Twins!

When I was in Chicago this summer, I had the chance to see an old friend of mine that I haven’t seen in YEARS!  I literally don’t think I’ve seen her since I left my job at the hedge fund and became a photographer over 8 years ago (that’s a story for another day).  It was SO great to see her and catch up – but it was especially exciting because I got to photograph her TWINS!  A boy and a girl, just a few weeks old and as precious as they get!

They’d like to remain anonymous, so I’m only going to share a couple of my favorites to give you a taste of how cute they are!

Twins!

Twins!

Ah!  So precious!!  xoxo

The Great Giveaway

Earlier this summer, my church GENESIS held an event called The Great Giveaway.  This was our way of reaching out and blessing the community of Woburn.  We’re a very new church in the area, and thought this might be a great way to meet our neighbors.  We basically had a HUGE yard sale where everything was given away for FREE!  Hundreds of people came and almost everything was taken by the end of the day (what wasn’t taken was donated to Salvation Army).  It was the coolest thing!  People could not get over the fact that everything was free, and that there were no strings attached.  It was so fun!

We spent HOURS going through all the donations, organizing everything, and then putting it out in the parking lot.  There was a TON of stuff!!

The Great Giveaway

People were lined up at the entrance for hours waiting for the event to start.  It was so cool to watch them run when we opened the gates!

The Great Giveaway

THOUSANDS of items of clothing were given away!

The Great Giveaway

The Great Giveaway

Just for fun, I shot some film with my Holga :)

The Great Giveaway FILM

The Great Giveaway FILM

Leg Warmers!!

The Great Giveaway FILM

And this guy found some roller skates, and rolled away on them – and they even matched his shirt!  He was so excited! :)

The Great Giveaway

there was face-painting for the kiddos

The Great Giveaway

and a bouncy house!

The Great Giveaway

Even Justin, Gretchen & Chloe came :)

The Great Giveaway

I am so blessed to be part of this community!    I definitely hope we do this again next year :)

Sylvia & Ricky’s Wedding – FILM (finally!)

Well, this is embarrassing…  It’s been, well, months since Sylvia & Ricky’s wedding.  I shot some film that day and sent it to a new lab for scanning.  I had no idea that the lab would take MONTHS to get the scans back.  Boo!  It’s an awesome service if you’re looking to scan old stuff, and you’re not in a hurry, but it’s not so good for getting things done for clients!  Good to know…

Well, the silver lining is that the film turned out great, and the scans are awesome!  Take a look at a few of my favorites…

Sylvia

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

The happy couple

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

The Bridal Party

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

The church

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

The Ceremony

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

The whole fam

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

The First Dance

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

Dudes with cigars

Sylvia & Ricky - Black & White FILM

Sylvia & Ricky!  I love you two :)  Thanks for being so patient waiting for these scans – you rock!  xoxo

To view more of my favorite images from this wedding, check out the album on Facebook!

Tami & Ryan’s Family Portraits – Chicago, IL

I photographed Tami & Ryan’s wedding back in 2005 when I worked for a studio in Chicago called Real Life Weddings.  Tami actually interned at the studio for a while, and assisted me at a few weddings – and we became friends in the process.  I hadn’t seen her in ages, so I was super excited when she decided to schedule a session for my Portrait Day in Lincoln Park in Chicago this summer!  Almost exactly five years after their wedding, I had the chance to see Tami & Ryan again, to meet Ava & Ryder, and to photograph their adorable family!  I love photographing friends, and I absolutely love getting to work with my brides again – so this was really quite a treat!

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

Meet Ava…

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

haha!

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

Little Ryder

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

It was fun catching up with them as we walked through the Park.  I discovered that Ryan is pastor of a new church in Palatine, IL that was planted through the Acts 29 Network last fall.  It just so happens that my church was also planted last fall through Acts 29!  It was so cool to hear all about their experience and all the great stuff that God’s doing in their community!

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

I love this family shot!

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

We even managed to get a few portraits just of the two of them (since you can’t see that she’s still holding the baby ;)!  Ryan assured me that they probably hadn’t had one taken since their wedding, so at least I can say that I’m the one who gets to do it ;)

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

These two are great parents!  I just love these last couple of shots!

