Help me pick my Christmas Card picture

[vikivoly]

I've narrowed it down to 3 different poses. That was a task in of itself! Which one should I choose to send as a wallet in Christmas Cards.

This is my take on each.

#1 Traditional shot - shows off her dress, our tree and house a bit.

#2 Elegant shot - this looks the most like her, but her hair is a little messy (of course that may be why it looks like her!), a little different than normal

#3 Cutesy shot - cute, doesn't show her dress or our tree much, but who can resist a babe in a santa hat!

#4 This is her 1 yr old picture. I'm not using it for Christmas, but thought she looked so cute I just had to show it off!


http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/1596.jpg


http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/1599.jpg


http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/1595.jpg


http://www.windsorpeak.com/dc/user_files/1598.jpg


EDITED TO UPLOAD CORRECT PICTURES

[NEVE and TRISTAN]

She is beautiful!!!! Just gorgeous!!!...and you do a marvelous job!!! You of course can not go bad with any but I like #2 most for cards...I feel like you see her little spirit in that one...but they are all wonderful!!!


Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

[egoldber]

My vote is for #2 and then #1. They are all beautiful, but I like her expression in those two the best.

[mamahill]

Oh my gosh - she's gorgeous! I love #2, but those big eyes in #3 had me giggle out loud. You can't go wrong with any of them.

[redhookmom]

If I could choose only one to put on my fridge it would be #3. I would smile everytime I saw it.

Jessica

[KMommie]

She's just too cute!! For the card, I think I would choose #2. I agree, you can't go wrong with any of them, they are all great!

Jeannie
mommy to Kiki 4/18/03

[jojo2324]

#2, #2!!! Oh my goodness, what great photos!

Urg, I'm so irritated my son can't sit still, or smile, or even LOOK in the direction of a camera!

[starrynight]

I like 2 best for cards. They are all beautiful shots, she is so pretty :).

[mharling]

Pressure.... pressure.... I can't decide!!! Hmm... I'm going to say #1 followed VERY closely by #2.

Mary & Lane 4/6/03
http://www.shutterfly.com/osnt.jsp?i=67b0de21b356c32425b2 - Halloween Pics!

[MommytoDylan]

I love #2 for the card! She is beautiful! My favorite of all the pictures is #4. It is just the sweetest picture!

Meredith

[heidi_timms]

Your pictures are so beautiful! I LOVE LOVE LOVE #4, but that's not one of the choices, right?! I vote for #2 and then #1 as a close second.
~Heidi
Mom to Kailey Ashlin
4/27/03

[bluej]

She's a doll! My vote is for #2!

[amp]

Vicky - She is precious and you couldn't go wrong with any of them, but I think I'd go with #2. She just looks like someone I want to pick up and snuggle after seeing her standing there!

[khakismom]

Vicki, she is beautiful! All these pictures are wonderful. I had a hard time deciding, but *love* her impish little smile in #2! Soooo cute!! :)

[aliceinwonderland]

What an ADORABLE baby girl, and GREAT pictures.

i asolutely love #2, though...there's just something about it...

[calebsmama03]

#2 for sure!!
Lynne
Mommy to Caleb 3/3/03

[celfsh]

All the pics are absolutely GORGEOUS, but...if I had to choose one it would be #4. I gasped when I saw it! I like that the background is simple, making the picture all about HER. What a cutie!

Thanks for sharing!

ETA: Duh! Guess it would help to read your whole post, huh? Well, if #4 is not an option, then I would choose #3. Good luck with your decision!

celeste
mom to olivia 9/25/02

[etwahl]

oh i LOVE them all, but number 2 is a great christmas shot. #4 is AWESOME. what kind of chair is that? i love it!!! seems like a perfect "little girl's" chair. you are a great photographer :) they are so beautiful. what a little cutie she is.

on a side note, what brand and kind are those shoes she's wearing? they are adorable. like little robeez mary janes :) so cute!

Tammy,
Mom to Lauren Genevieve
03/12/2003
www.evantammy.com

[nigele]

Vicki,

First of all - what a doll!!!! I love all the pics but #2 is my favorite. She is just so sweet!

