Sienna, The Little(st) Princess // Pittsburgh Children's Photographer

“Now presenting: Contestant Sienna Capri!”

This was my introduction to newly 3-year old Sienna, as she strutted through her living room, serving us her best pageant walk and smile. Accolades? She already has those in spades: pageant titles (Natural Elite PA Tiny Miss, Mars PA Wee Toddler Miss, East Coast USA Toddler Supreme Queen, + more!), brand repping for several fashion brands, being published in magazines, and a large, ever-growing Instagram following. Mom is one of the most adept, savvy mom-agers that I’ve had the pleasure of working with, and I am so impressed by the accomplishments, drive, and hustle of this entire family.

Sienna is simply adorable and a born performer. Between wanting to practice her pageant entrance and showing off the new tumbling exercise she had learned in class that day, she gave me a dissertation on her favorite Disney princesses and what makes each one of her dolls unique. Sienna’s favorite color is pink, and being that she is one of the most outgoing children that I’ve worked with to date, I decided to photograph the session on the most vibrant, hot pink backdrop possible. On top of this, the family’s living room decor is all neutral tones, and I knew that the pink would make for some gorgeous, statement piece wall art in the sunny space. We ended up creating a beautiful display of three 24x36 canvas gallery wraps that were almost life-size to little Sienna. Additionally, we assembled her first real comp card for her to use at various castings, as she is just beginning to dip her tiny toes into the world of modeling and acting, as well.

I love how these images turned out and how much of Sienna’s personality + sass I was able to capture. She really lights up in front of the camera, and I can’t wait to see this teeny diva grow up and continue to shine.

Three words to describe the session: Cute, Modern, Pretty

(All of my portrait clients choose three words from a list of how they'd like to describe their finished images. You can click on any of the three words at the bottom of this post by the little tag icon to see past sessions that chose the same word. You can also see how different combinations of words leads to the creation of different images.)

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This is what Sienna’s finished comp cards looked like. I think that the hot pink will really make a statement about who this little one is at castings.

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These are some quick snapshots I took at Sienna’s home when I was delivering her print order. These canvas gallery wraps are SO impressive, and I’m really excited to see them all hung up on the wall. (I think that Sienna is excited, as well. ;) )

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UPDATE!: They’re hung and look ahhhmazing!!!

Good Vibrations // Pittsburgh Children's Photographer

Sooo much to celebrate this month! This summer has been fabulous! Two of my little POSErs are absolutely killin' it, and I am one proud, proud photographer.

Tori is one of my favorite kiddos to work with, and she inspires me like no other. Images from her most recent Comp Card Session were just featured in two magazines: Fashion Kids Magazine (July Top 50 Most Beautiful) and Child, Tween, and Teen Magazine! Even more exciting: we landed the back cover of the latter! Goals, goals, goals - front cover, we're comin' for you!

**SNAPS FOR TORI**

As if that didn't make this past month awesome enough, I heard more good news! Miss Gabby entered our model call for The Picket Fence S/S 2018 Lookbook, and I was SO happy that we chose her. She did a phenomenal job, I loved photographing her, and I can't wait to do it again. Submitting the images that we shot together for the lookbook, Gabby was just signed to MMG!!! Slay, baby girl, slay! 

**SNAPS FOR GABBY**

Tori's 2018 Comp Card // Pittsburgh Children's Photographer

When your little one is represented by an agency, they'll need to have their comp card/portfolio updated about every 6 months. Kids grow and change SO quickly (too quickly, I know)! Tori, now 7 years old, was due for a refresh, and I was super excited to have her in the studio again.

All children are different. With some, I'll carefully choose their poses and carefully tweak each little finger until it's in the right spot, and that makes them feel more comfortable and confident. Some kiddos are more free-spirited and I just let them do their own thing and am along for the ride, snapping away. And then there are some, like Tori, where it's a true collaboration: half of the time spent doing "Miss Lexi's poses" and the other half spent letting the kiddo make their own magic with them somehow nailing the most genius, adorable, I-never-would-have-thought-of-that poses. So, I won't say that I love photographing Tori (though, I most certainly do). I will say that I love COLLABORATING with Tori.

Now that she's a bit older, I knew that we could do some more dramatic, controlled lighting and aim for a more "fashion-y," mature vibe. Since we were creating a new comp card, I wanted to ensure that we had a good variety in wardrobe and mood. (Some casual, some dressy, some fierce, some pretty, etc.) When styling the session, Mom wanted to incorporate the gorgeous red dress that Tori had worn to a father-daughter dance earlier in the year and I was living for it. I also have to give Mom huge props for always trusting the zany wheels that turn in my head, even when I'm saying things like, "This coat, but backwards!" and "Yes, the oversized, fuzzy blue onesie!"

