We were treated to a gorgeous morning in downtown as we commemorated their time in Austin, TX before they go off on a new adventure. I love that there is SO much personality in these images…particularly note that little man is holding something he loves in every single image. So precious! My favorite image from this session caught me by surprise. I was SO thankful I actually was able to catch it. You can see what I mean HERE.

At first, I thought we were going to be treated with a magnificent sunrise this morning…the colors started out so pretty in the water. Sadly, the sun disappeared shortly after this first series of images and didn’t come back out. But we were not thwarted because the cloud cover actually let us shoot for a loooooooong time and we were able to go anywhere we wanted in the park instead of having to run for shade.

I think mom did a FANTASTIC job throwing in that splash of color with the flowers. The girls loved having their little bouquets to hold during the photo session. They also loved photo bombing mom and dad when they tried to get snuggly:

HERE is the image I took right before our cute little invader broke into the shot.

Even though she’s not smiling, I love that you can pretty much see her very soul through those beautiful eyes here.

SOOOO much fun to get to play with the shapes and shadows and levels of the parking garage! I was so glad they were down for that little experiment!

And we wrapped up a lovely photo session with the gorgeous blues of this mosaic.

Oh, in case you missed it, I announced the 6th Annual FREE Pinkle Toes Photography Kids Only Holiday Minis yesterday night! Treat yourself to a little sneak peek of the set HERE and to find out more and snag your spot, inquire HERE.

We’ve been working together for years and I have thoroughly enjoyed each session we’ve had for all different reasons. This one may have been one of the most colorful ones and it was great to incorporate a bit of Austin wall art and a gorgeous Austin park in one. My favorite pic from the playground is HERE.

I’ve told mom and dad this before, but their boys get along so incredibly well! They’re about the same age difference as my two boys, but what I wouldn’t give for my sons to be as close as these brothers are. It is always such a pleasure hanging out with these guys…they are so sweet and happy and inquisitive and caring!

I’ve been photographing him since he was still in his mommy’s tummy and a little while ago, I got to work with him on his SIXTH birthday! Wow, wow, wow! We celebrated along South Congress by letting him speed around on his scooter in his awesome blue suede shoes. Believe it or not, it was REALLY hot that day, so we took a little break inside Home Slice Pizza to cool off while he enjoyed a delicious slice of pizza. Then we visited Hey, Cupcake! followed by a giant lemon, lol. He did amazing the entire evening, even though it was so ridiculously hot. And I have to say, his mommy looked SO beautiful and happy to be hanging out with her birthday boy. Love this ALL boy pic HERE.

Things you should know about this photo session:
1. These may be the most down-to-earth and laid back people I’ve ever met in my life and it is SO good for me to work with people like that. Their calm draws me in and makes me lighten up and see things that I might not have seen otherwise. I’m not sure mama realizes it, but it’s true.

2. The same thing happens when I’m lucky enough to have her as my yoga instructor at Modo ;-). And that’s why I love that place so much!

3. The breakfast tacos were a bit of afterthought, but it was perfect! During session planning, I asked her what they liked to do as a family and she half-jokingly replied, “Eat breakfast tacos.” Well, the early start to catch the sunrise began to take its toll on little man, so we decided to just give in and head over to grab breakfast tacos. I had no idea how CUTE and photographically awesome that place was. WIN!

4. I LOVE big sis’s freckles.

5. I also LOVE this pic totally improvised between mom & dad ;-).

6. That adorable fence where the kiddos are holding hands up there is now gone!!! It was a reminder of how quickly beautiful things come and go and how fast Austin seems to change sometimes.

There is so much I want to say about this family photo session we did during their trip to Austin, but I also want to get these sneak peeks up ASAP. So here’s what you should know:

1. There was SO much laughter the entire time. I don’t think I could take a serious picture even if I tried and that is totally wonderful.
2. I LOVED how he used his mommy as his armrest…a habit I don’t think he even realized he was doing most of the time. I know it won’t be long before my own sons are taller than me and I hope at least one of them develops this habit.
3. I didn’t want the session to end. But eventually, it did get too hot and too sunny to continue, so we all went out to breakfast together instead and I will never forget that.
4. I love Angela’s hair…gah! The color! Interesting to note, I actually met her years ago when she came to a Pinkle Toes Photography Workshop here in Austin. She came all the way from Roatan which blew me away (and what a GORGEOUS place that is!). Now she’s a photographer in Colorado…check her out.
5. I also loved her daughter’s new look that she got just for their visit to Austin! See us playing below and also don’t miss another version HERE.
6. And finally, I love that I got to use that wall I’ve had my eye on for a while now. I mean, it just was the PERFECT place to end our session. So. Much. Fun.

