It’s always a treat and a challenge to get the opportunity to photograph friends and family…a treat because, well, how awesome is it that I am the one who gets to document monumental memories in their lives?  But it’s also a challenge in a way because let’s face it, no one can just “be themselves” in front of a camera…which is why I never tell anyone to, or expect them to.

The coolest part about this “job” is that I get to interact socially with cool adults in a fun, casual environment, and learn about them and watch how people interact in what is typically a little bit outside their comfort zones.  Most of the time when I’m shooting, I’m asking random questions about my clients’ lives, telling them to turn their chin slightly, and then find out that they also know “so-and-so” and occasionally hear a funny story about an acquaintance.  It’s a pretty fluid 2-or-so hours and conversation comes pretty easily.

But what about when you know everything there is to know about the person in front of the camera?!  It’s hard to make interesting small-talk with your best friends and even harder to take each other seriously 🙂  The upside, though, is that I get to cheat sometimes and try things I sometimes don’t have the opportunity to do because, well, this is my best friend and I’ll do what I want, ha!  All of that to say, I am SO, SO, SO fortunate to have gotten to capture my beautiful friend’s pregnancy glow and see the anticipation in her and her hubby’s eyes over their sweet baby-to-be.  Miss Caroline was born September 18 and I can hardly wait to kiss her sweet cheeks and get all up in her face with my lens 🙂

Cheers to one of my new new favorite parties-of-three!  I love you SO much.