Happy Trails

Children Portraits, Family Portraits

There’s nothing like a happy toddler chasing the family dog along national forest trails. Or swimming in the cool mountain lakes of the Pacific Northwest. In these days of ipads, cell phones, and other pervasive electronic gadgets, our family has made a concious effort to give our toddler an anundance of outdoor time — while limiting time spent in front of a screen. Family hikes and camping vacations are one way we make this happen. It’s a great opportunity to make lasting memories and capture some beautiful family portraits too.

Backyard Family Portraits

Children Portraits, Family Portraits

Earlier this summer, Winnie went searching for a photographer. She needed beautiful family portraits she could hang on the walls of her Happy Valley home. After stumbling upon my website, she scheduled a phone conversation with me to learn more. And it didn’t take long to discover that we were a match! Winnie and her husband Manuel have a beautifully manicured backyard. And they live in their home with Winnie’s 100-year-old mother! Winnie did not just want photographs of her with her mom and grandchildren. Instead, she wanted framed artwork that she could hang in her foyer and family room. She also wanted to gift canvasses to her son and daughter in law so that they would also have family portraits hanging in their home. Winne sought to intentionally create family portraits that her grandchildren will one day cherish and pass on to future generations.

Portraits on the Oregon Beach

Children Portraits, Family Portraits, Pet Portraits

Oregon’s Beach Bill was passed in 1967 allowing free beach access to everyone. It’s unique as far as state laws go, and it’s one of the many things that make Oregonian’s proud. It also makes my young daughter and her puppy very happy. The beach is a pretty amazing place to photograph. It’s the perfect setting for a family portrait, for candid images of children and dogs playing on the beach, or even for that standout personal branding headshot.

Orcas Island

Children Portraits, Family Portraits, Fine Art Portraits, Landscape and Nature Photography, Pet Portraits

Orcas Island is the largest island in the San Juan archipelago, a chain of islands located in the Salish Sea in Northwest Washington. One of my favorite places on the Island is Rustic Falls, a small waterfall along Cascade Creek inside Moran State Park on Orcas Island. The water gracefully cascades about 10 feet into a shallow pool. And a large tree rests at the top of the falls, providing for a unique and interesting photograph. This image, entitled “Forces of Nature” recently merited at the Professional Photographer Association’s International Print Competition.

Family portrait taken along a fence at Powell Butte Nature Park.

Family Portraits at Powell Butte

Children Portraits, Family Portraits

Family portraits at Powell Butte nature park in Portland are always special. But come fall, when the late summer sun kisses Powell Butte’s golden fields, family portraits taken there seem to have an extra sparkle. They give off an almost magical luminescence. And photographing the Smith Family—Annie, James, Michael, Mathew, and Ellie—turned out to be as magical as the location we chose for their portraits.

Black and white portrait of a toddler eating pancakes and eggs at Marias Cafe in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Travel to a Total Solar Eclipse

Children Portraits, Landscape and Nature Photography

My family and I had an eventful set of trips in August that took us across the country and back to the Eastern Oregon desert to witness a total solar eclipse at totality. Our adventures began with a trip to Minneapolis, Minnesota where my wife and I lived just after we were married in 2003. It had been ten years since we had visited our old haunts. We had a great time taking our two-year old daughter to see our first home and to visits with old friends. Of course, we took her to our favorite eating establishments too such Maria’s Cafe, where Kiana enjoyed people watching through the large windows while feasting on eggs and pancakes. We also took the time to visit our favorite parks. She splashed in puddles at Powderhorn Park. Relaxed in the gross near downtown St. Paul. And put her feet in the mud of the Mississippi River where we gave tribute to our old pup at her favorite dog park.

Portrait of two sisters in a field with daisies and vintage dresses.

Sisterhood

Children Portraits, Family Portraits, High School Senior Portraits

Samantha and Isabel embody sisterhood despite their difference in age. Isabel is about to turn four years old and Samantha is a high school senior at Robert A. Long High School. After graduation, Samantha is headed to Ireland for college, so Mom wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to take some family portraits of the two of them together and as individuals. They were looking for outdoor portraits with a variety of backgrounds and outfits. As a result, we settled on two separate locations. The first was at Clackamas County’s Eagle Fern Park where we photographed the girls against a backdrop of green ferns and old growth forest. The second location was in a natural area near Barton, Oregon where the golden fields provided a perfect idyllic setting to display the connection that is shared by these two girls.

Military Cadets at the All Services Academies Ball at the Benson Hotel in Portland, Oregon.

Service Academies Ball

Event Photography, Family Portraits

Over the holidays I had the honor of photographing the All Service Academies Military Ball at the Benson Hotel in Portland, Oregon. It’s a prestigious affair for Oregon and Southwest Washington cadets and their families who are enrolled in the Navy, Air Force, Army, Coast Guard and Merchant Marine Service Academies. The evening began with a cocktail hour, where the military cadets posed for formal portraits with their dates and families in a beautifully decorated room at the Benson Hotel. A tall Christmas tree decorated with lights, large bulbs and lace added a touch of holiday spirit to the event.