Meeting: They pulled up curbside, wide-eyed and cheery–a bit nervous I could tell, but even that felt warranted as it was our first time ever meeting.

Wardrobe: The three of them came waltzing along the pond to meet me in their soft pastel pink and blue. The sun shone down on them in dappled rays of beauty that quite complimented the the love emminating from their sweet countenances. They nervously unpacked their beetle, adjusted their baby girl and setup her stroller. They looked at eachother. Then at me. Then back at each other mumbling directions to one another about how best to situate themselves before the photoshoot began.

And then it did.

I greeted them warmly as they got out of the car, and showed them a little pathway. I asked them to walk toward me. Then away. Then toward me. Then away. It was by far one of my favourite photoshoots ever, as every prompt was an opportunity to enjoy one another. They hardly gave thought to how the pictures might have turned out, or how repetitive my prompts had become, because they were so engaged with one another. So given to the moment. So lost in the adventure of the photoshoot.

The Walks? Well they were made for eachother. There’s no doubting it. The giddiness and the tender kisses between poses told me that nothing had been rehearsed here. Just love unfolding naturally, the same way it did behind closed doors. Even baby girl was natural at being herlself. She was certainly one of the most peaceful babes I’d ever met and nobody made anything of it in instances when she protested. The photoshoot just kept rolling along and this is how I mean it to happen for families. I hope for them to open up and just live their lives as I document them.

I live for moments like these, where going to work is like being a fly on the wall in the actual storybook of someone’s life. Katie said she’d cherish these pohotos for years to come. And I think I will too.