Our Top 7 Photo Sessions of 2019

We are at that time of year where we sit back and reflect on how far we’ve come. The year 2019 is no different, except that we probably have even more reflecting to do than usual.

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This year marks the end of a decade! Whoa. That’s a really big deal. While we will have an entire post on our 2020 plans, this post is about reflecting back on our top 7 photo sessions of 2019. While all of them are very near and dear to my heart, these stuck out for their own special reasons! Read on to find out why!

7. Sunflower Mini Sessions! 

This was the first year Kansas City Photography decided to do sunflower mini sessions! The event took place at Brookdale Farms in Eureka, and I rented out the field on a Sunday morning. It was an absolute hit — spots sold out in 24 hours.

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It had rained the previous two days, and the field had been closed the day before due to the mud, but everyone made the trek in the mud for these beauties!

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It is technically supposed to be a sunflower “maze,” but with the puddles and mud, I picked out a few favorite spots and we stuck to those instead of walking through all of the soggy earth.

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We’ve had popular mini sessions before, but never to this magnitude. Definitely one for the books, and absolutely something we will do again!

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6. Lisa & Jason’s Wedding

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Lisa & Jason’s wedding stuck out for a few reasons, that photo above included. 🙂

I wasn’t actually their first photographer. Lisa had another photographer lined up for her wedding … who dropped out just months before they said “I Do.” Her now mother-in-law, who is my neighbor, reached out to me to see if I had their date available. I did, and we were able to meet up for coffee. Lisa told me I wasn’t allowed to back out, to which I told her “I have never missed a wedding in my life, you are safe!”

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Fast forward to a week before her wedding. Guess who gets bacterial pneumonia? This kid, that’s who. But, I absolutely kept my word. There was no way I was going to miss Lisa & Jason’s wedding, fever, pneumonia, or not!

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The next reason their wedding was rememberable (aside from their cuteness!) was the location. It was a location I had never been to before, in St. Louis, on the riverfront. It was someone’s home they had remodeled so that it could also work as a wedding venue. This place had the most unique artwork, including a statue that was so tall, even if several groomsmen stood on each other’s shoulders, they still wouldn’t reach the top!

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This piece was also inside …

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5. Lindsey’s “Breaking Free” Session 

As a photographer, sometimes we are approached and given a responsibility to tell a story. Lindsey’s story was not only important, but worth sharing to the world. At only 23, she has experienced a lot of loss in her life, especially in 2019 with the loss of both and uncle to cancer and a best friend … to murder.

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Lindsey came to me and said she wanted a “breaking free” theme for her 23rd birthday. She wanted to make 23 her best year yet, cherishing those she lost, but also becoming stronger because of the trials she has faced already at such a young age.

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Lindsey is studying to earn her EMT license, so she can help save lives — even after having lost so many in her own life. I look forward to seeing her flourish in 2020.

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4. Naka Kon 2019

Kansas City Photography has been a vendor at Naka Kon since 2012, setting up a photobooth in their vendor’s room every year. This year was different because it was the first year we had a double booth space, and it was all by a fluke, too!

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When Alyssa and I arrived at Naka Kon, we noticed the vendor to our left wasn’t there … and they still weren’t there even as time ticked closer and closer to opening.  One of the coordinator’s came by and told us the vendor was coming in from Colorado, and they had gotten hit by a big ice storm and were unable to make it in. She offered for us to purchase the space — so we went for it!

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This, combined with our on-site sessions, made it our most successful Naka Kon to date! We’ve already signed up for 2020, with a double booth space again! This year, we will have our Magic Mirror photobooth, too!

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3. Triplets Sessions

You’d think having one session with triplets would be amazing, but I actually had two sessions with triplets this year! One of my favorite families, the Sharp family, had triplets —

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And I also met Andrew, Gabby, and Cameron this year — triplets in very different walks of life! These three are seniors!

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It’s going to break my heart when the Sharp toddler triplets are old enough to do a senior session with me! Slow down, time!

2. A New York City Photo Session!

My husband, Bryan, has a cousin that lives in New York City. Although, since I frequent NYC several times a year, and always make sure to grab a bite with said cousin … Christie and I have decided we are actually cousins. Move over, Bryan!

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So, of course, when Christie mentioned a photo session, I couldn’t wait to fly out and explore the city with her, camera in hand! We definitely got yelled at over an intercom for the shot below.

