Watching families grow is so much fun.  I could tell you again and again what a privilege it is to be able to watch children grow up and be entrusted with the portraits that will be part of defining their lives.  I know, a little deep, but it makes professional photography all the more special, and I’m a big believer in sculpting family legacies.

Well, the S. family, I’ve had the privilege of photographing for a few years now.  This was year 3, with a few other shoots in between.  Little M. is a precious little girl and the apple of mom and dad’s eye.  I communicated with mom about wardrobe for the family and achieving the look she was hoping for.  She has a great eye for pulling things together, and uses this in her own business as well.  I’ll introduce her properly, mom is Casey and she owns and does a fantastic job with La Petite Party in Thousand Oaks which is an amazing place for birthday parties, for boys and girls, mom’s night out spa time, etc.  Check her business out here and schedule your next party or get together there.

This year, for her family portraits, we opted for a family fun time at the beach.  We had an amazing day in terms of weather, and my own kids and husband were playing in the water and enjoying the beach.  In fact, I had to photoshop them out of the distant background of one the shots.  That was a fun first.  I was so happy that Casey liked them, and that her and her husband were thrilled with the final product which included holiday cards and some fantastic wall art for a few rooms in their home.  I love watching families create tasteful, meaningful wall galleries for their homes.  I’ll give you a little insight into what they chose and how we took a fun day at the beach to create a beautiful memories of personal wall art…

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This was the main family portrait… both on the card that I designed for them and for a prominent place on their wall:

Doesn’t little M. just make you want to dream along with her?  This one I added a subtle texture to the image to enhance the artistic feel of it:

Here is little M. just in a delightful moment, full of joy– genuine, simple, joy.

The other moments that I believe are really important: capturing a little love between mom and dad.  Now this can be a hug, sitting on a lap, a playful moment, or a kiss– at sunset no less.  But these moments between a husband and a wife are so important to capture.  Your wedding day isn’t the only day to have professional portraits where both of you look great.  Dad and mom are the anchors in the family, and this is a great way to bless that intimate relationship that provides leadership, love, guidance and strength.

I always want to get the parental relationships too, and these were some favorites that are going in M.’s room, and I hope become an heirloom for her.

I also created a storyboard for Casey to have as her own “mother heirloom” and eventual reminder of times so precious and times that inevitably go by too fast.  Each image had a different aspect of their relationship.  Also, I think these will be perfect in frames at M.’s wedding one day.  🙂

Who has fun being adored by her daddy?

This is the storyboard that Casey “gifted” herself (“a gift that keeps on giving”):

Here are a few more images they (understandably) didn’t want to let go of…

© KM Photography, by Krissy Millar