And finally, this might be what I loved most about this session: these two! I’m so glad their mama found this little sign because it couldn’t have been more perfect. It is quite clear that they are indeed best of friends and that they look out for each other. And they are incredibly lucky to have this kind of relationship. Good work, mama!

A little while back, I had the pleasure of spending a few days (technically, it may have only been 24 hrs) with an amazing photographer, good friend, and past workshop attendee, Sabrina Gebhardt Photography in Fort Worth. As part of our adventures together, we photographed another amazing photographer, good friend, and past workshop attendee, Lauren in Dallas. As excited as I was to explore downtown Dallas, I’m not going to lie…the heat almost did me in completely! I live in Texas, but I just wasn’t prepared for the way the heat radiated up through the streets and sidewalks. We were super duper lucky to find a cool little building to duck into for a few minutes 😉 and believe me, we were ALL grateful for a little bit of ice cold AC. Lauren’s kiddos did amazingly well considering it was the end of the day and so hot outside and I loved being able to incorporate the city into their family pictures this time. THIS one made me laugh ;-).

I also really loved having Sabrina there with me. She and I were saying how invaluable a second shooter would be at family sessions. This is common practice in wedding photography, but I can definitely see a need for it here, too. It was so cool to see all of the different perspectives she was able to get, even though we were both photographing the same people in the same location. One HERE and one HERE for example.

Here’s Sabrina in action:

So fun to get to go back and relive that whirlwind mentoring time with Sabrina and Lauren’s photoshoot in downtown Dallas! We had a wonderful time and I truly loved talking shop with Sabrina and watching her grow her photography business!

Let me tell you that it was such a joy to get to edit this senior portrait session while the rain poured down outside my office! This young lady is about to start her final year in high school and I can’t think of a better way to kick things off than by celebrating what makes her…*her*. I’ve had the honor of working with both her big sister AND her big brother in years past, and it really amazed me that we were still able to make this session unique. Her smile is radiant and her self-confidence and genuine compassion really shined through. Just an incredible end cap to the senior photo session series in their family and I can’t wait to hear about her adventures as she leaves the nest next year!

Oh, loved this quick snap with her parents below and her eyes HERE and the colors (in spite of the dark) HERE.

When it comes to lifestyle family photo sessions, the person who schedules the session is technically my boss. But if that photo session happens to involve an adorable, precocious two-year-old, it is pretty much a given that she becomes the boss…of all of us. And so it was when we got together in downtown Austin a few weeks ago. It was super early in the morning (to escape the heat) and it took her a little bit to decide if she liked me okay or not, but it wasn’t long before she was leading the way, eager to explore everywhere and beckoning us to follow along. This family dynamic was something really special and it is clear that she is the center of their universe and everyone is completely okay with that. So many laughs that morning and sweet, sweet moments sprinkled throughout!

Melt my heart!

Oh! Mom’s shoes were SPOT ON!!!! If I could walk in those, I would totally own a pair myself 😉

That look!

And her ring matched her shoes???? How amazing is that?!

We thought we would try to play a game that she loved, but she had other ideas. These expressions crack me up!

Sister. Brother. Best. Friends. I really hope one day my boys will get along with their sister just like these two. Their relationship is so special!

Yup! Pretty much sums it up. I really enjoyed all of the personality that really came through in these images. I laughed to myself several times when editing this proof set. THIS one made me smile really big, though.

It is ALWAYS bittersweet to meet up with my newborn clients to do milestone sessions, and celebrating his half-year birthday was no exception. It’s crazy to see how he is so different yet so much still like himself at his newborn session. His mommy warned me that he was already exhibiting signs of PCS (Photographer Child Syndrome) and smiles might be tough to get, but we were all happy to see that he only needed some snuggles from mom or dad and he would gladly smile for a few pics. My favorite one is HERE, but I do also love the pic of the crazy goose stirring up a little trouble in the water ;-).