I’m starting this blog post out strong with my favorite image – a behind the scenes photo of this amazing, fun loving family trying their darndest to get their youngest family member to smile. It took her a little while to warm up to the camera on this chilly winter day, but we pulled some of the biggest and best smiles out of her. And as you can see, I can’t take all the credit for that success!
I was introduced to this family because I work with one of the brothers at the high school I teach photography at. He and his brothers gave a family portrait gift to their mother for her birthday and wanted me to be their photographer. Awesome! We were originally talking about a spring or summer portrait session, but our “fall session” quickly turned into a winter one as it snowed in central Jersey a few days before our shoot, covering the ground in a gorgeous white blanket. I was so happy that this family was adventurous and came prepared for a chilly day with blankets and extra sweaters. We took a break halfway through the session to warm up in our cars… the snow was not going to put a damper on this families gift to their mom.
We met at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum in Morristown, NJ, which I’ve photographed at before. It’s always a gorgeous backdrop for family portraits and milestones. You can see they dressed in a color palette of golden yellows, maroon and grays. These colors looked equally great against the snowy, wooded backdrop here, the rose garden, and later on in the portrait session against the few remaining green trees at the park.
This mom is so lucky to have 4 boys who love her so dearly! I absolutely loved photographing them all together!
After taking these last photos in the rose garden, I was surprised with BUBBLE GUNS! Yes, really! It was amazing!!
We took some time to fill them all up with bubbles and then walked back to the snowy field to have a “fight”. This was such a fun way to get candids of everyone having fun together! I’m so glad they brought them.
This is the point in which we took a break to warm up in our cars. After a little bit of warmth and a snack we were ready for one last set of photos in a more fall-like background with some green trees.
This session was such a blast! Thank you, T Family for such a wonderful afternoon at Frelinghuysen Arboretum! And for all my readers, I hope this is inspiring you to not be nervous about pursuing wintery portrait session.