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People often view winter as the off season for location based photography but it doesn’t have to be!

Snow makes for absolutely gorgeous outdoor portraits. But what about being cold? During the winter the scheduling works a little differently. We decide on a day that’s generally good, and then watch the weather closely. On this particular Sunday afternoon it had snowed and then gone up to 40 degrees so the kids didn’t even wear coats between shots.

Of if you’re hard core like Kristine and Ken (and are out of the baby stage) or Amber and Braden, then you’re up for portraits in 17 degree weather. It only takes a few hours to thaw out after a session like that.

We chose the Sunken Garden at Highland Park because it’s an incredibly popular summer location for photography, and we wanted to show that it’s also a great winter location.

Basically winter photography is awesome, even outside.

Meaghan and Matt’s girls loved being photographed and were such a joy to work with. Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful family with me!!!!

Tony and Jenna had their beautiful son Sam last April. Then when he was six months old, he came for a mini session in the park. This time, Jenna’s sister was in town and their whole family got together for some Thanksgiving love.

If you ever find yourself wanting to take pictures on stairs, keep in mind that if you do them straight on, some people look huge and some people are really small. If you turn everyone sideways, you can get a lot of different heights and good spacing by using stairs. It almost always pays off to think outside the box when it comes to angles.

Despite having traveled all the way from DC, Nina’s kids were all about some oinky pig action.

And it’s always worthwhile to sneak in a couples portrait.

Sam was a little under the weather but perked up and gave us some Sam-sized smiles.

People often ask about backdrops and where good places are to take photographs in their homes. In general a neutral colored wall (or even a brightly colored one) is a perfect backdrop. If you love your furniture that’s also a great option. Only a very small space is needed since the camera cuts out most of the surroundings.

Afterwards we stepped outside for some slightly snowy winter portraits.

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

Diane and Adam were hardcore photography enthusiasts and braved a relatively cold nearly-winter day for some fall-themed family photos at Black Creek Park.  Black Creek Park is a great location for those of us living on the west side.  It has water, paths and a small bridge that make for a great location.

Themes, even if they’re low key, are a great way to mix up your photo session a little. Whether or not you choose a theme is completely up to you and is all about what makes you happy in life.

Within reason of course.  A hot tub themed session might be weird.  Or massage themed.  But you could definitely go with any kind of food, or most activities.   For more ideas for themed sessions, click here.

In this case, blankets and hot cider were where it was at. Diane brought an actual thermos of warm cider for the session, which had the added effect of keeping her kids super happy.

Diane was a really good sport while I geeked out a little bit about Adam’s civil engineering job in water sanitation. #environmentalgeek Right here.

Diane also has a super interesting job she loves working in the schools.

Thank you so much Diane and Adam for sharing your family with me. It was an absolute joy to work with you!

If you really want professional photos but find them a little bit pricier than you were hoping for, mini sessions are a fantastic option. They’re shorter sessions for a reduced cost and they typically happen in the fall. If you’d like to hop on the newsletter so you can be notified when you can enter to win a free mini session, click here.

Kim started out with a maternity session when she was pregnant with Averie, then had an in home session the following year, and after that discovered outdoor mini sessions and has been a faithful mini session participant every year since then. It’s been such a joy to watch her girls grow up.

One set of mini sessions this year took place at Corbett’s Glen, which is one of the top 5 outdoor photography locations in Rochester. You know this is true when you get there and can count more than 1 photographer a minute. Welcome to Rochester.

Adonis couldn’t make it to this years’ sessions because of work commitments so we took some images of just her and the girls.

In the photography world people often talk about candid photos and they mean different things by it. Technically candid photos aren’t posed at all, but with that approach you end up with a lot of outtakes and images that just aren’t stunning. A better way to get the natural look when you’re pressed for time is to get in a typical “posed” setup and then tickle your neighbor.

Or sometimes you can just tell kids to look at each other and it makes them smile because believe it or not, that’s kind of awkward.

Thank you so much Kim and Adonis for sharing your family with me again. It’s a huge honor. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season!

The quintessential leaf throwing activities of toddlerhood are usually thwarted in climates like ours by cold weather.  This year the summer extended into fall and we had some truly lovely days for photo taking.

