Over the Years: The Harringer Family

The other day I was talking to my favorite person (my grandma Jo) on the phone and we ended up talking about the career paths we chose.  She was a nurse for most of her adult working years and I was an elementary school teacher for five years until I decided to resign and begin my photography business.  She told me there have been times when she thought about doing something besides nursing, but looking back now she couldn't imagine doing anything else.  She LOVED nursing!  Then she asked me what I career I would have chosen if I could start all over again.  As I thought, I honestly couldn't think of any other career choices I would have made.  

I loved teaching, but I didn't love the confines of teaching.  I loved that no two days were ever the same.  I loved having to adapt and be flexible throughout the day as different situations arose.  I loved the students and coworkers.  But I did not love the schedule.  I felt very confined.  When I decided to resign I immediately felt a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders and I could now breathe freely.  

I absolutely LOVE being a photographer!  I love nearly everything about it - besides paying taxes.  I love making my own schedule.  I love creating wall art for families that will be treasured for years to come.  I love it when clients tell me that my work captures so many emotions.  But most of all I love meeting new people and connecting with them!  I love to capture them year after year and create beautiful wall art that showcases their family!  For this reason I have decided to begin a series which focuses on my loyal clients over the years titled, "Over the Years."

The Harringer Family

I have known the Harringer Family for several years. The Harringer boys played youth baseball with my oldest son. We would visit as parents who had kids playing on the same team in Riesel. In May of 2015 I was finishing up my first year of being in business and I was debuting a senior model program. Eric was one of the senior models for the upcoming school year. Since this first session I have continued to work with members of their family capturing memories during their years in high school. It is truly an honor to be their family photographer.

May 2015 - Eric was one of my first senior models.

September 2015 - Eric loved playing high school football in Mart, Texas.

May 2016 - Eric’s final senior session.

Later that year I had the pleasure of photographing one of their other boys, Mike. He was no enjoying his senior year of high school and also played high school football in Mart, Texas. I photographed Mike for the first time during senior night at a football game in November of 2016.

November 2016 - Mike with his parents at Mart High Senior Night during a football game.

April 2017 - Mike’s senior session took place in Personville, Texas.

A couple of years later in 2019 I was asked to photograph Eric again when he learned that he was going to be a father of a baby girl. During this session we also decided to include some photos of Eric wearing his bull riding gear.

February 2019 - Eric is going to be a daddy!

February 2019 - Eric wearing some of his bull riding gear. He competes in several rodeos throughout the year.

In 2020 COVID swept the area - as well as the rest of the world. This pandemic forced many closures of public gatherings, including schools. With that came the cancellation of school activities, such as prom. Mike’s girlfriend, Scarlett, was a senior and was going to miss out on her senior prom, but the mothers of Mike and Scarlett put their own prom together for the two.

May 2020 - Mike accompanied Scarlett to her senior prom.

November 2020 - Mike and Scarlett had a photo session in Personville - the same location Mike had his senior session.

I have captured many memories for the Harringer Family over the past six years and I LOVE being their family photographer! I am looking forward to capturing many more memories for their family for the years to come.

“We take photographs as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone.”

— Katie Thurmes

THIS IS THE THIRTEENTH FEATURED FAMILY IN THE "OVER THE YEARS" SERIES.  CHECK OUT OUR OTHER FEATURED FAMILIES!

1. The Wier Family

2. The Lopez Family

3. Tana and Layla

4. The Dale Family

5. The Craven Family

6. The Carpenter Family

7. The Leonardelli Family

8. The Spence-Waldrop Family

9. The Schmedthorst Family

10. The Milstead Family

11. The Erwin Family

12. The Cardwell Family

The Friendship Tree

“As we grow up, we realize it is less important to have lots of friends and more important to have real ones.”

— unknown

My oldest son is a senior this year and he has an awesome best friend!  They are each accepted for who they are and have no problem speaking their minds to one another.  Watching their friendship develop over the past couple of years has been a great experience.  It reminds me of my best friend growing up.  We were inseparable and yet we hardly see each other now, however when we do talk on the phone or see each other it is like we never missed a beat.  We have a gazillion things to talk and laugh about!  It's strange how we develop from an early age with a sense of we must have a LOT of friends (like that somehow defines a person socially) to a realization that there are just a few people that you can really count on and connect with - your BEST friend.

When I take my son's senior photographs, I always invite his best friend.  It just seems strange without her there experiencing senior photographs with him.  The mood is completely different.  It's definitely much more fun and playful with both of them together, which creates amazing memories that are able to be captured on camera.  They even found a tree and designated it as their "Friendship Tree."  Her mother gave them the idea with the premise that they will come back to that true throughout their lives to remind them of their friendship.

