Crystal Dawn Family Session!

I have shot Crystal and her adorable family almost exactly one year ago in Wendell, NC.  I got shots from that session that I will forever be in love with.  She is one of the sweetest women I have ever met, and the same goes for her kids.  We go way back as I have known her since high school!  Little did I know, almost ten years later, I would be capturing these sweet moments of raising a family for her and her children to cherish for generations to come.  This time, I even got a little emotional seeing just how much these children have grown in one year!  

After looking at some of my recent work, Crystal decided that she wanted to shoot in Downtown Raleigh.  I was so excited to change up our normal scenario.  The buildings in the warehouse district are colorful and full of character.  I knew we would get great shots of her family in that setting.  Plus, she always does the best job of getting everyone dressed to the nines and looking picture perfect!  I love her little notes to me through Facebook asking me what sort of things would look cute!  

Crystal was worried that this year would be hard to get good shots of her youngest.  "He is two years old and all over the place!", she said.  But I reassured her that everything would be just fine!  I have a two year old as well and totally understand feeling like you cannot get them to sit still for photos.  Luckily for me and my experience with my own daughter, I had a few tricks up my sleeve for this session.

The session went wonderfully!  I am always left with a huge smile on my face and a strong urge to rush home and edit after shooting this family!  Major props go to Crystal for being able to get so much air in those pumps!!  

Guin Maternity Session

Krista and her lovely husband contacted me about shooting their maternity portraits for them a few weeks before our session.  At the time, I hadn't shot any maternity photos under my own name.  Luckily, around the time Krista contacted me, I had the maternity session with Brittany scheduled to happen in a few days!  She saw the photos from that session and loved them!  We met up at the Raleigh Rose Garden right before sunset.  She brought some great props to use including her ultrasound photos!  She also brought a pair of the baby's shoes as well!  I went out and bought two really cool pieces of wood to paint with chalkboard paint and use for the shoot to display her baby's name (can't tell yet until he is born) and the number of weeks pregnant she was!  It really added a nice personal touch to the photos and was something I had never incorporated into a session before.  I have already and plan to continue using these props for clients in the future!  After shooting at the Raleigh Rose Garden so many times (years ago I focused mainly on the beautiful flowers and landscape to practice exposure on film), I figured it was time to explore other part of this awesome location .  I found a bunch of spots that I hadn't used before.  

I also drank way too much iced coffee beforehand and have done that a few times in the past as well.  Lesson learned, especially with no public bathrooms around.  ;)  We got some great shots which I have shared with you below!  Thank you guys for a great session!   I am thinking of you as you get closer to meeting your sweet baby!