Sand in my toes

Sweet summer time is almost over! Can you believe it?? School is about to start and we will have a kindergartner in the Allen household! Holy Cow!!!! We took one last family trip to the beach and got to spend some time with some of my favorite people! My parents, grandparents, brother and nieces were all in attendance! We spent countless days in the sand, the kids enjoyed some movies, and tons of good food!! You’ve met my little fam but let me introduce you to the rest of the Breen side. We are missing some special people…my grandmother, my brother’s fiance and soon to be niece!! Hope you enjoy this beautiful Navarre Beach sunset!

Summer, Summer, Summer time… {Johns Creek, GA}

I know I’ve said this before, but I absolutely adore shooting large multi family sessions! It’s the perfect storm of capturing special moments with everyone enjoying each other’s company mixed with quiet moments between couples. Sprinkle in the opportunity to chase adorable little people around and I’m one happy girl! The Eramian family’s shoot was a dream session for me! It’s been a little while since I’ve had the chance to shoot at McDaniel Farm Park for one. The place was uncharacteristically empty, it was breezy and cool( which for July in GA is practically unheard of) and this loving group of characters were an absolute pleasure to hang with. For anyone who has had portraits done with Coco Alley, you are well aware that we push hard to schedule our sessions close to sunrise and sunset. Here is another prime example of why it’s totally worth attempting to make that happen! Those are the absolute best times for gorgeous, magical light! That said, I totally recognize its not always ideal when you have littles that go to bed early or can’t risk throwing off a nap schedule. I’m just saying that if you can, you won’t be sorry!

I’ll leave you to enjoy this huge overshare of images of the potentially the cutest set of cousins and their awesome families! If you are anything like me, you won’t be able to stop smiling at their sweetness or reminiscing about past childhood summer nights with your own family!

Sunflowers galore!

I had the pleasure of photographing this gorgeous family for the first time this past fall and our little summer reunion was just as much fun! Courtney, Eric and their ADORABLE children Harper, Asher and baby Max brought their A game! It started to rain shortly after we arrived at the sunflower field so we hustled back to the car just incase it poured. After discussing the (seemingly non phased) kid’s very recent birthdays and Asher’s latest Mickey Mouse book bag and the loot inside, the rain had stopped as fast as it had started. We decided to risk it and shoot close to the car incase the rain picked up again. Luckily it stayed dry the rest of the session and we got to ham it up all over the farm! I honestly love all of the images from this session! Not only because of the beautiful sunflowers, lighting and the gorgeous Nagy family, but because of all the laughing we did! Despite the extreme heat, the constant redirection, waiting and walking to find clear areas to shoot (it was super busy), everyone remained in such a great mood! The kids are only 6,4 and 1 1/2 years old! Not even the bees seemed to bother these kiddos and I’m here to tell you … they were everywhere! They are as well behaved as they are cute lol! The sneak peek is proof!

sunflower mini sessions cumming ga

Happy Birthday America!

Celebrating our country’s birthday is something I have always loved doing from the time I was a little girl. Things got a whole lot sweeter in the Allen household when my little girl was placed in my arms for the very first time, on the 4th of July, here we are…5 years later, about to celebrate America’s birthday with the rest of the country and we will sing Lyla Grace her very own special song and watch fireworks. I love how it excites her that she shares a birthday with America. It seriously melts my heart. I mean, I am kinda jealous…fireworks on your birthday?! I hope you all have a fun and safe 4th of July! Enjoy this little session I did with Lyla and Hagen to document her birthday! 🙂

I must say before I close, out of respect for our Country, the flag wrapped around Lyla is a scarf. Flag etiquette states that you can’t allow a flag to touch the ground. I would never use a real flag for a session like this and disrespect it.

She said….YES!

My very first friend was my brother. If you ask our parents they would probably say we fought like cats and dogs but as we grew up we created an unconditional bond and we have been lucky to share some of life’s most memorable moments. My brother blessed me with two nieces that I love to the moon and back. So not only was I sister bear protective of Chris, I couldn’t just let anyone come into his life! I will never forget when he took Marisa on their first date. I wasn’t there but I knew just how giddy, excited and big time nervous he was. His romantic side really shined the next few months. I knew there was something special about Marisa because he was happy again. After meeting her myself and watching their relationship grow, my heart nearly jumped out of my chest the moment Chris told me he was ready to propose. I have hoped for this moment/day for a very, very long time. Not only did this mean Marisa will become my sister, but I will be gaining another niece, Angelina. Marisa’s daughter is out of this world amazing. She loves spending time with Chloe and Claire. Angelina has a warm, inviting, loving charisma about her. She fits right in and we welcome her with open arms. You two make a great team and I love seeing you both together. All three kids will grow along with you in a loving home and the journey will be worth every moment. Thank you for not only allowing me to capture this special day, but allowing me to be part of it every step of the way!!