[pamela mom of 3]

Hmm well first she is such a doll and the dress is so lovely ;)


But if it were me :D i'd vote for #2

GL Deciding you have a tough choice ahead

http://pages.ivillage.com/cl-pamelamomof3

[Tracey]

She is just precious! The second picture gets my vote...very cute.

[Melanie]

Those are wonderful photos and she's such a cutie. I like #2 or #3 the best, even though #1 is great, too! How will you choose? They're all cute!

Also, what kind of camera did you use? Those came out wonderful!

[gravymommy3]

Vicki,

Tough call on this one. What kind of card are you doing? Is it a slimline or are you inserting a pic into a card or just including a pic in the card? That would influence my choice a bit. I would use #3 for a pic inserted into a card or included in a card. I would use #2 for a slimline (extreme close ups look goofy to me on slimlines.) I like her smile better on #2 but I like seeing more of her and less "props" - not counting the Santa hat - on #3. If she were looking at the camera on #1 that would be my first choice. They are all very very nice. #4 is just screaming at me, saying "Painter, Painter." Can you hear it??? BTW, what do you capture with?

[partyof5]

I'm no help because I like all of them :-) They're all beautiful. Great lighting too! Did you use a lighting kit? I'm just a hobby photographer and I want to get a simple lighting kit but I'm clueless on what to get. Any tips?

If I had to choose it would have to be #1, then #2, then #3. My fave is the last shot. It makes me want to tickle her chubby feet, lol. I always have a hard time choosing and DH never likes the pic that I like so we compromise. We send half the Christmas cards with the picture he likes and half with the picture that I like. Don't forget to tell us which one you chose.


~Cindy mommy to...
Isabella (11/1999)
Sophia (10/2001)
Ethan (4/2003)

[Dcclerk]

I absolutely adore #2. I thoroughly enjoy the ones that show off a babe's personality, and that one definitely does. It will look great.

The only other thought that I might have is if you want to use #4, and have some picture software, you might want to turn it to black & white or sepia and then color in her sweater with a light red or green to make it more Christmas-y. As long as you have a relatively simple color scheme, it can turn out very nice, and is a little more unusual.

[vpalmer]

I love #4. She is so adorable and I love the Gymboree outfit.

For your Christmas card I like #2. It is a great picture and it looks like it captures her personality. And I can empathize with the messy hair comment, Eva has eternal bed head.

BTW, did you get my e-mail last week? My e-mail can be unpredictable! :o

Veronica
Mom to Eva
Born on 6-12-03

[Melanie]

ooh...you're right...I can actually see #3 gorgeous in a sepia, perhaps on the wall at your home. What a photogenic little babe you have there!

[pritchettzoo]

Another vote for #2. But #4 is too, too precious! I'd keep that out year-round if I got it for a card photo.

Anna
Mama to Gracie (9/16/03)

[houseof3boys]

I love them all!!! They really are great.

If my arm was being twisted though.....I choose #2 since it shows what a big girl she is standing up. :)

[vikivoly]

Thanks for all of the replies and compliments! Due to the overwhelming majority, I went with #2. It does show her personality the best.

A few of you asked about the camera, lighting, etc.. I shot all of the pictures with a Pentax 645N. It's a medium format camera. The 3 Christmas pics were shot using just an on-camera flash. I bounced the flash so the lighting wouldn't be so harsh. Picture #4 was shot with natural window light and a reflector. This is how I prefer to shoot portraits.

My favorite by far is #4 - actually I have a slew of them from this shoot that turned out nice. I prefer the K.I.S.S. method for portraits. But, I'm giving larger pictures from the "white" shoot to immediate family, so I figured I would send out wallets from the Christmas shoot.

Tammy,

The chair is made by Kidsline. It was her birthday gift from us. The shoes are from Baby Gap.


Veronica,

I got your email. DD has been sick, so I just sent you one today.


If I'm rambling please forgive me, I should have been in bed 5 hours ago.

Good Night!