J. Bollen PhotographyFamily | The Hoskins
Posted on October 5, 2017
Meet the Hoskins! These sweet people are not only dear friends, but some of my biggest supporters. It’s really ridiculous that this is the first time you’re seeing their faces here, considering I’ve done birth, newborn, and first year sessions for them! I’m so thankful they have trusted me to record so many family milestones over the last couple of years!
What made this session extra fun is that the photos had an extra special purpose. Janie had recently been asked to write for DFW Child and needed an updated family portrait to submit with the piece. Super exciting, right? Well, it finally published and you can read it here! Get ready to be inspired by this Super Mom… Janie is a rockstar who knows how to make the most of her days!
Thank you, Hoskins family, for trusting me once again to capture your sweet love for one other on camera. I pray you treasure these little snapshots of this fleeting season for years and years to come!
4 Reasons Why You Should Finally Book Family Photos
Posted on September 1, 2016
“I have no idea what we would wear…”
“Maybe after I lose a little weight…”
“My husband hates having his photo taken…”
I’ve heard these and a hundred other excuses for procrastinating family photos. From friends? clients? No, actually. From my own head! Photography is my personal passion and I still have trouble corralling my crew into a session. So, why make 2016 the year you finally book family photos? It’s about so much more than a holiday card. Let me give you a few reasons…
- The days are long, but the years are short. Sure, it may take an entire bag of skittles to keep your preschooler smiling. Your teenagers may be embarrassed about their braces. The thought of getting everyone clean and dressed exhausts you. But the truth is, you never now what another year will bring. Your three-nager will be a teenager faster than you can sweep the cheerios and figure out Snapchat. Your high school freshman will be a college freshman before you can sing a fight song. So much changes in a year. Do your future self a favor and document this season before it’s gone. The days are long, but the effort is worth it.
- Your children think you’re beautiful. We are so good at taking photos of our kids. If you don’t have pro photos, you probably have a smart phone full of them right now. Those are so important and wonderful, but let me ask you a question – are you in any of them? You should be. Think of it from your own perspective as a child. What if you didn’t have any old photos of your parents? of you with your parents? Don’t do that to your kids. Sure, you and your husband may not look exactly like your wedding photos, but your children think you are beautiful exactly as you are, this very moment. Think of it as a gift to your adult children and get in front of the camera. I promise you they’ll be so thankful you did.
- Your future children-in-law will thank you. What’s almost better than looking at my family’s photos? Looking at my husband’s. Think about it, this person is my best friend in the world. We know each other better than anyone, and yet there are decades of his life I know nothing about. I never got to see him in his awkward braces and no beard stage (sorry, Sugar…). I never knew his baby brother with the orangutan hair (sorry, David…). I didn’t get to go to his sister’s wedding or meet his grandparents. The family photos they have are the closest I get to sharing in those memories. I know it’s hard to think about your babies getting married. But the day is coming when they bring home “The One” and the only thing better than joking about your son’s bleached tip hair phase is having family photos to prove it.
- They make great gifts. On a lighter note, we are fast approaching the holiday season and you know what that means. Gift shopping. Lucky for you, I think I can speak for all the mom’s and grandma’s out there when I say they would love a new photo of your sweet family to show off. If you won’t do it for yourself, do it for them. They have lived long enough to appreciate the true value of a family photo. It’s priceless.
Afraid your husband still won’t cooperate? Well, they can be bribed, too. (Wink.) Now that you’re convinced to finally book that session, let’s chat about how to make it as stress free as possible. Yes, you can actually enjoy family photos. We’ll save that for the next post!
I’d love to hear from you! What motivates you to take family photos?
NEWBORN | Reed
Posted on August 8, 2016
As soon as I walked through the door, I knew it was going to be a great session! It was a bright, beautiful day, and the sun streamed in through the windows of a home that I swear Joanna Gaines just left. Kate and Jeff were at ease and excited to shoot. And baby Reed! Well, let’s just say he was a perfect little bundle of sleeping sweetness. Be still, my camera-holdin’ heart! The Mannings made this newborn session easy on me from the get-go.
