1/01/2023

2022 Superlatives for Jessica Rockowitz Photography

How is 2022 over already?! I am so excited to announce the results of my 2nd annual Jessica Rockowitz Photography Superlative Awards! These are supposed to be a lighthearted and fun way for me to recap the year and give out some fictitious (but totally still brag worthy) awards. Scroll down to see if your session is featured here as one of the winners!

Drum Roll Please…the 2022 Superlative Award Winners!

The Most OG Client: The Cuningham Fam

I cannot even tell you how much I love the Cuningham Family. Kristen was my client back in the fall of 2018, when I was brand new and had only been doing photography about six months. I have seen her kids every year since, and I have watched her grow from three to five in the past five years. I have watched her two youngest go from being nervous about the camera to flourishing and rocking their sessions. Their family has a special place in my heart.

Best Hair: Taylor

I had the honor of photographing Taylor and Josh’s maternity session, and I was swooning the entire time over her amazing hair. Can you even?

Most Adventurous Maternity Sessions: Nikki, Brittany, and Annie

Nikki

Brittany

Annie

I am all about fun and adventure with my families, and these maternity sessions topped my 2022 list for most adventurous. First up, Nikki for undergoing three outfit changes, including the cutest swimsuit ever in a slippery creek at one of the hottest points of the year. Next, Brittany for riding a horse during her session like the rock star she is. And third, Annie for being totally open to these gorgeous photos in the midst of a field on a chillier winter evening. How amazing are these mamas?!

Silliest Sisters: The Rizzo Girls + The Rivera Girls

This award has a tie between the beautiful Rizzo sisters – Cece, Evelyn, and Gianna – and the beautiful Rivera sisters, Olivia and Elyse. Both of these families had amazing bonds with each other and were also so much fun together during our sessions.

Silliest Brothers: The Stearns + Niedzialek Brothers

This was another amazing tie between the Stearns brothers – Beck, Rocco, Phoenix, and Apollo – and the Niedzialek brothers, sweet Carter and Noah. This fall 2022 was the fall of boys for me. I had so many amazing boy families and I was totally here for all the adventure. These two families had boys with such a special bond who were also so silly and fun together!

Silliest Siblings: The Seely Kiddos

This brother/sister duo melted my HEART, and I was literally smiling to myself as I was editing. They snuggled, they kissed, and they were totally silly. The Seely kiddos, Scarlett and Wyatt, were a blast.

Snuggliest Family: The Koltz Family, The Dehner Family, & The Morris Family

There are three tie breaker families, and I want to shout them all out individually.

First, the Koltz family. I seriously had such a blast with them, and despite having older kids who often are “too cool” to snuggle, these amazing kids were totally on board for anything I asked. I feel like their session perfectly conveyed their personalities, too.

Next, we have the Dehner Family. Just like I mentioned before, older kiddos tend to think they are too cool for photo sessions – totally normal. These boys were incredible and truly gave their full attention to their parents and loved on them so much.

Last but certainly not least, probably one of my all time snuggliest and most connected families was Sam, Frank, and their two beautiful kiddos Maddie and Grayson. I mean…the love is off the charts. They were a total joy to hang with.

Most Overcast Session: The Messenger Family

Believe it or not, this was shot around 2PM on a day where sunset wasn’t until 530PM. The result? P E R F E C T I O N. Don’t be afraid of overcast, friends.

Smiliest Babies/Young Toddlers: Baby Alan, Enzo, and Bruno

How sweet are these beautiful babes?!

Smiliest Big Kids: The Wilson Family

What does it mean to be the smiliest big kid? I don’t even need to ask you to smile…you just do it! The Wilson kiddos are so naturally joyful that *I* can’t help but smile when I photograph them. Olivia and Casen are the best examples for their baby sister, Reese!

Prettiest Flowers: The Montgomery Family

If you’re considering an outdoor newborn session in 2023…yes, yes you should. The flowers were showing off for our spring outdoor newborn, and I can’t get over how fabulous this family was to work with.

Best Beach Session: Ella

You know I have a special place in my heart for the beach. Ella absolutely rocked her senior session, and it was my favorite beach session of 2022 right in San Diego!

