One of my favorite things to attend is an airshow.  This year's NAS Oceana Airshow was my first as a Veteran and it certainly brought back a lot of great memories on top of providing an opportunity to capture some great photos.

A summer thunderstorm brings the distinctive smell of rain on hot pavement, the whipping cooler wind, rolling thunder, and ultimately a beautiful lightning show.  Until recently I had never attempted to photograph lightning.  Like many folks, I have seen photographs showing the awesome power of lightning, and after years of seeing these photos I decided to finally try my hand at photographing lightning.

I think most kids regardless of age find joy in playing in the mud and getting dirty.  Lately, one of my favorite things to do is watch my son play in his "mud pit" in our back yard.  He digs, he creates, imagining everything from road construction to digging for dinosaur bones, and the joy he has doing it reminds me of the simple pleasures of my childhood doing similar things.

This series of photos "Mud Play is Fun Play" is all from one day.  One day where he played for hours in his mud pit; one day where his silliness and creativity was awe inspiring.  Not only did I enjoy creating these photos, but I just simply enjoyed watching him be completely silly and enjoy getting as dirty as possible.

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of creating senior photos for Chad.  A good family friend connected Chad and his family with me when they were disheartened by the senior photos they'd received from the school's senior photo photographer.  I was more than happy to help Chad and his family out by working with them to create some senior photos for them that they would be happy with.

Photographing family is always fun for me.  I not only enjoy the chance to spend time with them, but also creating images which I know will be cherished by other family members.

Shortly after moving back to our home in Virginia Beach, my brother-in-law Brian mentioned needing some photos; I of course was more than happy to help.  We choose a day which worked for both our schedules, and a location not to far from the house.

One of the nice things about Virginia Beach is the abundance of neighborhood parks.  Not only do these parks provide a great place for the neighborhood kids to play, but they also provide great locations for photos.  Choosing a park for his portraits provided both for us, a chance to take some photos and the opportunity play with his nephew after the photos.  Win-Win!

We didn't spend a bunch of time creating photos, but we had a great time and they turned out pretty awesome.  Here are a few of my favorites.

Having your photos taken doesn't have to be this crazy process.  Simple, easy to get to and use locations, and planning a little fun (like playing on a playground) afterward help to ease the stress of having photos taken, especially for families.

If you're ready to get your photo session planned, I'm ready to help you out!  Use the link here or at the top of the page to Get in touch with me today!