As you can see, I typically hold newborn sessions in baby’s home, so that everyone is more comfortable and the myriad of things babies tend to require are all within arms reach. We stick close to windows and doors in order to maximize the natural light available, and we take our time. I’m very passionate about using a lifestyle approach when shooting newborns. While announcement-worthy photos of baby are the highest priority, I genuinely try to capture the story of the entire season in the final gallery, as well. The parents, the nursery, the home, the knickknacks, and most importantly – the moments. The snuggles, smiles and silly faces that make the exhausting newborn period so incredibly precious.
Lucky for me, all of that and more were readily available during baby Reed’s session, and I was positively giddy to deliver Kate and Jeff their images! Huge thanks to the Mannings for letting me invade your home, move half of your furniture, and snuggle your precious baby boy. I pray God blesses your family and your ministry immensely!
FAMILY | The Morgans
Posted on August 6, 2016
2 years and a few days ago, we moved to Texas. We knew no one, and we prayed and prayed for community. Oh, how God answered that prayer! Within weeks, we found a new church home and just a few months later, He blessed us with an amazing small group. As I’m sure you’ve guessed, the Morgans were part of that group from the beginning, and quickly became some of our dearest friends! (In fact, as I post this, Evie is crawling all over me saying “I want ‘Wylan’!! I want Channlerrrr!! I wanna have them??” She’s a big, big fan.)
We had a blast watching the kids run around Trinity Park for their fall family session. Talking with Kristine before the session, it was really important to her that we capture Rylan and Chandler in moments that represented this stage in their little lives. So, to catch them in their element, she brought along Rylan’s favorite trucks and Chandler’s favorite music. They dug, danced, jumped and climbed, and it was perfect!
I highly recommend this for family sessions with young children! Not only will they enjoy their time in front of the camera more, you’ll capture more memories than just their sweet smiles. (I guarantee it will help you relax as well. I’m looking at you, Moms!!)
Before Evie completely nosedives onto my keyboard, thank you, Morgan family, for letting me chase you around the park! We love you!
NEWBORN | HADDIE LYNN
Posted on October 1, 2015
There aren’t many guarantees in parenting, but there is one thing most will agree on – our sweet babies grow so fast. Would you believe this is the same sweet baby girl from the beautiful birth I gushed about here? My dear friends Ryan and Courtney invited me back a few days after getting home and settled with their precious Haddie Lynn. We had the best time just loving on her and capturing all the tiny things that make her and this fleeting season so special.
…And can we just talk about this nursery? Can we? Because it’s perfect. Enjoy!
BIRTH | Childress Family
Posted on September 1, 2015
A few weeks ago, I was talking with someone at church about photography. I told them one of the reasons I love what I do is because it’s sort of like having a super power – I get to freeze time. Never has that felt more rewarding than with this session, my first birth.
Like so many of my “clients”, Courtney and Ryan are so much more than people who just want me to take their picture. They are dear, precious friends the Lord has divinely blessed us with during this wonderful chapter in our lives. All of us are Fort Worth transplants – our families live at least a day’s travel away – so when our church brought us together earlier this year, we adopted each other pretty quickly. They are our family-away-from-family and have blessed us beyond measure. As you can imagine, I was beyond thrilled when they invited me to be a part of their first child’s birth – a daughter, Haddie Lynn.
When you meet the Childress’s, two things become clear in about 15 seconds or less: their hysterical sense of humor and their unwavering faith in God. While being present for Haddie’s first cry still brings tears to my eyes, watching Courtney and Ryan take on each bump in the road to delivery and each hurdle after with that same faith and humor was truly beautiful to witness. Although things did not happen the way they had expected and although things got scary at times, they continued to pray, and laugh, and surrendered their plans to the Lord and cling to the truth that God is sovereign AND God is good, no matter the circumstance. Their faith made an incredible event extraordinary to behold.
I pray that as they look back on the photos of their experience, they not only see their beautiful love for one another and their beautiful baby girl’s first moments, but also God’s hand in each step of the way.
