A Spring Maternity Session in the Weeping Cherry Trees at Lancaster County Park

This was my first official spring session of 2021 and I have to say it is a hard one to beat. My dear friend Magdiel is absolutely stunning and when she asked me to take her maternity photos for her fourth and final baby I was immediately on board. I had her model a unique vintage bohemian lace dress that I have in my client closet by Cora and Violet. The golden hour light was perfect and the way the sun came through the weeping pink cherry tree was heavenly. As I type this, the family is now at home adjusting to life with their newborn baby girl who joined the family in May. I will let the images below speak for themselves because honestly I could gush about them forever.

Melissa Engle Photography offers portrait, family and lifestyle photography in Lancaster, York and Harrisburg PA. Please contact me if you would like to make some photo magic together!

---

Lancaster Maternity Photography: A Fall Maternity Session at Muddy Run Park with Drea and Dani

One of my besties is having a baby! Drea and Dani are taking on a some huge life changing milestones in 2020: getting married and having a baby. They got married on 3.14.2020 (pi day) just in the knick of time before our world shut down due to the Covid19 pandemic. About a month later they found out they were expecting a wee ‘quarantini’ baby.

I have known Drea since we became roommates the year I graduated from college and moved to Lancaster for my first real adult professional job. I only knew a couple people in Lancaster at the time so she became one of my first Lancaster friends. We eventually started our own jewelry making business and traveled to Morocco together and for the past 8+ years we have lived just a few blocks apart in the Cabbage Hill neighborhood of Lancaster City. My kids call her “Tia” (auntie in Spanish) and we adore her (and Dani too of course).

Because she is so dear to me, of course she and Dani’s maternity photos had to be epic so we went to Muddy Run where the fall foliage was in it’s full glory in mid-October. I can not wait to meet their little baby boy or girl Rodriguez in December!

Melissa Engle Photography offers portrait, family and lifestyle photography in Lancaster, York and Harrisburg PA. Please contact me if you would like to make some photo magic together!

---

York Maternity Photography: A Summer Sunflower Session at Gray Apple Market

Jacinta got in touch with me just a few weeks before her due date in August and wanted to schedule a maternity session in a sunflower field. There are several locations in the Lancaster and York area that have sunflowers every year, but timing can be tricky to catch the blooms at their best. I have always wanted to check out Gray Apple Market in York and it just so happened that their field was at peak bloom when we scheduled this maternity photo session.

I honestly could not stop taking photos of this beautiful mama and her family. She was absolutely glowing in that field of sunshine. Their dear little boy kept trying to escape amongst the tall sunflowers and at the end of the session he plopped right down in a big puddle of mud. Jacinta told me when she arrived to the photo session that evening that she was already 3 centimeters dilated and could go into labor at any time! Lucky for us we squeezed in this maternity session just in time! As I write this she now has a newborn baby girl just over a week old.

The field at Gray Apple Market is a feast for the eyes, and there are nicely mowed paths weaving through it so you can easily be in among the sunflowers. I hope I get to go back again next year!

Melissa Engle Photography offers portrait, family and lifestyle photography in Lancaster, York and Harrisburg PA. Please contact me if you would like to make some photo magic together!

---

Lancaster Maternity Photography: Ryan and Andrea's Spring Maternity Session at Kauffman's Orchard

I have known Ryan and Andrea for a few years now, since I photographed their wedding the fall after my daughter was born. I was so excited to hear that they were expecting their first baby in May. Andrea is a creative herself and is a very talented seamstress. I couldn’t believe it when she told me that she made the gorgeous blue lace gown she is wearing in these photos.

Spring Maternity Session at Kauffman’s Orchard

When we were thinking about locations for a spring maternity session, Kauffman’s Orchard in Bird in Hand immediately came to mind because of the beautiful spring blooms. The owners of the orchard are our former neighbors and such wonderful people to work with. I had done an impromptu headshot swap with some other photographers there a few years back and had been wanting to go there again. We timed things perfectly and the pink peach blossoms and white plum blossoms were just starting to burst when we were there. Not to mention we ended the evening with a killer sunset. I won’t tell you how many silhouetted photos I took of them against that sunset but let me tell you, it was a lot!

Photography has always been a creative outlet for me and along with story telling, I love to seek out interesting angles and textures that add depth to photos. I was able to experiment with some double exposures during this session and I am really happy with how they turned out. My next challenge will be trying double exposures at a family session with fast moving little ones.

In addition to this spring maternity session, Andrea trusted me to do my first ever milk bath maternity session with her. If you know me well, you know that I love hearing and sharing birth stories so when she asked if I would share my birth stories I was delighted. I can not wait to hear all about how their little one comes into the world. For now, enjoy these beautiful photos in the orchard.

---

Melissa Engle Photography offers portrait and lifestyle photography in Lancaster, PA. Please contact me if you would like to make some photo magic together!

Lancaster Maternity Photography: Sam & Taylor's Fall Maternity Session at Historic Rock Ford Plantation

If you know me, you know that I love hearing birth stories as well as sharing my own. Becoming a mom and growing a human is one of the most incredible journeys I have ever been on. Of course it would make sense that I love doing maternity and newborn photography for families. I get to play a small part in telling the story of growing families as they welcome their precious new babies into their hearts and their homes.

This fall maternity session at the Historic Rock Ford Plantation in Lancaster is full of joy and smiles (other than the vicious mosquitos attacking us near the end). The light was golden, Sam was glowing, and I think the images speak for themselves. Baby Eck is supposed to make his/her appearance right around Thanksgiving and I am so looking forward to meeting (and photographing) their new little one.

Melissa Engle Photography offers portrait and lifestyle photography in Lancaster, PA. Please contact me if you would like to make some photo magic together!