Owen Family~March 14, 2009

First of all I have to thank Facebook and my friend KC for this photo shoot. Without either of them I wouldn't have been graced by the Owen family's cheer.

It was a treat for me to photograph them in London. It's such a beautiful, historic city full of amazing architecture, culture, innovation, art and fashion! What more could a girl ask for? The only downside is when it's blowing its tits off outside, in other words; it's windy. But that is a small price to pay for such a great city.

Today was more special than any other day because Grace was going to celebrate her fourth birthday. She was ecstatic and couldn't wait for me to be done taking pictures so she could get to her birthday party. Eventually the photography had to come to an end, but not without a shot of Grace in a red telephone box. It's a shame they are being phased out.

Claudio Family ~ September 20, 2008

It's always a great time when I'm with this lovely family. They have so much energy and such warm spirits.

Walking hand in hand without speaking, they know they will always have a shoulder to lean on, someone to talk to, someone to share stories with or someone to laugh with, no matter where life takes them. Family is forever. Family is always forgiving. Family walks through life together.

Brent and Jade ~ September 7, 2008

It's not often that I get to take pictures of family, and when the opportunity arises I am all over it like white on rice. Even though Brent and Jade live in San Diego it is hard to sync our schedules for dinner or trips to the beach, so their photo shoot was a treat for me. Plus I got to join them for dinner and hang out afterwards.

Jade was all about being in front of the camera. As soon as my hands grasped the black body of my Canon 5D, she was throwing poses as fast as Cole Hamels throws pitches over home plate. And each pose was true to her personality: outgoing, animated, strong, charming, goofy and inquisitive.

Brent was just the opposite. He didn't care that I had a camera in my hands, maybe because he is accustomed to being watched. He regularly makes most valuable player for baseball and he has the speed and maneuvering skills that make him a starting running back for his football team. Not only is he athletic, but he has great eyes. The sunset made him squint a lot, so after it dipped into the horizon I told him to open his eyes as wide as possible. His reaction was a bit like a roller coaster face. Nonetheless, I got the shot of his killer eyes.

Grace is a year old - July 1st

Grace Christina announced her arrival on May 31, 2007 and she didn't stop there. Now she's got teeth and walking feet. But don't underestimate her size because her personality could move mountains. So look out world, little miss sassy doesn't slow down for anyone!

If you think the cuteness stops here; you're wrong. Stay tuned for the next couple weeks because Grace's best friend Zoe will debut on the blog, and there will be some shots of them together. Hopefully the blog will sustain these two personalities because it's gonna get crowded here!

It's About Time!

I, Jackie VanHatten, take you, Blog, to be my partner, personality and livelihood to VanHatten Photography from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in times of down servers and computer crashes and through day-to-day operational success. I promise to make updates at least twice a week, to be open and honest and to be myself for all the days of my blogging life. May we cultivate and shape our future together.

The Padre fan you are looking at is my amazing husband, Brian, and the fearless husky next to him is our dog, Miso, also know as Miso the destroyer. We like to say Miso is fearless because she looks like a wolf, but she's not as tough as she looks; she's a chicken.