Falen's Two-year Portraits: Fun in the Forest!

After shooting his Mom and Dad's wedding, I was honored to capture Falen's transition to being a two year-old with this fun session at Point Defiance Park in Tacoma.  Falen (that's said with a short "a," as in apple) was full of energy and wonder that morning- two qualities that make for GREAT photos in a beautiful landscape like this one.  The lush forest provided a perfect cover from the very windy day that raged just outside the trees.  The only hint of how chilly it was might be in those adorable green gloves he's wearing...

 For those of you who live in Western Washington, you should know that Point Defiance Park is the ultimate wilderness playground.  What you're seeing isn't limited to a small area- it covers miles of beautiful coastline and is free to the public.  All we had to do is start walking  and we found plenty along the way to keep any little boy entertained for hours.  I always feel like I'm in Jurassic Park when I come here.  :)  Of course, we weren't totally roughing it, so Falen had time to catch up on some important calls...

Love that confident little stride!  He was having a ball and I was glad- fun always shows through in the photos.  :)

No adventure would be complete without a good pair of shoes to get dirty...

I was so grateful to get these last two shots (above and below).  The top one was candid; he was handing his Mom her cell phone and I caught him in a moment of patient waiting (which doesn't happen too often with a toddler, I hear).  The one below was the most traditional, and the only formal posed shot we did.  Sometimes, as a photographer, I worry that this type of shot will turn out stale, but with a little guy like Falen in front of the camera, I'm pretty sure that would be impossible.