Valentine's Day Mini-Session

Just before the holidays, I was contacted by Allison because she needed some family pictures for their Christmas card and a photographer they had scheduled with had fallen through (lucky me:). I had a great time meeting her beautiful family and taking their photos. Well, she contacted me again because she does a project for her husband every Valentine's Day and needed some new pictures of her gorgeous daughters. I had the day off from work, so I drove to her home the following morning (with Reagan in tow) and took some shots of the girls in their pink dresses. I had seen tons of cute Valentine's themed ideas for photos, and I quickly put together this banner that you see in several of the backgrounds. Super cute and so easy!

Probably my favorite shot of the morning. 

It was sunny and warm, so I took her older daughter outside for a few more shots since I definitely prefer an outdoor setting.

Now I should probably use the same props to take a few of my own kiddo before she grows up and refuses to pose for me!!!

FLASH SALE - Free Mini Session Recap

A couple weeks ago, I posted a FLASH giveaway for a FREE mini session. Within 25 seconds, someone had commented on the post to claim the session! (Got to love the power of social media:)

The winner wanted some family pictures for their Christmas card. Unfortunately our first session was rained out, and just as it looked like our rescheduled session was going to be a bust too, we figured out a great way to make it work...just do it one day earlier! They met me at the Gristmill Park in Mt Vernon and despite the chilly temperatures, the girls were great sports and very photogenic! In just 30 minutes I managed to snap nearly 300 pictures (189 of which I edited and gave to the winner)! Here are my favorites:

Ridiculously cute outfit, right?!

I could NOT get enough of this woodpile. What a fun, natural background!

Christmas Pictures at the National Harbor

I'm a bit behind, but last weekend I had the opportunity to take pictures of one of the cutest 11-month olds EVER! His parents must take tons of pictures of him because he was such a ham for the camera! We met at the Gaylord Hotel in the National Harbor, and it was the perfect location. We did most of our shots outside, but ventured inside at the end of the session. Here are my favorites!

Fantauzzi Family Pictures

On Saturday morning, I drove a bit north to meet the Fantauzzi family. They heard about my business through one of the blogs I just started following! (Love social media!) They planned to have some pictures taken the previous weekend, but at the last minute, the photographer cancelled...my luck! Here are some shots from the session:

This was the birthday girl! She was having her party shortly after the pictures.

Sisters!

There's just something about this expression that I love...

Little beauties!

I absolutely adore this shot. Dad was dancing with his girls, so I climbed up the stairs to snap a few candids, and the little one caught me:)

Dad and his girls

Seriously cute!

What a wonderful family!

And while this one isn't a "framer," I love it because it sums up the session so adequately. The girls were great, but so full of energy. I spent most of the time chasing them!

As you can see, I still have a lot to learn, particularly when it comes to indoor photography. I'm constantly waiting for my flash to reload (I hate when it says busy and I miss the perfect shot!) and struggling with finding the right manual settings. I'm hoping to take some classes in the near future though.

Thanks for following my journey!

Miller Family Photos

I recently had the pleasure of taking photographs for a friend of mine who also moved from NC to VA this year. She is an accomplished marathoner, math whiz, and amazing wife and mother! We decided to meet on a gorgeous Sunday afternoon at 3 (we selected a time that would be best for her girls) at a local park. I arrived a bit early and took a couple pictures to get a feel for this new location. She was looking for some fall foliage, but sadly there isn't much to be found following Hurricane Sandy. Luckily, I managed to find this great tree!

The weather was perfect and the kids were incredibly cooperative and well behaved. My friend did a great job coordinating outfits for her family too! Here are some of my favorite shots from this session.

We started at the tree while another photographer was busy in front of the farmhouse. They changed up the poses and I took several shots to ensure all eyes were open, looking at the camera, and focused!

Once we got enough pictures with the fall foliage, we moved over to a shady spot behind the farmhouse.

We worked our way around the farmhouse, stopping at this fabulous barn door which made a great backdrop!

Finally, we were back at my originally selected spot. Another family waiting for photos was kind enough to give us a minute to grab some quick shots using the fence!

With that, we called it a day and the girls started practicing their balance beam walking on these parking stones. I couldn't resist taking just a few more shots!

Then the dad wanted a few shots of him tossing the girls in the air...something they LOVED!

This was a really fun photo shoot and I'm in love with this park. Not only is it ideal for pictures, but it has the best playground for toddlers!