This recent session was so much fun to photograph. I first photographed this family for an outdoor sitter session just a few years ago. Shortly after the holidays, my client messaged me inquiring about a photo session for her mother, who was about to turn 70. She and her brothers wanted to gift their mom a photo session of the entire family together. Like most families, the last time they had family photos taken was at a wedding and the photos did not include the grandchildren. Their mother’s birthday was the perfect opportunity to update their family photos.

It is so important to document your own relationship with your children, but also their relationship with their extended family. The bonds between grandparent and grandchild are precious and to capture that bond is a gift not only fro the grandparent, but for the whole family to treasure as well. I can’t think of a more meaningful gift to commemorate a special occasion.

Although I am a family and newborn photographer, I am well versed in photographing couples for not only proposals, but also intimate wedding ceremonies. I don’t photograph large elaborate weddings, but focus more on smaller intimate gatherings. I absolutely love being able to document this special moment for couples. Often times, these weddings move me to tears because the love the couples have for one another is so evident. I think that is the benefit of doing small scale weddings. Everyone in attendance really can share in the happy emotions of the day.

Halloween has come and gone and the Summer seems like a distant memory. As I sit bundled up in my winter attire, I find myself longing for those warm nights on the beach. Although I love the Fall and the holiday season, I am partial to the warm weather of Summer and my busy nights photographing families on the beach. I am finally catching up on some of the blogging from those sessions.

This family is a local Long Beach family and I photographed them on a cloudy, but warm evening in July. I know most people prefer a sunset beach session, but cloudy evenings can provide a beautiful and soft backdrop for photos and the light is always super flattering. Mom chose the perfect attire for a cloudy day session. Her bright and cheery color palette provided the perfect pop fo color for these photos.

I originally met this family when mom was pregnant with her second child. She scheduled a maternity session with me in my studio and then we were scheduled for newborn photos in the Spring. Unfortunately, we had to postpone her newborn session because of COVID.

Now that the baby is near six months old, Mom decided that she wanted to schedule a Fall family session. She chose one of my favorite locations for her session, which is at a vintage train museum. Although I use this location mostly for holiday photos, it is also perfect for family photos. The train allows for adorable and classic images of the children and the lush foliage is perfect for family photos. I love when families are open to unique locations. Parks, beaches and gardens are all awesome locations at which to schedule a family session, but there are many other options from which you can choose as well. I was so happy mom chose this particular spot.

Photographing a vintage Volkswagon van has been a vision of mine for quite some time, so when I came across this gorgeous restored 1971 bus, I knew I had to create a mini session using it as the backdrop. The bus serves as the perfect backdrop for family photos.

I rented the bus from Long Beach Photo Bus and I can’t say enough positive things about the company and owners. They hare really designed the photo booth to be a true experience. It is not only available to photographers, but for party rentals as well. Head to their site for more info.

It is now officially the Fall and the weather has cooled off significantly. I had my first pumpkin spice coffee of the season, decorated my home for Halloween and have begun shooting my holiday mini sessions. Even though Fall seems to be in full swing, I still had time for one last beach sunset session this month on a warm and mild September night.

This client had her third baby six months ago and was not able to have a newborn session due to the COVID closures. She decided that she wanted to get some updated family photos and wanted her son to finally have his photographic debut, so she scheduled a family session with me in late September.

Although Summer is officially over, the weather the past few weeks has been spectacular. We had a few days of cold weather and then a stretch of 80 degree days crept in. I welcomed the warm weather, not only because I prefer warmer days, but also because I had a few nights of family beach sessions on my calendar for this month.

This client was originally on my calendar for a newborn session in the Spring. Due to the COVID closures, I was unable to photograph her, so I was super excited to finally be able to meet this family and capture some two month old photos of her baby. We originally had our session scheduled a few days earlier, but the weather was a frigid 62 degrees, so we decided to use the rain date instead. We made the right choice because not only was the weather spectacular, but so was the sunset.

Little Miss V was an absolute blast to work with. She was such a super cooperative child and sat for all of the posed shots that I took at the start of the session. Once it was time to move down to the shore, she was playful and silly, which is exactly what I want to happen at that point of the session. I always prefer the playful and candid captures from these family sessions.

