A few weeks ago, I received an email from one of my fellow Pursuit 31 photographers, Melissa. She was coming to town to visit family, she told me, and she was hoping to get some family photos while they were here. As I said last time I photographed a sweet family, families aren’t my usual subjects — but how could I pass up the chance to photograph a P31 sister?!

So last week Melissa and her husband Jim and daughter Kaylee headed to Ponce Inlet to introduce Kaylee to the great Atlantic Ocean, and to brave unseasonably cold and windy weather along the shore for their shoot. But we couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day, or a more wonderful family.
Since Melissa is a photographer and can photograph Kaylee and Jim any time she wants, I wanted to make sure we had some wonderful pictures of Melissa and her little girl, and plenty of the whole family — and, of course, some of Melissa and Jim, just the two of them.It was 9-month-old Kaylee’s first-ever trip to the beach! Clearly, she was telling us she loved it.It was chilly, so we took lots of breaks to snuggle Kaylee up into a warm jacket and keep her cozy. And then, once her fingers and toes were warm again, she was back to being Miss Personality for the camera!We left the beach behind and headed over to the river side of Ponce Inlet to get some photos on the docks with the sunset behind the boats — the perfect ending to a perfectly wonderful afternoon.Thank you, Melissa and Jim and Kaylee, for letting me spend a sliver of your vacation with you! I was so happy to meet you all, and I hope your memories of your warm and sunny Florida vacation keep you smiling all spring!

~ Laura