Today is my 2 year anniversary. It’s crazy how life works. I met Kendra at a bonfire in January of 2009. I walked up to she and her friend because from a distance I thought she looked cute so I had to go talk to her up close. The funny thing is, while I still thought she was cute, I found her boring and uninteresting. hahaha She wasn’t too keen on me either, she tells me. She thought I was a big dork who looked 14 years old. Anyway, she left the bonfire early and I thought I’d never see her again. Two months later, my friend Shane said he wanted to set me up with “this girl named Kendra.” After talking to her on the phone, I recognized her name and she recognized my laugh.

“Uh oh! This was going to be a terrible date! ”

Lo and behold, we had a good time, got married and now we’ve duplicated.  If I wasn’t a religious person, I’d say that we pretty much fulfilled the one reason to live and we can die whenever we like now! 🙂

Happy anniversary to my “boring girl from the bonfire!” Love ya!

We’ve been laying a little low lately because of our new baby boy but we’re picking up the pace now that we’re more adjusted to having Owen around. I have heard that having a new baby is fun and exciting at first but eventually becomes more like a job. Monotonous, annoying at times and time consuming. Is that true? It probably is! hahaha So far though, Owen’s the most chill kid I’ve ever seen. He sleeps through the night most of the time, doesn’t cry much, doesn’t talk back, would give you the shirt on his back, doesn’t talk bad about anyone, loves to listen… 🙂

I’ve also heard many parents tell me that everyone think their own kids are the cutest. I have to agree with this statement. I have noticed, however, that all cute babies now remind me of Owen. My wife and I were sitting on Facebook the other night, stalking old friends and family to see what they were up to. With so many people having kids, there were plenty of new babies to see. Whenever we saw a newborn that was cute, we compared them to our own.

“He looks like Owen!” was said over and over again.

All kids are different of course, but have you ever noticed how similar newborns look to each other?! They all share that same blank look that borders on fear, confusion or queasiness. It’s probably best that we can’t remember being that little. If we could, I wonder how low our pride levels would be. Could you be overly into yourself if you could remember every fart being a shart? 🙂

At just under two weeks old, I set up my lights and background and took a fewnewborn portraits of Owen and Kendra. Here are my favorites:

While I photographed Kendra, our good friends, Thomas and Natalie came and brought their new twin boys. Natalie and Kendra were originally supposed to be due around the same time but Natalie ended up having her twins a month early. The cool thing is one twin was born late at night on November 30th and the other early morning on December 1st. Here are a few of my favorites of their new sons:

Thanks for reading! FYI: The January 2012 newsletter will be hitting your inbox this week. If you haven’t signed up for it, leave a comment with your e-mail and you’ll be signed up. Thanks!

Nate

TNGphoto.com <- Main Las Vegas Photographer Website

TNGseniors.com <- Las Vegas High School Senior Photos. Seniors, go here!

I’ve been MIA lately and here’s why:

Owen was born last Friday morning. I finally have someone to take care of me when I’m old! 🙂

For numbers sake: 9lbs. 6 oz. 22 inches long

Just for fun, here’s a quick few sentences meant to be the opposite of what I actually mean:

I hate this kid. He looks nothing like me. We’re giving him up for adoption.

Really though, he’s pretty cool. He lays there, he breathes, he sleeps, he eats, he pees and poops, he cries, all while continuing to lay there. He’s very talented. I am looking forward to his personality shining through in the coming months. I thought it would be a lot more weird having him around (it’s only been a week) but it seems quite natural having the little guy around. It must be something hardwired into our brains. Thanks to everyone who came to the hospital and visited us!

I’m not much in the writing mood right now so here’s one quick recent business portrait. I wanted to experiment with a new look and decided on a composite image. I’m going to be showcasing a lot more of this unique kind of portraiture. Hope you like it!

