The family that bowls together...
I love this family. I know, I know, not only am I a broken record with the "I love" business, but I'm a broken record about being a broken record! How can I not say it about these guys though? Here's the story: I first heard from Ryan during the fall of 2009; he had come across my photos in the St. Johns bookstore, and then realized that I was the photographer behind the Gilt ads he had been enjoying for years. His family hired me to take their family portrait in November of that year, shortly after their son William had been born. They live walking distance from my home, they have an incredibly delightful daughter named Aili, a sweet springer spaniel named Tess, and a comfortable casual home and family. I couldn't help but love them. So of course I was psyched when they hired me again during fall of 2010 for an update on the family portrait. We caught some sunshine on an up-to-that-point rainy day in November, so we hit a trail on Sauvie Island and had a blast. The photos came out great. But that's not even what I am blogging about here today! I know, shut up already and get on with it already. Ryan emailed me in December to say that his family would be coming for the holidays and his dad wanted to hire me to photograph the entire family together. This was huge, Ryan explained, as his father had always been against having a portrait made of the family during Ryan's youth. But his dad, he went on, loved the photos I had captured for them and wanted some of his own! They didn't need more than a few group shots of everyone together, and despite being nature-lovers, it was just too dang cold for an outdoor session. So they got to thinking outside the box, and asked if I would be game for a bowling family session. Can I say HELL YEAH on a family photo blog? Hell yeah I can! This is why I love this family!
There were just so many fun shots from this session, here are a few more favorites...
We did, of course, get the obligatory group shots, but even those were fun (see below)...
An important note on cuteness: Mr. Amazing was very sick the day we took these photos. He was a great sport and even perked up (or tylenol kicked in?) when we got to the bowling alley. But these family portraits do not do justice to his serious cuteness, and I am extra thankful that we had seen each other on that much sunnier day in the fall.
