If you’re new to following me, you might not know that this is the moment you’ve been waiting for! Okay, kidding a little bit. But my humorous client superlatives usually end up being my favorite post of the year! Scroll down to see if your session was featured as a 2021 session superlatives winner.

Without Further Ado….2021 Session Superlative Winners!

The Snowiest Session

While one of my Thanksgiving weekend shoots was the only one where it was actively snowing (flurries), there is no doubt that this February maternity session wins for the snowiest session. We had a couple back-to-back snowstorms and the snow was tall enough that big brother was having trouble walking anywhere where there wasn’t a path shoveled!

The Tastiest Session

I would say this one had a *TINY* (aka HUGE) advantage but the winner for the tastiest session was most definitely this branding session for one of my favorite restaurants. Any time I get to eat a delicious meal as part of the experience is a winner in my book! If you haven’t dined at Buttercup in Natick, get there STAT!

The Most Babies

This year I had the pleasure of photographing not one, but TWO different twin newborn sessions. No triplets (yet!) so these two tied for the award of the “most newborns” at one newborn session.

The Most Animals in a Photoshoot

Last year, I had an engagement session that included three dogs but this year’s winner had no close contenders…I mean, how can you compete for ‘most animals’ at a session with a farm?! This branding session for Wild Robbins Farm was what this farm-loving photographer’s dreams are made of!

The Best Spring Blossoms

While I had tons of gorgeous blossom-filled sessions this past Spring, the most “coveted” blossoms in the Boston area are the cherry blossoms. There are only a few locations that have cherry trees and trying to time them for peak bloom is like playing the lottery. When this session originally booked, we thought for sure that we would be too early to see any blossoms at all. Fast forward to April 2021 and the Boston area saw one of the earliest blooms in history! This mid-April session hit the exact peak bloom and the Esplanade was in full glory!

The Award for the Craziest Weather

Some of you might remember this winning image for 2020 (that sky is not re-touched!) during the session that we just nearly missed getting poured on. This year it wasn’t so clear which image wins the craziest weather award! I have narrowed it down to three and I am declaring it a three-way tie! The first was shot during an epically smoky night (courtesy of the wildfires) that made the sun so obscured that it looked like the moon. The second was a maternity session that we debated cancelling as it began to sprinkle on the way there. We squeezed in this oceanside session while watching the storms in the distance. The third was an oceanside wedding in Rhode Island where the fog was SO thick you could barely see 10 feet ahead of you!

The Session That Made Me the Most Nervous

The back story behind my nerves for this session is that the father to be didn’t know he was walking into a photo session!! The entire session was a surprise orchestrated by his wife and me! When she first told me about the surprise photoshoot idea, I was honestly terrified he was going to hate it. Historically, dads aren’t the biggest fans of family photoshoots. However, she explained more about her husband and how he is a hobbyist photographer and how much he values photos. I trusted her judgment and it turned out perfectly!

It was the evening of their wedding anniversary and my client brought him to our predetermined location under the premise of an anniversary picnic. As they walked up, I approached him and surprised him with the photoshoot! Spoiler alert: he was a rockstar!

My Favorite Image of a Dad

First, let me just say that choosing one image from 191 sessions worth of content was SO hard. While I have a ton of favorites, I narrowed it down to this single image because it is so raw and beautiful. This moment was a real moment of this Dad trying to comfort his new daughter and her little head tucked up under his chin gets me every time I look at it!

My Favorite Image of a Mom

Nothing makes me fall in love more during a photoshoot than parents who relax enough to laugh with their kids during a session. I’ve said this a lot, but my favorite emotion of all to capture is JOY. This series of this mama and her babies screams JOY to me and for that, this series wins my favorite mom image award.

My Favorite Skies in a Photoshoot

I really and truly love to photograph all types of skies. Overcast, clear, stormy, halfway in between…you name it. If I had to pick one favorite type, it would definitely involve clouds! Not too many clouds, but just enough to make it interesting. The following sessions had that perfect mix of clouds and sun that made them some of my favorite skies this year.

