As a Family photographer springtime is a great time to update family photos in DC! Even if the weather is unpredictable all you really need is a room with decent light. I love working with past clients like my brides on keeping their family photos updated. For this session, the mom, and interior designer, dressed the girls in perfectly coordinated chambray shirts and black bows. We spend less than hour chasing the girls around and I am so in love with the results!

I know it can be hard to wrangle the kids, get them dressed in coordinating outfits and to wrestle a bow in their hair – but it’s usually worth it for some heirloom family photography. The whole process here was less than 45 minutes and we got a ton of great imagery and I believe we captured the true and distinct personalities of these two kiddos.

With family and kid photography it really is about preparation. I always suggest doing the shoot when they are in their “best mood” which is usually in the morning. Keeping lots of snacks and bribes around is helpful to get them to follow instructions! But after a few photos of smiling and looking at the camera I prefer to let the family loose to relax, draw, spin and do as they like so that we can get more relaxed photos. This is much more possible in an “at-home” session rather than at a park where they can run much farther, and faster, than any of us!

A simple beauty editorial shoot with a very talented team. Usually, the simplest photoshoots are the best ones. And that was certainly the case here. I am always grateful to our talented partners. And in this case the hair and makeup team are key. 

After many gloomy and gray months of winter, I am always desperate to photograph something again! So I pulled this  Editorial Beauty shoot together with my friend Lauren, a makeup artist. The concept of the shoot was to showcase the natural beauty and clean, modern lines of style. The entire shoot was with natural light, in my garage. Shot on a Contax 645 with Fuji Pro 400h 120 film and developed & scanned by Goodman Lab.

Every winter I go through the same cycle of wanting to create something. It can be a huge effort to plan a whole shoot. But often the part of photoshoots that I like the best, are the beauty and dress parts. The other big piece of the puzzle is the wardrobe. Rather than borrowing a wedding dress, I purchased some wardrobe that would be neutral enough to keep the focus on the faces. 

Once we had the models in hair and makeup, we had them play with different poses. It always helps to be prepared with a shotlist of the photos that have inspired us. However, I only use it as a crib sheet when absolutely needed. 

Makeup: Real Doll Makeup, Lauren Jaber

Hair: Jewel Hair Design

Models: Kelsey & Sara from THE Model Agency

A wedding in March is pretty rare in DC, we are at the tail end of March right now and it’s a 75 degree day while we had a snowstorm and delay of the Cherry Blossom peak bloom just a week or two ago. But for this couple the day was sunny and clear last spring when Robin & Jesse got married in the Foggy Bottom area of Washington, DC. Their traditional Jewish Wedding with Ketubah signing and everything happened indoors, where it was nice and warm and cozy and we were outside for just the portraits. In DC I love shooting a mix of film and digital photography so that our local clients can get the advantage of both mediums. There was a super talented team behind the making of this wedding, credits at the bottom! Originally seen on United With Love.

Event Planning: A. Dominick Events  | Photography: Bonnie Sen | Floral Design: Amaryllis | Hair: Artistry by Claudine |Makeup: Claire Ashley Beauty |  Cinematography: Ryan Geldermann Wedding Cinematographer |Calligraphy : Lettering By Lynne  | Venue & Cake: The Ritz Carlton Washington Dc | Rentals: DC Rentals |Rentals: Party Rental LTD | Lighting : Frost Lighting | Invitations: A Fabulous Fete | Welcome Tags: Flourishing Penguin | Wedding Dress: Monique Lhuillier

This Cooking engagement session is inspired by the couple’s love for cooking. Especially for each other.  Michelle and Derek are two architects in Seattle who love to cook! For their engagement photos, they rented The Pantry in Seattle.  Then we all followed the shoot with a cooking lesson. And finally private dinner as their engagement party.

Engagement sessions have the opportunity to be as creative and personal as possible, and therefore I try to incorporate as many personal details as possible! Michelle & Derek are two of my destination wedding clients. And as a result of my family living in Seattle, we were able to work out an engagement session in the Spring. Which will perfectly complement their late summer Oregon Coast wedding.

The engagement shoot consisted of making an apple pie. This is something they often do considering Derek is from eastern Washington State which is known for its apples. During the shoot, the two of them would dream of opening a restaurant as their next career.

As seen on Cottage Hill the rest of the credits are at the bottom!

Cooking Engagement Session Credits

Bride & Planner, Michelle Hamilton Makeup by Clarins of Nordstroms, Seattle Apron sewn by mother Nora Hamilton, pattern design is from Sewing Happiness by Sanae Ishida, fabric from Drygoods Design Bride’s striped shirt is from Lika Love Groom’s Shirt is from Butch Blum

Fall in Capitol Hill, DC Engagement Session

We love this beautiful fall day and started in the couple’s Capitol Hill neighborhood. Granted, mostly so we could grab some photos with the puppy! The fall colors and  light is amazing and the sun is peeking out just a tiny bit this day. I am so excited for this couple’s wedding at the super modern, long-awaited,  Line Hotel this Fall.

Engagement session suggestions

For your engagement session consider making it personal and memorable by planning an activity or capturing your lives as they are right now. This could mean an at home session, or a jaunt around your neighborhood or favorite areas. It gives you something to do and it always ends up with the absolute best, most authentic, relaxed and natural engagement photos. Just to get the ideas flowing you could go wine tasting, coffee cupping, have a picnic in the park, etc. Most of all think romantic and engagement-ey, so you’ll still get polished, professional photos.

Some more of our favorite creative and out of the box engagement sessions are Joe and Cat’s At home Session, this Christmas Tree Cutting session or this At-home Cooking session in Seattle!