St. Louis family, senior and newborn photography
I already get it, so you never have to explain your kid to me
I have been a mom for twenty five years, sixteen of them walking alongside my son through the hard days and the breathtaking ones, and every session I shoot is built from that, slow, calm, no pressure to smile on command, just your family the way your family actually is, and if you are already bracing for this to go wrong because it has gone wrong before, I see you, that is most of my people
Hi, I’m Kathie
I didn’t come to this through a classroom, I came to it through my son, he was about one when he smiled at me for the first time, just this tiny movement of his lips and the look in his eyes landing right on mine during tummy time, and I cried and cried because I had not known we would be waiting that long for a face to answer me back, and that one smile gave me hope that things were going to be okay, even knowing it was going to take time
that is the moment under everything I do, I have been photographing St. Louis families since 2011 and I have spent sixteen years walking alongside my son in this neurodivergent world, the meltdowns in the middle of the grocery store, the therapy waiting rooms, the bike ride that took six years and ended with him balancing all on his own in an OT hallway, so when your kid flops down in the middle of the park or will not look at the camera or needs to leave and come back three times, none of that is a problem to me, that is just Tuesday
I believe the empathy I bring to every session was a gift, some of it handed down from my grandmother, and I try to spend it well on every family who trusts me with theirs
Both things can be true
it can be brutally hard to get everybody out the door and to the park and breathtakingly beautiful twenty minutes later, sometimes in the same afternoon, sometimes in the same five minutes, and I build every session to hold both, this is not a special package you add on, it is just how I do every single session
We go at their pace
breaks happen the second they are needed, not when the schedule allows it, and if we need to walk away and come back, we walk away and come back
Nobody has to perform
your child never has to smile on command or sit still to be doing it right, they get to wander, stim, hide behind your leg, and I will still find them
Real wins over perfect
the photos families love most are almost never the posed ones, it is the shoe already off, the laugh nobody planned, the kid who finally leans into you
This is what real looks like
nobody in some of these is looking at the camera and they are still some of my favorite frames I have ever taken
Who I photograph
Families
the whole beautiful chaos of you, at a park or somewhere calm that actually works for your kid
Learn moreSeniors
your senior, their vibe, their people, whatever actually feels like them and not like a yearbook template
Learn moreNewborns
those first sleepy weeks, slow and gentle, at whatever pace your new little one and your tired self need
Learn moreFrom my people
Kathie is a skilled photographer and very patient and understanding of neurodivergent folks. She was great with my 17-year old who is proud of his excellent senior photos. So am I! Kathie has fair pricing, great communication and quick turn around times. I highly recommend!
Kathie did such an amazing job with taking our family pictures with us and our three dogs! Our English Bulldog, Archie, is 12 years old already, so she was also sure to capture him in several pictures. She was so patient with getting their attention as they were so distracted during the shoot. She was also able to capture the love that Paul and I have for each other in these pictures. I’m excited to share them with our family and for years to come. Thank you, Kathie!!! 🙂
Getting ready together
I made a visual story you can walk through with your kid before photo day so they know exactly what is coming, and a guide for you too, so neither one of you has to walk in blind
Before we even pick up the camera
I wrote a free Session Prep Guide for you, the parent, what to bring, what to wear, how to talk about photo day with your kid beforehand, and what to do if it doesn’t go how you pictured it, it is everything I wish someone had handed me, put your email in and it comes straight to you, along with a little bit of my story and nothing pushy, ever
You don’t have to have it all figured out
you don’t need to know the location or the outfits or whether your kid is going to cooperate that day, you just have to reach out and tell me a little about your family, and we will figure out the rest together, at your pace, same as everything else, because the story of your family is already worth telling, even the parts that still feel hard right now