Mentor Sessions + Motherhood

This is one of my favorite sessions + here’s why… it started as a mentor session with this beautiful momma you see in these photos + then turned into a mini Motherhood Session. One of my most adored progressions as a business owner has been mentoring + pouring into other photographers who are eager to learn, grow + dive deeper into bettering themselves as business women.

I’ll never forget the feeling of overwhelm, confusion, frustration, comparison… honestly, the list goes on when I first stepped into the pool of photography. All I wanted to do was feel more confident behind the camera, know exactly what I was doing on the business side + succeed, make a name for myself. But for whatever reason everything was hush-hush. Asking a photographer what preset they use or what location they shot at or what their camera settings on an image were unheard of. I hated the feeling. It was really a world of every man for themselves. If I wanted to learn I had to do some deep google searching or try, fail, try again.

Fast-forward five years + I was well on my feet, but again, only after facing trial + error, late nights, money spent + money wasted. It was no easy feat, but I’m proud to have built the company I have + knew that I wanted to change things moving forward. I knew that if a photographer reached out to ask a question I’d give them the best most honest answer I could because heck, starting out is so hard + I wanted to help. Like truly help. Plus, it feels so good to help others, I suppose that’s the ennegram two in me.

For this session Morgan + I focused on working with 35mm film, practiced metering + the importance on waiting for the shot. After we were done shooting a roll of film I then took over + photographed her with her son for a sweet Motherhood Session as I talked through what I was doing so that she could get an idea of what I think about during a shoot.

I have a true passion for equipping motherhood + family photographers, especially those that are “new-to-the-scene” + feeling all the intimidation of starting out, to create the work they dream of + build a photography business that aligns with their own vision + values. If finding a mentor for 2023 is one of your goals + you’re interested in learning more about my Mentor Sessions or coaching groups I would love to chat, please feel free to email me!

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Here’s a little behind the scenes of our time together in Morgan’s Studio.

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Hello, Baby Boy | Studio Newborn Session on Film | Kyle Kelley Photography | Milwaukee Newborn Film Photographer

Newborns will forever be the heart + soul of KKP!! Being a Milwaukee newborn photographer is one of the greatest joys. These sessions are so dear to me, full of sweet moments, sometimes happy tears + all the beautiful details of a precious season of life. I thoroughly enjoy being the one chosen to document such an important time in your lives, an honor I don’t take lightly + I would love to continue this work in the new year. If you are expecting in 2022, please reach out!! I would love to hear from you + get your session on the calendar. There is no bad time to book your session, but in the KKP world, it’s best to get in sooner than later so I can help you prepare fully for our time together. Plus, there’s a lot that goes into preparing for the arrival of your little one, booking your Newborn Session can be an easy checkmark on your to-do list, just click here to reserve your session!

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This session was captured on Kodak Portra 400 film. It was scanned + processed by the amazing Goodman Film Lab.

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KKP is now booking for 2022.
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Studio Milestone Session on Film | Kyle Kelley Photography | Milwaukee Newborn + Family Photographer | Film Photography | Baby Photographer

If you haven’t heard it before, let me say it one more time — one of my absolute favorite sessions to photograph are the milestones but without a doubt, the sitting age (around 6-9 months)!! Why?? For plenty of reasons, but mostly because your little one is well out of the newborn state + a personality has evolved. Your baby is not only wide awake + ready to be in the spotlight, but your session will consist of lots of baby smiles + giggles. Secondly, there is a CHUNK of baby fat on your little one. Photographing all the baby rolls, hand dimples + chubby cheeks is just too good to be true! Lastly, at this age, your baby is sitting up, which means we can get a wide variety of images + most importantly, they're not quite on the run yet so the session is sweet, simple + QUICK!

This session with little Graham took place back in my Memphis Studio. Ever since the move to Wisconsin, I have been very focused on being a mom + homemaker, with limited work toward KKP, but as we settle into our house + continue to create our home it’s time to now put the focus on the KKP Studio. We are in the works of creating the space on the second floor of our home. It gets all the natural light even on a cloudy day + I have plans to share the process with you through the KKP Newsletter! You can join the KKP VIP email list here!! Until the new Studio is up + running, enjoy this little milestone session on film in the old Studio!!

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This session was captured on Kodak Portra 400 film. It was scanned + processed by the amazing Goodman Film Lab.

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KKP is now booking for 2022.
Reserve your session now!

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Baby Brother Makes FOUR | Newborn Session on Film | Kyle Kelley Photography | Milwaukee Newborn Photographer

It’s been a little bit since my last blog post because…well, summer + the BIG move!! This session was one of my final ones while living in Memphis + boy, was it a great one!! This family means a lot to me + my family, some of our dearest friends, so documenting yet another session for them was an absolute honor!! I’ll never stop saying this, but getting the chance to document families as they grow through the years is one of the greatest joys with this job!! It means the world when I’m chosen as the lucky photographer to capture such beautiful milestones.

