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The Callahan Maestas Clan – Fall Family Portraits in Flagstaff, AZ

To be honest, I think we all knew it was ambitious. The mission: document one adorable 8 month old, as well as his 3 canine siblings, and their nice parents. We aimed to capitalize on the beautiful fall foliage in the soft evening light, hopefully timing it just perfectly during its fleeting, vibrant glory. But, as you might imagine, wrangling a human baby and 3 fur babies all at once, has some challenges.

At one point, one of the dogs got a little overexcited. In a flash, Korina, holding Benjamin, disappeared before my eyes, their faces instantly replaced by her feet flipping straight up in the air, as her puppy knocked them backwards, down the hill below where they had been sitting a second earlier. Fortunately, Korina is incredibly strong and never once released her fierce maternal grip on her son. Daniel rushed to assist and they recovered balance.

I’m sad to say, now that we can laugh about it, that I didn’t have the wherewithal to take a picture in that moment! I was too concerned for everyone’s safety to record the hilarious scene unfolding in front of me. Luckily no injuries were sustained, and we were able to go on with the session, no hospital needed!

I hadn’t seen baby Benjamin in several months and his blossoming personality had only become more lovely – if that’s even possible. He’s an easy laugher and smiler, a super sweet, curious boy. He especially seemed to enjoy playing with the pumpkins his mom had grown in their garden.

I hope, when they look back on this busy time, these family portraits will help some of the beautiful moments be less of blur in their memories.

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in Child photography, children, family, Family Photography Flagstaff, family portrait, Flagstaff Photographer, Flagstaff Portrait, Flagstaff portrait photography, Flagstaff portraits, location portrait, parents, photography

Quinn, Class of 2020 – Senior Portrait Photographer

We had to battle rampant, vicious, stealthy mosquitos while being vigilant against the possibility of sneaky, disease carrying ticks. There were also humid clouds of green pollen in the air. Does this sound like Arizona? Nope. We were in Massachusetts for Quinn’s senior portraits. I’ll admit, I’m spoiled here at 7,000 feet. Not much in the way of pests or humidity. But I didn’t mind any of it. Quinn is always delightful to hang out with – funny, smart, musically, dramatically and athletically talented. I treasured getting to spend time with him.

This session was bittersweet because Quinn is youngest of the four kids, the last Fay family member I will make high school senior portraits with. On the other hand, we got to complete the senior portrait wall, where all four portraits now hang together in complete and perfect harmony.

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in individual portrait, location portrait, photography, senior portrait

Ben – Senior Portrait Photography in New England

I was thrilled that he wanted to do his senior portraits with me in Rockport, MA. Time with one of my favorite people in one of my favorite places. I’ve known Ben since before he was born, he’s my nephew and also just happens to be a pleasure to be around. (No, I’m not biased!) I can tell you from years of experience, that Ben is kind, considerate, intelligent, and has an incisive, clever sense of humor. During this session, he had an entourage and between some relentless photobombing and his hilarious voice-over narration of the scenes unfolding around us, there was a lot of laughter. 

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in individual portrait, location portrait, senior portrait

Nina’s First Communion Portraits – Studio Photography in Flagstaff

If there’s one thing I count on when I see her, it’s her ever-present giggle. Nina’s always ready to laugh, which never fails to crack me up. Uncharacteristically, she arrived at my studio for her First Communion and ballet portraits, admitting that she was nervous. I was surprised because she never ever seems nervous. When tagging along for her big sister’s first communion portraits, she couldn’t wait to get in the room, continually asking to join in the fun. But today was all about her, so it felt different. Once we got started, it wasn’t long before we were howling with laughter, dancing, and playing. When her mom Ely popped in to fix her hair, Nina looked up at her wide-eyed, exclaiming “Mom, we are having SO much fun!” 
Just like that, nervousness over. 

If Nina becomes a photographer one day, I won’t be surprised. She continually art directed the shoot; “Can we do this one in black and white? Will we see the flowers in this picture?” She has a visual acuity that a lot of adults don’t seem to have!

