Breanna, or “Bre”, as I have called her since 3rd grade, is my absolute best friend, so when I found out she was pregnant with her first child, you can imagine my excitement. 2020 has been a rough year, filled with uncertainty and stress. It was amazing to get some good news for a change. And while I wasn’t able to properly celebrate in person immediately, when she asked if I would take photos for her and Carl to find out the gender of their baby, I was over the moon!

Because one of Bre and Carl’s favorite things to do is to hike and be out in nature, nothing was more appropriate than finding out whether they would be having a little boy or girl at the top of a mountain. But, because pregnancy and hiking don’t mix well together, they found a mountaintop accessible by chairlift. We chose a date during peak fall foliage and quarantined weeks in advance to be safe. 

The day before the shoot we met up to exchange the overly large, barely able to fit into my small car, decorated reveal box. Inside were little baby hiking boots, as well as laces and balloons, both pink and blue, and the confidential envelope containing the top-secret information. As soon as they drove away from the parking lot, I began getting text messages asking if I had opened the envelope – someone was anxious to find out – haha! Thankfully, I was able to keep the secret for the 24 hours necessary before the shoot.