Baby B was certainly the smiley-est 3 month old I’ve ever photographed!  He just lit up with grins any time I looked at him.  And joy is contagious because I couldn’t help but smile our whole session as well.  I had so much fun capturing his happy little spirit!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

I LOVE first birthdays! It is an amazing milestone to celebrate and parents are always thrilled with the images that capture their little one’s budding personality. What a personality E had! She was one of the happiest little one year olds I’ve ever photographed. The second I picked up the camera, she would look my way and give me a huge grin. And smiles ARE contagious because I’m smiling looking over these once again! Enjoy your sneak peek mom and dad. I can’t wait to show you the rest because EVERY image is a keeper!!

Baby M surprised his parents with an early arrival!  I didn’t get to meet this cutie pie until he was almost 3 weeks old.  Though he was older than the newborns I usually photograph, he was still such a peanut!  I loved seeing him curled up in his parents arms and just look at how tiny his toes look compared to his parents’ rings.  I love taking that portrait for two reasons.  First, it shows the scale of how teeny baby is, but more importantly I think of the parents, looking at their wedding ring years from now and remembering the day when their baby’s toes were just a fraction of the size.  M was such a sweet baby and a joy to photograph.  Enjoy your preview.

S and A traveled down from Massachusetts for their maternity session last week and we had so much fun!  Our session together was natural and laid back.  I really enjoyed capturing the love between S and A as they await the new addition to their family.  They claimed they weren’t always comfortable in front of the camera, but seriously, these two were naturals!  I can’t wait to hear your good news and see you again for our next session!

Wow!  Baby C is so completely gorgeous, it is hard to choose favorites!  She was so fun and sweet to photograph and I loved visiting with her family again.  They visited us just 6 months ago for newborn portraits.  I can’t believe how fast she’s grown!  6 months is my absolute favorite age to photograph.  The giggles, the smiles, the baby chub!  I love it!  Enjoy your preview G family, and your beautiful baby girl.  It was a pleasure as always :0)

Another one of my 2010 newborns is already 1 year old!  MJ is just as handsome as ever.  Thank goodness he is so photogenic because he was not having a good afternoon when he came to visit this week.  He might have spent a total of 10 minutes actually in front of my camera, but in between crying, he flashed a few adorable smiles and we ended up with some adorable portraits after all!  Poor little man.  It’s hard work being so cute!  Don’t worry mom, these all look great!!

Baby A is quite the fashionista!  I joke with her mom that I would love her to style all of my shoots as I’ve loved every outfit I’ve seen A in over the past year.  But I’m only half joking!  A has a greater wardrobe than I, that’s for sure!  This week we celebrated her first birthday with a fabulous cake smash.  She just loved the cake and I just loved capturing it all.  Especially the little details.  It just so happened that baby A saved her first steps for our studio!  It was so thrilling to watch and photograph :0)  Happy birthday A!  Enjoy your preview.

Baby N is surely one of the happiest babies I’ve ever photographed.  I feel like it was just yesterday that I took her newborn photos, and here she was standing in front of my camera already as a birthday girl!  N’s grandmother made her beautiful birthday skirt, perfect for her lady bug party theme.  The lady bug cake by sweet indulgence was the perfect way to end our session.  N smiled the whole way through it all!  Her joy was infectious!  Enjoy your preview :0)

I couldn’t wait to get started on this week’s previews. Any “creative type” can tell you that there are times we feel “stuck” and there are times we feel about ready to explode with ideas. In those stuck times I look for inspiration around me. I frequently browse flickr and pinterest along with each of the online retailers filling my inbox with ads every morning. I create a sort-of digital sketchbook out of anything that speaks to me. A photograph, the way the light filters through a window, a color pallet, a piece of shabby furniture, a pair of shoes I would die for. Anything really. I think admiring the beauty around us helps to shape our creativity in some way…. developing our taste as artists, and contributing to the overall style of our work. Sure it takes some time, but it certainly gets me out of my creative ruts when needed! Well I’m happy to say I’m experiencing the joy of a creative upswing these days. I feel full of ideas and short on time, but I’m really thrilled with the work that is coming out of all of it. I’ve been in total groove with maternities lately, baby’s have been oh-so-good to me, and even the toughest of newborns sessions are still ending up with a gallery I’m thrilled with!

Take this 3 month old for example. Baby G was born weighing only 3 pounds so the newborn session we planned with mom and dad never was. They instead came in for a 3 month session because they still wanted to capture him when he was an infant. By six months babies have grown so much, we didn’t want to miss these moments. 3 month sessions can certainly be unpredictable. Babies are in an in-between phase for photography. They are not sleepy like newborns, often protest being naked or laid in a basket (wouldn’t you?), but they cannot yet support themselves in most poses. So 3 month sessions can be somewhat limited in those respects. But, not baby G!! Oh was he a dream! He was adorable and expressive when awake, didn’t protest being laid in a suitcase or a planter and at the end of the session he fell asleep peacefully for the beautiful newborn style portraits that mom and dad had their heart set on when we first booked their session. G was one happy and very loved baby. Having parents who were so laid back and loving in the room made my job that much easier!! I am just loving this 3 month session!  Enjoy your preview.

I had a blast photographing our mini sessions last Friday! For anyone unfamiliar with our mini sessions, they are only about 1/4 of our regular sessions in time, lasting only about 15 minutes. With little time to warm up to the camera, we jump into the shoot feet first (literally!). Kids can run around, play and jump on the bed, all while I chase them around trying to capture all of those little expressions in between. High Energy! Mini sessions aren’t for the timid, that’s for sure! Of course last Friday turned out to be the DARKEST day in my studio all year. It was pouring rain outside and the light was terrible. Needless to say my camera settings were a challenge trying to photograph 12 children who were under 3 (hello slow shutter speeds and small fstop numbers)… but I do love a challenge! All of these little ones were absolutely fantastic. Sweet and fun and full of personality! Thanks for such a refreshing day!