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Worth it, though, right?! Thank you so much for this treat of a photo session, Christie!

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Plus, it’s true, she’s totally an icon. With an amazing voice. You’re gonna rock the $h!+ outta 2020!! I can’t wait to see it, and then be like … “Hey! That’s my cousin!”

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1. Gina & Rob’s Pouring Rain Engagement Session

Have you ever seen one of those romance movies where they run outside to meet, and kiss in the rain?! Like, every romance movie ever, right?

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I had the opportunity, for the first time in my photography career, to do a pouring rain engagement session!!

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Usually, when there is rain in the forecast, I will have clients reach out to me and ask about re-scheduling. I usually give the option to have a fun rain session, but I understand when they go ahead with re-booking for a different day. Then, my dreams came true.

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Gina opted not to re-schedule. So, away to St. Charles we went — umbrella in hand. I stood in the rain and got drenched while taking these amazing rain photos, and it was completely worth it. Thank goodness Canon is water-resistant!

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A few weeks after the session, I met with Gina for a coffee to finalize the wedding photography plans, and she told me she thought it was the most romantic thing that Rob waited until the final, in the middle of the street shot, to take off his outer shirt. He was excited for that shot, and that made her heart swoon!

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Plus, we were in the heart of St. Charles, so we had plenty of amazing natural backdrops to work with while the rain was pouring down.

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By the end of this session, I was drenched. Gina and Rob were drenched. It was cold … but it was 1,000 percent worth every second in that monsoon!

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We definitely had lost the umbrella by the end … but a little rain never hurt anybody. Plus, these two are happily ever after married now — ready to weather any storm together!

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Make sure to follow Kansas City Photography on Facebook — and don’t forget we are in both Kansas City and St. Louis!

Day Two & Three: Naka Kon!

WOW. Saturday was the busiest we’ve ever been at Naka-Kon, thank you everyone for stopping by our booth! We had hundreds of people stop by to get their photos taken. Tatiana and I were busy, busy bees!

We met so many fun people — and from the sounds of it, we’ll see a lot of you again for outside cosplay shoots! We also had someone look into us for a wedding and family shots! It’s just the con that keeps on giving.

We hope we get accepted for next year and will hopefully see you there in 2017! We will have a Canon printer right at the booth next year for faster prints!! I am so excited about it!

Highlights: 

One of the best Serenity cosplays I’ve ever seen, complete with a silver crystal. Getting to hang out with Tatiana all weeked!!! A Kakashi with a sweet sharingan contact. Dabbing. Lots of dabbing. Some of the best handmade props I have ever seen in my life. TEACH ME YOUR WAYS, SEMPAI! Plus, getting to see my regulars every year! I LOVE catching up with everyone and seeing what they’ve been up to!

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Naka Kon 2017: Cosplay, Photography, and MomoBunny!

Note: We will have a blog up with a gallery of photos from the con later today!

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Hey, everyone! This is Tatiana (aka Momo Bunny Cosplay), the newest photographer on the Kansas City Photography team. I was asked to shed some light on my experience at Naka-Kon and my cosplay construction.

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Here I am cosplaying Viktor Nikiforov from the award-winning anime “Yuri on Ice.”

I’ve been attending Naka Kon since 2009, back when it was based in downtown KCMO with 1,500 or less attendees. It’s touching to see the first anime convention I went to grow and evolve as my cosplays have over the years. Now, it is based in Overland Park, KS, and the attendees almost reached 9,500 people! YOW-ZAH!

Some of you may be wondering: “what the heck is cosplay?”

Let me break it down for you!

Here’s the technical definition (thanks, Google):

cos·play
ˈkäzˌplā,ˈkäsˌplā/
noun

a contraction of the words costume play, is a performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character.

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Here is a photo I took at the Kansas City Photography photobooth of Caitlyn Rook cosplaying the White Queen from Tim Burton’s “Alice In Wonderland”.

Cosplay, to me, is an art form. I have unlimited outlets to create (sewing, welding, sculpting, thermoplastic, makeup, wig styling, etc.) — and endless possibilities of characters to choose from! Sometimes, it can be putting an outfit together to create a characters image:

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Above is a photo Christine took of my Prompto cosplay from Final Fantasy XV! Although I purchased all the pieces of this look, I styled the wig, detailed the vest with studs and patches matching the character, and used fabric paint to create the undershirts design.

