Leah O'Connell PhotographyCharlottesville, VA
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Family, newborn, brand, and school photography stories from Leah O'Connell.
There is something magical about a fifth birthday party… Sparkles, jump houses, laughter, dress up, dancing, PASTA – the list goes on. I am positive that this birthday girl felt the most special as her family celebrated her on this day. After jumping in the bounce house til the sun went down, the family headed inside to video chat extended family, adding to the love.
client tips, Featured sessions
When senior year rolls around for your teen, we know that there is a running list of things to do before graduation day. College decisions, dorm preparations, exams, prom outfits – oh, and senior photos. I am not entirely sure when senior photos, outside of cap and gown, became a trend. What I do know is that they allow for the unique personality of your senior to shine through as they get to slip on their favorite outfit and maybe even choose a location they had in mind. When we step outside the posed parameters, we are able to pull out what makes your senior’s heart beat. A love for reading, the sport that they spent countless hours training for, or their heart for friendship and making others feel loved is what we will work to convey in their session.
Newborn sessions in the middle of a pandemic…HOW?! I’ve done several over the past month since Virginia has entered phase 1 of reopening, and while yes it’s weird to wear a mask and not hold those sweet little squishy babes, I also kindof love the challenge!
As we discussed what it looked like to start safely photographing families again, we realized that it was absolutely possible to serve our community and continue our mission to inspire gratitude and express love for people by capturing personality-driven photos in a stress-free experience. As we follow our COVID-19 safety guidelines we can assure you that as we take necessary precautions during your session, your family will still be able to interact and share special moments just as you would have before this season.
I don’t really know why, but the idea of a “cake smash” is definitely a random American thing. The phrase describes the tradition of giving a child a personal birthday cake and watching him/her annihilate it. But for some reason, the tradition has become more about backdrops and props for pictures than the tradition or moment itself and what’s behind it— who’s behind it. AKA the celebration of a child (and surviving that first year as parents). Positioning a child as a prop and forcing them to dig around in icing while the cry out of of anxiety isn’t really valuable in any way. That token photo is more obligatory than meaningful.
families, Featured sessions, newborns
This family has been with me since I first got to Charlottesville and they were expecting their first baby. A lot has changed since then, including my photography style and a second baby! When we met for their first journey plan, they were in transition while they built their dream home. Now that they’re in it, we kept this maternity session cozy by celebrating a simple weekend morning of breakfast and backyard time, playing and reading books together. At this point, the nursery was still relatively empty, so we wrapped up by taking a moment in there to embrace the season of waiting and life before 3 became 4 (+ dog 🙂 ).
If you’re on the fence about booking a newborn session, you’re probably worrying about things like what to wear, whether or not it’s worth the money, the way your home will look, if it will be stressful to have a stranger there with a new baby
Earlier this year, I introduced the Kirkpatrick family and a little bit about their story through their documentary maternity session at the park and sharing family traditions on a chilly, winter morning. Well the waiting finally came to fruition as they welcomed sweet baby Henry to the world a few weeks ago, and I was able to capture these proud older siblings meeting their newest addition for the very first time.
They met because of perfect timing. And while the joy of new life and news of cancer came for her all at once, their faithfulness in the continued purpose of God’s timing is one of the most inspiring stories I’ve heard and had the honor to capture.
Between these three family units, the patriarchs + two daughters and their families, each one has moved into a different home or state in the past year. Both sisters had babies within a few weeks of each other, they lost a family dog, both husbands started new jobs, grandparents entered retirement, and the oldest grandchild is hitting toddler life full steam ahead. So Christmas looked really different this year than it did last year.
client tips, maternity, newborns
Maternity photos used to be unheard of. Now they’re trendy. And because of that, there’s this huge misconception surrounding maternity sessions – what they’re supposed to look like, how you’re supposed to dress, ya da ya da ya. We’ve been conditioned, slowly but surely, to believe that a maternity session is a right of passage when you get pregnant. We follow this cookie cutter model and curl our hair and buy a new dress and imagine the dreamy, backlit glow.
They bought a house when they were newly married, excited for the opportunity it held and the family that would fill it. 5 kids later, they were ready for an upgrade, but the house wouldn’t sell. For 2 years. Finally, the right person and the right timing fell into place and they sold their first home – but were still searching for their forever.