Keith Pitts 2013 Photo Shoot: A Typical Day in the Upper West Side

In between our trips to visit family in Florida and California, Keith Pitts offered to do a photo shoot with us in NYC. I couldn't say no, especially after receiving these amazing photos last year. I love how Keith takes pictures of spontaneous moments that might not fit the mold of a typical family photo shoot. Oscar wants to place a loaf of bread on his head? Great idea. Owen wants to go shirtless. Sure, why not? Ella decides to run ahead of the gang? Go for it. It's in those moments that Keith captures our family perfectly.

The first time I worked with Keith, I was shocked at his unstaged approach, especially when he asked my kids about their favorite toys. I was mortified when Owen brought out his Tow Mater truck and not his handmade wooden cars. I'll never forget the "It's totally cool" shrug Keith gave me as he took pictures of Owen playing with it. The photo ended up being one of my favorites.

This time around, I took comfort knowing we could be ourselves and our evening in Central Park would unfold naturally. My plan for the shoot was simple: Meet Keith on our street corner, head over to our bodega for snacks, and then walk to Central Park to play. I wanted Keith to capture a typical Upper West Side day for us. He nailed it. The images feel unfussy mixed with a little bit of humor and love.

If you would like to work with Keith Pitts, I obviously highly recommend him. He's based out of Arizona, but loves to travel. He makes frequent stops in San Francisco, New York and Paris. Book him for everything including weddings, engagement, family, pets, newborn, and children's photography. Click here to view more work from his portfolio.

Keep reading to see our NYC night from start to end  . . .

Giveaway: Keith Pitts Photography

Last Friday, I introduced you to Keith Pitts and wrote about my experience as he took amazing photos of my kids in our apartment. Today, I'll show you the photos he took of our neighborhood and I've got great news:

Keith Pitts is giving away one family portrait session, a custom slideshow, an online gallery of up to 30 images hosted for 3 months, and 10 hi-res digital files! 

Total Giveaway Value: $3250!!

The only caveat is that the winner needs to be able to travel to one of his upcoming travel locations or be available to come to Phoenix at any time.

Keith Pitts Summer 2012 Travel Dates:

San Francisco, CA 

June 9 & 10

Laguna Beach, CA

June 23 & 24th

Paris, France

July 2012

San Diego

August 18 & 19

New York City

September 13 & 14

To enter, leave a comment on this post!
If you don't have a profile, please write your email in your comment so I can contact you :)

Winner will be drawn at random next Monday, June 4th. 

Good luck! 

More pictures after the jump, including our favorite climbing tree and the only melt down of the shoot. Can you guess who it was? It was short lived thank goodness! Read more about my experience too. :)

Keith Pitts Photography: Part One, In Our Apartment

Picture Day!

When Keith Pitts contacted me a few months ago to take my kids photographs, I jumped at the chance. As I browsed his website and blog, I knew he was going to capture my kid's life perfectly. He refers to his style as improvisational portraiture. He writes, "The best photography is like jazz, and must be played collaboratively and spontaneously, inventing a totally unique experience, every time." Perfectly said, right? I couldn't wait for picture day!  

When planning the shoot, Keith's assistant Melissa (she's so wonderful to work with!) told me he likes to start in the home and then work his way outside. This gives him a chance to bond with the kids and learn who they are. It was not mandatory to start in the home, just a suggestion. I love this idea. Starting in the home requires a day of cleaning and scrubbing and hiding and stuffing clutter, but it's totally worth it. 

When the boys were newborns, a photographer suggested starting our house too, but I declined. At the time, I didn't think my house was worth capturing. I thought it wasn't up to par as far as styling and size and lighting. Also, since we were renting, I thought it was pointless to capture a house that was temporary. But that's absurd! I didn't want to make the same mistake this time. 

Sure I don't have matching comforters on my kid's bunk beds. My walls have hand prints and scribbles all over them. My lamp shades are permanently lopsided and cracked. My kitchen needs updating. Our lack of bookshelves and books is embarrassing. But I tried to suppress all these insecurities and let Keith capture my kids in their home. It was the best decision I made. 

My kids greeted Keith at the door and immediately felt comfortable. They tried to impress him with all the facts they knew about black widows and poisonous snakes.  He joined in on the conversation and told them that despite fact that black widows were dangerous, they are actually quite beautiful. This amazed the kids and made their curiosity run wild. Dangerous yet beautiful. How can that be?!

The kids asked Keith about the two cameras he was holding, his bag, and his lenses. He told them about his equipment as they sat on the couch and he snapped pictures of them. The shoot was going smoothly until he asked the kids, "So what do you like to do for fun?" They immediately responded, "Play dress up!" Ahhh! Not dress up, I thought. This could get ugly!

I knew exactly the costumes they were going to put on: Owen was going to put on his ratty old Mater costume (from the movie Cars), and Oscar would pick his dirty batman cape. And Ella? I had no idea what she would pick. They live in costumes, but it's not exactly the look I go for in a photo shoot. Let's just say our costumes don't fit into that cool and editorial style I always try to portray my life to be.

I started to slightly panic and run down the hallway and say, "Uhh, kids. I don't think he really wants you to put the costumes on! Ehh, haha yeah. Um. Wow, the Mater costume! And the hat? Awesome. . ."

That's when Keith smiled and reassured me it would be fine. And I went with it because I knew he was right. But still, deep down, I felt like I would never show anyone these pictures. Ha! Tacky as the costumes were, this again, brought out the best in my kids, which resulted in amazing candid photos. I'm in love with these pictures now that I see them. I'm so glad I didn't intervene and make my kids take off their favorite costumes.

I realized 30 minutes into the shoot, that Keith's ability to capture my kids life was unlike any photographer I've ever worked with. There's nothing worse to me then over stylized (phony) family picture with props that don't seem natural. He wasn't going to lead this photo shoot in that direction. He snapped the most pictures when my kids showed them things that were important to their life. Even if that meant a large plastic Mater truck.

I must confess I replaced the Mater truck (below) shortly after this picture was taken with a wooden pull toy. I can't help myself! But look at this amazing shot of Owen. It's great, not because the toy is a cool vintage find (it's not!), but because Kieth captured a moment with Owen's favorite toy. I can't wait to frame this photo! The pictures of the wooden pull toy? Didn't even make the cut. Ha!

Then my kids asked for cookies. This time I didn't hesitate. Even if they got their new clothes a little dirty, it would be ok. 95% of my kid's childhood is spent with cookie crumbs on their shirt anyway. Might as well capture it on camera! Keith and I ate some too. :)

Keith taught me so much about capturing kids in the first half of the photo shoot. Next week I'll show you the rest of the pictures as we ventured outside to their favorite locations in our neighborhood. 

Also on Monday, I'll give you details about the HUGE Keith Pitt's Giveaway! Yay! 

In the mean time, check out his schedule to see if he'll be in your neck of woods this summer.

Have a good weekend! 

After the jump: 

The slide show he created for me of all the pictures (sneak peak into next week's outdoor shoot!) 

AND the rest of the photo shoot in our apartment. :)