Apple Orchard Portraits | Silver Spring, MD
The beginning of the school year and the start of the fall season always has me running to the apple orchard. We have such a fun family day looking for the different varietals and choosing our favorite ones! There’s nothing like twisting the apple until it falls off the tree and you can add it to your bushel.
This year when we getting ready to go to the apple orchard I decided to bring along my camera so that I could capture my little one doing her thing. If you’ve been following me on social media the past few years you’ll know that she loooves to pose for the camera. From the time she was born, through all her first year up until now, she has been a little model! So we picked out an adorable dress from one of my favorite vendors, My Darling Emma, and we headed to the farm!
My favorite farm in the Maryland area is Larriland farms. They always let you know the current produce available for picking, they have clear signage and throughout the picking seasons they have so many options available. If you live anywhere near there (it’s about a 40 min drive for me) it’s definitely worth checking them out. They have so many different types in their apple orchard alone, when we went I think there were 4 available that day.
Anyway, back to the part about the portraits in the apple orchard. It was a beautiful day, and I was a little worried that the sun would be an issue, but thankfully because of the trees I didn’t have a problem capturing gorgeous images! Little Boo was having a slight meltdown when we first started because she wanted to wear her shoes and I (obviously) wanted to see her cute little toesies! With a little bit of cajoling we got her on board and she started to have a lot of fun!
Thankfully the ground wasn’t too muddy at the apple orchard because it hadn’t rained for about a week. The trees were full of colorful apples and plenty of them were low enough for her to pick. My older kids were all involved in helping me find the best apples for her to pick and carrying my gear. It was a real family effort!
The hardest part for everyone was lugging around the ever growing bag of apples that had to weigh over 50lbs! It took two of us to hold the bag as we walked around the apple orchard going from one varietal to the next. In the end our bag broke and we had to get another one to fortify it!
After we finished taking the portraits and also doing some fun slow-mo videos, it was time to head home. We had so many apples we didn’t even know what to do with them all! Fun fact; making homemade applesauce from your apple orchard haul is super simple and tastes like no other applesauce you’ve had before!
Interested in the recipe? Here is my super simple Apple Orchard abundance applesauce recipe. Take your variety of apples from the orchard and peel them. Slice them thinly and put them into a huge pot until you have enough apples to come to the top of the pot. You want to use a lot of apples because however many you put in, you’ll end up with around a 3rd of that amount when it turns into applesauce. Put a little water at the bottom of the pot and simmer for 3-4 hours until the apple break apart and cook down.
You’ll know your apple sauce is ready when the apples have broken down into small pieces and are super soft. Make sure to stir every once in a while so it doesn’t burn! The best way to enjoy your Apple Orchard Abundance Applesauce is when it’s still warm. Yum! I think I need to go make myself another batch, I’m getting jealous of my own recipe!
I’ll have to take some pictures of my applesauce next time I make it and post them here (assuming I remember) so you can get jealous and make it for yourself! My little ones are all obsessed with it as well. I’ve made 4 or 5 batches already this fall and we are no where near sick of it yet! Make sure to use a variety of apples so that it has dimension of flavor!
I’m not sure how I got so sidetracked, but here are the portraits of Little Boo at the apple orchard, living it up as she does! And if you do get around to making some homemade applesauce, let me know what you thought of it!
Oh! I forgot! I spoke with the lovely people over at Larriland farm and if you would like to do portraits on their farm (peach picking, apple picking etc) they are happy to accommodate, So if you’re looking for a fun place to do your next family, milestone, maternity etc shoot, send me an email and we can get started in making your dreams come true!
