Something Borrowed: The Story Behind Our Mother-Daughter Wedding Dress Sessions

Some of my favorite sessions weren't planned as a business idea at all. They started as something much more personal.

Where the Idea Came From

My own wedding dress hung in our closet for years. Every time I opened that closet, I'd see it and wonder what would happen to it. Would it just stay there forever? Did I need to donate it, or sell it? Was I holding onto it in hopes that my own daughter would want to wear it herself one day?

Those are the thoughts most moms process about their wedding dress at some point. My daughter had just reached the age where she was taking real interest in dresses and pretty things, always wanting to dress up. So one day, it hit me: the dress was just sitting there. Why not let her try it on, and experience all of our wedding things together?

That session between my daughter and me turned into something genuinely meaningful. I was behind the camera that day, so I didn't get to fully experience it the way my friend later did when I offered the same session to her, but it was still something I'll always treasure. And it planted the idea that this was something I wanted to offer to other moms and daughters too.

Bringing It to Someone Else

I reached out to a close friend whose daughter was a little older than mine and simply asked if she'd like a photo session of her daughter in her own wedding dress. She said yes without hesitation.

We scheduled a date, and I showed up at her house to a table full of wedding memories: her wedding program, her shoes, her accessories, old photo albums. We even watched her wedding video together, all three of us. Her daughter explored every piece of it, delighted, while my friend and I both got swept up in the memories all over again.

By the time her daughter put on the dress and looked at herself in the mirror, my friend was in tears, and they were both laughing at the same time. It was, for lack of a better word, magical. Emotional, and something I know she'll treasure for the rest of her life. When I delivered that gallery, she told me exactly that, and being trusted with a moment like that is something I don't take lightly.

Why This Session Means So Much to Me

I love traditional lifestyle and portrait photography, and it absolutely has its place. But sessions like Something Borrowed let me tap into a different part of myself, the creative, storytelling instincts I built over years in the commercial advertising industry, and bring that kind of thoughtful, narrative-driven experience to families in a way that feels personal rather than produced.

Something Borrowed is, without question, one of my favorite things I offer, and I hope to bring it to even more moms and daughters in the years ahead.

Have a wedding dress waiting in your own closet? Let's talk about booking a Something Borrowed session for you and your daughter.