Southeastern Railway Museum

Polar Express Minis have always been on my to do list but I’ve been too terrified to enter the world of Photoshop to even attempt this task. This year, I stepped out of my comfort zone and hosted my own mini session that would rely heavily on Photoshop. I booked a spot in Duluth at the Southeaster Railway Museum. They did not disappoint. I wasn’t sure how this would turn out, so I scheduled this in September, just incase my attempt failed and my clients needed to book another photographer offering this same session.

As with most things, in my life, this wasn’t nearly as hard as I was making it out to be and the fear of using Photoshop frightened me. With the help of YouTube, prayers and crossing my fingers, you see the final results here.

My first set of clients were so cute in their matching pajamas and stuffed animals. My favorite thing about this session is seeing how excited these kids were. They were old enough for me to explain how the photos would look when I was finished editing them and their faces lit up!

This set of kids below, belong to me. This is my daughter and her cousin. He never likes when I take his photo but he was willing to do this for Nana. My daughter wasn’t too eager either but she loved the new pajamas I bought her and was excited to not have to dress up for this round of photos. The photo on the left was so time consuming to take because she kept yawning. If her face looked exactly how I wanted it to look, her cousin would be rolling his eyes. I told my daughter to hold her mouth open until I fixed his face and when I was ready to snap the photo, she was in the middle of a yawn. We were all laughing about this the whole day.

This little boy couldn’t smile enough for me. Not yet able to sit up, on his own, it took a minute to get him balanced. He didn’t care. He laughed for me (or at me) his entire session. I loved his cute little robe. It was so hot on this day but he was unbothered by it.

During the first quarter of 2024 my goal is to work on my composites. Composites are the kind of photos you see below. It’s where I cut something from one photo and add it to another photo to make a completely different image. I’m so happy with these images (being my first few attempts) but I know I can get better. Plus, when I do perfect composites, I can offer other mini sessions, such as lightening bugs and other creative sessions. If you have any cool ideas comment below or slide into my DM’s.

If you’d like to keep up with the mini sessions I offer, during the year, follow me on Facebook. That seems to be the best outlet for me to keep up with on a regular (daily) basis.

I also photograph weddings, so please share my info if you or anyone you know is looking for a budget friendly wedding photographer send them here https://paulashtonphotography.com/

I look forward to sharing more Christmas minis with you this month. Thanks for checking in and following me. I’m so grateful for my clients and anyone on cyberspace who’s interested in what I do.

Thank you for reading my blog. If you haven’t tried my services yet, I invite you to shop the categories that appeal to you https://paulashtonphotography.com/sessions or shop the mini sessions I’m offering here https://book.usesession.com/i/2vq1XcoTE

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Until next week- Love ya, mean it,

Christy