It was three years ago that I was behind the camera photographing big brother’s newborn session!! Documenting their newest arrival took me back because this little guy was a copy + paste of big brother!!

If you’re interested in reserving your Newborn Session you can click here, otherwise, enjoy your scroll of this beautiful Newborn Session on film!

This session was captured on one of my final rolls of Fuji400H film, scanned + processed by the amazing Goodman Film Lab.

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3 Important Reasons to Schedule Your Newborn Session in the First 14 Days of Birth | Lifestyle Studio Newborn Session on Film | Kyle Kelley Photography | Newborn Photographer

Whether you’re booking a Newborn Session with KKP or another photographer, it’s always a good idea to schedule within the first 14 days of the baby’s birth. The true sweet spot is within day 5-10 + there’s plenty of reason behind this!

The age of your newborn can make a difference in your entire session experience. Don’t get me wrong, newborns can be photographed whenever, there truly is no bad time to photograph your babies! In fact, I always suggest booking the session or grabbing your camera whenever you can because you will never regret the photos you take!

All babies are different + this information isn’t to say that one baby will do better than the other, but the age of the baby will determine how the session will run! My goal is to create a flawless as possible experience for the families I work with + encouraging them to get their session done sooner than later is incredibly intentional. This is why…

1. Your baby is used to being curled up in the womb + will reenact this pose during your session.

Within the first few days of their life earthside, they are incredibly sleepy + curled up, mimicking the behavior of when they lived in momma’s belly. This will be beneficial + can make all the difference when it comes time to pose the baby. I enjoy guided posing during my sessions, which means it’s a natural position — a typical way a parent would actually hold their little one. I want to ensure that I not only provide a variety of photos in the end but tell a story through the images I take, so I will move from pose to pose which means the baby is being moved around a lot! When the baby is brand new they don’t realize they can stretch + move around as they do when they’re one to three months into their life! The more curled up + snuggling the newborn the better!

2. Baby acne.

Momma’s hormones can impact their baby more than you’d think, mostly speaking to the nursing ladies!! A new mother’s hormones are going to fluctuate a LOT postpartum + when nursing, their hormones can be passed through to their baby resulting in tiny baby acne. Not all nursing mommas + their littles will experience this, but it is a possibility. Of course, it goes away, but perhaps not in time for your baby’s photoshoot! Some photographers may not worry about this + that’s wonderful! But that’s a lot of photoshop touch-ups for your photographer, which may result in longer turnaround times or additional costs for their time making edits!

3. Sleep. They will sleep for longer stretches, which is beneficial for a number of reasons.

They aren’t on a schedule yet. Newborns that are only a few days new are likely to sleep longer. Have you ever noticed when you’re trying to feed your newborn + they just fall asleep on you? They haven’t created a “schedule” yet, so not only are they oblivious of a feeding schedule, but they are also unaware that a photographer is trying to pose them during a session! Additionally, nursing mommas should really schedule for a few days after their milk has fully come in! Sometimes it can take up to five days for a mother’s milk to increase in volume. Babies will eat more often during the first couple of days because they aren’t fully satisfied, so if you’re breastfeeding try to plan for anywhere between day 5-15 for your session! This same timeline should be considered for baby boys who may have had a circumcision. This procedure typically happens right after birth before leaving the hospital + it can take five to seven days for healing. To ensure your baby boy is as comfortable as possible during the session, plan for anything after day five.

They don’t mind being unclothed. One of my favorite things to photograph is the little details — toes, fingers, lips, lashes + nose. It’s easiest to do this when my tiny subject is wrapped in a swaddle to access these features. If they are knocked out real good, undoing the swaddle to get to their piggies won’t be a big deal!

They can be swaddled tight for the hands of a toddler. Oftentimes my sessions consist of an older sibling or two + in order to get those sweet shots, it’s easiest if your newborn is (ideally) in a deep sleep. We all know the chaos a toddler can bring, now hand them a newborn + it can get kind of tricky!! The more exhausted + sleepy the newborn, the easier it will be when incorporating the wiggly toddler who wants to only hold their baby sister/brother for a quick second!

After the two-week mark + older, your baby is more awake + personable. Most certainly not a bad thing, but if they are awake they are subject to a few poses because they know someone is messing around with them. Some parents aren’t concerned about getting the early, curly poses + that’s just fine! It just means that the photographer will focus more of the images on the baby being dressed + primarily being held by the parents.

All this to say, you’ll never go wrong documenting your family whenever you can, but! the sweet spot for getting your Newborn Session done is between day 5-15!! Now, time to get scrolling to view this beautiful Newborn Session on film!!

This session was captured on my 35mm film camera with Fuji400H film then processed + scanned by Goodman Film Lab.

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