I met the Gebremariam family at the Himalayan Cedars Outlook at Canberra’s Arboretum on an overcast Easter Monday. While I was praying for the sun to peak through the clouds and provide the glorious golden hour light for this session it was just not going to be.

Mulu Gebremariam booked the session with AJ Nitz Images as their eldest sun was back in Canberra for Easter after moving to Melbourne. I selected the Himalayan Cedars as there are just so many options available to showcase Canberra and the family.

Mum and dad at a family photography session at the Arboretum

With the Himalayan cedars is not specifically grown for photographing in, there are many locations all in the one place that can create entirely different lighting and feel in your gallery. The rich velvety tones are where we usually start, its nice and easy to access right at the Canberra’s door.

Seeing the different family personalities all come together in one place is just awesome. It is wonderful seeing the family dynamics at play.

Then the adventure begins as we head for a gentle wander through the cedars. We go deep into the forest to captures the family in different and varying light.

Family in the himalayan cedars at the Arboretum

As I mentioned at the start, capturing all the family units is a highlight at every family photoshoot. Everyone gets a turn to be in front of the camera while the rest of the family joke on the sidelines.

We all know how challenging it is to take photos of older families. However, on this occasion, the whole family were just rock stars during the photo shoot. Lidia had a gorgeous little giggle and the sweetest smile ever while Caleb and Josh were both confident and charismatic.

Part of my job as a professional family photographer is to draw out the real personality and capture the real smiles. While sometimes thats easy, some times I have to work a little harder for it but the results are just so heart warming and so engaging, its one of my favourite parts of the job!