One Happy Family! (Una Familia Feliz!)

Hey there!
I've been meaning to get this post up for awhile; sorry for the delay! Here is a bit of background for the shoot I did two weekends ago now, with some extended family members of ours (and their relatives as well!) I always love exploring new places, especially when I have my camera :) so I was thrilled to hear when these clients had a unique proposition for photos. The place was called La Reunión, and was about an hour drive from where I live. It was a breathtaking, resort-type place, with an enormous golf course (that's what it's known for) as well as horseback riding, "coffee tours," beautiful pools (those kind look like they go on forever, and spill over like a waterfall), modern architecture and an exquisite hotel and restaurant area. It was very overcast the day that we were there, which is great for pictures but not great for the view this place is known for! Apparently you can see the city and Lake, normally, from certain point of the land...it was pretty foggy, so we couldn't, but it was still a lot of fun to go! Here are a few photos from La Reunión, both of the families as well as the resort itself:

Hola!

Querría hacer esa entrada por mucho tiempo; perdóname por la tardanza! Aqui hay un poco información de la sesión que hice hace dos semanas, con algunos miembros de nuestra familia chapín (y sus parientes también!) Siempre me encanta explorar lugares nuevos, especialmente cuando tengo mi cámara :) pues yo estaba muy emocionada cuando eses clientes tenían una proposición única para sus fotos. El lugar se llamaba “La Reunión” (aqui hay un enlace para que ustedes puedan ver más: http://www.lareunion.com.gt/) y se quedaba casi una hora de donde vivo yo. Fue un lugar bastante impresionante, con un campo de golf (eso es como está conocido) y también la oportunidad de montar en caballo, “toures de café,” piscinas pristinas (los cuales parecen como continuan por siempre, y se caen como catarata), arcitectúra moderna y un hotel y restaurante exquisito. Estaba muy nublado ese día cuando estábamos alla, lo cual está bueno par las fotos pero no bueno para poder ver la vista impresionante que normalmente se puede ver desde ese punto de altitud.  Aparentamente se puede ver la ciudad y el Lago, normalmente, desde ese punto, pero estaba muy nublado pues nosotros no podíamos, pero todavía fue una experiencia divertida. Aqui hay algunas fotos de La Reunión (del lugar y de las familias): 

 

The beauty of San Lucas

I wanted to show a few examples of the beautiful area we were in during the photoshoot last weekend, for the little munchkins :) (See "The Raffle Shoot" post below). Here are a few photos I took before the session itself.

Here is a shot of our friends' house; don't you wish you lived there?! :)

Some of the gorgeous bouganvilias flowers that were abundant on the property.

They had beautiful lawn furniture, too! I loved the design and the shadows it made in the bright sun.

Although I normally prefer to shoot in the mid to late afternoon, one advantage of a bright morning is the way the sun hits certain things that wouldn't normally be quite so visible, like this cool spider's web for example!

Some of the yummy berries we were able to pick while exploring their land.

Beautiful wildflowers

They grow these berries organically, so we were able to eat them right off the plant. They were SO delicious! :) We made cobbler with them a few days after visiting the farm; I highly recommend it!

Here are the last few shots I'll share with you. While people are my favorite subjects to photograph, it is also refreshing and fun to get out into nature once and awhile and just admire God's beauty. His creation certainly is incredible!

The Raffle Shoot :)

Good morning!

I titled this entry "the raffle shoot" because these adorable kids won their photo session at the C.A.G. Fun Run this year! It was the cutest thing...they were announcing the winners of each raffle prize, and when they called the Bella Notte Photography photo session prize winner, I heard the name and wasn't sure who it was. Then I see this teensy tiny little girl running up with her mom, to claim her prize! :) I was so excited-this little girl and her three siblings had been such enthusiastic and precious little participants in the Fun Run, and now I had the chance to take their photos! I was joking with my husband that they were the ones I took the most photos of DURING the Fun Run, before I even knew them, because they were so darn cute! And now I had the chance to have a real session with them! Too perfect :)

Another neat part of this photo session was that my husband and I are good friends with some family members of theirs. We went out to their land in a nearby town, last weekend, and enjoyed beautiful weather as we explored acres upon acres of beautiful country! Their family lives in an gorgeous area and while exploring their property we saw their sheep farm, a huge blackberry patch (they're grown organically so we ate them right off the plant--delicious!), some little deer, peacocks, their old treehouse, and other fun things. When the kids arrived, it was obvious they were right at home, and it was such a blast to run around with them and capture them as they played together. Here are a few samples of the shoot; you can see more on my Facebook fanpage, or on my main site.

