Jamie

I'm finally finishing up the last of my seniors.  I had so much fun with all of them.  Jamie was another one of them that was so easy to photograph.  He has such a sweet, shy personality.  And such a sweet face!  I told his mom he reminded me of the kind of guy that would play the guitar and write sweet love songs for his girlfriend.  Jamie, if you don't play the guitar, take my advise, get lessons.  You'll break some hearts. ;) 

Snow in Chattanooga!!

Saturday morning we woke up to the coolest surprise!  Snow!!!  I know I always say how much I hate the winter.  But I do love the snow (if that makes any sense).  I just hate the cold.  And the days and days and days of no sunshine.  And everything being frozen.  And having to chop wood for the fireplace to keep warm.  And the slush the day after the snow.  (I could keep going, I have a long list).  But nothing is prettier when the snow is coming down and is freshly on the ground.  And what's cool about having snow in the south is that everyone here is excited.  All the kids in our neighborhood were out bright and early.  We had snowball fights and hot chocolate (and of course my camera) and it was wonderful!  And the best part of all.... it was gone by noon and the sun was shining again!    

Christmas Card Designs

Ok, one last post for the day (I can't ever remember when I've been able to do 3 post in one day!)  But I just had to finish up with this little cutie-patootie!  In between editing seniors and weddings I've been working on a few Christmas card designs.  Is he not the cutest?!  (After showing these to my husband and hearing him gasp over the first picture, I thought I should note...his mommy's hands were directly out of the frame, and only for the few seconds it took for me to get the shot. lol!)

Shelton

2 posts in one day!  I'm on a roll!  Shelton was another one of my "ganster guys".  I loved Shelton's shoot.  So urban, so cool.  (I know I say this all of the time, but I get to photograph the most beautiful people.  They make my job so easy!)  

Sam

I know I'm the most boring blogger ever.   Life just gets so busy that it's sometimes hard to keep up!  I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season.  We had a wonderful time with family in Ohio, but it was a bitter-sweet week, as a dear cousin of mine passed away a few days before Thanksgiving.  As sad as it was, we know where he is and are rejoicing with his family and look forward to seeing him again one day.   

On another note, I'm still traveling A LOT!  I barely get my suitcase unpacked before I'm back on the road again.  But I have a lot of sneak peeks that people are waiting on and wanted to post some before I got into anything else.  I'll start with Sam.  He's one of my "gangster guys".  I had so much fun photographing those boys ;)  And they were a perfect match for my dad's old car..... I love that car ;)  (And I love a guy in a suit.  So handsome, Sam!)

Max

Everyone's crazy 'bout a sharp-dressed man...... 

A lot of the time when I photograph seniors I never get the chance to meet them until the day of the shoot.  Which was the case with Max.  So when he stepped out of the car you can see why I was pretty excited.  I loved his whole look.  He looked like he stepped right off of a GAP poster!  Which makes my job pretty easy and a lot fun! 

Ryan

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I'm working my way through all of the seniors.  1/2 down 1/2 to go!  Ryan's shoot was another one that has so many diverse looks.  Is he on a farm, in the woods, or at the beach?  Actually we were all of those places.  Only the beach was actually on the farm!!  Pretty cool!

The rest of Willie...

Just a few more of Willie before I move on.  His shoot was so much fun!!  I do want to make a disclaimer on the last post of him and his buddies though.  They are all paint gunning buddies.  So, of course, the guns in the last pictures are "paint guns".  I may be over thinking it a little, but the way society is today, I just didn't want anyone to get offended or to get a wrong impression of who these young men are.  These are an awesome group of guys who like to play paint ball....so they thought the gangster pics would be fun.  Anyway...no animals (or photographers) were harmed in the making of these pictures ;) 

Bad Boys, Bad Boys, Whacha Gonna Do....

This is why I love shooting seniors!  I actually think I was pretty brave to be on the other end of those guns.  I almost got shot one time when they were goofing around (yeah, remember guys?) I had a great time with Willie and the boys.  I've got tons of editing to do and I know a lot of you are looking and waiting to see your pics come up.  I'm working like crazy and hopefully will have a new post every couple of days, so hang tight, not too much longer ;)

HAPPY GOTCHA DAY!!!!

