The History of The Candid Camera

Anyone who knows Sue and I know that we are major cheapskates, although we both have our own ways of saving money. Sue loves to coupon, discount shop, and buy in bulk, while I love to shop thrift stores, garage sales, and cut my own hair!  Some fun information in case you didn't already know! One of the major reasons we decided to start The Candid Camera was a disappointment with what is available out there in the local photography industry. A few years ago, John and I took our son to JC Pennys. We had a coupon! Unfortunately, the shoot went all wrong.  We had to wait in line.  Liam was tearful and red-faced.  I felt pressure to buy some discounted pictures, only to end up with $100 of pictures that I shared with NO ONE! They were awful. This isn't to knock JC Pennys. They have a great studio and great equipment. Our son was just not cut out for a scary studio shoot. On the other end of the spectrum is lovely photography where the photographer sets a high price, and I get to choose, for additional costs, prints that she can provide for me. No disc, no photo ownership. High expense, but beautiful, mostly posed pictures. Sue and I are middle class people. I, for one am a social worker and my husband, a teacher. Being the cheapskate that I am, there is no way on earth I am going to plop down 300 bucks on pictures. And I really, truly, value the art of great photography! There will always be a market for that type of photography, and that is fabulous!  I admire it! Some of those pictures are masterpieces!   But for me, and I KNOW for Sue, emotionally, we just can't imagine plopping down that kind of cash, for pictures! Here at The Candid Camera, our focus is to get OUT of the traditional studio and away from high cost photography. After all, no one lives in a studio. We live in real life, and real life is where we want to capture those special moments, whether it's at your house, at the park, or the playground. We believe that YOU are the owner of your pictures. Great photography should be affordable for EVERYONE. While we do posed shots, (you have to sometimes) we really enjoy those candid moments. Yes, I will run around you like a goof trying to capture that special glance, or smirk, or get the right lighting. Yes, it will be fun. So give us a try. Check us out. Get to know our personalities and our style here on our blog. And then lets take some pictures!

---Heather

The "V" family...

Another winter photo shoot!  During the shoot we were all freezing and it was pretty windy this day, but as you can see in the pictures none of that is captured.  The only thing we capture is the true beauty of this family and the love that they all share. 

 Happy Valentine's Day!

Look at those BLUE eyes!  Love them!

Winter Photo Shoot

We hear it time and time again, "I want to wait until the spring or fall to get our family photos taken", "it's too cold outside to get our pictures taken".  Well, I want to challenge you to take a look at these photos and tell me you think it looks too cold....

There is beauty in every season and we at The Candid Camera are determined to make YOUR photo shoot memorable.  What wonderful moments we captured and the memories on this winter day will last forever...

Thanks for the warm smiles!

Happy Birthday!

The first birthdays of your children are always exciting and fun (with a hint of sadness as we realize they are growing...); so it's important to grasp this developmental milestone before you blink and realize that they are toddlers, teenagers, ADULTS!

Personalities...

For those of you that know us personally, or outside of "The Candid Camera", you know that Heather and I are nearly opposite in our thinking styles. Heather is rather liberal, I run pretty much down the middle. Heather is boisterous outspoken, I am a bit more reserved in my thoughts.  Heather has a giggle, I have a laugh chortle that you can hear from at least 2 blocks away!

We each have different styles/interests in art -- which is actually a HUGE benefit to our clients.  Heather's gift is using her camera to capture those candid moments in life that you wish to cherish. She also likes to put an 'artsy' texture to the pictures she edits; whereas I put a softer glow to the pictures -- although I am learning to put an 'edge' to the pictures....it's a bit outside of my comfort zone.

Among all these differences, we have one thing in common -- to capture life's memories to be enjoyed forever!

We are ready and excited to capture your moments....

---Sue

The "C" family...

Who would have thought that getting out there in the white snow would produce such AWESOME photos!  We were surprised that despite the 'whiteness' of the earth....we were able to capture some beautiful color and texture.

The "M" family

Before the Christmas holiday, we had the opportunity to shoot a neighbor family -- some of our favorite shots and candid moments are captured here.  A picture lasts a liftime...

The "G" family...

A brisk January afternoon, however rather warm for the Chicagoland area.  Still no snow on the ground, which we'd LOVE to have a white dusting for some great winter photo shoots, but we will take what we get right now.

These are some BEAUTIFUL shots of a local family very near and dear to my heart.  The girls were so photo genic, it wasn't hard to get some great photos!

Our New Adventure...

So, here is where it begins...

What do you get with two crazy gals with a passion for art, photography and a pinch of insanity? You get The Candid Camera!  We are very excited to share our  manic personalities passion with you as well.  Come along with us for the ride as we travel on this journey together...