Baby Lucas | Pittsburgh Newborn Photographer

Read more about the article Baby Lucas | Pittsburgh Newborn Photographer

I had the pleasure of photographing baby boy #2 for the O family in their gorgeous Squirrel Hill neighborhood. I photographed older brother Jackson a couple of years ago, and his photos are some of my favorite newborn portraits! Here is my favorite image from that session (in their previous home):

lifestyle newborn photography

And now, onto the new shoot with baby Lucas! Mom Sara filled out a questionnaire for me so you can hear all about her birth story and experience bringing her new sweetie home.

Due to COVID (and the fact that they have an AMAZING view in front of their home), we shot this session primarily outdoors in full sun with fill flash. The clouds were so beautiful on this day, so I took full advantage of the natural sky backdrop! Then we did a quick shoot indoors, where I work a KN95 mask to protect the family.

BABY’S NAME AND BIRTH DATE: Lucas Morgan O’Brien born 9/17/2020. (Due date 9/19/2020)

BABY’S PLACE OF BIRTH: Magee Women’s Hospital in Pittsburgh

DESCRIBE YOUR BIRTH EXPERIENCE.

After working all day, I starting having contractions around 6 pm. We went to the hospital and Lucas was born at 3:01 am. He came into the world on a happy note as I did not push him out but rather literally laughed him out!

family portrait two boys in park

DESCRIBE LIFE WITH A NEWBORN. HOW HAS YOUR LIFE CHANGED SINCE GIVING BIRTH?

The transition to two has been easier than I anticipated and we feel like Lucas has been part of our family forever.

DOES BABY HAVE SIBLINGS OR PETS? HOW DID THEY REACT TO BABY COMING HOME?

Lucas’ older brother Jackson is smitten with him. He gets excited to see him and asks for him every time he wakes up.  While there are moments of learning to adjust to being a big brother, he is overall doing really well with the change.

newborn baby boy with big brother on bed

WHEN DID YOU BOOK YOUR NEWBORN SESSION? WHY DID YOU PICK MISSY TIMKO PHOTOGRAPHY?

We booked over the summer I believe. Missy did a beautiful job capturing this special time in our life when Jackson was born and we wanted the same experience for Lucas’ newborn photos.

HOW DID YOU PREPARE FOR YOUR NEWBORN SESSION? ANY TIPS FOR NEW MOMS REGARDING NEWBORN PHOTOGRAPHY?

Plan for your outfits beforehand. As a newly postpartum mom, it is hard to predict how your body will look and what clothes will make you feel good. I made sure to have a few different sizes and styles that would coordinate with the rest of the family’s outfits so I wasn’t scrambling the morning of the shoot.

DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE IMAGE(S) FROM THIS SESSION? DESCRIBE THE IMAGE AND WHY YOU LOVE IT.

My favorite is probably the ones of Jackson kissing Lucas. There is one close up that just melts my heart, especially the version in black and white.

newborn baby boy black and white with brother

Missy Timko Photography is a boutique photography studio located in Mt. Lebanon, PA. Missy specializes in children from newborn to senior, families, and adults. Missy’s style is simple, natural, and clean, both posed and lifestyle photography with beautiful natural backdrops, and Missy also has a gorgeous custom studio space in uptown Mt. Lebanon.  There are many session options, from full length custom sessions to quick & easy headshots, inside the studio or outside in a beautiful natural or urban location in Pittsburgh.  Contact Missy for availability.

New Blog Series: Our Most Loyal Families

Read more about the article New Blog Series: Our Most Loyal Families

I am working on a new series dedicated to my most loyal repeat clients! I have quite a few families that have done portraits with me 4, 5, 6, even 7 years! When I moved here in 2012, Mimi was born just three months later, so my first PA families were in 2013. I started my business as Powder Blue Photography in 2010 in Portland, OR, and we have now celebrated 10 years in business! 🎉

I am overjoyed when a familiar client (friend!) gets in touch to schedule a shoot. I am even more excited when someone texts me with baby news! These are families whose kids I’ve known since they were teeny tiny, some of them newborns, and their moms and dads are devoted to documenting their childhoods through newborn, family, and senior portraits. Many of the moms and dads have done their headshots with me as well, some of them multiple times throughout the years. These are also clients that are responsible for many of my referrals, so I owe them a huge debt of gratitude.

