Da Boyz at Sears Portrait Studio, Review & Giveaway (ends 4/7)

The last four days I have been showing you each of the individual boyz photos from Sears Portrait Studio. We've seen Seth and his Harry Potter books commemorating his accomplishment of finishing all seven. Gabriel had his pictures done with two of his favorite things, baseball and Curious George. Then there was Nathan and his Disney Pixar Cars and a great personality shot. And finally there was Eli, who our photographer managed to capture wonderfully with his hat and alone despite his attempts to flee.

Today I get to show you pictures of all four of my boyz! Our photographer, Arsenia, suggested we do the shots of all four boyz first. That way if anyone had a severe meltdown amidst there individual shots, the full shot would already be finished. Thankfully we had no such issues of children losing it, but it was a well thought out approach.

Now I have four children raging in ages from 18 months to nine. They are all very busy boyz, only two of which are in school and truly understand sitting still for a given amount of time. That being said, I had realistic expectations. I know my children and their personalities well and did not foresee perfectly posed pictures of the four of them sitting together cheesing it up for the camera.

The photographer did a great job of working with them, adjusting the poses as they got restless. She also just kept shooting, not waiting on a "perfect pose" that was never going to come. I think the biggest problem is the greater the number of subjects in a picture, the greater number of eyes that go wayward of smiles that fade before the click of the camera.

Here are some of the "outtakes". Eli was constantly trying to escape and Nate was quickly miffed at the instructions to smile, stay still and look at the camera.

Nathan apparently has a backache here...


This one Eli is on the run yet again, and Nate has had about enough...



Luckily there were several to choose from. This one was our runner-up. I like it, but don't like how their eyes are all looking to the monitor and not at the photographer



These were our winning two shots. The first we love because of the little ones holding hands and some of the genuine smiles. Plus, Seth's tight-lipped smirk is what we see most of the time right now. Just as we were pleased to see and honest to goodness smile in Seth's alone picture, it is nice to be able to remember this part of him too.



Finally, this is one of our favorites. This captures our sons perfectly. Gabriel, always with a big smile and sparkling eyes. Eli is trying to figure out what's going on. Seth is usually distracted, and looking out for his baby brother. And Nate, well he's always looking for trouble!



Overall, we are incredibly happy with our Sears Portrait Studio experience. We found our photographer flexible, professional and accommodating. And we feel we have great pictures to commemorate this time in our sons' lives.

Now for the exciting news! Want a special gift now? Print of this coupon for a FREE 10 x 13 and head to your Sears Portrait Studio!

We also get to give away a Sears Portrait Studio Silver Collection, which includes 10custom “mix and match” portrait sheets, your choice of two collages/composites and one 10x13 wall portrait. Plus, you get a CD of your original images with copyrights and up to 10 standard enhancements, such as black and white, sepia, vignettes or borders!

To enter the Sears Portrait Studio Giveaway please visit the Sears Potrait Studio website and come back to leave a comment with what is your favorite two backdrops you would use in your photo session. Please be sure that your profile has your email right on it, or be sure to leave your email address in your comment. This contest is open to US and Canadian residents only.

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This giveaway will end at midnight on 4/7/10

I received a Smile Savers Plan for a year and Portrait CD of our session to facilitate this review. Although I did receive these free of charge, all opinions and views expressed here are my own and come from our actual experience. Please see my policies page for our complete disclosure policy