Leslie originally scheduled this session because she needed “just one photo of our family.” I assured her there would be more than one, and after I posted one of my favorites on Instagram a few days ago, she was like, “Just stop editing. I don’t need any more. This is perfection.” But, you guys, look at this beautiful family!

I first met Leslie at the gym–she’s a personal trainer–and our kids are similar ages (our youngests are just a few months apart). It was so much fun to be invited out to their brand new house and get to find some awesome spots on their land. This first section with the trees was right back behind their house! And their beach and pond is every kid’s dream of a backyard. (Let’s be real, it’s all of our dreams.)

My goal, especially with smaller children, is to start the session with as many of the “necessary” groupings as possible. I know kids wear out quickly so it’s this clever balancing act of not rushing them (because they have spidey senses about that too), but also moving things along to get as many arrangements as possible before the not-caring comes into play.

One of my hands-down, all-out favorites ever. This was at the very end of the session when the kids had been swimming in the water and so I was like, “Hey, do you guys (Trenton & Leslie) mind getting in and swinging them around a little?”