Tagged with: maternity
This passed week we squeezed in a session before a rain storm with my brother and sister in law. They're expecting their first baby, a girl, within the next two weeks! We couldn't be more excited for another baby to snuggle and hold...then give right back :) Enjoy a few images from our summer evening session!
"Meantime his golden face around
He bares to all the garden ground,
And sheds a warm and glittering look
Among the ivy’s inmost nook."
- Summer Sun by Robert Louis Steveson
I am excited to share this special maternity session with you, knowing that this sweet couple has been waiting for this day! I not only had the privilege of photographing their wedding day almost 3 years ago, but we returned to the very same spot under a setting summer sun to capture their maternity session. I am thankful to be in the business of capturing memories, to be a part of capturing a family's visual history. These moments are like little time capsules, reminding us how we felt at the time. I pray that Jess and Mike are able to look back on these and remember all the feelings leading up to the day that they will become parents! Congratulations and I cannot wait to meet little Miss :)
Their faithful pups, Wesley & Alden joined us for a few shots as well. It only made sense, they're a part of the family too!
Under this tree was the very spot they said, "I do!"
In this season of my own pregnancy, it has been fun to connect with other friends going through the same. My friend Liz is due just a few weeks after me, also with a little boy! It's been fun to text about symptoms, confess eating a bag of chips (yes I have done that recently!!!) or just see how each other is holding up. I was honored to take a few minutes last weekend with this beautiful couple and capture the pregnancy with their first child! Every child and pregnancy has its own story to tell, but especially with your first it's a sweet time to document. We were SO excited when the weather cleared and we caught the tail end of the sunset… enjoy! Oh, and the sweet puppy in the photos is Marley :) She's a part of the family too!
I have said this before, but there's no compliment like one of my wedding couples calling me when they're ready for maternity pictures! I absolutely adore the opportunity to be a part of friends' lives in this way! What an absolute privilege to capture the moments and memories for a family. So really I should thank Robbie and Donna for asking me to capture their maternity photos! They have been good friends for a long time so it's sweet to see this moment in their lives as they prepare for parenthood. We chose the very appropriate UD campus for their shoot. They met and fell in love at UD during their college days, so it just made sense! During our session, I gave my sage advice to try to get lots of sleep now and go out to as many movies/dinners that you can afford between now and July :)
I got some adorable photos of them with the first initial for baby girl but I have to keep those to myself because her name is under wraps...can't wait to meet her this July!
A sweet friend has baby number four on the way and decided it would be a fun time to do a little family/maternity session. We got a beautiful night last week with reasonable temperatures and a pretty sunset to make this happen! They are waiting to be surprised so all we know is there is a sweet little sibling baking in the oven and due out next month :) Enjoy!
Cute Big Brothers...
Sweet soon-to-be big sister...
Mom and Dad!
A favorite of mine...
Love this one with the boys hands on the "new baby" - it's all a suprise :)
Love this happy ending...
It's always fun for me to photograph a couple anticipating a baby on the way, but it's especially fun when it was one of my wedding couples. I have known Devon and TC for years now, they are precious people. They were on of my pretty weddings a couple summers ago and needless to say, I was so excited when Devon contacted me for maternity and newborn photos. They have shared that they know they are having a girl and are naming her Harper. I know they will be wonderful parents and we had a great time shooting this sunset session! All the best to you Devon, TC and baby Harper!
Also, as a total photographer side note....there has been a ton of talk lately about cliches in photography. I totally agree that there are so many things that are "overdone" these days and certain ones make me cringe. I try to avoid them, sometimes even when a client requests them. Please notice, you have NEVER and WILL NEVER see a selective color image on my site (when everything is black and white except one thing in color). If you want that, I am not the photographer for you.
There are trendy things in art, just like in life. You never want to be the person who holds onto that trend for too long (think 80's perm and huge bangs...just not good!). I know things like sunsets, fields, props, etc are all the rage...but hey, sunset has ALWAYS been a beautiful thing to photograph. Pretty outdoor settings make WAY better backdrops than vinyl, my friends. A lot of "trends" these days aren't really trends at all, they are staples in the history of natural light photography.
I decided recently that even if you are approaching shoots in a similar fashion or style (which is hopefully your own personal style), it's ok to approach them that way because every couple has their OWN story. You are always telling a new story with each couple. Even in the case of this shoot, this is a couple I have photographed before but it's a NEW part of their story, the beginning of parenthood. As I approach each shoot, although some things I will approach in a familiar way, I will remind myself I am telling the client's story in a fresh way. The client is what is unique! Stepping off soap box now.... Enjoy the shoot!
Pretty mommy-to-be!
I thought that this was so sweet...they brought some of the bedtime stories they hope to read to Harper. It was perfect practice for bedtime reading and made for sweet pictures!
Love this one, Devon's sister made the inital for Harper's room!
Love this one and I think it makes for a happy ending...or really a beginning! Beginning of parenthood :)
You might remember this sweet friend of mine from her other maternity session with her first son. She is a precious friend and is expecting her second son next month! Although, things are always different with the second, we didn't want to miss an opportunity to get a few belly shots before little man's arrival. We had a whole lot of ideas to try but unfortunately a storm was brewing and only got about 10 - 15 minutes for this entire session before we got POURED on! This crazy weather has not been kind for business but I take it one day at a time lately, enjoy :)
This was a fav of mine, her little cutie Cayden posed for us!
If you know me, I love snow. I come by it honest, growing up the daughter of a hardware store owner, you pray for snow storms. Snow is good for business and it's great for fun! I have many memories sledding with my dad, riding in his truck with him plowing, and he loved to ski. As the snow fell the other day, so did the memories. I am thankful for quiet moments to remember my dad.
I digress though, the snow/rain fell on Saturday when I was supposed to have a maternity shoot. As always, things happen for a reason because I think the images below are gorgeous and would not be the same without the beautiful white sheet of snow. Liz and Andrew are anxiously awaiting their baby girl to make her appearance in the next few weeks! She will be their first and I am so thankful I got to work with this sweet couple. I anxiously await meeting baby girl and doing her newborn shoot!
Isn't Liz adorable? I love the pink!
It's always nice when a friend from days past contacts me to photograph them. I have great memories of Carrie from her college days at UD! Well a few years later down the road, she is married to the very wonderful Phil and they are expecting a little one in March. It's a little earlier than I generally would do maternity shots but they wanted them in time to send a long with their Christmas cards, which I totally understand. It's hard when you are far from family and friends, they miss getting to see your belly grow! I do have to say, Carrie is a cute little pregnant girl and I am sure that their baby boy will be just as adorable! We were also thankful for another random 60 degree day in December for this shoot. Enjoy!
One of my very favs from the session...
My other favorite of the day!
My good friend and I have been talking about her maternity shoot for some time now. She loved the idea of a shoot in the snow & so did I. Unfortunately it seemed like it was never working out between the actual need for snow, her schedule as a nurse and my life with two toddlers. Thankfully though, yesterday God delivered the perfect day! My hubs was off work due to weather so Jay & I snuck out in the afternoon to do this shoot at our local park. It was so much fun just to be together in such a gorgeous setting documenting the last weeks before her baby boy arrives. I really cannot wait to meet him and learn what his name will be (it's a secret :) It's funny how I love to keep the name secret but am not a fan of being on the receiving end! So here's to a precious friend that I love and the ability to capture these life moments for her. Can't wait until baby boy's newborn shoot! And no, we won't put him in the snow :)
