Adorable 1st Birthday Photoshoot

A birthday celebration bursting with happiness in this special 1st Birthday Photoshoot

Can your heart stand how sweet that smile is?! I absolutely adore this triple combo session! It’s a Maternity, Family, and First Birthday all rolled into one photoshoot!

When you’re having two under two, your oldests first birthday is a BIG deal.

This is her only solo birthday, so she deserves the biggest of balloons before she has to share them with her baby sibling soon! She had a blast playing with all of the balloons and bubbles with her parents and we captured some of the sweetest grins in all of Charlottesville.

(Also did you know you can get these adorable large balloons with the flower garland from Party City? It’s super easy to order online and then schedule a pickup! As the girl who has to pickup balloons on Christmas Eve for her son’s Christmas Day birthday trust me this makes going out that day bearable.)

And what do you do when you’re about to pop around the same time as the birthday festivities? You turn the session into part maternity session with the whole family and document all of these big events at once! I can definitely remember being pregnant just like this when Will turned 1 and I was about to have Rob (the kid with the Christmas bday).

Oh and for anyone about to comment and ask where my client got the perfect first birthday photoshoot basket she said it’s a blanket basket from Pottery Barn. We added some blankets to weigh it down so little Miss didn’t tip over!

Keep an eye on the blog for the adorable lifestyle newborn session we did at their home, I’ll be sharing that soon!

Maternity & First Birthday Photoshoot with Charlottesville Photographer Melissa Arlena Photography

With over 15 years of experience photographing families, I have refined the process of family portraits to handle documenting all of the milestones and chapters of your growing family. You can rest easy knowing not only that their most precious memories in life will be preserved, but that the experience is enjoyable and completely customizable to fit your specific needs.

For families needing multiple sessions in a year (maternity, newborn, first birthday), my luxury membership might be the right solution. Keep reading to learn more about that!

My absolute favorite service I offer my clients is my VIP Membership! Clients who book this get up to 4 sessions over an 18 month period. This means we can document everything from pregnancy to newborn to 6 month sitter to first birthday. I love seeing your little family grow during this time! A few perks to this membership include over $1000 savings, complimentary birth announcements, priority scheduling, extended gallery times and VIP invites to special events! Plus membership clients get exclusive access to join my Yearbook club after they finish their membership. So we can keep documenting your family year after year!

Learn more about what kind of session options are available or get in touch with me directly and I’ll answer all questions.

First Birthday Photoshoot

First Birthday Photoshoot

Hi there and thank you for stopping by! I’m Melissa, owner of Melissa Arlena Photography, a Charlottesville photographer specializing in young and growing families in the Richmond & Charlottesville area. If you are interested in talking with me more about booking a family session, let’s connect! Not quite ready, but know you want to keep me in your back pocket? No problem! Follow me on Instagram and let’s be friends!

Melissa Arlena is an award winning Charlottesville & Richmond VA Master newborn & maternity photographer. She offers maternity, lifestyle newborn, and family photography in her relaxed, natural, and joyful style. Her clients love that not only do they get digital files from their session but artwork to display in their home. She is happy to design custom wall art galleries to show off your favorite photos! Be sure to check out the Nov 21 issue of Inspired magazine to see a feature on Melissa and her work!

Melissa serves the Richmond and Charlottesville area including: Short Pump | Crozet | Harrisonburg | Staunton | Lynchburg | Palmyra | Fredericksburg | Culpeper | Waynesboro