Four girls, an old wooden trunk, felted cookies spilling everywhere. The smallest one sits on the floor eating, cheeks puffed out. Her sister is doing the same thing next to her, completely absorbed. One girl wears a red cape. Another is in a shimmering blue dress. The whole thing looks lifted from a picture book, except it isn’t an illustration. These are actual kids. And the cookies scattered around them are real, too, although they are made of felt, part of a world built specifically for this moment.

Natasha Saravanja is a photographer based in the San Francisco area whose work goes beyond the typical family portrait—she builds these whole dreamy little worlds for families to play in.

Her shots sit in this perfect middle ground: not your average portrait, but almost theatrical, as if a story were happening.…