Lynn and Dennis LOVE their puggle, Pugslee… and as a proud “dog person,” I can relate!  How heartwarming to not only photograph this lovely, laid-back couple’s engagement photos, but also include their four-legged family member, too!

I’m a mom.  Over the 8 short years since I became a mom, I’ve become friends with other moms.  As my conversations with these other moms meander to the topic of photography and getting family photos, I hear the same reasons (i.e. excuses) about why she can’t get professional photos taken.

Well guess what… I have the answer:     My Spring Mini-Session Event!

Join me on Saturday, May 13th, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon at Soleado Lavender Farm, nestled in the picturesque valley at the foot of Sugarloaf Mountain.

I know what you’re thinking – how is that the answer to my “I just can’t seem to get it together to get professional photos of my lovely family” woes?

Well, friends – I’ll tell you.

Excuse: “I just can’t find the time?”

Good news!  Mini-sessions only take 15 minutes!  That’s only 15 minutes that you have to wrangle your kids and try to postpone the inevitable grass-stained khakis!  (But seriously, I love photographing messy kids.  They’re more genuine. And honestly, those are the images that are going to make you laugh 5 or 10 years from now).

Plus, let’s be real – if we can spare 15 minutes in the Starbucks drive-through trying to order a unicorn frappuccino, we can schedule a short photo session for some great keepsake images.

Excuse: “My husband really hates getting his picture taken.”

Why are the guys always so resistant to getting photos?  I’ll never understand it.  What father wouldn’t want a photo of his loving family (or goofy kids) on his desktop or on his wall or in his wallet.  Plus, kids grow up faster than our brains can keep up with – just show him a picture of one (or all) of your kids when they were babies and watch the heartstrings soften.

Also, many guys (and people in general) feel awkward in front of the camera, but it doesn’t have to be that way.  If you can’t already tell, I’m all about the fun, and I promise to crack corny jokes for as long as it takes to get everyone to loosen up.

Or, if dad is really uncomfortable, you let him stay at home and watch the game while you bring the kids to get “Mommy and Me” photos.  Boom!  Everybody’s happy!

Excuse: “I always look so horrible in pictures!  I hate every photo of myself I’ve ever seen!”

Let me ask you something – when you take out old family Polaroids from the ’70s or ’80s, when we were all running around in pigtails and jelly shoes, and you run across a photo of your mother… is your first thought, “Man, she looked really fat in those jeans!?”

NO!  Absolutely not!  You probably smile wistfully, because to you, your mother was (and probably still is) one of the most gorgeous women on the planet, and you just felt lucky to be around her all the time.  Maybe you even watched her as she made dinner or brushed her hair or put her earrings in or carried your little brother or sister around… and in every moment, to you, she was beautiful.

Give your children the gift of your photo, so that they can show their grandchildren how lovely their mother was, as they tell stories of your stellar lasagna or your musical laugh.

Even more than that, allow yourself the gift of seeing yourself as your children see you.

Excuse: “Aren’t photo sessions super-expensive?!”

Look, we all have budgets, which always seem to laugh at us as we shell out another $50 for soccer cleats because they just won’t stop growing… I get it.  Yeah, a full photo session can be pricey, because it involves not only the time taking the photos, but all the behind-the-scenes editing time afterwards (plus a list of other photography expenses that I won’t bore you with here).

Again, good news!  Mini-sessions are a fraction of the price of a normal, full session – for $99, you have the session itself, plus your choice of 8-12 images from your gallery, which is more than enough for a few nice, framed photos or a canvas on the wall, or a few Facebook or Instagram collages, or computer/cell phone wallpaper images, etc.  It’s a budget-friendly investment for lasting memories (before you wake up tomorrow and they’re three inches taller and why won’t they just stop growing for five minutes?!).

So… why not?

If I’ve convinced you (yay!), please contact me here to request a time slot first, then complete the online booking form once I’ve confirmed your time.

These two met when they were 13 years old.

Think about that for a moment.  What were you doing when you were 13 years old?  I was trying to navigate middle school and swooning over the New Kids on the Block.

But these two amazing people were just beginning their story, one that has evolved over the last two decades from friendship into love, marriage, and family.

But it hasn’t been an easy road – their journey took them in separate directions, sometimes living thousands of miles apart, facing tough challenges.  But in the end, their love, humor, and enduring friendship brought them together, and they are now blessed to be spending their lives together with their two vibrant boys.

Thank you, Natalee and Roje, for the gift of your laughter, your family, and your story!

Everyone needs a break now and then, to take a breath and allow ourselves a little physical and mental rest.  This past winter, I managed to successfully schedule some downtime, in the midst of a busy work and family life, to have a few “personal project” shoots.

