Capturing the Magic and Wonder of Childhood
I first met this lovely family a little over two years ago for their maternity photo session, and then shortly thereafter had the honor of shooting an at-home newborn session for their first baby.
This week I got to return for baby #2. It is such a joy and a privilege to be able to capture a newborn session and then to be able to return a couple years later and see that newborn growing into the BEST big sister. Congratulations to this new family of four.
When Ashley first contacted me about this at-home family portrait session, she said that she had found me just by googling Nashville Family Photographer, and liked the work on my website. But she wanted to know if I could shoot a session at their home. My answer was “absolutely”! I love photographing families in places that mean something to them.
Ashely wanted a daytime session that would work for baby Jack’s schedule. Her back yard was the perfect spot and offered plenty of shade for a morning session. The trees were absolutely gorgeous and I fell in love with Emilia’s tree swing. It looked like something you would find in a fairy garden.
So for a while, I’ve wanted to try adding video to my services, but I don’t have much experience in doing it. For some time, I’d wanted to try to add a few videos to a session, but needed to find the right opportunity. First, I didn’t want to feel like I was in a race with the light, and since this was a daytime session, I felt I had a little more wiggle room on the time, so I could take a little extra time at each spot to get the photos I normally would, and then take a video or two.
Second, I needed it to be a small family with young children. I have done a few bigger families and extended sessions lately and definitely didn’t feel confident adding something extra to those. But with a small family, there is usually more time during a session since there are not lots of combinations of people to include in the shots. I wanted young children because those sessions are just naturally more active and a good fit for capturing movement.
So anyway, I didn’t tell the family I was shooting video because I wasn’t sure how it would turn out or if I would even include it. But I played around with them today and think they turned out OK. I definitely want to practice more and maybe eventually add this on as an additional option for clients.
Are these not the cutest kids ever? The session was so much fun and I love reliving that fun through the videos. Emelia’s laugh is just the most beautiful music.
Are you following me on Instagram? That’s a great place to keep up to date on future openings. I have a couple spots left for my Holiday Family Mini Sessions. Or are you looking for a senior photographer? Either way, you can book a session directly from my online booking calendar, or contact me if you have questions.
I’m not sure there is anything more magical than the first few weeks at home with your newborn baby.
Merry Christmas everyone! This beautiful family isn’t able to get together often since some of them live in different parts of the country. Since they were all in town for their Christmas celebration, they wanted to be able to capture those memories in photographs, and I am so glad they did. It was such an honor to be a part of such love and laughter. I felt so at home with them that I could have easily slipped in and pretended to be another sibling. It was so much fun.
We had hoped to be able to take at least some of the photos outside, but the weather didn’t cooperate. But with the help of a large covered deck and a gorgeous red umbrella, we made it work.
I hope that the photos mean something special to them and that they can be treasured for years to come.
And I hope all of you have a very wonderful holiday season filled with lots of magical moments, laughter and love.
I am so glad this family chose to have an indoor portrait session this year, as it allowed me to test out new skills I’ve been working on learning. For most of my photography career, I’ve considered myself a natural light photographer. Most of my family portrait sessions are outdoors, but I also love shooting indoor portrait sessions for families and newborns. I’m obsessed with light and love exploring all the ways I can incorporate natural light into my photography.
But sometimes, natural light doesn’t give me what I want. I love using natural light at indoor portrait sessions, given that there are enough windows (and daylight) to allow enough light to enter the rooms. But sometimes, I find that light lacking. I can generally make do with the light available, but sometimes it’s just not the prettiest, and I wish I had more control over the light.
So I set a goal to become more comfortable using a flash, when necessary. It started last summer when I somehow let one of my best friends talk me into photographing her sister’s wedding. (I don’t shoot weddings). I knew that shooting a dark reception would require flash, so I started working on getting better at using one. It was a learning experience and got me more comfortable shooting other dark indoor events, like this Quinceanera.
