Vail Family Photos - Vail Mountain - Rodriguez Family

There's a day that usually only happens once a year here in Vail.  You can't really plan for it and you certainly can't schedule your family photos for the day it will happen.  It's the day that the leaves are at their peak and fresh snow has fallen.

Landscape photographers live for this day.  They'll be up at 4am and by mid-afternoon, their spectacular images will be all over social media.  Given that my clients usually book a couple of weeks and in advance, it can be hard to schedule your session for these conditions.  The Rodriguez Family won the lottery though!

It was still warm enough that they didn't have to wear big bulky jackets, and there was still enough snow on the ground to get some fun images.  If you take a look at the last photos, you can see how much snow had melted by the end of the session.  It was such a fleeting moment and I'm so glad that such a sweet family were able to take advantage of it.









Visit the website to see more Vail Family Photos

Vail Engagement Photos - East Vail - Kim and Bradon

I was recently staying right in the heart of downtown Houston and talking to a friend who lives there.  He told me that during the summer months in Houston, there's a significant decrease in traffic and pedestrians in the city because so many people leave to escape the heat.  I can attest to the fact that a ton of Houstonians migrate to Vail for the summer to take advantage of our cooler summers. 

Kim and Bradon were recently visiting Vail from Houston and decided to take their engagement photos while they were here.  With their cute pup Shipley in tow, we set off down the East Vail bike path to take in the views and grab some shots.  We got some great shots and as you can see, Shipley completely stole the show!

Visit the website to see more Vail Engagement Photos

Beaver Creek Fall Photos - Bachelor Gulch - Morley Family

There's a spot at the top of Bachelor Gulch in Beaver Creek that has one of the best views of the Valley and most locals don't even know about it.  The irony is, we ski over it all the time in the winter.  Our mountain environment is in a constant state of change and when the leaves are in full bloom, you get much more depth to the views than when they're covered in snow.  This makes this little bridge a perfect location during the fall.

We chose to do the Morley family photos there and it had everything you could want for a family shoot.  Lots of space for the kids to run around, a rustic skier bridge and views of the Gore Range all the way down to the valley floor.  The leaves at their peak didn't hurt either!

Visit the website to see more Beaver Creek Family Photos.

Beaver Creek Engagement Photos - Taylor and Ray

I'm 3 months behind on blog posts.  The kids had a 13 week summer break - 13 WEEKS!  As any parent knows, little people don't take too kindly having their Mama on the computer very often.  Now that the longest summer break ever is over, it's time to get back to work. 

So now that the weather is cooling off, we're heading into the madness that is leaf season in the Rockies.  In the next few weeks, traffic on I-70 will increase with large numbers heading up into these hills to get their leaf-peeping on.  It also means that I'm heading towards one of my busiest seasons of the year with fall photos. 

To kick things off, I'm posting an engagement session from last year with Taylor and Ray.  They drove up from Denver and wanted to meet in Beaver Creek.  We had overcast weather which is just perfection for daytime photos.  They were a gorgeous couple and thankfully, they didn't mind hiking up the mountain to get the perfect shot!

Visit the website to see more Vail and Beaver Creek Engagement Photos

Vail Family Photos - Betty Ford Alpine Gardens - Ngo Family

The Betty Ford Alpine Gardens is one of the valley's greatest hidden gems.  If you blink, you'll miss it.  But if you're smart enough to visit, it's a sanctuary like no other.  When the Ngo Family asked me to help them with family photos, I knew that this would be a great spot for their shoot. 

We started the shoot at the top of the waterfall, with huge views of Vail Mountain (you can see the chairlifts in the background).  We made our way down to the base of the gardens and took advantage of the stairs, walkways and bridges that are dotted throughout the garden.  Following the photos at the gardens, we took a short walk over to the Gore Creek Covered Bridge to grab a few sunset photos along the creek. 

It was an overcast day the day of the shoot.  It might not be the most ideal conditions from a clients perspective, but it doesn't get much better than this for a photographer.  Flat light = flattering light and no shadows on  faces mean great photos!

Visit the website to see more Vail Family Photos.

Beaver Creek Family Photos - Beaver Creek Mountain - Singal Family

When Alka contacted me to take photos for her family, she told me that they would be celebrating a 1st, 9th and 70th birthday during their first ever trip to the Vail Valley.  What an honor to be capturing so many special birthdays.  

Our shoot was scheduled for early in the morning, which can lead to tricky lighting. The sun was already high by the time I arrived.  To counteract the light, we took a short walk to a huge aspen grove on one of the work roads, that doubles as a cat track in the winter.  There was plenty of shade and some great back lighting with the trees blocking most of the sun.

After a while, we ventured out of the shade to grab some photos with mountain views.  Although the light wasn't in our favor, we still managed to make the most of it and we got a few really great bonus photos.  

Sibling photos on Beaver Creek Mountain

Family photos at Beaver Creek

Visit the website to see more Vail and Beaver Creek Family Photos

Vail Family Photos - East Vail - Fields Family

When you have three generations that come together for a photo shoot, the location you choose has to be able to cater to everyone.  When the Fields Family asked me to take some photos for them, they mentioned that the ages in the group ranged from 9 -80 years, so we decided on shooting along the Vail Bike Path in East Vail.  

The path runs parallel to the Gore Creek, which means there are plenty of idyllic spots on the water.  The mountain views from there also work great for family photos, and as a bonus, it's paved.  This wasn't such an issue for the Fields Family, but when you're pushing a stroller, this is key!

If you haven't been there yet, I highly recommend it.  Stay on the path long enough and you'll end up in Vail Village after taking in some of the best views in the valley.  

Visit the website to see more Vail Family Photos.