Philadelphia wedding photography nicole polk photography + polkadot portraits wedding portrait newborn family photography Philadelphia, Mainline, Bucks, PA, DE, NJ, NYC

winter engagement photography - teaser

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 21:43:54 -0500

Ok, I still have other things to blog before this shoot, but I got so excited to shoot out in all this snow I wanted to share a quick image I was working on to help get rid of my winter blahs. Shoots like this will help me get through till spring! Next week I have an e session with a couple on skis! No need to wait till things are blooming for an e session with snow like this :)

the evolution of me...

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 13:32:21 -0500

So, today is my 30th birthday and it has me reflecting on the life I've lived so far and the life I want to live from here on out. This self reflection is not spurred solely on the idea of entering my thirties, it's been an ongoing project of mine for some time, but this feels like an appropriate time to post a little bit about it. I'm finding as I turn 30 that I'm more interested in learning than ever before - about myself, life, love, art, and all sorts of other stuff. This has become so important to me both in terms of my personal and business life. I'd like to share one project that I have done in conjunction with a continuing class of sorts stemming from Jesh de Rox's Life (as an Artform) workshops. I've had the wonderful opportunity to continue learning and growing in this community of people who have beautiful hearts. They have provided a safe haven for us all to learn from each other and grow more with each passing week. This assignment in particular has struck a chord with me because it challenged me to really look at how I'd like my life to be on the whole and how I'd like others to see me. In short, we had to write the blurb on the back of a book that would be our biography. Here is what I came up with:

It's impossible to sum up a life in a few hundreds pages. Aptly named, "An Intimate Portrait" is just a glimpse at the life of Nicole. An explorer of light and love, perfectly imperfect, a collector of moments - these are just a few phrases to describe Nicole. She brought passion to a great many interests in her life - art, music, snowboarding, friends and family. Photography was a great vehicle to express the beauty she saw in the world. Beauty in people, relationships, new life, nature, and simple pleasures in life have been captured both with her camera lens and pastels. She was fascinated by light and color, not only in the world, but also in her subjects. Most interested in capturing emotion and innate beauty, she lives on in the artwork created for her clients that has been passed down generation to generation. Though she achieved success with her artwork, it is her journey of self discovery and exploration of life through her artwork that was most important to her. She learned to "unlearn" to experiment and imagine, pushing herself outside her comfort zone and overcome fears to truly embrace all experiences in life. She failed at things in her life with grace and humility and learned from those experiences to grow further. She learned that life is hard and complicated, but sublime in both its pain and joy. A favorite quote of Nicole's by Anais Nin wonderfully describes this turning point in her journey. "And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." She believed the infinite and the invisible held the most important lessons in life. She believed life's magic was in genuine experiences, physical and emotional experiences in life. It was her life's greatest success not in touching the lives of many in some small way, but greatly impacting the lives of those she loved.

So, there is just a little tiny taste of my journey so far. My birthday wish is to throw myself fully into all I experience this year, play more, not to let fear guide my actions, and continue to learn all I can so that I may someday be able to pass on that knowledge in some form or other. And since no post is fun without pictures, I'd like to share my self portrait that I took at the last life (as an artform) workshop I hosted this past fall. I did another self portrait during last years workshop as well.

Christian (+ Otto) - Philadelphia portrait photographer

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:33:52 -0500

I got to photograph this little guy and his beautiful companion this fall right in his beautiful backyard. Christian is a rough and tough boy through and through, more content to play with sticks than toys, we had a ball traipsing around the wooded yard. I can't wait to photograph him again when he rides Otto like a horse! I had such a hard time picking favorites for the blog, so here is a rather large smattering of images of the shoot!

Brett + Lisa - Philadelphia Engagement Photography

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 09:23:19 -0500

I've known Brett since I was about 6 years old. We grew up across the street from each other, neighbors as long as I can remember. We never knew each other well, he was ahead of me in school, but always said hello and chatted outside at our cars for a few minutes here and there. It's a funny thing to really get to know someone when you have technically known them for over 20 years. It was fascinating getting to know Brett through his relationship with Lisa. They are sweet and tender, yet they have no qualms about telling each other how it is. I see so much laughter, humor, and honesty in their relationship. I'm so happy to get to know both Lisa and Brett through their engagement and their upcoming wedding in April. So, here are some highlights from our 2 part shoot!

on vacation....

Sat, 26 Dec 2009 16:43:26 -0500

...in Park City, Utah! The office will be closed until I return on January 4th. I hope everyone has a happy new year and all phone calls and emails will be returned when I'm back from vacation. Check out one of the resorts we will be visiting. Think snow!

Lauren and Ryan - Bucks County enagagement photography

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 09:07:56 -0500

Just a little tease for you of Lauren and Ryan's engagement session! Lauren literally emailed me about 2 days before she got engaged on an unrelated topic and said she hoped to contact me soon after she got engaged. Little did she know that Ryan was proposing just a couple days later! She emailed me the day after the proposal to get something set up. Lauren and Ryan are such a wonderful mix of sweet and fun, classy and casual. I could just keep gabbing with them about art and music all day long! More to come :)

Brittany + Toph - Philadelphia wedding Photography

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:25:13 -0500

I have lots of wedding stuff to post, so I'll start it out with Brittany + Toph! You may remember these two from their fun engagement session we did on the rides here. Always a pleasure to work with, I also shot Brittany's boudoir session this summer. I can't even begin to tell you how this party rocked on every level imaginable. The band was rockin' and Brittany's brother sang a few songs too! Even after a long day, the party was still going strong at the end of the night, they even extended the reception for another hour because no one was ready to go home! Thank you guys for a great day!

