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My dear Leska,

I remember walking into your hospital room in Ukraine like it was yesterday. You were fourteen years old then. I had no idea what to expect walking into that room. Besides wondering what condition you were in, my heart raced with insecurity as I wondered if you would even like me, let alone accept me. I came into your life that day with a lot of love, but even more so, with a lot of ignorance. You see, before I ever even met you, I had a long conversation with God about my possible future, a future that possibly included you. I sat in my room one lonely, painful night. Vitaliy had just rushed to Ukraine to handle the funeral plans of your parents and Daniel. I was scared, alone, and completely confused. I had no idea how he was doing. I had no idea when I’d see him again. I had  no idea what my future would look like. I laid in my bed in the darkness and cried out to God. At the end of that conversation, I told Him that I would do anything He wanted me to do. Anything. Even take care of you. I meant it, with all of my heart.

But I was young. I still am young! I was completely ignorant of the human heart and the immense pain that it can hold. I figured that I was a teenager once; I could do this. But what I didn’t weigh into the equation was what a teenager’s heart and mind and soul would be like after all three have been shattered by grief. I was ill-equipped and failed miserably. I can here my loved ones now as I write this, “You’re too hard on yourself!” In reality, I agree. I am too hard on myself so let me rephrase. Though there were many things I failed at and many things I learned from, there was one thing I fought for through it all — to never stop loving you. Even though there were many times that I’m sure you didn’t feel it, I never ever stopped loving you. And you can rest assured, I never will.

You see, the thing is, most people believe if you’re in God’s will then things should be going well. Things should be easy-peasy, right? As difficult as things have been for our relationship, I never ever doubted that I had made a mistake. Never! I knew that this was God’s will for my life — you were God’s will for my life. There were many people who didn’t trust us taking care of you and many people who suggested you live with them. But I fought against it all because I knew that to let go of you would mean giving up on my commitment to God.

I have no idea what your future holds, but I’m excited to see where God takes you. No matter where you are or what you are doing, please always know that you are not alone. You have a God who is with you every step of the way, and if you look, you will see Him. But also know that Vitaliy and I will always be there. When we made the commitment to God to take care of you, we meant it for life.

Leska, you are loved. Hold on tight to that and never let it go.

~Candace

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We started things off close to home. There is a little walkway nearby that has the most beautiful light. I new we had to photograph there before we went anywhere else. And…I was right!

We didn’t stay there long because Leska wanted an urban feel to her pictures so we made our way to San Francisco. I love what this picture speaks. She is walking away from the narrow road (high school) and toward a wide open future. And check out that confidence! I pity the fool that steps in her way.

One of my favorites.

Smokin’!

Leska really trusted us to create beautiful senior pictures of her. Like I mentioned when I showed you the sneak peek, she really went out of her comfort zone to create these images and it really paid off. I was so proud of her because she came willing and ready.

Leska, you are fierce!

This is one of our favorites.

One of Vitaliy’s favorites.

Leska is one busy high school senior totally dedicated to her school work so we were late planning her pictures. Short on time, I quickly made an appointment at MAC near our home. Edgar Magana did Leska’s makeup and he did a phenomenal job. He is not only skilled at what he does, but he is a pleasure to work with.

This is how I picture Leska looking at guys in college. The dude approaches her with some pickup line. Her response, “Really? That’s really what you just walked up to me to say? Please come back and try again.”

Leska’s hair was done by the amazing Stephanie at Trio Salon in Burlingame. Leska was so thrilled with how it turned out and she really enjoyed Stephanie’s company. We loved it too!

Oh, back to the boys in college. This is how I told Leska she’s suppose to check out boys in college — interested but cautious.

She just loved at my suggestions.

This is exactly how I want to picture Leska in college. I will hold this moment in my mind forever. Learning, relaxed, and enjoying life!

]]> http://www.prokopetsstudio.com/blog/san-francisco-senior-portrait-leska/feed/ 33 http://www.prokopetsstudio.com/blog/bendz-family-portait-the-slideshow/ http://www.prokopetsstudio.com/blog/bendz-family-portait-the-slideshow/#comments Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:16:49 +0000 Vitaliy http://www.prokopetsstudio.com/blog/?p=3134 Bob and Holly: You have such a great family. Thank you for giving me the pleasure of photographing the sweet moments shared between the three of you. Here is your slideshow; I hope you enjoy it!

~Vitaliy

We had a blast from the minute we started all the way to washing the sand off of our feet. This family is just incredible! Watching Bob and Maggie-Faye be silly together brought smiles to my heart. And watching Maggie-Faye kiss her mommy’s belly that holds her soon-to-be sibling was the icing on the cake. Holly and Bob radiate with laughter and kindness that makes them so much fun to be around. I could go on and on about the dynamics of this sweet family but I will allow the pictures to display their wonderful personalities.

