The weather this September has been AMAZING! I have been loving every second of it and I have been busy doing as much outdoors as possible. I want to soak up every last second of the remainder of the this good weather, which includes lots of outdoor photoshoots. I spent a good deal of the Summer photographing families and children on the beach and I am happy to start shooting some Fall sessions at my favorite park location.

Many families have been scheduling family sessions in place of the traditional first birthday portrait session. I love this trend because you not only get images that commemorate your little one’s first birthday, but you also will have images of you interacting with your child that you will treasure forever.

I love that so many of my clients have been opting to do family sessions in place of the traditional cake smash photo session. A first birthday is the perfect milestone to update those family photos. I often encourage my clients to get into the frame with their children and this is especially true when a client opts to do an outdoor session in place of the studio.

I recently photographed this family, whom I first met 11 months ago when I photographed them in their home for a lifestyle newborn session. I loved that I was able to see how much baby M has grown over the year and she was an absolute delight to photograph. She was all smiles and giggles throughout the session. I usually schedule my sessions an hour before sunset, but in the Summer months this time of day can be problematic for children because sunset coincides with bedtime. I can work around that time of day and shoot an hour or even an hour and a half earlier by scheduling the session at an outdoor location that provides lots of trees to filter the light. I am glad we moved the start time for this session because our birthday girl was so happy and I was able to capture some really sweet moments.

Now that the busy Fall season has come and gone, I can finally catch up on my blogging.  I photographed so many beautiful children and families this season and had so much fun getting to know the families and photographing them. I also wanted to finally share a few photos from a few recent Fall family sessions and provide some insight into family photography for those who are considering booking Spring or Summer family lifestyle portraits.  

This recent Fall family session was so special to photograph for a multitude of reasons.  One reason is because Alison is a former colleague of mine from my teaching days.  It is always a thrill and an honor to be able to spend time with my beloved colleagues, many of whom I worked with for over a decade, and document their family memories for them.  Secondly, this was Alison's first family portrait session with her beautiful two month old daughter. 

t is no secret that I am a Summer girl, but I also truly love the Fall. One of my favorite Fall traditions is our annual outing to the farms out east.  We try to get out there twice in the Fall, once for apple picking and once for pumpkin picking. These outings are especially important during this time of year because it allows me to have uninterrupted time with my girls during the rush of my peak holiday season.  

I absolutely love photographing families in the pretty Autumn foliage. I love to capture connected and cozy images of families and I love the rustic backdrop that the season provides.  So, if you have been waiting to update your family photos , now is the perfect time to do so.