Look at this sweet little girl! Harper and her mama (and grandma in from Connecticut!) came to visit the studio last week and the shoot went beautifully. Mama brought a few momentos and special props – a beautiful blanket that had been knitted for baby that we incorporated into the photoshoot, a giant teddy bear that Harper’s dad won for her mom back when they were dating, and the cutest little girl outfits! Harper was a pro at the photoshoot and was as sweet and snuggly as she could be. The images came out beautifully!! (Seriously giving me baby fever for a little baby girl right now!)… check out some of our favorites!

How beautiful is this baby girl?? Baby Brooklyn Sydney (I love her name!) stopped into our studio last week and I’ve been drooling over these images. The shoot was a breeze. I do not say that lightly! I mean normally with newborns, you have several feeding sessions, some crying, some fussing. This is expected at all newborn shoots. Maybe some accidents (well, always some accidents!).. we had NONE of the above, and Brooklyn was just as sweet as she could be at 7 days old! All full of newborn tenderness and sleepiness. She was an absolute dream to work with, and I was truly inspired working on these images. Here a few of my favorites.. I could go on and on, and I’m forcing myself to stop at some point, because, well, this little baby just owned her little shoot! She was beautiful in EVERY. single. image. Not even kidding. Check them out!

OH my goodness! Baby Jon Edward came to visit us last week and he was just as sweet as can be! His older sisters, Clara and Zoey were so thrilled about having a new baby brother, and wanted to be in some pictures as well. Those shots were FUN – lots of smiles, giggling, and posing and then re-posing. We have some wonderful outtakes of the little girls just cooing at their sweet little brother! We also got a few great snaps of baby Jon and mommy, and even daddy, at the coaxing of all of us, to get in from of the backdrop, “for just a second”! The whole family was just wonderful.. the best kind of clients. Laid back, sweet, and full of fun ideas. We had such a great time with baby Jon’s newborn pictures! And bonus, we got to shoot both the posed newborn session with a mix of lifestyle imagery as well! AND.. mom and dad LOVED them! Here are a few of our favorites:

Tell me one thing?… Is there a better way to celebrate your first year of life than hanging out with your favorite people (mom and dad) and getting an ENTIRE CAKE? To YOURSELF? To EAT AND SMASH!?!? Uh, no. I dont think so. Neither did little Emmett! We celebrated this big guy’s first year on earth by having a little family photoshoot in the mountains at Bear Creek, Colorado Springs, and hanging out for a bit and snapping some photographs! And then, we went back to the studio, and SMASHED a delicious cake!! What fun. Every birthday should be like this, no?? Emmett thought so!

I love this family. Just adore them. Alyse and Jay are my favorite kind of clients to work with.. so easy going, so beautiful, and SO IN LOVE! With each other and with their little boy. They are just the happiest, easiest, most delightful people to work with. Extra bonus is when you start out as clients and end up as great friends. They all ended up staying after our little photoshoot / cake smash in the studio and eating dinner with us until 11pm, on a SCHOOL NIGHT! And it was so worth it. 

Welcome to the world, little baby Everett, and congrats to brand new parents Ashley and Jason! It was an absolute joy to stop in on them last weekend and photograph their newborn baby boy, who came into the world a little early, but absolutely full of personality and sweetness. It was so RELAXED and easy. Newborn lifestyle sessions are quickly becoming my favorite for this reason. Ashley and Jason are awesome too, and I was able to chat to Ashley about ALL kinds of things.. becoming a new mom myself in just a few short weeks, I loved just siting and chatting while she fed Everett and talking about the whole birth process and having a newborn, which is all very fresh for her. These little nuggets of wisdom are just as important for me as these images will be for them.
Side note, can I tell you just how very much I love my job?! I feel so incredibly lucky and so blessed to be able to do what I do.. giving brand new parents their very first recorded memories of their babies is what dream jobs are made of. So happy for them, so much love in this little clan!

It’s been raining forever here in colorado. And houses are washing away and parks are closed and maybe the sun will never come out again? What is the deal out here? I guess the ground doesnt absorb all the water in the desert like it does back east (which is funny because.. wouldn’t it be thirstier?).. and things just go colliding and crashing right off hills and mountain sides. Things like houses. Which is scary. I cant even explain it.. it’s been raining cats and dogs in a real nonsense kind of way for so long (weeks!) and I feel like it’s so different here that afterwards it will probably not rain again for years.

Anyway, I took the macro for a spin yesterday just to get some fresh air and get my eyeballs clean from editing all morning. I like this one of our new clematis plant, ready to bloom. He’s loving the rain, clearly. 

Q: What could be better than turning one?

A: Turning one and having a cake to eat and smash ALL. BY. YOURSELF.

