Decatur Illinois Families | Summer Portrait Sessions with Sarah Jane

Well SJP summers are usually chock full of the latest senior class (hey class of 2022, we see you!), but whew boy is summer 2021 all about these stunning Central Illinois (and Missouri…. yes, even though I said I wasn’t staring work in Missouri until 2022, oooops… I did!) families!

I’ve gotten to celebrate not one, but TWO, 50th wedding anniversaries this summer by creating brand new family portraits for these lovely couples and the generations they’ve grown. Plus, I created my first ever 4th of July ‘Christmas’ cards for a brand new SJP family.

First up, to share today are a few of my favorites from the Kuhn family. I am just so grateful and thankful for them trusting me over the years. They have two seriously great kids, who are I guess really not ‘kids’ anymore now! And they are always such a pleasure to work with and create for. We just put the finishing touches on their family album which we selected to match Alex & Lindy’s senior albums. Plus, I cannot wait to see their final canvas selection above their mantle soon.

I’m so excited for the three image collection we designed for this next family’s wall. My favorite part is the little surprise in the palm of the littest’s hand…. a daddy long leg she found got to join them for the session. Dad says she loves them so it was a perfect little dose of personality that only a knowing eye could find! And we ended up with almost perfectly mirrored images of both girls that worked perfectly on either side of the main family portrait.

Last up today I get to share the Anderson/Jones family! These guys were all laughs on session and their energy was infectious. I’m excited to get their whole family portrait framed up in the next week so it can make it to it’s home on their walls.

| Kirkman Family | Limited Edition Sessions!

outdoor family portraits by sarah jane photography in decatur il

The gorgeous Kirkman family is up on the blog today!! These boys were so much fun and brought so much style and personality to their session. This was a rare urban location for a Limited Edition this fall. This year we have one studio LE session planned along with 3 outdoor dates. LE session dates have been sent out to our VIP email list (get on that HERE for first dibs and a free gift on your first session).

family portrait session decatur il
outdoor family portraits by sarah jane photography in decatur il
outdoor family portraits by sarah jane photography in decatur il
outdoor family portraits by sarah jane photography in decatur il

| McCoy Family | 2019 Family Portraits Decatur IL |

Merry Christmas ya’ll! I hope yesterday, and this whole week has been stocked full of Christmas magic. I’m not actually here (for real) this week but I keep a few family’s annual family portraits under wraps until after the holiday so they have the chance to unveil the images first to their friends/family in their Christmas cards. And I just couldn’t wait to share these with you so I (insider information) scheduled this post weeks (hmmm actually like a month) ago!

I’ve had the honor of photographing these kids for the last 6 years and there is absolutely nothing I love more about my job than having return clients like this. I posted a throwback to our past images last month on our facebook page (HERE) and it’s amazing to me to see how much they’ve changed. I’m beyond thankful this family has trusted me with their images year after year.

family photographer, family portraits, holiday portraits, chirstmas session, annual family photos, photographer, decatur il, illinois photographer, best illinois photographer, best family photographer, central il photographer, sarah jane, sjp, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, decatur il studio, studio photographer, central il studio, photography studio, best family location, what to wear family photos
family photographer, family portraits, holiday portraits, chirstmas session, annual family photos, photographer, decatur il, illinois photographer, best illinois photographer, best family photographer, central il photographer, sarah jane, sjp, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, decatur il studio, studio photographer, central il studio, photography studio, best family location, what to wear family photos
family photographer, family portraits, holiday portraits, chirstmas session, annual family photos, photographer, decatur il, illinois photographer, best illinois photographer, best family photographer, central il photographer, sarah jane, sjp, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, decatur il studio, studio photographer, central il studio, photography studio, best family location, what to wear family photos
family photographer, family portraits, holiday portraits, chirstmas session, annual family photos, photographer, decatur il, illinois photographer, best illinois photographer, best family photographer, central il photographer, sarah jane, sjp, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, decatur il studio, studio photographer, central il studio, photography studio, best family location, what to wear family photos

One of the biggest challenges with so many years of annual portraits is to create something new. I try to make sure we are selecting new locations each year but my real challenge is selecting updated poses that are still flattering, natural and show some connection. This year, we opted for what I call a ‘cross over’ location where I knew we could get some ivy for a more natural look (the family’s usual preference) but that this location would also give us the chance to mix in a more urban look with the steps. This was a new roll of the dice for them and I’m so glad Lori trusted me to go with it and guess what …. after the fact they were wishing we’d made it a whole family year so we could update the wall image with a more urban look! So glad they liked the new direction with these.

family photographer, family portraits, holiday portraits, chirstmas session, annual family photos, photographer, decatur il, illinois photographer, best illinois photographer, best family photographer, central il photographer, sarah jane, sjp, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, decatur il studio, studio photographer, central il studio, photography studio, best family location, what to wear family photos

| Kerper Family | Decatur IL Family Portraits Fall 2019 |

family portraits, decatur il, illinois, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, sarahjane, photography, portraits, sjp, decatur, decatur photographer, best photographer, portrait photographer, mini sessions, central il, portrait studio, portraits, photography studio, book a photo session, portrait photographer central il, what to wear family session

I got to meet Joanne and her absolutely lovely family this fall for their family Limited Edition session. How perfectly did they coordinate their outfits. Joanne took our few tips to ‘coordinate, not match’ and ‘mix in 1-2 colors throughout everyone’s looks’ and ran with it!

