introducing our little man – Josiah.  =)  one week new.

well, the waiting game continues as i am now almost 39 weeks pregnant. so expecting baby to come along at any given moment. as i wait, thought i’d share a few images from my most recent session.  was a joy to meet and work with this happy little one, whose older brother i have also photographed before.  his arrival was just in time to be able to squeeze in this session before my maternity leave begins.  definitely good inspiration for the many photos i’ll be taking of our little one after he arrives!

With the new year, I am looking forward to many new beginnings.  Yes, I recognize it is almost the end of February, as I talk about a “new” year.  But being in China, we just celebrated the Chinese New Year – and since festivities go on for about 15 days until the Lantern Festival – we are technically still in the midst of the New Year.  =)

So this would be a picture of myself on our recent trip to Sanya, Hainan Island.  For those readers who don’t know yet, baby #4 is due in April!  My apologies for being so quiet on this blog lately, but as you can imagine, life has been quite full these several months… and is sure to get even more so.  But yes, I am thankful for the abundance!

For potential clients, inquiries are always welcome,  but please note I will be taking a few months off from any sessions as I will likely be busy photographing caring for our new addition and learning to be a mom of four.   =)

Autumn is probably my favorite season when living in the midwest and east coast of the US.  While the climate and seasons are not quite the same in Shanghai, it was nice to get to engage in one of the best autumn pasttimes with this family – playing in the leaves.

This beloved family has been in China for over 10 years, and will soon be moving back to the US.  So it was extra special to have this session with them before they leave, and as they begin their own changing of seasons.  I know they will be dearly missed by many! (How could you not miss such adorable kids?)

A precious new life, simple and pure . Definitely something to be thankful for.

Had the privilege of photographing this family again, and I know they are thankful for the arrival of this beautiful baby girl.  I am thankful for the time I get to spend photographing a new life, seeing families grow, and getting to know people from all over the world.

What are you thankful for today?

just a small sneak peek of my session with this handsome fellow yesterday.  he was such a good-natured baby throughout the session, and i can’t complain when part of my work entails holding a newborn — it always fills me with wonder of this precious life.

i actually had the privilege of photographing his older brother a couple years ago.  always particularly special to have return clients and to see families grow.

Earlier this fall, I had the privilege to work on an editorial piece for Australian airline, Jetstar’s, in-flight magazine.  They just opened up a new route to Ningbo, the first city where we lived in upon arriving in China.  So I got to spend the day photographing both familiar and new sites for their feature on Ningbo.  A different kind of assignment compared to my usual portrait sessions, yet I found it just as splendid as it tapped into my love for travel, food, and spotting quirky details.  You can see the complete article (with all my images) in their archives here.

Got inspired and had a lot of fun with the Halloween costumes this year.   Costumes were based on the book Ladybug Girl Dresses Up.

Always think Kk resembles a ladybug, and she got quite excited at the idea of being Ladybug Girl… so we went from there.  Hannah wanted to be a pirate – but insists she is not a “friendly” pirate as described in the book.  And on the tiger page of the book, it says “Roar! I am a wild tiger.” Lulu the tiger roams the jungle and climbs up very tall trees.  Felt fitting for Isabella who is the loudest of the bunch, known to randomly yell “Ahhhh!!”, always roaming around, and climbing as far up any furniture she can possibly go.  And the book concludes “Ladybug Girl can do anything!”.  Sounds about right.

On a side note, in the four years we have been in China, I am impressed by the evolution of Halloween costumes.  Each year the kids’ costumes seem more thought out and varied.  So what were you (or your kids) for Halloween this year?

And it feels good to finally blog again. I know things have been quiet around here (usually inversely related to my real life situation), but hopefully I will post more sooner than later.

Happy Halloween!

this precious girl arrived right in the middle of a typhoon.  despite the stormy arrival, she was super calm and easy going for me during our session.  a perfect welcome-back session after my summer break.

h+x, it’s been lovely getting to know you and to meet v.  she is beautiful!