This past weekend, I visited one of my favorite locations in Hampton Roads: The Hermitage Museum and Gardens. This beautiful, historic location survived Hurricane Sandy. Unfortunately, it had to close right after due to a water leak in the house. Thankfully, the employees offered to open the grounds to us for our scheduled family portraits. We had the entire property to ourselves!
I am so glad I had the chance to photograph this family. They have been a part of my husband's life for many, many years. Now I call them "friends" too. I hope to be their family portrait photographer for years to come! I can't wait to see their little man grow up. He has so much energy and personality already. I especially enjoyed working with his older sisters. They had such a great time showing me the perfect locations for their pictures and the poses they had learned. They also did a wonderful job helping me get their little brother to smile for the camera. Maybe I should hire them for future sessions?!
Comment Love: Family Portraits
"You're amazing and I've had so many people compliment the sneak peek pics and even inquire about you taking their pics!!! I am beyond happy with the photos you took!!! My baby boy's pics are just precious and you did great with my girls too. Our family pics are the best ever. Can't wait until the next photo shoot!!!" – Abigail B.
Family portraits season has officially started! We are so blessed right now in Chesapeake, Virginia with gorgeous, sunny weather. The leaves are just starting to change and portraits are the perfect excuse to get the family outdoors!
This past weekend I had my first visit to The Chesapeake Arboretum. The 45 acre park has almost 4 miles in wooded trails. I love how tall and full all the trees are!
The Chesapeake Arboretum was the perfect, quiet location for the Andrew's family portraits. We had a spot all to ourselves. This family was so sweet. I had such a fun time getting to know them. The girls were so excited about their new baby brother and could not get enough of him. They kept covering him with kisses and hugs.
Here's a great review I recently received from Nicole:
"Jennifer was absolutely fantastic from beginning to end! She was filled with fresh and creative ideas for our family photos and was able to capture every special moment of the day. We are amazed by how well she used the natural light from our outdoor shoot to highlight every image. She is truly very talented and easy to work with. We could not be more pleased by our experience!"
When planning your portrait session, whether you are a high school senior, bride to be or professional business person, choosing the right outfit, makeup and hair style can truly enhance your experience and your final photo images. Many of you have seen my recent maternity series photography postings of Terri. She not only is a wonderful mother, but is quite talented with makeup and hair design. She is teaming up with Shine with Jennifer Leigh, LLC to offer her services as part of our portrait packages!
This past weekend, Terri and I drove out to Virginia Beach for an exciting portrait session. The weekend weather called for rain and thunderstorms. At 6:00AM, Saturday morning, we were not quite sure what window of opportunity we would have for our outdoor session with Sandra.
Sandra has worked in the US Navy for the past 20+ years. She has lived all over the country, but is happy to finally be stationed back on the East Coast where she grew up. Our portrait session was in Sandra's backyard, a golf course! We had a fun time dodging golf carts and chatting briefly with the early morning golfers.
Thankfully, the rain held off until the last minute! Here is a sneak peek of our mini makeover portrait session.
Brock and Carolyn are dear friends and are expecting a little boy this September. My husband has known Brock and Carolyn for years as they shared a good part of their single, adult lives together. My husband witnessed Brock and Carolyn's wedding at Founders Inn & Spa at Regent University and a few years later, Brock officiated our wedding in the Outer Banks. Brock and Carolyn were some of the first friends I met when visiting Virginia Beach. Unfortunately, I did not have the opportunity of living close to them as they were on their way to Denver, Colorado to start Redemption Church. With each visit, these friends become more dear to me. As the arrival of their first child, J {initial only as the name will be kept secret until September}, is fast approaching, I was thrilled to capture Carolyn's maternity portraits while they were here visiting.
With the heat of summer at its peak here in Virginia Beach, we decided an evening portrait shoot at the park would be best. We met at sunset at Mount Trashmore and were pleased to see the clouds roll in. Yes, the name of this park does mean what you think it does… Mount Trashmore Park is a 165 acre park with two man-made mountains created by compacting solid waste and clean soil. It is a beautiful location to bike, run or even roll down the hill! We had the best of intentions to get a few minutes of kite flying in before dark, but it was just too hot out there! We finished the night off with a visit to Confetti Caffe & Gelato at the Virginia Beach Town Center.
Congratulations, Brock and Carolyn. I can't wait to visit Denver and meet your little one in a few months!
I can't believe three weeks have gone by since I last photographed Terri! Life was quite busy for the two of us as I was off in Jamaica for vacation and Terri was in Orlando for The Gospel Coalition Women's Conference of 2012. We are both back for the summer and hoping things do not get too crazy so we can meet weekly and capture Terri's bump…that is just starting to show!
I absolutely adore my weekly meetings with Terri. Sweet conversation over cookies with a little photography fun added in makes for a great time of fellowship and friendship.
Terri's Maternity Series: Weeks 16 to 18
If you are interested in having Shine with Jennifer Leigh, LLC photograph your maternity series or maternity portraits, contact us today!
It is week 14 for Terri's Maternity Series. She has been using an iPhone application for this pregnancy to track the size of her baby! According to What to Expect When You're Expecting, her baby is the size of an orange! I think there has to be an app for everything now-a-days! I don't know about you, but I can't even tell she has a little bun in the oven! Looking forward to 25 more weeks of portraits with you, Terri.
Maternity Series: Week 14