But at this point, I was only using flash when I had no other choice. I decided it was time to start creating my own light when maybe the natural light was passable, but not the prettiest, like sometimes at indoor sessions. So I’ve been taking an online class on off-camera flash and playing around with using a flash in more circumstances.
This family indoor portrait session was the perfect chance to use some of the things I’d learned. I met this family at their outdoor winter session two years ago, that ended up being one of my favorites of the season. I loved being able to photograph this beautiful family again – this time in their own home. It’s so much fun to have the kids show me their rooms, and get to know another side of them just by exploring their environments.
The living room was a bit dark, so I used off-camera flash for the photos we took in there. Abigail’s room had beautiful window light, so I just used the natural light in her room. But Eliot’s room faced another direction was a bit darker, so I did use the flash in her room. The flash was a great option that allowed me to get some fun action shots of her jumping on her bed. The movement might have been blurry without the flash in the darker room.
I was happy to be able to increase the available light in the house when I wanted to, but the most fun came when we went outside! I was always jealous of wedding photographers who post the fun rain shots with flash because most of my clients postpone their sessions when it rains. (It’s easier to defer family photos than your wedding day). But since this was mostly an indoor session, I was kind of hoping for rain so I could give it a try. The girls were kind enough to go out in the rain with me to get the shot. I wish it had been raining harder, but even the sprinkling gave a fun look to our umbrella shots.
I wanted to get a photo of Eliot riding her bike because that is something she does a lot at home, and I wanted to capture that time for her family. Since it stopped sprinkling, she grabbed the bike for a few shots. Usually, it would have been getting too dark outside for me to get a good picture, particularly of a moving child on a bike. But adding the flash allowed me to not only capture her movement with plenty of light, but it also allowed me to balance the cool, moody clouds in the background.
So I think I will begin to consider flash more as an option, not only for indoor sessions but for fill light or fun effects at outdoor sessions as well. You can still expect most of my shots at outdoor photoshoots to be with natural light, but don’t be surprised if I pull out the flash once in a while.
Speaking of sessions, if you haven’t booked yours for this year but intend to, please don’t wait. There are only a few spots left, and I don’t want you to miss out! I hate turning people away in the fall, but editing a session takes a lot of time, and there are just only so many I can do. You can choose a traditional outdoor photo session, or schedule an indoor portrait session like this one. Book yours today.
Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.
Anthony J. D’Angelo
I first met this lovely Spring Hill family a little over two years ago at big sister Scarlett’s newborn session. I was excited when Mikaela contacted me to tell me that she was pregnant again and wanted to schedule a second newborn portrait session.
It is so much fun to get to come back to a family and again witness such a beautiful time in their lives. I loved seeing baby Scarlett, now 2 1/ 2, doting over her new baby brother. I was able to see what used to be her nursery, recently turned over to baby brother. And she showed me her new big girl room and all her toys.
It’s a different vibe to the house the second time around when I get to photograph repeat newborn sessions. Mom and dad are no longer newbies, but seasoned parents who know better what to expect from both parenthood, and the photo session. And then there is an energetic giggling big sibling there to liven things up…one of my favorite parts.
I feel fortunate to have a job that lets me be a small part of such special memories for a family. I know every time I leave a newborn session, I end up reminiscing about when my girls were that age, and what a magical time it was. I know it was tough too. I haven’t forgotten that completely, but it was also so special. I’m glad that I can create a little something to help them remember that time, which is so fleeting.
And as a bonus, I got to spend a morning hanging out with two pretty awesome little humans. ❤️
The years pass quickly, and that’s one reason why Whitney wanted a home portrait session to capture her family’s Christmas traditions while Haley is still young. They wanted a session that captured things they do each year around Christmas time, like decorating the tree, making Gingerbread houses, and listening to the Christmas Story and the Night Before Christmas while drinking hot cocoa by the fire.
