I have been slow to blog lately but I wanted to share this awesome family that I had the pleasure of photographing while they were all in one place over one weekend. We all know how complicated it can be trying to gather your entire extended family….between a graduation party, moving, and having family travel from across the country it was the absolute perfect time to get these extended family photos together for an early morning session.

When Stacy contacted me a few weeks ago we went back and forth if we needed a studio or if we could rock a natural setting because May’s weather is always evolving. We picked Shawnee Mission Park more ease of locations since all the family members were coming from everywhere and I had Becky Lassiter’s studio on standby ( thank you a million times over, Becky). As most of you know. Most of this past week in KC has had very few dry moments. I haven’t even looked at the rain gauge to see how much rain we have gotten. I am a little afraid too.

As luck would have it.. the rain stopped just in time for the Henn Family to get all of their photos in and the sprinkles started right as we finished. They all met me at one of my favorite spots in Shawnee Mission Park down from the dog park. With lots of laughter and some very squishy and wet ground we were able to have a wonderful time laughing and enjoying the morning as we captured everyone together.. we even took a brief “imaginary” trip to Austria. I had so much fun capturing this family.

A popular choice for our clients is to do their family pictures at Shawnee Mission Park. We usually recommend the park for families that have a real love affair with boating or just plain being on the water. Shawnee Mission Lake is the heart and soul of this park and features a fantastic marina and a sand beach.

The other major benefit of Shawnee Mission Park is just how expansive it is. The problem with parks like Loose Park and Kauffman Gardens for your family portraits is just how popular they are for a portrait session. During the peak portrait months of May and October, it’s not uncommon to have to wait your turn for the really great and beautiful areas at those places. That’s a nightmare if you have small children. Shawnee Mission Park is so expansive with so many lovely spots to set up and make some gorgeous images you don’t have the feeding frenzy you do at other popular Kansas City parks.

Here are a few photos from their photography session at Shawnee Mission Park.