It was made very evident to me recently, at my baby shower, that I have made my aesthetic very obvious to my nearest and dearest. Gift by gift, as I unwrapped little bits of loveliness for my sweet baby-boy-to-be, I realized that even gifts purchased outside of my registry were in colors that make me swoon. So you can imagine my surprise & elation, when — by chance — I was handed the most beautiful coral and teal engagement session EVER. My very favorite colors.
Author: chantal
a waterlogged wedding: Margaret + Todd take Bethesda by storm
I recently commented to Margaret and Todd that if their wedding day was any indicator, their marriage was going to be off-the-charts fun. And I meant it: these two are wild about each other, thrive off each others’ laughter, and are against-all-odds committed to turning every lemon they encounter into the most succulent of lemonades.
So, when overcast skies gave way to rain – right in the middle of their family and wedding party photos – they donned their biggest smiles, passed around adorable (and matching, I might add) grey umbrellas, and kept going. They might have hoped for sun, but you’d never know it, looking at the images below. And although it meant a wet hour or so for this photographer,* I have to admit they’re some of my favorite images in the bunch. Besides, what’s a little rain on the happiest day of your life?
eight trumpets and a baby
Take my word for it: there is nothing cuter than a three-week-old baby flanked by her daddy’s prized trumpet collection. Who needs growth charts when you can measure height relative to trumpet length?
Gabrielle is one of the most easy-going infants I’ve had the pleasure of photographing. Not even old enough to bare her newly formed belly button, she was more than happy to oblige for just about anything the morning of our session. Snuggles? Gladly! Nap time? Of course! Trumpets? Why, sure!
three become one: an Annapolis wedding
We’ve gone over this before: everything about Annapolis makes me swoon. From its small-town, sleepy-Sunday-morning feel, and its sweeping vistas, to its charming homes on winding narrow roads. But even more than the town in which they wed, I love this wedding for the sweet sense of family and the attention to detail with which it was comprised.
The home where Laura and Carolina got ready, for example: perfection. Warm and rustic, it would have no other place than in a town like Annapolis. I fell fast for its stunning staircase, brick fireplace, and nautical touches that so aptly adorn a home that lives by the sea. It was a treat, to say the least, to photograph the bride getting ready for her vows there.
brody and his bubbles
This. This is why I love my job. Because even though I guide my clients toward beautifully lit areas, and suggest ways they can better position themselves in front of my camera, there’s no staging or faking the joy and connection that’s captured once my shutter clicks. And it’s in every darling moment I shared with this blue eyed family of three.
Brody is a grinning, giggling, mop of curls two-year-old with the most contagious enthusiasm for the world. Rebecca and Jason, his adoring parents, won the lottery of toddler cuteness, that’s for sure, and we squeezed out every ounce of it that we could in the setting spring sun. Even in his quieter moments, he engaged fully with those piercing blue eyes, rendering some of the sweetest photographs that I know his family will cherish.