I mean, how can you not just feel all cozy and filled with the Christmas spirit by looking at these photos? I just love this so much. 🎄❤️
What about you? What kind of memories would you like to capture for your family?
This was supposed to be an outdoor session but unfortunately, it started raining right before the session time. As I discuss on my FAQ page, there are several options for you if i should happen to rain for your session time. Nicole chose to move the session to her home, rather than to reschedule, which is a great option as I love capturing families in their own surroundings.
Another issue that Nicole had was that little Scarlett got a fairly significant boo boo on her chin before the session (isn’t that the way it always happens?), and Nicole was afraid it would show in the photos.
I reassured Nicole that Scarlett’s boo boo wouldn’t be too hard to remove in editing, so not to worry about it. So I thought this might be a good post to go over what I will and will not edit in family portraits.
What I will photoshop:
What I won’t photoshop:
So my general rule to myself when it comes to editing…I want you to look like you, because you are gorgeous. But if something happened recently that isn’t a part of your normal, let me know and we can probably work on that.
I saw that phrase written in a meme recently and it spoke to me. I love a good dance in the kitchen. My husband…not so much, but he humors me. To me, it’s one of those things that reminds us to savor the mundane…those little moments at home that don’t seem very grand. Aren’t those really are the ones that matter, and that we cherish for years to come? At a lifestyle portrait session, those are the moments I want to capture.
Things change so quickly as we are raising little ones, and before you know it, some things that seemed so much a part of your daily life that you didn’t even notice them, are suddenly gone. At my house, there is not a playroom anymore. There is no swing set in the back yard. My children bathe themselves and read to themselves at bedtime. I don’t remember the exact time when many of these changed, but gradually, they did change. I look back to photos of when they were smaller and am so thankful that I have those mementos of days gone by.
That is one thing I love about doing these home sessions for families. I look at these photos and imagine all the possibilities they hold in bringing back the past, years from now.
10 years from now, will Renae’s family look at these photos and think about how that was the first year Coen played the violin, which he later grew to master and love? Or will they remember it as that time Coen tried the violin before he found what he really loved?
Maybe Coen and Peri will look at these photos and fondly remember the photo of mom and dad’s wedding day that was hanging over their bed for years. Will they giggle about when Peri was obsessed with Fancy Nancy and the giant caterpillar and Coen (and Mommy) was obsessed with Harry Potter?
Will Peri look around the kitchen and smile at the “Happy Fall” chalk sign? Or remember the kitchen table that the family shared so many meals on before it was traded in for something new?
These are the things that can’t be captured at a park.
One advantage to home lifestyle portrait sessions is that we don’t have to worry about weather or sunlight. My outdoor lifestyle sessions are all booked up for October & November, but I have been able to add some at-home session dates to the November calendar for weekdays where the early sunset doesn’t allow for outdoor sessions. You can book one of these spots now on my calendar. These sessions would be a perfect time to decorate the Christmas tree, make some Gingerbread Houses, and just create beautiful memories of your family together capture forever by the camera.
So what do you think? Would you be up for an at home lifestyle portrait session?
It’s no secret that my passion is family photography. I enjoy seniors, newborns & couples photography as well, but families, especially with younger children, are what inspires me.
Up until now, most of my family sessions have been outdoor, lifestyle portrait sessions. I love these for many reasons, most of which is probably the gorgeous natural light of an outdoor session, particularly at golden hour.
But for a while now, I’ve been feeling drawn to encourage clients to also consider another option for family photography. I want to offer in-home lifestyle & documentary sessions. I’ve always felt like the purpose of photography is to capture meaningful moments that a family will cherish always, and what better place to capture these moments than in a family’s home?
I find that many clients are hesitant to schedule sessions in their home because they are so used to seeing outdoor sessions and they don’t know quite what to expect from an at-home session. Here are a few things you can expect from an at-home photo session with me:
* We will be silly and play games, just like at my outdoor sessions, but those games might look a little differently. For example, we may jump on the bed (with your permission), play shadow puppets, or have tickle fights on mom and dad’s bed.
