If you've been following our Facebook page, you probably have seen our recent maternity model call. I decided with the business being closed the past year, I wanted to celebrate our reopening with a portfolio update, and some beautiful moms-to-be modeling some brand new dresses that we just added to our client closet. 

The first model session scheduled was with Steph, her husband Louie, and three year old son Lucas. The location was this beautiful grassy field at sunset near Warminster, it was in the 80s with a slight breeze.

Whenever I have a family session with kids, I want to give everyone a chance to relax and get used to the location before jumping into posing, so I told them to explore and look at the flowers together. Lucas was very happy with the idea and immediately started picking daisies for his mom and dad (and me!). I wanted them to enjoy the moment together, so told them to pretend I wasn't there, just snapping a few candid moments as they enjoyed the time together. 

I love the look of wonder as a small child discovers the little details of the world around them that we as adults usually take for granted, like a small daisy, or the details of a flowering grass.

Once I could see everyone relax, then I started giving some simple direction like standing holding the belly together, then holding each other, going nose to nose, and giving each other a kiss. 

I could tell Lucas needed a break, so I pulled out a box with a few toys and his dad took him off to the side to play while I had Steph pose alone, I then asked dad if he minded throwing the dress a couple of times, which resulted in this gorgeous portrait below. 

It was time to have a few more family photos together, so we played the 'Run under the blanket' game, which gets both parents and kids smiling before putting the blanket down to sit on. 

I could tell after a few minutes that Lucas was done, so I let him head back to the car to cool off with dad while Steph and I worked on a few more solo poses. 

We then finished up the session with including some baby details of a onesie, baby shoes, a tutu, and sonogram. 

Steph delivered her baby girl just two days later!