JL Keeney Photography, Portsmouth

For Lisa, the inspiration to become a photographer came from a very personal place: her children. The young mother couldn't help but capture her kids' development through each stage of their lives, and found herself making monthly treks to corporate photo studios. When she realized that the images and customer-service experiences that resulted didn’t make the time and cost worth it, she dusted off her old camera, brushed up on her high-school photography lessons, and got to work. What came out was hardly amateur: vivid, light-soaked images of gazing toddlers, slumbering infants, and smiling families.

Today, Lisa's six children motivate her—and prepare her for calming rambunctious subjects—during portrait sessions, which can chronicle kids from birth to their senior year of high school or capture entire families. Before all shoots, she consults with clients to customize sessions.