Kaitlyn and Aaron chose to have their beautiful family photographed at Genesee Valley Park. Kaitlyn did an absolutely stunning job with her family’s clothing, which she said she just threw together. When I threw together our family’s clothing for our Christmas card photo it looked nothing like this!

To learn more about how to choose clothing for your family’s photos, including some genuine rock star clothing coordinators, click here.

As you can imagine, the more kids you have in a session, the more lively it is, but Kaitlyn and Aaron were pros. We all just had a good time and what we couldn’t make up for in oinky pigs and lollipops, we compensated for by appealing to the photoshop gods.

Genesee Valley Park is a gorgeous location for photos, especially around sunset. We got lucky with a day that had actual sun, and therefore a legitimate golden hour where the sun gave beautiful back lighting to some of the images.

During your photo session you can have whichever groupings you’d like. People periodically ask about this – some photographers must charge per pose or something. Not here. It’s your session to use however you’d like. For Kaitlyn and Aaron’s family, we did several different groupings.

Thank you so much Aaron and Kaitlyn for sharing your beautiful family with me! I hope you have a lovely Christmas!

Krista decided to have family photos taken because it had been a very long time since they’d all had them done and they wanted to update their walls and provide some photographic love for the grandparents.

We met at Genesee Valley Park on a beautiful fall day and just about hit peak colors, which can be tricky to do!

GVP is one of the top 5 locations for outdoor photography in Rochester.  It has an excellent variety of architecture, water and foliage.

Brian and Krista relocated from Albany so that Brian could pastor a local church. They opted for a few professional headshots during their session.

And of course it’s never a bad idea to have updated photos of you and your husband or wife. Those images tend to get neglected over the years.

Josh attends high school locally and I tried to get a few hobbies out of him but was unsuccessful. He was a really good sport about the photos – which I would imagine weren’t at the top of his bucket list.

Thank you so much Brian, Krista and Josh for sharing your family with me. I hope our paths cross again soon!

Jessica was one of the lucky winners of this years Mini Session Give Away. What are mini sessions? They’re an economical way to get a great holiday card photo! They’re 20 minute back to back sessions that are perfect for families who want just a few photos and don’t mind a more limited choice of day, time and location.

Want to enter next year’s give away? Click here to sign up for the newsletter and keep your eyes peeled in early September.

Jessica said this was the first time they’ve ever had family photos done but their daughter acted like she’d been doing this her whole life. She was perfect.

This year’s mini sessions were held at Corbett’s Glen and Genesee Valley Park, which are both in the Top 5 Outdoor Locations list for Rochester. If you’re feeling more adventurous, check out the post How to Choose a Great Location.

The best part about being a photographer is the awesome people you get to meet. Kenny works for Waste Management, which may not seem like an interesting topic but really is. I think Jessica wanted us to stop talking about compost.

Jessica is a social worker who works in a program that supports young moms so they can keep their babies at home with them.  I’m sure it comes with its share of frustrations but what a meaningful thing to do with your life!

Thank you so much Jessica and Kenny for sharing your beautiful family with me!!! It was a joy to get to know you all a little.

When Jackie first arrived at the park her family had run ahead and I looked at her with my head cocked and said, “I know you from somewhere.”

She very graciously pointed out that we’d taken childbirth classes together. Granted, that was 12 years ago, but we’d had several email and phone exchanges and I did NOT connect the dots. What an absolute joy it was to see them all again! What was especially coincidental about this was that I also worked with one of the other couples from our childbirth class for the first time a few weeks before. Random! I’ll have to call the fourth couple and tell them this is the year for family photos.

Their only goal with this session was getting a couple of nice photos for their Christmas card. Their dog had to be one of the most photogenic Christmas card dogs ever. Doesn’t he look like he belongs with a cup of hot chocolate and a fire in the fireplace?

They did a great job choosing a neutral color scheme for their clothing – they all go together but aren’t too matchy, and the neutral colors bring the attention to their faces rather than their clothing.

Jackie and John named both of their girls names starting with J and to complete the theme, named their dog JJ.

11 and under is a great age to photograph – they’re still kids so they’re swayed by candy, silly jokes and oinking pigs.

Genesee Valley Park is on the top 5 list of places to take photographs outside in Rochester. What makes for a great location? I’m so glad you asked! Click here for how to identify a great location.