PREVIEW | Lewis Family
Posted on June 15, 2015
You know those friends you can have a conversation with every few weeks, maybe even months, but it seems like no time has passed at all (except now their baby is huge)? Well, let me introduce the Lewis family. To us Bollens, they are exactly those kind of friends and we love them so much we try to kidnap them and bring them to Texas. Like all the time.
Unfortunately, we aren’t great kidnappers. However, fortunately, we were able to make a quick trip to Arkansas recently and guess who I got to sneak away with for a quick session? Why, yes! The Lewis family!
It was so fun to shoot in Little Rock after being gone for most of the year, but seeing Courtney, Dave and their precious baby boy, Liam, was the best. Would you believe Liam is that squishy little newborn on my homepage?? I couldn’t believe how big and handsome he has become. I could believe, however, that fart noises were what really made him smile! If you know Dave and Courtney at all, you know a fun, silly sense of humor runs in the family.
Dave, Courtney – I love you and that baby boy to pieces. Thank you so much for letting me boss you around and make you smile for an hour straight. Can’t wait to see you guys again soon.
[fun fact! Dave is the super talented graphic artist behind my beautiful J.Bollen Photography logo! If you’re looking for high quality, current branding, he’s your guy.]
On to the good stuff!
Event | Erin’s 30th Birthday
Posted on May 3, 2015
I’m so excited to introduce you to Erin! When we were preparing to move last summer, she was the very first person at Southwestern I spoke with, as she works for the campus Housing Department. She was the sweetest, most helpful voice on the phone while I was trying to figure out where in this crazy new place we were going to live. Her kindness and patience left us with an amazing first impression of Southwestern and I am so thankful for her!
Fast forward 8 months, and here we are at Erin’s big three-oh! She was so excited to ring-it-in in style. All her close friends were going to be there, and her precious family was traveling all the way from Springdale (oh yes, the Arkansas one. That’s right, she’s an Arkansas girl! Woo pig!). So, of course she had the brilliant idea to bring someone in to capture the memories. I was so incredibly blessed to be that someone. Her sweet family and friends worked super hard to bring her glam soiree vision to life, and they nailed it. Thank you so much, Erin and Joshua, for letting me join the party! Here’s one last Happy Birthday to you!! (Full gallery soon to come!)
Business | Steel City Pops
Posted on May 3, 2015
Within our first few weeks in Fort Worth, we started hearing about this awesome “Steel City Pops” place and how oh-my-gosh-you-have-to-go-right-now-and-try-every-single-pop. Well, we did and from the moment we walked in, we we were hooked. The fun, modern atmosphere and (of course) the incredibly delicious and creative gourmet popsicles more than lived up to all the hype.
As luck would have it, the store’s General Manager, Ryan, and his wife Courtney joined our Sunday morning small group at church. We very literally fell in love with them and their awesomeness. And then, as God would have it, Steel City had a job opening that Daniel was able to jump in to and join the team! We have loved being a part of the SCP family, so when Ryan mentioned their need for fresh marketing photos, of course I was all over it!
I really should label this post “Part I”, because unfortunately I caught them on a day where they were making their super delicious creamy vanilla pops. I say unfortunately because I wasn’t able to capture all the beautifully fresh, bright, organic fruits that go into their other pops. So, expect a Part II in the near future! For now, enjoy these photos and if you’re in the Fort Worth area, head down to West 7th and enjoy a pop! Visit them online at http://www.steelcitypops.com and be sure to follow them @scpftworth.
Preview | Solari Maternity
Posted on April 2, 2015
I first met Caitlyn, a nurse in the SWBTS Campus Clinic, when I brought the girls in for an appointment. I’m more than a little surprised that, after experiencing the sriracha-level hot mess we are when one of my littles is sick, she would still trust me with photographing such a precious moment for her and her husband, Dane. Nonetheless, she did, and I couldn’t be more honored or more thrilled with this beautiful session. We had a lovely time walking the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens, visiting about all the exciting possibilities waiting for them after Dane graduates this May and of course, sweet Baby Asher’s arrival coming so soon!
Thank you, Caitlyn and Dane, for spending the evening with me. I can’t wait to get the rest of this gallery in your hands!
J. Bollen Photography 
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