Dan and Stephanie had never tried out family photos before and wanted to include all members of the family, including their fur babies.

We went to the Mendon Ponds Bird Song Trail where if you’re very very still, chickadees will eat out of your hand. That’s more or less a no go if you have a toddler and two dogs, but if you were to go on a given day, you’ll find statuesque people along the trail vying for a little chickadee style attention.

The Bird Song Trail is also a great location for photos because of the way the path descends down the hill.

There were several inches of leaves near the Sensory Garden and Connor could have thrown them for another three hours.

The dogs worked with us for one more image and then wanted to chase the leaves themselves.

In a spot near the parking lot there’s another hill that lifts you up to folliage-behind-you level.  Flat ground doesn’t work when you’re trying to add fall leaf color to your images.  It’s important to be up high enough to have leaves behind your subject rather than tree trunks.  However, since it’s a parking lot, you may end up editing out some cars.  Also because it’s fall in Mendon Ponds, you may end up editing out some people.  And maybe also some photographers.  Thank you Photoshop for being there when we need you.

And another happy toddler photo. Toddlers, and kids in general, much prefer being outside for family photos since they’re in their natural environment. Usually it’s less stressful for them and they can associate photography with fun.

Thank you so much Dan and Stephanie for sharing your beautiful family with me!

When Scott first contacted me he introduced himself as my neighbor but I wasn’t quite sure I understood him correctly. We first met about three and a half years ago when we moved into our brand new house in our brand new neighborhood. Scott and Andrea were early adopters – they’d moved in about a year before.

The first summer we moved in the rain would not go away and the lawn installing equipment objected to mud.  Some days, my kids did this.

Other days, we wandered over to Scott and Andrea’s cul de sac where the neighborhood kids gathered to ride their scooters in violent circles while the adults were feasted on by mosquitoes as we savored the never-quite-long-enough summers of upstate New York.

Then everyone got lawns, the neighborhood grew and the coziness faded. I didn’t even know Scott and Andrea knew I was a photographer and I was so delighted and honored when they called.

The occasion was the holidays when extended families gather in one place at one specific point in time, an event as rare as children falling asleep at bed time. These unusual occurrences are a great opportunity to bring in a photographer to crash the party for an hour or so.

This year, Scott and Andrea had the distinct honor of being the first session of 2017. What better way to ring in the New Year?

It was a cold day so we did a number of indoor pictures and then popped outside at the end. Everyone managed to look not-freezing for a few seconds.

Their side of the pond is more swamp than pond – Andrea said this is the best time of year when it’s frozen and picturesque.

A little sibling love.

And some three generation love.

Thank you so much for choosing me as your photographer.  I hope you all have a wonderful, prosperous 2017!

Beata and Joe have been together since they were 14 (or 13?) years old.  I remember this interesting fact from the first time I sat in her apartment when she was my graduate head resident and I was a resident adviser (RA) under her tutelage.  I had just started dating my now husband and was the worst RA ever (sorry Beata!).  Fast forward 10 years…

Beata got her PhD in psychology and now home schools her kids and teaches on the side. Joe is also involved in education, specifically assistive technology.

Beata was gracious enough a few years ago to be an arm model to help demonstrate what length of sleeves people of different body types should wear. You can view her head shots here, or learn what sleeve length will best flatter you by clicking here.

Our lives have crossed paths in so many ways – we even used to be neighbors until we moved out to the corn fields.

I am a little embarrassed to share these, but I will anyway… here’s a flashback from when Nadine was just five days old and Beata was gracious enough to share her with me for some newborn portfolio building.  I knew nothing at the time – poor Nadine!  I’ve learned quite a lot about newborn posing and especially newborn safety since then!

It’s easy to forget how small they start out and how fast they grow.

Thank you so much Beata and Joe for sharing your beautiful children with me. I hope 2017 is filled with an abundance of joy, love and laughter.

In years past January has been a slow month for photography, but recently a few adventurous individuals have come my way including Amber and Braden.  While they may have preferred to have a summer baby for future pool birthday parties (because they have an in ground pool!), this baby is planning to arrive in early February.  So don’t be deterred by cold weather – winter photography is a thing!

