Well, I'm back. What a summer! I had the pleasure of spending another summer in the small town of Scituate, Massachusetts visiting friends and family and working as a portrait photographer on the beautiful beaches of the South Shore.

Thanks to referrals from past clients and friends, I was lucky this year to book many sessions with some very wonderful families in the quaint towns of Scituate Cohasset, Marshfield, Norwell and Hingham.

These beautiful coastal towns offer some of the most picturesque beaches in the country. With beautiful blue water, big rocks, sea grass, lots of sand and amazing sunsets we couldn't go wrong. I shot mainly at sunset, working quickly to capture that magical light.

The families I met were all so relaxed and friendly and seemed thrilled to just be on the beach. As you can see in these photos of this amazing family, extracting big smiles from the kids was not a challenge. They were happy to sit for the posed shots and then we let them run and play and climb and find crabs, shells and even lobsters while I followed them around capturing some really magical moments.

Even on cloudy evenings, the backdrop of the beautiful Atlantic ocean provided spectacular scenery.

Living and working North of Atlanta in Milton, Georgia, I don't always get to work on the coast. I had an absolute blast kicking off my flip flops and working barefoot in the sand chasing kids as they played amongst the rocks. This little girl's excitement at finding hermit crabs is apparent as she shows her treasure to her mother. (Of course, we put all of the little creatures back unharmed before we left!).

The parents enjoyed exploring the tide pools as much as the children did and were not afraid to roll up their pants and wade in the chilly water to spend some quality time with their kids.

This little girl had collected a few hermit crabs and built a small sand-house for them. Here she gets a high-five from Mom celebrating her creativity.

As a child portrait photographer, I just love this photograph of these siblings. Look at the smiles! You can't fake such happy faces.

This little boy loved having his picture taken and was excited to pose for the camera. With his big eyes, adorable smile and fabulous attitude, he was one of my favorite clients of the summer. Thanks so much to him, his little sister and mom and dad for such a wonderful experience.

In honor of all of the wonderful families I met in Scituate, Massachusetts this summer, I am going to showcase, over the next week, the fantastic family portraits and child portrait photography I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to do this summer. Although I am back in Atlanta now and working hard on senior portraits for high-schoolers in Milton and Alpharetta, part of me is still back on Minot Beach in Scituate. As Minot's Light blinks -- 1-4-3!

I LEFT you in the morning,

And in the morning glow,

You walked a way beside me

To make me sad to go.

Do you know me in the gloaming,

"Gaunt and dusty gray with roaming?

Are you dumb because you know me not,

Or dumb because you know?

All for me And not a question

For the faded flowers gay

That could take me from beside you

For the ages of a day?

They are yours, and be the measure

Of their worth for you to treasure,

The measure of the little while

That I've been long away. "

-- Robert Frost

Flowers have long been a source of inspiration for lots of artists, as evidenced by this poem which is one of my favorites. Other artists -- painters, songwriters and photographers -- also have a love affair with flowers. Well, I recently got a new macro extension tube for the sole purpose of being able to photograph my garden up close and personal.

While my main job as a portrait photographer in Milton, Georgia is to bring you unique images of your children, babies, families and even pregnant bellies, as an artist I enjoy aiming my camera at other beautiful things every now and then just to see what kind of images I can create.

This new macro lens allows me to experiment a little to get a perspective of my garden not able to be captured with a typical lens. As you can see by this photograph, however, the depth of field is pretty much nil. It took me a few tries to get used to the manual focusing that is required and to get the right parts of the inside of each flower properly in focus.

Another new "toy" I recently acquired is my rather large and heavy 80-400mm Nikon zoom lens. It is a great lens. I took this photograph of these backlit trumpets from all the way across the yard. I am hoping that this new lens will provide me the shooting advantage when I do my equestrian photography and in taking action shots of the riders at the local horse shows.

With all of the rain we have had this Spring in Georgia, my gardens are more beautiful than ever. My rose bushes especially have just exploded with blooms. As a result I have some gorgeous backdrops for outdoor child portraits or family portraits. If you have not done yours already, I have made some dates available during the week in June. Just call me and I will do my best to fit you in. With the extra light of summer we have longer days to work with.

Who new weeds were so photogenic?

this new lens is so sharp you can count each tiny petal on these blooms.

I love this shot because it seems as if this newly opened bloom is welcoming you to the garden and stands ready to introduce you to the rest of the blooms.

If you like anything you see here, you can purchase prints at a very reduced price at www.ddkportraits.zenfolio.com. Please check out my other galleries at that site as well. I am always adding new art.

I hope everyone is having a great summer and finding your inspiration -- at the beach, in spending more time with your kids, or simply in your gardens.