Nate

Here’s a new image that I’m particularly happy with. This isn’t your typical family portrait at all! I’m very pleased with how I was able to express both my own (goofy) personality as well as the family’s (fun) personality. I love that I’m able to express multiple sides of my personality through my portraiture. At times, I love the serene, quiet confidence of a soft expression and other times I love to show the the comical side of life through images like the one below. I believe that every good portrait should tell some sort of story.

I grew up in a family of musicians. I was the odd one of the family, having never played an instrument or sang. Despite my lack of wanting to develop any musical ability, I’ve always had an appreciation for good music. I remember asking my brother about a the famous song by Beethoven, Fur Elise. If you don’t recall the song, here it is:

I asked my brother, “Is Fur Elise a happy song or is it a sad song? It seems like it’s neither happy or sad.”

My musician brother educated me by saying something to the effect, “Music is all about telling a story. Fur Elise tells a story when you hear it.”

Even though he didn’t answer my question directly, I understood what he was saying. I can relate what he said to photography and any other type of artwork. My style is consistent with my personality, despite the mood of the image, be it colorful or black and white, soft and contemplative or joyful and exciting.

I can see myself in each “story” and it gives me amazing fulfillment in my life. Thank you to everyone for having me create beautiful and expressive images for you and your families!

Leave a comment and tell me what you think of it.

Christmas is only a week away so make sure you don’t wait much longer and take advantage of our final 3 deals of 2011!

1) Give a PHOTO CLASS

Every family has at least one person who enjoys photography or maybe you’re getting an aspiring shutterbug their first decent camera for Christmas but know they’ll need some help using it. With all this in mind, we decided to start offering personal photographic instruction at a great price. A 2 hour class that will teach the basics of the camera, as well as composition, lighting techniques and other fun tips and tricks.

For only $150, you get 2 full hours of instruction and we’ll even throw in a $100 TNG GIft Card for a future portrait session!

Call us to order: (702)809-9763

2) DOUBLE YOUR GIFT CERTIFICATE

Spend less but give more!

The economy has seen better days so this year we want to save you some money and maximize your gift-purchasing power! Order before December 21st and invest in a $100, $250 or $500 gift certificate and we’ll DOUBLE your gift amount! That means if you purchase a $250 gift certificate, we’ll make it $500! This gift certificate is good towards any of our photographic services in 2012 and is not valid on any pending order in 2011 and cannot be ordered for yourself.

Call us to order: (702)809-9763

3) TIMELESS BLACK & WHITE CHILDREN PORTRAITS

A Gift That Lasts

A 15 minute classic session, complimentary 5×7 gift portrait and a Facebook image to share. These black and whites are timeless and sophisticated works of art that showcase the soulful eyes of a child. This $67 gift is sure to please those with a fine taste in black and white artwork or those who just plain have everything!

Call us to order: (702)809-9763

Thanks for everything! The next blog post will probably have news of my son’s birth…<gulp>….any day now!  🙂

Nate

TNGphoto.com <- Main Las Vegas Photographer Website

TNGseniors.com <- Las Vegas High School Senior Photos. Seniors, go here!

Bill Murray is funnier than you. He’s funnier than me. He’s funnier than anyone you’ve ever met. It’s late at night, my wife is in bed and I’m up watching, “Scrooged.” Is there any current comedian in movies today that will be as remembered and appreciated like Bill Murray? I can’t think of any.

“Scrooged” isn’t the funniest movie ever but I can’t imagine it even being watchable without Bill Murray. My favorite part? When he meets the Ghost of Christmas Present and keeps getting slapped and punched by her and when he finally says, “If you… TOUCH ME AGAIN…I’ll rip your wings off!” See the video below and skip to 4:32. Enjoy!

Earlier tonight I had the pleasure of photographing the head chef at FIREFLY KITCHEN AND BAR for their marketing. If you’ve never been, take a night and get yourself some good food. The duck rolls will have you hooked. Anyway, I can’t post any images at the moment but I will post a few of my favorites very soon. It was quite challenging tonight as it was extremely dark in the restaurant, making it hard to focus the camera and also making it harder to see what needed to be adjusted with posing and composition. It was also PACKED full of people eating their dinner which made me feel a little intrusive with all of my equipment.

