The D Family | Bernhard Museum

This adorable family of four was so much fun to work with! Earlier this fall, we met up at the Bernhard Museum in Auburn for a Sunday morning session. (I don’t shoot a lot of morning sessions, but mom Heather told me that her kids are happiest in the morning, and so we made it happen! And boy was she was right!)

Seriously, aren’t they the happiest and most beautiful babies?!

And yes, their eyes are just that blue! There’s no Photoshop magic happening there.

Speaking of Photoshop magic, I will let you in on a little secret. See that image above? The straight-out-of-the-camera image looked slightly different.

The little girl was looking off to the side (which is totally normal for a 3-year-old!), so we just did a little head swap and voila…she’s now looking at the camera!

And when I say “we,” I really mean Retouchup. (I have no head swapping skills to speak of, so for me, outsourcing is the way to go.)

Anyway, I say all of that, to let you know that if your munchkins are really wiggly during your photo session and looking anywhere but the camera, don’t despair. When I snap photos of kids, I almost always overshoot, knowing that there might be a head swap or two in post processing.

Thank you, D family, for allowing me to capture these special moments for you!

Want to take some photos at the Bernhard Museum, too?! Let’s chat! Shoot me an email at jennieharlessphotography@gmail.com.

The L Family | Fall Photos

We’re really lucky to live right next door to this sweet family of four.

This was a bittersweet September night for them; their son was heading back to college in the morning.

And I can’t believe their youngest is already a senior in high school.

I felt so honored to be able to capture this precious time in their lives.

Bartkoski Family Mini-Session

At the end of each year, I create a Facebook post wherein I share my favorite photo from each session I've done. Then, I -- and many of my clients -- ask people to vote for their favorite photo. The individual or family who receives the most votes earns a free mini-session!

In January, the Bartkoski Family won the free mini-session, and I was delighted to photograph them along the Bear River (again!) earlier this month. (You can see their November 2017 session here.) 

It's always a fun time hanging out with this family of four. Mom Christa does such a good job coordinating all of their outfits before each session.

What's her go-to store for cute kids' clothes that coordinate?

Old Navy!

It was a pleasure, B family. Let's do it again sometime!

Family Update 2017

This is us: Our family of four in the fall of 2017.  (Thank you to Chloe Photography for these beautiful images!)

NOAH | Noah is five and in kindergarten. He is loving school! He is officially "reading" and the child development major/former educator in me is thoroughly loving watching this process unfold. Seeing him blossom and bloom in the areas of reading and writing is simply the best. Noah played soccer in the fall and scored a few goals. When the season came to an end in November, he was disappointed; he genuinely wanted to keep playing. Recently, he came to me and said he needed more sports in his life. So, he's all signed up for a 6-week basketball class starting in January. Noah is currently obsessed with the music from the movie, Sing. In fact, at least once a week, we'll find him pounding away at our piano and belting out "I'm Still Standing." I see piano lessons in his future.

The week before Thanksgiving, Noah created an "I am Thankful For" turkey at school. On the feathers of the turkey, he wrote what he was most thankful for:

• My dad
• My mom
• Good dreams (How sweet is that!)
• My friends
• Maui (We spent a week in Maui in October.)

Yes, he neglected to include his sister, but he does love her. And I think most days, he is thankful for her -- except when she gets into his LEGO bin!

We are so thankful for Noah. 

BETHANY | This little 2-year-old girl loves to go, go, go -- nonstop. Bethy climbs on counters and jumps off chairs and she is happiest when she is at gymnastics "nastix" class, swinging on the rings. She dances to "Hair Up" from the Trolls movie as often as she can. She sings "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" over and over, along with the ABC song.

Her car seat now faces forward, and she's become quite the backseat driver. It's not uncommon to hear her yell "Faster, Daddy, faster!"

Beth loves to eat. Fresh eggs from our chickens are one of her favorites! When she really likes a food like pizza or spaghetti or black olives, she'll say "lishis." When she counts aloud, she's likely to say 1, 2, 3, 9 and 10.

Her favorite phrase right now is "try again." I hope it's a mantra she carries with her for the rest of her life. 

BRIAN | Still fighting fire. Still cheering on the Notre Dame football team. Still misplacing his sunglasses on a regular basis. Still secretly planting flower bulbs in the yard for Jennie every fall. Experimenting with yoga. Cooking with his new pellet smoker. Working on his bachelor's degree, one online class at a time.

JENNIE | Still super thankful to be a mama -- and a mama who gets to be with my kiddos A LOT. Still taking photos of my kids and other people's kids. Still serving as a Little Free Library steward. Still biting my nails. Loving a new practice: once-a-week heated yoga. (And really loving that they have free childcare.) Enjoying teaching monthly art lessons in Noah's classroom. Dreaming up our next travel adventure.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

The Woodbridge Family

Such an adorable family of four! 

Such a sweet family of four with two beautiful girls! I initially met Mama W through a local mom's group and then got to know her more when both of our oldest children attended the same preschool.

I love that we took the W family photos on their property. I'm sure these images are that much more special because they include their beautiful front yard and backyard -- and a walking trail that runs adjacent to their property.

Oh, and their dog, Linus, was present for the photos. He wasn't interested in sitting (and staying) for any of the posed shots, but in the top left photo, you might have caught a glimpse of him. He's naturally part of the family, so I'm glad he was there in the mix.

I feel lucky to be able to work with so many local families every fall!

The Bartkoski Family

A beautiful location for a beautiful family.

I'm catching up on blogging now that I am not as busy with fall photo sessions.

The Bartkoski family was so much FUN to photograph in late November! If you don't believe me, take a look at the two images below. :-)

Seriously hysterical!! I was laughing so HARD behind the camera as I took the first shot. But I didn't see the second image until I uploaded the photos to Lightroom, and boy, oh boy, was I cracking up at my desk.

The Laird Fam

A fun photo session with this family of four!

It's busy season right now, and I'm loving taking photographs of sweet families like this one!

A BIG thanks to mom and dad who stood right behind me and did who-knows-what to get the kids to giggle. Fist bumps for your efforts!

And one more image -- just because! Isn't the daughter's "scarf" too cute?! It's actually a headband that mom re-purposed. So smart!

If you'd like photos taken of your family this fall, do not delay! I only have two more session openings between now and Christmas. Contact me for more information.