Cheryl Jacobs is a Denver-based photographer who describes her children's portraiture as, "honest, respectful, rarely traditional, and often humorous." She loves working with people of all ages, but she especially enjoys her younger subjects, and devotes most of her time to capturing the many faces of childhood.

"It's not that smiling children aren't adorable," she explains. "But children have so many other moods and expressions that are beautiful, too. I will never tell a child to smile. I want to capture them being coy, curious, introspective, pouty...however they feel at the moment."

As the mother of three young children, Cheryl finds it easy to connect with her subjects. "We tell jokes, whisper secrets, make faces, whatever they like. Sometimes we just have a good talk. At the end of the session, children often ask if they can stay a little longer!"

Although Cheryl specializes in black and white images, she also employs a variety of other techniques to emphasize the whimsical nature of her subjects, including hand coloring and cross processing. Whatever technique she chooses, the focus is always on the child.

Cheryl is available for commissioned portraits, either in her studio or on location. Her fine art prints can be purchased directly through her website. Many of her images are also available for commercial use.