We had such a blast with little Hayley Rae, who turned one last week! Look at those baby blue eyes. She was so excited about her cake, and like a true sweet little lady, even offered us some in the middle of her cake smash.

Last Thursday we had the pleasure of meeting one week old twin boys Ephron and Elijah. Mom Kiley was so impressive – she carried them for 38+ weeks and had a scheduled C-section and was up and moving around just a few days later. “Are you in pain? That’s major surgery!” I said, when she arrived for the shoot. “Ah, I’m fine. It’s pinching a little, but otherwise totally ok!” is what she responded. Total boss.

The boys were beyond adorable.. just like little kittens crying out when they wanted to be fed. Kiley wasnt sure if they were identical yet – I guess sometimes at birth you cant tell if they’re in separate sacs in the placenta, but they sure looked identical, down to matching birth marks.

They sure were beautiful.

Aren’t the best jobs the ones you end a long productive day with, so exhausted that the sheets feel deliciously cool to the touch, so slippery and soft, and your mattress, so unbelievably cloud-like that you just thank god for a great profession that just wears you to the bone with satisfaction?

Whew. Guys. I hit the lottery with my job. How lucky am I? I am constantly pinching myself.

Crawling around on the floor for a shoot, on hands and knees, sweating – oh my goodness, the amount of sweat!… It isnt always pretty but the results usually are, if-I-do-say-so-myself ;). Some days I’m chasing down props at some cockamamie studio sale in Denver, wrestling other photographers for newborn hats and props.. and other days, I’m scoping out the perfect setting sunlight for my next family session. And yet others, I am spending quiet time clicking my shutter away at brand new PEOPLE – little newborn babies, only hours old and completely new and fresh to this world.

I love my work because I can put as much or as little as I want into it. And most days, it’s MUCH. Because it really keeps me energized – I hate to sound corny, but I actually love my job. Some days I have a well of strength and can run for hours, shoot for hours, edit for hours, write for hours. Other days are for record keeping and a nap. I have learned the hard way I am not meant for being a pupil or having a supervisor. I do best when running my own ship! And I am so, so appreciative that I can do that, and I have an audience of viewers who believe in me and enjoy my talents.

I’ll end this post with an inspiring graphic I came across recently. How cool is this? Makes you think about what it is you’re doing, how it is you might want to change and tweek it, and what it is that really drives you.

So Rocky Mountain National Park is completely beautiful. (Duh). I loved plodding up these mountain trails, thick with 41” of snow (and May is just a few days away!).. and the very very THIN with air, at 10,000 feet elevation, sort of made me a bit lightheaded and woozy? Whew was I dying and loving it, all at once.

National Parks – have I ever mentioned how awesome and unique they are? They’re these little villages with tiny spiderwebbed roads pushing through these massive chunks of WILDERNESS, parked in middle of nowhere. Back Country, USA. Just a road here and there, a few campsites, and people speckled throughout who love the outdoors just as much as you do (because you actually have to pay the fees to get in). You are well aware that the one tiny piece of pavement you’re rambling along in your car is the only bumpy road for miiiiiles and miles and miles as you do a 360 degree turn and climb your way through mountain passes and down through alpine meadows. Plus the wildlife is just kind of roaming around, a pack of elk here, some wild turkeys there, and they really could care less that you’re there taking photos and oogling at their beautiful colors.

I sat up here in this spot, on the bald, rocky side of a mountain for a good long while while my husband scrambled off to explore other alpine lakes. I was in pure heaven just perched on this cliff top, 7 months pregnant, like some kind of over stuffed bird. I couldn’t hike much this weekend – just couldn’t do it at 10,000 feet and finally convinced my husband that I’d be fine! In the wilderness! By myself! That I was actually happiest just sitting and breathing and taking in this mind blowing canvas. I was left for 45 blissful minutes to think, empty my brain, and shoot some images in this beautiful park. I could have stayed for hours.

I cant stress enough how important just getting out and clearing your brain chatter is. I want it all the time, I need it. The best way I know how to do it is just sitting like this, in the wilderness. I love churches – all kinds – the beautiful structures and architecture.. but I still contest that the wilderness – God’s Church – is the best church there is. I felt such peace sitting alone watching the sun burn off all the cloudy mist and turn everything a fluid, liquid sunshine. It was like God took a giant wet cloth and wiped my outsides and insides completely clean. And the air!! So fresh, so crisp, so invigorating. My little spot was just so perfect and I’m so grateful for my husband that loves the outdoors as much as I do, and the time we can get away and escape and go exploring.

I loved my church on the side of this mountain for the quiet, reflective time it was. Next time you’re feeling gross and cooped up, step out, breathe in, and just go shoot some photos.