestyle family session!

3 Reasons Why I am a Lifestyle Family Photographer | Atlanta Family Photography

When I am thinking about my reasons for being a photographer I like to think about my “why”. I like to reflect about what it is that pushes and guides me to be a photographer and what I hope to accomplish each time I pick up my camera for a session. I make sure I speak and execute my “why” for each newborn, maternity, and family session I get to photograph.

 Keep reading to learn a bit about my style of photography and what drives my passion.

3 Reasons why i am a lifestyle photographer

1. Telling a story

When I was young, my Dad was in the military and would leave for several months at a time. My mom took photos and videos of our family and little things that made our family special. This could be anything from photographing the way we played on our swing set or showing off our new clothes and toys to show my Dad. All of these photos tell a story.

When I would go to my grandfather’s house in California I used to make it a point to sit in his living room and pick at least two or three photo albums at a time to look through. He would look through them with me and laugh so hard that he couldn’t even tell me the story about the photo. He recently passed away but I will always cherish the moments and the stories told through photography.

Photography gave me a way to learn about his life from several years ago, and gave me a way to also learn about my mom and her siblings. He actually told me that if it weren’t for my grandmother he wouldn’t have any of those photos of the family or his children. It’s so nice to be able to get closer with friends and family members over something that seems so insignificant but is actually very important. Situations, families, jobs, and experiences can be so different several years from now and being able to use a camera to document the moment and memory is a way to help tell the story. It might be hard to remember how your daughter looked and felt when she lost her first tooth. And you may want to look back at that silly face your son made when Daddy held him close.

Sometimes photographs can tell a story without words and I try to incorporate that every time I press the shutter.

2. Documenting memories

This relates to telling a story and really captures the moment in time. Take the time to think about what memories of your child you have and what you want to be sure to document and not forget. A good example of documenting memories is photographing your new baby during a lifestyle newborn session.

You might not remember how little her toes were or what kind of blanket she loved being swaddled in, but it’s important to have those photographs to look back on.

Maybe your little girl is teething and makes a funny face with a little bit of drool. That’s okay! More than likely I wouldn’t edit that out of my photo, it stays in to tell a story and document the memory!

3. Because life isn’t perfect

What I want to show in my lifestyle work is the viewer to be able to see the connection and the love. I do try to make sure everyone looks and feels comfortable, however I don’t want to take away from the family’s connection. I prefer connection over perfection any day. I don’t fix my hair to be perfect every day and 90% of the time my nails aren’t manicured or painted. Half of the time my socks are mismatched. It is interesting to see how my personal feelings are embedded in my work.

I love the documentary aspect of lifestyle photography and the way the details show life and don’t focus on perfection.

There is always a time and place for perfection but I hope to be able to provide the means to tell your story in a way that is specific and tailored to your family what is important to you right now.

Sometimes your child would rather look at you and sing than look at my camera. Sometimes your child wants to read a book with you and would rather read than sit on a couch for a stiff family photo. And I’m okay with that. It’s connection. And I can’t wait to meet you!

I’d love to photograph your family for a lifestyle family session. Check out my family portfolio here and send me a message on my contact form about how we can schedule your family session!