This is one of my favorite sessions that I've photographed to date. While I really do love photographing sessions that are light and fun, I have to admit that I'm more and more drawn to this moody aesthetic and hope to create more of it moving forward. There is just something so beautiful in the juxtaposition of the angelic innocence of children and a more mature, editorial perspective/style. 

Hair and makeup by Tori Bivins.

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This is how Tori's finished comp cards look. Again, we aimed to strike that important balance: a warm, smiley head shot, a moody image, a softer, pretty image, a casual streetwear image, and a luxe, elegant gown.

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Mom ended up having some wall art created from the session, as well, and the prints were super gorgeous. We did these ones as two 12x24" triptychs on luster paper. Tori claimed pretty much every print for her bedroom, so maybe with some negotiation, Mom can hang one of these elsewhere in her home. Haha. Looking forward to seeing them framed!

Arjun is Signed! // Pittsburgh Children's Photographer

When I first saw Arjun, I was so incredibly excited to photograph his Comp Card Session and work with him towards the goal of getting signed by an agency. He is such a handsome little boy, takes direction wonderfully, and he photographs like a dream. From the start, I just knew that Arjun would find himself signed sooner or later - I didn't realize, however, just how SOON that "sooner" would be! It happened so quickly and I couldn't be more thrilled for him and his family! 

With that, I'm happy to share and celebrate the news that Arjun has been officially signed by The Docherty Agency!
I can't wait to see what's in store for this little fella.

**SNAPS FOR ARJUN!**
 

Arjun on That Beat // Pittsburgh Children's Photographer

I love meeting kiddos like Arjun. He's 6-years old and full of all that being six entails (abundant energy, sweetness, and innocence), yet incredibly intelligent, focused, and one of the BEST little listeners that I've had the pleasure to work with. Arjun LOVES to get his groove on, particularly playing Just Dance. All that he needs is a good beat and it's game time! ("Beat It" and "Juju on That Beat" are particular favorites.) Arjun is also learning Tae Kwon Do, so for some of our more "fun" images, he got to show off his impressive high-kicks.

In addition to generally wanting beautiful images of their little one, Arjun's family came to me to photograph a Comp Card Session to get Arjun's modeling portfolio started. He did such a spectacular job during our session together, and I know that his future is incredibly bright, whether that means modeling or med school. ;)

I definitely wanted to highlight Arjun's lovely warm skin tone and shiny black hair, and decided to photograph the session on gray to accomplish both. During our Styling and Planning Consultation, I saw this stunning white kurta and knew that it would photograph like a dream and be the perfect way to celebrate Arjun's heritage in his images. My personal favorites, though, are the images where he is dressed in his fancy-pants-iest suit and tie. He told us that he was a businessman and that he'd be going to the office. (Don't be in too much of a hurry for that, Arjun!)

Three words to describe the session: Artistic, Fun, Natural

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The 4-1-1 on Comp Cards

Over the past year, I've had so many parents ask me questions about how to get their children involved with modeling, which can be especially overwhelming when you have literally NO idea where to even begin. I love all the children that I have the privilege of working with and I'd love nothing more than to help them blossom and succeed - so, I made the decision to put together a session option for just that purpose: The Comp Card Session. At this point, you're probably thinking, "Lexi, what in the world is a 'comp card,' and how will it help my child?"

A comp card can be referred to by many names, which could be a little confusing: comp card, composite card, zed card, z card, sed card (holy cow, industry, make up your minds!). It is essentially a large business card, typically sized to 5.5x8.5 inches, with a head shot on the front and a mini-portfolio of  2-4 images that display ability and variety on the back, along with important stats and contact information. Especially for children, the comp card should showcase a mix of action and still images, as well as varying crops (i.e. a full-length image, a half-length image, a close-up image). 

While some opportunities may allow for digital submission, you will want to have a printed comp card for most in-person castings and auditions. This is your leave-behind that they can use for reference when making decisions, so it's important that both the images and printing are high-quality and stand out from the rest. A lot of bigger modeling agencies won't meet with you until you have a comp card, because it is what they will use to promote and market you. 

Because children grow and change so quickly, it’s important that the comp card be updated as needed. You may only need to update the images once every few years, but remember that the stats on the card need to be accurate and current, especially after a big growth spurt.

I'm very excited to offer these and to help many of your children make the leap into the modeling industry. You can learn more about the POSE PGH Comp Card Session HERE and contact me HERE to book your own.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes! // Pittsburgh Children's Photographer

As POSE PGH has grown and evolved over the past year, it has given me the opportunity to better understand the variety of wants and needs that my clients have. In the spirit of ensuring that you're booking a session that's right for YOU, I've decided to shake things up a bit. I am now happy to offer you three unique session options.

While the Basic and Editorial Sessions have always been around in theory, the Comp Card Session is hot off the presses. I have had so many mamas ask me if I photograph Comp Cards, and now, happily - the answer is YES!

For more information about sessions and to figure out which session is right for you, take a look at the shiny, new Investment page.