The "L Family's" Maternity session

After 6 wonderful weeks off for maternity leave I began working again with this picture perfect family. I chatted with L a few times before the session and we found the perfect location and went over their "vision" of pictures they hoped to have done. I think we were all very happy with the beautiful results!









I can't wait to meet their new addition when we do newborn pictures in a few weeks!

Introducing Miss Lucy!

I have been neglecting my blog lately because I've gotten hooked on facebook and I've been making all of my updates there. Feel free to follow me personally by "friending" Cara Carlson or you can keep tabs on the business by becoming a fan of Crane Photography at www.facebook.com/cranephotography. But for those of you who haven't been following me on Facebook, I have a big announcement to make:

That picture was taken when she was 5 days old and I designed the announcement myself. Here are a few more pictures of Miss Lucy who is now 8 weeks old.















Thanks for looking!

What is a Canvas Gallery Wrap?

The Canvas Gallery Wrap is a modern alternative to having your portraits matted and framed for display. Popular in art galleries, the canvas gallery wrap is becoming the chic new way to display your favorite portraits in your home.

Your favorite image will be printed directly onto fine art canvas and then professionally wrapped around a wooden frame. This process allows your image to continue around the edges of the frame to give a modern 3-dimensional effect to your portrait.



As you can see below, the portrait wraps right around the sides of the frame, so nothing is visible but your gorgeous portrait. The canvas wrap portrait below was coated with a semi-gloss laminate that you can see reflected in the sunlight. The laminate, also available in matte or high gloss, protects your portrait from scuffs, scratches and cracking and also provides UV protection.


You can see just how finished and impressive the wrapped edges are. The canvas gallery wrap would look perfect in a modern, minimalistic, contemporary, or simply decorated home.


In the close-up below you can see the rich texture of the fine art canvas that transforms your portrait into a work of art.


And the best part of a canvas gallery wrap is that it arrives finished and ready to hang on your wall. No more letting your precious portraits sit in boxes for weeks while you search for the perfect frame.

For more information on scheduling your next portrait session or ordering your canvas gallery wrap, please visit my website http://www.mycranephotography.com.

What a Difference a Week Makes!

I can't believe last weekend it was 20 degrees and we were playing in a foot of snow, and this weekend it was 70 degrees and we were playing at the park in short sleeves. I'm not complaining. We still had lots of fun getting Jack out of the house to play again this weekend. Here are some pictures from the park. I also had fun playing with a few different editing styles.

Vibrant Color


Vanilla Black & White


This is a cool vintage blue jeans edit.


Some more vibrant color. And check out the crazy hair on my boy.


We had a spring time snowball fight. Daddy actually snapped this shot.


This one makes me LOL because Jack points to things like he's Vanna pointing to her letters on Wheel of Fortune. He's even got Daddy doing it now.


I thought blowing on the cattails was a good idea until I was picking the little seeds out of my hair, eyes and lipgloss for the next half hour.


I love how Jack's eyes match the water in this one.


This one is a vanilla black and white with a little texture.


We had to get the obligatory belly shot. 27 weeks and counting. I just got this shirt and I'm already too big for it.


And some "naturey" shots I snapped while Jack and Daddy played.

violet edit


a little texture on this one


A red-winged blackbird's nest with some texture added.


A violet edit with texture


A warm edit with texture


Thanks for visiting!

Snow Day

We have waited 3 years for a decent snowfall and we finally got one this past weekend. Jack and Daddy had a great time playing in the snow with the dogs!

Happy Valentines Day!

I know it's been a while since I posted here but you may see the reason why in my Valentines Day portrait. That's not just a pot belly, we're expecting our 2nd baby late this Spring. We're very excited about the new baby but the first 4 months of this pregnancy were VERY rough on me. It must have been a man who came up with the term "morning sickness" because I was sick 24 hours a day for 4 months long.

Now that I'm halfway through this pregnancy I'm finally getting my energy back. It's just starting to get nice outside again so now would be a great time to book your Spring portraits before I have to take another break to have the baby. I'll be taking appointments until the end of April so contact me soon at mail@mycranephotography.com because my sessions are filling up quickly.

I hope you enjoy your Valentines Day weekend!

A 10x20 custom collage

Sometimes during a portrait session, I'll have a few images that are just stronger as a group than they would be as solitary images. When this happens I like to put them images together as a 10x20 Custom Collage like this one that I did at a recent session.


When I create a Custom Collage, you'll have the option to purchase the prints separately to frame them as a grouping yourself, or you can order the 10x20 image directly from Crane Photography as either a framed wall portrait or a print that you can frame yourself. You can even request a different colored background or ask to have something printed directly on the image like names or a favorite saying. We call them Custom Collages because they are custom designed by me customizable by you!