TRAVELS TO THAILAND | Goodhart Photography, Northern Virginia Family and Child Portrait Photographer

In early January, my husband and I left our three children in the care of Grampy and took off for a short getaway to Thailand to visit my mother! It is a beautiful country, and I really enjoyed photographing it.

My mom has ten pet turtles, one parrot, one dog, and one cat. Here is one of her turtles:

The food in Thailand is so delicious! These are some of my favorite dishes, laab (a minced pork with spices) and crispy pork).

So when I came back from Thailand, I basically slept for 5 days -- no jet lag in Thailand as I guess adrenaline kept me going, but it hit with a vengeance once I returned. Now I am refreshed and energized and ready to create some beautiful portraits for my clients!

Parting shot -- windows on a Buddhist temple grounds.

VINTAGE VALENTINES | Goodhart Photography, Northern Virginia Child and Family Portrait Photographer

Isn't she precious? I took these portraits in my Loudoun County studio, which is still a work in progress but at least my backdrops and lights and myriad props have a more permanent home.

Here's another little beauty.



Right now I haven't done any Vintage Valentines with boys, but I think they'll look adorable in Daddy's jacket and a tie, holding out a bouquet of roses.

Anyway, if you are interested in the promotion, please "like" my FB page so you'll get all of the details when they come out.




Planning to run a Vintage Valentine promotion in the next few weeks.

1 YEAR OLD! | Goodhart Photography, Loudoun County newborn and baby photographer

It is so hard to believe I have been photographing this baby sweetheart since he was in his mother's belly! You can sneak a peak back to those days by clicking here.

This was my first shoot of the year, and my first shoot in my under-construction basement studio. Baby J was totally on the go, and very interested in what was in the basement (toys and more toys) as well as my children who popped down a few times to say hello.

Here is a more pensive look:



We also took Baby J outside for a few natural light photographs in the snow. While Loudoun County didn't get very much snow this week, there was enough left to create the environmental portraits we wanted.



I hope you enjoyed your sneak preview!

NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS | Goodhart Photography, Northern Virginia Portrait and Family Photographer

So for Christmas my husband bought me Business Plan Pro software. I had so many plans to get that baby installed on my laptop and to have an epic plan in place to launch 2011.

But then I realized that in between a kitchen remodel, the holidays, and my recent trip to Thailand:




that my epic plan was just going to have to wait. I spent the last week in a jet-lag coma (12 hours time differential for Thailand) and only yesterday felt fully refreshed. That's when I realized that I can't actually find my business plan software, as I tossed it into a box with Lightroom 3 when the hardwood floors were being installed -- or maybe cleaning up for dinner Christmas Eve. But regardless, I still want to take this time to map out some broad, general business goals for 2011.

1. I resolve to pay my monthly sales tax on time. This goal actually encompasses a larger goal of business organization, because in order to pay my sales tax on time, I will have to have systems in place to track clients and payments.


2. I resolve to launch my wedding photography business.





I've spent almost a year second shooting weddings, and I just love it. Wedding photography encompasses all types of photography -- portrait, photojournalism, landscape/environmental, detail/macro -- and I get to do all this in beautiful settings surrounded by happy people.

3. I resolve to establish a permanent studio in my basement, rather than a make-shift one in my living room.



This will allow me to take clients in the winter, and offer my clients another option besides on-location portraiture.

4. I resolve to market my senior portrait photography business.





I love to photography high school seniors, as they are so creative and energetic and they want to look good.

5. I resolve to get a business plan written by February 4th. That gives me a few days to track down the software!

6. I resolve to blog at least 3 times a week. This also encompasses a goal of updating my blog and revising my website, combining the two into a blogsite.

So that's all for now. Hope all of your own dreams and resolutions come true in 2011!