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???

WANT A FREE CAMERA?!!!

This is for all of my shutterbug friends out there! There's a great contest going on and you're gonna want to enter!! I remember when that first camera was so far out of my reach. I dreamed about it, prayed about it, cried about it, lusted over it...I knew that if only I could get my hands on a good camera, it would set a new course for me. Sounds dramatic, but I know some of you out there know what I'm talking about. God has given you the talent, you just need the tools. Well, here's something that might help you out!

The LIFE Foundation is having a photo contest on Flickr and the grand prize is......

A Canon T1i, 12.2 Megapixel Digital SLR Camera!!! (This is an $800 value!) How cool is that?! I really don't know this camera, but I shoot Cannon and I love it! And it sounds like a great piece of gear. And it's FREE!! Nothin's better than FREE!! But you have to hurry! They are only taking submissions during the month of Sept. That means you only have about 1 -1/2 weeks to go out there and capture the winning photo!! Click on the link for all of the details, and good luck!! If any of my readers win, please let me know! I would love to share with everyone and post your winning photo on my blog!!

http://www.lifehappens.org/photocontest

CHRIS & JENNIFER'S BEAUTIFUL DAY

Jennifer and Chris' wedding day was a little more eventful than some weddings I've done. I showed up at the hairdresser's that morning to find our beautiful bride, Jennifer, had come down with food poisoning!! She was sick, sick, sick! I felt so sorry for her. But thankfully she was able to get treated and rested. And then minutes before the ceremony was to take place she was able to throw her dress and a smile on, and walk down the isle as if the day had went just as planned. She was as calm and stunning as any bride I've seen. The skies cleared up and the rain never came, the couple was gorgeous and the day was a complete success. Everyone was so happy. It truly was a beautiful day ;)
Oh, I forgot to mention, Jennifer is a pastry chef and made her own wedding cake! Wow! And something I thought was so cute...they met while they both worked at the movie theater. So how cute is it that they decided to throw popcorn for the exit?!

Just when you think they couldn't get any cuter......

I love doing children's sessions, but with weddings keeping me so busy, I don't get the chance to do many any more. So I was really excited to do Sabrina's pictures, and then Luke and Emma's the next day. (If these two look familiar it's because they've been all over my website. It's been a while, though, and they've grown up a bit.) I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say that these are some of the cutest kids in the world!!!! Luke is a natural model, and is so easy to photograph. Emma, on the other hand, didn't want anything to do with the idea of me taking her picture! At least not at first. But after a while, she was fine and we had a great time together feeding the goats at Young's. Wow, I miss that place! Lots and lots of fun memories there!!! You would think with as much as I travel back and forth that I wouldn't have time to get homesick. But looking at these pictures makes me a little sad. But, talk to me about it again in a couple of months and I'll remember why we moved!

Just for fun......boy how time flies!! (Check out Emma! She didn't like her picture taken back then either! lol)

Little Sabrina's Photo Shoot

Ok, there's "cute"...and then there's "oh, my goodness gorgeous!" Sabrina fell into the latter category! (She reminds me so much of Brianna and Makayla when they were little.) Her mom was so afraid that she wouldn't want her picture taken. Ha! She was a natural. I honestly had so many images that I loved, it was hard for me to choose which ones to post. (Recognize that handsome young man with her? He's on my website. You'll be seeing more of him up next.)

Destination Wedding - Outer Banks - Hatteras (part 2)

The second part of this Hatteras post is my favorite! The dress that Kelli chose for her trash the dress session was just perfect! And the evening light was some of the most beautiful light I've ever shot in. It was so much fun! I want to give a big "thank you" to Emily Grace for allowing me to use her music on the slideshow. Bryan and I ran into Emily in Chattanooga this summer. She was playing her music on the street and the sound of her sweet voice just captivated us! I was an instant fan! So I was thrilled when she said I could use her stuff for my site! You'll definitely be hearing a lot more of her on here (and on my website)! You can check out a sample of her stuff on myspace (click on her name above).

Destination Wedding - Outer Banks, NC - Hatteras

I have so much to share about this next destination that I've decided to put it into two posts. There is just too much to share to do it all at once.

After I got back from Jamaica I had a day to rest and then I was off to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. I was super excited to shoot this wedding. I've seen pictures of the Outer Banks (Cape Hatteras, Ocracoke Island, etc.) and the look of it is different than other beaches I've been to. This island had a whole different feel than the Caribbean. In Jamaica the sand was white and the water was calm and clear. It was peaceful and laid back. Even the colors of the evening sky were soft blue and calming. But Hatteras had a whole different vibe. It was beautiful, but in a different way. The island was so intriguing to me. It was beautiful and mysterious. While visiting on Ocracoke island, which is a ferry ride away from Hatteras, we learned that Black Beard had once owned a home there. I didn't know until I got home and did a little research, but there were many ruins of ship wrecks right on the beaches where we were! I can't believe we were so close and didn't know about them. I also didn't get a chance to see the wild horses that run the island. They are decedents of horses that were survivors of shipwrecks hundreds of years ago. All that kind of stuff just intrigues me.  Hatteras has ended up being one of my favorite places I've been.  And between the tall grasses, the sand dunes, and the spectacular sunsets there were just endless places to photograph. I think another reason I liked it so much was because some of my friends and family got to go with me this time. We rented a huge house and they all hung out and did their own thing while Bryan and I worked. It was a lot of fun. These are just some of the images from the wedding day. The day after that we had an amazing trash the dress session that I can't wait to post. I'll share those and the slideshow next post.