I had so much fun with the M family welcoming newborn baby E into the world.  She was already an adventurer, having been born in the blizzard of 2013 and packing up to move to Japan with her parents in just a few short months!  I was so glad I had the opportunity to meet her before her travels.  She was ready to greet the world.  After a quick sleepy stint on the beanbag, this baby girl wanted to party.  She was wide awake for most of our 4 hours together!  I think my favorite portraits are the ones where she is looking right up at mom and dad, but the portrait below incorporating the lace from mom’s wedding dress is so touching too!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

I was so excited for a session with one of my favorite families as they welcomed their newest addition last week!  Sweet baby T was 3 weeks old on the day of our shoot and she slept like a dream for me.  2 year old big sister S started out a little shy, but we were friends in no time!  She did a great job with her newborn sister.  She sat right down by the bean bag and quietly looked on, taking it all in.  Then, she carefully posed her own little stuffed animals on our extra bean bag.  S was a baby-wisperer in the making!  I love capturing family portraits during our newborn sessions.  It can be such a busy, sleep-deprived, foggy time for parents, but when they look back at the photos, I know that they will remember all of the joy and wonder that was at the heart of this special time in their lives.  Enjoy your sneak peek R family!

Our first baby girl was a bit of a surprise for Shaun and I.  We were a few months married and just 26 years old when we found out we were about to become parents.  Most of my girlfriends are just now getting married and starting their families.  I am overjoyed to watch them become mothers for the first time and sentimental thinking back on those first few days of motherhood.  There are some things in life that must be felt to be understood.  There is nothing in the world like holding your firstborn child.  Awe over the miracle of new life and creation envelopes your long nights and foggy days.  You feel at once completely extraordinary for bringing this new life into the world, and yet strangely connected to every other woman and all of humanity.  Every quiet moment, every tiny detail, every rise and fall of your newborn’s tiny chest is momentous.  I remember it like it was yesterday.  I wish I could relive every teeny tiny newborn breath.  And I wish for everyone I know to know that joy.  Every mother does.

I was so thrilled to visit two of our college friends 2 weekends ago and meet their new baby boy.  As you can see, he is quite adorable.  I couldn’t wait to hold him, but I was also excited to be able to capture a few mementos of this time for their family.  Mom took all of my advice and worked hard so we could get a few sleepy shots while I was there.  I brought along my camera, one blanket, and a handful of hats.  We got baby T down to his birthday suit and took a few pics around the house.  It took all of 15 minutes!  You can even see my makeshift set up below.  Beautiful newborn photography can happen anywhere.  The beauty is found when you focus on the simplest of things… love

I hope you enjoy these portraits J and D.  Congratulations!

And here is a little behind-the-scenes for ya   See, it really can happen anywhere!

In teaching photography, I often get asked the question “what happens when the baby just won’t sleep?”  Well, that depends how you approach your session.  One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned as a photographer is to let the baby lead the way during a shoot.  Each baby is a unique little person.  Some are alert, some are sleepy.  Some love to be curled up, some love to be stretched out.  My favorite part of a newborn session is the beginning, when I get to know the baby.  I like figuring out what makes them tick and creating the session around what keeps them happy.  Baby L started our session wide awake.  He was so strong and had amazing eye control already.  I love creating portraits of newborns when they are awake just as much as I love the sleepy shots.  About an hour in, baby L finally fell asleep in my arms.  Parents usually say “I’m sorry they were so much work to get to sleep” but I assure you all, cuddling newborns to sleep is the best part of my job!  I loved my time snuggling L and once he drifted off, he rocked every sleepy shot we tried!  Enjoy your sneak peek.

We had the pleasure of meeting mom and dad to-be for their maternity session back before the Holidays.  We were so thrilled to hear that our first newborn of 2013 had been born while we were away for our winter break!  I had a great time photographing this handsome little guy.  Is he not one of the most gorgeous babies you have ever seen?  I want to reach right through these pictures and kiss those lips.  I can only imagine how mom and dad must feel watching him sleep.  He was even wide awake for part of our session, staring right into the camera lens.  He’s a natural!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

I had so much fun with this sweet newborn boy last week.  He slept like a champ on the bean bag and loved hanging out for our branch shot.  After that though, he was ready to wake up and party!  He would sleep just long enough to pull off a shot and then seem to say, “get me outta here!”  We took some adorable shots with props that mom and dad brought along from home and then some sweet family portraits to wrap up our session.  Can’t you tell that this little guy is very loved?!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

It has been a long time since I have had the time and opportunity to travel on location to a client’s home for some lifestyle portraits.  When sweet baby T was born early and had a long stay in the hospital, we rescheduled the B family session out to the Holidays.  I think traveling to the B family’s home (and being so warmly welcomed by them <3 ) really helped me to capture them as a family and all of the love they have for their baby girl.  I am totally in love with this session!  Watching mom and dad cuddle her and make her smile melted me.  It reminded me of why I love what I do so much.  I left thinking “I wish I could do this for every family!”  In 2013 I will be traveling much more and hopefully doing more sessions like this one.  Thanks B family for being so much fun to spend the afternoon with.  T is so gorgeous, I already can’t wait for our next session!  Enjoy your sneak peek!  ~ Heidi

It was snowing on the day that little C was born.  So it was only fitting that we sprinkle a little snow into his set.  I first met mom and dad about 3 years ago for their engagement session!  I loved keeping up with them on Facebook, seeing photos from their beautiful wedding, and then hearing the great news that they were expecting.  Of course I was thrilled to get the call that they wanted to do newborn portraits with us.  Even more exciting is that baby C is one of my newest baby planners for 2013!  We’re going to have so much fun watching this little guy grow up!  Enjoy your sneak peek.

It feels like just yesterday that I had mom and dad in my studio for their first maternity session.  Flash forward 1 1/2 years and 3 sessions and we were welcoming their newest addition, newborn baby C!  C’s big brother did an awesome job despite feeling under the weather.  I love all of the family portraits we captured and the one below with daddy is priceless.  I love how tiny babies look in their dad’s hands.  C was such a sweet baby, dreaming right through the commotion.  Enjoy your sneak peek and these two little pumpkins.  Happy Halloween!

Sweet, fair little S and her gorgeous family visited the studio last week for her newborn portraits.  She had the most beautiful blonde hair I’ve seen in a while on a newborn.  She even had enough for one of our little Framboozled flower clips to stay put.  She started our session wide awake but in no time she was dreaming away on the beanbag.  She smiled throughout our session, and I think I even caught one in the portrait of her in dad’s military hat.  Enjoy your sneak peek!  ~Heidi