So what are you thankful for this year?

In addition to all the usual stuff -- family, friends, good health (you know, all those things that are actually INCREDIBLY PRECIOUS but often taken for granted) -- I am really, really thankful that I get to do creative work I love. Running around Shanghai's temples and parks and neighborhoods with families from all over the world; obsessing over light and angles and backgrounds; and taking pictures that -- if I've done my job well -- will hang on their walls, grace their Facebook pages, and sit smiling out of frames on their desks for years to come. I mean, how cool is that? The thing is, I really believe that beautiful family photos just make life better: they keep happy memories from this time of life vivid and present, and they show people just how beautiful their families are, how much they have to be thankful for . . . .

And of course I couldn't do this work if it weren't for my fabulous clients. Like this family -- clients-turned-friends (I met them for burgers earlier tonight, in fact :)). To date we've done five photo sessions together (you can check out our first session here) and every single time we have so much fun and get so many great shots . . . scroll on down to see a few of my favorites.

So: a huge, heartfelt thank you to all of my clients. And Happy Thanksgiving!