In the Orchard

For a long, long time I've been convinced that documenting my family is one of the most important things I can do.  I take plenty of photos, but I also have wanted to have some nice family photos each year - you know, where we are all in a pretty place looking somewhat put together.  The beautiful fall colors, crisp autumn air and dreamy creamy golden light simply beg for a family photo shoot.  I was planning on hiring a professional to take our photos, but in the end I decided we'd just try and do it ourselves this year.

I asked my sweet sister-in-law to help out and she happily obliged (thanks Carol!). The stars seemed to align as I heard of a beautiful [secret] nearby orchard just one day before we had "family photos" scribbled on the calendar.  Just over a mile from our house, a generous family with an abundance of land and gorgeous trees laden with impeccable fruit, sweetly let us set up in their apple orchard for a late afternoon of smiles and laughter and clicks of the shutter.  We all took turns setting up the shots, adjusting the camera settings, trying to get Clara to smile, and snapping the photos; it was definitely a collaborative effort.  Here's a tiny peek at a few favorites.