Now that I've been in business for a while, I'm starting to notice something that just makes my heart fill up with happiness - recommendations.

I'm well aware that not every single client of mine is going to say wonderful things about me. I know I put 100% effort into every photoshoot and event, but I also know that there will always be one or two people who I just don't do it for.

That is why recommendations are so wonderful.

They are proof that there are clients who loved your work enough to tell someone. Proof that all of my effort works more often than it doesn't work. I of course love getting new business, but more importantly, I love knowing I made someone happy.

The Patel family were recommended to me by the Asarawala family who I took pictures of this summer. 

The Patels have a beautiful daughter and a little baby boy and they wanted to grab some photos of them interacting. As usual, we snuck in the portraits at the very beginning and then moved on to playtime. 

The shoot was actually quite short. We got in so many fantastic photos because they were all just so happy to hang out together. We didn't even have to leave their house!

I really loved when they dressed up in formal Indian dress at the end of the shoot. I've always loved the colors and fabrics of this culture and I was excited to capture it on camera again. I think they all looked stunning!

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the most expressive baby I've ever met!

It's true what they say - no two babies are alike. My infant photoshoots have been sound proof of this.

Our little star was asleep when we first started but after the first few frames, he was wide awake the entire time. For Aidan, this turned out to be a good thing. 

I have never seen, let alone taken pictures of, a baby who is so expressive. He had such a slew of facial expressions I really couldn't narrow them down in post processing. I wanted his Mommy and Daddy to get every single one. They were just so representative of the kind of baby he is! 

On top of this, I swear that I had a teeny tiny model on my hands. Whenever he would start to fuss, I would take a photo and the flash would calm him down. At just two weeks, he had no problem following the lens around. I got quite a few photos of him looking directly into the camera.  I'm pretty sure he was made for this.

I've had such a great time going through his photos so far. Almost every single one makes me smile. 

Can't wait to see him and his personality grow!

Seeing family after a long separation is so very exciting.

Helen contacted me because she and her parents were coming to Maryland to visit her sister, who had moved away from Michigan a few years ago. They don't get to see each other that often, so they wanted some photos to remember it by.

I met them in Crofton to take some photos at a favorite playground and park. After sneaking in the big family portraits before the kiddos knew what was happening, we spent time playing and hiking. 

My favorite part about this shoot had to be the cousins interacting. There is an innate connection shared when you come from the same family. The boys had such a great time exploring and playing together. We got a great photo at the end of them sharing a conversation over a juice box. I can see that same photo happening in 15 years over a beer! They clearly share a connection despite the distance.

Everyone seemed to have a great time. It was obvious the whole gang was happy to be together again. I hope they get the chance to do it again soon!