Does it ever feel like a New Year is less than surprising? I mean, the days count down to the last day of the year at the same speed as any other time of the year, but for some reason it always feels like “whoa! That went fast!” when a New Year arrives. 2019 was by far the best for Allison Marie Photography! I mean, years ago when I was shooting weddings, I had phenomenal years filled with great clients and finding my stride in work. But switching to solely photographing families, babies and maternity feels JUST where I am supposed to be with work. It fills me up so much that it mostly doesn’t feel like work at all!
This was my first full year with a small studio space for photographing and meeting with clients (I began that in March of 2018), and this year I have found my groove! I have focused in my editing, wardrobe, and use of light to create a very cohesive look to my images, which I couldn’t be more thrilled about!
2019 was the first year I hosted my Motherhood Mini Session Event, which was a huge hit! I am already dreaming about how this session will go this spring – be on the lookout for details, mamas!!
I had my 2nd annual holiday kid minis, and it was a blast of a morning!
My oldest two began kindergarten, which gave me a bit of new freedom to photograph sessions and meet with clients two days a week. How wonderful! I photographed a total of 30 in-studio newborn sessions, 20 outdoor family sessions, and 55 other sessions (lifestyle newborn, in-studio child/maternity, ect). I went through all my sessions and chose one image (sometimes two!) from each one as a favorite, which truly felt impossible. With each image in these collages, I don’t simply see a pretty photograph. My heart is flooded with stories. Stories of infertility and years of longing for a child. Stories of new homes built or renovated in the early years of marriage before welcoming a baby. Stories of adoption, of traumatic births, of the most serene births. Moments of shedding tears with mamas about how utterly challenging those first few days and weeks of motherhood feel, combined with feeling more love than their hearts could possibly imagine feeling. Stories of prematurity (even one born oversees on vacation!) and hospital stays. It is all so close to my heart that I nearly get choked up looking through these images.
Photographs are life, my friends. Yes, a photograph can speak a thousand words, as cheesy as that saying may be! They will be passed down throughout the generations of these families, along with the cherished stories behind them – of joy, heartache, loss and also perseverance.
To all of you who I had the joy of photographing in 2019: THANK YOU. Thank you for opening your heart and story to me. I know it is an extremely vulnerable thing to be photographed, and I deeply value every single one of you. You and your family are beautiful, and to my mama clients: keep on keeping on! Your hard work of caring for and raising your children day-in and day-out matters deeply. Press on with confidence and gratitude, knowing that you are passing on a legacy of light to your children!
And now for (just some!!) of my favorite photographs from the year! SO many and yet it was ridiculously hard to narrow down my favorites to just these!