fall family portraits with changing leaves color pittsburgh pa

There is nothing I enjoy more about my job than forming relationships with the kids and babies I photograph. I was able to form meaningful relationships when I was a public high school teacher (art, photography, AP Art) on the West Coast from 2000-2012, and my favorite part of teaching was my relationship with the kids as well. I didn’t realize when I opened my photography studio in 2010 that I would enjoy this benefit as a photographer as well. Some of the kids I photograph have said “I love you Missy!” and their parents have told me that they look forward to seeing me, or they talk about me often… the kiddos consider me a friend, and that means the world to me!

family portraits in pittsburgh

Many of these clients have walls of portraits in their homes and shelves full of albums that I have crafted for them. I work with them every year to update their gallery walls or add a new grouping. I have lately been making suggestions on how to handle it when you have run out of wall space! (Move oldest portraits to the family room or an upstairs hallway, or create a grouping for each kiddo in their room using their individual portraits from every year.) These wall displays tell their kids, “You are loved and valued in this home, and family is important!”

So my goal this winter is to honor each of the families that have worked with me for multiple years with downloadable slideshows of their children and families as they have grown each year. I am honored by their love and trust!

I never delete photos that have been purchased by my clients. I delete the RAW files, plus any images that have not been selected for purchase, pretty much right after the ordering appointment since they take up a LOT of drive space. I don’t guarantee image archival after very much time has passed, and that is only because I cannot guarantee that my backups won’t fail. That said, I have a comprehensive system that consists of multiple external drives as well as multiple cloud-based storage systems containing every image I’ve delivered to clients. It is extremely unlikely that I would ever lose any of my work. In 2021, I plan to start including free multi-year galleries with the purchase of image files! Currently, image galleries and download links are active for one month, but I am thinking that should change!

Throughout this post, you are seeing a peek at just some of the families I may feature. Let me know if you would like to be one of the featured families by liking and commenting on my Facebook post. Ask your friends and family to comment as well if you want to get my attention! 🥰 Featured clients will receive a link to download their slideshow(s) as well as a special gift in the mail!

Thanks so much for 10 years of Missy Timko Photography! I can’t wait to share these wonderful memories with you!

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Missy Timko Photography is a boutique photography studio located in Mt. Lebanon, PA. Missy specializes in children from newborn to senior, families, and adults. Missy’s style is simple, natural, and clean, both posed and lifestyle photography with beautiful natural backdrops, and Missy also has a gorgeous custom studio space in uptown Mt. Lebanon.  There are many session options, from full length custom sessions to quick & easy headshots, inside the studio or outside in a beautiful natural or urban location in Pittsburgh.  Contact Missy for availability.

Mother’s Day Sessions 2019 at Missy Timko Photography

Read more about the article Mother’s Day Sessions 2019 at Missy Timko Photography
© 2019 Missy Timko Photography. www.missytimko.com

We held Mother’s Day minis at the Ace Hotel in April of 2019 to celebrate mothers and capture the unique bond we have with our little ones. I am thrilled with how these sessions turned out and shed a tear while sorting and editing some of these special images! I am such a softie!

I’ve always wanted to shoot at the Ace Hotel in Pittsburgh–the vibe is chic and hip, and the decor is classic American… simple & modern, utilizing dependable materials and a neutral palette. They have a signature Pendleton wool blanket that is designed specifically for each city, and the Pittsburgh blanket has bright red and blue rectangles that give off that vintage-modern look that is distinctly Pittsburgh.

This turned out to be the ideal location for this shoot. The staff at the Ace Hotel was of great assistance in planning my event. We got their largest corner suite, and it could not have been a more ideal location for these cozy lifestyle images.

Something that surprised me was the beautiful portraits I got of the moms. Each one looks relaxed & happy. These individual portraits of mothers almost certainly will be the images most valued by their children as they grow. Here are a few of my favorites:

I definitely plan on offering this session next year! Make sure you are on my email list to have first access to this event and others.

Here are a few of my other favorite images from this day:

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Missy Timko Photography is a boutique photography studio located in Mt. Lebanon, PA. Missy specializes in children from newborn to senior, families, and adults. Missy’s style is simple, natural, and clean, both posed and lifestyle photography with beautiful natural backdrops, and Missy also has a gorgeous custom studio space in uptown Mt. Lebanon.  There are many session options, from full length custom sessions to quick & easy headshots, inside the studio or outside in a beautiful natural or urban location in Pittsburgh.  Contact Missy for availability.