I saw this wheelbarrow sitting in the grass and knew I HAD to use it for photos. It was perfect! This little champ was a great sport, too--a total natural, as you can see :)

I told the littlest one to put her hands on her lap "like this," which she did, but also added in a cute little shoulder shrug, which I love! :)

The kids were pretty excited when I suggested we take some photos on top of their cool red SUV. The littlest one's expression is again, priceless! Such beautiful children.

Having fun being bounced by big brother and sisters!

They got a bit goofy in the woods, but it was great :) I think photos often look better when they're not "perfectly posed;" I'd rather the kids wear their true expressions and let their personalities shine, rather than the photo look fake or forced. This one shows that little one was getting a little tired of photos....who would blame her? But she still looks cute :)

Like I mentioned before, this one was such a natural. His mom was chuckling and shaking her head at his funny ability to make a perfect smile and pose for photos. He loved it! I caught him candid at times, too, though, as you can see above--he's cute either way :)

Hope you enjoyed the post! I put all black and white photos on this post, I realize....I do love my black and white :) Something about it just makes photos look so classic.  See the following post to see more photos of the gorgeous countryside where I took these photos! :)

Cait

A few more shots of Guatemala

Good morning!
I've been meaning to post some more shots of Guatemala I've captured our last few times in Antigua...here are a few. Guatemala is such a beautiful country, and Antigua is one of my favorite places.

This weekend I have two sessions planned-one is photo shoot I donated as a raffle prize at a local 5k race event; the family who won is actually related to some friends of ours, so that is fun! The parents have four beautiful kids, so I am excited to photograph them this weekend. It is also my husband's great-grandmother's 100TH BIRTHDAY-can you believe it?! So incredible. Check for photos on Facebook of the birthday party :) Should be a fun event!

To get back on topic, here are the Antigua photos :)

A few shots are of Las Bouganvilias, an incredible bed & breakfast in Antigua! Others are shots take from Sky Café, a fun restaurant that allows you to sit on the roof and have a great view of the city.

  

 

Our friend Shelly was visiting, so she took this shot of my husband and I from the top of Sky Café. Since I'm normally the one holding the camera, it's not often we get a photo together! :) Thanks Shelly!

A few more shots of Las Bouganvilias; they have a beautiful facility and serve delicious breakfast!

These photos are from the Capuchinas ruins--a great spot for photos!

 

  

We saw a long line of old, antique-looking bikes on the side of the road, and I couldn't resist! I love taking photos of anything old or historical. 

 

Even the street signs in Antigua are picturesque! :)

From Guatemala...to Minnesota...to Texas!

Happy Friday everyone!
Hope everyone has had a great week! I'm sure you are all ready to relax now that it is finally the weekend. I wanted to take this opportunity to announce a few changes that will be going on with my husband and I in the next few months.

Many of you have already heard, but for those of you who haven't: Alex and I will be moving to Texas sometime this summer. I will be leaving Guatemala May 4, and flying home to Minnesota. I have missed my family and friends and....yes...even the Minnesota winters! :)  So I am very excited to be home again. Anyway--I have already booked about nine photo sessions for the month of May, while I am home. There are still a few openings, so if you have been thinking about booking a session with me, fill out a contact form on my site, or send me an email at caitlinreyes@bellanottephoto.com and we can chat! I would love to hear from you.

I MIGHT be in MN longer than just May; I am hoping that will be the case. However, I am not sure yet. It will depend on whether I am hired in Texas before June. If not, I will have to move down to our Texas home in early June, and continue my job hunt. Hoping and praying that won't be necessary, though, because I'd love to be in MN with everyone for as long as possible! Plus...that Texas heat is a doozy! :)

A friend of my husband's has designed a sweet flyer for me, to advertise for those of you still needing your senior portraits taken! I will try to attach it in the next post. If you, or anyone you know, still hasn't gotten their senior portraits done, let me know! I also photograph little ones (flyer attached!), family portraits, and engagements/weddings; check out my work here, on my site, or my Facebook fanpage!

Please don't hesitate to email or message me if you have any questions whatsoever. I look forward to hearing from you! :)

<3 Cait