Shawna + Brandon | Family Photos at Bickelhaupt Arboretum

Shawna has photos with the girls from when they were little, but this was their first time getting everyone together for a full family session! So we met up at Bickelhaupt Arboretum in Clinton to finally fix that. 🤍

And I quickly learned that these three girls have VERY different personalities.

Haley brought plenty of spunk. Vivian was a little quieter and sweet. And Claire? Claire apparently came prepared with a professional-level smolder. 😂

I always love when siblings are completely different from each other because it gives me something different to work with for each of them. We can get the traditional family photos, but I also want everyone to look like themselves instead of trying to get five people to give me the exact same smile for an entire session.

Of course, there were actually six members of the family present.

Vallie came too. 🐾

She's their tiny little dog and very clearly adored by the entire family. There was absolutely no way we were doing their first family photos as a whole crew without including her.

The girls keep Shawna pretty busy outside of family-photo days too. Between softball, volleyball, and everything else that comes with raising three kids, she told me she's pretty thankful to be able to stay home with them. Their family now lives in Fulton, with roots stretching back to Clinton for Shawna and the Prophetstown area for Brandon.

I'm so glad they finally made it happen. Family photos don't have to mark a birthday, anniversary, or some other big milestone to be worth doing. Sometimes realizing you want new pictures to hang on the walls is reason enough.

And as your kids get older, I think you become VERY aware of how quickly all of this is going. That's probably part of why I love photography so much. I can't actually stop them from growing up, but I can freeze what your family looks like right now. The personalities, the relationships, the stage you're in... all the things that are going to look a little different a few years from now.

Thanks for hanging out with me, you guys! I'm glad we finally got the whole crew, Vallie included, in front of the camera. 🤍