* Owen

I am very lucky to be in regular contact with many of my childhood friends. Gillian, a dear friend who now lives in California, and her husband Brian recently came to visit her family in New England and I had the pleasure of photographing their adorable little boy Owen, on his first birthday!

It was raining when I first arrived to Gillian's father's place in Cushing, so we stayed inside for a bit.

Owen is too cute!

How sweet are those cheeks?

The weather cleared, and we headed outside to explore the beautiful yard. Doesn't he look proud?

With mommy and daddy.

Grandpa pulled out his tractor!

I stayed for the first ceremonial "Happy Birthday" song. Owen wasn't too sure.

Brian was sure to get it all on video.

What an exhausting afternoon!


Thanks so much for having me visit your father's farm, Gillian! You and Brian are great parents and it was so special to spend the afternoon with your adorable son! Let's make this a tradition!

* Anders and Henry

When Amy called to schedule a portrait session for her sons, she explained that her boys were not likely to sit still and, instead, could I photograph them being busy, doing whatever it is they normally do in an afternoon? Of course! Perfect. Just my style.

It was important to Amy to get pictures of Henry's nursery and with his pacifier, as he is getting a big boy bed this weekend. Here, Henry shows me how old he is.



It took Anders a while to warm up to my being there. In his room he felt safe in his basket of toys.



Their yellow lab, Hannah, looking for squirrels.

Check out the expression on Hannah's face!

One of their favorite activities is hanging out on mom & dad's big bed.



Love this.

Something as simple as putting on a pair of shoes is a sweet, simple capture to remember Anders at this age.

Sweet Hannah, again on squirrel patrol.

These boys love dinosaurs! A little dinosaur parade on the back steps.



At long last, the boys were feeling comfortable to mug for the camera willingly.









Check out the tremendous effort of mom Amy, making some fantastic dinosaur faces to get some giggles out of the boys!

Just before I left, I peeked into Henry's nursery again where he was clearly tired from the commotion and waiting for his mom to put him down for a nap. Adorable.


Many thanks to Amy for asking me to come spend an hour with your family at your home in Portsmouth. I had a really nice time and commend you for seeing the importance in capturing the simple, honest moments of life.

* Campbell

I had the pleasure of photographing Ali and Nate's wedding two years ago (the tent photo at the top of this blog is from their wedding) and have enjoyed staying in touch with them since. It is always such a special honor to be asked to photograph the children of my wedding clients and today was no exception. At 5 months, Campbell is just 13 lbs- a tiny, little, snuggable lovebug. I didn't want to leave!




The cutest Sox fan!














Thanks so much for having me to your beautiful home in Weare, NH, and for that great lunch, too, Ali! You're a wonderful mother!

* Linda

I met Linda in 2006 when she hired me to photograph her yellow lab puppy Alie. Last week she emailed me with the news that she is 8 months pregnant and asked if I could take a single photograph to capture her mommy-to-be body. Of course!

When I showed up at her house, I was shocked to see how little Linda's belly is! An athlete and tall, I would have never guessed she was just weeks away from her due date! She put on a tight fitting black dress and I went to work with the challenge of capturing one photo that expresses Linda's body in a proud, beautiful way. No frumpy pictures here! And this is the one picture from the take that I can't stop looking at. Isn't she striking? I especially love that the three photos on the wall are ones that I took of her dog!


Even tho Linda was happy with the above picture, too, we kept going with a few other poses. I've included a couple to share with you. I bet you can guess what Linda is having!

Alie has no idea how her world is about to change!

And a bit more abstract, pink tulips and the belly.

I am excited to go back and photograph Linda's little baby girl soon! Good luck, Linda!!

* Moreau family portrait

As a Christmas gift to their parent's, hometown friend Robyn and her brother Jeff gave their parents a portrait sitting while all were home for the holidays (Jeff lives in Colorado). We met at Robyn's home in New Hampshire this afternoon for a quick portrait session with Robyn and Jeff, their spouses and children and, of course, their parents. Such fun!

We pushed the dining room table out of the way for a different take on a typical family portrait.

And something more traditional.

