Ithaca, NY.
One of my MOST favorite places to be. I first discovered Ithaca when I was 18 years old. I had just bought a jeep wrangler and had randomly met a bunch of kids in patchwork clothing and dreaded hair who listened to all the good music. They wanted to go swimming at a place I had never heard of before, Six Mile Creek. In fact, I hadn’t really heard of Ithaca at the time and didn’t know much about this magical town. Most of my childhood was spent in the tiny (but adorable) town of Greene or up in the Adirondack mountains. I was a little bit sheltered geographically speaking.
With my brother in tow we rode route 79 with the top down listening to Bob Marley and Creedence Clearwater Revival. When we arrived at Ithaca, we traipsed a path down to a swimming hole; the infamous Six Mile Creek. There were a ton of other kids there and, my most favorite memory, a couple of elderly nudists across the water enjoying the sun and, I’m sure, being naked. This is a whole level of freedom I will NEVER experience myself (I like keeping my clothes on, thanks) but I can appreciate and even admire the earthy longing of wanting to veg out naked in the sun. I thought Ithaca was pretty weird. But also so accepting, crunchy, beautiful, spiritual and quickly one of my favorite places to be. I fell madly in love with this town and its gorges, waterfalls and lengthy hiking paths as well as the people Ithaca tends to draw in. My own earthy tribe of like minded souls. Though my roots have planted me firmly (and happily) in my hometown, I’ll never stop visiting and I’ll never be sick of this wonderful place.
I’m extraordinarily lucky that my career lets me visit often.
I recently did this fall mini session of Adity and her family. They were my only session of the day so I spent a little extra time running around Cornell’s botanical gardens with them. I had so much fun getting to know everybody and it was a beautiful, frosty morning for pictures.
Grandma and Grandpa
I learned that cheese is the best motivator for big smiles and happy babies. I’m going to stop bringing chocolate to my photoshoots and stick with cheese from now on. lol
I love the smoochy cheek photos. Toddlers tend to put up with it for about 1 second into realizing what’s going on and then…
Sometimes I can get kids to smile without bribery. SOMETIMES, guys. Sometimes.
I absolutely loved the way the light was shining through the trees here.
Baby cheeks are so cuuuute!
Part of the joy of photographing children is just playing. Running around and getting into stuff can make for some great candids.
Some quick pictures of Mom and Dad.
Once the stairs were discovered, we spent the remainder of our photoshoot here. It was totally worth it. Look at that happy smile!
I had so much fun getting to know this little family.
If you’re looking to have photos done in Ithaca, whether they be family portraits, engagement or wedding photos, I am ALWAYS happy to be there!
