I love beach sessions…I don’t think there’s any mystery about that! 

I have this amazing friend…she is funny and crazy smart and just an amazing person.  I enjoy spending time with her so much that I look past the fact that she went to the University of North Carolina (UNC) while I went to THE University of North Carolina (Duke).  (Folks, if you think team rivalry between Florida and Alabama is bad during football season, you’ve seen nothing until you see team rivalry between Duke and UNC during basketball season).  Okay, sports break over…that’s the most you’ll ever hear me mention sports on this blog

Anyway, a couple of weeks ago, my friend told me that her sister and her family were going to be on vacation here and she asked if I had an opening in my schedule to take their pictures.  Of course I did! 

I met Gigi and her family at Johnson’s Beach and spent the next hour laughing and taking pictures and just enjoying being around such fun people! 

I always like to start my beach sessions (particularly ones with children) with a few minutes of completely relaxed play time.  So, the girls played a rousing game of freeze tag with their parents.

 

After a few minutes, we called Time Out:

and took some great and fun pictures!

 

Aren’t they just too cute for words?

 

 

 

The weather was beautiful…just a little bit chilly as the sun went down, but the light was gorgeous and the sky was soooo blue!

 

 

 

As the sun was beginning to set, I casually mentioned that there are two herons that usually show late in the afternoon.  Gigi said that she loved herons and not two minutes later, one of them appeared.  And, because the herons here are so used to people (and the treats people give them), they’re not particularly time.  Which gives you the opportunity to get pictures like this!

 

It was a beautiful, beautiful day!  Gigi, thank you so much for letting me spend the afternoon with your family.

I remember.  When she was two years old and her ringlets made her look like a dark-haired Shirley Temple.   I remember.  When she was five and got scared spending the night at my house and wanted to go home. Two minutes later, she was back in charge and had no intention of going home.  I remember. When she was nine and played the piano at my wedding and how she looked like an angel in her pink and white dress.  I remember.  When she was eleven and was one of the first people to hold my baby girl.  I remember.  When she was twelve and convinced her mother to foster children.  I remember.  When she turned sixteen and I couldn’t believe that she was going to be driving.  I remember.  When her smile melted my heart… and it still does…

 

 

This is Briannan.  She is my niece, not by blood, but by love.  Her mother and I have been friends for half of our lives.  She and her sister, Megan, taught me to be an aunt.  I can’t imagine my life without them in it.  When Briannan asked if I’d take her casual senior pictures – well, you know what I said.  The only problem I had was that more than once, when I looked at her through my lens, my eyes welled up with tears.  I was remembering the little girl she was and amazed by the young woman she has become. 

 

 

 

 

and, of course I had to get one of her baby sister.  Who could resist capturing this joy?

And one of Brianna and her mom, my friend. 

 

Families are all about laughter and tears, good times and bad, and love and trust.  Sometimes, I think the most important gift you can give a child it to let them know that they can trust you, always, in what you say and do.  If I had to title this picture, I would call it:  Complete Trust. 

 

 

I’m taking January off from taking pictures, but I still have a few sneak peeks from December that I never got posted.  This session is one of those.  This family is special to me.  My husband went to college with Rick & Ingrid and we’ve known them since my oldest daughter was eight months old.  I enjoy any time we get to spend with them.  Even though I should be odd man out, since I’m the only non-physical therapist assistant in the group, I never feel that way.  I just enjoy being with them. 

We originally scheduled this session in November, but the day we picked was brutally cold, so we rescheduled for December.  The weather was perfect – I just love December in Florida!

Here’s a few more peeks….

 

 

  

 

I love family pictures where you see nothing but love!

 

 

And this one?  Love, love, love it!  I’d call it Complete Trust, The Second Edition!

 

 

Enjoy!

Kim called me a few weeks ago and asked if I’d come and take some pictures of their brand new baby boy and his sister. If you’ve ever read here before, you know I love, love, love babies!   We had to reschedule once due to weather (even though I generally do newborn sessions inside, you still need a little bit of natural light to take natural light pictures).

Here’s Asher.  Okay, I know he looks like he’s three months old in this picture, but trust me, he’s not!

 

So, you’ve met little brother…

 

Well, now, meet his big sister….

 

Did you do a double-take?  Wait!  Two babies!  That’s right…a newborn and a not-quite-toddler.  The day I took these pictures was actually Naomi’s first birthday.  At first, she was a little shy around me, but after playing with my flash diffuser for a while, she decided that I wasn’t so bad!

 

Asher was a little fussy, so we left him inside to sleep and took Naomi outside for some one-year portraits.  Will you look at those eyes?

 

 

 

 

There’s nothing more magical than a baby just learning to walk.

 

I love baby’s hands… and just look at the difference between these two pictures…I think they perfectly illustrate how much children grow and change in that first year.  Here’s Naomi using her hands to explore and discover her wonderful world (and I love the pink pacifier!)

