It’s that time of year again….

But first.

Can I just take a moment to tell you how proud I am of all of us for making it through this 2020? Seriously, though… what a year!

So Christmas, that makes a lot of people happy. Myself included. I love the holidays. I’ve never minded that with my job, I have to start getting in the Christmas spirit in July in order to be able to plan everything and coordinate set designs, dates and details. Thankfully Tanya loves it as much as I do so we make the perfect team.

As you know, Awesome Santa is taking a break this year. Mrs. Clause is currently going through some scary stuff and Santa shaved his head in solidarity and he also trimmed back his beard. We were hoping to have Santa make a video letting his friends know that just because they won’t see him at Miss Lori’s studio this year, doesn’t mean he isn’t coming on Christmas Eve. This isn’t off the table yet, their daughter who is very tech savvy has offered to help us make this a possibility… so stay tuned for more info on that!!!

I want to keep this as short as possible, (we all know how I love to write) but cover all of our bases to reduce the amount of questions you may have and back in forth afterward. So bare with me, this blog has all of the info you need for any of my Christmas sessions I am offering this year.

Here are the options I am offering for the “2020 LG Holiday Season”. Down below will be more details on each.

– Kemmerer’s Tree Farm Minis  *An LG classic!

– Studio Christmas Minis  *Same minis as usual with a twist!

*New this year:

– “Oatmeal the Blue Truck” Minis

– “Festive Glam” Minis

– “By The Light” Minis

~ ~ Kemmerer’s Tree Farm Minis: 3266 Valley View Dr., Bath, PA 18014

Dates: Sat. 10/31, Sun. 11/1 & Sat. 11/7   *Rain date: Sun. 11/8

Time Frames: 8:00am-4:00pm

Price: $275 plus tax, $50 retainer due upon booking, balance paid via invoice prior to session

Includes: 8 digital images, $10 off coupon for a fresh cut tree at Kemmerer’s

BOOKING DATE: Tuesday, September 15th at 9:00pm *these will book via Google form and we will cut it off once we have enough session requests to fill our spots with a few extras for a waiting list. We will send a link to the form Tuesday in a follow up newsletter.

Kemmerer’s Christmas Tree farm and its owners have always been SO gracious to give us freedom to explore and set up on their farm every year. I usually bring tons of different sets, stuff to hold, a couch or chair and even a couple assistants to help make the day run smoothly. I have not fully decided on how many props I want to bring this year due to the amount of sanitizing I have to do between sessions but for sure there will be a couch or chair, the “stand” with corresponding props, blankets for cuddling in the trees or sitting on and a rustic glam set as well. Oatmeal will not be at the farm this year, but he will be in the backyard at the studio if you choose one of those. Every session at Kemmerer’s gets a $10 coupon for a fresh cut Christmas tree there during their season.

Over the years, my tree farm sessions have proven to be the most popular and sell out the fastest (second of course to Awesome Santa). We will be booking these first.

~ ~ “Studio Christmas” Minis: LG Photography Studio, 2354 Old Post Rd, Coplay, PA 18037

Dates: Nov. 9th-17th

Time Frames: Various times in the daytime & evening plus Saturday

Price: $165 (2 backdrops *minimum this year)/$195 (3 backdrops)/$225 (4 backdrops) plus tax

$50 retainer due upon booking, balance paid the day of the session (option to prepay if paying credit)

Includes: 7/10/15 digital images depending if you choose 2/3/4 backdrops

BOOKING DATE: Friday, September 18th at 9:00pm *These will book through our online scheduler as we usually do, the booking link is here: bit.ly/LGStudioBooking2020

Studio Christmas is just that. Christmas and winter themes at the studio. Lots of fun sets and props. This year I am offering 4 different backdrops (all new! no repeats from previous years) which are available on all of the dates, not separate rounds with different backdrops as you may remember from last year.

As you can see, all of the drops can be dressed up and really all of them can be dressed down if you wanted to go with pajamas or jeans and sweaters or a fun tee!! Two backdrops will be the minimum you can choose this year and if choosing all four drops, an extra 15 minutes will be allotted for your session. You can upgrade or downgrade from your initial choice at any time, even during the session, if your child is behaving better (or worse) than expected. Two of the backdrops will be family sized to allow for standing family photos and two will be smaller but can accommodate sitting family photos. These are the perfect photos to complete your Christmas cards! Due to the variations of the sets, I am allowing one outfit change this year.

