Zachary turned 1! He is outspoken, independent and very handsome little guy 🙂
Here is what Zach’s mom shared about the photo session:
“We chose this session to commemorate Zach’s first birthday. When planning, I found it very helpful to visit your studio prior to the sessions. I was able to see what props were available. It was also an opportunity for you to meet Zach and see how his personality would affect the shoot.
… Zach loves being outdoors surrounded by water and rocks. That made the location of his photo session perfect. We were so happy with prior sessions you had taken at that location.
His favorite color is red and he loves throwing balls and reading books. Zach had his picture taken with a stuffed longhorn, named Bevo, in support of his father’s alma mater. The stuffed animal was used in his newborn pictures and in every monthly picture the past year.
We are very happy with the proofs and can’t wait to see the prints! “
I loved this session with Nora and her parents just as much as I had enjoyed each and every session with this family! These 2 amazing parents instill happiness that Nora radiates into the world! I am blessed to watch this family grow for 3 years now… and I Love them to pieces!
Here is what Nora’s mom had emailed me to share with you all…
“…Nora has a deep love for reading and being read to. She loves all things animals with hippos and horses being her favorite animals at the moment. Lately she’s into playing dress up and putting together puzzles. Thanks to our most recent vacation, she now has a deep love for donuts!
Nora’s vocabulary is continuously growing. Everyday she surprises us by putting more words into sentences! It’s a joy to listen to her. Physically she loves to jump, spin, toss and catch. One of her great accomplishments right now is potty training even though we haven’t completely mastered it, she insists on doing things all on her own. We love that she is so eager to learn and is usually willing to try things at least once. Dad and I couldn’t be prouder of this precocious, independent girl!
As a family we love to travel, read together at bedtime, ride bikes, go for walks in our neighborhood or to the park. Enjoying dinner at the table every evening is a must for us as we like to share each others day.
And of course we choose to continue to use you as our photographer because of your ability to capture raw emotion in your images. Your always willing to do what it takes to make our entire family feel comfortable in front of the camera. Of course your patience with Nora has always been remarkable. You always make her feel at ease!
..I was hesitant about the outcome due to the dreary weather that day but was pleasantly surprised that the weather had no impact on our session. Once again your images didn’t disappoint! Our portraits are beautiful!
This session reflects on the connection we share as a family along with our individual relationships with Nora. Although Nora shares a different connection with me than that of her father, both are very important in shaping her as well as our family.
I wanted to capture the final weeks of my pregnancy along with our final days as a family of three. I wanted images that I could look back on to remind me of when it was just the three of us. A time when Nora taught us so much by making us parents.”
This session was special… I got to photograph a family who’s daughter I watched growing up for the last few years. Brittany, who visited me 3 times in the first year, now came back for her new portraits! Back in early spring, I suggested we would wait until these blossoms… and what a treat! They turned out to be the icing on the cake! Brittany – gorgeous little lady grew up to be so smart, independent, emotionally mature for her age and very very talkative! Amazing expressions and emotions! Watching this family being so in love, caring for each other, poured some extra love into my heart 🙂
Here are a few words this family wanted to share with you all…
“We decided to do this photo session because my daughter just recently turned 2 and it had been a year since we last had her pictures taken. Children change and grow so quickly in the first several years and we wanted to make sure to capture what she looks like at each age.
We chose Marina for this photo session because we had used her in the past and LOVE her work. The photos always turn out amazing. She has a way of capturing moments with our daughter that are very natural and endearing. I have no doubt we will cherish the photos she has created for us for many more years to come. And on top of that, Marina does a great job of working with each client on a very personal level. She really gets to know you and becomes a friend.
Marina helped us by capturing very natural and endearing moments with our 2-year-old daughter that we will cherish for many years to come.
We could not be more pleased with the results of the session. Marina is truly a miracle worker. About mid-way through our session, Britt started to lose interest in taking more photos, but Marina patiently continued on. After looking at the photos, you would never know our daughter threw any kind of a fit mid-way through. The photos are still phenomenal!
Marina worked with us closely to prepare for the session. She encouraged us to bring Britt’s favorite teddy bear, toys, etc. so that we could capture her with these items and remember years from now what Britt liked at 2-years-old. Marina also gave us tips on wardrobe, which was very helpful.”
