family snuggling in bed early in morning with dog.

Family Films

What is a Day in the Life session?

September 22, 2022

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Have you ever wished you had a time machine to magically transport you back to a moment to relive from your childhood? I would give almost anything to revisit and re-feel what a day in my life looked like when I was little. To see how I moved and sounded. To see how my parents interacted with me. To hear my mom’s high-pitched laugh one more time. To witness how I was loved.

And though I don’t have the wizardry to travel back in time, I would like to think that Day in the Life film sessions are the next best thing. The memories our kids will cherish most aren’t the ones from exotic vacations that we spend the most money on today. It’s the scenes from a typical day that they will be most eager to recall.

Honestly, Day in the Life films aren’t for you; they are a love letter for your children, an investment in THEIR memories. They are to preserve the memories they were too young to remember; a time capsule to relive anytime they’d like.

This Day in the Life film is just that. It captures how a typical weekend feels and looks like for this sweet family: early morning snuggles in the bed, shenanigans that can only be shared between siblings, pancakes from a well-loved recipe book that will undoubtedly be passed down generations, tender moments with baby, young voices singing, giggling, gleefully awaiting Grandma, and all the moments in-between.

Parenting is hard, but amongst the hard, there are so many moments of pure goodness that we sometimes struggle to see when we’re in the thick of it. It’s my heartfelt wish to show all the joy that happens every day, so families can see AND relive all the love that binds them together as a family.

This, my friend, is a Day in the Life film session and why I make them.

About Me

Real people are my favorite.

It's why I appointed myself the family documentarian early on, carefully recording life unfolding, and learning along the way how much I love visual storytelling. I picked up my first professional camera when my child was born, knowing those early years were dawning and full of change — and I never looked back. I can't imagine doing anything else.

I'm a maximalist in every sense: all-in on a project or power napping, rarely anything in between. A little weird and impressively clumsy, with absolutely zero shame dancing in public. I live in Alameda (aka the Midwest of the Bay Area) with my husband, my teen, and a menagerie of animals. Fair warning: I bring my outdated 90s dance moves to every session.

My upbringing taught me to find beauty where others see ordinary. Motherhood only deepened that instinct, and I've been known to cry at the drop of a hat. Kleenex is a standing item on my packing list for newborn sessions.

I'm awkward at small talk and large groups are where I go quiet — which is exactly why you'll never find me working weddings or large events, and why you will find me completely at home in yours. I work best in the intimate, the real, and the messy.

I invest deeply in the people I work with and pour my whole heart into every session. Walking away with friendships after a session is always a major bonus — and it's the reason I love my job as much as I do.

WORK WITH ME

©Carmen dunham Photography 2026

branding by Bella Maven 

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