We’ve had an unexpected spell of gorgeous weather in Pittsburgh for the past few days - a little oasis of 75+ degrees in the middle of November. I decided to write this blog tonight during our final little glimmer of warmth before we plunge into winter. It’s my last “summery” session, and if I blog this any later, it might make me cry a bit. I am NOT a cold weather person. Haha.

The relationship between Kayden (who just turned 7!), Roman, 5 years old, and Micah, 2 years old is darling. Kayden is an incredible big brother, doting and nurturing, always thoughtful and considerate of his siblings and keeping them in line. Roman has this amazingly sweet disposition and huge heart, and he looks up to his big brother tremendously. And, then there’s Princess Micah. During their session, Micah gave us a literal workout. She is feisty and adorable. As mom aptly described her to me, she is “petite and fiery.” When you take these three unique little personalities and put them together, there is a harmony, like when the varied instruments in an orchestra come together to create beautiful music.

The family home is filled with gorgeous natural elements and colors, wood, and live edge pieces. I wanted to craft their Editorial Session to match the decor and boho style, and since Mom chose the word “natural” as one of her three, I really honed in on that. I decided to give the session a boho/prairie/Joshua Tree feel, and when I found that gorgeous desert backdrop, everything else clicked into place so quickly. The wooden piece the kids are sitting on in the first image below was actually made by their dad. I like to incorporate elements of Dad into the images whenever possible, so when I saw that perfect piece, I was delighted. For the last set, we played around by the studio window weaving the kids in and out of branches of various plants that I have in the space. I wanted them to have a sun-soaked feel, Los Angeles meets the jungle. In order to add to the overall vibe of the session, I styled the wardrobe more casually, filled with earthy tones and denim. The white dress that Micah is wearing belonged to her mama when she was a little girl, so we called an audible to swap that in last minute. Using garments passed down from generation to generation, preserved with care and love, is such a special addition to an already special day in the studio.

Soft, warm images like these were made to be printed on canvas, and we created a stunning collage of canvas gallery wraps from the desert set that I can not wait to see hung up! I also can not wait until I get to photograph this special family again.

Three words to describe the session: Fun, Natural, Classic

(All of my portrait clients choose three words from a list of how they'd like to describe their finished images. You can click on any of the three words at the bottom of this post by the little tag icon to see past sessions that chose the same word. You can also see how different combinations of words leads to the creation of different images.)

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Clients like 9-year old Maelyn and her mama are a reminder to me just how lucky I am. Not only have I been privileged enough to do what I love for a living, but I also get to meet so many amazing children and people that may have never come into my life otherwise. These two ladies have just been such an immense joy to work with and to get to know better.

On top of being ridiculously beautiful, Maelyn has such an incredibly pure heart, and once you get to know her a little bit and she opens up, she is such a feisty, little ball of enthusiasm, energy, and personality. When I arrived at Maelyn’s home for her in-home consultation, I was greeted by both Maelyn and her mama with warm hugs. I’m 1000% a hugger through-and-through, but those usually don’t end up happening until the session and until folks have gotten to know me a bit. But, not these ladies. I was literally welcomed into their home with open arms and it was the best. thing. ever.

I’m all about personalizing a session however I can and as much as I can. Maelyn’s mama is a super talented children’s clothing designer and runs her own online boutique, Avery With Grace. I wanted to ensure that we incorporated some of her lovely clothing into Maelyn’s wardrobe for the session, so I selected both a bright rainbow shirt and an adorable polka dot dress that she had made. Since we were photographing a Comp Card Session, I chose a variety of wardrobe: some dressier, some more casual, and some that was right in the middle. I also opted to photograph the session on a purple backdrop, as it’s Maelyn’s absolute faaaavorite color, and she was ecstatic about it.

Maelyn already has a signature look. Her family calls it “The Maelyn Look.” It’s a hauntingly gorgeous model stare that she can snap into and out of like a little professional. We chose to use an image of this look for her head shot on the front of the comp card, because it’s beyond gorgeous.