Last week I got invited to tag-a-long with the Manalu family while they hung out at the park and went on a walk...which happens to be one of their favorite things to do! I loved watching how much they enjoy each other and capturing a bit of what it looks like when they are busy loving one another.

There are many reason why I do not do posed family photography, but the biggest reason is that I would miss out on capturing those moments that I would never want to forget. The best stuff just isn't posed. But maybe that is just me. :)

Manalus, I love you guys, and I can't wait to be there for the birth of your baby boy next month!! I am so excited.

And for those of you who don't know, all outdoor shoots are in both color and black and white...because even I understand that sometimes a moment just screams to be in color.

Here are a few of my favorite portraits:

Typically, my goal as a lifestyle photographer is to blend into the background and capture a family being themselves. The goal is not to get lost in the happenings of the family and the love they have for each other, and yet with the Burchett Family that is exactly what I found myself doing. The love they have for each other is almost palpable. They are hilarious and fun and so real that it is easy to feel like you belong. I am almost certain that under God's great dictionary of love there has to be a photo of this amazing family, because they truly define what it should look like.

My goal was simple: to capture just a glimpse of this family's love for each other. But I humbly confess, dear readers, that I failed. I did not come close to capturing the depth of the beauty of what truly lies within them. And if you have met the Burchetts, you will understand exactly what I am referring to.

Dearest Burchett family, thank you so much for allowing me into your lives for a bit. It was fantastic. Words cannot express the love and respect that I have for each of you. I hope you will enjoy your photos and your Real Life Montage for decades to come. Here are a few of my favorites:

Click here to see the photos...

When Kylie called me and told me how much she loved my work, I was truly moved. Her excitement was contagious, and that is saying something since I already love what I do. But when I found out she had twins and a sweet little man, I could not wait to do their session! Of course, Kylie forgot to mention that after having three children she still had the body of a model…I will try to forgive her for that. ;)

Watching her with her children was just beautiful. The love they share is priceless. And the fact that I got the privilege to hang out and capture a bit of what their love looks like—well, I just have the best job and most awesome clients in the world! And can I just confess here that I totally fell in love with those sweet babies? Those smiles, their fluffy sweetness—ah, it just makes me want to snuggle them!

Kylie, thanks for inviting me into your world for a bit. It was truly fantastic. Here are a few of my favorites from the session.

Click here to see the photos...

How so much sweet baby goodness can be in one household is beyond me. Mommy and Daddy are absolutely kept on their toes by their sweet twins and precious daughter. Oh, and did I mention they are all under 5 years of age? I was tired just watching the energy of these little people, let alone having to keep track of them. ;) I had so much fun watching the sweet moments of this dear family. Getting to do a quick mini session with them was just what I needed.

Here are a few of my favorites from the shoot, and be sure to check out their Real Life Video Montage as well.

Thank you, LeDuc family, for allowing me a peek into your lives, and for keeping it real.

Click here to see the photos...

Last week I got the awesome privilege of doing a Mommy Mentoring session with Christine. I love helping mommies learn how to take a few steps forward in capturing the pictures they really want of their kids' everyday moments. Unless among the rich and famous, no family always has a professional photographer in tow and because photography can be daunting to someone who is just starting out, Mommy Mentoring sessions are my solution. :) I believe every family should be capturing their everyday moments. They are priceless! And while no one can learn everything there is to know about photography in one day, let alone a one hour session, I worked on answering some of Christine's biggest questions in the time we had. Christine, like me, is a total hands on learner and I love that about her. In fact one of her biggest questions is one that I hear a lot, and I am going to answer it right here on my blog, in layman's terms of course.

Why are some of the pictures I take blurry?

While blurry photos can indeed be cool, most of the time that is not what we are striving for when we are taking our family photos. The simple, nontechnical answer to this question is that most often there was not enough light to capture the image without blur. When situations are too dark for your camera and lens capability the result is a blurry and/or underexposed image.

Here are 3 simple tips to help avoid blurry photos:

1. Know your camera's limitations. What is the highest ISO setting on your camera? Is it 3200, 1600, 800, etc.? And what is the widest aperture of your camera's lens? The smaller the number, the wider the aperture (5.6, 2.8, 1.4, etc.). Higher ISO settings and wider aperture lenses allow for sharper pictures in darker environments.
2. Before taking the picture ask yourself one simple question. "Where is the light coming from?" Strive to capture the moment from the brightest side of the scene. It is amazing how just changing your position can totally change the quality of the image you create. The better the light, the easier it is for the camera to take a sharp picture.
3. Pay attention to your shutter speed. The rule of thumb is to not hand hold a camera and shoot in conditions where your shutter speed is less then 1/60 of a second. (That will show up in your viewfinder or on your camera's LCD screen as a '60.') Any slow shutter speed makes getting a sharp image incredibly difficult because you can't hold your camera perfectly still long enough for the camera to freeze the action, resulting in a blurry image.

I hope that that you find these tips helpful. Enjoy taking pictures of your family's real life moments.