Hamptons in the early Fall. Nina Drapacz Photography.

I love to travel to the Hamptons for family sessions when the crowds are gone and its still warm but not hot. This day started out rainy and dark. When I arrived it had just stopped raining and there were overcast skies. They were concerned the images would look gloomy. I guarenteed everyone they would be bright and cheerful, which they were! The wind really kicked upon on the beach and as soon as I finished the rain returned in a torrential way! This was the ONLY hour that day it did not pour! We were lucky! The goal at the end was to capture an image of their youngest dog jumping in the water while the kids posed…

Family Portraits with Elie Tahari and Family. Nina Drapacz Photography

I had the pleasure of meeting and photographing the famous designer, Elie Tahari, with his family in the Hamptons. They were relaxed and alot of fun to work with! There were some family visitors who we incorporated in our session on this wonderful property which provided for the best backdrops!

Headshots of Mom and Daughter. Nina Drapacz Photography

This session took place on the top floor of a west village apartment. A few flights of stairs within the apartment lead to this amazing rooftop space, which mom admitted, they rarely use. It was perfect for the photo session with sweeping views of the west village. The time was 5 pm, perfect low soft light. Mom warned me in advance that her daughter, a teenager, didn’t smile easliy…I told her not to worry. The session was for headshots of each of them. Shortly after we started, mom out of sight, she smiled, lauighed and helped me come up with brilliant ideas!

Senior Portraits for the Yearbook by Nina Drapacz Photography

Mom reached out to me in December inquiring about senior yearbook photography. She said her daughter will need them in January. Her best friend, who attends the same school, needed a session as well so we combined both sessions together . This made it fun for them and they were able to encourage each other and share ideas as well as coats!

Senior yearbook photographs must show the best possible versions of who they are as they enter a new chapter of their lives. Scouting out the perfect backdrops and working closely on the best and most genuine expressions are key. These published images will live on for friends and family to visit for decades.

Candlewood Lake with three sisters by Nina Drapacz Photography

Each year we pick a new location. This was the most unique for me as the girls literally stood on a raft mid session. I was afraid they would definitely fall over. Each year the family tradition is dad carrying all three on his shoulders and images of the girls laying down, just faces . I have a session tomorrow with them and wonder if dad can support all three yet again on his shoulders this year!

Family Photography Session by Nina Drapacz Photography

I photographed her older sister as a newborn. She slept the entire time. This beautiful newborn wanted to see what was happening and stayed awake for most of her session. Intermintent dozing in some of these images..

I absolutely loved her room and placing her in the mini crib was such a great idea!

Back to the Hamptons! Hampton Family Photography by Nina Drapacz

I photograph this wonderful family each summer and we usually concentrate at their amazing home both inside and outside. This summer cousins were visiting so after photographing at home, we walked to the beach to meet them. The golden sunlight was still vibrant even at 7:30!

Three Girls under 5! Nina Drapacz Photography

Mom and dad contacted me together on speaker phone to photograph their newest daugher, only 8 days old. They had recently moved to their new home and were concerned there was not enough furniture or that it may look too empty. I reassured them that minimal is always best! When I walked in I found a beautiful apartment with amazing light warmly decorated with many options. The two beautiful older sisters, I was warned, both wanted to hold the baby as much as possible. What a gift for the photographer for those hard to get sibling moments! All three girls were such a pleasure to photograph. We all had fun!

Photography in an Apartment's Common Room. Nina Drapacz Photography

Initally I was asked to photograph this beautiful toddler with her parents in their apartment. We felt the common room was more spacious and according to mom, more organized and clean. I went up to see it first. It was perfect except for some very orange over head spot lights. We tried everything to turn them off without success. Working around this I took the family closer to the window as much as I could but the layout of the room and the furnishings were so tempting I had to use them! Look at the reflection on the conference table! Photoshop and some black and white conversions helped with the ambient light issue and allowed me to be creative with the space..

A Newborn Session at Home and Outside. Nina Drapacz Photography

A week after birth I was contacted by this lovely family who had newborn photos done at the hosptial with their first child. Due to Covid they were unable to do the same two years later with their second son. I brought a basket and some of the same letter blocks that were used at the hospital and recreated similar images for this family as they requested. They lived across from the park and the light was fading but we trudged the gang out. It was mom’s first time out since she came home from the hospital!

