This is the hardest part about moving away. Saying good-bye to clients-turned-friends who have just brightened up my life. I will miss you guys tremendously, and thank you so much for allowing me to capture Halle throughout her first two years of life. She’s truly silly & unforgettable!

Talk about a photographic family.. the Fagan boys bring style and photographic pizzazz to the modern family portrait. Little Amari has grown so much since the last session and even more so since he was a newborn. He is walking all over the place now, and big brother is right by his side when he gets a little wobbly. We surely missed momma on this shoot (hey, Candice!) who is touring the country with Tops In Blue. And, I must give out major props to daddy for the wardrobe ensemble! I have thoroughly enjoyed photographing your family during this vibrant stage of life; I will miss you guys!!

As mentioned in my blog bio, the wonderful thing about being a photographer is meeting new, wonderful people I would have never met apart from this. I truly would have missed out if I had left Okinawa not meeting the Blackburn family. Luckily, Nicole won a KMP gift certificate, and the client/friendship/newborn-to-family photography began.

Little Nathan had turned into quite the chunky monkey since his newborn shoot, and the 3 young boys kept me laughing while chasing them around. They were a trip; somewhere along the way they renamed me “Carrot!” Ah, what a fun stage. Good memories! =)

David told me to drink coffee. That it would help my thoughts flow. I sit down to type so many times and some days I come up with nothing. So, as I write this post in the middle of the day, my littlest is napping, Band of Horses is trickling out the speakers, and the coffee is kicking in. David was right.

I am often asked how I got into photography, and while there are many factors, I obligingly give the same story similar to many photographer moms of how our kids sparked the inspiration to begin. And, while that is all honest and true there is another glaringly huge factor for keeping my camera on my hip. Photography allows me to express myself as an artist. And, the act of photographing makes me feel soaringly high. There is nothing like a moment set up in a beautiful environment with perfect light, perfect color, and the perfect expressions, all the stars align and a perfect moment is captured. I think about it for days and pour over that image and find it exhilarating. I can’t wait to show it to the client and experience their satisfaction and tears. Then with each new assignment I chase after that moment again and again, and strive to top that photograph each week. While I was definitely inspired to begin photography, what pushed me was the highly addictive nature of this artistic method. That is what’s so beautiful about photographing a family. The moments are unpredictable, but they are real and raw and at some point during the photo session the stars do align to produce the shot you and I have been dreaming of. Believe me, I love your photos as much as you do. I seriously want a wall in my home of just my clients. Would that be too weird? Maybe one day in an office, but right now this blog and my website is the platform for those captured moments.

The Beville family was no exception. The wardrobe. The wind. The toothy grins. The perfect light. Blue eyes. The stars aligned.

Not only does she have killer blue eyes, but Taryn is the creative artist behind Sushi Socks.

I have been friends with the Bevilles for a couple of years now, and it was an honor to have them during my last few sessions left in Okinawa. It was my goal for the boys to have a good experience and to squash all other previous photo experiences to the ground. Taryn told me that when they were driving away from our session that her oldest said it was a lot of fun! A lot coming from a little man. Mission accomplished.