Here are a few words about this amazing little girl: “Britt is a very picky eater, but her favorite food is mac ‘n cheese. She doesn’t necessarily have a favorite color yet, but is currently learning to pair names of colors with the correct color. Britt LOVES to read, hence why we brought books to be included in our photo session. She doesn’t necessarily have a favorite, but LOVES flipping through any book that has vibrant pictures. She really likes to watch movies and her favorite changes from week to week. Currently, we have been watching a lot of “Toy Story.” Britt loves her “mama,” “dada,” “gra-ma(s)” and “papas.” She loves animals, especially her grandparent’s dogs.
Now 2, Britt is saying new words and phrases everyday. I am constantly amazed at how much she is communicating with us. At this age, I am most proud of her personality. We often joke about how “crazy & spirited” she is, but truly her bold, go-getter personality leads me to believe she will do great things in this world. It is such a blessing to watch her grow!
Britt LOVES to spend time together as a family. Any time we go somewhere she asks if “mama and dada (are coming) too.” We love to watch movies together, play at the park or outside, make up our own games, go shopping, cook meals and just be together.
To me this session reflects on the bond we have created together as a family. I love how Marina’s approach for this session was to capture natural moments of TJ and I playing with our daughter. When Britt came in to our lives 2 years ago, she changed us forever. I think this session reflects the beautiful outcome of that transition.
Thomas is a happy and expressive little boy! He is in love with his pets, but treats them very gently with much care 🙂 I love working with this family photographing most precious milestones of Thomas growing up!
It was so great to see little Mia again! She is growing up and now has 2 front teeth 🙂 I can’t wait to see Mia and her family soon again. But for now, welcome Mia at 7 months of age!
Welcome TJ! Handsome little guy who made my time with him to be such a pleasure. He slept the whole time and made cute sounds in his sleep… A dream to photograph!
I am happy to share a little bit of my own family… My precious treasure and the reason for my existence – my Oksana. These are my memories… This is who she is now, at this time in our lives!
Words cannot describe just how much she means to me! She provokes multitude of emotions that I am happy to feel whenever I am close to her or far away from her… I always feel blessed.
Brittany turned 1! And graduated from babies to toddlers 🙂 It was so great to photograph this new stage in Brittany’s life and catch up with the family…
I got to find out that Britt is an extremely active and curious toddler! Her favorite foods are cheese and berries. Her favorite book is “Peek-A-Who”! (She loves to look at herself in the mirror at the end.) She loves it when Mommy and Daddy sing the ABC’s to her. She loves watching her favorite show “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.” Her favorite person is Mommy, but Daddy is right up there too! Britt LOVES animals in general, but is particularly fond of dogs and even knows how to say “woof, woof”! She also loves to play outside.
Britt was not quite walking at the time of the shoot, but is now full steam ahead! She is also learning to say a few words and signs.
At this age, her parents are the most proud of “her active and curious spirit! She is such a smart girl and is becoming very aware of the amazing world around her.
We LOVE to spend time together as a family! Our favorite activities include taking walks together, going to the park, going to the zoo, sharing meals together, and ‘play’ wrestling on the floor!”
Mommy told me: “This session reflects on the beautiful and smart little girl that Britt is growing up to be. It also showcases the joy that we have found together as a family of three.”
Brittany’s mom shared: “I remember how my Mom saw your work at her doctor’s office and was very impressed!” …That is how our friendship started 🙂
“We decided to do the first year package to capture Britt’s first year on camera! Babies grow fast and we wanted to create a keepsake that would help us to remember the various stages and ‘looks’ Britt went through in her first year.
You helped us create beautiful portraits that are creative, cute and will stand the test of time!
We were thrilled to be able to use my husband’s police gear for one of the portraits. It’s a great way to honor the work that he does and made for really cute photos of Britt in the BIG shoes and hat that her father wears!
We also did a set with hearts to commemorate February, the month Brittany was born.
We were thrilled at Marina’s suggestion to use the same tree branch and beads from her newborn and 6-month photos to show how much she’s grown and have a common theme across all 3 sessions.
And finally, the smash cake photo was quite a treat for everyone! It was so fun to watch Britt try cake for the first time and we are so glad to have had the chance to capture professionally memories of this special moment.
We also appreciate how you were so patient with Britt and knew tricks to make her comfortable and happy during the sessions.
We LOVE the results! There are a lot of baby photographers out there, but you bring a unique creativity to the photos that makes them stand out.”
It was such a pleasure to meet and get to know this family! I am looking forward to watch Brittany grow up and this family to grow 🙂