Newborn Session at Home. Nina Drapacz Photography

When I came into the family’s home, her parent’s were trying everything they could to get this big sister to wear something that wasn’t the gift for her newborn brother she had put on right before I arrived. Somehow she squeezed into an outfit their nanny had just brought for the new baby. Nothing could be done at this point to persude her to change so we went with it…trucks and all.

The images from that morning are truly fun and interactive. Posing wasn’t an option and much to my delight, not desired. When a family wants me to capture their dynamic, the photographs become part of their personal narrative and more creative which is not only a gift for them but a gift for me as a photographer.

Central Park in the Fall of 2020. Nina Drapacz Photography

I had the pleasure of photographing this family when the little girl was a newborn. As I walked to meet the family, I was walking next to the children and their nanny for many blocks before realizing these were the children for the session! One had a mask and the other was just a few weeks old the last time I saw her. After struggling up a hill with my equipment and them with a double stroller, we found this bench… empty! Perfect!

The rest is history in the making of these images…. they were wonderful!

Newborn Brother to These Two Boys. Nina Drapacz Photography

This family has had newborn sessions at Mount Sinai Hospital for their first two sons but Covid made this impossible with the third. It’s a family who had always lived in New York City until Covid made it impossible to function with their growing family. Both parents have high power jobs and were forced to work remotely with two young boys at home. Childcare was closed so their only work option was to take turns working and caring for the kids. This schedule began to take its toll and they decided they needed to move out. Comfortable in Dobbs Ferry now, the new addition arrived. Everyone is satisfied with their decision.

This outdoor socially distant session with the masked photographer was relaxed and fun. Fighting over who was going to hold the baby was the big deal.

Socially Distant BEACH SESSION IN EAST HAMPTON, NY. NINA DRAPACZ PHOTOGRAPHY

A few years ago I photographed this gorgeous family on the beach when mom was pregnant with her second daughter. She wasn’t afraid to schedule this session at my favorite time, 7pm. It was cold and rainy all day. The sun came out as predicted by the weather app at 5 pm. It was a bit stressful to trust the weather app as it was a 2 1/2 hour drive from NYC and I was driving out in the rain for a beach session!

Three outfit changes, gorgeous subjects, great pre/post sunset light and a masked photographer were the recipe for these images…

Social Distance Sessions by Nina Drapacz Photography

Safe photography from over 6 feet away with a masked photographer! I’ve been asked to photograph many famlilies and studio session outdoors. With children home wihout camp and social activites, families have found time to schedule annual photo shoots, new births, first birthdays and even professional headshots for new jobs. I travel to the Hamptons, New Jersey, Westchester and Connecticut where many families have been living since Covid. The sessions are relaxed in backyards and beaches or here in the splendor of New York City’s various parks.

Family Photography on Location by Nina Drapacz Photography

There’s nothing more rewarding than a family who is relaxed and excited about creative images. The baby had only taken half his normal nap so I needed to work quickly before his short window was up. Thanks to his big brother’s patience and his easy going parents we ended up with some memorable unique images!

Newborn Photography Under 48 hours by Nina Drapacz

I have been specializing in baby photography for close to 28 years and for the past 2 years I have begun to photograph babies in the hosptials a day after birth. It’s exciting,, exhausting and an emotional rollercoaster for parents, siblings and grandparents. I feel priveleged to be there to witness it all.

Mitzvah Photography at Temple Emanu-El by Nina Drapacz Photography

What makes this so special is having a photographic relationship with this wonderful family since she was just 4 years old! I was so excited to be the photographer for her important day. We started with images in Tribecca months before …Synagogue photographs (thank you Temple Emanuel for allowing photography during the service) followed by reception also in Tribecca! I did not want to do conventional images in Temple Emanuel, especially considering how nervous everyone was before the ceremony . Her little brother was the perfect family member to create the more relaxed mood that we all needed!

Staple Street Location Shoot by Nina Drapacz Photography

It was a hot August day with an amazing family I have had the privilege of photographing since the girls were babies! The heat made it hard for everyone including the photographer. Eventually “we” all began to relax and enjoy this session, which shows in the images. Love the mom and older daughter too deep in conversation to notice dad and the younger one jumping off the ledge…

A Family in Central Park by Nina Drapacz Photography

I have photographed this family since the children were infants! To see how they change from year to year is a treat! The siblings are a close knit team, they actually don’t mind sitting close and even hugging each other! The funniest part was at the end when the parents were sneaking in a kiss and youngest stood there wondering why I shifted focus on them and not her!