Hoffman Mama & Me | Lifestyle Session | Massachusetts Lifestyle Photographer

The importance of a Mama & Me session. I've touched on it before, several times... but I feel like if it was really received well, if it was driven home the way I think it should be, more people would be booking sessions like these.

When I get inquiries from mothers who want me to come into their home and document the love they have for their children, I melt. Really though, I think it's the most incredible thing for a mother to value this amazing time so much to hire a photographer to document it before it passes. Too often I hear from mother's "I wish I had a photograph like that of me and my babies." or "I'm always behind the camera, never in front of it with them." Change that. Once a year, once every other year, whenever you see fit, change it. Make it happen. 
Don't regret what you can so easily change. You're the most important person, soul, heart, thing, being in your children's life... but for how long? When does that change? The thought is daunting, so why not make sure you capture the time when YOU were all that they adored, why not document all of your joy & hard work. Treat yourself to the gift of photographs with your children. If it's not one of your most prized possessions now, it will be later. Freeze the best days of your life, even if it's just for a second. 


These moments are everything. Family is everything. Don't let it pass too quick without documenting it, if not for yourself, for your children. <3

Why start a Project 365? | Month of January

Ah, personal projects. They're all about growth, bettering yourself, reflecting, commitment, consistency... so on and so fourth. 
I started my first Project 365 back in 2014. It was my first year of really using my camera. I mean using it in the way it was intended to be used, manual and raw. I sought out a new year and vowed to myself that I would shoot everyday to better myself and learn. 
Being self-taught these are the types of projects that help you learn, like a get-your-hands-dirty-not-afraid-of-failing type of learn. There were so many fails in 2014 in my photography journey, and just around the corner there were great successes. I can reflect on my first year with the camera and see my growth, and that's amazing. 

Beyond that... I have moments frozen in time of my little ones. As they were at ages 3 and 1. It's priceless really. 

So I skipped 2015, focused on other aspects of my growth, really dug into the business side of things, and hit some amazing goals. It was my first year in print, I made pro at both Clickin' Moms and In Beauty & Chaos, partnered up with my amazing friend and started shooting weddings, and my own business took off. I am SO grateful. 

The end of 2015 I was feeling nostalgic. I had just finished "busy season" and felt like I hadn't dug into personal work in so long. So.. project 365 (this year 366) seemed fitting.

Why start one? For all the reasons I just mentioned above. Start one for growth, start one for reflection, for commitment, start one to better yourself and your skill. 

This is my month of January. Above all, I started this project again to document these guys. The reason I was given a nice camera Mother's Day 2013.... "to take pictures of my children". 
 

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When you decide to do something like this, it's important to have a goal or a "reward" at the end of it all. My reward will be a big fat album filled with 366+ images from our year together. I'll flip through the pages years from now and remember my  boys as they were at ages 2 and 4 and a big of 3 and 5. How many people can have that? 

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So challenge yourself. Don't expect it to be easy... because it's not. Some days I don't even want to look at the camera, touch a memory card, or upload and export on the computer. But it just takes one shot a day. Don't strive for perfection. You're just not going to get it everyday. You'll have favorite shots and you'll have some shots that aren't your favorite. That's okay. I promise at the end of it you'll look back and love the collection as a whole. 

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Tips? Of course! Take a shot every morning before the day really kicks off... the light is beautiful, you have a fresh mind, and you'll have one image that will do if you don't pick up the camera for the rest of the day. If you can't upload it, that's fine! Pick a day maybe mid week and upload them in a batch. Don't put too much pressure on yourself, but also get in a habit. Then it just becomes second nature. 

I label each of my images by day so at the end of it all I have a folder on my desktop and it will have all 366 images labeled by day. I'll stick them all on album stomp and BADDA BING! A year in a snap. And it will be SO AMAZING to look back at both your family and your growth for the year. 

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If you skipped January and are still thinking about doing this, it's not too late<3
Just pick up that camera and start today. 

The reward is priceless.

My 366 | Week 3

This past week I traveled to Las Vegas for a quick vacation with my husband! I didn't end up using my DSLR but 4 of my images from this past week were taken with my iPhone6 and edited with VSCOcam app. I was happy to capture these shots on my phone and eliminate the pressure of breaking out the big camera on my time off. 
It was a good week :)

15|366 In the clouds

16|366 Nevada Mountains

17|366 Bellagio Magic

18|366 So long Las Vegas

19|366 Home Sweet Home

20|366 Wednesday's with Nana

21|366 The Daily Struggle

My 366 | Week 2

Onto week three of this year and I am blogging the second week of this project! Still feeling the momentum and happy that I got in the frame in the second week! Hoping to do so every few weeks at least. 
Here's week 2!

8|366 Whole world in my hands<3

9|366 Dinosaur Bath

10|366 Just the three of us

11|366 Quite Mornings

12|366 Bed Head

13|366 A butter knife and a beggar

14|366 Super Grant

Life Unscripted | Vol. 12

We are approaching our first year anniversary of our blog circle!! So crazy!! Thank you for joining!! I hope that you've found me through AnnMarie's blog and you're following the circle! If not you can find her blog post here! I love her and her work:) Make sure to complete the circle and see where it all kicked off this month with Karen's blog post! She is quite amazing :) You can find her post here!

