here.today » detroit, ann arbor, toledo . fine art wedding and portrait photographer melissa squires

LAST MINUTE HOLIDAY CARD SESSIONS – EASY IN EASY OUT

MINI SESSION SPECIAL – Easy, quick, beautifully real and pain-free Holiday Mini Session. – In your home or some other favorite place (grandma’s, the library, target) The session will be done in an hour or less, and you’ll see the images within a week, the hardest part will be choosing the ten digital full resolution downloads included with the session for the equally pain free price of 350.00.

It’s November 8, all you have been thinking about for weeks are the mid-terms and getting a Thanksgiving menu planned. Now you realize you didn’t do family photos this year and you wanted to send out a holiday card but didn’t get a chance for pictures and you still want to do it but you don’t really have the time (or desire) to plan a big themed session, coordinate clothing and find a tree-farm that is perfectly picturesque.

That is OKAY. Not all holiday sessions have to have a snow-covered backdrop and kids in costumes making fake snowballs.

A mini session at home is maybe something just right for the whole family. Aimee asked me to come and take her holiday card photo at her house. The deal being the kids are teens and not into the family photo thing and Dad doesn’t like having to dress up and go somewhere to feel stuffy, but if he must he didn’t want it to take all day (and all day tree farm family holiday sessions are AMAZING and I LOVE them but they aren’t for everyone). Here are just a few of the images I loved from their session, lots of options, no pain, no fuss, all real genuine smiles. I LOVE THEM.

I don’t know which one she picked but this one is one of my favorites.

look at these young men. They were so nice

color and black and white so you have options!

I require mom to get some hugs at least for one picture. These are my favorites.

and a picture with all the fur babies too!

by melissa melissaTags: holiday, mini, session

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To remember how to have fun go to Iowa . Iowa City, Iowa

I have a million reasons. I’ve been too busy, I have a teenager, I own my own business, I became an election inspector this year, I am working on some personal projects, I’m taking a class or three. None of these “reasons” is a good enough excuse for me to have forgotten to have fun. Every once in a while I have to remember how to have fun and not work to turn everything into a teachable, enriching, opportunity to accomplish something… other than enjoying myself.

My BFF Nicki and I went to visit her daughter at the University of Iowa our number one goal was Julia, but second place was visiting the worlds largest truck stop and third was dumplings and red-bull. (rebels) We slept in, stayed up late and over-caffeinated. Julia took us to her favorite bookstores, the library, a pumpkin patch and then much to her surprise the campus natural history museum, where I went on a safari of stuffed dead things. I loved every nook and cranny and the poor dear animals, so close you can feel the power they must have in the wild and so dusty and frayed into textured metaphors for life. Julia even indulged me by photographing me being eaten by a huge sturgeon and then she even let me take one of her.

So here is what I photograph when I’m a tourist in Iowa remembering to have fun <3 See my IG for the iPhone snaps that made it through

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Peyton . Senior Photos . Cleveland, OH

We’ve been waiting almost 10 years for these pictures. We’ve talked about them during family sessions and over the phone. I stayed with Peyton’s family when I travelled to Washington DC for the women’s March and I’ve sent letters (two) to her mom overseas serving our country.

So when last month I finally got in the car to drive to Cleveland and meet Peyton and her Dad for photos downtown I was pretty excited.

What an amazing young woman you have grown up to be Peyton. Your smile and your astute awareness of things around you showed me you are ready to take on the world and enjoy doing it! I am so so looking forward to watching you take off and of course, I’ll be there to photograph your wedding!!

Loving every wind blown hair and every laughing smile! We even had to duck into a shelter to avoid a quick sprinkle and we got some with Dad as well!

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Julia and Chris’s Wedding Party

There is a lot going on right now for so many people, myself included. We are all moving faster and trying to do more while more and more things come at us from all directions. It’s important for me to remember when I’m feeling the frenzy of life to ground myself in what really really matters, love and living our lives wholeheartedly.

Julia and Chris celebrated their nuptials with a walk across their campus and a wedding reception filled with family and friends at the townie favorite Cottage Inn Pizza Downtown. (One of the super special places my parents took me when I was little!) It was Manchester vs Liverpool at the Big House and Downtown Ann Arbor was our playground. It was a beautiful day filled with love and grace and out of this world baked goods!

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Amber Pedersen for Michigan State House Representative

I’ve been donating as much time this year as possible to people who are working for public education, healthcare, equality for all and are running for office. I never thought I was political, (just opinionated :) but I have found that indeed I am. I’ve been inspired, emboldened and educated by so many amazing people this last year and I am working to do what I can, with my skills and strengths, to help those who are working to help others. Amber Pedersen is running for Michigan State House Representative and believes that public schools are important and should be protected and supported. She is a teacher and has taught in her district for many years. She is also a supporter of workers and Union rights and her father has worked and run as a Representative for Michigan and for the UAW. We say “keep work and personal” spaces separate and that’s great for some but my work and my personal world are intertwined in many ways. I’m proud of what I’m doing and who I’m working with and wanted to share.

Amber is running for Michigan State Representative and you can read more about her and what she is running for on her site or at the League of Women’s Voters site.

Here are some photos of Ambers goats. I LOVE photographing goats, (they just had babies!!) and a few of her family we took so she would have some recent photos to use in her emails, website, and mailings! The puppy was so not happy with me when I had her set down for the last few photos :( poor thing. Don’t worry, she got tons of hugs and kisses right after we were done!!

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Ryan and Chad’s Eagle Crest Resort

I don’t think there is anything better then friends and family getting together to celebrate two people they love being in love and a rainbow cake. The grooms speech had me choking back cheers and tears and then there was the amazing first song and mom’s dance sung by the grooms niece Amelia and THEN some fantastical dancing with the Dueling Pianos!

You couldn’t be there but this is the next best!