On sleighs and reindeer
My sleigh is here! I got the final touches ready by buying some holly and bows for it yesterday. I’m so amazed by it — I can’t wait to start taking pictures of children for the holidays.
I decided to post an image of the sleigh on my blog, so I grabbed a camera and walked to the back door to unlock it.
And there was a deer there!
“Hello, deer!” I said. She was lying in a shady spot by the porch and sort of looked up at me as if to say, “Meh. You mean I have to get up?”
I had this elated sense of wonder that maybe she was some big symbol, that my holiday season would go well, and I would pay for this crazy sleigh I’d special ordered from Pennsylvania from an actual sleigh craftsman.
I dragged the sleigh though the living room and peeked through the door. She was still there. I opened it gently, and she peered at me lazily. I wasn’t totally sure she was going to move! I wondered if she were hurt, but she seemed perfectly serene.
When I started shoving the sleigh through the door — it was a tight fit — the racket did startle her. Still, as I pulled it onto the porch, she leisurely stood up and walked away a few feet to give me room.
I snapped pictures of the sleigh, and the deer kept watching. I wondered madly if I could convince her to stand by it!
I ran inside and searched frantically for some frozen corn, and finding none, opened a can, rushing back outside. She was still out there!
I made a small pile of corn and backed off, sitting in a chair to wait. She walked away from it, looking back at times, but showed no interest in food.
Eventually a motorcycle roared down the street and this noise startled her enough that she headed into the woods. I snapped more shots of her, knowing I could photoshop the two of them together if I wanted, and waited for the girls to come home, still giddy and elated that a deer of all things had come to visit as I finished my sleigh, like a little gift.
Sadly, I didn’t see the doe anymore, but since the sleigh was outside, I dressed up the girls so we could do a sample shot. We don’t have any dogs, but I’m encouraging families who do to bring them to the outdoor special in October. It will be a hilarious family portrait, the kids in the sleigh, the dogs “pulling” it, and the parents behind as if to send the sleigh down the lane. I will be doing sample shots with this in the next week or two.
The schedule is up for you early birds, although I won’t send any information out officially until I have my sample shots. I have double the number of slots as last year, as I do plan to take out an advertisement. Feel free to go ahead and reserve a slot if you know you want to do an outdoor sitting (then forward it to your friends!) We will do a whole session of sleigh, family poses, and kid shots in the grass, trees, and landscape of the park.
Indoor holiday shoots will begin November 1. I’ll have that schedule up in a few weeks. Can you believe this will be my 10th Christmas? Some of you have been with me all ten years! Thank you!
View the October outdoor special.