Best Dog Bond: Collins + Baits

I could not get over the sweetness of this pair. Collins was totally enamored with her fur sibling, and I couldn’t get over how adorable they were together.

Best Baby Hair: Baby Boy Turnquist

I mean. Not only is he just the most delicious baby (and his big sisters are equally amazing), but I CANNOT GET OVER THE HAIR. Just so, so good.

Hottest Session: The Moursund Family

August sessions are no joke, especially this past year. It was well over 100 for our session, but everyone rocked it…and you’d never know!

Coldest Session: The Bala Family

Sometimes the weather in Austin is spot onto the forecast…and sometimes it’s a total lie. In our case, it was a lie. Temps were projected to be around the high 50’s, but as we neared sunset, the wind roared and the temps quickly plummeted to 40. These kiddos were TROOPERS, and I think our session was perfect despite the chill!

Wettest Family Session: The Williams Family

What does it mean to have the wettest family session? W A T E R! This family was a total blast and not only played all around the creek, but ended their session being completely drenched in a waterfall. The result was T H E absolute B E S T.

Driest Session: Hayley

This is my daughter, Hayley. I took her Senior Photos in Joshua Tree this past summer, and to say it was dry is an understatement. They came out amazing, but no matter how much we hydrated, we never felt fully satisfied with our water intake. This session was most definitely dry as a bone.

Bad Ass Female Entrepreneurs: Carly and Taylor

I have to give a shout out to these two solo female entrepreneurs who run incredible businesses and have a MASSIVE amount of talent.

Taylor wanted to show the relatable side of running her business, from home, with her two beautiful daughters.

Carly wanted an edgy portrait session that would showcase all the unique sides of her that she can use for both personal branding and business images.

Snuggliest Twins: The Heath Family

I have a soft spot for twins. I just think they’re amazing, and I have secretly always wanted one. I was dying over these beautiful boy/girl twins, and I just love the way this session came out.

Earliest Session: The Robledo Family

I didn’t do sunrise sessions in 2022 because it didn’t fit into my schedule, but special circumstances made us pivot to a sunrise for this family that I absolutely adore. They are officially the earliest session of 2022, and their kids were TOTAL rock starts the entire session.

Most “Austin Vibes” Session: The Podlewski Family

This amazing family wanted something different this year – an urban session in the heart of Austin to showcase our amazing city! I was totally here for it. Don’t you love the way they came out?

The Gilmore Girls Award of the Best Blue Eyed Mama/Daughter Duo: The Stewart Family

I have been photographing this incredible family since Mila was a newborn. Now she’s a gorgeous, joyful, spicy toddler who has a beautiful baby brother. Kylie and Mila have always given me Gilmore Girls vibes with their beautiful dark hair and bright blue eyes, so of course this award needed to go to them. Here they are at Kylie’s maternity session this past fall!

Latest Flowers of 2022: The Butler Family

I have also been photographing sweet Claire since she was a newborn, and now her mama has become one of my favorite humans in the entire world. They are expecting baby girl #2 and oh my goodness is she going to be incredible just like her big sister. We found these gorgeous flowers in MID NOVEMBER! So of course this must be celebrated.

Best Foliage: Joel + Julia, The Thomason Family, and The Thibodeaux Family

These were all taken at different parts of the season, and the foliage was equally spectacular. Light and wardrobe always play a role in the boldness of a shoot, too.

Stark sun and lots of open sky meant bold, beautiful foliage for Julia’s family.

Lots of shadows and a softer sky meant more dispersed tones for the Thomason family.

Another stark, sunny day and open sky but with a huge variety of textures makes for the perfect foliage pop for this spot, too.

Most Festive Session of 2022: The Markim Family

Another OG family who I have photographed since they were a family of three, I adore them more than words can express. This session was Baby Kacy’s 3 month milestone mini session, which Avery envisioned as a cozy Christmas at home with their family. I am dying over how they came out!

I hope it’s obvious to each and every one of you how much I love, adore, and value ALL of my clients. I am so grateful for everyone who trusted me to capture your memories in 2022! I hope you have an amazing year, and I hope to see your beautiful faces again in 2023!

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