Holly, thank you for being such an inspiration to so many. The way that you fight for you daughter is remarkable. But I love that your heart is so big that you had to reach out and fight for others too. You didn’t let the bad news get you down, but you took the bad news and are doing something great with it. Bob, thank you for all of the laughs! I can see why the two women in your life always have smiles on their faces. You truly made this session a blast. Maggie-Faye, thank you for your imagination. Watching you talk to the pigeon to help her find her mommy was the cutest thing ever. I hope you never lose that imagination as you grow up. We just love the three of you and can’t wait to meet the one on the way!

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Please meet the lovable Maggie-Faye. She’s gotta be one of the most stylish kids I know. That dress, those bangs, and those rockin’ blue eyes. Oh, and how could I leave out the beautiful porcelain like skin?

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There isn’t a picture from the day that better represents the Bendz family than this one. I just love it!

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Oh, how I love this moment!

I can only imagine what is coming out of her mouth. This kid has the most unbelievable vocabulary for her age, combined with personality. Who knows what is going on here, but I love it!

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The baby started to kick as we took these images and it all brought Holly to tears. She looked at me and said that she’d remember this moment forever. That is exactly what we want for every one of our clients so to hear it come straight from Holly was the best way we could end the session. Holly, you are absolutely beautiful!

Happy Thursday!

To see what an experience this session was for Vitaliy and I, read the sneak peek post I wrote here. I can’t explain it any better than I already have. It was fabulous!

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Do you remember the adorable little Adrienne? She made her first appearance here.

One of my favorites from the day. It’s so fairy tale-ish. And I love fairy tales…especially when they involve a princess.

I can only imagine Adrienne growing up and cherishing this picture of she and her father.

You all know that our favorite part of a family portrait session is photographing the husband and wife. This part of the session with Dan and Shannon was amazing because they were so in the moment with each other. And it was great to capture it all!

Shannon’s eyes say it all.

My favorite of Shannon.

Vitaliy’s favorite.

There were many reasons why the evening was special, but there was one aspect in particular that truly spoke to me – it was Shannon. Shannon came to the session absolutely confident about what she wanted to get out of these pictures. And no, I don’t mean she came with a list of every picture she wanted to get. It had nothing to do with the external appearance, but it had everything to do with Shannon’s mindset. Leading up to the session, I shared some of my visions for this session with Shannon. One that was very important to me was for our focus to be on Shannon – there is a bond like no other between a mother and the baby in her womb and I wanted to make sure we captured that. I also wanted Shannon to have this time to shine. Like I’ve said many times, there aren’t many things more beautiful than a pregnant woman. However, I did imagine this could be hard for Shannon because it seems a lot of mothers are not comfortable having the attention on themselves.

But Shannon completely exceeded my expectations. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a woman so confident in her own skin, and yet humble. I can see that her calm, easy going spirit sets the tone for her own family and encourages them to go through life with ease. These are two things that I strive for in my own life. Seeing these qualities and getting to experience them with Shannon, left me with a peace and a hope to keep moving towards this personal goal in my life. Thank you, Shannon.

We have a few other posts coming before we share the rest of the images from this session, but here is a sneak peek from last night. I am confident you will see the qualities I spoke of in this image.

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You may also view the slideshow on its own here.

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Megan and Brad, we are honored to call you our friends. You both are so welcoming and full of life; we love your positive outlook. Thank you for giving us the privilege of documenting this special time in your lives. We are really looking forward to photographing Charlotte!

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Shouldn’t this be on the cover of GQ?

I love shots like this where it looks like we’re peeking in on their little secret moment.

This is a shot that I overlooked because there were so many others that were my favs. But I have fallen in love with this one for so many reasons.

Can you imagine what her daughter looks like? Come back and you’ll get to see!

This is true Brad and Megan.

If you touch the screen, it just might sizzle.

Too many favorites!!

This totally makes me want to sing U2’s new song, “Get on Your Boots!”

These are exactly those curves I was mentioning. Probably my favorite shot of the day.

We had an absolute blast at this photo session. This was our first newborn portrait session and I’m not sure I ever laughed so hard taking photographs as I did with this little one. As I went through the pictures and narrowed down my favorites, I couldn’t help but imagine a bubble above Carli’s head with various captions in them. Check out a couple of them below. Enjoy!

Heather and Brian — thank you so much for giving us the honor of documenting the new addition to your family. Carli is absolutely beautiful and I know the Lord has heard your prayers and is watching over this little one. We can’t wait to see her grow up into a little girl. We love you — all three of you!

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This is Carli’s debut Karaoke event. She is totally rocking out!

“Hey, Mr. Photographer, can you please give me and my mom some privacy here?”

Heather and Brian bought a gallery wrap of this picture and it is AMAZING! I can’t wait to see it hanging in their home.

You can see Heather’s maternity photos here and the awesome slideshow is located here.

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Check out the slideshow of Brian and Heather. You will find a plethora of images that were not posted previously. So sit back, turn on your speakers, and enjoy the show! You can always view it in a separate window for your convenience here.

~Vitaliy