The Bellingers.

 

Meet the Bellingers. They are an awesome family from Phoenix, Maryland full of life and passion. 

I’ve known Katie and Joe since they were both law school students at University of Baltimore. Now they both practice in the Baltimore area and are raising up a great brood of Bellingers.

Katie will one day write her memoirs, and you will laugh so hard you’ll need to stick close to the loo. Katie is one of those gifted writers . . . first sentence and you’re inside her head.  But no time to write those memoirs yet . . . she’s still livin’ them every single day with her Joe, their  Jake, and twins ,Hannah and Drew . . . 

 

 

 

 

 

Jake is a charming conversationalist . . . very funny, and loves football and lacrosse . . . well,  he IS from Baltimore.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hannah is all girl . . . mamma’s girl. Actually, the photo of Hannah below is KT back in our college days. Totally fun, totally free, and the life of the party.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And Drew . . . he is complete joy. Really passionate, intense, and so much fun to be around.

 

 

 

 

 

At the beginning of our shoot, Drew decided that photo taking was not his cup of tea. So, he went inside and created “Drewhead,” which would take his place in all the family photos. And “Drewhead” did appear in several of the family photos, but when Drew saw that our photo shoot was really just climbing trees, throwing the football and playing on the swingset, he was in 100%.

 

 

Those Bellingers . . .sharin’ the love. It’s a beautiful thing. 

 

 

 

 

Click here to view the Bellinger Slideshow!

Family. Beach. Memories.

Summertime . . . and the Livin’ is Easy

I am booking a very limited number of family beach portrait sessions from August 16-21 at the Maryland/ Delaware shore. These will be shot on the beach, in the beautiful light right before sunset. And here’s the best part . . . my regular session fee will be reduced 20 % .  Consider commemorating your treasured family memories with a beautiful archival canvas hung over your mantle . . . or an archival quality coffee table book to display year round . . . and of course, this is a great opportunity to get your holiday cards done early, while you still have the sunny glow of summer all over your face! These session normally takes approximately 30 minutes . . . then you can walk to dinner!

Don’t delay . . .call me today . . .  these sessions will go fast!

 

 

Three Days . . . Six Friends . . . Twenty Two Children . . .Twenty Three Years . . .

 Yup. We’ve been friends for twenty three years now . . . since we met the very first day of school at York College. Two would be teachers  next door to  two would be nurses.  And along the way with summers spent in Fenwick Island, DE, we picked up Katie and Jill . . . now they’re part of our circle. We try to get away together a couple of times a year. This time it was in Wildwood Crest, NJ where we stayed in Andrea’s beach house. We left behind  twenty- two children with our awesome husbands who have supported our friendships for many years. Although it was COLD!, we had a blast . . . many hours spent catching up on our lives, our hopes and dreams, and our precious shared memories.  Lori flew in from Charlotte, NC with pralines in her bag!  Andrea, our fashion consultant, gave us new make up lessons and jeans shopping tips.  Gina made the most awesome salads to munch on around the table. Friday night’s was incredible . . . shrimp, chopped Vidalia onion, chopped green olives with a vinigrette marinade. YUM!  Jill took the ferry up from Fenwick Island were she left her husband Craig, and three gorgeous boys. Jill and Craig own Bikinis & More in the Sunshine Plaza in Fenwick Island, so she always models the hippest, coolest fashions. Lori actually took the shoes right off her feet, packed ‘em in her bag, and flew home with them!Katie brought her awesome sense of fun and humor and kept us all in stitches the whole weekend. She also supplied the tunes for the weekend. Oh, and those special chocolate drinks that she makes . . .  We’ve shared the laughs, we’ve shared the disappointments, we’ve shared the secret dreams, and we’ve shared the tears. Don’t be fooled . . . this season of life is full of risks, adventures and new beginnings . . .  and it’s AWESOME! But the best part is the broken in, comfortable friendships, where we can be open, honest, flawed and loved . . . all at the same time.   Lotsa laughin’ . . . Lotsa reminiscing . . .   Side by side . . . girlfriends are one of my favorite things. Oh, and Katy, we missed you this time, and love you!  