 

 

and Asher’s hands, still so tiny and new, learning to grasp and hold on to his beloved mommy

And, one final one of this sweet, sweet baby boy…

 

 

Thanks, Kim, for letting me spend time with you and your beautiful children!  It was such a blessing!

I’m not a big professional football fan (give me a good college basketball game any day), but I hear that there’s a certain team from a certain part of Louisiana that is a pretty good team.  Their colors just happen to be black & gold.  Turns out black & gold are not only great colors for a football team, they’re also great colors for pictures! I’m so glad that Lynn and her family were able to honor their hometown team and still look amazingly stylish doing it!

 

This family is special to me for so many reasons – let’s just say they’re some of my favorite people in the world!  Doing this session with them was just plain fun!  (And, if I shared all the sneak peeks that I want to with you, we’d be here for days, so I’m going to keep it somewhat short, okay?)

 

I think I might have squealed a little when Ella got out of the car and I saw that gold skirt.  I absolutely love it!

 

Here’s Sebastian.  This was one of the first photos of the day…I know somehow it looks like it was cold in these pictures, but, in reality, it was really, really warm!

 

Okay, this my be my favorite family picture of all time.  I know, I know, I say that a lot, but this one is so much fun!

 

Of course, I love this more traditional one, too!

 

This is a re-enactment of a picture I took two years ago at the beach of Sebastian holding a sea oat flower.  He’s grown up an awful lot in two years!

  

And, so has Ella.  I have a picture somewhat like this that I took of her when she was in preschool!  In that picture, her hair was shorter, she hadn’t lost any teeth yet.  A lot has changed, but she’s still as beautiful as ever!

 

Here’s one final one that I just couldn’t resist posting!

 

Beach sessions are always like going home for me.  I love downtown sessions and backyard sessions and park and fort sessions.  But, the beach just centers me.  I can feel all my stresses just float away when I stand at the water’s edge.  So, beach sessions are definitely some of my favorites.  And this session?  Well this one was special, because it was as relaxing a session as I have ever had.

I’ve known Mason and his wonderful mom Missy for over a year now and every time I spend time with them, I just walk away smiling.  You know how some people in your life just make you feel, well, for lack of a better word, glad? 

 

I knew we were in for a good time when this was one of the first pictures I got!

and this one wasn’t far behind!  I love, love, love watching children enjoy the ocean.

 

I call this the thinking pose…he was thinking up some idea about something.  And let me tell you, this boy is wicked smart.  As I was taking pictures, he was actually asking me about the way the camera worked and the lenses.  Yes, I was explaining depth of field and the fisheye effect of a super wide-angle lens to a 7-year-old.  It was awesome!

After we finished these pictures up, though, Mason disappeared.  He said he needed to step away for a moment and I didn’t see him for the rest of the session.  Imagine my surprise when this guy showed up instead.  He was apparently there to keep the beach safe from some unknown villain.

I was able to get some great shots of the superhero, but I can’t share some of them with you because I was given the great privilege of seeing the caped crusader without his mask!  I was allowed to take pictures, but was given strict instructions not to share them with anyone.  I think this one is safe, though, because the background is blurred enough to make identification extremely difficult at best!

Missy, thank you so much for letting me the afternoon with you & Mason.  It was truly a joy!

Sometime last year, I was sitting around a campfire with my sister, my brother-in-law, my husband, and all four of our girls. We were telling ghost stories. The girls were telling silly stories about pop-tarts that attacked little girls and made them bonk their heads.  Then, my brother-in-law spun some remarkable tale about four sisters.  I can’t remember the details of the story, but I do remember the characters’ names were the Morley girls.  It was a combination of my last name and my sister’s last name and since then, when we’ve referred to all four girls together, we call them The Morleys. 

When my girls & I were visiting my sister in October (yeah, I’m a little behind on sneak peeks!), we squeezed in a Christmas portrait session for my nieces.  Of course my two little hooligans just had to be a part of it.  So we dressed them in coordinating outfits and had an absolute blast.

 

 

Now, my besides being an expert ghost story teller, my brother-in-law is an amazing photographer.  He has a fantastic eye for composition and he is one of the best people I know at scoping out locations for photo shoots.  On Saturday, he said he wanted to take me to the cemetery because he thought it would be a beautiful place for pictures.  And, as always, he was right.  The late afternoon light was just gorgeous and there were some amazing spots for pictures.  So, on Sunday afternoon we went back to do the girls’ session.  The only thing I regret is that in my enthusiasm I totally forgot to pull out my second camera and hand it to my brother-in-law to second shoot.  A total dingbat move on my part because had I done that, we would have had twice as many “keeper” shots.  I was like an awestruck kid though, and didn’t have my head on quite straight.  My brother-in-law still got some great shots, even with his little point and shoot camera.  He is living proof that a photographer’s eye is more important than his/her camera.  One day, I hope to con him into going into business with me! 

 

I just love these pictures so much…they make me happy!

