In January of 2019, I pressed pause on photography entirely for a few months of maternity leave when Danny and I flew to Korea to meet our daughter. Just before we left, Danny’s parents closed on their new house in town, after years of us encouraging them to move here from out of state, and when we got back from Korea we helped them finally get settled in as Florida residents.

In February 2019, we returned to Korea and officially became the overjoyed and sometimes-overwhelmed parents of a spitfire toddler who already knows she runs the world. As we began life together at home, neither Danny nor I focused on anything else for a solid six weeks — we just spent time together, visiting parks and introducing her to the beach, reading stories, hanging out with family, and celebrating her birthday as our brand-new baby somehow turned two only a month after becoming our baby.

I eased back into a very light work schedule as summer began. After so many years of waiting for this sweet girl and the major adjustment adoption was for all of us (and a move halfway around the world to a completely different climate, language, cuisine, culture, and family for her), I still really needed and wanted to be home, so I scheduled far fewer shoots than in years past. What was personally the fullest year for me in a long time was simultaneously the emptiest year, work-wise, since I launched this business back in 2011. Truth be told, I really needed that time not only to be with my girl, but to remember anew just how much I actually relish being behind a camera as my subjects snuggle and laugh and tease one another.

In the summer we took our first family trip, right around the same time our wonderful pup George’s health began deteriorating rapidly, and soon I was in full-time-caretaker mode for not only a rambunctious little girl who never slowed down, but a tired old dog who had lost all ability to walk and function independently. And then in November we grieved the loss of George, who had been a part of every holiday season Danny and I had ever spent together, just after we celebrated the happy milestone of ten years of marriage.

Now here we are, three weeks into 2020, and I’m still figuring out what a normal workload and work schedule look like for me with a now-nearly-three-year-old at home. Right now she’s napping, so I have some space to think — and blog for the first time since before my maternity leave began over a year ago! I’m trying hard to remember what it was like to have the time and energy to write a new blog post every single day, as I did a few years ago.

Life right now looks the way it should, and I’m so excited to make some changes — mostly small, maybe a couple somewhat big — to Laura Yang Photography this year so it looks and functions as it should to best meet the needs of my own family and of my clients. And in the meantime, here’s a little peek at some of my 2019 shoots.

Stay tuned for updates on what’s new for 2020 — and I promise it won’t be another year-plus before I get around to sharing them here on the blog!

~ Laura

Here’s some of the shoots that have happened since . . . well, the last time I blogged, way back in June! This just barely scratches the surface. One of these days, a whole lot more will finally make its way onto the blog. For now, here’s a little taste of what summer + fall have looked like through the lens. More to come.

Eventually. (And to keep up with sneak peeks more regularly these days, hop on my Instagram @laurayangphotography!)

~ Laura

~ Laura

Spoiler alter: that is exactly what happened! When you ask a two-year-old to smile. . . .
On the Atlantic coast, we just can’t beat sunrise for amazing portraits on the beach!
No, this “hug” wasn’t entirely coerced by the adults — why do you ask? Hahaha!
I’d say it was another incredibly successful morning at the beach, and I’m so glad I got to be a part of it!

~ Laura

I met up with Lauren on a gorgeous evening, and she made Ponce look even better than usual! Laughing-hysterically shots will always be some of my favorites!
She said her Chucks had to play a starring role in her portrait session, because they were her daily staple at school during her senior year. As an Avid fan of Chucks myself (my personal favorites are gray with a polka dotted double tongue!), I absolutely agreed.
There’s a reason golden hour is my camera’s BFF:
With the light melting from golden to all the prettiest chalky shades of pastel, we left the inlet beach, and after a quick outfit change, we headed down to the Atlantic. It was magical. Gorgeousness, and more gorgeousness.
Lauren, I am so glad we had the perfect night for your portraits. Congratulations on graduation, and best wishes as you head off to college!

