First Moments Photography: Portraits, Sessions and Classes to Leave You Speechless

If you've visited my About Me page at all in the past few years, you've had the pleasure of seeing these three photographs to help introduce you to my awesome family.

Adorable, right? But... yes, I'll be honest, they're a bit outdated.

I mean, look at how teeny tiny Little Sister B is! And Big Sister E has lost most of those chubby cheeks as she has grown and slimmed into a tween. But can I help it that these, and the rest of the set that they came from, are probably my most favorite photos ever?

But these incredible photographs are only the tip of the iceberg for what is available from (and why I would wholeheartedly recommend) First Moments Photography to anyone in Madison, WI or its surrounding areas.

An artist in every definition of the word, Danielle of First Moments Photography offers the full range of customized options for couples, families and newborn babies in order to craft your perfect treasured memories.

Whether you prefer more posed, staged photos that portray classic, timeless images or more candid, lifestyle photos that capture the personalities and feelings of your family right in the moment, Danielle has the ability to make it happen. While just about anyone can pick up a camera and point it in the right direction, it is no secret that there is a tremendous amount of skill and talent needed for the results to turn into a memory that you want to display for a lifetime.

Images © First Moments Photography, please visit FirstMomentsPhoto.com for many more examples of Danielle's gorgeous work!

If you think that you could head to a generic chain photography store or simply pick any photographer from a list on the internet and find someone who is warm, kind, gentle, good with children, and has a million tricks up her sleeve to put the entire family at ease, then I urge you to reconsider. My family had photos taken once from a store visit and, while they turned out just fine, there's no comparison to the images that we received from First Moments Photography.

But Danielle's expertise extends beyond what she is able to do when she picks up her own camera, she also has a variety of options for those of us who want to learn or extend our knowledge as to how to best use our own DSLR cameras.

Considering that I have owned my Canon DSLR for quite a few months now but have never had the slightest clue as to how to do much more than turn it on to the Automatic setting, I couldn't have been more excited to check out Danielle's Beginner DSLR Camera Class.

I'll admit that, upon seeing that this DSLR & Beyond class is six hours long, I was immediately skeptical that it would end up a bit long and boring. How could it not?

However, from the moment the class began, introductions were made, and the first slide of the presentation was shown, I was... mesmerized.

Danielle managed to take terms like aperture, f-stop, composition, metering, ISO, and more and not only break them down so that complete newbies like me would know what they meant, but so that I could actually understand them. And this was far from a lecture-type presentation where the instructor stands up in front and drones on, as Danielle instead uses her outline as a guide but takes her cues from the class as to where to focus more or less time.

Think you're someone who doesn't speak up or is too self-conscious to ask questions? I loved the way that Danielle made everyone there feel 100% comfortable and that there wasn't a single reason to feel embarrassed! No one is born knowing all of the ins and outs of photography, so why not ask for clarification from an expert who is more than willing to help explain and guide you?

Whether we stayed inside to talk, discuss and practice, practice, practice...

...or we ventured out into the beautiful spring weather of downtown Madison to see how the natural light affected the settings we were using for our photos, the day was filled with one learning experience after the next.

For instance, in theory I understood how changing the ISO setting on my camera (and therefore letting more or less light into the photograph) would have a difference on the resulting picture, but it took until I snapped a few photos of the capitol building before the light bulb in my brain went off and I knew I really got it!

By the time the class ended, I realized not only that it flew by much faster than I had expected, but that I was a bit sad to say good-bye. I felt as though I had spent the day with friends (as opposed to strangers who happened to be in the same class) and Danielle had truly found the right mix of practicality, information, customization, personality and more to make the experience wonderful!

If you are anywhere in the Madison area and want to take your photography skills to the next level (or, like me, want to gain any skills at all), look no further than First Moments Photography. Danielle offers classes throughout the winter months for a variety of levels, so you can be sure that you'll find one suitable just for you.

While this was my first time learning about my DSLR, one of the other attendees had taken previous photography classes and confirmed my suspicions that Danielle's was FAR superior. Why sit in a back room of a photo studio and listen to someone read off facts and definitions when you can have individualized, personalized attention from an expert that is there to listen and teach at a one-on-one level (not to mention that after the class ends she is still fully accessible and willing to answer any emails or questions that you may have)?

Are you ready to take your photography to the next level or finally figure out what all of those settings and dials on your camera really mean? Then you absolutely must visit FirstMomentsPhoto.com to find out much more about all that Danielle has to offer and be sure to connect with her on Facebook and her blog, where you can find announcements about all of her class offerings, promotions, and more.

(Note: if you're looking to take DSLR & Beyond and have an amazing time like I did, make sure you head over and register soon, as the LAST CHANCE to take this class for 2015 is April 11th. Don't miss it!)

A big thank you to Danielle of First Moments Photography for providing me entrance to her DSLR & Beyond class, however, all thoughts and opinions expressed here and completely honest and my own.