I had the opportunity to go adventuring in Joshua Tree National Park, a place that had been on my bucket list for a while.  My sweetie and I scored an absolutely gorgeous day in the desert, and cameras in hand, we traveled through the entire park, top to bottom.

From the actual Joshua trees (that look like they were borne from a Dr. Seuss story), to the Mars-like rocky landscape, to the vast Cholla cacti gardens, to the beautiful little desert flowers just starting to bloom for the season, this adventure definitely put me out of my element!  I loved every minute and was stoked at the shots, which required very little tidying up.  Enjoy!

It’s a quiet time of year, when I get to take a small breather to review my photo libraries and work on personal projects.  Usually, I’m re-editing old photos in new ways, to keep the creative juices flowing, and dreaming up new session projects.

In anticipation of the next snowfall (and a project I’m itching to do!), I pulled out some older photos from previous winters – maybe the snow gods will listen and give us at least one good snow before the winter is over?

Enjoy – in the meantime, I’ve got an upcoming trip with a few photo excursions planned that are FAR from wintery!  😉  Stay tuned!

Hallmark and Russell Stover have really taken over the month of February.  Everywhere you look, there’s red and pink and hearts and roses and chocolate!  I’m not complaining (I’m a chocoholic through and through!), but for me, love isn’t really about a box of Whitman’s or white heart-shaped doilies or poetic verses.

I love love.  Real love.  The kind that means comfort, laughter, support, tenderness, appreciation, and fun.  The kind you find in the small moments as well as in the big ones.  The kind that makes you look at your sweetheart and say, “You’re my lobster.”

Most people, of course, want to capture those big love moments, like engagements and weddings, and they’re SO much fun for me!  But very few people imagine capturing the “small” moments of everyday life, when you’re cooking dinner or dancing in the living room or cuddling on the couch with your beloved.  Those moments that define who you are as a couple, and those special places you go that are important to the two of you – your favorite coffee shop you like to go to on Sunday mornings, or that restaurant where you met for your first date, or the park where you like to walk your dog.

** So – in the spirit of this precious, everyday love – I’m giving away a free lifestyle photo session including 10 edited digital files.  All you have to do is send me a message – via Facebook, on my website, or e-mail me at erinbphotography@yahoo.com – and tell me your love story, and why you want a special lifestyle photo session with you and your special lobster.  Be sure to include your contact information!**

I’ll choose and announce the winner on February 14th (haha!), so hurry and submit those stories!

(For those of you who may be confused by the term “lobster,” please refer to the TV show Friends, the episode entitled, “The One with the Prom Video.”  Then we can be friends, lol.)

I love to hike – there’s nothing so meditative as walking out in the woods, breathing, listening, observing.

My favorite thing to photograph is the sun brightly shining through the dense canopy of trees.

I’m thinking about that a lot today.  Peace, love, and hope to all.

Sometimes, in the most spontaneous moments, you capture something special.

My sweetie and I were out to dinner recently for his birthday (Happy Birthday, love!) in our lovely little town of Frederick, Maryland.  I grew up here, and have a lot of pride in my hometown, which was voted one of most charming places in Maryland.  It’s a Goldilocks town – not too big, not too small, with enough history to satisfy those looking for “quaint,” and plenty of diversity and culture for those in search of “interesting.”  It’s a place that changes moods, but is always beautiful, especially to us natives.

We walked out of the restaurant,  The Wine Kitchen on the Creek, (fabulous food and wine flights!), which is located along the city’s centerpiece, Carroll Creek.  The promenade, lined with restaurants, shops, apartments, and the city’s public library, is where many activities take place, like art festivals, concerts, and outdoor movies.  The promenade is always bustling with joggers, dogwalkers, shoppers, and foodies on any given day of the week.

But this evening was different – a chilly Tuesday in January, the restaurants had a few small groups of diners, but most of the windows were dark.  The streetlights, illuminated in the very early evening, made the seven o’clock hour seem much later.  The mist had begun to descend on the Creek and the bridges crossing over it.

There wasn’t a soul on the promenade.

Not having my camera around, I pulled out my iPhone, headed to the edge of the Creek, and took this shot…

My sweet little town, hibernating in the mist.

If you’d like a print of this image, head over to my gallery page here.

As the winter is going into full swing, with grey skies and freezing temperatures day after day, I am much more in the mood to snuggle under a blanket and watch movies than to go outside with my camera!  But the truth is, there’s nothing I love more than to take a walk in the woods and see what beauty I can find.  Winter can be a brutal test of patience for me, but I’ve found comfort in clicking through my nature galleries  – it’s a small piece of warm sunshine and bright color in the midst of this monochrome season.

And… good news!  These shots, and MANY others, are now available to order on my gallery site here! 

Not only can you order prints to enhance your home or office decor, but TONS of photo gifts are also available!  

“Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience.”

– Ralph Waldo Emerson