Raytown based Maternity Photographer. SERVING Overland Park, olathe, shawnee Mission, and the kansas city metro area.
Shawnee Mission Park does it again! I find new little pockets to shoot here all the time, and I love how this session turned out with Kalei and Ty. 😍
Kalei had some specific requests when she inquired about maternity and newborn photos, and one was to have a location that was great for seeing the sunset. She shared with me that sunsets have a special, and sentimental, meaning for her. Being that this was the most important thing she wanted captured for these photos, I knew Shawnee Mission Park, in Kansas had the perfect spot!
It's no secret photographers love shooting at sunset, aka "golden hour." However, if I'm being honest, my personal favorite time to shoot is what some of us photographers call "blue hour." Blue hour is after golden hour, and is that time when the sun is down past the horizon, but it's still light out. The light is so soft, even, and beautiful at this time. I'm obsessed with the pastel colors of the sky, during blue hour.
For this session we were really aiming for peak golden hour in order to capture the last bright, vibrant, rays of the sun. Kalei had shown me some silhouette sunset shots as inspiration, which was something I'd never done before. I'm definitely a creature of habit, and especially when it comes to my shooting style, so I planned to adjust my timing to make these shots happen! I was excited, but a bit nervous for this request. I put a lot of pressure on myself to capture images my clients will love, and knowing that these photos were the most important for her, I laid that pressure on heavy.
In the end, I was so excited for how the sunset silhouette shots turned out, and Kalei loved them! I also still got to shoot some blue hour photos, which you'll see following the sunset shots in this post.
Can you see the difference between golden hour and blue hour? Which do you like the look of most?
Golden Hour ↓
![shawnee mission park maternity session of couple](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/559410171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3468-0d172b09.jpg)
![couple posed for maternity photoshoot along a wood rail fence under a tree at sunset](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/630510171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-1-cbc882af.jpg)
![man and woman sit on blanket cradling woman's pregnant belly](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/820510171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-2-e53e071e.jpg)
![couple smile at each other during their photoshoot in shawnee mission park](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/020510171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3460-1a9b5356.jpg)
![mother to be and man standing on a dock at shawnee mission lake](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/210510171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3555-8fdc396e.jpg)
![couple cuddled in close with the calm lake water in the background](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/400510171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3593-7afd688b.jpg)
![silhouette of man and expecting mother against the Kansas City sunset sky](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/699410171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3-b69d322b.jpg)
![bright sunlight bathes couple in warm light as they touch mother to be's belly](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/979410171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-4-f7c25c25.jpg)
![](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/847502781/IMG_3742.edit-3c4a305c.jpg)
Blue Hour ↓
![couple walking hand in hand in green field](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/179410171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3905-954ed9f9.jpg)
![mother to be posed for maternity photos in green field at sunset](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/910610171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-6-4c5a4d1c.jpg)
![couple shares a tender kiss in an open green field](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/110610171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3938-bcd6f635.jpg)
![kansas city maternity photographer](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/300610171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-5-43f8a31e.jpg)
![overland park maternity photographer](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/599510171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3929-4f9f1389.jpg)
![shawnee mission photographer](http://images-pw.pixieset.com/elementfield/141610171/overland-park-maternity-photographer-3953-7b2d1c43.jpg)