you’re in that first year of marriage.

you’ve bought your first house.

you’re pregnant.

it’s just the two of you,

forming your own little cocoon.

and then life emerges.

and you see things greater

than you’ve ever seen.

and you feel things greater

than you’ve ever felt.

and it is the closest

you’ve felt

to the presence

of

God.

xo

A

p.s. if you’re viewing this in a reader, please click over to the site to watch the video, which doesn’t appear in the RSS feed.  cheers!  A

maternity shoot on a whim.

thought i had three weeks still.

baby G thought otherwise.

so, we had our maternity shoot,

and 6 days later, wendy was holding her new baby girl.

and what was on the inside,

was now on the outside.

what a difference a week makes.

joe, a new dad for the first time.

their two became a three.

and life settled into

the new normal.

gracie has arrived.

and there is a new hand to hold in the family.

new shoes to fill.

new family laughs to share.

a new mouth to feed.

a new mom

holds her heart in her hands.

as gracie’s newborn ears unfurl

so too does life.

together they will walk,

as a family,

into their future.

love you guys

congratulations!

xo

A

A small space.  A dark hotel room.  Lots of other photographers jockeying for position and “that” shot.

Imagine.

Imagine spending a full weekend with MeRa, her husband Brian, and 20 other very talented female photographers.

We talked, learned, laughed and dreamed.  We photographed babies one day, and families the next.  All-in-all, it was  wonderful.

MeRa wanted us to work outside of our comfort zone, and boy did we ever.  As promised, the process and the settings (indoor hotel room or city street, large groups of photographers trying to take the same shot) did push me creatively — because I didn’t get to set up my shot and because I didn’t get to spend a lot of time with the clients.  It’s hard to build rapport with a five year old when 7 other women are also trying to do that at the same time.  Not wanting to overwhelm the children, I tended to fall back and wait, getting the shot from the outside.  And wait.  And then take a creatively composed shot so to avoid other lenses (and photographers) in the shot.

Here were some of my favorite shots from the newborn/baby session.

When this little guy was born, he barely weighed one pound, and was the equivalent in size of the TV remote.  Look at him now at 9 months.  I loved this shot because of his mother holding his tummy, and more importantly, of his own hand resting on her arm.  They’ve been through so much together.  Protection and dependence.

At the end of the sessions, I came into a room where a couple of moms had put their babies in a chair together.  Look at him analyzing her.

And there they sat.  Could they be any cuter?  What a great way to end the first day.

The next day we focused on families and child portraits.  Again, here are some of my favorites.  This one says so much to me.  Daddy and his little girl.  You can just feel his love and likewise, feel the way she feels safe in his arms.

I love this next shot.  It just speaks to me.  One of those days…

This photo is one moment of peace in a very active household.  To get all three children into one shot was a challenge.  Here, they were quiet in their mother’s arms.

I loved the colors in this little girl’s outfit, from the silver shoes to the bright flowers to the purple leg warmers.  Loved it!

She had a way about her.  Quiet and confident.

And this shot is all boy.  Here are 4 little boys, 2 sets of brothers (1 and 3 are brothers, and 2 and 4 are brothers), never having met before.  But within two minutes, they were all climbing together, making up adventures together, fighting monsters together.  They had their own world while the grown-ups worked around them.  It was wonderful to watch.

More than simply participating in photoshoots, what made the weekend so worthwhile was the opportunity to spend such quality dedicated time with MeRa and Brian.  In addition to being world-renowned wedding photographers, they are happily married and devoted parents.  They shared so much of their lives with us, including the opportunity to meet and hang out briefly with their adorable children.  Thank you to Pascaline and Blaze for sharing your parents with us.  And thank you MeRa and Brian, for everything.

Three sisters finding out a new brother is coming (ultrasound photo).

Dancing at the church (First Communion).

First sip of her very first shirley temple.

Five little girlfriends.

Sixth month old “finding the light.”

Laughing at how to keep marriage “fresh” after 50+ years.

A father’s comfort.

A father and his 3 girls.

A five year old freely dancing at her birthday party.

A blankie, made by the boy’s great-grandmother, comforts now and for years to come.

A boy and his Bumpa.

Finishing each other’s sentences for over 60 years.

Waiting, so hard at age six.

Their first-born.

A mother’s hand, always there.  Always protecting.

Forty years together.

Oh, what to wish for….

Mother and son.

A flower for you.

Sisters.  So often bickering, but every once and a while, you catch a glimpse of this.  And you’re happy you had your camera out.

The Godfather.

Two self-portraits with my son.

Get the shots.  Whatever you do.  I took the last two shots last year simply by holding out the camera.  But I wanted these moments with my son captured.  During school, I’m home with him by myself in the mornings.  Just he and I.  In our pjs, lazy and unshowered.  Too often I’m behind the camera.  It’s rare that there is shot of my children with me actually in the photo as well.   I want to have those shots.  More importantly, I want them to have those shots after I’m long gone from this world.  Those last two shots are near and dear to my heart and capture the essence of he and I.  Together.  Just us.  Little games and snuggles.  The shots are far from technically perfect.  But they are absolutely perfect in my eyes.

xo, A

I wound up at their home for almost four hours.  And after having cute baby C pee all over practically everything, I put their furniture back in place, cleaned up, and started the laundry.  Now don’t you new moms want me to come to your house?!

Here are some of my favorites.  It’s so hard to pick just a few.

And my favorite shot of the day:

Two together are now three.  Love.