…but I think my absolute favorite sky of the year happened during this Maine destination wedding. It was foggy and cloudy all day until right before sunset when the bottom of the sky turned purple and the run rays shone down while the fog rose up. The person who worked for the resort said he had never seen anything like it!

The Award for the Biggest Dog in a Photoshoot

This year, I had not one, not two, but THREE giant dogs in sessions. Meet Buckley, Wally, and Bear! These three giant dogs were all around the same size so they have a three way tie for this 2021 session superlative !

The Rainiest Session of the Year

If I were giving an award for the rainiest MONTH of the year, July would take the cake. I think it rained more days than not which made rescheduling portrait sessions extraordinarily difficult. What can’t be rescheduled though, is a wedding! This 4th of July weekend wedding happened to fall on one of the rainiest days the entire month. It rained from sun up to sun down! However, right during portraits it slowed to a drizzle (lucky us!!!) and we got to pop outside for an hour. This bride and groom went with the flow and we made magic despite the rain! Their amazing attitude about the less-than-ideal weather definitely snagged them the win for this 2021 session superlative.

The Buggiest Session + The Most Flexible Clients

This might seem like a strange award to give but something happened during this session that has never happened to me before! My client and I had meticulously researched many locations in preparation for this session. Because it was 90 minutes from my house, we had to pick based on online research. I arrived early to the one we had decided on, on the evening of our session.

When I stepped out of the car, I was literally attacked by bugs. Truly, like nothing I had ever experienced before. It drove me back to my car after five minutes! As I frantically shut the door to save myself from the bugs, I looked down and saw two ticks crawling on my lap. That was the final straw! I called my clients (who were en route) and we made a last minute call to head to a different spot. Luckily, it was beautiful too…and less buggy!

2021 Session Superlatives Winner of: The Most Creative Pose

The award for the most creative pose goes to this family, who suggested they hold up the dog too, while back to back. It made me laugh during the session and still makes me laugh every time I look at it!

Best View

While I love me some fields and sweeping views of sunset, I think my favorite view of all this year was during this newborn session. There’s just something about an itty bitty baby juxtaposed against a vast city skyline that tops the list for me!

The Hottest Session of the Year

This award was a piece of cake to hand out. This session was pretty much as hot as it gets here in the Boston area. The temperature was 98 and the “feels like” was something like 107….at the time of the session, not just as a high. After weeks of rain, neither my client nor I wanted to waste a sunny evening, so we went for it. Not pictured: the sweat dripping off of all the adults.

The Coldest Session of the Year

While we have had some cold days in November and December of this year, the coldest session was on January 23rd of this year. It was 25 at the time of our session! Here’s the thing you should know about me…I am born and raised in New England and I am pretty hardy. If you’re a winter maternity client (and you don’t have a big sibling) and there is a gorgeously sunny evening, I am going to push you to go for it….even if it’s 25. In the Winter, a lot of times the warmer days (30s-40s) are the overcast ones. Braving the cold is worth it for that Winter golden light, trust me!

The Best Baby Hair Award

This was a tough one. I am ending it with a tie between this baby girl’s amazing white-blonde locks and this baby boy’s amazingly thick dark ones. As someone with three babies who ranged from very bald to a little hair….both of these kids’ heads of hair are equally amazing!

2021 Session Superlatives Winner of ‘The Most Festive Session’

I absolutely love photographing families and newborns in December when homes are all decked out for the holidays! Maybe it’s because two of three of my kiddos were born in the holiday season (11/29 + 12/16) so it has special meaning for me. This gorgeous tree and family wins the award for the most festive/holiday inspired session this December!

The Session That Made Me Cry

In case you didn’t know this, I cry at pretty much all weddings. This 10 year vow renewal of a dear friend had me behind the camera with tears rolling down my face. Congratulations Brittaney, you win the award of making me cry the most!

Last, but not least: My Favorite Silhouettes

I love creating silhouettes and am lucky to have a location near my home that offers the perfect terrain to create them. Here are my three favorites of the year!

It goes without saying that I value ALL of my clients and enjoy each and every session that I photograph. You all are the reason my business is successful and I can’t thank you enough! I hope you enjoyed reading my 2021 session superlatives. Happy New Year to all!

XOXO Lyndsay