* Instead of awkwardly posing, I will ask that you do some activities together. What these activities are will vary depending on what your family likes to do together. Maybe mom and dad will have coffee on the back porch, while the kids play at their feet. Maybe you’ll make dinner or cookies. Maybe you can play board games or decorate the Christmas tree. The possibilities are endless. The point is that we will try to capture real moments for you…of things your family enjoys doing together.
* Your house doesn’t need to be fancy, or immaculate, or even clean. For real. This is real life and real moments. We are making memories…not caring about whether or not you swept the bathroom. The camera is forgiving and I promise I don’t even notice.
One advantage to home sessions, other than being able to capture memories in the place that you make the most memories, is that we don’t have to worry about weather or sunlight. My outdoor lifestyle sessions are all booked up for October & November, but I have been able to add some at-home session dates to the November calendar for weekdays where the early sunset doesn’t allow for outdoor sessions. You can book one of these spots now on my calendar. These sessions would be a perfect time to decorate the Christmas tree, make some Gingerbread Houses, and just create beautiful memories of your family together capture forever by the camera.
So what do you think? Would you be up for an at-home family session?
I did a personal project about three years ago that I called “This is Motherhood” In that project, I asked mothers to allow me to take a simple portrait of them, and then I asked them to tell me about motherhood. I gave them a few prompts or thought starters, but mainly was just looking for some insight or experience they had with motherhood that might mean something to other mothers. I was blown away with what women were willing to share with me. Their stories ranged from funny to heartbreaking, and all of them were honest and inspiring.
For some months now, I’ve felt the desire to do another photo project, but I couldn’t get my mind around what exactly it would be.
I knew that like the first project, I wanted it to be about strong, beautiful women (though not necessarily just mothers.) In my line of work, I see a lot about how women are down on themselves, never feeling “enough”. I have a desire to somehow show them through my lens, that they are enough. Just the way they are.
I also knew I wanted it to be different from the first project in that I didn’t want it to be just a single portrait, but a more of a story telling photo essay for each woman. I wanted it to be set in her own environment doing her own thing. I wanted to show women doing hard things, amazing things, but also ordinary things. I wanted to photograph women living life. Embracing it even.
But I wanted some kind of quote or theme to tie them altogether and I’ve struggled with finding what that would be. For a while, I had settled on “She believed she could, so she did.” I liked that it implies some action…as I wanted to include some activity in the stories, and not just some portrait. But something was bothering me about that quote, and I finally figured out what it was….lots of times, she doesn’t believe that she could. But she does anyway. Because she has to. Many times, women don’t know their own strength. I want my project to show them their strength through the photos, so that quote just didn’t feel right.
Then, as I was browsing the internet, I came across the quote above, and it just felt like exactly what I was looking for. I want to photograph women doing heartbreaking, soul-healing, amazing, awful and ordinary things. I believe there is beauty in every moment…the hard, the wonderful and also the mundane. I want to photograph that beauty.
Ok so I didn’t take these photos for my project, but taking them helped me to decide on exactly what it was I wanted my project to be.
I first met BrandiLee last October, when I photographed a family portrait session for them. Last week, a friend of Brandi’s contacted me. She told me that Brandi had been selected by The Mom’s We Love Club as their featured mom for August. The Moms We Love Club is an Instagram account dedicated to loving on struggling moms through spreading awareness, prayer and fundraising. For the feature, they needed lifestyle images of BrandiLee at home. I was happy to have the honor of shooting for such a great cause, so we picked a time and I showed up to photograph real life. Brandilee will be featured at The Moms We Love club starting August 9, so please follow the page, and share the posts when you see them.
