Stacie Kemp Photography Blog

Izy | Chicago Senior Portraits

Stacie Kemp — Thu, 14 May 2015 22:40:26 +0000

I’m so excited to share a Chicago senior portrait session I photographed two summers ago!! When Izy first contacted me, she mentioned she wanted her portraits taken at a park. Being that most people want portraits of the city, I was ecstatic at the chance to take some portraits at one of my favorite “green” places – the Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool. It’s such a beautiful location tucked away in the middle of the city. Afterwards, Izy, her Mom and I walked over to Lincoln Park (Chicago has SO many great parks!) where we captured some beautiful portraits with the Park and city skyline. We ended our session by the beach – it was a perfect Chicago summer day. One thing I loved about Izy was how free spirited and easy going she is. It was great to walk around the parks and beach with her and her Mom. Thank you for choosing me to be your senior portrait photographer Izy!

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Taylor | Chicago Senior Portrait Photographer

Stacie Kemp — Tue, 28 Oct 2014 15:40:03 +0000

Taylor and Megan are High School Seniors who came to Chicago together for the weekend to shop and get their senior portraits taken. Yesterday I showed off some of my favorite portraits of Megan and today I wanted to share some of my favorites of Taylor! It was a blast working with these girls – they were full of spirit (and tons of giggles)!

To end their double session, we went to the beach! I love that the beach portraits almost don’t even look like they were taken in Chicago. The beaches in Chicago are so beautiful and especially pretty at dusk.

Congrats to Taylor and Megan on their graduation!

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Megan; Chicago Senior Portrait Photographer

Stacie Kemp — Mon, 27 Oct 2014 22:09:27 +0000

Hello world! I photographed Megan a little over a year ago on one of the absolute hottest days of the summer. You wouldn’t know it from the portraits but it was sweltering out!! We made sure to stop for water and cooled down inside between shots around Millennium Park. Despite the heat, we had a blast and took some amazing portraits. Downtown Chicago is such a great spot for senior portraits!

When Megan first contacted me about Chicago Senior Portraits, she wondered if I would be interested in photographing one of her best friends at the same time. We ended up doing a double session and even took some portraits of the two of them together! I love how they came to Chicago from out of town for their senior portraits and made a fun weekend trip out of it. Not only that, but it was a great memory for their senior year. Here are some of my favorite portraits from Megan and Taylor’s sessions – Taylor’s are to come next. Enjoy!

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Jessica | Chicago and Suburbs Senior Portrait Photographer

Stacie Kemp — Fri, 10 Jan 2014 19:29:44 +0000

Jessica came all the way from the EAST COAST to have her senior portraits taken in downtown Chicago this past July! We wandered around Millennium Park and Cloud Gate (the Bean) and ended her session by the lake with the gorgeous Chicago Skyline in the background. Millennium Park has no shortage of amazing spots to photograph at and skyline shots are always a favorite. Jessica was just the BEST to work with. She has a sweet, gentle spirit that genuinely wants to help people. I think she’s going to accomplish some amazing things in college and beyond. Thanks for choosing me to be your photographer and enjoy!

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Thought for the day… Designing a life you love

Stacie Kemp — Fri, 10 Jan 2014 19:26:18 +0000

In this day and age, it’s easy to feel like you have to do it all. If you are starting a photography business, you especially feel like you have to take every wedding, couple, family, senior, etc that comes your way. You want the work so you take everything you can get, even if it’s not what you like! Or maybe you are more established and doing studio work but what you REALLY want to be doing is all natural light photography on location. I’m here to tell you it’s okay to follow your passion (the type of work you are really drawn to) and to let everything else fall to the wayside. It seems counter intuitive to turn business away however once you really focus in on the work you are passionate about, people will really start to take notice and you will find yourself getting busier with the type of work you actually love.

If you don’t know what it is you love yet, that’s absolutely okay! I’ve been a photographer for 8 years and it took me until about 2 years ago before I really started to figure it out. I find the best way to make progress is to take little breaks and check in with yourself. Sip some tea or coffee and ask yourself what it is you are feeling. Do you get excited about photographing families but the thought of taking on a wedding make you break out into sweat? These are little clues that will help guide you along the way.

Click to find me on Etsy!

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Maria | Chicago Senior Portraits

Stacie Kemp — Sat, 28 Dec 2013 19:50:55 +0000

Hello Friends! You may have noticed, it’s been a little while since my last post (4 months!). This year my photography business BOOMED in a way I couldn’t have imagined. I feel extremely blessed! I run my photography business on weekends and evenings so editing sessions and working with clients has taken priority over blogging and social media sad to say. However, I am taking a much needed break from shooting through February and have some AMAZING sessions to share with you in the meantime as I get caught up.

