Nicholson Family | Blair & Thurston | Photography Retreat and Workshop in Sonoma

Earlier this year I had the honor of hosting two more Blair & Thurston retreats with Elena Blair. We have been putting on intimate, luxury photography retreats since 2016 and when we announced that one would be taking place in the Napa/Sonoma region it immediately sold out. After some discussion we decided to go ahead and open up a second retreat in the same location to take place two weeks later and that ALSO sold out! Unreal. We are so thankful that we get to do this and call it work.

Our retreats took place at an amazing 6 acre working farm in the heart of downtown Sonoma. We welcomed 14 women at each one, pampered them with the luxury accommodations, a private chef, yoga, an on-site wine tasting, and wonderful guest speakers.

We also love to get out and do a shoot and that's where the Nicholson family comes into play. Elizabeth is actually a good friend of mine and her daughter Abigail goes to preschool with my daughter Sloane. Can you believe that prior to this they have never had family photos done? They were so natural and wonderful in front of the camera despite the stress of getting a flat tire en-route to the retreat.

Our retreat attendees LOVED getting to photograph this family and Elena and I had a wonderful time posing, shooting, and sharing what we know.

Our next photography retreat takes place this September in Portland, Maine and we will be making our 2019 location announcements soon. If you're a photographer, make sure to sign up for our mailing list to find out first!

The Reister Family | San Francisco Bay Area Family Photographer

This is the second time I have photographed this sweet little family. Our first session was in the spring when little miss was 12 months old. Now at 18 months old she's feeling much more like a toddler and less like a baby. I loved the golden light we found and how much fun little E had despite having a late summer cold!

San Francisco Bay Area Family Photographer | The Reisters

Whitney and Jeremy have been together since high school - he was the quarterback and she was the cheerleader. How do I know this? I was there too, just a couple of years older ;) I remember them both as 16 year olds and when we met again in person for their session it was like nothing had changed, but also so, so much. They are now married and the parents of a beautiful little girl. Of course I'm also married to my high school sweetheart and we have a family of our own.

We all grew up in Sacramento, a place I visit often from the Bay Area since my mom and many friends still live there. Being so close to Sacramento is one of the reasons we moved back to the San Francisco Bay Area, so that we could see everyone more often.

It was a warm spring evening when I photographed Whitney and Jeremy with their little girl. I love spring sessions because it's the only time in Northern California when the grass is green and soft! Their little one year old girl was a total doll and smiled nearly the whole time which is unheard of for that age! She was so happy to be outside running around (that's what you get when you walk at 9 months like she did!)

One of the really cool things about being a family and wedding photographer is that you get to reconnect with so many people that you might have not otherwise seen again.