With Christmas just around the corner, you may be thinking about getting a great updated family portrait (even taken by me, if you're lucky :). And what better time to do it! Christmas is such a beautiful season! My favorite look for Christmas is always classic reds, greens, and whites, yet it’s easy to go cheesy fast. How can you dress your family to not look like they are in an ugly Christmas sweater contest? Here are some family outfit ideas I've found online. Please feel free to google as well - you never know where the inspiration will come from!
Well I am feeling extra sentimental about this birthday in particular. Why you ask? Because my first born is turning six, did you hear that? SIX!! While 6 is such a small number in this big journey we call life, it's the biggest milestone ever, and she starts SCHOOL this year (insert crying face here). This last year has been full of amazing growths and firsts for Anna. From learning to write and read in Ukrainian AND German and going away for a week to a dance camp to visiting Legoland and spending nights camping in the mountains with her family! We are so proud of the smart, funny, intelligent and gentle girl Anna has become and we can't wait to see what is in store for her this next year.
Quite possibly the cutest thing I’ve ever seen, and of course I had to try it - is baby's fruit bath. I mean. it's just adorable. Colorful, vibrant, tasty, fun... With spring here and summer fast approaching, fruit baths are becoming all the rage! And really how could they not be?! As a mom myself, I get so excited about sessions like this! The little ones love it, and it really show cases each one of their individual personalities. I mean, who doesn't love babies and fruit? And what about babies IN fruit?!
I now announce Fruit Bath Sessions at my home studio in Pfaeffikon SZ. Yes, these pics were taken in my backyard! It's pretty, exciting and you can eat all the strawberries afterwards :) Who's in? Get in touch!
P.S. This can be either separate session or a part of a bigger Sitter or Cake Smash shootings, suitable for babies aged 7m and up to 18m. Book until there's berries in the fields!
I love maternity sessions….I mean really love them!! Having been pregnant in the past myself, I know us ladies don’t give ourselves any credit while we are expecting. Unfortunately, we are concerned with all the exterior changes & not focusing on the fact that we are helping to bring a wonderful new life into our family! Couples that have a maternity session will look back on these images in the future & be so thankful for capturing this time in their life! Okay, enough with the “feelings” moment…. I had the pleasure of photographing about 30 expecting moms so far, and every single time it's just true magic, again and again.
P.S. I offer newborn sessions as well, so in case you consider a maternity photo shoot with me, please let me know if you're interested in a newborn one too - there's a pleasant discount!
So yes, the name above basically says it all. In the past years I've done about 100 family photo shoots, both in- and outdoors, and I finally have time to publish a few nice pics here as well. Just imagine how many sincere smiles I've seen and captured! I'm adding new photos to the gallery every week, and I'm really happy I'm able to do what I love and to share those moments here with you.
Yours, Anna
We are a generation of picture-takers. Technology has been a blessing to our lives but it has been to our detriment as well. I have a handful of pictures of my grandparents and I cherish them and they are up in my home. I want my children to have pictures of me and I want my grandchildren to have pictures of my children. My great-grandchildren to have pictures of my grandchildren. A beautiful timeline of our history and lives are in these images. Once you begin to look at these as bigger than the moment, they become invaluable.
And let’s face it, every expecting mommy WANTS newborn portraits. It’s so tough to pass on this seemingly frivolous expense – but with all those lovely, raging hormones, it’s possible to keep our sanity with a photographer booked and ready.
*Short overview of the whole story: I'm planning a big photo day here in April 2020, and I've already got a few requests regarding the shootings here, so just in case you also want one - contact me now!
I consider this place as one of the most vibrant and juicy spring photo spots in the whole Switzerland. Last year we've been scouting this location for the whole day, just to prepare this amazing family outing for you, guys. What does it include? Relaxing stroller friendly walk , gorgeous views, flower fragrances, lots of fun and great photos - obviously if you join me on this very first Cherry Blossom Photo Shoot! We will meet at the "meeting" point (note: it's ca. 30 mins from the parking lot), wander around the trees, have a picnic, run/jump/lie in the fields of dandelions and of course enjoy the awesomeness of blossoming cherry trees here in Fricktal valley, about 40min drive from Zurich. Every participating family will get its time slot, so that we can "work" efficiently and organized. I will be on location all day long, photographing participating families one after another. As a result, every family gets its 25 edited images, digital only, it's gonna cost 150chf. I can also print a photo book, or make magnets, or whatever you wish, for an additional price. See more photos from our family photo shoot below. And please contact me should you be interested!