They were a joy to photograph and I’m so excited to see how the images Joanne selected for her walls look in their space.

family portraits, decatur il, illinois, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, sarahjane, photography, portraits, sjp, decatur, decatur photographer, best photographer, portrait photographer, mini sessions, central il, portrait studio, portraits, photography studio, book a photo session, portrait photographer central il, what to wear family session
family portraits, decatur il, illinois, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, sarahjane, photography, portraits, sjp, decatur, decatur photographer, best photographer, portrait photographer, mini sessions, central il, portrait studio, portraits, photography studio, book a photo session, portrait photographer central il, what to wear family session
family portraits, decatur il, illinois, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, sarahjane, photography, portraits, sjp, decatur, decatur photographer, best photographer, portrait photographer, mini sessions, central il, portrait studio, portraits, photography studio, book a photo session, portrait photographer central il, what to wear family session
family portraits, decatur il, illinois, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, sarahjane, photography, portraits, sjp, decatur, decatur photographer, best photographer, portrait photographer, mini sessions, central il, portrait studio, portraits, photography studio, book a photo session, portrait photographer central il, what to wear family session
family portraits, decatur il, illinois, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, sarahjane, photography, portraits, sjp, decatur, decatur photographer, best photographer, portrait photographer, mini sessions, central il, portrait studio, portraits, photography studio, book a photo session, portrait photographer central il, what to wear family session
family portraits, decatur il, illinois, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, sarahjane, photography, portraits, sjp, decatur, decatur photographer, best photographer, portrait photographer, mini sessions, central il, portrait studio, portraits, photography studio, book a photo session, portrait photographer central il, what to wear family session
family portraits, decatur il, illinois, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sjphoto15, sarahjane, photography, portraits, sjp, decatur, decatur photographer, best photographer, portrait photographer, mini sessions, central il, portrait studio, portraits, photography studio, book a photo session, portrait photographer central il, what to wear family session

Do you know about our Limited Edition sessions?!?! We now do most of our family sessions each year as part of our Limited Edition line. These work so well for immediate family sessions. They are short… your choice of 15 or 30 minutes which keeps both dad & the kids happy!

We suggest the longer session for families with little ones but for families with older kids like the Kerper’s 15 minutes is perfect. These sessions are (as the name suggests) Limited! We only offer these 4 times a year and we’ll open up booking for 2020 sessions after the first of the year. To get first dibs on these sessions dates DM us on social (www.instagram.com/sjanephotography or https://www.facebook.com/sjanephotog/), text 573.590.7427, call 217.330.7012 or email mail@sjanephotography.com! We’d love to create for your family in 2020 whether it’s been a year or 10 since your last family portrait.

| Kaufman + Saffer Summer 2019 Family Portraits |

decatur il family photographer, rock springs nature center, sjphoto15, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sarah jane, sjp, photographer, best photographer central il, family portraits, family photographer, outdoor family portraits, family, what to wear family photos,

I’m excited to show you some favorites from another family session this week! I got to meet these guys for the first time at their recent Limited Edition session day and I have to say these boys were some of the most photogenic I’ve ever had on session.

decatur il family photographer, rock springs nature center, sjphoto15, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sarah jane, sjp, photographer, best photographer central il, family portraits, family photographer, outdoor family portraits, family, what to wear family photos,

This might shock you, but not every guy (no matter their age) I have on session wants to be there. It’s not always their favorite way to spend their time, but you’d have never guessed that with these boys. They were full of great smiles and personality and just so much fun to work with and I so hope to have the chance to work with this gorgeous family again in the future.

decatur il family photographer, rock springs nature center, sjphoto15, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sarah jane, sjp, photographer, best photographer central il, family portraits, family photographer, outdoor family portraits, family, what to wear family photos,
decatur il family photographer, rock springs nature center, sjphoto15, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sarah jane, sjp, photographer, best photographer central il, family portraits, family photographer, outdoor family portraits, family, what to wear family photos,
decatur il family photographer, rock springs nature center, sjphoto15, sarah jane photography, sjanephotography, sarah jane, sjp, photographer, best photographer central il, family portraits, family photographer, outdoor family portraits, family, what to wear family photos,