I had a wonderful Mother’s Day here at home with my family. But a little part of me wanted to be a fly on the wall at a house down the street…

A thoughtful husband hired me to secretly photograph his children as a surprise for his wife on Mother’s Day. Coordinating the effort was a little like planning a secret mission. Many emails and a couple of calls later, the plan was set. I picked the kids up and we went to several previously-agreed upon locations where we shot some wonderful images. Then quickly back to their house where they pretended to have walked the dog, done homework, etc.  — all before their mom got home.

They must be amazing actors!

The husband chose his favorite images via email and we collaborated on two stunning composites. One of them is pictured below. Does the setting look familiar? It’s the magnificent Al. Ringling Theater in Baraboo. A gem of a theater! You can read more about it here.

All reports indicate that we were successful in our mission: the mom was as surprised as she could be!