~ Laura

It was so much fun not only photographing Natasha and Casey looking fabulous, but shooting alongside a friend. That was something I used to do a little more of back when I was a wedding photographer, and I’d forgotten how much fun it is, and how creatively stretching it can be to shoot with someone else!

Without further ado, here are some of the pictures we captured:
Casey comes by his cowboy hat, belt buckle, and boots honestly. He and Natasha are ranchers! All credit to Natasha for the sweet portrait on the right! That was her idea, and I am so glad we did it. (Also, they made it look way easier than the pick-up-and-spin actually is!)
Something else fun about this session: while Eileen was shooting on my Nikon, I was on my new Fujifilm X-T2. This was only the second time I shot portraits on that compact mirrorless camera, and while I don’t plan to take it to most of my clients’ sessions, it’s my go-to camera now for travel and personal pictures. And as this session provied, it’s definitely up to the task of creating beautiful portraits! Can you tell which pictures are from which camera?
We just love this place, and I loved getting to photograph these two!

~ Laura

This family’s previous portrait session was about as different as could be from this one. Last time we shot in the afternoon, this time at the crack of dawn; last time we were deep in the woods, this time out on the beach; and last time we were all a little sweaty by the time we ended . . . and like I said, this time was different. . . . Doesn’t it look like they were running just to have fun?! They weren’t. They were freezing. We spent their entire session doing jumping jacks and wind sprints to stay warm, and somehow they looked amazing through it all!
Siblings in their natural state.
I love how she radiated joy, even when her body had completely stopped radiating heat!
They ventured into the water as we wrapped up the session — and they said the water was considerably warmer than the air!
Perfect! Or — purrfect.
Let’s take a little peek behind the scenes, or between the shots, if you will. It was incredibly windy. It was astonishingly, unexpectedly chilly. And so you do what you gotta do to get through a sunrise session!
Great morning, gorgeous family portraits — I’m so glad they braved the first chilly morning of the year, because the results were way more than worth it!

~ Laura

Also — this is a new all-time favorite senior portrait right here.
As the sun stretched lower, we headed just up the road to the beach for some more magic. . . . Jordan, thank you for letting me be a part of your senior year!

~ Laura

We met up at the beach a couple months ago, wanting to get their family beach photos done before the summer heat swept in. It definitely wasn’t hot that evening — the wind whipping off the ocean kept us all cool, and a little tousled (and also more than a little sandy). But you just can’t ask for a better lifestyle portrait session than this! I’ve found the secret to getting the best child portraits: embrace the goofy faces. For as long as it takes until the kids can’t keep it up anymore. And just laugh at how amusing they are!
But, okay, in all fairness, that doesn’t work for every kid every single time. Little man did not want his portrait taken, or to sit in the sand, or to stand in the sand.
He just wanted lots of windswept cuddle time with mama.
He was not feeling cuddle time with his brothers!
One of the things that defines their family are huge group hugs. Naturally, we had to make that happen right there on the beach.
And of course, we always need some sweet portraits of mom and dad . . . no matter what chaos is happening just outside the frame!
I loved this evening, and I love the pictures we created that night! Thanks for being so much fun to have in front of the camera!

~ Laura

Anyone else in need of some beachy, summery vibes? Well you’re in luck — because today I’m pulling out a gorgeous, dripping-with-sunny-skies-and-sandy-toes session from last August. This is the kind of sweetness that happens when a family — mom and dad, and their grown kids’ and their significant others — come to the beach to celebrate a 30th anniversary in laid-back beachy style! And if this doesn’t make you feel ready for summertime at the beach, I don’t know what will! You’d better believe that when they went for the smooch, their kids were whooping and hollaring and doing everything they could to embarrass their parents! (But after 30 years, you’d also better believe it didn’t work.)
I’ve got to say, I love it when Florida cools down for a couple months . . . but I also love summer with its sunsets that ooze copper light, and the vibrant blue water. And I can’t wait for all the beach shoots that I’m already scheduling for this summer, too!

~ Laura