ere’s a little story about me, I am the oldest of 7 kids (Irish Catholic, not Mormon since I’m sure you were wondering. Don’t worry, I always want to ask that too when I hear about big families) and back when we were still just 4 kids total my mom took us to get our portrait taken. I don’t know what was up with my bad attitude that day my poor mother piled us into the minivan, but I was NOT interested in sitting there and smiling and “being good.” The poor photographer was doing his best with the cooing and silly noises and other photographer tools of the trade to get my baby brother to smile which to his credit were working wonderfully for him. But I was determined to show this interloper just how unfunny I thought the whole situation was and frowned the entire time. As the bossy oldest child of the family, I was invested in getting my other two siblings to follow my lead and not give in to this phony guy and his dumb “photographer tricks.” I distinctly remember pinching my brother in a demented big sister power play to get him to frown alongside me. Thankfully my twisted little scheme did not work and the resulting photo shows my incredibly smiley baby brother yukking it up while my brother can't help himself and throws that poor photographer a bone with a little Mona Lisa smile as if to say “Sorry about her.” And me? I’m looming over my siblings in the background, with a completely deadpan, annoyed expression on my face. Is this our best family portrait ever taken? Hell no. But it is one of my favorites because of the story I can hear when I look at it.

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Me and my micro family. You might meet this handsome fella since he sometimes helps me out at sessions when he's not working at his real estate Company.

Colorado Family Photographer

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Storytelling is what family photos are all about.

It’s my goal to create at least one classically beautiful portrait with everyone looking at the camera and smiling for all of the families that I photograph. But there is so much more to the family story that I want to capture for you as well. I’m there to get the silly moments in between the posed shots. When someone accidentally farts and we all bust up laughing or the sweet moment when your child rests their head on your shoulder. I believe that a family portrait session doesn’t have to be stiff or rigid and that there is room for capturing more than the traditional. We’ll play games and tell stories and I’ll ask lots of questions about you and your family. Creating family photos together is not just about the picture. It’s about forgetting the camera, opening up and letting yourself be vulnerable and most importantly enjoying the quality time spent together creating real moments as a family. Get in touch!

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NEW BEGINNINGS

BOULDER FAMILY SESSION

WE ARE FAMILY

CITY PARK MATERNITY SESSION

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FROM MATERNITY Pictures TO KIDS TO EXTENDED FAMILY Portraits, I'VE GOT YOU COVERED

Colorado Family Photography Galleries

I have been a Denver family photographer since 2005. Throughout the years I've collected some of my favorite photos to share in the galleries above. To see my portfolio with a ton examples of the type of family photos that I can create for you, please click on the first box above. To see examples all created at one family session, please click on the 2nd box above. To see maternity photography examples created in the Denver area and beyond, please click on the 3rd box above and to see maternity photos all created from the same photoshoot, please click on the last box above. Another good place to check out my portfolio to make sure the type of photos I create are what you are looking for is to browse through past sessions on the JOURNAL and click on the "FAMILY" link in the green "Find Your Way" box.  

Family sessions are priced as session fees* and the price is determined by location of the session and the time of year that it takes place. The regular season is from January-August and the busy season is September-December and there is a higher minimum for sessions that take place during that time. The session fee covers the time at the session creating your images and the majority of the session fee that you pay will be applied to your order as a credit. 

Denver, Boulder, Evergreen, Aurora, Castle Rock, Parker, Longmont, Littleton, Lakewood, Wheat Ridge Golden, Idaho Springs, Arvada, Highlands Ranch, Northglenn, Thornton, Erie, Lafayette, Louisville (Essentially the Denver Metro area):
Regular Season (January-August): $595 session fee includes a $500 credit
Busy Season (September-December): $1,095 session fee includes a $995 credit

Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, Loveland, Greeley, Georgetown, Lyons:
$650 session fee includes a $500 credit
Busy Season (September-December): $1,150 session fee includes a $995 credit



Summit County (Breckenridge, Silverthorne, Frisco, Dillon, Keystone etc…):
Regular Season: $700 session fee includes a $500 credit
Busy Season Pricing (September-December): $1,200 session fee includes a $995 credit



Winter Park, Tabernash, Fraser, Granby, Grand Lake, Estes Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Vail, Beaver Creek, Avon, Edwards, Eagle, Pueblo:
Regular season (January-August) $750 session fee includes a $550 credit
Busy season (September-December): $1,250 session fee includes a $995 credit



Aspen, Steamboat Springs, Kremmling, Glenwood Springs, Carbondale, Redstone, Snowmass, Crested Butte, Gunnison. Salida, Great Sand Dunes National Park, Grand Junction, Montrose
$1,895 session fee includes a $1,295 credit

Telluride, Ouray, Ridgway, Silverton, Durango:
$1,895 session fee includes a $1,295 credit

Don’t see your location listed here? Get in touch and I can give you a session fee quote.

*Please note that digital files are not included in your session fee. They may be purchased separately either as a set or as individual files. Individual digital files are $125 each and there are price breaks for purchasing multiple digital files. Prints start at $35 for a 5x7” and $65 for an 8x10” Please contact me for the full price list.

Pricing is the same year round for the following locations

ANSWERS TO SOME OF YOUR MOST BURNING QUESTIONS

*I like posed family photos, will you capture that at our session?

I like those too! My goal is to create at least one classic smiling family portrait with everyone looking at the camera for every family that I photograph. But sometimes it just doesn’t happen for a variety of reasons. My goal is to work hard to get that for your family but please know that no specific image is guaranteed.  This is especially true when we're working with younger kids.

