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From the Wardrobe Closet to the Wall — A Fine Art Portrait Commission

By: Always Remember Photography

A Crimson Dress, a Wildflower Field, and a Little Girl 

How one spring afternoon — and one wardrobe closet — became a commissioned art collection

 

 

Nine year old girl in a red dress standing in a field of purple wildflowers and green trees

One of my favorite moments in every session happens before we ever step outside. Before the wildflowers, before the golden light, before the camera even comes out at all — there’s the wardrobe closet.

Over the years, I’ve collected gowns and dresses specifically for the children I photograph here on the property. Pieces chosen for the way they move through tall grass, catch the evening light, and turn an ordinary path into something that feels straight out of a storybook. But as much care as I put into building that collection, the best decision I ever made was letting the children choose for themselves.

Before each session, I quietly pull the pieces I know will fit — so when a little girl steps in front of the wardrobe closet, every dress she sees is already a possibility. The moment feels effortless to her because all the work has already been done behind the scenes. She simply gets to discover the one that feels like hers.

And at nine years old, that moment matters.

She’s old enough to know what she loves. Old enough to twirl in front of the mirror and suddenly see herself not just as a little girl, but as part of the story.

"She tried it on and looked at me , I knew at that moment that this session would be magical."

young 9 year old girl in a red dress sitting in a field of purple flowers with trees in the background

The moment she stepped out into the wildflower meadow, it happened — that ease that only comes when a child feels completely herself. The crimson of her dress against the purple blooms, the soft green woods behind her… it all just belonged together.

After a few minutes she forgot I was there. She wandered and twirled through the flowers, and at one point she tilted her face up toward the branches above her and paused, almost like she saw something no one else could.

Later, while editing the image, I kept feeling like the photograph was asking for something more. In a perfect world, there would have been a bird sitting in those branches.

So I added one.

A small cardinal. He was never really there that afternoon, but this is fine art, not a snapshot. Sometimes an image quietly tells me what it needs, and over the years I’ve learned to listen.

And honestly, now it feels impossible to imagine the portrait without him — watching over a little girl in a crimson dress who had no idea how beautiful she looked standing in that field.

Some portraits simply capture a moment. Others become a piece of art that feels like it has always existed. You can see more of my Fine Art Children’s Portfolio here.

Young girl in a red dress standing in a green forest with purple flowers looking at a small red bird in a tree.

By the time we made our way over to the pond, I handed her an old book I keep for sessions like this. She slipped off her boots, climbed onto the rocks, smoothed out that crimson dress, and started turning the pages. A little girl, a quiet pond, and a story. Some portraits are created. Some simply happen in front of you

Girl in a red dress sitting on a rock by a calm pond in a wooded area reading a book for Mars Area Photographer

THE ART COLLECTION

These images — the wildflower meadow, the cardinal, the girl lost in her book beside the water — are now fine art pieces hanging in this family's home. Not digital files.  Artwork. Each one created with the care and time that transforms a photograph into something painterly and timeless.

This is what a commissioned art collection looks like from beginning to end. It starts at the wardrobe closet with a little girl reaching for the dress that feels like hers. It ends on the wall of a home that will have these portraits long after the wildflowers have come and gone a hundred times over.

As a grandmother and a children's fine art photographer, I understand better than most how quickly this season passes. This summer she is twirling through wildflowers in a crimson gown — and then, in the blink of an eye, that little girl is grown.

This is why I believe so deeply in this work. Not just to capture a moment — but to save it.

If you would love something this meaningful for your own family, I would be honored to create it for you. Let's talk.

 

Let's Talk! or call Marsha at 724-504-8711
View Portfolio

This family's story with Always Remember Photography actually began a season earlier, when her little sister experienced the Forever Bear Storybook Experience — another fine art collection now living on the walls of their home. If you'd love to learn more about that experience, you can find it here.

A little girl wearing a blue dress standing in a sunny meadow with yellow flowers near a wooded path

Her little sister's Forever Bear Storybook Experience — a different day, a different story.

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