New York City and New Jersey families love visiting Central Park for baby and family photo sessions. Why? Because happy children make for the most beautiful photos and, for city kids in particular, parks are heaven. Babies and toddlers love the fields of grass, the sandy, mulched or rubber cushioned playgrounds, and going “helicopter high” on the swings. If you were to start at the top of Central Park and head down Central Park South, you would hit a playground pretty much every 10-15 minutes all the way to Columbus Circle. The playgrounds alone could keep your little ones happily occupied all day, even up to and through those late summer bedtimes (pro tip: always bring snacks!), but then you also have the ponds and lake (filled with ducks, frogs and turtles), the horses, the carousel, and ice cream (and hot dog!) vendors around every turn. Say what you will about the bliss of a big, private backyard, it just does not compare to Central Park. But back to photos.

Handsome baby Maxwell and his lovely parents met me in Central Park for a fun, relaxed portrait session last summer. Why? Mama said Maxwell was just adorable so, like many other smart NYC mamas, she realized he would be bigger in a blink and reached out to me to capture this precious age. Due to work (and bedtime) schedules, we met a touch earlier than golden hour for this session, so I set them up in some lovely open shade. Maxwell and his parents were so cute snuggling on a cream blanket in the early evening.

I love how these images clearly show the sweetness of this age: his big sparkly eyes, chubby limbs and tiny first tooth all scream “BABY!” I just know that mama will treasure looking back at these images as her baby boy grows; how could you not want to bottle up this sweetness? They really are only a baby for so long and as my own baby (my second) rapidly grows, I feel even more strongly how important it is to document the sweet, chubby, babbling bliss of babyhood.

Nicole Hawkins Photography specializes in newborn, baby, child and family photography on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, as well as on location and in homes in the surrounding areas including Brooklyn, Queens, Westchester County, Hoboken, Jersey City, and Long Island.  

Reach out today to begin planning your baby or family portrait session and learn about Nicole’s boutique experience, fine art prints and heirloom albums. Consultations are held at Nicole’s UWS studio in Manhattan, on the phone or via FaceTime, whichever you would prefer.