Thankfully Old Man Winter was kind to us in New England this Christmas. We managed to sneak outside for a few minutes- without coats!

Happy grandparents



It was so great to see you again, Robyn, and spend some time with your beautiful family. Congratulations again on little Owen!

* Sam and Kyle

Sam DePoy-Warren is a talented photographer who lives in Farmington. In addition to her successful photography business, I Do Click, Sam is also an amazing writer, teacher and she's a graduate student! Sam first sent me an introductory email last winter, asking me a few questions about my business. That initial exchange became a steady electronic back-and-forth, and even the opportunity for J and I to consult Sam on some of business strategies.

We have been trying to squeeze in a quick holiday card portrait for weeks, and our schedules finally aligned today! Sam and her super husband Kyle made the trip down to South Portland for a hike through our favorite dog haven, Hinckley Park, with their two pointers Alder and Nikon.

This is my favorite!

And this is what most of the other images look like. ;)

Kidding. We did manage to find a handful of places for less rowdy portraits.





How sweet are Sam and Kyle together?

Nikon is 5-months old today!

And Alder is his big sister (brrr! It was a cold day to be swimming!).

Getting ready to leave.

Those pups are too cute (and you gotta love Sam's crocodile mittens)!

So great to see you all today! Dakota and Destin enjoyed having you over after for some serious playtime, too! Let's do it again soon! And thanks for the yummy Starbucks-inspired pumpkin spice latte cheesecake! Yum!

* Thomas

When I bought my house two and a half years ago, Tamika Donahue was my mortgage consultant. Sitting in her office crunching numbers, she shared stories of her previous career working with Gorham photographer Brenda Donovan. During some recent communications, Tamika shared the exciting news that she is expecting her second child! In honor of her husband's birthday later this month, I photographed their family on the beach near the house in the Higgins Beach community. We had about 10 minutes before our light was gone!

How adorable is her son Thomas?!


And a few quick pictures of the fam.

If you're looking for a mortgage broker in the Portland area, I highly recommend Tamika!

* Amelia and her father Stephen

You may recall that Amelia won the father's day essay contest in the spring. I recently had the pleasure of finally meeting this little cutie and her super sweet parents Stephen and Lindsey.

I challenged myself to take pictures of Amelia and Steve that say "father and daughter" but not just your standard portrait. This typically works best with little ones Amelia's age anyway because they are constantly on the go and don't want to mug for a camera!

This is Amelia and Steve (mommy Lindsey was dancing behind me to get their attention).

This is my favorite picture from the session... love Amelia's bright, wide eyes and Steve's smile in the dark background.





Amelia loves to play hide-n-seek.

Mom jumped in for a few photos, too.

I hope these pictures bring you lots of joy, Stephen. It was easy to see what a great father you are. Amelia is a very lucky little girl! Hope to see you all again soon, perhaps on the Eastern Trail!

* Lauren

I met Lauren when she was in diapers. Now, she's starting her senior year of high school. I just can't believe it!

Lauren and her older sister Amanda (whose senior portrait I took two years ago) lived down the street from me growing up. I babysat for them a few nights a week throughout high school as their mom, Lisa (whose wedding I photographed three years ago), went to nursing school. I miss them all very much, so I was especially excited to catch up with everyone last week!

I took these pictures of Amanda, left, and Lauren, right, when I was in college. Too cute! Can we turn back the clocks and do it again?

Thanks, Lauren! And Amanda, too! It's been such fun watching you both grow up into gorgeous young women!

* DC portraits

When I was in DC, I was lucky to photograph several clients and friends. Below are a few images from those some of those sessions.

Rebekah and Jamie in Owings Mills, MD (Rebekah's sister Amanda is my favorite officiant and she lives in the Baltimore area).
Baby Patricia (I photographed her parents', Jenny and Bob, wedding in 2004).Baby Eleanor and her mom Amy and dog Rocco (I photographed Amy and Greg's wedding in 2004). Click the image to view larger.

ps- the best part about my new liveBooks site? I can easily update my images, and have added a few of these portraits already!