If you haven’t noticed it yet, the recent forest fires out west have created some hazy skies over the past week. Consequently, the sunset has quite a different look to it lately. I am not complaining because I absolutely love the dramatic look that this unique sky creates.

I usually shoot at golden hour, which is the hour right before sunset, but because of the haze created by the fires, this recent session turned into a “blue hour” session, which is the 20-30 minutes that follows sunset. This time of day is equally as gorgeous. The light is soft and filtered, the sky has a blue and pink hue and it often creates for very visually interesting images.

I went to high school with this recent client and both she and her twin brother are amongst the funniest and sweetest people I know. After photographing this beauty with her family, I realized that her four year old daughter inherited that same gift of humor. Dad also was a hoot to work with. Seriously, I don’t think I have ever had more fun during a session.

Little Miss V was an absolute blast to work with. She was such a super cooperative child and sat for all of the posed shots that I took at the start of the session. Once it was time to move down to the shore, she was playful and silly, which is exactly what I want to happen at that point of the session. I always prefer the playful and candid captures from these family sessions.

Although I am primarily a family and newborn photographer, I also photograph events occasionally. When this bride contacted me about her wedding a few months ago, I knew that the day would be a special one and I was excited and honored to be a part of it. On the day of the wedding, we started at the Garden City Gazebo to capture some family photos.

In the midst of the “stay in” during the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been many moments of anxiety and fear. To helps assuage those fears, I have opted to focus on the positives during the last few weeks. For example, I am enjoying this relaxing time at home, nurturing bonds with my children, reading voraciously, creating art and catching up on some blogging. When I choose this perspective, the situation actually seems more like a vacation than a quarantine.

Speaking of vacations, we traveled to Florida in early February for our annual trip to the Florida Keys. This year, we spent a few nights in Orlando and visited Walt Disney World. Although we visited Disney in 2017 and 2018, this trip was extra special because our youngest is currently princess obsessed and both girls are now old enough to really appreciate the trip.

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.

To bring some vibrancy and color to the photos, we opted for a garden location for their birthday/family session. The night of the session was absolutely gorgeous and the sunset was beautiful. We started the session with a few posed family portraits and then continued with some birthday photos of the twins. Thankfully, there was an array of flowers that were in bloom that allowed me to capture this family with a variety of colors and textures in the background.

Mom contacted me about a first birthday session for her youngest son, but did not want a session filled with props or a cake smash; instead, she wanted natural images of her son, which is the exact type of session I like to shoot. In the warmer months, I always suggest outdoor sessions to my clients for children’s photos. Shooting outdoors allows me to get the most authentic and natural looking images possible; additionally, these type of images are classic and can hang on your walls for years to come.

The weather in June has been spectacular! I am loving every second of this month and I am so excited that my session one beach sunset family photos sessions has begun. The beach truly is the perfect backdrop for any photo session; it provides a gorgeous natural backdrop and the ocean and sand seems to help facilitate the playful and interactive images that I love to capture.

I recently had the opportunity to work with this beautiful family again. I photographed them two and a half years ago in their home for a lifestyle newborn session when they first gave birth to their twins. I just love when families return for future sessions and I have the opportunity to see their children grow.; it truly is such an honor.  

Did you know that you schedule a session for family portraits right in your own home? My style of photography is not really about the location, but rather, centered on capturing you having fun with your children. Your home is the perfect location because your children will feel at ease, you don’t have to waste time traveling and it allows me to capture your family authentically.

I was elated when this mom contacted me and said she wanted to schedule a lifestyle session in her Garden City home. The goal of her session was to capture her family playing in the yard in which they spend much of their time. These types of moments are exactly what I like to capture for families.

Although the weather in August has been very tricky this year and I have had to reschedule most of my shoots due to rainstorms, I still believe that August is the ideal month to schedule a family session on the beach. The sun sets right over the shore line during this month and creates a magical sunset that is the perfect backdrop for your family photos.  

The weather last week was dreary and it felt like the rain would never end. Finally, the clouds melted away and we were left with an amazing Spring day. It was the perfect night for my first family session of the season.  We had to reschedule this session because of the weather and, at first, I wasn't sure that the weather would hold up. Thankfully, the weather improved and I had a great time photographing this beautiful family.