Beth Carter Photography

Arielle [Lakeland portrait photography]

Bcarter — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 20:47:32 +0000

A few months ago I was out exploring new parts of Polk County with my family. We found this great new location that I just knew would be an amazing spot for a photo shoot. I could immediately envision how the images would look and what kind of lighting I wanted to try. It has been in my mind ever since. Finally I decided I needed a model and I just needed to get out there and do a fun session just for myself. Late one night, I sent a message to my friend Arielle asking if she was up for a “just-because” photo shoot. Lucky for me she said yes!

Arielle is such a beautiful young lady, inside and out. She has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I know! Her passion is for the country of Uganda. I highly recommend reading her blog to find out all about what God is doing for her ministry. It’s inspiring to say the least. www.oweittograce.blogspot.com

Ok, now for the images. There are a lot because I couldn’t pick just a few favorites. It’s so funny, she and I were both so nervous for some reason. I was anxious to try out some new lighting techniques and had so many ideas I thought my head would explode. And she was just nervous about modeling. But as you can see, she was a natural. Arielle -THANK YOU so much for hanging out with us that night! I so enjoyed spending time with you. Thank you for allowing me to capture the beauty in you and in the nature surrounding you that night.

I love the diffused light from the cloud cover in these….

Then the sun came back out…

So I set up my off camera lighting that I’ve been wanting to work with more… Such a different look isn’t it?

Time for an outifit change…I just loved the softness of this dress, especially in contrast to the boots…

Some details….

Gorgeous!

What you can’t see in these shots is my daughter Sydney standing to my left. I asked her to be silly and make Ms. Arielle laugh. So she pulled out every silly noise and silly face she could think of. She’ll make a great assistant someday!

I’m so thankful for the beautiful sunset we had that night. These are the images I’ve been wanting to get out of my head for months now! I could not be more pleased with the final result….

This was literally the final shot of the day. Perfection!

Emalyn [Lakeland baby & children photography]

Bcarter — Sat, 13 Apr 2013 20:42:23 +0000

One night this week I met up with a couple photographer friends to do some “for fun” shooting. One of the girls brought her beautiful baby girl, just shy of 3 months old. That’s normally a hard age to photograph as they can’t quite sit up yet and you aren’t guaranteed a smile. But Emalyn was such a great little model. She was so strong and stayed propped up nicely.

When we first arrived at our meeting spot, it was POURING rain. But we waited to see what was going to happen. Sure enough, the rain only last about 10 minutes, then the clouds moved on and a beautiful sunset emerged. The post-storm light was gorgeous! You can see in this first shot that it was actually sprinkling slightly when we first started.

A little bit of drool never looked so cute.

Emalyn and her pretty mama…

All about the boys [Treasure Island children, family and beach photographer]

Bcarter — Sat, 30 Mar 2013 16:59:22 +0000

So I wanted to finally finish sharing the last two beach sessions from last November. These last two families had the cutest little boys. And I just love the colors of the outfits they all wore – perfect for the beach! I’m really looking forward to beach minis again in the future – please let me know if you’re interested!

Cute Quotes Album & Mini Sessions!

Bcarter — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 20:14:34 +0000

I’m so excited to finally share a new album that I will be offering – the Cute Quotes album for kids. I’ve been wanting to put something like this together for years now, and have just never taken the time to organize all my thoughts for it. But with Mother’s Day and Father’s Day right around the corner, I thought this would be the perfect time for this album’s debut!

The Cute Quotes album is a 10 page, 8×8, hard cover coffee table book. You pick 10 of your favorite images to include in the album. I’ll also send you a list of cute questions to ask your child. You pick 10 to go over with them, bring me the answers, and I’ll put together the book! I have 14 page design templates for you to choose from, and if you’re looking for something a little more unique, I’ll be happy to make you a custom design to specifically match your child’s clothing and style.

The introductory cost for this album is only $250, which includes an online gallery, the album itself, and all your favorite images posted to facebook. (8×8 or 5×5 duplicate albums are also available at a reduced rate.) HOWEVER…..I will be offering a weekend of Mother’s Day and/or Father’s Day mini sessions that INCLUDE this album in the cost of the session. Here’s the 411:

The studio sessions on Saturday the 13th will feature a simple grey backdrop – perfect for any type of clothing or props while still keeping all the focus on your child and the many sides of their personality. So bring on the bright colors, or the Easter outfits, as well as any props that are so “them” at this age! For those that really prefer the outdoors, I’d be happy to meet up with you at Circle B on Friday the 12th in the morning or late afternoon. This album is recommended for the 2-8 age range. However, if your little one is too little to answer a questionnaire, we can tweak the album to list milestones or things you want to remember about them when they are small. Siblings are welcome at no extra charge.