Isaiah . . .

He’s my beautiful boy . . . and he runs on high all day long. So, when I tell him it’s naptime,

he reacts like it’s the end of the world.

 

 

If my Mom invited me to take a nap an hour after she made me lunch, I would  jump up in her arms and give her a big KISS!

 

 

Not my Isaiah.  He’s a party . . . all day long! 

Except for Sunday morning, when he get up out of my lap at church, walks back to his Pap-Pap sitting several rows behind, and promptly falls asleep in his arms.  

 

 

 

Who can resist a sweet face like this? 

Two hats, one daughter, one sweet memory . . .

One of the things that Kristiana and I love to do is to grab a prop (in this case, a couple of hats), head out to the backyard, and play fashion model. I can tell that this is one of Kristiana’s love languages . . . quality time . . . so I try to carve out opportunities for us to do this together.

 

I shot these on my Fuju S5Pro body, with a Nikon 70-200 lens.

This one was taken at 116 mm, f/ 2.8, at 1/800 sec.  

I love to shoot the kids wide open. (lowest aperture setting) 

 

Then, I applied an antique grayscale effect in Lightroom.

Nothing in Photoshop . . . Kristiana needs no touch up!!  

 

She takes my breath away.  My firstborn daughter. I want to be just like her when I grow up . . . 

Supremely secure, full of life and laughter, and extremely forgiving.

 

 

For those of you that know her, she’s my second set of hands, as the oldest daughter of eight children. Her Dad has nicknamed her “Treasure” and “the healing balm.”

 

 

She’s my girl. People say she looks just like me, and I say “Wow! Thanks!”

 

 

The Trial of the Catonsville Nine by Daniel Berrigan

 

 

I had the PRIVILEGE of photographing an amazing production of Daniel Berrigan’s The Trial of the Catonsville Nine.

{Author, Daniel Berrigan, played by Graham Smyth}

 

 

The mainstage at CCBC Catonsville, led by well known Baltimore actor and director, F. Scott Black,  is a place where I am always challenged. The recent production of Daniel Berrigan’s, The Trial of the Catonsville Nine was no exception.  What made director, Carl Freundel’s production even more riveting was the integration of original photo files and video depicting this civil demonstration. 

 

 

 

 On May 17, 1968, at the climax of the Vietnam conflict, nine men and women entered the Selective Service office in Catonsville, Maryland.  As an act of civil protest, they took military draft files, doused them with nepalm, and set them ablaze.  The play chronicles the legal proceedings which resulted.

 

  

 

The nine participants were arrested, and in a highly publicized trial, sentenced to prison terms.  Brothers, Daniel and Philip Berrigan, were propelled into the national spotlight. 

 

    

 

The CCBC production also incorporated period music, arranged and performed by Snorkelkat’s Skip Smaldone.  The production was a unified, ensemble performance by CCBC students. Enjoy these photos.Baltimore stage and film actor, Devon Harris plays artist, Tom Lewis. 

 

  

 

CCBC Professor, Ray Weglein, as the prosecuting attorney, and William Hauserman as the judge.

 

 

 

 Joanie Baker, Sean Latta, Brandi Sheppard, and Devon Harris as defendants, Mary Moylan, David Darst, George Mische, and Thomas Lewis.

 

  

 

  Marshal, Daniel Freundel listens to testimony as the Judge watches on screen. 

 

  

 

Brandi Sheppard, as George Mische, presents his testimony.

 

 

 

  

 

The burning of the draft files.

 

      

 

Like most of what I see on the CCBC stage, this production was powerful! Ensemble members included Graham Smyth, Shawn Vain, Sean Latta, Jonathan Staten, Devon Harris, Andrea Wardell, Tim Whitehead, Brandi Sheppard, Jaonie Baker, Bernie Noeller, William Hauserman, Brittney Geelhaar, Ray Weglein, and Daniel Freundel.