~ ~ “Oatmeal the Blue Truck” Minis: Studio Backyard – 2354 Old Post Rd, Coplay, PA 18037

Dates: Sun. 10/4, Fri. 10/9 & Sat. 10/10  *Rain date: Sun. 10/11

Time Frames: 12:00pm-5:30pm

Price: $245 plus tax, $50 retainer due upon booking, balance paid via invoice prior to session

Includes: 8 digital images

BOOKING DATE: Wednesday, September 16th at 9:00pm *These will book the same night as the “Festive Glam” Minis through A GOOGLE FORM link which will accept names for “Oatmeal” requests RIGHT AT 9:00:00PM through this link: http://bit.ly/LGOatmeal2020

Oatmeal has proven to be a fan favorite ever since the first year we used him with Awesome Santa. It happened to snow the night before, so we had an amazing scene to host Santa in for Oatmeal’s debut.

This year imagine Oatmeal stacked with gifts and your family snuggled on the bed with blankets and pillows. Then we will shoot from the front where you’ll get a few shots of Oatmeal in the background with your family shot taking center stage. Now the magic… what if I can make it snow? I can! With our Oatmeal sessions this year, the snow machine will also be there helping me make some beautiful and fun photos for your holiday cards. These sessions are 15 minutes and will be booked every 30 minutes to allow for sanitizing props in between sessions.

~ ~ “Festive Glam” Minis: Studio Backyard – 2354 Old Post Rd, Coplay, PA 18037

Dates: Fri. 10/16 & Sat. 10/17   *Rain date: Sun. 10/18

Time Frames: 1:00pm-5:30pm

Price: $275 plus tax, $50 retainer due upon booking, balance paid via invoice prior to session

Includes: 8 digital images

BOOKING DATE: Wednesday, September 16th at 9:20pm *These will book the same night as the “Oatmeal The Blue Truck” Minis through A GOOGLE FORM link which will accept names for “Festive Glam” requests RIGHT AT 9:20:00PM through this link: http://bit.ly/LGFestiveGlam2020

This is new for me, but I am super excited about it. Simple. Elegant. Glamorous. More details will be revealed shortly, but imagine some brown fur, greens and golds with glitz. A mantle.

Perhaps a chair or couch. Fancy dresses for mom and the girlies and boys with suspenders and bowties or a nice sweater with dress slacks. In another set, an “altar” or frame with festive greenery and wintery flowers to be the backdrop of your family. A classic and timeless option that you can display all year long and a perfect reason to get fancy and wear that glitter skirt you can’t ever find a reason to put on. I have a feeling these will be my favorite and become a regular thing for me. I’ve attached an inspo board to give you an idea of what to expect.

~ ~ “By The Light” Minis: In YOUR home

Dates: very limited, scheduled per family

Time Frames: 5:30-8pm

Price:  $495

Includes: 20 digital images

BOOKING DATE: Wednesday, September 16th at 8:30pm- You can request one of these very limited sessions through this clickable google form link: http://bit.ly/LGByTheLightSessions2020

It will not be active for submissions until exactly 8:30pm on Wednesday 9/16. We will go down the list in the order your request was received and sessions will be booked in order of your request per availability. If you submit a request but for example, get an “Oatmeal” spot instead and choose to pass, that is totally fine.

Did you ever see a picture of kids snuggled by a Christmas tree with only the light of the tree lighting up their faces? That’s the vision for this one. PJ’s, milk and cookies and maybe reading a book by the tree. No posed “looking at the camera” shots unless it happens by accident. This is all about capturing the wonder and magic of Christmas through the eyes of the child. I will only be offering 5 of these sessions in early December once your tree is up and decorated. These will be booked after dark so be prepared to give little ones a later nap if needed that day.

Below are some frequently asked questions that we share every year for new friends.

Now to answer a few questions you might have:

Question– Do you have any new COVID-19 cleaning procedures?

Answer- I will be setting a timer so I don’t run over time and have enough time to spray and sanitize all props between sessions. I ask for your help to make sure your kids are only touching the props from the sets you choose to be photographed in. We also ask that all indoor studio sessions bring sanitized shoes to be photographed in. At the end of every mini day, the studio will be deep sanitized and the floor will be mopped.