My best friend and I had our photographs taken together one time and neither of us know where those portraits are.  That makes me sad.  I hope that one day they will show up.  As a mother, I now realize the importance of keeping photographs so my son (and his friend) will not have missing photographs from their senior sessions.  

I have had several clients last year that booked a senior session and then asked if they could bring their friend or boy/girlfriend.  Of course I said yes!  But it really had me feeling like I was not meeting the needs of my clients by not offering a special package for the seniors that wanted to share a session with a friend.  Over the summer I changed that and created a "Share With A Friend" Session.  Each senior is posed for individual shots, as well as posing them together.  

If you are interested in a "Share With A Friend" Senior Session, drop us a line via message, email, or call.  

Meet Amy: A Chloe + Isabel Merchandiser

Let me start this blog post with a personal story.  I LOVE earrings, but many earrings do not love me unfortunately.  I have super sensitive ears and within a matter of twenty minutes or so, I can already feel the itching begin.  I have to take the earrings out before I have a horrible reaction to them.  

When my friend and neighbor began her small business as a Chloe + Isabel Merchandiser, I instantly fell in love with their jewelry - especially the earrings!  She told me all about them and how they should not break my ears out because they were nickel free.  I must admit, I was a little hesitant because I have heard that before and yet my ears still broke out.  I decided to try a pair of them out and see what happened.  Twenty minutes went by and nothing.  An hour went by and nothing.  The entire day went by and NOTHING!  My ears NEVER broke out from the earrings!  I bet you can guess what I did next?  Yep!  I bough several more pairs of earrings!

Fast forward a few months and meet Amber, a senior at Mart High School.  I have known Amber for several years now and I know she's an easy going young lady and wouldn't mind wearing some of the jewelry during her session as a model.  At the beginning of the session, our lovely model advised us that she had MAJOR ear sensitivity and had to be very particular about what earrings she could wear. By the end of the session and the many exchanges we did, she had NO reactions!  Nickel Free Earrings! 

Let's let Amy take it from here and tell us a little about the various pieces that Amber wore throughout her senior session with us.

Hello!  My name is Amy Westney and I am an Independent Merchandiser for Chloe+Isabel which offers gorgeous Nickel Free & Lead Safe Jewelry with a Lifetime Replacement Guarantee! 

I recently had the pleasure of collaborating with Smith Family Photography for a Senior Portrait Session! 

Our model was stunning with her own beautiful and willing spirit!  Here I added a little jazz by way of the “Retro Glam Square Cut Crystal Bracelet”.  

Staying on top of the ever changing fashion trends my summer was filled with STUDS!  Stud Earrings that is!  :)  Talk about versatility in the earring world!  Studs are so easy to transition from a day at the office to an evening on the town just like with these gorgeous “Copacabana Studs” that our model is wearing!  

They say diamonds are a girl’s best friend but I think pearls are too!  I love the timeless essence that pearls add.  This beautiful “Pearl + Crystal Drops Long Necklace” that our model is wearing would be a lovely addition to our “Little Black Dress” (you know we all have one).  :) Pearls add simple, yet refined beauty!

I love being an accessory stylist with women!  Are you looking to revamp your jewelry box, let’s get together! 

Check out my website here: http://bit.ly/BLNBcandi

I thoroughly enjoyed Anna and our senior model.  Small businesses supporting one another in our local community!!! 

Special thanks to Amber for agreeing to model for us and let Amy accessorize her!  And a special thanks to Amy for being great at what she does - provide women with beautiful, quality, and affordable jewelry.  Oh, and we can't forget the men!  Chloe + Isabel also offers mens items as well.   

Looking for 2017 Seniors!

Model Call!! 

Smith Family Photography is currently looking for guys and gals that are currently JUNIORS in high school! 

When:  Saturday, February 20th, 2016 around 4:00pm to 5:30pm

Where:  The location has yet to be determined, but it will be in the Mart/Groesbeck area

What Will the Modeling Session Look Like:  All juniors that have secured their spots will meet at the location on February 20th around 4:00pm.  We will take several individual photographs of each junior.  My hopes are that every junior will begin their senior year of high school with some senior portraits and that they will also meet some new friends through this experience.

What Will You Receive:  Each participating junior will receive a FREE modeling session/experience and they will have access to the private online gallery where they will have a credit of $25 to use towards their choice of prints and/or digital images.  If they'd like to purchase more, they may certainly do so, however it is not expected.  Each participant will also receive a coupon for 20% off a FULL senior session - a $30 savings!   