3 years ago yesterday we were experiencing one of the most exciting days of our lives.  "Gotcha Day"!  The day we met our daughter for the first time.  In some ways it seems like a lifetime ago. I love this day because it causes me to stop the crazy business of my life and just reflect on the miracle that God has done for us.  I never want to forget what He has brought us through.  Thank you, too, to all of our friends and family for all of your love and support.  I am so blessed to have the best family and friends in the world.  I mean that.  I wouldn't trade my life with anyone's.  Words cannot express how much I love and appreciate you.  And Happy Gotcha day to all of our friends from China!  

Katie in the summer...Katie in the fall!

Katie has the most diverse senior pictures that I've ever done!  We started this past summer when her sister got married in the Outer Banks.  Then we finished up this fall in Ohio.  The only thing missing is pictures in the snow!!  Looking at the summer pictures makes me long to be back in Hatteras!!  I love the different seasons, but most of my days I'm daydreamin' about the beach! 

Candice & Ryan ~ Finally!

I can't believe it's been another whole month since I've posted.   Time goes by so quickly (especially when you're traveling, shooting, shooting, traveling...it's hard to keep track of what state I'm in.)  But I'm so excited to finally be able to post Candice & Ryan's pictures.  It's hard to believe that this gorgeous bride is our Candice!  Wow!  She looked just like a Barbie Doll!  And Ryan looked like something out of GQ.  They do look adorable together!  Even though she wasn't feeling well after the ceremony, I talked her and Ryan into going out to do a little photo shoot at one of my favorite places in the world.  We ended up having a great time and got some awesome shots!  So happy! :)  Your slideshow will be coming soon, guys.  I'm heading out in the morning for another wedding, but will try my best to get it posted before I leave!

SHE SAID YES!!! Tom & Libby's Engagement!

Just one look at these pictures and you can see why I was super excited to shoot this session!  When I got the phone call from Tom asking me if I was available to do a shoot for him and his girlfriend for their 3 year anniversary I was like "Awe, how cute".  But then when he told me that during the middle of the shoot he was going to ask her to marry him, I was thinking "What?", Are you kidding me?  Yes!!"  I was excited, but also a little nervous.  I had never shot anything like that before and was just nervous with the anticipation and excitement of it all.  And honestly I was a little concerned that I might get caught up in the moment and miss something (really, I was afraid I might cry).  But everything went just as planned.  Actually, better than planned.  The sunflower field is down the road from where we used to live in Ohio.  I loved driving by the field in the summer and enjoying the bright burst of yellow as far as you could see.  The flowers are actually only in bloom for a couple of weeks, and then they are gone until the next year.  So, neither Tom nor I had a clue that they were there until we got to our location to shoot!  How cool was that?!  What girl do you know gets proposed to in a field of sunflowers?!  That was way too good for Pastor Tom to plan on his own (I'm sure he had a little help from above!).   After shooting in town for about an hour, we decided to head to the field.  Once I found the perfect spot, I gave Tom an "ok" by saying our pre-planned code "This is a perfect location."  Which then he would say "There's only one thing missing...."  And that's when he got down on his knee...and, well, you can see what happened.  So sweet!  One of my most memorable shoots this year!  Tom and Libby, thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of it!!

Brandon and Kelli's Reception

Just a few shots from Brandon and Kelli's reception. I thought it couldn't be any more fun when I shot their wedding in Hatteras, but they brought a little of the beach home with them! Once again, no detail was left undone. There were so many it was impossible to get them all in! Don't you just love all the bright, fun colors?!

Better Homes and Gardens - Here we come!!

Ok, I may be jumping the gun just a bit with that title, but hopefully not! Have you ever seen such a beautiful place?! My new friends, the Wolters, have a house that is something right out of Better Homes and Gardens!! The first time I entered their beautiful garden (which by the way is called "Tooth Acres", pretty clever since he's a dentist) I knew this place needed to be in a magazine for others to enjoy! So when they hired me to photograph their son's wedding (Brandon and Kelli in Outer Banks) and the reception at their home, and take photographs of their garden to hopefully get published in a magazine, I was more than super excited!!! These are just a sample of the images I got of the house the day of the reception. Every inch of this property exemplifies the hospitable personalities of it's owners. From the moment you step foot out of your car, every sense is catered to (soft jazz playing throughout the garden and the smell of flowers and scented candles everywhere (she even has candles lit outside). And literally everywhere your eyes can look there is a surprise, some cute little trinket, a secret sitting area, another garden... It's the kind of place where you don't know whether to roam and explore or just hide away in one of the many secret sitting areas and prop your feet up and take a nap. And check out what she did for the wedding day!! A plant bride!! Have you ever???