* John and Meg

I had a fun photo play date with John and Meg in Portsmouth last week. We played with dolls and baseballs and rode bikes and had pb&j. John, 4, loved the camera and was very interested in learning about photography and Meg, 3, was happy to mug for me, showing off her many expressions. Here are just a few of the 400 images from the morning.

John loved being photographed!
How sweet are those freckles?
As usual, I just played along with what Meg and John wanted to do, including tours of their bedrooms. I loved their claw foot tub in the bathroom.

Baby portrait sessions in DC

So many of my DC brides have been emailing me pictures of your beautiful additions to your family since I photographed your weddings a few years ago. I will be down in Washington for a few days for a wedding on May 5th and would *love* to meet your smiling bundles of joy.

I am currently scheduling portrait sessions in your home (for newborns in their nurseries or just general play-time at the house) in 1 hour sessions for $200 (images will then be posted on Pictage for 60 days if you would like to order prints). Please let me know if you are interested, and your availability, and I will start coordinating times. I haven't made my flight arrangements yet but will fly down a few days prior/post the 5/5 wedding to accommodate your session.

Meantime, keep those pictures coming! And, congratulations!

* Baby Oliver

I trekked through the first snow of the season to photograph 5 month old baby Oliver in his nursery and his family holiday photo in New Ipswich, NH, on Friday.

Click here for a quick slideshow.

Such a cute expression!
Baby toes.


More toes!
Such a cute gift idea. Click here for the website for customized blocks.
Super cute nursery decor, made by mom!
The family dogs- Lucy and Rosie.
Doggie smile.

* Baby Avery

How adorable is this child? Avery is 14 months old and was talking up a storm during our brisk romp on Goose Rocks Beach in Kennebunk. Her cousins John, Madison and Cameron joined us for their family holiday card picture too.

This is my favorite
Check out the ears on the back of her coat!
I asked her to show me her teeth. Too cute!
Avery's cousins

* Carolyn and Todd

The beautiful texture of the buildings in Prescott Park and Strawbery Banke in Portsmouth, NH, provided the perfect back-drop for Carolyn and Todd's wintry engagement session. Although they live in North Carolina, they will tie the knot in Carolyn's New Hampshire hometown in April.

I have many favorites, but here are just a few.

* Alie

This morning I had a quick photo session with Alie, a 5 month yellow lab mix. Isn't she adorable? She was adopted from a shelter in the South and is settling in to Maine life nicely. She attends the same daycare as Dakota.


Alie has a purple tongue!

* Steven and Elizabeth

Brother and sister Steven and Elizabeth were a blast to photograph yesterday! Their mom, Sherri, is the event coordinator and choreographer for Fitness for a Cure, a benefit for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital that I photographed in May. She asked me to photograph the kids for their family Christmas card at their North Andover, Mass., home. I think they have a few great options!!




If you would like to get involved with the 2007 benefit events, please contact Sherri at slsfitness@aol.com.

* Baby Riley

Today I traveled to Massachusetts to visit my childhood friend Stacey and photograph her two month old son, Riley. Her house has lots of beautiful natural light, perfect for nursery photos! I had so many favorites!!!


Riley's nursery is baby boy blue and everything (!) matches perfectly.
How sweet is that little look while nuzzling with mommy?
Someone's sleepy.

This was the set-up...
...for these pictures.

* Hollis portrait

Hollis is the daughter of my childhood friend Devon. I first photographed Hollis last year in her nursery. This year, we ventured out to a farm for her portraits. She's grown so much in a year!


In her Christmas outfit (from LLBean- so cute!)
The family strolling through the pumpkin patch at sunset.
And in the apple orchard.
Another outfit change- she wasn't so pleased with this one!
Devon's brother Cameron, his wife Nikki and their baby Siena joined us, too.
Cousins!

Calming nerves

When Laura and Eric hired me for their upcoming April 2007 wedding, they expressed BIG nerves about being photographed. I can relate! Ironically, I don't like being photographed either! An engagement session at Colby College was a great practice run, so-to-speak, of what it will be like to be the center of attention in the spring. They easily warmed up to the camera, and we captured some sweet images in a beautiful setting.