kelly stocksen photography

his first birthday

admin — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 03:25:11 +0000

On another ridiculously hot day, I had the privilege of shooting Mr. J’s one year photos. A year ago, we took some of his newborn photos in the same location and it was awesome to see how much he has grown and changed in such a short time. His little smile stole my heart.

good grief, it is hot!

admin — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 03:54:27 +0000

Ok, I don’t know about you, but the heat is really starting to get to me. I can’t wait for a little Fall weather. Or at this point, even low 90s would be nice.

These sweet girls were troopers despite the fact that it was super steamy for their session. They even survived an outfit and hair change. Love them!

a little ramona

admin — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 03:16:03 +0000

We took the kids to see Ramona and Beezus last weekend, and if you haven’t seen it yet; you must!! It’s such a great family movie and so much like all the Ramona books I loved reading as a child.

Throughout the story, Ramona is:

1) Always curious and always clever

2) Always getting in trouble but never really trying to

3) Funny without trying to be funny at all

4) A daydreamer who lives life differently

As soon as it was over (and after watching the movie super intently), our youngest daughter waited in the dark for the theater to clear out just so she could climb to the very top and hop down each step one by one. And then while the people around us filed out in a nice neat line, Kate headed to the other side of the aisle to use some ropes for a dance and an impromptu round of limbo. On the way out to the car, she turned to me and said, ‘you know, you should have called ME Ramona.’

Well you know what? We are rarely thinking the same thing at the same time. But in that moment, she took the words right out of my mouth.

a little urban shoot

admin — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 22:04:34 +0000

I don’t usually do urban shoots for babies that aren’t sitting up yet, but we tried it with this family and had so much fun. Their family was so laid back and they helped me so much!

It also helped that their mom brought the cutest outfits with her.

Oh, and I guess the kids she brought were pretty cute too. I seriously don’t know how I get so lucky….

a girl and her horse

admin — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 02:42:05 +0000

Shooting the senior session of this girl and her horse made me feel like I had stepped onto the movie set of Flicka. I loved shooting in such a cool new location and was feeling kinda like an authentic cowgirl around the horses and the land until we saw 2(!) snakes down by the creek. At that point I was pretty much missing the freshly mowed lawns at the city park.

I love it when I get the chance to photograph a girl who is just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside. This girl was certainly one of those, and as I write this she serving on a mission trip in the Middle East. I am sure she would appreciate your prayers while she is gone.

making my job easy

admin — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 15:28:37 +0000

I’m not going to lie. When their mom said she wanted a photoshoot with all six kids I got a little nervous. Okay, a lot nervous. Because getting six kids to cooperate for anything (especially a group picture) seemed pretty well impossible. I mean, I still have yet to get a shot of my three together that I just love. But I can’t overstate how great these kids were. Fun, kind to each other, up for anything. Just amazing kids. I loved them. And I love this job.

On a scheduling note: Brenda (my booking assistant) is getting ready to open my Fall calendar and judging by the amount of people on the waiting list, it will likely fill quickly. If you are hoping to have photos made before Christmas, please contact her ASAP through the contact link on my website so she can get you on the list. Thanks so much!

somebody call tyra

admin — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 22:56:45 +0000

Seriously, my jaw hit the ground with this gorgeous girl got out of the car and we had the best time capturing her senior photos this Spring. I felt like I was shooting an episode of America’s Next Top Model. You know, minus the crazy wigs, makeup, and outrageous sets. And after spending some time with her and her super sweet family, I could tell she was just as gorgeous on the inside as she was on the outside. What a treat!

a little road trip

admin — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 13:19:22 +0000

I drove to Sallisaw a few weeks ago for this session and was so excited to see the cutest little girl with bouncy curls and big blue eyes hop out of the car. Despite the heat, we had a great time playing and capturing some super sweet photos which made it totally worth the trip!

a treehouse and a new baby sister

admin — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 22:41:25 +0000

This spring/summer has been crazy busy with sessions, and like always, I am so, so thankful for the amazing clients and families that I get to work with. I’m working on ‘rebranding’ my look a bit to incorporate a more kid-friendly, whimisical look. I love shooting kids and families and I don’t think my current brand really reflects that too well. So I’ve been working hard at sprucing up this blog and plan to make some changes to the rest of my website soon as well.

This sweet family was just too cute not to share. LOVED, loved these sweet boys. I mean, seriously, they are the best brothers!! They are so blessed to have each other. And I think their new little sister is going to be well taken care of as she grows.

alive

admin — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 01:39:41 +0000

There are a million other things I should be posting now. Like maybe a few of the one million photos I took this weekend or some sneak peeks of recent sessions. So I really don’t know why I am posting these instead. But I think it’s because in the busyness of celebrating Easter this weekend, these photos reminded me of one of my favorite quotes that our pastor frequently mentions. He says….

Jesus didn’t come to make us more religious, he came to make us more alive.

And now, more than ever, I am thankful for that freedom. That he came. That he died. That he made a way for us. When we didn’t deserve it. And I thankful that through Him, I have a glimpse of what it feels like to be truly alive.