Thank you so much Jackie and John for sharing you beautiful family with me. It was wonderful to spend time with you all!

Sam turned six months old right around mini session time, which was perfect for catching the six month milestone. Mini sessions are 20 minute sessions that happen in late September and early October – if you’d like to be notified when they happen next, click here to jump on the list.

Sam and I first met when he was a newborn and he posed for one of the best eye open newborn photos I’ve ever taken.  To check it out, click here.

Sam along with most other six month olds, wasn’t quite sitting up yet. A great strategy for this situation is using little chairs. You still get the sitting up look, but they have some support.

Another great pose for babies of any age is the over the shoulder shot.

Jenna didn’t really want to star in the photos, but this way we were able to get some really super happy baby photos and she was barely in them.

And this photo can be done really quickly, with mom or dad holding on, then letting go briefly for the photo.

Those eyes…

Thank you so much Jenna and Tony for sharing your beautiful family with me!!!

If anyone in my family were injured, these calm, compassionate people would be on my A list.

Their son Asher surprised them with an early birth and resulted in some modified birth plans, but is happy and healthy and insisted on sleeping through the ENTIRE session. Valerie compared him to a giant newborn.

We connected through Beautiful Birth Choices which is a local business that supports and empowers women through pregnancy and childbirth.  If you’re in that phase of life I’d highly recommend the services they offer – especially their childbirth classes.

Aaron and Valerie were married last summer and Valerie made her entrance on this canoe across the river to the spot where the previous photos were taken. They’ve had a very eventful year.

We headed back to their house for some family photos with *every* member of the family.

And last but not least, the epic dad/baby photo.

Thank you so much for sharing your family with me. I hope you have an equally exciting year this year watching Asher grow!

We started out in Genesee Valley Park and were there as the sun was setting which allowed for some beautiful lighting off the river. Heather’s family has lots of experience graduating seniors from high school so she came equipped with different clothes to give variety to the images.

Heather had her heart set on having images taken at the Sunken Gardens. Somehow we got separated from Heather, and Nicole and I ended up lost in the woods. We made it with just enough light to squeeze by.

And the final image is Heather’s yearbook photo.

Congratulations Heather!

Heather’s mom, Nicole, and I go way back, and Heather (blog post to come) is her third senior I’ve had the pleasure of working with. I met Megan last year for the first time when Nicole arranged for a surprise photo session of Megan and her siblings (which I don’t think this ever made it to the blog). The take home here is if you ever get a chance to be friends with Nicole, take it. She’s an awesome human being!

We started the session at Genesee Valley Park.

The stone bridge is a really nice background that you may see overused on this blog… I guess I’ll need to explore the park a little more for some new spots!

We headed over to the path which is also a favorite. When taking solo portraits changing the background and clothing are really important for adding variety. Megan brought along a few different shirts to mix things up a little.

As we were leaving, the sun was setting behind us and we took some images that were back lit with the sun. If you happen to have gorgeous red hair it has an even more stunning impact.

Then we headed over to the Sunken Garden in Highland Park just as we were losing sunlight. Nicole and I somehow managed to get lost and ran into a fence, but eventually made our way with just enough light to get by.

Congratulations Megan!!! Best of luck on your new adventures!

I first met Leah because she was a reader in Rochester’s first ever production of Listen to Your Mother, which I’m excited to say is coming back this year.  Leah is an author and licensed massage therapist.  You can check out her work here.

Leah opted to have her professional headshot taken during a mini session in Genesee Valley Park. This is a great option if you’re looking for an economical route, and if you’d like a chance to win a free mini session, just sign up for the newsletter by clicking here.

When you’re taking individual portraits it’s important to give variety to the images both by changing the background but also by bringing a few different clothing items. Leah chose to mix things up through the use of scarves, jewelry and a vest. We ended up with a wide variety of images to use in just 20 minutes!

Steve was almost not able to lift Nathan, so this is probably the last year that they can do this pose.

Normally this type of image would be an outtake, but Becky thought it was a good representation of her life (can’t we all relate!).

For her final order, Becky opted for a portrait collage which is simple way to combine your favorite images in one space.

Steve serves our country through the military and Becky makes me think about how the wives are the unsung heroes. They’re gearing up for yet another move in a few months and we’ll miss them! Good luck in your next adventure. I’mg lad we can send a piece of Rochester with you.