James Thomas Long Photography is now booking Spring family photography sessions in Bellevue WA and the greater Seattle area!

Remember when they were small? When instead of just walking to the park, they would hop, skip, run, jump, meander, and explore their way there? When that beautiful smile of theirs would tell of joy, wonder, and a hint of a little mischief and mayhem? When they would say or do the funniest things? Or maybe your little ones are still at that glorious age? All too often, we photograph them a ton as babies, but by the time they reach 3 or 4, we begin to take fewer and fewer pictures, or (gasp!) we even stop having professional family photographs taken altogether! After all, they are bigger now, won’t stand still, and look pretty much the same as they did last year – just a few inches taller, right?

That’s a big mistake! 3-6 years old is probably the best age of their lives to photograph! This is the age when they can interact and have fun with Mom & Dad in ways that were not possible when they were smaller and won’t be possible again when they get older. This is the age where they will find joy and laughter in the simplest things in life. And believe me, with the start of preschool, kindergarten, 1st grade, and all of the other things thrown in there around this time, this age goes by extremely fast! So get out there and take more photographs while they’re small! I know it’s a pain to lug the camera around (not to mention download, select, and edit the images afterwards), but it is so worth it! Or, you can book your family photography session this Spring in the Bellevue and Seattle area and I can do the work for you! 😉 Spring and warmer days are coming!

I stumbled across these images I captured years ago of my daughter when I took her to the park during Spring break and brought the camera along. Her hair was crazy (I think because she wouldn’t hold still long enough for me to fix it), her outfit was nothing special, and we had that harsh midday Sun that I usually try to avoid (and no shade at all either!)… But I love these nonetheless. They capture her playful spirit, her unabashed curiosity for exploration and her ability to find fun in the simplest, most mundane things.

She’s bigger now, but every time I look back at some old photographs of my little girl, her beautiful smile melts my heart all over again.