Back in December this family received a gift voucher for a free family session at a baby shower.  The expecting mom was trying to decide when to use it.  She’d never had maternity photos, so maybe that was an option. She liked the idea of newborn photos (especially with three older siblings to dote over the newest arrival). Still, she hung on to the voucher until it got close to Father’s Day.  The baby was three months old and now had the most adorable expressions when you interacted with him, AND it gave her the PERFECT Father’s Day Gift!

Oh, and did I mention that we did ALL of these in her own yard!  Easy, easy, EASY!

I love photographing small kids!  Seriously! You never know what to expect, and they get up EARLY!  So do I, so why not capture that beautiful morning sunshine?  I mean, everybody knows about Golden Hour, but there’s just something clarifying and pure about morning light!  By the time I arrived at 9 a.m., these kids had already been playing for a few hours!

I also know this about small kids (and dads, occasionally) – they need a break and a distraction.  I loving bringing my vintage leather camera box to sessions like these and stuffing it with surprises.  The box adds a bit of timelessness to the photos if it ends up in the photo frame, and the new items bring some novelty and fresh smiles to the kids’ day.  These kids were no exception.  Silly sounds, songs, and funny dances worked for a while, but then it was time to bring out the surprises: a stuffed animal, new books, and a superhero cape that my sister had made for my son once upon a time.  Bingo!

My absolute favorite part of this session, though, was when I had Mom sit down with them (on their dad’s childhood blanket, by the way) to read them a story.  Two of them were immediately interested.  The other two I had to corral from other parts of the yard.  I choose books that have lots of bright colors and funny characters, and I’ll ask them to find things on the pages if the story itself isn’t keeping their attention.  This family needed no extra direction from me, though.  They fell into their natural pattern of being together and enjoying that they were together.  I feel like I borrowed a moment from their day and framed it for them.

Thanks for reading! This is just one of my ways of putting a smile back in the world!