 

 

 

 Amazing artist and director, Carl Freundel, gives pre show notes.  It is inspiring just to listen to him set boundaries for his cast and then encourage them to explore.

 

 

 

 The ensemble also had the privilege of spending the day with Catonsville Nine members, George Mische, Dave Eberhart,  and Thomas Melville. How cool is that?! 

(photo by Anne Lefter) 

   

 

The technical team included set designer, Marc Smith, technician Keny Horning, costume designer, Kendra Rai, stage manager, Tim Fitzpatrick, sound designer, Churck Green, production coordinator, Precious Stone, and Dramaturg, Daniel Freundel. 

 

   

 

George Mische, Philip Berrigan and John Hogan guarding the flame of the burning draft cards. May 17, 1969.

 

 

      

 

DATE NIGHT. MY TURN.

Date night. My turn to plan. And the last two weeks have been pretty crazy with “life as we know it.” Hoping to plan something romantic and unique,  I set my camera on a tripod, set it on timer mode, and set out to capture “us.” Carl and I worked together, in our jeans and tee shirts to construct a set using furniture, props and lighting from around the house. ( I am so grateful that Carl is always up for helping me to actualize my creative whims) That part was surprisingly fun, as we had to talk about what we wanted these photos to say to our children. (Most of you know that our oldest is 14 . . . our youngest is 15 mos. . . . and there are six in the middle.)  

 What we want our kids to know is that even in the midst of crazy every day life, we LOVE being married. For us, marriage is an adventure.  We fall more in love each passing year, and yes, we still find each other . . . well . . . hot.  I remember a piece of advice that came from my Dad . . . and he and my mom have done marriage better than anyone I’ve ever known. “Marriage is not about what you can take from the relationship; it’s about what you can give to the relationship.”   

After creating the set and experimenting with the lighting, we changed clothes, and took the photos.    We laughed so hard because after each shot, I jumped up to reset the timer. Eventually, our twelve year old, Tim, wandered downstairs to see what all the fun was about. So, basically, we recruited him to be the trigger man on the shutter.

 

 

One hundred twenty seven exposures later, we entered phase two of our date. . . set breakdown, and viewing. As we sat together up in bed, we were thrilled to see that we were able to capture the essence of our relationship on film.  

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you’ve enjoyed sharing in our date night.

Keepin’ the home fires burnin’!!

 

 

 

 

Thanks for visiting my blog! Feel free to leave me a message and

keep checking  back . . . I’m hoping to get more on soon! 

 

 

Keep musing! Kathy Freundel

p.s. thanks, Kim Green, for your help!  

The Pinkies

The Pinkies. The Sister Session.

 

 

Day before Thanksgiving, 2007 . . . it was unseasonably warm and Carl and I took a lunch date to Panera.  On our date, we were talking about a photography project that Alex Abercrombie (awesome photographer!) had told me about. So, on a whim, Carl said, “Let’s try it!!”  We went to the local teacher supply store and purchased a piece of bulletin board paper. We taped the paper to the slider on the back deck, and called the girls in for some fun.

 

 

The girls gathered their favorite dress up costumes, and we collected “girlie” props . . . tiaras, tea pots, furry kitties, and hot pink sunglasses. Lily, age 4, was first.

 

 

 

Next, came sweet Caroline, age almost 6.

 

 

 

Caroline is the most quiet of the three sisters, but fortunately, she does have a freak flag, and she will occasionally let it fly!

 

 

Kristiana Grace, age 10,  waited so patiently for her turn, and it was well worth the wait! 

 

 

 

 

 

Kristiana is “free spirit” in every sense of the word. I hope she never loses that.

 

One of the best things about this photo shoot is that we had the assistance of Carl . . .  chief foot cleaner, body positioner, and overall encourager.

 

 

 

Sisterhood is the most precious gift in the world . . . I know, I have the best sister in the world! (my sis-in-law’s not too shabby either)

 

 

 

 

For me, this is pure joy . . . behind the lens and in front of my daughters.

 

Building family memories one click at a time . . .

 

thanks for stopping by!