With all the people around and how busy everything was around us, I wasn’t able to communicate to the chef as well as I would have hoped.We first started inside of a private room which we needed to be out of by 6:30 and then moved onto the bar area. It was noisy and the restaurant background was fun to see but at this point I still didn’t feel like I was getting the most out of my subject. We later went into the kitchen (I’ve never worked at a restaurant before so this was all new to me) and I photographed the chef doing what he does best…cooking. This was a lot of fun to watch and be apart of. I could really see the skill and passion this man has for his work which I found admirable. When we were all done in the kitchen I asked if he’d be willing to come outside and let me take a quick portrait of him with the building in the background. He agreed but I went outside and the wind had gone from 0mph to winder-wonderland-mph in no time.

I decided to X the outside idea in favor of a secluded area of the restaurant that for whatever reason was completely unoccupied for the night.  I sat him down at a simple little table and put my lights where I needed them. The entire mood was now entirely different from the rest of the night. The hustle of the restaurant was only a wall away but we seemed separated from everything and I could now work on building comfort with my subject. I have always felt that building comfort with a subject is essential to creating an effective portrait. For some it takes mere moments and others it takes much longer but once they are at ease with me and the camera, that’s when the best images can be created. Now being away from all the distractions, I was able to have more of a conversation with the man and learned more about him and his goals for his business. I learned that he has a wife who loves having photographs made of her kids and I got more acquainted with the chef’s sense of humor. I often catch myself enjoying my conversations with my subjects that I forget I have a job to do! I told him I better finish up his portraits and it was at this time that the night’s best images were made. The portraits were simple and didn’t show a whole lot of the environment but the expressions from my more at ease subject made them my favorites from the night.

I’m getting into the nasty habit of now posting photos on this here photogginraphy blog! Forgive my laziness! Here are two recent portraits I made that I’m quite fond of.

Thanks for reading!

Nate

TNGphoto.com

It’s about 1:16am as I’m beginning this blog so it’s officially Thanksgiving. I had a goal to blog today and swore I wouldn’t go to sleep until it was done so feel free to admire my perseverance. 🙂 Happy Thanksgiving! Now, let’s hurry today up so we can get to Christmas! 🙂

Really quick story:

Last week I took Kendra to get a 4d ultrasound. I’d always thought that these kinds of things were kind of faddy and never ended up looking like the baby at all once they were born. Much to my amazement, it turns out, the boy looks just like me. Here’s a sneak peak at my replacement when I’m dead and gone one day! 🙂

Now, to be brutally honest, when he first popped up on the big screen we were looking at, my first thought was, “Oh no. He looks like Clayface from the old Batman cartoon.”

My worry soon turned to intrigue. Intrigue turned to fascination and fascination turned into hoping the kid’s face wasn’t covered in elephantitis.

“He looks JUST like you,” Kendra said with a twinkle in her eye and a gleam on her ultrasound-goo covered stomach.

Although Kendra’s stomach has been growing for almost 8 months now, seeing this ultrasound made this whole thing much more real for some reason.

“Wow,” I thought to myself, looking at my mini-twin, “I can’t blame the milk man now!”

Again, enjoy your time with your families, everyone! The next blog’s going to have some fun recent images, big news and a special offer that’ll blow your mind!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Nate

TNGphoto.com <- Main Las Vegas Photographer Website

TNGseniors.com <- Las Vegas High School Senior Photos. Seniors, go here!

