This lifestyle shoot came about in a backwards kind of way. Originally it was a day my daughter actually WANTED to go outside and take pictures. I had an idea in my head for the shot I wanted so I quick dressed her and we got ready to go outside. Except when we looked out the window we noticed it was pouring rain. I decided we’d wait for a little while and see if the rain would stop.

At first Maddie was ok with waiting.

But as the waiting continued she started getting impatient and sad.

So what’s a mommy to do? Say screw it and go outside in the rain to play. 🙂 Everyone should play in the rain more, don’t you think? So we played. And we danced. And we jumped in puddles. And it turned out these lifestyle pictures were more real and fun than what I had intended anyway.

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Meet beautiful Olivia! I was so thrilled to be asked to take her First Communion portraits during my mini sessions. We had a beautiful warm morning and she was such a pleasure to photograph. I love the dresses and accessories little girls wear, right down to their adorable matching shoes! Plus Olivia was up for everything; sitting down, leaning against the fence, etc. all while wearing her dress. Made it fun for me!

Did I mention how beautiful she is?

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I love maternity photography. At all stages, pregnancy is such a fun and beautiful stage to photograph and document.

Sometimes you wait so long for that bump that you just want to document all the stages. Sometimes it’s not even your own bump, but belongs to your best friend. Either way, it’s special. This is just a peek at the little belly. It’s still early so there will be more to come.

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Meet gorgeous Isabella, the second of my First Communion mini sessions. I’ve watched this girl grow up over the internet from the time she was born, but this was the first time I got my hands on her to photograph. She was a natural. So easy photograph and so comfortable in front of the camera! She was a perfect model. Her First Communion portraits were perfectly easy, and when she changed for less formal pictures we had even more fun. Her little sister Marley took a little longer to warm up to the camera, but I got some great pics of her too. Such a fun session with these beautiful girls!!

Oh, and did I mention her sass? Love it!!

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Announcing Spring Mini sessions for Northern NJ! Spring is such a great time for pictures and mini sessions are a great way to get updated family pictures at a great price! Location still being hashed out, but will probably be in the Morris County area. Contact me to reserve your spot today!

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The first of my First Communion mini’s started off with this beautiful family. When I first decided to offer Communion mini sessions I left it up to each family to decide if they wanted to bring a change of clothes for after the Communion portraits. That way we could take some super quick family pictures at the same session. I think it’s so important to get updated family pictures so I try to offer it (and nudge families towards it) as much as possible. 😉 I was very happy when they tok me up on my offer and showed up all dressed nicely for some updated pictures.

I adore this shot. What a beautiful family.

Then it was time to change Joey to get his real portraits done. What a little stud. He knew exactly what to do and made this whole session very easy.

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I’m taking a quick minute to give a personal update (even though I know I am about 4 sessions behind on this blog; I’ll catch up I swear!). This weekend my we celebrated my son’s First Holy Communion. It was a very special, fun, and hectic day. Alex, in his typical fashion, was not at all nervous about this day. I remember as a kid when it was my first communion I was a ball of nerves. Not my kid. Cool as a cucumber. In fact, walking into the mass during the processional he was all smiles and waving to family members. All the other kids were stoic or reverent. My son would’ve stopped to shake hands if he could have. That’s not to say he wasn’t taking it seriously, because he most certainly was. He was just THAT excited.

Then, minutes after receiving his first holy communion, I snapped this shot. Which is so emotional to me. I know my kid, and in this moment not only was he praying, but I know he was also releasing his nerves. Alex can put up a great front, but mama knows how he ticks.

OK, back to the day. Being a photographer, this day was WAY more stressful to me than it should have been. I needed to have GOOD seats. And not just any ‘good’ seats. I needed to be seated in the center aisle, on the end, and on the left (since the boys would be on the left side). Since no flash was allowed I knew I needed to use a long focal length that allowed me to open up and not jack the ISO way up (have I lost you? Sorry). Oh, and then I wanted to be able to run along to the side to get an action shot of him actually receiving the communion.

So yea, my goals were completely rational and doable.

Except it was a FULL ceremony. Naturally.

I didn’t want to be obnoxious and block any parent from doing the same thing I was doing, so I talked to a couple friends before the ceremony started and planned to jump into the pew with them to snap pictures of our kids. But then at the big moment I couldn’t find where they were seated! Because that’s how these things work right? Thankfully I found my son’s classroom aides who allowed me to squeeze into the pew with them to snap my pictures of the actual moment. Which I am grateful for because I LOVE having the actual moment and his reaction to it documented. Talk about special.

Let’s get started.

Since I have ants in my pants I was able to grab some pictures of the kids lining up to walk into the mass. My little man is so used to mommy having a camera in his face that seeing me at the key locations during his ceremony was in no way a surprise to him.

Guess who spotted the family?

Lining up for the big moment

THE moment. And I got it.

Oh look, mommy is here too. 🙂

After the ceremony we snapped a couple pictures with his friends, but didn’t hang around to take our formal pictures. It was midday without a cloud in the sky and so crowded that I decided it was better to take pictures near our house. Besides, I had already taken Alex’s formal portraits so I wasn’t going to fight the crowds for bright, squinty eyed pictures. If it was a cloudy day I might have made a different choice, but this worked out best for us.

A couple of Alex’s formal portraits.

And then day of with nonno and nonna

Our little family

Then it was time to party!

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What a great outdoor family session! Meet the Gas family. Which also happens to be my best friend and godson’s family. This session came about after I noticed the old pictures they had hanging in their house. Not only have I as a photographer come a long way since those images, but the kids have grown so much since then! Plus they’ve even had a new addition to add to it! So I insisted on a updated session. We decided on a date and time and that was that. Of course, if you asked mom and dad how easy it was to get four children four years old and under ready to go out in that morning they might not agree with my declaration about how easy this was, but we made it happen. And I am so happy we did, because I really love how this session turned out. It was a little cold, so I tried to go as fast as possible. All the kids were troopers and I rewarded them with some m&m’s when we were done. 😉

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Really lucked out this day! The snow was a steady fall and made for a great session! We went to one of my favorite locations in Easton PA and everything combined made for a perfect backdrop. I’ve been looking to get some “tween” girls in my portfolio, and I’ve had my eye on Lexi since last year when her younger brother played baseball with my son. Finally got my hands on her, and was lucky enough that there was (shock!) some snow falling that day. I love this age. Still young, but with hints of growing up. Lexi was a natural in front of the camera and we had a super fun mini session. She was even brave enough to take her jacket off (while wearing short sleeves!) for a couple quick captures. Those, of course, are my favorite from this session. Mom and younger brother jumped in for a few family portraits too. 🙂

How gorgeous is this girl?

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My son is receiving his First Communion this year! It’s exciting and a big deal and I’ve been getting questions about taking portraits of other children receiving theirs as well. So I decided to offer First Communion Mini’s! It’s a great deal and a great way to capture nice images of this special day. Contact me for more info or to book your session today!

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