I left their photo session that morning feeling joyful and refreshed (in spite of having to get up at 5 a.m. to be there). I feel as though I met lifeline friends and I probably could have hung out with them all day at the hotel. They were bright and fun and funny and enthusiastic and loving and wonderful. I very much look forward to following these girls as they grow up in such an amazing family unit. (Still my FAV!)

Once again, AWESOME hair and makeup by my friend Katie with Modern Muse Beauty. I’m serious. Make your life so much easier and just hire her to get you ready for your family photo session. Even if I’m not your photographer ;-). It just takes SO much pressure off, especially when you have several other people to get ready for the session. Katie is dependable and does a fantastic job of making everyone look their best! And, she’s kinda awesome. Mama insisted that we took a pic that included Katie:

Oh my word! I mean we barely squeezed this session in…between a flight cancellation and upcoming wedding and a huge thunderstorm…let’s just say these kiddos were CHAMPS and pulled off their photo session flawlessly in spite of nature working against us. It would not have been possible without their complete cooperation and willingness to dive in (literally and figuratively) that afternoon to make it happen. Don’t miss this FAV HERE!

If you had told me 8 years ago that I would be in New York City photographing an amazing family, I would have told you no way possible. But a few weeks ago, I had just that experience and the whole time, I felt like someone needed to pinch me to wake me from this dream come true. Now, it wasn’t easy working in such a bustling place, but I am so grateful to one of my best friends Lena with Live, Love, Laugh Photos in Ridgewood, NJ for pushing me to stretch my creative limits and most importantly, for rekindling a love for a city I thought I had lost years ago.

I was planning to be in the area for the 2nd Annual Pinkle Toes Photography Workshop Reunion in the great city of New York (post on that AMAZING time coming soon), and Lena and I had this photo session planned for quite sometime. But of course, the day we were supposed to shoot, it poured…and I mean POURED down rain causing flooding in many areas. So, we nervously pushed the photo session toward the end of my stay in NYC and anxiously eyed the weather for the 4 days leading up to the shoot.

We juggled our schedules as much as we could to dodge the storms, but that caused a bit of a problem because we had to shoot on the Brooklyn Bridge (which was incredible) in FULL sun at one of the busiest times you could imagine. I think we were pretty lucky to get shots without too many “extras” in the scene and I feel fortunate to have survived taking my life into my own hands shooting while standing in the bike lane on the bridge. For those of you who aren’t familiar with traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge, just be warned that you *will* get run over if you stand in the bike lane ;-).

We were armed with plenty of umbrellas and rain boots in case of run, but wouldn’t you know it, when a random storm did blow in during the session, our little umbrellas could do nothing to save us from the crazy winds that came along with it. It was quite comical trying to manage the kids and the umbrellas and my not-waterproof camera equipment.

But in spite of all of the factors working against us that day, there’s one thing that people and traffic and wind gusts couldn’t take away: my friend Lena’s ear-to-ear grin. Let me tell you, she looked so happy. She was completely ecstatic to get to have her family photos taken in places where years and years ago, she and her then fiancée would dream of one day having a family. Their relationship is pure, unabandoned romance that time has only enriched with each year and each adventure they take on together and their twin daughters are incredibly blessed to have such fine examples of what moms and dads can be.

And those girls…oh those little giggle boxes! They embrace their lives with the same joy as their parents and they are so well traveled and well-adjusted to both the suburban and metropolitan lifestyles.

The icing on this cake is that in just a couple of weeks, I get to hang with them AGAIN as Lena is hosting the next Pinkle Toes Photography workshop in her town of Ridgewood, NJ! We actually have one opening that has cropped up recently, so if you want more info on the workshop, send me a note via THIS PAGE. Lena…I feel so fortunate that I get to hang with you and your family again, my dear, and thank you for this unfathomable opportunity to work with you in New York City!

It’s difficult for me to recall the time before I first worked with them. I have watched their family grow from a bump to now a family of four. And over the years, their love and adoration for one another hasn’t diminished or changed one bit. In fact, I think it has grown. Exponentially. They warm my heart and I feel so very honored to get to be a part of their lives. See this family shot and then check out one of my favorite images (just in time for Mother’s Day).

P.S. Just found out that the world has realized mom is FAMOUS! Loved the article, Melonie, and congrats on this amazing venture!

And this was the first time it was ever CLOSED. Gah, we were crushed, but not for long as we quickly regrouped and found a new place to shoot, which was pretty much in the same place, but from a different perspective:

Oh man! This is a FUN bunch! Look at all of that personality!!!! I promised the kids each a turn to photobomb me (what’s with the obsession with photobombing, anyway?) and you know what? I LOVED the results. Baby girl is just the icing on this 6-layer-cake! She’s kinda got someone (well, more like 5 someones) wrapped around that cute dimpled pinky of hers.

It has been such an honor and a beautiful journey to get to photograph this family as each of their children reach milestones of “fives.” I first met this young lady when she turned five and I’ll never forget her mom begging me to move her session up as soon as possible because she wanted to capture her before she started to lose her baby teeth. That really struck me because at the time, I just had my boys who were ages 3 and 1 at the time, I believe. I couldn’t imagine the day when they would start losing their baby teeth. I couldn’t imagine that it would be as significant to me as mother as it turned out to be. But thankfully, this mommy prepared me for it.

And now she’s TEN! I cannot even believe our first meeting was five years ago. And look at what a beautiful young lady she has become. Next milestone will be FIFTEEN. I don’t even know how I will be able to hold myself together for that one. And before we know it, we’ll be celebrating brother’s TEN year milestone. Oh, I can’t take the passage of time sometimes.

While this photo session was focused on the kiddos, at the end, we just couldn’t miss out on this amazing sunset, so we got the whole family in ;-0.

P.S. The swing shots crack me up. So very big sis + little bro.

I’m pretty sure he was only two (right, Kara?) when we first started working together and let me tell you, he was SPEEDY! LOL. He’s still speedy, but in a different way…he’s so grown up now! And he makes me laugh with his hilarious expressions. But one thing is quite clear, he sure loves his parents and loves to be loved by them.

Speaking of love…we happened to do their photo session literally ON their 10 year wedding anniversary! Pretty outstanding, you two!!! So happy for you and for the life you’ve created together!

Still my fav. But this one *might* be tied.

And it did not disappoint. Why? This photoshoot for momma and her twin daughters embodies lifestyle photography. It’s fun! It’s relaxed! It’s documenting the activities that you do in everyday life. Those activities that seem small and insignificant at the time, but become part of your culture as a family. Cooking with your mom in the kitchen, dancing around in your playroom, snuggling up to watch your favorite Michael Jackson music video (Earth Song for the win!) in your pj’s. These are the things that memories are made of! My absolute fav shot from this session is HERE. I wonder, years down the road, what will be their favorite images from this session. Favs will probably even change over time. And again, that’s the beauty of capturing everyday life like this!

xoxo, K. Thank you so much for letting me do this for you and I hope you and your sweet little girls enjoy these images and the memories they contain for years and years and years to come!

I think it’s safe to say mission accomplished. How beautiful is she??? And they soon will be joined by a beautiful baby girl. Good thing she has her big brother to look after her. Loved this family shot HERE and this candid little moment HERE.

And it made me happy. I don’t do it as much as I used to, but when I do, it makes it that much more refreshing.