2024 Holiday Portraits of Grayson & Adelaide

One of the best parts of being a photographer is that I have built annual traditions around new portraits for my own two children. Each year, we capture their birthday portraits, 4th of July photos, and holiday portraits too! It’s special to me to be able to look back and really see how they grow & change. I love that I am able to watch all of that unfold year by year because of these specific traditions. 

This year, we had a big first: Grayson was missing his front teeth in portraits! (“Alexa, play ‘All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!’”). It’s hard to believe we’re already at the age of missing teeth and gummy smiles for my big guy! His sister is growing up so fast too. Even though she showed off her favorite pigtails, Adelaide looks so grown and I can hardly believe how fast time feels like it’s flying. 

We did our traditional holiday setup, plus portraits with Santa. (Check out more holiday & santa portraits of my clients here and here). I’m so happy that we captured both setups for them. I loved being able to capture their matching pajamas (who knows how much longer that will last?!) and then more cozy inspired winter outfits. Grayson and Adelaide were great sports, and I think we managed to capture some truly tender moments between them - which I know, as their mom, I’ll love for years to come. 

Like me, my children love the holidays. I wanted to share a few holiday traditions we are enjoying this year with you. Perhaps you’ll find one that you want to include in your own family! 

1. Our daily stocking calendar.

2. Cookie decorating!

3. Visiting family on Cape Cod and playing with the cousins.

4. Lots of picnic dinners under the Christmas tree.

5. Reading so many holiday books.

6. Seeing what fun little gifts Grayson picks out for everyone at his school’s holiday gift market. Last year was his first year doing this in kindergarten, and seeing the Hot Wheels car he came home with for Adelaide was too cute!

7. Visiting Santa Claus at his cottage on Broadway in Saratoga Springs.

8. The Victorian Streetwalk in downtown Saratoga.

9. Hanging up all of our friends' and family’s holiday cards.

10. Enjoying lots of Christmassy scents in our wax warmer all season long.

No matter how you celebrate the season, we’re sending you so much love. Have a beautiful holiday!

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Elegant Holiday Portraits: Our Favorite 2024 Holiday Portraits in Saratoga Springs

So many amazing families joined us for our annual Deck the Halls holiday portrait event in our Saratoga Springs studio this year and I’m thrilled to be sharing some of my favorite moments with you here on the blog. These sessions are near and dear to my heart. It’s special to see my longtime clients each holiday season, and to meet a few new families each year, too! We always have such a wonderful time in the Saratoga Springs studio - listening to holiday music and enjoying a chance to capture new portraits for these sweet families! 

This year, I leaned into creating elegant and timeless holiday setups. I wanted it to feel like Christmas without being too over the top. With that in mind, I chose plaid, flocked trees, velvet bow, a hint of gold, evergreen garland, and red berries to decorate the studio with. These simple setups allowed my families to be the center of attention. We could focus on their personalities, and their interactions - which is how I always want my family portraits to feel. I captured some sweet moments this year, including some first time holiday season smiles and lots of sweet laughs among the kids! 

Holiday portraits are one of my favorite mementos and things to display during the holiday season. I help each of our families decide how they want to showcase these priceless memories in their home after our session! One of my favorite ways is our beautiful silver snowflake ornaments and I always love our heirloom albums (the velvet is my favorite!). Being able to pull these special items out each winter always makes me smile in my own home and I hope that each of my clients feels the same way as they look back on their holiday portraits - filled with their little ones round cheeks, baby teeth, and sweet giggles. These sessions are another way to freeze time and capture the magic of the holiday season for years to come. 

Thank you to every family who trusted me to create a little holiday magic in our studio. It was so special and I’m beyond grateful to each and every one of you!

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