One of the fun things about putting together a photo session is trying to figure out how I can make this different from anyone else's photo session, but make it attractive, beautiful and elegant. I spend hours upon hours shopping for new outfits, headbands, props, backdrops, gadgets, tools, editing software, on and on. 

That's when it dawned on me - why not just keep it simple? 

There is nothing wrong with adding personality and pazzazz to a photo. That's not what I'm saying at all. But it becomes an issue when we forget what a portrait photo is all about: THE SUBJECT.

You. 

Your baby. 

Your family. 

Your daughter. 

Your son. 

Your... what have you!

THAT is the focus of the photo. Not the banners, not the chairs, not the buckets, or the oh-so-adorable outfits. Yes, they ADD to the photo. But that's all they should be doing. Not MAKING the photo. 

I did a bit of an experiment. I wanted to see if I could shoot as precious and as wonderful of a photograph that my clients would go ga-ga over with minimal distractions. Not minimal effort, but minimal distractions. I had a plain white backdrop, I had a chair to two (to keep squirmy bums still), and I had my camera. I offered these very simplified mini sessions this last Christmas. The results? Worth getting absolutely giddy over. Why? 

Because there are NO distractions from the subject. That's all it is! You. Your baby. Your family. And so on, so forth. And you know what? I loved them, you loved them, and they turned out GREAT. 

The same may go for life itself - when you're wondering what else you could possibly add to it to make it more appealing and "fun" for you, take a step back and think, "Why not just keep it simple?" 

Life is beautiful. It's you. Your baby. Your family. What have you. 

It's simple. <3