Steger Reunion 2017 IOP

I have been photographing the Steger family in varying groupings since my first year in business! This year was by far my largest grouping with them. 

I first met Sarah, she's always the ring leader, in Atlanta when I went to meet my first nephew. She and my sister-in-law had met each other while pregnant with their first babies. When her extended family decided to vacation at IOP, she reached out to me. Each year, as the summer comes close, I know I'll soon have the chance to see her, her beautiful girls, and wonderful husband. 

Every year, we've done them in the morning at the pier.  This year we did them in the evening and I wasn't going to have the shade from the pier.  I hoped it would be overcast...I might have hoped too hard. It was solid storm clouds.  Luckily, it waited until we were done before it opened up and poured.

I've been able to watch the kids grow. The little cutie on the far right was only barely a tiny seed in her mommy's tummy the first summer. That was also the summer I was VERY pregnant with my first baby. I remember crawling around in the sand with a big ole belly. 

Each year as kids, their parents made all the cousins take a photo together from shortest to tallest. They made their children do it, too. I like to fast forward my thoughts and think about them looking that this image as their children return with their own.