*I like candid, unposed type of photos, will you capture that at our session?

Yes, I adore getting these types of photos in addition to the more classically posed images. We will play games, act silly, ask questions, and have lots of fun as we coax your family into natural poses and capture your reactions to all of the fun we’re having. I enjoy capturing a mixture of classic posed images with more unposed moments mixed in as well.

*Does the session fee include all of the digital files?

No, digital files can be bought separately just like prints and are not included as part of the session fee. Digital files that are ordered will be completely retouched just like they would be if ordered as a print and you will receive both the high resolution full sized color and B&W version of the jpeg.  

*Do we get to pick the time of our session?

As a general rule, no you will not get to pick the time of day of your session. It’s very important to photograph in the hour before sunset and I generally schedule them to take place about an hour to an hour and a half before the sun will be setting. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule and I know that it can be hard for little kids to stay up late in the summer when the sun isn’t setting until 8:30 pm but in general, the closer to sunset that we photograph your family, the more beautifully your photos will turn out. Photographing at high noon in beautiful, but SUNNY Colorado is a recipe for uglier photos. It can be done, but is much harder to do the fun, unposed photos during this time of day.

*Do you have a studio? 

Nope, Colorado is way too pretty to spend our time indoors! I do 100% on location photography, utilizing Colorado’s most scenic locations! If photographing indoors is a must, we do have options for renting indoor locations. Just ask me about those and I can send more information for you. 

*How many family members does the session fee cover?

I don’t have a set number of family members that are included in the cost of a session fee but please note that sessions tend to last about an hour and a half. I have photographed plenty of extended families/family reunions but the more family members there are the less variety you may have for each person or immediate family if there are a lot to fit in. You may want to get in touch to discuss the number of people you are planning to have at your session and I can advise if it will be necessary to add on more time at a prorated cost to make sure I can adequately photograph everyone who will be there.

*Will we get to see all of the photos from our session?

The short answer is no, but the longer more complete answer is that you will see all of the images that meet my artistic standards. This means that I will go through and select all of the keeper photos for you to see and remove any images that did not turn out (ones with technical deficiencies, duplicates, bad expressions/eyes closed etc…) which leaves you with the absolute best images from your session.

*What can I expect for the retouching of my photos?

After your session I will pick out a handful of my favorite images to share on the blog as a “sneak peek” or preview. These favorites will be fully retouched. The rest of the images will be lightly retouched as proofs and all will go into an online gallery for you to choose from. Any images that are ordered will be fully retouched just like the favorites from the blog. Below you can see a visual example of what the difference is between a photo prior to any retouching, a proof photo and a fully retouched image:

straight out of camera

proof/basic edit

fully retouched

*How long does the session take and how long until we get to see our photos? 

It depends on the session and how many family members I’m working with, but I spend anywhere from 1-2 hours on average per session. I aim to get your images in the online gallery and ready for you to see within 3 weeks of the session but this can depend on the time of year. I am faster from January-mid summer and late summer-Christmas can sometimes get a little more backed up due to the busy season. If you are in any sort of rush it’s best to let me know about that asap so that I can honestly assess the timing and do my best to meet your deadline. 

*What happens if the weather is ugly on the day of our session?

This is Colorado! It’s hardly ever so terrible that we have to change plans for our outdoor session. However, even the nicest places have bad weather days every once in awhile. Generally the best thing to do with inclement weather is to reschedule the session to an earlier time or to another day, which is usually my first suggestion. Some of my families are visiting Colorado from out of town and a reschedule is not possible. In those scenarios we can embrace the weather and use umbrellas or I do my best to search for creative indoor options we might be able to use and if we truly cannot find an option that works I will refund any retainer you may have paid for your session and cancel it altogether. I wouldn’t worry though, in over 17 years of photographing families here in Colorado,  I have had reschedules happen but I can count on one hand the number of times we have had to cancel. I do remember some “bad weather” family sessions that actually turned out really cool!

*What do we wear for our pictures?

In the interest of saving space here in the FAQ section, I wrote a whole article on how to plan what to wear for your family photos. Check it out HERE.

*Can we bring our dog to the session?

Yes, I love when families incorporate their furry best friends into their session. There are some locations that don’t allow dogs but we can pick one that does if this is important to your family.  

*Do you photograph newborn babies?

This is not something I offer at this time. I am more than happy to photograph your newborn with you as part of a family session but generally recommend waiting until they are around 6 months old or sitting up on their own before booking a session with me.  But, if you are looking for a newborn photography session that focuses on your newest and cutest family member I highly recommend Raelene Kerner Photography.  She has a newborn studio set up to get those adorable posed photos you're looking for and I've been sending my friends and family her way when they have a new baby.   

*How can we book you? 

I’m so glad you asked! I would love to photograph your family! Contact me here and tell me about your family, where you’ll be, and when you think you want to do your photos and I can get back to you with a session fee quote. To officially reserve your date, I require 50% of the session fee upfront to book and the other 50% will be due at the end of our session after we’ve photographed your family.

This is the part where you get to tell me about you!  

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I do my very best to return emails as soon as possible but I do head out of Denver for sessions and weddings often. Sometimes your email never makes it to me so if you haven’t heard from me within 48 hours please try again just in case stranger things are going on (and also just in case I got sucked into a marathon Stranger Things binge and need help out!) I’d hate to miss the opportunity to chat with you about your wedding!