Shanna Chess Photography

This is my niece, Harbor. As the proud auntie I know I’m probably a tad prejudiced, but isn’t she a doll?

I can’t believe my sweet niece Harbor is four years old already! Time is going way too fast. Having photographed her since she was a newborn I just can’t wrap my head around the fact that she isn’t a baby anymore—or even a toddler! She is getting to be such a big girl and is absolutely gorgeous. I loved celebrating her fourth birthday with a photo session at my studio just a few days before Christmas. 

Harbor is growing up so fast I can’t even believe it. Three years old already! And she’s one of the cutest three-year-olds around, too. As her aunt, it’s possible that I’m just a tad biased in her favor, but seriously. Look at those big brown eyes and sweet smile and tell me I’m wrong. 

I can’t believe my niece is five years old! Seems like yesterday I was doing her newborn pictures. How does time go by so fast? I’ve done a baby and child photography milestone session with her every year near her birthday and it is always so much fun! She is the cutest thing ever, and just gets more adorable each year if that’s possible.

I am extra excited to share the pictures from this newborn photography session. Why? Because this little cutie is my niece! I’ve been looking forward to meeting her for what feels like ages, and doing my sister’s maternity photos only increased the anticipation. My sister Lindsey, brother-in-law Nainoa, and niece Harbor made the drive down from Washington to my Eugene, Oregon newborn photo studio with the brand new addition to the family towards the middle of May. They stayed the whole weekend so I got to have lots of baby cuddles with Oaklee Rae (same middle name as her auntie—me)! She was absolutely perfect. Oaklee was born a little early and was a touch jaundiced. Not a problem! Jaundice is common in newborns and actually tends to make them extra sleepy, which is perfect for photos. I barely saw Oaklee’s eyes all weekend! And since jaundice is easy to correct in pictures during the editing process, it really doesn’t influence your finished images at all—as you can see! I realize ...

SHE's here!  Yes, she is a girl :)  I like to say I was totally right--ever since my sister told me she was pregnant, I had a feeling it was a girl.  But to be honest, I really had no idea.  It was just a guess and a gut feeling.  But she's here and beautiful and healthy and has amazing hair :)  She was great during her session!  We got so many setups and since she is my niece, we did some more a few days later too.  Of course we had to do a airplane setup since my brother-in-law is a pilot.  And we also incorporated some special items to represent the special angels she has watching over her.  Harbor's middle name is Elizabeth after her daddy's grandma.  We took some pictures of her holding a heart necklace that was her's.  Also, her grandpa was a crab fisherman so we did a cute setup with a stuffed crab.  And with her name and with my sister and her husband being from "The Harbor" I finally got to use my beach backdrop w...

This year has flown by!  Not only have I had the opportunity to photograph little Miss Harbor from when her mama was pregnant with her to her birth to all her first year photos, but I've had the honor of being a part of her life as well.  My family has been so blessed to have her and her parents in our life.  Her mama is my baby sister, her daddy has been considered family for so much longer than they have even been married.  And her cousins and uncle and I enjoy spending 2 or more days a week with her :)  She's constantly bringing smiles to our faces and we can't wait to continue watching her grow :)  Enjoy some photos from her 1 year session and some progressions through the first year!

Gorgeous Harbor is such a joy!  She has some amazing expressions and I just love photographing her.  Her mama wanted a whimsical and natural look for the outdoor portion of the session and I think we succeeded!  It was such a gorgeous night!  And since 4th of July was right around the corner, we had some fun in the studio as well.  Enjoy :)

 It was so fun to travel to Washington in April for my sister Lindsey’s baby shower! Of course, being a maternity photographer, I had to get some photos too. My sisters know that’s part of the package whenever we get together. And hey, there are worse things than being forced to have professional pictures of the big moments of your life, right? Lindsey is always such a good sport about modeling for me. I really wanted someone to model a couple of new maternity gowns I’d recently purchased for the studio (a white tulle and a gold sequined dress) so the first evening I was there we went to the beach so Lindsey could show them off against a gorgeous sunset. That part of the session was for me, and I appreciate my little sis being willing to let me do my thing! I love being able to use new dresses in photos right away so that clients can get a good idea of how they look. (Yes, I provide TONS of maternity gown options at my Eugene, Oregon photography studio. You don’t have to worry abou...

I still can't believe my sweet nice is 3 months old already!  I've had the pleasure of watching her a few days a week for about a month now and she is such a joy to our lives.  My daughters love their little cousin so much and fight over who gets to help me give her a bottle :)  She needed a little 5 minute cat nap in the middle of her session but then rocked it after that.  Such a cutie!  Enjoy :)

This is my nephew Harrison! Is he not the cutest thing you’ve ever seen? This is the first little boy in our family, so we all adore him and he is getting spoiled for sure. I was so glad my sister Lea and her boyfriend Nick were able to make it down to my photography studio in Eugene, Oregon . It’s a four and a half hour drive from where they live on the Washington coast, so no easy feat with a newborn, but they made it happen. I loved the couple of days we were able to spend together, and had such fun giving Harrison a bit more auntie love. 

My spring minis were the last photo sessions I did before I closed my studio temporarily due to COVID-19. It feels like such a long time ago now with everything that’s happened since then. I’m so grateful to be able to have my studio open to clients again.