Well, August is officially here. I have a bittersweet feeling towards August just about every year. Of course I dislike August because it means summer’s end is getting closer. But I like August because it’s one month closer to fall! I absolutely LOVE fall. The colorful leaves, scarves, pumpkins, festivals…it’s just such a beautiful, warm and enjoyable season.

Because of it’s wonderful-ness, fall is also the season of portrait sessions. Once summer is officially over and the leaves start to change at the end of September, I usually get a bunch of inquiries and book 2-3 portrait sessions each week during October. But in hopes of keeping both my business and personal life a little more sane this year, I’m only going to accept a few more bookings for this fall. I wrote about my time management practices and only booking 2-3 portrait sessions each month during wedding season earlier this year, and because I haven’t stuck to it 100% (sometimes I just can’t say no!), I need to do better, especially for the fall. So with an already jam-packed calendar between now and the beginning of November, I’m almost completely booked for portrait sessions. If you’re interested in some fall portraits of you and your hubs, kids or dogs, email me NOW at jessica@jessicafikephotography.com. The JFP calendar is almost closed for fall.

Here are some of my favorite fall portraits from last year….

Little Mr. Cooper! He’s always so great in front of the camera. I’ve done three portrait sessions for he and his family so far. Returning families are so great and such a huge compliment!

This was a new family for me, but I’ll be seeing them again next year for Danielle’s wedding! She and I played basketball together in high school and it was so good to reunite after seven years!

This little guy celebrates his birthday in the fall, so we got together for some one-year pictures. His owl hat was the perfect accessory!

Danielle graciously volunteered to be part of my first Trash the Dress session and boy did she do a FABULOUS job! Not only was her dress and our surroundings beautiful, but also she and her model skills! I was blown away by Danielle and was so excited I finally got to do such a unique session!

This is another JFP family! I’ve done three sessions with them and my favorites have definitely been in the fall. Their family loves fall, especially Halloween, so it’s totally appropriate to capture them in this season. Aren’t they super cute!?! P.S. Mom Suzie is a FABULOUS nail artist in Connellsville, PA. If you haven’t checked her out, YOU MUST! Suzie’s Nail Avenue is DA BOMB! 🙂

Jamie and Kevin’s engagement pictures were taken in Fairfield, PA at one of the best fall-dressed parks I’ve ever seen! Each year the trees and colorful leaves create a fall oasis and I gawk every time I drive by. I was thrilled to finally do a session there and I couldn’t have asked for a cuter couple. Jamie and Kevin are getting married exactly one month from today and I know their wedding is going to be one of my favorites for sure!

How cute are these sisters!?! We met at East Park in Connellsville for some family portraits and they seriously did so well in front of the camera! I hope I get to work with them more in the future. 🙂

Rachel and Chris asked me to meet them at Deep Creek Lake for their session and I’m hoping to do more there this year and next. There weren’t many colorful leaves left in early November, but we did find this yellow gem at the state park.

And last but not least, my little Ally ladybug! Of course it was more than appropriate to take Ally’s 10-month pictures with a fall/Halloween theme, so I was super excited when I found this costume and successfully carved the pumpkin. Ally is now almost 20 months old! TIME FLIES!!!

Happy August everyone! Enjoy the next-to-last month of summer and look forward to beautiful fall!