Today’s portrait session is of a wonderful senior I photographed shortly after the 4th of July this past summer. Maria is GORGEOUS and just stunning in her blue dress. When Maria contacted me, she really wanted something different and unique. Chicago is full of unique senior portrait locations and I loved working with Maria to come up with some special locations. We had fun working together and I have to say, she is SUPER sweet and was a ton of fun to photograph. Enjoy!

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Silas + Joyce | Chicago Couples and Family Portrait Photographer | Downtown Chicago Portraits

Stacie Kemp — Tue, 16 Jul 2013 00:08:37 +0000

These are probably some of the most adorable Chicago couple’s portraits EVER!! Silas and Joyce were planning to move and wanted to capture portraits around the city at some of their favorite locations. Joyce was full of ideas and I LOVE how these portraits showcase all the places in the city they love and spent time at.

While I was editing these pictures, I could literally just see and feel the playful love between these two and it makes me smile every time I look at the portraits By now, Silas and Joyce have moved and are getting settled in their new city and I can’t wait for them to see all the great memories we captured. You wouldn’t know it by looking but when we took these portraits, it was a sweltering 90 degrees! Splashing around Crown Fountain in Millennium Park was the perfect way to end a fun and amazing session. Enjoy!

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Imani | Chicago and Oak Park Senior Portrait Photographer

Stacie Kemp — Sun, 07 Jul 2013 20:48:39 +0000

I’m SO happy to present Imani’s gorgeous senior portraits! Her spirit and excitement for her next chapters in life are extremely infectious and I LOVE meeting people who are just as beautiful on the inside as they are on the outside. When you meet Imani’s family, it’s not hard to understand why that’s so. They all poured so much time, energy and love into making her senior portrait experience the best it could be (helping with every aspect of her session from outfits to hair and makeup) and it most definitely shows in the portraits and in her amazing personality. It truly warms my heart to get to meet and work with people as amazing as they are.

Imani and her Mom picked out some truly stunning outfits for her session. We worked together to narrow it down and come up with locations that fit each outfit perfectly and I couldn’t be more happy with the results. (If you like Imani’s style, check out some of these stores to get the look: Akira, LuLu’s and Macy’s).

Imani and family, thank you for your kindness and picking me to bring Imani’s senior portrait experience and vision to life. I had a blast working with you all and can’t wait to see what’s in store next. Enjoy!!

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Hodges Family | Chicago and Iowa City Family Portrait Photographer

Stacie Kemp — Tue, 25 Jun 2013 15:24:25 +0000

My husband and I have a lot of family in Iowa so we travel back often to visit. This last trip I was so excited because we took some updated portraits of my brother and his family! I might be biased but they are all SO stinkin cute and I’m in love with how much fun they all have together and how much love there is that goes around. I’m lucky and grateful to have such an awesome family. They were the very first people to hire me as a photographer and if it wern’t for them, I’m not sure my photography business would be in existence today! Thank you for believing in me and my work

During this session we had a little (BIG) scare as we realized my sister-in-law’s ENGAGEMENT ring was missing! If you’ve ever tried to look for a ring in a field of grass, you know it’s a little like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Luckily my brother happened upon it and the session could continue, but WHEW, adrenaline rush.

For their session we went to a local park and then ended with a few candid portraits playing around at home. It was sad to part ways at the end but we ended up with some great portraits and memories. Enjoy!

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Cramer 10 Year Anniversary Portraits | Chicago Couples and Family Portrait Photographer

Stacie Kemp — Tue, 25 Jun 2013 14:54:49 +0000

I was so happy when Michelle contacted me about taking 10 year anniversary portraits of her and her husband during their visit to Chicago!! I LOVE that they wanted photos to commemorate the occasion and am extremely honored Michelle contacted me because she is a fellow photographer! You can see her work here! She also co-owns a content marketing company, is a freelance writer for several magazines and creates handmade lovies for little ones (um, wow!). One of the things that blew me away about the Cramers is how much fun they have together (love that) and their huge hearts. It was great to hear them talk about the personalities of their two little ones and you can really tell one of Michelle’s passions in life is using her gifts to help other people. It was really inspiring to hear their stories and meet them.

For the Cramer’s sessions we started out at the Lincoln Park South Pond Pavilion and then moved on to some GORGEOUS skyline portraits. For the last few shots, the Cramers asked me to take portraits of the anniversary gift he gave her (heart lock and key necklaces). I love how they turned out, enjoy!

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