We were still enjoying Christmas festivities on December 25 when Jerad’s inquiry landed in my inbox: “At risk of sounding ridiculous, I have surprised my family with a trip to San Diego. By any chance would you have any times available for family photos?” You can tell a lot from an inquiry, and I was all over this and so excited to meet this fun and spontaneous family! I was booked up for evening sessions, but Jerad’s family was up for a morning session. I met them three days later, bright and early, and we scored some incredible light. As cold and borderline miserable as winter morning sessions can sometimes be, they are sure PRETTY.
The thing about a morning session is that all of my usual routines where light is concerned are turned on their heads. The sun is rising instead of setting, so the photo session has to be done in reverse from what I’m used to. It really keeps me on my toes! Instead of watching the sun as it dips to the horizon, making sure to get in all of the important shots before it’s gone and it’s too dark to shoot, I’m watching the sun as it clears the buildings to the east, trying to take all the important portraits before it pops out of hiding.
This is what it looks like to go in very cold water on a very cold morning.
By the end, the cold got the best of Little Miss, but the blanket helped, and so did climbing up on the lifeguard tower. I think everyone got hot chocolate that morning. I know I, for one, went straight to Starbucks. 😊🥶