We are wrapping up the summer here in New England!! I'm sharing some of my very favorite unscripted moments. Hope you enjoy <3

Forest | Massachusetts Lifestyle Newborn

I can't even explain how sweet and amazing this family is. They welcomed their sweet baby boy, Forest, into the world just 3 short weeks ago. He is beyond precious. His sweet big sister totally stole my heart, too. I told them I'm totally down to babysit, any day of the week. I'm putting it in writing. Maybe they'll take me up on it one day? 

Enjoy all of the sweetness and congratulations to the new family of four. From experience, it's a really great number<3 

Life Unscripted | Vol. 11

Thanks for joining us for another month of Life Unscripted! Be sure to follow the circle for some amazing eye candy! If you've came here Sharon Covert's blog post then you know exactly what I'm talking about! If you haven't... head over to Stacey's blog post from Soul Threading, she is such an inspiration! (click the word "blog" to link to their post!)

This month has been so wonderful, not only with my family but also professionally! I learned this month that I was accepted into the pro program at In Beauty & Chaos which is a fabulous forum and place where photographers can learn, grow, inspire and be inspired. This was such a huge goal of mine and I am so excited to have accomplished it! I'm hoping to do some fun things with it in the future<3

In addition to that great news we've just had so much fun this month. Lots of trips to Cape Cod, New Hampshire, the farm, backyard adventures and time with cousins! Here are some of my favorite highlights<3

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Life Unscripted | Vol. 10

Thanks for joining!! If you've come from Sharon's blog, thank you! We spent this past weekend up in New Hampshire and it happened to be bike week! Look it up if you're not familiar...  basically everyone in New England who is motorcycle crazed comes up north and rides all weekend. It's actually pretty crazy and definitely something I enjoyed! 
We also went boating... and that's just the best ever. 
I missed the circle last month but I am so excited to share these images on the blog for June! Follow the circle and check out the talented Natalie of Act Naturally Photography-- follow the circle by going to her blog here.

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Central Massachusetts | Fresh 48 | St. Vincent's Hospital, Worcester

Oh this family... they welcomed their third son into the world just over a week ago and my GOSH is he a dream boat. Mom and I spoke and we talked about capturing just the candid, raw, unposed moments during the first days of his life. There's nothing I enjoy more than just freezing happy moments in time. This family is beautiful inside and out and I hope they look back on these images and feel nothing but joy and love<3

Congratulations to this amazing family of 5.

xx

Life Unscripted | Vol. 7

Another month of this fabulous blog circle! If you're visiting from Tiffany's circle, thanks for following the circle! If not, you should definitely go check out the beautiful eye candy she's shared this month! 
This month is tough. March is NOT my favorite. It is my birthday month, but it's the beginning of the month, which leaves the entire rest of the month long and cold. For lots of you, Spring is in bloom! For us, the snow is still piled on the ground melting every so slowly... I can only hope that April brings us warmer weather and little buds a bloomin'! We did get out for a few warm days.. it was a balmy 40 degrees! haha.. we will take it! 
Here are some of my favorite images from this month... I hope you enjoy! 

Stick around and follow our circle to the very talented and sweet Crystal's post.... Thanks for joining us, Happy Spring!! <3

Massachusetts Maternity Photographer | Indoor Maternity Session

Last week I had the pleasure of photographing a sweet mama to be for the second time! This beauty is due in March with a little boy! His big sister was the sweetest thing giving mama and baby brother some love throughout the entire session. I love sessions where the client allows me to dig deep and get creative, that was exactly what happened for this session. I reached in my camera bag and grabbed my loved Lensbaby edge80 and went to town. I love the dreamy feeling it gives. I love images that are focused on part of the subject that tells a story while the remainder is softly blurred out. For a maternity session, I've realized that is exactly the type of look I want. I want each image to emphasize the beauty of the mother-to-be in a unique way. I absolutely had a blast with this session and I think these beautiful ladies did too! <3

Project 52 | 2015 WEEK 4 Central Mass Lifestyle Photographer

Week four! Last week of January on the blog today<3 
One of my very favorite series is up form last week of our son, Grant admiring his father's Trident. Nothing sweeter than a little boy admiring his father. I am happy to have captured a few of these special moments to look back on down the road.

This week was a little, for lack of better terms, "blah"... we had a big blizzard hit us and the snow JUST. KEEPS. COMING. We've spent a lot of time inside to say the least. But on an eventful note, our sweet niece turned three!! <3 
I don't know about any other New Englander's but I am itching for the Spring already! yikes... we have a ways to go.

 Here's to another week!

