On Location Archives - Page 8 of 18 - Missy Timko Photography Blog

Lily Senior Portraits at Crossfit Mt. Lebanon | MLHS Class of 2016

When Lily contacted me to do a senior portrait inside of Crossfit Mt. Lebanon, my first thought was, “Yes!” But then I actually saw the inside and that quickly turned to “Wow!” The gym itself is gigantic, not at all the cozy spot it looks like from the street.

Lily and her whole family hit the gym at Mt. Lebanon Crossfit, and she wanted to incorporate that into her shoot. In planning, Lily taught me a little about Crossfit, and then I planned the lighting and atmosphere in an effort to show the commitment and strength that belong to a Crossfitter.

I was thrilled to see that the gym at Mt. Lebanon Crossfit is so spacious and has beautiful skylights and dark walls. Lily showed me around the gym and performed the standard tasks involved in a Crossfit workout while we took her senior photos.

Once we captured Lily’s strength and passion for fitness, we hit up a local park for some beautiful sunset portraits. She brought along her best friend, and though he is a high-energy dog, he ran right over and posed for photos, it was adorable!

It was pouring rain just hours before this shoot, and it turned into a gorgeous day with bright pink sunset skies–no color enhancement happening at all on those pink images below.

Thanks Lily for shooting your senior portraits with me–you are a wonderful and intelligent young lady with a hysterical and fun family who loves you to pieces! I wish you the best with your future!

Pittsburgh Senior Photographer | Tasha M. Senior Portraits | Mt. Lebanon, PA

My senior portrait involved a piece of scalloped velvet that was clamped on around my shoulders, and a single unretouched studio portrait–location shooting was not on anybody’s radar back in 1995. Check out my totally 90s senior portrait here.

Thank goodness that has changed (unlike my haircut, which is quite similar), as evidenced by these location shots of the gorgeous Tasha M below. My job in these shots was to capture Tasha’s essence– she’s a beautiful, easygoing, fun, kind and natural young woman–and also capture her confidence and elegant maturity.

Senior portraits are a time to showcase talents and personality! Tasha is passionate about dance, and with very little direction from me, she confidently danced and leapt around the field, creating a series of rhythmic and lyrical shapes for me to photograph, mingled with the light and colors of the summer setting. I always encourage seniors to schedule their session for summer (beautiful sunsets and summer clothes seem to be popular with this age group), so March-April of Junior is the ideal time to book.

While this white dress on Tasha’s beautiful skin was amazing, she also wanted to experiment with having her wear a vivid print. You guessed it–also amazing.

I’ve written on this blog how nice it is to fold family and cultural traditions into family portraits, and this group shot of the women in Tasha’s life is a beautiful example of that. Originally from Africa and world travelers all, Mom, Grandma and older sister–her greatest role models and mentors–graciously agreed to pose for a group photo. (They came along as her cheerleaders, but were not expecting to be photographed that day!)

I wish Tasha the best as she goes on to college with the goal of studying to become an MD.

Here is a video showing more shots of Tasha:

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Missy Timko is the photographer behind Powder Blue Photography, a boutique photography studio located in Pittsburgh, PA. She specializes in newborns, maternity, families, seniors, and head shots. Missy’s style is simple, natural, and clean, both posed and lifestyle photography with beautiful natural backdrops, and Missy also runs a studio in the West End Village in Pittsburgh. There are many session options, from full length custom sessions to quick updates of just the kids, inside the studio or outside in a beautiful natural or urban location in Pittsburgh. Contact Missy for availability.

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Post category:Families On Location Seniors
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Pittsburgh Family Photographer | My Alaskan Friends | Point State Park

As many of you know, I grew up in Southern California. I got my bachelor’s degree in Northern California, then went to New York City for my master’s degree. After that, I moved to Portland, Oregon (where I met my husband) and now I’m in Pittsburgh. Whew, that’s a lot of moving around! Almost everybody asks me, “Why would you move from California to Pittsburgh?” Well, the truth is, we love it here. It’s a wonderful place to raise my two children, my husband is happy here (he grew up here), and I have had a pretty fun time growing a business here!

Speaking of moving far away, I was thrilled to recently have been contacted by Rachel and Brandon, whose beautiful family I photographed when they were a family of three in Pittsburgh. Now they’ve moved to Alaska. (Huh? Were they looking for a state with even less sunshine then Pittsburgh has?) I was so happy that, even though they only had one weekend visiting family in Pittsburgh, they wanted me to take updated family photographs. Baby #1 is now Big Brother Sully, and that cute little guy–that’s Baby Hudson.

So it’s not unusual for families to move a few times as they find their footing. I still have family and friends on the West Coast. And here’s the good part…having started my business in Portland, Oregon, I still go to Portland once or twice a year to take updated family photographs for my earliest clients there. Win-win-win! Contact me for details about my next Portland sessions.

You might recognize this location as Point State Park, one of my favorite sites in Pittsburgh for family sessions. It has gorgeous views of the city as well as woodsy climbing spots for small and medium-sized little ones. Plus the morning light is perfect. Little faces absolutely light up, making my job easier! (Tip: Morning is usually best for small children anyway, in terms of their little circadian rhythms.)

But my very favorite aspect of this session? The familiar fountain and iconic bridges allows the family take a little bit of Pittsburgh back to Alaska with them.

Thank you so much, Rachel and Brandon. So great to see you, Sully and Hudson! Next time, maybe we will use the Northern Lights as a background.

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Missy Timko is the Pittsburgh family photographer behind Powder Blue Photography, a boutique photography studio located in Pittsburgh, PA. She specializes in newborns, maternity, families, seniors, and headshots. Missy’s style is simple, natural, and clean, both posed and lifestyle photography with beautiful natural backdrops, and Missy also runs a studio in the West End Village in Pittsburgh. There are many session options, from full length custom sessions to quick updates of just the kids, inside the studio or outside in a beautiful natural or urban location in Pittsburgh. Contact Missy for availability.

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Post category:Babies Families Kids On Location
Reading time:3 mins read