Details ETC Photography, Kentwood

Jessica Christensen has spent much of her decade-long career photographing models prone to unexplained screaming fits—babies. Families in her First Year Baby Club enjoy a year’s worth of quarterly photo sessions, which document their tot’s transformation from a baby to a baby who makes mortgage payments. For subjects with more birthdays under their belts, Christensen captures lifelong connections in vivid, high-contrast shots of parents and children or newlyweds.

Christensen also helps budding photographers to compose their own professional-quality images with hands-on photo courses. Her introductory sessions focus on camera settings on quality point-and-shoots and DSLRs alike. More advanced workshops explore the shores of Lake Michigan and other outdoor venues, and they frequently involve portraiture practice with live models, rather than the less expressive faces of text-message emoticons.