Three children in homemade white sheet ghost costumes with colorful hats and sunglasses pose with raised hands among birch trees in a park.
Child in a white sheet ghost costume with green cap and mirrored sunglasses peeking around a birch tree on a leaf-covered lawn.
Three people in white sheet ghost costumes and colorful hats stand beside birch trees on a leaf-covered grassy lawn in autumn.
Two people in white ghost sheets with baseball caps and sunglasses sit on autumn grass playing Uno cards beneath birch trees.

Fall is my busiest season. Families are reaching out left and right, everyone wants those gorgeous Wisconsin foliage backdrops for their Christmas cards, and my editing queue starts to feel like it has a life of its own. It's a season I genuinely love, but I'll be honest with you… it can also make my head feel like it's about to spin right off its axis. So this year, I did something about it! It involved a bedsheet, a backwards baseball cap, and a whole lot of laughing!


If you're a family thinking about booking fall photos, you probably picture the pretty stuff: the golden hour light, the red and orange leaves, the cozy sweaters. And yes, all of that is absolutely real and worth it. But from where I'm standing? Fall is a sprint. Back-to-back sessions, editing that stacks up fast, and the constant pressure to deliver beautiful galleries before the holiday card deadline hits. I love every bit of it, and it can also be a lot to carry. What I've learned is that the best thing I can do, for myself and honestly for my clients, is find ways to stay energized and genuinely excited about picking up my camera. And sometimes that means doing something completely, joyfully ridiculous.

Three children in white sheet ghost costumes with sunglasses and hats stand on a grassy lawn among trees at golden sunset.

This year, a friend tipped me off to a ghost photo trend that was making the rounds and I was immediately in. We took the kids to the park, threw a sheet over their heads, and paraded them around while wearing backwards baseball caps and sunglasses ourselves. I'm not exaggerating when I say we could not stop laughing!


The kids leaned into the silliness completely. There were kids wandering around dramatically under sheets, bumping into things, giggling through the fabric. It was chaotic and goofy and absolutely nothing like a polished family session - and that was exactly the point. That laughter? That was the reset I needed right in the middle of my busiest stretch of the year.


Here's what I believe, both as a photographer and as a mom who totally gets the pressure to make everything look perfect: photos don't have to be serious to be meaningful! Some of the best images I have of my own family are the ones where everyone is losing it laughing, where something went sideways in the best possible way, where nobody was trying to look good and somehow everybody did.

Two people in white ghost sheets wearing sunglasses, a Brewers baseball cap and a pastel mermaid scale cap, leaning together outdoors.
Person in a white ghost sheet, pink cap and mirrored sunglasses sits on grass holding a hand of UNO cards.
Child's hand placing a Wild Draw Four card beside an UNO deck on green grass scattered with fallen autumn leaves.
Person in a white ghost sheet, green cap and orange sunglasses holds a Wild Draw Four UNO card while playing UNO outdoors on autumn leaves.

A few things I want you to take from this:

Imperfect moments make the best memories. The ghost shoot wasn't necessarily Pinterest-worthy… It was better. It was real!


Fun is contagious. When the adults are laughing and loose, the kids follow. Every time.


Photos don't always need a "reason." You don't have to wait for a milestone or a holiday card deadline to pick up a camera and play.


If you've spotted a trend and thought "okay, that looks kind of amazing and also completely unhinged, and I want to do it”, please reach out. Seriously. I am here for it!

Part of what I love most about this work is that it doesn't have to feel like a formal event every time. Whether it's a classic fall family session for your Christmas cards or something totally off-the-wall that just made you laugh when you saw it online, I want to help you find the fun in having photos taken. Because here's what I know for sure: you're not getting this season back. Not with your kids at this age, not with this particular fall, not with this version of your family. That's reason enough to pick up the phone.


Whether you're looking for a classic fall session around Greendale or you want to try something a little more creative and unexpected, I'd love to chat! Head over to the main website to learn more or reach out directly. Let's make something you'll actually want to hang on your wall (or at least send to your group chat at midnight because it's that good). Fall books up fast, so don't wait too long. And if you've got a wild photo idea brewing, bring it. The sillier, the better!

Two people in white sheet ghost costumes, wearing sunglasses and caps, sit on autumn grass looking at their phones.
Two people in white ghost sheet costumes with colorful caps and mirrored sunglasses stand under green trees, seen from a low angle.
Child in a white sheet ghost costume with green hat and sunglasses stands on a leaf-covered lawn near trees in autumn.
Person in a white sheet ghost costume with a pink cap and round sunglasses peeks from behind a tree trunk on a leaf-covered lawn.
Two people in white ghost sheet costumes with pink and green beanies and sunglasses play Uno on a grassy lawn covered in autumn leaves.