This particular day was a balmy 18 degrees with a hint of wind to take the feeling out of your cheeks. For the second time in my life I wore snow pants to a photo session (the first time was for this winter session, interestingly that family ended up moving to a warmer climate!).  If you don’t live in the tundra – snow pants are like coats for your legs and very useful for situations such as these.

Braden works in heavy equipment rentals and I’m guessing spends a fair amount of time outside, and Amber brought along a personal space heater in the form of a baby-in-utero.

Amber is a pharmacist and works with Tracy, Betsy and Jaime. Interestingly, she came across my website first and then saw their photos.  Usually it’s the other way around!

When I started asking Braden if anyone can dig a hole in their backyard with heavy machinery like my pillow fighting plumber friend (blog post to come!), he said yes and he happened to know him too.  I learned that plumbers typically own and rent heavy equipment.  Who knew?  He said it was for any outside work and my mind was expanded.  The thought that plumbers work outside was new to me.

Do they know the gender of the baby? They do not! It will be a surprise, so stay tuned. A friend of mine says it’s one of life’s few great surprises. I’m looking forward to finding out – and to hear the name they’ve picked out (it’s secret for now, and maybe not quite decided).

For their session they chose Shetler Tree Farm, a beautiful Christmas tree farm in Brockport that is owned by a friend of theirs.

Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful baby-to-come with me! I wish you a smooth and peaceful labor and delivery.

The rules say that a newborn baby has to be photographed between 3 to 10 days old, or maybe 14 if you’re really pushing it.  That’s because new babies are sleepiest, bendiest and curliest when they’re very small.  As they wake up a little, they’re less apt to sleep through posing situations.

In the past I told a mom that six weeks is a bad time to photograph a baby and that it’s best to wait until they’re older.  Needless to say, she never called me back.

But when Tracy gave a session to her sister Lindsay, her baby was due around the same time as mine.  I didn’t object to a session a little later on and we had a lovely time. The images were not curly, sleepy posed images, but they still captured the essence of falling in love.

My conclusion was that there’s no bad time to photograph a baby.  They are babies after all!  Most parents aren’t really hung up on the super posed images anyway and just want to capture their beautiful baby just as they are.  So if you miss the newborn window, don’t worry!  Your baby is still beautiful and completely photographable.

When Lori first contacted me she was still pregnant and interested in newborn photos and when I didn’t hear from her after her due date came and went, I assumed she hired someone else.  I was absolutely delighted to hear from her again when Julia was about six weeks old.

Lori hired a doula through Beautiful Birth Choices and did everything she could to prepare, but took some time to recover from the childbirth experience. I hear you Lori! I have friends that love it (including some lovely doula friends who work for BBC), but me? Not so much. And that’s okay! The best time for photos is when you’re ready for them.

Among other skills, Chris is a baby whisperer in his free time. Julia let us do a little posing before she woke up and objected.

We caught a mild day in December and popped outside for some images in front of their brand new house. They recently moved to the Rochester area and bought a beautiful house in Brighton. A new house, a new job, a new baby – lots of changes!

Julia fell asleep again and we were able to get her hand up under her cheek before she woke up and wanted to hang out some more.

What a privilege it is to see a man become a father.

Congratulations to Lori and Chris and welcome home Julia!

The weather was less than ideal on this specific day, but Christina was a woman after my own heart and we pressed on anyway.  Rain threatened and it was chilly, but we powered through and the kids were absolute troopers.

Christina and Greg chose Woody Acres Tree Farm as a location, which is a great idea for Christmas themed photos. The red and black definitely completed the holiday theme.

Their daughter, who’s name was so beautiful I’m afraid to try to spell it, sported the most adorable red coat I’ve ever seen. I would say her coat pretty much made this color scheme happen.

Both kids acted like it was 75 degrees and sunny.

Dominic especially was in his element.

One reason I love on location photography over studio photography is because children feel so much more relaxed in environments like parks and Christmas tree farms. Eliciting smiles in a child’s natural environment is a joy.

Greg also grabbed a head shot for his LinkedIn profile. Always a great idea if you have a photographer hanging around.

Thank you so much for choosing me as your photographer! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!