Forgive me, for I have sinned. It’s been almost 3 weeks since my last blog…

It’s been a very fun few weeks. Kendra and I closed on a house and got to move in on Halloween. Trick or treaters came by that night (as they so often do on the 31st) and I am pretty sure that there were only 3 or 4 kids that were actually, well, kids! The rest were all 16 years old and up. I’m 27 and looked younger than a lot of these kids! They had facial hair, beards, stubble, mustaches, goatees…ok, not really, I just can’t grow a good a good beard so my baby face is jealous, but they were still all 16 and older I tells ya! 🙂

We recently returned from our “Portraits in the Leaves” family portrait event in Zion National Park. It was a success! It was so fun to spend the day there with so many great families! Because of the heat, I assume, the fall colors weren’t at their peak and not as vibrant as in the past but it was still beautiful there and made for some great scenic portraits. We are going to make this a yearly tradition to go visit Zion with our clients.

Here are a few of my favorites:

This was early in the morning and the cool air from the night still lingered so we were all a bit chilly!

Thank you to everyone who made the trip!

Nate

TNGphoto.com <- Main Las Vegas Photographer Website

TNGseniors.com <- Las Vegas High School Senior Photos. Seniors, go here!

A client of mine, RMI Management, had their annual company picnic last weekend. This is the third straight year that I was there to cover the event. The vendors always have good food and great games for the kids. Here are a few photos of the event. Enjoy!

Quick note: IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO SIGN UP A “PORTRAITS IN THE LEAVES” FAMILY PORTRAIT SESSION IN ZION NATIONAL PARK ON OCTOBER 29TH! WE CAN STILL FIT ONE MORE SESSION! CALL US TO SCHEDULE: 809-9763

Nate

TNGphoto.com <- Main Las Vegas Photographer Website

TNGseniors.com <- Las Vegas High School Senior Photos. Seniors, go here!

***$100 OFF…READ ON!***

What do you get the person who has everything and has done it all-seen it all? For many, a professionally done portrait is often the gift of choice. And why not?! They are both meaningful, thoughtful and cherished (especially by moms and grandmas) and you can just never go wrong with a photograph as a gift. Portraits are great but what if you are wanting to create something truly unique that will blow the socks off anyone who looks at it? TNG Photography has something new, just for that reason! Introducing……..

 THE MULTI-PORTRAIT!

HERE ARE THE TOP TEN REASONS TO OWN A MULTI-PORTRAIT

1) Multi-portraits are completely custom to YOU.

2) Multi-portraits are NEVER boring!

3) Multi-portraits are FULL of PERSONALITY.

4) Multi-portraits are DIFFERENT and UNIQUE.

5) Multi-portraits capture and display many MEMORIES.

6) Multi-portraits compliment your home’s decor. They are great to display in family rooms, kids’ rooms, game rooms, and even kitchens!

7) Multi-portraits can be displayed in classic or modern

frames, canvases, floats and even metals!

8) Multi-portraits make great GIFT IDEAS for moms!

9) Multi-portraits are meant to be enjoyed for years to come. Future generations will CHERISH them.

10) Multi-portraits are HEAD-TURNERS!

BONUS REASON TO OWN A MULTI-PORTRAIT!

11) Multi-portraits will make you SMILE!  

You’ve Never Done Anything Like This Before

TNG Photography is known throughout the valley as the premier portrait photographer for families, children, newborns and businesses. Now, TNG Photography introduces a contemporary styling for those families that wish to own something that few have: the multi-portrait.

Each multi-portrait begins with a consultation with the portrait artist, T. Nathan Grant. Everything from concept, design, price and final display will be discussed in detail to ensure that your

multi-portrait will not disappoint.

“This is WONDERFUL Nate! Ben’s multiportrait turned out great! Thanks so much!”

M. Gillespie

Henderson, NV

This is going to be fun!

No two multi-portraits are ever the same and we want the entire experience to be memorable for you! To celebrate the maiden voyage to our multi-portrait line, we are offering $100 off any of our multi-portrait packages to the FIRST 6 PEOPLE TO CONTACT US!

Phone: (702)809-9763

Website: www.TNGphoto.com

Thanks guys!

