Claire at One

I had the honor of photographing Claire last year as a newborn in her parents' fabulous, dark cluttered attic, one of my favorite shoots of the year. Abbey was hoping to capture the beauty of the season this year, so we drove south of Madison to find fall color and rural landscape to enjoy. Drought brought autumn foliage early to Dane County, but fortunately we have been blessed with a nice, long visit and there are some gorgeous reds and oranges out there complementing the corn stalks and crisp blue skies.

Thanks to Claire, Abbey, and Connor for a wonderful evening enjoying autumn and some quintessential evening light. Those ten minutes of evening glow are worth waiting the entire day for.

New Digs, New Dog

It's pretty exciting to find a home that fits you just right, and Karen and Adam found their place last year after a long search. They followed up their move-in with a new addition to the family, an adorable, regal Bassett hound named Fannie, who pulls off some downright wilting looks with the grace of a queen. We hung out at the homestead for while while Fannie held court, then dashed off to a few local parks to catch the evening light.

Karen, whose sense of style far surpasses mine, loved the black and white images from the shoot and is evolving a gallery of them for a long hallway in her house. I thought I'd do a post in black and white only, in honor of our shared love of simple, classic monotone presentation.

Sisters

Tessa was a new addition since last time I shot with this crew, so she really should have been the star of the show... but it's pretty tough to compete with her scene-stealing sisters. With matching green dresses from grandma, we stormed the front porch, the backyard, the sidewalk, and the park across the street, managing to somehow keep the girls from getting bored along the way. Moira constantly impresses me with her defiant depth of character, her ability to go from playful to dead serious in seconds, exactly when the camera happens to approach her direction. But she can't keep it up ALL the time (thank goodness) and I love the challenge. Celia, on the other hand, is one of those kids who just LOVES to mug for the camera, and she smiles so big it shuts her eyes half the time - which is adorable. Looking forward to the next time I get to see all the girls again, though I'm guessing I won't be able to keep up with them anymore.

George, Two Weeks Old

Maya and I took Sebastian down to see Jon and Ann on Sunday, knowing we would get to meet their new little boy. The mystery man-of-the-hour turned out to be George Basil, a quiet, curious little guy who was constantly half-awake and quite easy to get on with. George has awesome hair - all those wonderful natural oils make him look like he just stepped out of a salon - and some gorgeous peepers, clearly a product of a top-shelf gene pool.

We passed the time hanging out lakeside, feeding the bluegills bread crumbs, frog-hunting, and discussing baby stories, until rain drove us inside for the evening. Thanks to the new parents for their gracious hospitality, which included ice cream, chocolate, and Jim Beam. A nice way to end a Sunday.

Oskar at One

Met up with Oskar and his parents for a Sunday morning shoot last week. The withering weather has turned Madison's usual green places to shades of yellow and brown, but you can always count on the Capitol to boast an emerald lawn. As it turned out, getting up to the square was half of the fun, as shaded slices of King Street provided relief from the heat, with old brickwork providing ample nooks and crannies to duck into along the way.

Oskar has a serious, confident demeanor I love. He won't be tricked or coerced into doing anything he doesn't want to (ask his godparents, above), for which he wins lots of respect from me. So we hung out while we explored the sidewalk, which he did with a huge smile on his face, alternately brandishing his head gear with swagger and ridiculousness. Once we actually reached the lawn on the Square, we didn't have much time before the sprinklers did a number on us, a reminder of WHY the grass stays green there. Hadn't thought of that.

Door County

There is no better way to suffer through a Wisconsin heat wave than to head straight to Door County. It's hot there too, but not quite as bad, and the water is never very far away. My folks used to bring us camping at Peninsula State Park every summer when I was a kid, and good memories are around every corner. I distinctly remember learning how to hoot like a Great Horned Owl while on a night hike with my dad... eating Wilson's ice cream while watching the parasailers glide back and forth in Ephraim... and not getting a rainbow unicorn lollipop, no matter how many time we asked for one, from the sweets shop in Fish Creek.

We met up with my friend, Lillie, and her kids on Saturday and hit the beach with the crew. I've never seen Sebastian be gentle or cuddly with any of his peers, but the second he sat down next to Anna, his arm was around her and didn't want to leave. I love how serious the gang looks above at left - like angsty, depressed teenagers - and in a flash, it's back to cuteness.

Solstice at the Observatory

The long days of summer create such great opportunities to have a reasonable adventure after a full work day, and we've been doing our best to take advantage lately. To celebrate the looooooongest day of the year, we drove up to Washburn Observatory on campus for a solstice picnic. The views from the Observatory are not particularly photographic, but it's nice to just sit on a high hill and watch the boats skim across the water. And when you're with a 1-year old, you have plenty to photograph already.

Lucas, Six Days Old

Most of the time, I prefer to shoot newborns without many people around... just mom and dad is ideal. But everything in Lucas's clan is a family affair, and it was fun to have his aunt, cousin, and grandmother around during our shoot, giving us lots of space and quiet as they bustled about the house.

One thing I like about shooting in the country is the closeness of house and field, which we rarely get in Madison. It's so nice to shoot for a while inside, then step a few paces off the back porch to tall grass and large swaths of shade trees. Because who wants to drive around to various locales when they are six days old?