Fall Leaves are here!

My 2 big Maple trees are at their Fall peak right now. So, I thought it would be fun to have a spontaneous portrait day for anyone wanting to show up.
Tomorrow, the 22nd, 1-3 & 4-6
This will be a good test to see how many people are truly spontaneous on Vashon Island.
Plus, this is a great way to get that perfect image for your holiday cards, or start your holiday shopping.

Sailing Away

I spent the afternoon today with a wonderful family with whom I've worked with in the past. Last year we concentrated on some simple and beautiful outdoor portraits of their daughter.

This year they wanted to create some family portraits that really showed who they are.

They are boaters and spend a lot of time on the water, so creating a portrait with the water seemed fitting.

Family day

I spent part of the day today with my good friends, Jed and Ellen, on Vashon. After many years of living in the great northwest, they are moving to Maine. I've photographed Jed and Ellen throughout the years as they marked the special events in their life...the two of them as a couple, Ellen's pregnancy, the birth of their son, their new family, new puppy and now at our last photo session together, Jed's mom and husband.
I wish them well as they embark on this new adventure. Thank you guys for letting me and my family be a part of yours. You will be missed!

Family Story

This November has been so mild...lots of warmer and drier than usual weather. It's been great for outdoor portraits! So today I took advantage a beautiful day and photographed my friend Aristy and her family on Vashon Island. Aristy owns La Petite Etoile, a fantastic French Immersion pre- school on Vashon where my daughter attends.
We spent an hour walking in the woods and playing on the beach. It was the perfect environment to capture their family story. Much more than just a portrait, these images are about their family, the kids and who they are as a couple.

Frida Kahlo, elfs, & angels, Oh My!

It's been a crazy, busy couple of weeks. I can't believe that Halloween is over and Thanksgiving is breathing down my neck!
On Halloween every year I offer free 30 sec portraits to the Vashon Island community. It started out as a personal art project 4 years ago and is quickly becoming a local tradition. I had one family tell me that they look forward to this every year as this is the only Family Portrait they do. I am thrilled to be a part of their tradition!

That same week I had the pleasure to photograph an aspiring young model named Cory Kennedy. He came to me last month on the recommendation of one of his customers when she told him (and his brother) that they could be models. So, Cory thought he would give it a try.
You tell me...Would you buy jeans, underwear, or hair products from this guy?

Little Books, Big Impact

I love designing books for all occasions. I'm not a "scrapbooker", but I do love to take a series of images, whether it's from a year's worth of baby portrait sessions from my 1st-Year-Series, a collection of essay-style images from a family session, or something I pull from my own life and put together a classic, simple hard-bound book that tells a story. I find them so much more interesting than a photo album full of snapshots. My husband and I make one each year of our daughter. It's so much better than the traditional Baby Books.

This year we have become quite the little farmers. In addition to our large gardens, we have been raising our own cow, pig, turkey and chicken with our neighbor, Loreen, who owns E-I-E-I-OM Farm on Vashon. (A great place to rent for a week in the country. Just a little plug for Loreen!)

Vegetarian Alert...Although my family and I are meet eaters, we believe in happy and healthy animals as well as a diet largely based on plants.

Early this year we had our first experience butchering chickens. My husband grew up on a farm and was very comfortable with this. I, on the other hand, was not so comfortable. I like my meat in the freezer wrapped in plastic. This was going to be a learning experience!
My husband built a chicken plucker, called The Whiz Bang.
and I thought it would be fun to document the event with some pictures and ultimately a book.

Another Vegetarian Alert...No animals were tortured, all were humanely treated. If you are squeamish, do not look at the following pictures. Although, I did not include any really gruesome images.

Heirlooms

Do you remember those old B/W photographs of your Grandparents and Great-Grandparents? The images of a wedding day, Grandma and Grandpa standing next to each other looking serious, or an entire family sitting around a small table and chair in a studio all dressed in their best clothes, or perhaps a young debutante looking proud and getting ready to make her entrance onto the world. Those images had a quiet, timelessness about them, as well as a beautiful and simple artfulness.


I have a whole collection of them from my family's history and love looking at them. These pictures are our family heirlooms that we treasure and keep safe. Having a photograph taken was a big deal back in the day. It cost a lot and was an event that was done infrequently, but they were highly valued as part of a family's history. Most were hung very prominently in their homes. They were proud to show off their family.

With the advent of the digital age, photographs have become a dime-a-dozen. The family heirloom photograph has disappeared and been replaced with the family snapshots. Snapshots are a great way to document daily life, vacations, and family gatherings. But what about the images you want to pass down to the next generations?

As a family and wedding photographer, I have been disturbed by this growing trend. At Rebecca Douglas Photography, it is my goal to create your family's heirloom. Yes, it may cost a bit more than the box chain stores or even the photographer next door, but you will receive a one-of-a-kind piece of art work that represents the love you share with your family and loved ones.
It is important to me, as your family photographer to make sure the family heirloom stays alive...for the sake of future generations.

Family Matters

In these months of political debates I can't help but listen to Barack Obama, John McCain and all their rhetoric about family.
We all have families and whether we like it or not, they help mold us into the people we become. I'm lucky...I have several families; The one I was born into, the one I married into and the one I found and continue finding as I get older...my friends.
It doesn't matter if your family is of the traditional sort or maybe a bit more eclectic, as long as you have the unconditional support and love from someone. That is family.

"Families are the compass that guide us. They are the inspiration to reach great heights, and our comfort when we occasionally falter." -Brad Henry-

Here are a few families I've gotten to know over the years.

Senior Portraits

It's that time of year again when high school seniors start getting that far away, dreamy look in their eyes. Summer is coming, collage applications are done, and just a few more finals to go!

Seniors start handing out wallets of their senior portrait to friends, or maybe they are passing around these new, way cool mini storybooks of their senior sessions. A portrait session for most Seniors now-a-days is so much more than a stiff, formal, studio session.
Sorry Mom and Dad!
They want to move around, show off their personalities, go to their favorite "hang out" spots. I don't blame them...this is a big moment in their lives. They are standing on the edge of the rest of their lives. It's scary, exciting, and liberating. A story book or collection of images that illustrate who they are right now is the perfect thing for them (and Mom) to carry with them as they embark on the future.

All you Juniors out there....Don't waste any time! Summer is the perfect time to get your Senior portraits done. It'll be fun. I promise!

Spring Wedding

Bigger is not always better. Shannon and Josh got married last week in Seattle with 30 of their closest friends and family members. It was such a sweet celebration and I was excited to have been a part of it. They proved that you don't have to spend huge amounts of money to have a beautiful wedding celebration.