A few highlights from the kids portrait sessions I did while I was out in California…

**Side note:  This couple was chosen to be featured in the New York Times Sunday Wedding Announcements and they submitted a picture from our engagement session! It was an honor to see my picture on such a prestigious site…Thanks Mia and Michael!

Oh Baby! Look how lovely little Miss Kiera is. Only 2 weeks old. She was such a doll during our portrait session even though we rudely interrupted her day time sleeping schedule. You see she sleeps during the day and wants to party at night with mom. But I think we did a pretty good job capturing her sleeping beauty. I can’t wait to take more pics of this beautiful baby.

Last year I was fortunate to have been able to document the first years of my friends baby’s Rocco and Stella and I loved taking every single picture. It brings me such joy to look back and see them grow from newborns, to toddlers and now little people. It all happens so fast so get it documented!

Spring is definitely here on the east coast. The temperatures are finally rising and the flowers are starting to bloom. I’m so excited to share this beautiful spring city hall wedding of Alison and Trygve.  I love that they added some traditional aspects of a wedding to an otherwise intimate and sterile civil ceremony to turn it up a notch.  Just add some cute flower girls in colorful dresses and bouquets, adorable ring bearers, excited family members, a glowing bride in a beautiful white gown and voile! A mini wedding without all the fuss. After some portraits on the steps of the supreme court building we all headed downtown to Capital Grille for a formal lunch. The staff at this restaurant we so attentive and extremely polite that I would recommend this place for an event in an instant.

Having a civil ceremony doesn’t have to be just the two of you and a judge. Why not make it into a mini wedding? Just invite some family and close friends and pick a few formal traditions. Try wearing a white dress or have the bridesmaids carry colorful bouquets and then celebrate afterwards with an intimate dinner. And of course consider hiring a professional photographer to capture all these details and moments

Marissa and Ricardo made this engagement session memorable. As a photographer you sometimes get caught up in worrying about the background or trying to make it an interesting shot. With these two they made the shot.

Marissa and Ricardo had some really great ideas about where to shoot in Brooklyn and I was so excited they wanted their session only in Brooklyn. But it became increasingly clear that I wanted to take pictures of them just being together because they obviously had a strong connection and it was showing through in the pictures. They are about to embark on their next chapter in their lives together, moving back to California and getting married, and they wanted some pictures of their lively urban neighborhood.  So we walked over the Williamsburg Bridge which they’ve crossed over many times into Manhattan and headed down to the East River Park. There is an amazing view of Manhattan there which comes along with some interesting characters hanging out playing guitar and others sneaking into my shot with pants hanging low and smoking. Typical Brooklyn. I’m sure they have plenty of memories to remember what Brooklyn looks like, but I hope they look back on these images after they’ve been married for 50 years and remember the obvious love between them. I think that’s the real power and joy of having great pictures from your wedding, civil ceremony, engagement session, birthday party, etc. because ultimately it’s the connections and feelings that we have for our loved ones that we want sealed forever in a  flash of an instant.