Cost:  Participation in this event is FREE, however we do require a $25 commitment fee to secure your spot.  This fee will be returned to you in the form of a credit to use towards the purchase of prints and/or digital images of your choice in the private online gallery from the session.

How Do You Apply:  If you are interested in applying for this once in a lifetime opportunity, please message me at ajsmithfamilyphotography@gmail.com or contact us through the form on our website.

Mighty Mart Panthers - Times Two

The 2015-2016 school year is well underway and many seniors are now scheduling their fall senior portrait sessions.  Some seniors choose to wait until the spring season for their senior portraits.  Others prefer to have senior portraits taken year round.  This week's blog post is going to be all about two Mart seniors - Eric and Alyssa - that decided to have their senior portraits taken in the fall.

There's no buts about it...Mart is a HUGE football town!  Every Friday night during football season the town is literally dead.  Why?  Because everyone is either at the game or at home listening to the game.  Mart is serious about football.  This coming Friday is going to be especially eventful due to all the Homecoming festivities.  This Friday - Homecoming - is going to be a great day to be a Panther!

Meet Eric.  He is one of the football players that will entertain the crowd on Friday night.  He is a handsome young man with a bright future ahead of him.  He isn't quite sure where he is headed after high school just yet.  There are just so many things to consider.  After all, what's the rush?  He still has several months to narrow down his amazing plans.  One thing is for certain, he LOVES football!  He LOVES being a Panther!

Meet Eric.

Eric is always ready for gameday!

Senior Portrait sessions with Smith Family Photography are fully customizable based on the specific memories that the senior would like to help capture.  For Eric, this meant the Mart Football Field.  For his mother, this meant the Mart Football Field and the grassy field behind the stadium to showcase his "country" side.  Many guys don't really care for the photographs to be taken.  They do it for their moms.  During Eric's session, he put his foot down and said he was staying on the football field - no grassy field photographs!  THAT is how much Eric loves football! 

I recently stated that I truly enjoy senior portrait sessions for several reasons, but most of all I enjoy interacting with the young adults and capturing their personality within the portraits.  As the session proceeds along, they start opening up more and more and finally they just seem to forget about the camera and just be themselves.  To me, that is when I capture the best portraits!  Things weren't any different with Eric.  At first, he was very attentive to what I was asking of him.  As the session progressed, he would wonder off to play football with his little brother, Alan.  He was relaxed and completely in his element.  He is a Mart Panther. 

Let's take a look at another Mart senior.  Meet Alyssa.  She is one of the Mart cheerleaders that will entertain the crowd on Friday night.  She is an amazingly beautiful young woman with the whole world ahead of her!  She plans on heading off to college at either Baylor University or the University of Mary Hardin Baylor.  She plans on trying out for the cheer squad at both universities.  Alyssa LOVES cheerleading!  She LOVES being a Panther!

Meet Alyssa

This year's Homecoming game is especially exciting for Alyssa!  She is nominated for the Homecoming Court!  I will be at the Homecoming game this Friday night to cheer on Eric and the Mart Panthers, as well as support Alyssa...and capture a few shots of her looking dazzling in her gown!

Young women are typically less reserved in front of the camera than young men are.  They just seem to be more comfortable with having their photograph taken.  As their session progresses, their personalities shine through just the same.  However, with girls it seems to happen much quicker.  I think we have the era of new technology to thank - cell phones with nice cameras and selfies! 

As Alyssa's session was nearing the end, she had a few requests.  One, she loved sweaters so she wanted to wear one during some of the shots.  Two, she wanted to take some photographs on the tire swing.  And three, she had to take a special photograph for her close friend, Sadie.  I absolutely LOVE it when the clients begin to take ownership in their photographs! 

Alyssa with her sweater.  She loves sweaters!

Alyssa swinging on the tire swing!

Alyssa striking a pose for her close friend, Sadie.

Senior Portrait sessions are fully customizable based on the needs and wants of the senior.  After a session is officially booked, we begin collaborating on everything from locations, clothing, poses, themes, etc.  Senior sessions need to be authentic and really showcase the individual.  That is why it is so important that we work together to build a session that will let them shine and give them memories to last a lifetime.

If you are interested in booking a Senior Portrait session, you can message me or give me a call and I will give you more information.  Until next time, head over to Mart, Texas this Friday night (or any Friday night) and watch a football game!  It is an experience of a lifetime!