Every time I’m being asked to take some baptism photos I am very excited. And nervous, of course. Ceremonies like that happen literally a few times in ones lifetime (first communion or wedding, for example), and it's extremely important to capture all of them properly. So I'm getting nervous when I start thinking about the challenges… a dark church being the predominant fear! Photographically speaking, it’s fair to say a Baptism or Christening offers more unique challenges than any other type of photo session, and a dark church is just one of them. There are rules to consider, ceremonial moments you need to be aware of so you don’t miss them, and you may not be able to stand in the most ideal position. And also, I always cry when I'm present at a religious ceremony - turns out I'm very sensitive to the invisible vibes, you know. Anyways, here's one of the baptisms' ceremonies I got lucky to be working at last year. Nice family, great kids (Nathan was actually born on the same day as my own baby!), wonderful ceremony - something amazing to remember.
Nadja
Have you heard of the term “Cake Smash”? This type of 1st (or even 30th!) birthday photo shoot has become a fun way to capture all of the excitement of birthday milestones! It looks (and tastes–yum!) just like it sounds; Baby + Cake = Many great photo ops! To someone entirely unfamiliar with the concept, the idea of a cake smash photography may seem weird, to say the least. After all, why would you order a beautiful cake, dress up a 12-month old…and then take numerous photos of the child destroying the sweet delicacy, getting all messy? However, the fact is solid: cake smashes are getting increasingly popular, bringing families together in a unique, fun and memorable way. I too am offering this type of photo shoots at my home studio, and I even gave birth to a baby so I can practice at her 1st bday! Just joking :) But nevertheless, here are some of my favorite pics.
As much as we’re busy with our everyday lives, devoting some time to your family during Christmas is a must. An ideal family should be your sanctuary, a place where you can rest, and forget about all the hard work that awaits you. Christmas is a wonderful holiday that allows you to spend some quality time with your family members and since you’re doing that, you can also spend a couple of hours at a photo shoot, to turn these moments into memories.
In November and December 2019 I've held my third Christmas Photo Shoot Days, and oh boy, was it fun! (So far I've been through roughly half of them, but I'm sure it's only gonna get better). Here's some of the family portraits I've been lucky to capture - always a great pleasure and fun, you know.
Already looking forward to the next year - I've got big ideas for 2020, stay tuned to see more!
Kateryna and Ali
You may doubt whether you need to hire a professional photographer to make your maternity photos or the pics of your newborn baby, you can always take a few shots of your child's baptism ceremony or first birthday party on your sell phone, but you do not want to have a wedding without a proper photographer. Why? Well, professional wedding photography means you will have high quality images to display in your home, as well as personalized gifts for friends and family. These are also perfect for compiling into beautiful, quality photo albums that can be enjoyed by your families, children and grandchildren.
As a family photographer here in Switzerland, I love to see returning babies come back for their milestone photos - generally taken aged 6-9 months. By this time your little bundle of joy really is giving you something to laugh about as playtime has really cranked up a notch! They have now been in the world exactly as long as they have been in the womb and wow, look at all the changes that have taken place in BOTH your lives.
...is tough. Not only it's super responsible, but you usually have less time than you'd love to and are quite exhausted and stressed out. That is why I am not a wedding photographer - at least I wasn't until this summer. Then my relatives started to get married, one after another, and suddenly I found myself in the middle of the whole process :) with a camera in my hands, of course. This very wedding happened last week, and I cannot help but brag about the work that's been done during the event. And I wasn't even an official photographer of the day - just a sister of the groom. At some point I understood that as well as capturing all the big events of the day, I had to look out for the small moments. Things that might not even be noticed, but will create the most amazing memory for the young family after the day - that's the relaxed and informal approach while creating beautiful, natural and vibrant images I wanted them to have, the ones that have a touch of romance and lots of fun.
Here are my favorite ones. Event Photography (wedding itself) follows as well!
Dear brother, for you and your beautiful wife.
