A lot of my families like to do a combo milestone birthday/family session all in one.  I usually think this is the best way to do it when the child is still pretty young.  A two year old shoot that consists of nothing but the two year old could go really well or really bad. I like for the family to be dressed and ready (or at least mom) to be photographed in case the child isn’t feeling like being photographed or is doing much better when they are being held by mom or dad.

Look at that big happy smile when he is playing with his dad!

Of course it’s always my goal to nail a few happy family shots, at least a couple where everyone is looking at the camera and (hopefully) smiling.

He was so happy and did wonderfully on his individual shots, but I bet he will be really thankful to look back on these images with his parents one day.

Happy 2nd birthday Brooks! You shine like a star!