Why should you bring your pet chicken to your family session?

Baw-cause it makes for the most unique family portraits and keeps your kids entertained!

We couldn’t have picked a hotter day for this outdoor session at Towne Park, but we had fun regardless. We started the session by playing some of the kids’ favorite tunes, which helped loosen up Mom and Dad while allowing everyone to shake off the jitters and seemingly uncomfortable and scary aspects of “having your pictures taken.” Once the boys got restless, Dad went with them to explore, which was the perfect opportunity to get sweet photos of just Mom with her girls.

I’ve been a photographer for over ten years and am very well-versed in sunset sessions – yet, surprisingly, I have never, not once, photographed a sunrise session.

Partly to blame, I’m sure, is that I despise getting up before sunrise, but it was high time that I photographed in the morning hours! I set my alarm for 4 am, and after grabbing some coffee, we were on our way to an enchanting location encapsulated by the morning fog of the Oregon Coast.

If I learned one thing about visiting Oregon, it’s how unpredictable coastal weather is. While our prior family session at the coast was moody and overcast, and our morning session in the dunes was foggy and romantic, the sun showed off in all its glory during this beach session – YET, it was freezing and windy (great for pictures but not for notoriously cold photographers)

The second we got out of the car, I knew I had completely underestimated how cold it was. Still, luckily, Suzy lent me a cozy brown sweater, and my fingers stayed unfrozen throughout the beautiful session that ended with birds flying over our model family into the sunset.