As far as strong women go, I’m not sure I know any stronger than BrandiLee, though I’m positive she didn’t plan for life to be that way and that she often feels that she is not strong enough to deal with what life has dealt her. I cannot even begin to do her story justice, but please, please go read about this precious family on their GoFundme page, and if you are lead, consider making a donation.
The quote struck me so when I read it, because honestly, editing these photos took my breath away.
What struck me the most was the joy.
And first let me say that I know it’s not all joy. I don’t want to minimize in any way the horrible heartbreak this family deals with on a daily basis. I cannot even imagine. I know there must be anger, and tears and so much pain.
But also, there were giggles, and hugs and helping mama make tortilla sandwiches, and licking the butter off the knife. And funny snap chat videos, and being excited when Daddy gets home. And asking for more watermelon. And snuggling with brother on the couch. And bedtime kisses.
When I first took the leap to being a professional photography, I honestly dreaded newborn sessions. I felt like I had found my style and my passion in family photography, especially with young children. I prided myself on capturing real, candid moments. I loved directly families into the beautiful light, and capturing what unfolded between them.
Most newborn photography I had seen at that time was so different than what I loved to do. It was beautiful, but very posed, with lots of bean bags, and props. I thought that’s what I had to do too…that that’s what it meant to photograph a newborn.
Thankfully, I started educating myself and following lots of other photographers and found that there is definitely more than one style of newborn photography, and I could absolutely bring what I loved about family photography into a newborn session. Step one was dropping any expectations of forced posing (especially when there are big siblings involved) and to focus on capturing that connection between family members, which is what I love to do.
And what other amazing time to capture that beautiful love and connection than during baby’s first days at home? It is seriously such a magical time that goes by amazingly fast, like a dream. What an honor to be able to freeze time in a sense in those early moments that define a family. It is so special for me to be brought into these moments of my clients lives, and to see their family grow. I was there for the birth of both of these beautiful children and I can’t tell you what it means to me to have a job that allows me to be part of something like that.
My favorite newborn sessions are when there is a big brother or sister involved. This brings a sort of beautiful chaos to the session that I actually love so much. One piece of advice I had read when I began to study lifestyle newborn photography was to go with the flow, and to just get them all in the frame and see what happens.
You can see both of those concepts in action in these photos. It’s generally impossible to get a 15 month old to pose for anything. But just like in a family session, we go with the flow and find things she likes to do to keep her happy and occupied I capture these moments between the family. (Notice the sprinkles on baby brothers belly to capture her interest? LOL)
These are the type of images that mean the most to me as a mother, so I hope that I am able to capture images that are meaningful to my clients.
Y’all, I think I survived the busy season. It was busy, but beautiful and I just absolutely love all the wonderful families I’ve met and photographed over the past few months, and throughout 2017. While there is no more opportunity for Christmas photos, I am still taking orders for custom photo books for past clients, that make great gifts for the holidays. I’m also booking January – June of next year on my online booking calendar.
Please don’t let winter scare you away from scheduling family portraits. Just look at this beautiful family I met yesterday in Chapel Hill at their family home. It was just a gorgeous piece of property with the sun shining just right through the trees on this chilly winter evening. I wanted to take these sweet boys home with me. Gillan was so much fun showing me around his land and playing hide and seek with me. I just adore the way three year olds are so in love with exploring the world around them. And he is obviously such an amazing big brother to little Tucker. And oh my gosh…baby Tucker! Just look at those adorable cheeks and that smile. What perfect little boys.
Gah, I don’t want to leave this baby. Can she just come home and live with me? (Her mommy says no.)
I’m so glad I was able to spend Thanksgiving with her though. We have so much to be thankful for this year. My brother and his amazing wife are just wonderful parents to this sweet girl, and she has her big canine sister Barley looking out for her. My girls are just head over heels for their new cousin, and I couldn’t help including a few pictures of them with her at the end of this post.
I could take photos of her all day long. Also, I just love her nursery. Deb did such an awesome job decorating it.