Question- Can I bring my parents, aunt, uncle etc to the session for photos? How about to watch the session? 

Answer- All sessions are priced and booked per family/household, so please bring only your immediate family for photos. As much as we would love to have grandparents along to watch, with COVID-19 this year it’s best you don’t bring along anyone who won’t be photographed to reduce any added exposure. 

However, if only children are being photographed (no parents) and only one grownup is bringing them for the session, we are allowing for ONE HELPER to come along to help make things run smoothly (if needed). We know you’re all superhero parents but we also understand how hard it is to get multiple kids ready for pictures by yourself. We do ask anyone not being photographed must wear a mask the entire time while inside of the studio.

Question- Can I still book a cousins session for any of these holiday sessions?

Answer- These would have to be booked per request and best accommodating for the indoor Christmas Studio Minis. If this is something you are requesting, please send us an email so we can help you get set up for this.

Question- Can I book multiple types of sessions? 

Answer- Yes! As long as you are able to get a spot for any session you choose, it’s yours!

Question- Can we bring our pet dog, cat, fish, hamster, rat, snake, etc. to our session? 

Answer- Dogs are allowed at the tree farm or the studio backyard sessions, but not inside the studio due to allergies and cleaning.

Question- Is my retainer refundable or transferable to another session? 

Answer- Unfortunately no, not unless I have enough time to fill your spot.

Question- What if my child wakes up sick on a session day? 

Answer- Please cancel. We don’t want anyone getting sick, especially now. We will try our best to get you in another day if possible or for a different holiday session.

Question- Can we use gift certificates on holiday minis? 

Answer- Yes, they can be used on any holiday mini this year.

Question– How will you be posting/sharing the booking links this year? Will it be posted in one place or two and how will the link work?  

Answer- We will always post to Facebook, website and newsletter BUT we put the link to the deactivated google form for tree farm out the day of so you have it and you can just refresh from there. We actually did the same thing last year that we’re going to do this year. Everyone will have the link and if you click on it before it’s activated, you’ll just get an error message that says, “this form is no longer accepting responses.“ Everyone will have the link to the Google form prior to booking and all they have to do is keep refreshing when the clock strikes 9pm to the second.

DONATIONS AND PAYING IT FORWARD OPPORTUNITIES.

Every year during the holidays, I like to help people pay it forward and give back to the community. Since the last three years were such a great success and we made such a huge impact, we’ve chosen to work with The Volunteer Center of the Lehigh Valley again to make #HolidayHopeChests, which are needed now more than ever due to the pandemic. They’re wrapped shoe boxes filled with goodies and necessities for boys and girls ages 2-14. We pledged to donate 500 Holiday Hope Chest boxes again this year, but I definitely need your help.  Each one you make, you have the chance at a $500 LG GIFT CERTIFICATE! We will be collecting these boxes at several drop off spots in the Lehigh Valley to make it more convenient for you. To make sure we have them split them evenly for the children receiving them, we have created a sign up for you to pledge how many boxes and the age group/gender you will be making them for. You may sign up for multiple boxes!!!! We know that with all of us coming together, we can reach or even exceed our goal of 500 boxes this year. Below is the link to pledge/sign up for boxes you wish to donate this year and it is active now, so sign up before your preferred ages are filled!

Holiday Hope Chests 2020 Sign Up Link

I’m happy to report, we will continue to collect PB&J from now until forever! For every pair of peanut butter (or other types of nut butter) and jelly you bring to the studio, you will be entered into a drawing for a $25 gift card. I’ll do the drawing once a month during the busy season and once every other month during the winter months. This is an easy way to give back to local food banks in our area.

Link to Pay-It-Forward LG STYLE facebook group to stay in the loop with our giving back opportunities! 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/payitforwardlgstyle/

So that’s it for Christmas this year! I hope you’re as excited as I am!

Lastly, I have a new business Instagram @TheLGphoto !!!! For lots of my #LGBehindTheScenes pics and sneak peeks as I dive into this busy Christmas season… click the follow button. @logenerose and @theLGphoto are now active so be sure to tag along!

I know this is a lot of info so please let us know if you have questions. I’m thankful for each of you and I am soooooo excited to see you!

Xo Lg