Chocolate Toes: Photographer Needs Assistance (AND Assistants!)

I can photograph anyone, anywhere, under any conditions- from frenzied, teary bride to self-conscious senior, to family of six on a hot & humid beach. BUT I CANNOT FOR THE LIFE OF ME PHOTOGRAPH MY OWN CHILDREN.

I decided to start now in August to try to capture that one pic of the boys TOGETHER that will be suitable for our cherished Christmas card. It KNEW very well that it could take me from now until December to achieve that too!

But I am excited to see what that one great priceless image will turn out to be, so I bravely took the boys out (on my own) early yesterday morning to our beautiful historic Heritage Park AND to the beach. I expected it to be a challenge but boy was I in for it as I found myself more than just short handed! I would set the boys up for a pose and before I could back up and even lift my camera to my eye they were either scrambling away or pulling eachother's hair & limbs! When they scrambled, they scrambled.....and mind you I had them shirtless and barefoot for the sake of art, but that didn't stop them from runny down a rocky garden trail or climbing garden trelises (see pics to prove it)!

When I finally did get them to sit still they PURPOSELY made every effort to focus on every other thing around them BUT me...and forget about smiling- it was a day of the orphan look:) I think Donovan's look would serve Abercrombie well, but he is definitely no Gap-boy:)

Now, I had predicted that this would all be the case, but a girl can dream, and I decided to take the risk! Of course I had pumped & coached Donovan about for it all for several days before, and bribed them both like crazy...........but in all reality I need more than two hands for this job!

Nevertheless, I did manage to get some cute artsy frames out of the 200 that I took, but not a single one of them together with anything resembling cuteness or innocence on their ornry faces!!

We DID have a good time though, especially at the beach, and though we came home soggy and tired, the pics below were well worth it....but that prize Christmas card shot will have to come from another brave effort....next time with a few helpers in tow:)