The big complication came when we added the family’s two beloved hairless cats into the mix. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to photograph one cat but they have a mind of their own. TWO cats certainly makes for an additional challenge. A week before the session, we scheduled an introduction; a special cat visit, so they could get used to the newness of the studio and their determined photographer. It went well, they purred in my lap. However, on the day of the session, they sure had other plans! But Nina, Ely, and I persisted and were able to coax them into the scene. At end of of the shoot, we were all exhausted but victorious.

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in Child photography, children, Flagstaff portrait photography, Flagstaff portraits, individual portrait, studio portrait

The Garcia Family Welcomes Their Son – Newborn Photographer Flagstaff

It was the day he was scheduled to have been born. They might have been waiting for him or even in labor on this day. But instead, when their due date arrived, Mariah and Ruben were at my cozy studio making portraits with their 17 day old newborn son. It just reminds us that babies have their own agendas about when they’ll arrive!

I’d met his parents but this was the first time I got to really focus on Kade’s amazing face. He was just as delightful as his mom and dad and we made lots of portraits of his sweet little baby fingers, toes, umbilicus, ears, nose, the swirling pattern of his hair. Kade was very kind to us, letting us photograph all those details without complaint, as long as he could drink some nutrition to fuel his excellent modeling.

The custom birth announcement we designed around all those sweet little baby details. ©KDI Photography

I loved seeing how he fit perfectly into each parent’s arms, snuggling skin to skin next to his mom’s and dad’s artful and meaningful tattoos.

Mariah and Ruben love to play full volume modern country music, and do so often at home, training Kade to get used to sleeping thorough sounds. So, the soundtrack to our session was some rockin’ country music, a fun change of pace from the usual soothing newborn portrait session background music. It made for a shoot that really felt like a celebration. It was perfect for such an auspicious day.

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in Child photography, children, family, Family Photography Flagstaff, family portrait, Flagstaff Photographer, Flagstaff portrait photography, Flagstaff portraits, newborn photography, parents, photography, studio portrait

1 Mom, 3 Kids & 2 Puppies – Family Portrait Photography

I think Tina‘s facial expressions should all be made into emoji. She never fails to crack me up with one of her signature looks. In fact, when I’m with her, I do that tremendous amount: laugh, hard. So, of course I was overjoyed when she told me that her kids would all be home briefly and she hoped that we could make family portraits with the puppies. One of the dogs has been having some health issues and it’s a never a good thing to procrastinate making real, lasting portraits with the fur babies you love, as well as the human ones.

It’s fair to say that before the session, not quite every single member of the crew that day was completely thrilled with spending that time taking pictures, but you’d never know it because each one was totally delightful. It was a blast catching up with everyone and even the dogs seemed to have fun. Love my time with these guys.

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in family, Family Photography Flagstaff, family portrait, Flagstaff Photographer, Flagstaff portrait photography, Flagstaff portraits, location portrait

Summertime Portraits in Flagstaff with the Phillips Family

Surely, there must be times when she loses her cool. Times when maybe she doesn’t want to share her toys, doesn’t want to hold her little sisters hand, or refuses to diligently and gently hand over snacks to keep her happy. Probably, she just gets grumpy sometimes. But I’ve never seen it. Porter is so devoted and kind that she sets the bar for big-sisterhood very, very high.

And, perhaps there are other toddlers who are consistently agreeable, who have 100% compliance with all requests, including with the repeated question “How big is Piper?” (The answer, of course, is “So big!” – arms raised with a huge, beaming smile.) It’s like a magic trick. But developmentally, one-year-olds are not generally known for a their compliance. 
Fun? Absolutely. 
Adorable? Definitely. 
Constantly learning and trying new things? Of course. 
But 100% compliant? No. Not a quality I’ve ever associated with a one-year-old. 

So, it was truly amazing to be with these two adorable girls out in a beautiful northern Arizona afternoon, with perfect light and a lovely temperature, getting to document this latest stage in this awesome family’s life. It was, like it always is when I spend times with the Phillips family: 100% wonderful.

