welcome

I feel like I’ve spent a lot of time trying to convince you all that a documentary family shoot is something you should invest in. And not because I don’t think other photography has purpose or place. 

Posed portraits are also representations of your family. 

As we watched it for the first time together, each of us reacted differently. It was my first DSLR family film, and I had shot and edited it over a few weeks of a perfectly crisp, colorful October. My husband sat next to me and watched, smiling and nodding with familiarity in his eyes. My sons belly-laughed at the funny moments. My one-year-old daughter focused intently throughout, pointing at and naming us as we appeared in the film. We each took ownership of this film in our own way.

It’s Saturday. 

The kids come into the bedroom, “It’s time to get up mom & dad!” The coffee is poured. Dad makes breakfast and the smell of bacon in the morning is an iconic scent of a day to be spent with family … and the rest of the day is your playground together. I want you to picture it right now: what would you likely do together on a day like this?

There was something I noticed really quickly when I started dipping my toes into the community of documentary family photographers—most of them were mothers. I think it’s a natural fit: photographers who have young children are going to be drawn to those everyday moments.

I am a documentary family photographer because I have a fascination with people & the inner-workings of families & how they interact with each other & with the world around them. I want to be able to see what people are like behind closed doors, without the outside pressure of “keeping up appearances.”

You know how bloopers are sometimes better than the actual show?

Well, it kind of works that way in photo shoots too. Usually when I photograph a traditional portrait session, where I go with the family to a field or a park or a lake or some other pretty public space, my very favorite photos are the outtakes.