 

 

 

The picture below took a whole lot of staging and all three adults to pull off.  I counted; my sister and brother-in-law threw the leaves at the girls and then I pressed the shutter.  Repeatedly.  It took several attempts before we got one that I was happy with.

 

And this one makes me laugh out loud!  We’ve always said the Morley Girls sounds like the name of some all-girl band.  I loved the way the architecture of this building looked.  So, we got the girls to pose somewhat like we thought an album cover would look like and then told them to give us their best sassy looks.  This is what we got:

 

 

And one final photo of my wonderful, precious nieces:

Several weeks ago, I had a session out at the beach with one of my favorite families of all time.  This is the third year I’ve taken their pictures and I’ve loved watching them grow up in front of my camera.  When we started, the baby wasn’t even walking yet and this year, she’s playing soccer!  Soccer!  These children are naturally photogenic and have personality in spades, so it’s never really difficult to get wonderful pictures of them.  The past two years, even getting a wonderful picture of all four of them together was a fairly simple process.  Witness last year’s “all four together” picture:

 

 

Unfortunately, this year, the day we picked to do beach pictures was also the start of biting black fly season.  Fortunately, black fly season only last a few days but it happens after the weather turns a little cooler in the fall and the things hang around until the wind shifts again.  It was just bad timing on our part that we were out there the same time as the flies.  (I was there the week before and the week after our session and there wasn’t a fly to be seen…see what I mean about a short season ).  But, while it’s a short season, it’s brutal – biting flies are no fun!  So, while we were able to get some wonderful shots like this one:

 

 

I wasn’t happy with the ones I got of all four of them together.  So, we tried again last week.  This time we just hung out in their yard and on their dock.  It was so much fun!  And we had much better luck.  No flies, great lighting, and beautiful children.  Who could ask for more?

 

 

And, we got to sneak Rusty the dog into some of the shots (actually, he made it into quite a few of them!)

 

What I loved about this second session was how relaxed everyone was:

 

 

 

 

 

It was a wonderful afternoon…the second time was definitely the charm! 

My friend Kristi has a plaque in her living room that says “Don’t count your blessings.  Share them.”  I just love that plaque.  And I think Kristi, more than just about any one I know, lives that saying.

On Friday, she shared a wonderful blessing with me.  Max is Kristi’s youngest baby.  I have had the joy of photographing him several times since he was just a few weeks old.  Friday was his first birthday and we headed out to take his pictures again.  It was so much fun to be photographing him on his actual birthday…a very special blessing indeed!

 

Is he not the cutest baby?  He has so many expressions…

 

This is one of my favorite pictures. ever.  I just love the way they’re all three engaged with each other and not paying attention to the camera.  Sometimes, everyone looking at the camera at the same time and smiling isn’t as effective as no one looking at the camera .   

 

Kristi & I had talked about bringing a little birthday cake for Max to enjoy during his pictures.  Kristi had a fantastic idea!  Instead of bringing a small cake, she brought a cupcake, perfect for Max’s little hands.  (And, she brought one each for his big brothers, too!).  He loved it!!!  (Picture overload warning….

 

 

 

 

 

And the final sneak peek picture, I promise!  I love this picture…a few Publix balloons, some magic afternoon light filtering through the pine trees and the pitcher plants, and one amazingly adorable and sweet little boy made for one of my absolute favorite shots.

Stephanie & I had this all session all planned out.  On Friday, we were going to meet at one of my favorite places, Fort Barrancas, and then head over to the museum of Naval Aviation for a some more pictures.  On Wednesday night, one of my friends called me and reminded me about the Blue Angels Homecoming show.  Generally on Friday mornings, particularly in the fall, the fort and museum are basically empty which is awesome for photos.  During the Blue Angels weekend, though, the number of visitors to the base multiplies by about a zillion.  So, we changed plans and decided that I would head over to Crestview to photograph Sophia and John.  The afternoon before the session, Stephanie called and told me about a park that wasn’t too far from their house.  So, we did a two-location session and, oh my goodness, Stephanie can come work with me anytime as a session locator.  Both spots were just amazing.  Take a look:

 

Here’s Sophia in her backyard.  It’s always a treat to photograph children (or anyone for that matter) in a location where they feel comfortable.  And you can’t get more comfortable than your own backyard!

 

After we did a few pictures on the swing-set, we headed in to the “jungle” beside their house.  We played a few rounds of Hide & Go Seek.

 

 

 

 

 

John loves trains, so we headed inside so he could show me the Christmas train.  And, yes, Stephanie already had her Christmas trees up, which made for some amazing backgrounds.

 

Sophia loves to draw, so we captured a few pictures of her hard at work.

I just love this picture…I’m a sucker for a unicorn!

Then, we headed over to the park.  It was perfect!  Amazing light, a pond, trees, ducks & geese, and even a covered deck. 

 

 

 

 

 

If you couldn’t tell, I had a hard time limiting sneak peeks for this session.  Stephanie, enjoy them!  Thank you for letting me spend the morning with you and Sophia and John!