Venue: Whitemarsh Valley Country Club
Florist: Valley Green Florist
Dress: Ulla Maija
Shoes: Manolo Blahnik
Band: Vincent James Band

Videographer: Well Spun Weddings

Cassie and Sabrina - Philadelphia Portrait Photographer

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 09:49:29 -0500

All my personal pictures always seem to go to the back burner. So, I'm finally posting images from when my aunt and cousins visited the beach house this summer. It's amazing to see how much they have changed in just a year. You can see some images from 2008 here and here. Always fun to spend some time with, I can't wait to see them at Christmas again :)

Logan - Philadelphia Newborn Photographer

Sun, 13 Dec 2009 12:20:00 -0500

Introducing...Logan Cole...my nephew! Zach's sister, Corinne, had this little guy a wee bit early, but he is nice and strong and healthy! Logan definitely likes to be bundled up, very appropriate for a winter baby shoot! I had a lot of fun with some new props. It was so nice to spend some time getting to know Logan a bit and visiting with his parents, I hope to do it again soon. Miss you guys already!

brooke + travis - Bucks County engagement photographer

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:09:46 -0500

Here is the long lost e session from Brooke and Travis from this past season. I'm still behind on blogging, but at least I'll have some goodies to share throughout my slower shooting season, including their wedding highlights! These 2 were certainly no sticks in the mud for their shoot, but I did stick them in some mud. You can't tell from the images, but we had so much rain, one of the fields was quite muddy and they were game for anything. Thanks for trusting me and not being afraid of some muddy feet. Maybe I should start telling my couples to bring along some galoshes!

My neighbors take 3 or 4! Philadelphia children's photographer

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 22:07:18 -0500

I've been taking images of my neighbors' children for what seems like forever already! It's so fun to look back at their old shoots and see how much they have grown and changed in just a few short years. You can see here they have always kept me on my toes and this shoot was no exception. I love how Lucas, Owen, and Erica are so fiercely individual in their own personalities and it shows in their group images as well. Until next time!

The Make a Wish Portrait Special

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:11:04 -0500

I have been so blessed in my life with good health, wonderful friends & family, a job I love, and the ability to have fun seeing a bit of the world and generally doing what I want to do. Unfortunately, not everyone is as lucky as I have been. I've been involved in a couple programs throughout the years that have given me the opportunity to give back through my photography. This year, I wanted to do a little more, something special for the holiday season.

That's why for this Holiday Season I am teaming up with my friends and fellow photographers Cindy Guessford of Cindy Guessford Photography and Mark Gardner of Mark Gardner Photography for our Make A Wish Portrait Promo!!!

Help Make a difference for a child in the Philadelphia/Susquehanna Valley area.

The Deal.... For the First 8 clients to contact either one of us and book a portrait/holiday/Baby /any reason session at the reduced rate of $250 you get ::::::Drum Roll ::::::

$250 includes - Session Fee
travel within the Greater Philadelphia Area and some parts of De, NJ
your names added to the list of donors
DVD of 25 high res images - with a usage release (use for gifts,holiday cards etc..)
online proofing and hosting for 90 days
100% of the cost will be donated directly to The Make A Wish Foundation- Philadelphia/Susquehanna Valley Chapter
you may get one, two or even all 3 of us depending on availability

That's right folks! 100 percent donation baby! I've done a ton of research on charities and I'm happy to say that this chapter of the Make a Wish foundation has received a 4 star ranking which is the highest that you can receive and they are among only 5% of the charities rated to receive this rating for 5 consecutive years. The rating means a lot to me because it confirms that the charity exceeds industry standards and outperforms most charities in its Cause. A large portion of the funds collected actually go towards the cause they represent and that is huge!

So contact us now to book your session - limited availability

coming soon...

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 09:25:00 -0500

Brittany and Toph's wedding will be revealed on the blog soon! I usually post a nice moment between a couple for a teaser, but thought I'd change it up today. For now, I thought I'd tease Brittany with her piles and piles of hair! Hehe, not to worry, she will be seeing the entire wedding this week!

Philadelphia Boudoir Photography

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 18:43:50 -0500

I've been itching to try out some boudoir photography over the last couple years and I finally found a great test subject - one of my brides Brittany! She is the epitome of a client putting her absolute trust in me. And it doesn't hurt that she has fabulous fashion taste! We finally got together to make some images and I'm quite pleased for my first go at it. I could really enjoy doing some more of these. So, ladies, if you are looking for a gift for your groom, give me a holler for some tastefully smokin' images!

baby Andrew

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 12:39:05 -0500

My blogging has been all over the place this summer, so why stop now! Many of you will recognize baby Andrew from my first hanging baby image. I never posted some other images from the session, so I thought I'd start to get a little caught up on the blogging with him!