heart to heart blog

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This is a guest post by Kelley Maxfield who is our Associate Direct Marketing Manager or Manager of California Photoshoots, as it were. She’s going to give us a glimpse into what really goes on behind the scenes at our yearly photo shoot…

Let me tell you about the best part of my job – squishing sand in between my toes, smelling fresh ocean air, feeling a warm breeze on my face, eating an overstuffed everything bagel with cream cheese and watching the sun rise off the Malibu coast. Life is good OK- back to reality, this is work afterall….

Once a year our Graco team heads to California for a week-long photoshoot where we photograph our new products and new collections for several of our marketing pieces- including the hot-off- the-press 2009 Registry Guide! Here’s a quick glance at what I think is some of our best photography yet–the photographer and crew really captured some beautiful moments between parents and their babies.

Did you know we cast real moms and dads with their own babies? Real hugs, real kisses, real parenting. It’s true and it works because a parent’s love shines right through the lens. I’ll give you a little snap shot of how our typical photoshoot day goes …

The day usually starts off with a beautiful sun rise (we just so happened to be shooting a beach scene that morning), freshly brewed coffee, everything bagels (a must) and then the real work begins! Our full crew arrives including photographers, producer, their assistants, clothing stylists, hair & make-up artists, baby wranglers, baby nurses, teachers, and then the talent - our model moms, dads, and babies. Our trailer is full stocked with baby clothing and props (Guess how many different sizes of baby clothes we have? A LOT – plus tons of tiny little baby shoes, so cute), diapers, diapers and more diapers, baby snacks, baby toys, and baby books.

While the make up artists freshen up our models (dads get a bit of powder too), the Graco crew assembles our products for the day. I am proud to say I can assemble a swing in less than five minutes and our Pack ‘n Play – I’ve got that down to about 30 seconds! Ok, time to set up the family room. Photographer’s on set and where is the talent? Our producer informs the photographer and crew “Baby #1 has gas and we need to shoot another scene.” With a straight face, the crew scrambles to prepare the kitchen and highchair scene. Luckily our Toddler #2 is excited to sit in our new Blossom™ Highchair (I think it might be something to do with the bowl of strawberries waiting for him).

Then there’s the shot we all think will be piece of cake – the sleeping baby in the sweetpeace™ Newborn Soothing Center. Babies eat, poop, and sleep most of the day, right? We actually schedule our shots around the baby models’ nap schedules and although this usually works, Baby #4 was more interested in playtime with mommy than nap time. And our photographer is right there to capture playtime on film too.

Of course we’re proud of the great new products and collections in the catalog but we think you’ll also enjoy the beautiful moments we were able to capture between the parents and babies. Order yours now!