Hartwood Acres is a favorite location and a popular one when the garden is in full bloom. It’s not hard to see why, what a lovely setting for a family portrait in July! I’ll start with a favorite shot of these sisters—their mama challenged them to a staring contest and the giggles were just about to bust out!
The mansion at Hartwood Acres offers so many lovely angles and opportunities for standing or seated portraits like this one.
This family brought their own blanket and I love how it naturally brings them close without any posing required.
This is another favorite of the two sisters.
We also did some individual portraits of the girls.
Moments before this portrait, this dad almost caught a butterfly! It keeps photo shoots fun when families can be playful like that!
And one thing all moms and dads should do is be photographed together without the kids, because they were husband and wife before they were parents!
If you or someone you know are interested in updating your family portrait, I’d love to hear from you! Please use this contact form to get in touch.
https://www.captivatingimagery.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Web-Use.png00kmillerhttps://www.captivatingimagery.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Web-Use.pngkmiller2018-09-07 16:40:212018-09-07 16:40:21Pittsburgh Family Portraits: In Full Bloom at the Garden
The first few weeks after bringing baby home come with a huge adjustment—it’s a wonderful, yet sleep-deprived time, marking the beginning of that precious one’s life and the beginning of a family’s story. Being a handful of years beyond that time, I can look back and say that I’m glad I hired a photographer to capture my sons as newborns and that I could be in the photos! We had both photo shoots done at our home and I remember feeling relieved that we didn’t have to go anywhere, because that took so much energy! And since we’ve moved, our photos in our old home are that much more meaningful to us now. Here’s a newborn session from earlier this summer and as I talked with this mama, she mentioned that she hadn’t heard of in-home newborn sessions before and was so glad to be able to schedule one for her baby.
Their loft had lovely light and this baby was so content.
It’s so nice to see this dad’s feelings for his son.
We headed to the rooftop terrace in their building for a family portrait with a view!
This baby boy seemed to like the sounds and fresh air and how sweet to see this mom and dad enjoying this moment!
If you’d like to plan for a newborn session in your home, I’d love to hear from you. Please contact me here.
https://www.captivatingimagery.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Web-Use.png00kmillerhttps://www.captivatingimagery.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Web-Use.pngkmiller2018-08-24 15:50:452018-08-24 15:50:45Pittsburgh Newborn Photography: Keep It Simple with an At-Home Session
When we first talked about what this mom had in mind for her family portraits, she mentioned almost apologetically, that they’d like to keep their look casual to reflect how they dress on a regular basis. And I said, “of course, please do!” because that is one of the things I love about being a lifestyle photographer—there’s no need to be anything but yourself, no pressure, no pretense.
While this family chose to represent their day-to-day look, they carefully chose their wardrobe with complimenting shades and a fun dress to highlight their daughter who just celebrated her first birthday.
We met at one of my favorite spots by the lake at North Park. It’s a great location for families with little ones, because there’s a decent variety of scenery within a short distance.
No family portrait session with little ones is complete without dad tossing a kiddo in the air!
Lately, I’ve had some wonderful luck with a dog walking behind me at just the right time. This was one of those times!
Yay! This big girl even clapped on que. I think she enjoyed her first birthday photo shoot.
If you would like to schedule a session, please contact me via this form – I’d love to hear from you!
https://www.captivatingimagery.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Web-Use.png00kmillerhttps://www.captivatingimagery.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Web-Use.pngkmiller2018-08-03 13:22:442018-08-03 13:22:44Pittsburgh Family Portraits: Keeping It Authentic with a Casual Look
Confession: family portraits with little children used to frighten me! I didn’t gain the experience I have today as a family portrait photographer until I had my own family. My two busy boys have taught me a thing or two about setting reasonable expectations, keeping them engaged, and making photoshoots fun! Thank you boys! I’ll use a recent photo from our beach vacation as an illustration:
I picked out their outfits on a rare solo shopping trip months in advance. When we were getting them dressed, we had to bribe them to wear said clothing. We walked to the beach (this was our third day at the beach) and while I envisioned them sitting neatly together in the sand with the ocean behind them, they had other ideas. First, they HAD to frolic in the ocean and dig in the sand, so I photographed that instead. I had almost given up on my goal for that trip to the beach thinking we could just come back another day. But on the way home, I asked them to stop by this sand dune and with some silly charades from their daddy, this sweet photo is the result.
After having shared all of that, my goals for my own family are not the same for my client’s sessions. I spend time getting to know my clients’ desires and priorities for the photo shoot and am much more focused on making that happen within the time allowed. I just thought I’d share some background before getting into what I feel is most important when photographing sessions with little ones. Here’s a recent photo shoot with a family in Cranberry to give you a feel for what to expect.
Ok, tip #1: Keep moving. There’s nothing worse than to plop a kid down and expect them to stay in one place for more than a few minutes. I like to pick locations that are conducive to walking and offer variety in scenery.
Tip #2: Less is more when it comes to props. Other than a chair, a book, or bubbles, too much attention is given to managing props. We didn’t need anything for this mommy and me portrait, just mom and her daughter so that the focus is on their special relationship.
The same goes for this baby girl and her daddy.
Tip #3: Have fun. To keep this little sweetie interested, we told her we were going on a nature walk. So when she found this walking stick, we went with it. When I engage with kids and they have an idea to offer, I want them to experience the pleasure of this process!
If you’d like to talk more about scheduling a family photo shoot, please let me know. I’d love to hear from you!
https://www.captivatingimagery.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Web-Use.png00kmillerhttps://www.captivatingimagery.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Web-Use.pngkmiller2018-07-06 12:46:432018-07-06 12:46:43Cranberry Family Portraits: Three Tips to Help Little Kids Make It Through Your Session
This mama has had her first three babies photographed in the hospital and so it was natural for her to do the same for her fourth baby, but she was shocked when she asked about a hospital photographer and found there wasn’t one available. Thankfully, she reached out to me and we found some time to make it work before she left the hospital.
His daddy had this rosary made with his name on it.
This was one tiny room with a window tucked around the corner from the beds, so we got up close to the lovely natural light.
I love seeing parents gazing at their newborn!
I had to supplement the light for this group shot with the big siblings. While I’m not a fan of using flash for newborn sessions, I sure do love seeing all of these smiling faces!
I could shoot close-ups of newborns all day and I think seeing mama’s caring hands in the shot makes it extra special – it expresses the love and caring surrounding this baby boy.
After his first photo shoot, this little fella is ready for a nap!
If you or someone you know is getting ready to have a baby, I’d be happy to talk with you about hospital or in-home newborn sessions!
