Shortly before I moved out west, we had a newborn photoshoot for Beau. Judy Johns, the director of photography at Coastal Carolina University and my good friend, sacrificed a Saturday to take the photos. Judy is an extremely talented photography who does a phenomenal job regardless of whether she is covering an event or taking portraits.

As I teased in last week’s Thursday Rundown blog post, I wanted to share a few of my favorite images from the shoot. Judy did a fantastic job, making the task of counting down the five I like the best quite challenging. Let’s give it a try…

Honorable Mention: I am too ugly for a photo with me to make the countdown. But honorable mention? Well, I think we can make an exception. I am proud to be pictured with my brand new son as we stand by the window.

Against my better judgment, I am including a photo that includes me.

5. Close Up – With Beau’s little cap on and with him holding up four fingers, Judy zeroed in for this shot. He looks so peaceful as he snoozes away. I also like the emphasis on his lips and nose.

Our little man fast asleep.

4. Tradition – During Sloan’s newborn shoot, a photo of her resting on my arms was captured. Sidney liked the pose and requested that it be replicated with Beau. Believe it or not, it was an awkward position for me to hold with my arms but thanks to the coordinated effort of Judy and Sidney to position the both of us just right, it turned out great.

We have a photo very similar to this of Sloan.

3. Full Body – This photo of Beau is a full length body shot…what you see is what you get! The sheets, pillow, and posts contrast just right with Beau’s gray outfit. That’s my son!

A sleeping angel.

2. Priceless – What more can I say? I will hold tight this photo of my children for a long time. This was another instance where we kind of showed Judy a photo of a pose we liked and then she went ahead and mastered it. Could she have captured a more genuine, natural shot of Sloan? Beau looks at peace as his sister cautiously watches over him.

I love the look on Sloan’s face in this photo.

Oh, you want a black and white image of this pose as well? Okay, here you go…

Same pose, less color.

1. The Love of a Mother – My undisputed favorite photo of the shoot! My wife looks beautiful and Beau looks right at home in the palm of his mommy’s hand. Judy captured both Sid’s pride and tenderness for her son in this special image. Does it deserve to be framed? You bet!

This photo captures my heart (and the top spot on this countdown).

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Once again, I just want to thank Judy for taking these photos. After some great years working with each other, this was the last time we were together…a nice memory to end on.

Let me tell you what, these photos are helping me a lot during my time away from my family. Speaking of which, only 23 days until I am reunited with Sid, Sloan, and Beau. Don’t Blink.