-Nate

What Was the Last Thing You Saw That You Had Never Seen Before? <- LEAVE A COMMENT AND TELL US YOUR ANSWER

I was speaking to my friend the other day about how he loves to show his two kids something new that they’ve never seen or done before. I then said, “Imagine if we could remember when we were babies and we could remember seeing the sky for the first time or feeling grass for the first time.” We then started talking about America’s Funniest Videos and got off subject but later on, I got to thinking to myself: have I seen or experienced anything new in the past month? After thinking for a few minutes, I couldn’t think of anything. I then made it a goal to try to expand my horizons and seek out new things that will be new to me, however big or small.

Am I aiming to high with this idea? As a kid, everything is new but as an adult it seems like it takes more effort to accomplish this. I have a few ideas though! Kendra and I are just about to close on a house and when we move in, we are going to try some DIY projects on the home. I have never been Mr. Handyman. Growing up, my dad would be fixing the car, sink, shelf, whatever, and I’d be there helping him but I tended to just zone out and not soak in what was being done for some reason. I regret that because this lack of skill and knowledge only makes me half a man! hahaha Really though, I wish I paid more attention as it would be very helpful. Despite all this, in our new home, we plan on:

• Laying down tile in the kitchen and bathrooms
• Changing out the baseboards
• Putting crown molding in
• Installing new fans/lights

I realize that these aren’t the most difficult things to accomplish but for me, this will all be new territory and I’m excited to do the work!

I photographed a great high school senior from Coronado High School recently. One of my favorite things is to see people get excited about their portraits. We met at Coronado and shook hands and I explained to him what he could expect for the next hour or so. Photographing guys is always a bit different than girls because unlike girls, guys tend to just want to get it over with. After a few minutes though, I showed him how some of the images were turning out. From then on out, it was now more fun for him because he saw how good he looked! Here are a few of my favorites. Enjoy!

Nate

TNGphoto.com <- Main Las Vegas Photographer Website

TNGseniors.com <- Las Vegas High School Senior Photos. Seniors, go here!

Things are about to get crazy busy soon with the holidays coming up and family portraits needed left and right! I recently took a trip up to a little town in New Harmony, Utah to photograph this family that I took portraits of a few years ago. It was so nice to see them all again! New Harmony is a little town outside of Cedar City and is west of the I-15. As you drive into the town and look back towards the highway, you have a spectacular view of Kolob Canyon, which is a lesser known part of Zion National Park. We took advantage of the view and created a beautiful portrait! Check it out!

I love family portraits. Growing up, the only family portrait we ever had was when I was around 3 or 4 years old and it was in the backyard of my uncle’s house during a 50th anniversary party for my grandparents. I’m glad we have that but somehow, we just never got around to taking a new one throughout the years. We weren’t really the picture-taking type, I guess. Fast forward to 2009, now a photographer myself, I tried and tried to coordinate a family portrait of all of us together at my parents’ home in New Harmony. My mother had a few months to live due to her cancer so I was definitely feeling the urge to get a portrait taken. Unfortunately, we ended up never able to get all of our schedules to align and we were unable to create the portrait of all of us together. It is actually one of my biggest regrets. I am happy I was able to take some portraits of my parents together, my mom by herself and my mom with my sister but I very much wish I would have acted sooner on getting our family portrait taken before it was too late.

Now, I’m not trying to scare anyone into getting a family photo taken, I’m simply saying that it is, in my opinion, by far the most important and meaningful portrait that can be take. I highly recommend you don’t put it on the back-burner and just get it done. You won’t regret it!

Lastly, before I fill up 10 pages worth of blog with words, here’s a fun little project I just completed. A client of mine has written a book about their experience in a foreign prison. He was needing a cover for it and came to me for help. We batted around a few ideas and concepts and came up with this. When the book is published, make sure you buy a copy!

Thanks everyone! Call us at (702)809-9763 anytime!

Nate

TNGphoto.com <- Main Las Vegas Photographer Website

TNGseniors.com <- Las Vegas High School Senior Photos. Seniors, go here!