The sweetest part of being a Muskoka family photographer is photographing family memories in sentimental locations.

The Bryan family has owned this beautiful waterfront cottage on Little Doe Lake for generations. Spending summer weekends on the dock has been the basis of so many of their favourite memories. Nothing could have been more fitting than photographing their yearly family session in this very spot! Many families are hesitant to bring their local photographer all the way up north, but being a Muskoka family photographer allows for me to document so many of these sweet, sentimental sessions.

Erica is a photographer herself and really worked alongside me to set our session up for success!

This glowy summer evening was actually not the first date we had in mind for our session! I’m a huge fan of photographing portrait sessions two hours before sunset for ideal lighting. That said, this really only works in our favour on clear nights. Erica quickly pitched a last-minute date change when she saw an overcast forecast and I am so thankful that she did! We ended up with the perfect August night.

Beyond the lighting, Erica’s choice of matching outfits was really the star of the show. I absolutely love her selection of dresses from Nothing Fits But! These sleeper style dresses have been some of my favourites to photograph this year. Such a fun way to incorporate the trending “Bridgerton” fashion of 2021!

These three kiddos fully embraced all of the activities we had planned for the evening!

Many parents are uncertain about how their kids will behave if they choose to photograph family portraits outside of their sleeping schedule. We pulled out all of the stops to capture these golden hour portraits past bedtime! I find that the best piece of advice I can offer for evening sessions is to keep your kids active and engaged.

We made a point to introduce movement into a lot of these images! Cocomelon songs were playing loudly for most of the night, and these kids absolutely loved dancing and playing around with their family. Don’t shy away from breaking your schedule!