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

Family Portraits in Lincoln Park

And just for fun, here are a few of my favorites from their WEDDING, circa 2005!!   (The following photos were shot on FILM for Real Life Weddings)

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The first time I ever got to shoot a “First Look”!

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Tami & Ryan – it was SO great to see you!!  And to meet your babies!  They’re so cute, and have such sweet & fun little personalities already.  Thanks for coming into the city for our photo session, and for braving the heat and even exploding diapers!  Hopefully it will be less than 5 years before I see you again :)

To view more of my favorites from this shoot, please check out the album on Facebook!

A Year-in-the-Life: Chloe’s 1st Birthday Party!

Wow, time really does just fly by, doesn’t it?!  It seems like it wasn’t that long ago Justin & Gretchen were getting married!  Since then they’ve gotten pregnant, had a baby girl, had lots of photo shoots of little Chloe growing up, and now she’s officially a year old!!!  To celebrate, they threw her a party complete with cake smashed in the face and lots of laughs – and once again I got to be there to document the fun!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

So big!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

First of all, the 3 pigtails she’s got going on are adorable.  Secondly, look at how sweet that face is!  And third, I think it’s hilarious how much she loved that card (more than the present even)!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Blowing kisses!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

not quite walking…  I love Gretchen’s hand in the lower left of this shot.  Giving her a chance to stay up by herself, but definitely ready to catch her at the first sign of falling.

Chloe's First Birthday Party

1st Birthday Princess :)

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Chloe's First Birthday Party

What’s this deliciousness?!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Once you have cake all over you, your best bet is to just wash off in the pool!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Dads always know how to make their girls laugh!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

And every little girl needs a fabulous & adoring AUNT!!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Chloe's First Birthday Party

trying to walk some more…. I love the toes, the little thighs, the shadows (especially the hand reaching out to grab)!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

You’re too cute, Chloe!

Chloe's First Birthday Party

Gretchen & Justin (and Chloe) – thank you!  You guys are the best!  It’s been SO fun to document this crazy & wonderful year for you!!!!  It’s hard to believe it’s over already, and I won’t be coming by your house in a couple months for another shoot ;)  But, I’m excited to stay connected with you and see how your family continues to grow and change over the years!

To view more of my favorites from this shoot check out the album on Facebook!

Rahel & Yitzi’s Engagement Session – Boston, MA

Last year I photographed the wedding of Shoshana & Andy and had such a fun time working with them and their family!  Imagine my excitement when Shoshana’s mom called to tell me that Shoshana’s sister Rahel had just gotten engaged!!  I am thrilled to be able to continue documenting this family, and to celebrate another marriage with them!

A few weeks ago I met up with Rahel and Yitzi to photograph their engagement session.  These two met at MIT, so what better place to begin our shoot than on campus?

Boston Engagement Session

Boston Engagement Session

Being photographed can be totally awkward – but if you can just keep each other laughing, it helps a LOT!

Boston Engagement Session

After walking around campus a little bit, we decided to head over to the Charles River.  The sunlight was just lovely!

Boston Engagement Session

I’m totally fascinated by the way people stand, and what they do with their hands & their feet.  In case you were wondering why I always have random shots of people’s lower halves…  :)

Boston Engagement Session

Boston Engagement Session

I love the sunlight this time of day!

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Gosh, Rahel’s eyes are so beautiful!

Boston Engagement Session

At this point in the evening, we walked down to J.P. Lick’s for some delicious ice cream!  (which is funny, since Shoshana & Andy took me there during their eSession as well)  I don’t have photos to show you of this portion because I was a little busy stuffing my face ;)  But after that we walked along the Esplanade for the sunset, and played in the park a bit.

Boston Engagement Session

I know the next 2 are a lot alike, but I couldn’t decide which processing I liked better!

Boston Engagement Session

Boston Engagement Session

See, laughter always helps!!

Boston Engagement Session

Our final view as we walked back across the bridge

Boston Engagement Session

Rahel & Yitzi – it was great to see you again – and great to meet you Yitzi!   Thanks for a fun evening, and especially the awesome ice cream!  ;)  It was great getting to hang out with you both and get to know you a little better.  I’m really looking forward to seeing you again in a few weeks for the wedding!!  Hard to believe it’s coming up already, but it’s going to be a blast!!

To view more of my favorites from this shoot, check out the album on Facebook