A boy and his boat…. {Cumming newborn and family photographer}

Add another sweet birthday boy to the list because little Liam is officially ONE!! Now… When I say that I’ve been planning his stylized session for a year, that is honestly no exaggeration! Let’s just say the raft attempt at his newborn shoot was not up to this perfectionist’s standards so I scrapped it lol! Do over baby!! This time it was go big or go home! I had vision, a location and built a better boat (shout out to my talented hubby for helping me and making the sail). What I couldn’t have planned for was all the fantastic FOG!!!! There was a little fog the night I scouted out our spot but this was on a whole new level guys! A massive amount of thick magical fog kept rolling in and out during our sunset shoot and it was glorious!!!! Ahhhh yes…. redemption smells so sweet my friends!

Ok, so who wants to buy a boat? Kidding….

one year old portraits Buford Dam Lower Pool

Surprise! {Maternity and Newborn Photographer Cumming GA}

The secret is out and I’m finally able to share some images from a very special session I shot a few months back! I’ve been photographing moments for this sweet couple for a few years now, so I was super excited to be part of a monster surprise Allison wanted to plan for her hubby, Dane. Upon discovering she was pregnant (EEEKKKK!!), Allison reached out to me and we planned, plotted and immediately kicked into action! We thought it would be fun to shoot this session in two parts so we could incorporate their little girl Ava Rose. She helped her momma wrap up the reveal gift for daddy and then sat next to him while he opened it! His face was priceless! Congratulations lovebirds! I’m over the moon happy for you and your growing family! I have to admit, it was cool to be the first to know, guys! Not gonna lie lol : )

I’m looking forward to meeting this little Christmas baby! For now enjoy these adorable pictures!

Maternity Pregnancy Announcement Photos GA

Pregnancy Announcement and maternity photos by Cumming Maternity and newborn photographer

Logan is ONE! {Baby’s First year portraits,GA}

I can’t believe my little friend Logan is already turning one! I’ve had so much fun documenting him and his sweet parents through out this year! Looking over all his portrait sessions just makes my heart smile! It’s amazing to see just how much he has grown! Being a mommy to rapidly growing bebes myself, I can’t express how special it feels to have been able to capture his adorable spunk for his family, as well provide images they can cherish while looking back over his many first year milestones! Happy Birthday little man! MUAH xoxoxo

1 year child portraits downtown Norcross GA

1 year child portraits downtown Norcross GA

Well hello there summer… {Alpharetta Family Photographer}

Ever since the kids have wrapped up the school year we’re not gonna lie… We’ve held our pool bags far more than our camera bags and enjoyed every second of it! What we haven’t done in 2 weeks apparently is blog! Oopsie!!! We promise to post more now that we have each found our summer balance between work and play! I don’t think we have ever even gone a week with out a new post since the inception of this blog back in October 2015! Wowza!! Well now I don’t feel as bad!

As I was reviewing my upcoming shoot schedule and list of locations to scout,
it dawned on me that I’d never posted images from my nieces 6 month session! Kuddos to my SIL for recommending a little open grassy area near the tennis courts in their subdivision! The light was seriously glorious!!!!!! I’m so glad we had previously decided we would update their family photos at the same time because they are amongst some of my all time favorites photos EVER!!!! I know I say that all the time and I mean it all the time lol!! Between Cara Boo Boo bear looking right at me and the added bonus of my nephew Calen running towards me to have his photo taken vs my chasing that little man around while I pray I capture his handsome smile…. I was giddy with excitement over this shoot you guys!

6 month old and Family portraits photo session Alpharetta Ga

Double the fun….

Last weekend was an absolute blast! I shot four fun (and totally different) sessions and have been a busy bee editing ever since! Because two of the shoots were both taken at new locations, I thought I would go ahead and combine their sneak peeks into one post. Well technically I’ve shot at Mason Mill Park before but I was never able to find the mysteriously hidden graffiti city. As it turned out, one just has to venture off the path of the beautifully paved greenway. Let’s just say it’s very well camouflaged by a lot of trees and overgrowth but it’s totally worth it! I encountered many regulars who had no idea it was even there! Note to self… ballet flats and hiking is not a match made in outdoors heaven! I also want to give a shout to the good samaritan who helped me dig through the wilderness and finally find this gem of a location! Thank you so much for your help and for not being an axe murder!

Below is my little red headed friend Maddox! He is no stranger to my lens being I’ve been shooting him since he was still baking in his beautiful momma’s belly! I can’t believe he is already 2 and 1/2! Love this little character!

Earlier in the day, I had the pleasure of meeting Nikki, Ron and their extremely adorable 6 year old Ty! This adorable couple recently celebrated 10 years of wedded bliss and thought it would be nice to return to the scene of the crime and update their family photos. I couldn’t agree more! Hightower Falls is simply stunning! The ruins, falls and overall scenery made for such a gorgeous back drop!

I’m sure I’ll be back with more from last weekend! Thanks for checking out our blog!