Please call or email me with any questions you may have! 863-698-4576, bcphoto04@yahoo.com

Aaron & Renee [Treasure Island family and beach photographer]

Bcarter — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 12:46:13 +0000

By now, you all probably feel like you know this couple. I posted about their first session with me here, in which we captured Aaron’s new ability to stand. Their second session with me the next year (found here) was truly amazing because Aaron was walking! For the past couple of years Renee has asked when I was going back to the beach again. We finally made it happen in November, and I was so glad Aaron and Renee were able to meet us out there! Aaron was such a good sport as I made him walk all over the place, even through sharp, painful shells and freezing cold water. I love what I captured in this amazing couple. Theirs is the ultimate example of love – in sickness and in health.

Siblings [Treasure Island children, family and beach photographer]

Bcarter — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 01:53:31 +0000

Back in November I met several families out at the beach for some mini sessions. I already shared one of them with you, now I’d like to share the other three. Great weather + awesome families makes for some great images! Can’t believe I’ve waited this long to post these!

The first folks to come out were this brother and sister. Even though it was bright, these kids were troopers and even let me run them around a little bit.

Moments | After school

Bcarter — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 17:36:21 +0000

This week we have had such amazing weather, and my kids have taken full advantage of it. They have recently made friends with a couple of other boys that live on either side of us, and Sydney just learned how to ride her bike without training wheels, so every day they are outside after school hopping from yard to yard, playing, and riding bikes. I love it! Gets them away from the TV and they don’t fight as much with each other when other kids are around. Can anyone else relate to that? I brought out my camera the other day to capture a little bit of what “after school” looks like right now for them.

Doing homework in the driveway to enjoy the cool breeze….

Playing sword fight with other neighborhood boys…. (forgive the quality of this image, it was shot across two driveways b/c my child wouldn’t let me take his picture in his costume that he dressed himself in!)….

Riding bikes while wearing a Spiderman glove and a pirate’s eye patch (which he took off when he saw my camera)…

Eating Popsicles for snack time….

Creating an obstacle course in the driveway….

You earn points for everything you don’t hit with your bike (hey, I don’t make up the rules)….

Riding a bike with NO training wheels!…

Here’s hoping for more beautiful weather before the Florida heat takes over!

Moments | Reading

Bcarter — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 14:34:44 +0000

Just for fun, I am committing to try to take better and more pictures of my own kids on a regular basis. I am guilty of not picking up my “good” camera for my own family…I’m just as happy to use my cell phone or point and shoot to capture moments in my own kids’ lives because it’s easier or more convenient. But I realized the other day that I’m missing out on so many great opportunities to preserve little moments of their daily lives in a fun or beautiful way, instead of a boring snapshot. So, I’m going to try to pull out the “big” camera more and more. Hopefully every day, maybe not. And I’ll share bits and pieces here if you don’t mind, kind of as a way to keep me accountable to this little project of mine. Another photographer and mother who is simply amazing at capturing gorgeous images of her own 5 girls said it best, “I know these few images will help me remember so many of those precious daily moments of family life and motherhood. I encourage you, mothers … take out your camera, leave it out and take too many photos - you will not regret it.” This will be my attempt to take too many photos….so I don’t forget.

Ever since Sydney became really good at reading, she loves it! She even reads in her bed after we say our prayers and tuck her in at night. Her favorite books are non-fiction nature or animal books. She knows more about spiders and cheetahs than I would think possible for a 6 year old. Yesterday I caught her enjoying the awesome breeze outside and reading her AR book in the driveway.

Crawford & family [Lakeland & Treasure Island children, family and beach photographer]

Bcarter — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 17:03:27 +0000

Crawford is a member of the Little Miracles Collection, so I’ve had the pleasure of photographing him several times over his first few months of life. Back in November, he and his sister and parents joined me on the beach for a family session as well as Crawford’s 7 month portrait session. This family is so cute, and I just love the colors that mom put together.

Then a couple of weeks ago I got to play with just Crawford in the studio for his 10 month portrait session. He is such a handsome little guy….and I just love a baby boy in a sweater vest.

I can’t believe he’ll be turning 1 in just another month or so! The first year just flies by doesn’t it?

Expecting [Lakeland, Plant City | Maternity photography]

Bcarter — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 19:17:01 +0000

This gorgeous mama-to-be came in for a maternity session this past fall. She was so sweet, as was her mother-in-law who accompanied her. During the session I found out they had waited over 5 years for this sweet baby. I can’t imagine what it must be like to wait that long for something your heart desires so much. She had her little miracle boy right around Thanksgiving. I am so happy for their new family of THREE! Here are a few favorites from her session:

She printed this as a canvas for her home as well….