Ava’s mom, Vikkie, first contacted me after her best friend (and my dear family friend Cerrena) gifted a session to her in honor of Ava’s first birthday. I absolutely LOVED this idea. What a better gift to give someone than a tangible moment in time. Ok, so I’m a photographer, so I may be biased, but I just thought it was such a fantastic idea on Cerrena’s part. I may even have to steal her idea in the future!

Ava, Vikkie and Iwere all set to meet up at a local park, but as luck would have it I saw something pop on my Facebook feed that week that immediately made me reach out to Vikkie. It was a post from Burnside Farms, a local farm that opens it fields to visitors throughout the year as their seasonal blooms are at their peak, and it was just the time of year for sunflower season. I had been wanting to go there so much during spring’s tulip season, but never made it out there. Luckily Vikkie loved the idea as much as I did, so our new location was all set.

Now I am a big believer that no matter where you do a photo shoot- a beautiful farm, a rundown parking lot, a million dollar wedding – while a beautiful backdrop is a bonus, it’s the people in the photo that really matter. So as you can imagine taking photos of Ava was an absolute delight. She is so darn cute, but more than that she was just full of curiosity. It was so much fun to just follow her around the fields and just let her do her thing. The sunflowers were just there at her disposal. Plus it wasa lot of funto hang out with Vikkie again, which we may or may not have done a few summers back over a few adult beverages 😉

Here’s to hoping this sweet session brings you just a little bit of sunshine today!