This first image I took right after I arrived at the park, thinking of blowing it up big for the big blank wall in my family room…thoughts?

I loved the contrast of Trish’s red sweater with the muted landscape.

My absolute favorite image of the day…doesn’t she looks stunning? She knows how to work the camera, that’s for sure!

Seriously, that picture of Tricia , the upside down, blows me away. GORGEOUSNESS!!All the best with these last few weeks of pregnancy, I hope they go smoothly and quickly! Can’t wait to hear the good news

Lisa and Steve, it was so wonderful to meet you. One of my favorite parts of being a photographer has always been arriving to a session to meet some strangers, and leaving as friends. I truly enjoyed our morning together! I hope you enjoy these images…can’t wait to hear for the good news of your little guy’s arrival and have him in front of my camera sometime this winter All the best in these last few months!

This first image is one of my absolute favorites

the first one of this set too…swoon. Another favorite!

and the one of their adorable puppy giving me some inquisitive puppy eyes.

and…the first one of this set. love the trees, the pop of red, the forehead kiss. So perfect! You guys are amazing

We also stumbled on this power line graveyard with the most perfect sunshine and a bit of grass. happiness to a photographer is pretty simple!

Thanks again you two, you were amazing! Enjoy your sneak peek…I’ll be in touch soon!

Thank you so much Brenda and Glen for a lovely morning…enjoy your sneak peek. I am looking forward to meeting your little one in August!

Ok, is it just my imagination, or does Brenda look a bit like Sarah McLachlan? What do you think?

I had to bring my new favorite vintage quilt top along…it was perfect for the location and clothing!

These two were so cute together…I love the coordinating outfits they had!

And would you believe that Shayla is 38 weeks pregnant in this pictures? I can’t get over how amazing she looks, and she had the most perfect belly. I am looking forward to meeting and photographing their little on in the next few weeks!

Yes, there are a LOT of pictures below. I had so many favorites it was almost impossible to narrow it down to just a few.

I love the perspective of this first shot…she may not, but I could still see her feet! LOL

Love how lush and green the grass is right now!

(at least there’s one good thing about all the rain we’ve had this spring!)

She is stunning. That shot of them through the grass? My new all-time favorite I think. Puffy heart LOVE it.

Such a beautiful mama to be!

Such a gorgeous couple! Thanks for being a trooper and walking all the way to that bridge in your flip-flops.

It was worth it!!

Thanks for being so amazing Shayla and Chris. Hope you enjoyed your sneak peek. I can’t wait for you to see your slideshow! I’ll be in touch soon

I love this time before. The time before they are a family of four. Before life changes and grows and becomes even more amazing (and busier!). Capturing life on the brink of a whole new world that is the same and yet different…even more wonderful and now filled with a new beautiful baby girl to love and lots of pink to help even out the blue.

So glad we were able to capture this time when you were still a family of three…Baby Eden will be up on the blog next!

Marg was totally game for a jumping shot (she was hoping it would maybe have brought on labor!)

No such luck, it was still a few weeks before Eden made her grand entrance.

And seriously…check out that tiny little bump! Doesn’t Marg look amazing?

I really enjoy getting to know my clients. I tend to be very chatty and ask a lot of questions during a session (any previous clients reading this are going to be nodding their heads vigorously!), and it’s especially fun when there’s fascinating life stories involved. Case in point: Yoko. She’s lived in four countries, left her home country of Japan at the age of 15 and she met Gord in the Houston airport while they were on separate trips. These various details that make up the fabric of life fascinate me, and hearing them helps me tell your story with my camera. It’s one of the many reasons I love what I do.

Anyways, on to the pictures. Thanks Yoko and Gord for being so fabulous! I had so many favorites that I had a hard time narrowing down which ones to share

PS If you haven’t joined the Rachel Ludwig Photography Facebook page yet, come on over! A little birdie told me there might be a give-away coming up soon

In the end, it took a little encouragement and schedule wrangling for these pics to happen. I’m sure many of you can relate to the last trimester blahs…feeling tired, achy, sore, swollen and *too* pregnant, and the last thing you want to do is get dolled up for pictures. But I also know that in the midst of a long nine months and after baby is born, it’s so easy to forget all the amazing aspects of pregnancy. Afterwards you will be so glad to have these images, I promise!

And when it comes down to it, there is something so incredibly beautiful about pregnancy. Even when you might not feel it or think it’s there, it is. There’s a special glow, this amazing fullness, and totally magical about this time of waiting and growing and changing that it just begs to be captured. I’m honored that Alyssa asked me to capture this special time in her life.

This entire session was done in the pouring rain…We found some great cover, and shot the entire session in about 15 minutes!

Can you believe that this is baby #4 for Alyssa? She looks amazing!

I especially love the outfit she put together, all the accessories are perfect!

Since our last session, Delores and Ken moved to Yaletown in a beautiful apartment right by the water with amazing light. I find that maternity sessions are such a wonderful way to capture the ‘lasts’ before all the ‘firsts’ begin. In this case, it’s the last time this little girl is going to be an only child and the last time they are going to be a family of three. I’m looking forward to capturing the firsts of being a big sister, and a family of four in the next couple week!

In the meantime, enjoy the sneak peek!

Love love love the snuggling with mom and her belly shot. And that fabulous fur hood…one of my favorite shots!

There was this perfect courtyard just outside their building with some great trees and a fountain…

I love that I was able to take some pictures in a place they spend a lot of time together.

At the end of the session Mikayla was starting to get a little tired, but Dad knew the perfect trick for a few last shots. Bubbles!

Thanks for a wonderful session Delores, Ken & Mikayla. I can’t wait to hear the happy news and meet your little one soon!

I was there at her birth taking pictures, and I took pictures of her as a wee little newborn (and for the record…the angel one is still one of my most favorite newborn images!):

I also took pictures of her when she was one (you can definitely see some of her spunky personality developing! We have some of the funniest facial expressions from this session):

And now look how grown up and adorable she is at three. She is the sassiest and spunkiest little girl (next to my own that is!) that I know…she has a lot of her mama’s fun and outgoing nature, and a good dose of her dad’s determination and attitude. She’s a firecracker, that’s for sure! Hope you had a wonderful day today Ally!

I’ll be posting more images from this family session soon. Feel free to leave a comment with some birthday love for the birthday girl!

I think Rachel may qualify as the most beautiful pregnant woman ever. A perfect little belly and NO stretchmarks! She’s one lucky girl.  And the coolest part, is that she’s as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside, down to earth and all around fabulous. It’s been great getting to know you over the last several months, Rachel…You’ve been amazing to work with and I am so glad I finally got to meet Grant too after all our months of planning and scheming to keep the boudoir session a secret

Enjoy your not-so-little sneak peek, I’ll be in touch soon with your slideshow.

We headed to the hazelnut orchard, and we were so glad to have some beautiful sunshine after all the rain.

Grant and I were both a little envious of Rachel’s fabulous cowboy boots as we squelched through the soggy grass

Isn’t she gorgeous??

Seriously, she made my job so easy with all her fabulous clothing and accessory choices (the pearls were perfect!).

And I love her “Love Bump” shirt

PS. oh how I love cherry blossoms….