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in Child photography, family, family portrait, Flagstaff portrait photography, Flagstaff portraits, location portrait, parents

MCKNIGHT FAMILY 2019 – FLAGSTAFF LOCATION PORTRAITS

It happens frequently. A son or daughter gets ready to head off for college and parents have the epiphany that family portraits are about to get a lot more challenging. It may be the last time the family is living together or in one place for a moment. One way or the other, the whole family dynamic is about to change – dramatically. So, it’s a conversation that I often end up having with parents in the process of senior portraits. “Wow, we haven’t had a ‘real” family portrait in ages and I don’t know when we’ll have the next opportunity.” That’s when we scheme to get everyone in front of my camera during that fleeting window.

In Elisa’s case, she had just two days when all 3 of her three children would be home and available. The family confluence was in honor of her daughter’s graduation from high school. We blocked out two session times and the weather was a heck of lot more cooperative during the first. We jumped on it and after a minor health crisis with their dog, everyone arrived at the location.

The three adult “kids” plus one awesome girlfriend joined Elisa and Ken while we laughed the evening away in the breeze, with the peaks rising in the distance. Elisa felt like an old friend from the minute I met her to plan Anneliese’s senior portraits, so spending time with the whole family gave me even more of those good vibes.

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in couples portrait, family, family portrait, Flagstaff portrait photography, Flagstaff portraits, location portrait

Finding the right fit at Around The Mountain Pediatric Dentistry – Flagstaff-Kid-Photographer

The dentist we were taking our kids to wasn’t a pediatric practice and just wasn’t a fit for us. When we met Dr. Jessica at Around the Mountain Pediatric Dentistry and saw how she totally puts kids at ease, we knew we were in the right place. Since then, we’ve been so pleased with the staff and doctors. They’re patient and understanding with both kids and parents. When we were asked to make some new wall art for their two offices and portraits for their website, it was a pleasure to collaborate with them. Now, when we’re at the offices for appointments, it always makes us smile to see the happy galleries on the walls. My hope is that it makes their kid patients feel welcome and relaxed, too. Recently, the busy Dr. Jessica and Dr. Kirk were finally able to carve out a few minutes to update their own portraits as well. Through the years and various projects, I have just loved getting to know the staff and other ATMPD folks better, like the awesome Dr. David Ho and his amazing family. I’ve also started to notice how the practice consistently and generously give back to our community. I think we’re really lucky to have them in our town.

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in Child photography, children, commercial portrait, community, couples portrait, Flagstaff portrait photography, Flagstaff portraits, framing, individual portrait, studio portrait

Amazing Artist Darcy Falk – Portrait Photography in Flagstaff

I was so excited to pick up the paper yesterday and see a profile of my beautiful, talented friend, artist Darcy Falk! We’ve been talking for years about making her some updated professional portraits but recently, with a new impetus and deadline, we were finally able to pull it together. Darcy had applied for a grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts and she wanted to submit her application with an updated portrait. Her works is exquisite so the grant proposal was a success! You can read about it for yourself here in the Sunday Arizona Daily Sun article.

Congrats, Darcy! I’m not surprised. You are amazing!

This is a little gallery of Darcy’s favorite portraits from our session together. In the first two, we used her work as a background.

Which one is your favorite?

Flagstaff Family Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Maternity Pregnancy Photographer • Flagstaff Newborn Photographer • Flagstaff Child Photographer • Flagstaff Senior Portrait Photographer • Flagstaff Couples Photography

Kristen Dacey Iwai of KDI Photography is a full-time professional portrait photographer based in Flagstaff, Arizona with decades of experience. Making portraits of families, pregnancy, newborns, babies, children, and high school seniors in her downtown studio and on location, she serves clients from Flagstaff, Sedona, Tuba City, Winslow, Payson, Page, Williams, Prescott, Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Arizona

Posted in commercial portrait, Flagstaff Portrait, Flagstaff portrait photography, Flagstaff portraits, individual portrait, studio portrait
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Keiji Iwai & Kristen Dacey Iwai

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KDI PHOTOGRAPHY

 

724 N. Humphreys St

Flagstaff, AZ 86001

 

Phone

(928) 779-4151

 

Hours:

M - F 9 - 5 by appointment

KDI Photography Portrait Studio in Flagstaff, Az
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