your true colors – autumn landscape | fall at the st. louis temple

UPDATED 11/7/14: To make our temple photos easier to find, we've updated this post to include the Pre-Dawn Snowfall photograph ...

All three images are available for sale in the following two sizes*: 12"x8" ($30) and 16"x20" ($50), plus $6.00 shipping. 

For every 12x8 sold, we'll donate 25% of the proceeds to help purchase care kits for newborns and their mothers in Guatemala. For every 16x20 sold, we'll donate 50% of the proceeds.

Email your orders to photos@benandbeccalee.com.

Photo A:

Photo B:

 Photo C:

(Learn more about our parents' Guatemala humanitarian project here: https://www.crowdrise.com/quisieraayudar or here: http://kentandlorriesservice.wordpress.com/)

* Have a frame already picked out? Additional sizes may be available upon special request. Just ask!

paul & em | faust park in early fall

Some images just work. Perfectly. In black and white. We love the timelessness it portrays. And what better type of image to convey "forever" than husband and wife? Together. Forever.

just plain great | morgan family 2012

It's not fair to try and write words to accompany the Morgan's photo shoot. Such good friends and such dang good-looking kids. Love these guys like crazy.

I mean, who really likes to cooperate all the time anyway? It makes for a better storytelling image sometimes, like the one above.  

Isn't this what being a little boy is all about? Shiny toy guns, big brass belt buckles and cowboy hats don't always make the man... Or do they?  

Faith refashioned an old yellow cardigan of hers just for her beautiful daughter. Dedicated and talented. 

"C'mon, sis! Let's get out of here before they try to make us do another pose."

a loving aunt | oct. 2012

The colorful leaves of fall came and went in a flurry this year. Was it because it was too dry this summer? Was it because the wind and rain knocked them all down? It's always a guessing game and a gamble trying to pick what day will best show off the colors of autumn for fall. Oct. 16 was a pretty good guess; not perfect, but still one of the best this year in St. Louis.

kenzie | faust park, class of 2013

Our last post about Kenzie didn't show off the fall color at Faust Park. The first below, on the other hand, sure does. Man, what a beautiful (and cold) afternoon!

forget the park: family photos @ home

It's always such a joy to photograph the Tilton crew -- more so when it's actually above 40 degrees, which has hardly ever been the case! And although our favorite locale this year has been Faust Park in Chesterfield, Megan talked us into photos at their O'Fallon home.

Good call, Megan.

dreamlike | h.s. senior kenzie h.

The ground? Rock solid. Kenzie's hair, eyes and smile? Polar opposite. A stellar model who we hope to have more chances to photograph down the road!

faust park | taylor

Stunning eyes. Gorgeous hair. Haunting beauty. Meet Taylor.

having a little fun ...

tech specs: marlie, star of klondike

85mm, f/5.6, 1/400 sec.

all grown up

When Hannah asked us a few months ago to create senior portraits with her, she made a special request: Any chance you can find a grand piano to use in the shoot? Good question, we thought. But after some brainstorming we pulled it off, thanks to our neighbor and friends, the Meiers. (Thank you, btw, for letting us take over your upstairs music studio for an hour!)
(Sorry if this next part is embarrassing...) So, Hannah and Ben go way back – all the way to when he was in high school and she was in the nursery. Good family friends dating back years, I think it was an especially fun and enjoyable shoot for Ben (even if it made him feel a bit old). It clearly meant a lot to him to get to see Hannah’s sister, Joanna, during the Quail Ridge portion of the shoot.

And now, Hannah’s all grown up. A superb student. A talented musician. A great person. And about the same age as Ben was when the two first met. Crazy.

photography = ...

Today, we're giving away The Secret. More than the camera. More than the lenses. More than the lighting, location or angles.

Yes, this season we have discovered the magic formula: Photography = one part stress + one part timing + two parts pure joy. Seriously. Busy? Yes. But we love what we do. Especially when you get to watch a person or a family--like the Streichers in this case--grow so much and change over time. It just helps put it all into perspective, that you're doing more than just snapping photos. We record history.

megan and the morning sun

Sunrise or sunset... that is the question. Which time is better for a senior shoot? It's one question that may be unanswerable, but Megan's morning session sure helps us form an opinion. Love that morning sun.

Handsome 'lil L.C.H.

This sweet guy is celebrating his six-month birthday today. We just couldn't let this happy milestone pass without posting a couple pics from this past weekend! You might remember this beautiful boy from here or here. Happy Birthday Mister H!

grab a stick

Okay, so it's probably bad luck or something to talk about proud favorites and what-not -- sort of like saying a pitcher is well on his way to a no-hitter or a perfect game after 5 or 6 flawless innings. Just one of those things you just don't do, right?

Meh. No yielding to superstitions today. I mean, how many cracks have you stepped on in your life only to discover, to your relief, that it did not, in fact, break your mother's back? Precisely. So, with that in mind, we proudly present the Rodabough clan. Or, well, some of them.

Now, the heart of this post is about image #4, our dear friend who is secretly a ninja warrior and/or stick-wielding tyke. Either way, we have long thought this little snip of a man to be one of the funniest chaps we know. Full of character and of life. The one who's first to point out which kid has the smelly diaper in a room full of 2 year olds. The one who quickly but politely turns down a carrot stick after asking, "Where's the ranch?" and discovering there is none. The one who's growing up so quickly we can't believe it. Point of it all: it's so rewarding when a person relaxes and his personality transcends an image, as it has here.

And whether it ever makes it onto a wall or a Christmas card is truly beside the point. The point is, we absolutely love the shot. And hope you do, too. Hope it inspires you to go ahead and be yourself. You know, grab a stick or a leaf and just start swinging.

so soon, the snow

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It's fall. And for the most part, it's felt like it. Occasional warm days, occasional cool ones. Breezy, sometimes gusty. Sunny, with sunsets that glow. But from the looks and sounds of it outside right now, that's all about to change. The cold is coming. Winter's still 30 days away, but somehow I don't think that matters.

So, here's to hot chocolate and happy holidays!* Glad we squeezed in a few more sessions over the past few weeks. Here's a sneak peek at some of the shots ... (Too many to discuss lenses and lighting and cameras, but if you have a question about one of them, don't hesitate to ask!)




* Here's to Becca and Marlie, as well, for standing strong for a string of shoots when I was, well, let's just say, less than healthy. Photo #9 is one of M's shots.