Love, Anna
One of the questions I get all the time from the clients before a family photo session is: “What do we wear?” Especially for the fall photo shoot - colors outside are just stunning, so you obviously want to look great as well! Outfitting your family to look cohesive in a portrait can be a difficult task and a hard work, but it doesn't have to be, so don’t panic! Here's a few tips I’ve found online and put together to inspire you to create your own ensemble. Hope it helps!
September brings with it a change of season which in a world of photography means that there are new colorful landscapes to discover as well as macro shots of fungi, berries and more to capture. But when it comes to family photo shoots, most of my clients prefer either warm summer evenings or golden leaves in a background, so September somehow is not a popular month for family photography, at least around Zurich. And you know what? It's totally wrong. I even got to prove it last year. Being 5 months pregnant at that time, this was a bit hard to do, but I managed anyways. Turns out September offers as much colorful blossom as April does, but it also adds some invisible but definitely sizable vibes to the picture, so you get something really special in the end. Here's a few shots I captured last September, and as always, I look forward to the new ones this year.
Wish you all a great autumn ahead!

Niah
A year has passed with extra kilos and weakened nerves. A year without sleep or crazy nightlife, but also a year filled with the happiest and most beautiful days of your life.
You will never forget the best year of your life, the first year of your baby's life. Your heart melts, thinking it was only yesterday when you hugged your baby for the first time. Now you and your little one are ready for some fun, celebrating that little human's 1st birthday. All the preparations have been made, everyone is present and smiling and all that’s left is to make some memorable photo session with your kiddo.
Balloons, bubbles, number "1" obviously, lights, pompons, a baby bed, a suitcase, a watermelon, a real cake, even lemons and oranges - we'll use it all! Make sure to book your session in advance - in that case you'll be able to use the photos we'll make for the 1st birthday party invitations or as a decoration at the party itself. Not to mention the good memories - those will last forever, and photos will be there to remind you of the good sweet times.
Nadja
This year's big photo project is ON, and before leaving for long-awaited vacation I decided to share the very first photo of the series I called "Fathers and Daughters in B&W".
I myself always thought that mothers have a very different connections and relations to their kids than fathers. Well, you know, first being pregnant, then giving birth, carrying around, feeding, sleepless nights... stuff like that. And no matter sons or daughters - mom's love represents pure love as it is. And what about fathers? I always thought that fathers most certainly have strong connections with their sons. You know, same interests, same tastes, same look, same problems after all... And what about their daughters? I'll tell you what.
After working with newborns and their parents for over a year now, after witnessing most of my friends had their kids, after I myself had a second daughter earlier this year I think I made up my mind pretty clear: a father-daughter relationship is truly one of the most beautiful relationships that exist on Earth. From the very beginning it's something magical that is hard to describe, and that feeling evolves every single day in something even more beautiful and comprehensive. And let me add, watching those relationships grow and develop is a huge pleasure, as it is capturing them with a camera every now and then.
This is what my current photo project is about. Love at its finest, from the very beginning.
P.S. To my own dad: You never tell me how to live my life. You simply live yours, and let me watch you do it. Thank you
Hi everyone and welcome back to my list of memorable photography projects of 2018. In a previous post here you've probably read about two of them - Travel Photography of 2018 and Outdoor Family Photo Days. Hope you've enjoyed the photos and found some inspiration for 2019 :) Here I'm going to tell you about another two projects I've been lucky enough to work on that were close to my heart and brought everyone involved lots of fun, joy and happiness (including horses). Want to know more? Keep reading...
The workdays in December (and January if you ask me) tend to slip through our fingers quickly because of the busy holiday season and different demands and obligations at both work and home. As the end of the year approaches, it is a good opportunity to reflect back on what you have accomplished in both professional and personal lives. It is important to set some time aside to think about how you've developed and grown so that you can end the year right and plan for the new year ahead. I've already shared my story in a previous post here, but it's more like a full year review and I haven't said much about work there. So, I've decided to write another post (it most probably will consist of three parts since there's a lot to write about) featuring my work in a photography field in 2018. I'm going to tell (and show, obviously) you about the most memorable projects I've been working on during the year, because I read somewhere that when thinking back on what you've achieved at work, "it is important to keep track and document your important accomplishments. This information will be helpful during the next performance evaluation time as you discuss your performance and achievements with your supervisor". As if I have one :) But it's a fun thing to do so I'm doing it anyways. Enjoy!




