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Project 52 | 2015 WEEK 2 Central Mass Lifestyle Photographer

Two weeks have passed in 2015 and I'm blogging my favorite images from the week :)
This week was a little quiet. I'm having a hard time being limited to mostly indoors. I'm trying to find my creative mojo but it hasn't quite come to me at home yet... I still have about 3 more months to figure out indoor shooting. Here are my favorites!

story time... every single night&nbsp;before bed. this image is special to us &lt;3

story time... every single night before bed. this image is special to us <3

a little storytelling.. which was the theme at M4Hens project 52 this week. Kahlua is always trying to score some treats. She succeeds most of the times with these little dudes.

a little storytelling.. which was the theme at M4Hens project 52 this week. Kahlua is always trying to score some treats. She succeeds most of the times with these little dudes.

very rarely am i able to get these two smiling at me while sitting next to each other. i was so pleased to get not only the above but some great sun flare too!

very rarely am i able to get these two smiling at me while sitting next to each other. i was so pleased to get not only the above but some great sun flare too!

this day was cold.. rainy, and bitterly cold. we stayed in our pjs all day and snuggled. they love mom &amp; dads bed&lt;3

this day was cold.. rainy, and bitterly cold. we stayed in our pjs all day and snuggled. they love mom & dads bed<3

i loved the light coming through the blinds... they led to his pretty little eyes and i got the sweetest capture, in color was a bonus!

i loved the light coming through the blinds... they led to his pretty little eyes and i got the sweetest capture, in color was a bonus!

"inja turtles" are his favorite.

"inja turtles" are his favorite.

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typical Grant hoarding toys so his brother is left with nothing but this kind of pout. the trials and tribulations of being the little bro..

typical Grant hoarding toys so his brother is left with nothing but this kind of pout. the trials and tribulations of being the little bro..

what do you want from me, mom?

what do you want from me, mom?

I've been spending a little more time at home with them these past few weeks... sometimes I want to pull my hair out, but lots of times I remind myself to soak it all in. I enjoyed myself this week :)

Project 52 | 2015 WEEK 1 Central Mass Lifestyle Photographer

The first week of 2015 has come to a close and I have decided to start a Project 52 this year which will encompass my favorite images from each week! Sometimes I will have a handful of images, other weeks I may only have one! I committed to a Project 365 last year and I'm still working on finishing it up. I realized that taking a picture a day is in fact achievable, but editing, posting and sharing it may not always be. A project 52 seems much more attainable, and I will be able to choose my absolute favorites, which makes it a bit more exciting for me!

Here are my first images of the new year. They are mostly of my youngest son, Dean. He is starting out the year at 14 months old. He's happy, sweet, cuddly and so much fun. He started out his first year of life facing a few obstacles. Dean was born with a Cleft Lip and Palate and had to undergo three surgeries at 2 months, 5 months and 8 months of age. It was so difficult to see him go through them, but he came out of each one a fighter and we wouldn't have changed a THING. He was blessed with the best surgeon in the game, Dr. John Mulliken at Boston Children's Hospital. This man is truly gifted and put on this earth to help children like my son. We are forever thankful for him. Anyway, Dean is starting this year with NO surgeries ahead of him. He will spend this year being a sweet one year old with nothing but trouble and fun to get into. He is a blessing and I love him so.

Life {Unscripted} Vol. 4

Happy Holidays!! Thank you for visiting our blog circle! Many of you have landed here from Crystal Reynard's page, her work is fabulous- thank you for being here!
These images are from the end of November and all of December, my favorite time of year, I'd say! Lots of family traditions and happy memories are made during these months. The weather is getting colder and that leaves less time shooting outside and more time indoors... I'm caring less about the "rules" and more about the moments!
Here are some of my favorite images of my boys and family from the last month. Thanks again for being here!
 

Please be sure to head over to Kristen Bakker's blog post and check out her favorite moments from the past month! She will leave you with some delicious eye candy. Happy New Year to all! &lt;3

Please be sure to head over to Kristen Bakker's blog post and check out her favorite moments from the past month! She will leave you with some delicious eye candy. Happy New Year to all! <3

Life {Unscripted} Vol. 3

Thank you for visiting the third month of our blog circle! I'm sure many of you have come from Natalie's post for the third volume of Life {unscripted} here, which is always so hard to follow :) 

This month I am sharing a few of my November favorites and our trip to the Christmas Tree farm where we tagged our tree! We are cutting it down this Friday, so exciting! I took my newest lensbaby out with me, the edge80 which I'm loving so much! I hope you enjoy! Be sure to head over to AnnMarie's blog post after this, where I know you'll find some eye candy... you can check it out here!

happy thanksgiving to you and yours! <3

A Golden Autumn Engagement Session | Elise Meader Photography | Central MA Photographer

We had the most perfect, golden evening at Moore State Park in Paxton last week for a beautiful engagement session. It's like the light just cooperated perfectly for this newly engaged couple. Check out some of my favorite images from this beautiful fall engagement session.

Boston Engagement Session | Elise Meader Photography | Central MA Photographer

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of traveling to Boston for a special & beautiful engagement session. These two got engaged right under the arches in the North End. It was fitting that we went right back to the very spot she said "yes" for some photography bliss <3 

Here are some of my favorite images from this gorgeous session. Wishing you both all the best in your future together!