DeKalb, IL Family Photographer | Brian, Kristin, Addyson, Izaak, Aubrey, Nathan, & Landen

DeKalb, IL Family Photographer

You guys, I don’t even know how to process this post. I went to school with Kristin, and she was one of my first clients way back in 2010 when I started my business. That means she was not only one of the first people to take a chance on me when I was just starting out, but she is one of the few clients who has been with me since the beginning. I’ve been photographing these kids for nine years. NINE YEARS! The youngest, Landen had just turned one the very first time I photographed him. He’s 10 now. The two oldest, Addyson & Izaak, just started their senior year of high school. They were eight the first time I photographed them and just a year older than my oldest currently is, and now they’re graduating and I feel like time has just hit me in the gut with how fast it moves. I’m actually getting teary writing this.

One of the things that has always impressed me with this bunch is how close the kids are. I can’t remember them ever fighting during our shoots, although I did learn during this most recent shoot that after one of our times together the kids all ended up getting grounded but I can’t remember what happened to cause it! You can tell by how they interact with each other that they enjoy spending time together. They’re constantly joking around and laughing together, and are really eager to get in pictures together. I actually asked Kristin how she and Brian cultivated such closeness between the kids, and she said that aside from them all having temperaments that mesh well, she thinks prioritizing family dinners has played a big part it in. Another thing I’ve always been amazing by is how easily this group falls into a pleasing picture formation. I’m pretty sure that for 95% of the posed pictures in this shoot I would just tell them to “get together” and the pictures you see are exactly how they arranged themselves. They’ve been like this since the first time I photographed them and it’s made my job so easy over the years!

Anyways, I’ve written a book now and I think it’s time to move on to the pictures. Before I do, know that at the end of this post I’ve included a little “journey through the years” with some of my favorites from each of my shoots with this fam. I hope you enjoy it! It was fun for me to look back at some of my oldest work and see that while I’ve definitely improved my technique, and my editing style has evolved, I’m still really proud of every single shoot I’ve done with these guys!

Since Addyson and Izaak are both seniors, we did a combo family/senior session. They’re both joining the National Guard after they graduate, and I can’t wait to see where these two go in life!