Photographing the Bemis family is always incredibly meaningful to me. Not only have I known them as close friends for well over a decade, but Cassy was one of the first official “models” to ever let me practice my photography with years ago. She met me at a freezing Madison, Connecticut beach one February morning and let me practice posing, settings, and the confidence to get behind the camera and create- in fact those images were the very first I ever pulled into photoshop to learn the layout. She encouraged me tirelessly to start a business and to charge for my work. I still remember those conversations as we would drive in the car, and quite honestly she has never stopped speaking life into my dreams since then.

Their daughter turned two at the end of the summer, and we wanted to celebrate with portraits on the beautiful coast of Kennebunkport, Maine. The evening light was the perfect New England blue, and the wet sand lit up with shades of pink and purple. The water was warm, and as most two year olds, she made me work for every shot, chasing her into the waves for the chance of a perfect frame, as I carefully tried to keep all my cameras from sloshing in the salty current.

I photographed this session with both my digital camera, as well as my Hasselblad medium format film camera, which captured black and white images with that dreamy film grain. I find myself preferring the imperfect grain of film over the smooth digital look more often than not. There’s something more authentic about it to me, something more real. Like we were actually there in the moment. As a Maine photographer, I savor these evening sessions on the beach, for soon the snow will come and the wind will be too cold to bare. But for now we savor the warm coastal nights, and I photograph on the beach as often as possible.

Here are a few favorites from our recent Kennebunkport session. Professional Hair & Makeup by Stacia Makeup Artistry.