Happy Monday, y'all! Today I wanted to take a minute and showcase something that I think is SO important in a home, displaying family images. If you haven't ever framed pictures of your family, DO IT! Having family pictures up on the walls of our home brings me so much joy. I also need to give credit to MY wonderful family photographer, Misty, who does incredible work. Wouldn't you agree? 

As a photographer, seeing my images up in client's homes is just the best. I love nothing more than seeing my pictures come off of the computer and get put up onto walls for families to enjoy. 

For me personally I love having a mix of canvas prints and framed prints up in my home. How do you display your family pictures? 

So get your pictures off of your computer and on to your walls! You won't regret it!!! 

Mondays with MGP: Portrait Planning Guide

Get excited, y'all! Every Monday I'll be posting a "Mondays with MGP" post. What does that mean? While I'm still exploring exactly what that means myself, I do have some goals for these posts. I plan for the content to be informative for clients, as well as other photographers. I will discuss a range of topics and questions, I have a few ideas to start with but I'm open to suggestions! So do you have any questions for me? Or topics you would like to see me cover? Please ask away!

For my first ever "Mondays with MGP" I'm going to share a portrait planning guide I created a few weeks back and shared on social media. It got a great response and I truly do think it'll be a good tool for clients to use when planning family portraits!

This little guide came to be because recently I've gotten feedback from a few clients that they while they LOVED their images, they didn't feel the colors meshed with their home decor/color scheme.This was due to whatever time of year they were taken in, and whatever foliage was available as the background color. So I set out to make a guide to showcase exactly what you're getting with each month. Obviously it varies location to location, but overall you'll see the following in Northern Virginia:


January-April: no leaves on trees. Images will be bright and the background could be bare. Sometimes in April spring begins to show up, but the foliage will still be sparse.

May-August: plenty of green foliage for bright backgrounds, and lots of gorgeous sunlight. If you want bright, saturated, colorful images then this is the ideal time to have a session.

September-December: I have lots to say about these months. They are officially the busiest time of year for photographers. September brings the beginning of some gorgeous fall colors on the leaves. September and October are generally the months to get pictures done if you want bright oranges and yellows in the background. November 2016 let fall stick around a bit longer and we had great fall color, when usually we do not! A lot of people don't think about December for photo sessions, but they're some of my favorites. After the fall leaves have all dropped, there is suddenly a flood of bright winter light. These sessions tend to be very light, and I just love how they look.

I hope this helps you as you think about when to have pictures done! My calendar is already filling up so if you think you would like a session at a certain time of year, or a certain weekend, please check with me!  Thank you for your continued support and I hope this guide makes planning when to get your family pictures done this year a little easier!

Jake: Valentine's Day Mini Session

The first time I photographed this handsome guy was at his first birthday party. So when he showed up for mini sessions looking completely dapper, and very grown up, I just wanted to cry! Jake is the sweetest little boy and it was a JOY to photograph him. 

Morrow Girls | Valentine's Day Mini Session

I LOVE getting brand new clients. Documenting sweet little faces for the first time is just so fun. These girls were darling, and their momma was just so sweet! Enjoy!

Aren't these three just so beautiful? 

 When you finally catch a little smile!!! Felicity was just adorable. 

We even got to sneak in some outdoors shots! In FEBRUARY! What?! Amazing!

Chestnut Girls | Valentine's Day Mini Session

It's crazy to me to think that I've been photographing these two girls since BEFORE they were even born! (Via maternity sessions) What?! Now here they are, two years old and six months old, and just as cute as ever. 

Their momma is one of my best friends and seriously has an entire prop shop at her house. She loaded up an ENTIRE bag with outfits, hats, headbands, accessories, and felt ball banners. I cannot even make this stuff up. She has the best style and the cutest taste, and she made this session so much fun! Love you, friend!

Valentine's Flower Crowns | She Blooms

I had a vision for my Valentine's Day mini sessions this year, and that vision involved flower crowns. So I contacted Ciara, She Blooms, to see if she could make my visions a reality, and Y'ALL did she ever deliver. She made the MOST gorgeous flower crowns. My pictures just don't do them justice. They were stunning. 

My five year old was just in heaven. She said "I feel like a REAL princess!" 

The Small Family | Family Session: Manassas Battlefields

Hello! Welcome to my little photography blog. One of my goals for MGP in 2017 is to be better at documenting my work. That lead to me choosing to dust off my old blogging skills and creating this little space. I hope that when you visit here you'll get a sense of my style, and can feel just how passionate I am about capturing priceless moments for my clients. Whether it's a once in a lifetime moment, like a wedding or birth, or simply a family session to document their current season of life, I pour my heart and soul into each project I take on. 

My first session of the year actually took place on New Year's Day! We've had an unseasonably warm winter here in Northern Virginia and this southern girl isn't complaining! For this we had 60 degree weather and amazing sunlight. I couldn't ask for better weather in the spring, let alone JANUARY! It was wonderful! 

These kids are some of the best I know. Getting them all to look and smile was a piece of cake. For real!!! I love you, Small family!