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Another awesome Prompto cosplayer above!

Each year, there’s always a favorite anime or character that you see EVERYWHERE! Naka was flooded with Prompto’s since the voice actor for him was a guest at the convention (Robbie Daymond). Cons will often have special guests  (voice actors, actors, artists, famous cosplayers, etc.) to draw more people in.

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Oh, look! Another Prompto!

It was amazing being able to meet so many talented and kind people at the booth. This was my first time getting a taste of the vending life at a con, but it was a lot easier to connect with people being in one location vs wandering the halls.

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Above: Check out Christine and I from Saturday as Punk versions of Sailor Venus and Chibiusa from the Sailor Moon series! We took concepts from the original character designs, such as Sailor V’s signature red bow and Chibiusa’s buns and pink obsession, and put our own spin on things for a unique costume design!

It’ll take weeks to months — even YEARS — to create a cosplay for an event such as Naka Kon, so I give everyone out there mad props (haha… props) who came to our booth to capture their works of art on camera!

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Above: Featuring Madison Hankins from Akarii Cosplay as Neo from RWBY. She creates all of her cosplays herself! AMAZING!

Naka-Kon is a welcoming, happy place where I feel safe to talk to strangers and connect through the love of all things nerdy! I recommend anyone who feels shy or uneasy about expressing their interests to go and make friends! It’s impossible to NOT to find someone to share your fandom with and create wonderful memories.

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Above: My niece Nya as Vocaloid Miku! Naka is a family-friendly event and I love that so many children have a way to express themselves in a safe, positive way.

Joining Kansas City Photography has opened up a whole new world of possibilities and fun times ahead! The Con season has just begun, and I’m excited to see how my photography and cosplay can inter-loop again.

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A silly photo to end a memorable weekend. Lolita style!

Day One: Naka Kon!

Day one of Naka Kon has come and gone. We met some great cosplayers and are looking forward to today!

Did you come to our booth yesterday? Make sure you come pick up your CD and I’ll show you our print packages!

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One of my favorites was Diane from “Seven Deadly Sins.” She was the only cosplayer from that series I saw. She made the dress in one day!!

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And of course our own Tatiana was gender bend Yuri. She’s always so gorgeous … and  I LOVE “Yuri On Ice.”

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I met so many people who made their own props, sewed their own outfits, and even custom made wigs  I’m always so in awe of how talented people are! I can’t even sew. 🙁

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I didn’t see any “Sailor Moon” characters. That makes me sad!! So, any Sailor Moon cosplayers get $2 off if they visit me today!

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Please note, if you use ANY of these photos, link us back! http://Facebook.com/kansascityphotography

The Best Anime Convention in KC

It only happens one weekend every year. Thousands of people get dressed like their favorite anime / comic book characters, and gather together …

It’s Naka Kon!

Kansas City Photography has been a vendor there since 2011, with a break in 2015 since I was pregnant and my youngest daughter’s due date was the weekend of the convention.

That would have been fun — having my water break at the convention. One for the headlines, right?

For anyone that knows me well, they know I’m in big time love with Sailor Moon. I just adore it. Any time I see a Sailor Moon cosplayer (cosplayers are the amazingly fun peeps who dress up), I (not creepily) fawn and ask if I can take their picture. #OkayMaybeALittleCreepyOnAccident

Even Sailor Moon crossovers are in my realm of obsession.

(Here’s the formula. 1 Anime + 1 Different Anime = Crossover)!

Let me give you and example. Below are Sailor Moon / My Little Pony crossovers done by the glorious Momo Bunny Cosplay and AshBear Cosplay at the convention last year!

Many of these cosplayers make their OWN COSPLAYS (like the two above). I am always in awe — this gal doesn’t even know how to sew.

Here are some more crossover shots we took at a separate photoshoot outside of the convention (another great reason to do biz at a con is to meet people to book outside shoots like this!):

Also shout out to Vera Cosplay, who is featured in the far left photo!

BONUS: Here is me and the entire fam at Naka Kon last year. We were a Pokémon family! I was Squirtle, and my husband was the Pokémon trainer Ash. My oldest was Charmander, and my youngest was Pikachu!

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Planning to go to Naka Kon this year? Make sure to stop by our booth and get your picture taken!

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