Photo by Scott Crowder

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Photography comes naturally to Andrea, who owns Ambient Light Photography on State Street. The self-taught shutterbug started experimenting after her daughter Eva was born three years ago. She was encouraged after winning first place in an amateur photography contest in 2006, and in 2007 opened her cottage-style studio, where kids are free to roam and play to their heart’s content while Andrea follows along, using only natural light to capture their images. “It’s happened really, really fast. It was just last summer that I was still basically a stay-at-home mom,” says Andrea, who also has a one-year-old son, Troy. “It’s a big adjustment, but I’m doing what I love to do.” What she loves most is interacting with her young subjects and their families. “There’s no way you can do it without really connecting with them. I love being able to connect with them and then give them something that they are going to cherish.”