Myles Jack

This is my new friend, Myles Jack.  Myles is only one week old in these pictures!  He was so much fun to work with, and his mom came up with some great props to take pictures with.  I was so excited.  His dad works a lot with Habitat for Humanity, so I made sure to get some of the pictures of Myles in his dad's Habitat hard hat.  They turned out absolutely adorable.  Hope you enjoy!

A few more of Kelley and Brad's Wedding...

I've had so many new photos to publish lately!  This has been a really great spring season.  I'm very excited about all the new clients I have for this summer.  And it was all kicked off by Brad and Kelly who asked me to travel to the wonderful city of Covington, LA - just across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans.  (Which, by the way, did you know that the bridge from New Orleans to the Covington area is like 20 miles long???)   They had a great wedding where her dad performed the main parts of the ceremony.  She is also a Children's minister at FBC Covington and had some great tables set up for "her kids" at the reception.  Her cakes were made by Patisserie Joan, a local company in Folsom, LA.  After that reception, we scooted on over to Benedict's Plantation, an absolutely gorgeous little venue right off of the Lake Pontchartrain, for her second reception.  It was built in 1911 and later sold.  It has since been a summer house, a restaurant, and is now mainly used as a wedding and reception site.  I love places with history!  Enjoy the photos!

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This was the table she had set up for all the kids that came from FBC Covington.  She had cupcakes, fruit drinks, and bowls of candy.  I heard her tell a mom, "Well, I decided it might be the only time in my life I can sugar them up and send them home to YOU...."

Baby Evrett James

Isn't he adorable???? I had so much fun shooting these pictures.  I think his mom and dad already have him pitching in the majors!  Kim is a first time mom who was a great sport.  She let me take little Evrett all over their house to get some really great photos.  Evrett is only 2 weeks old and was also a great sport.  We even got a few pictures with Dad's baseball hat and the AMAZING "chair rail" Dad Rusty made on Evrett's nursery wall.  I loved it!  It was so creative.  I hope you enjoy!

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Mackenzie's Maternity Pics

Here is a spur of the moment maternity shoot that I did for my sister, Mackenzie.  She is due the beginning to middle of May.  We're hoping little Camryn Anne comes early, though!  Mac was a great model.  She did anything I asked...she even let me paint on her belly.

We didn't get to finish the shoot...we got all the images I wanted with just her, but I really wanted to capture some with her and her husband, Nathan.  He wasn't feeling well, so we will be finishing it up hopefully this next weekend.  Be watching for those new photos!!!!

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New Orleans Wedding!

Meet Kelley.  She is one of my really good friends.  She knew me when she used to live in the OKC area and wanted me to fly out to capture her wedding day.  I was so honored!  While getting to the church was a big mess...my GPS messed up on more than one occasion....when the big day finally arrived, it was well worth it.  Her father performed the ceremony, which made it even more special.  She and Brad were an awesome couple to work with!  Once they had seen each other before the ceremony, it was cake!  And they were so in love!  It was not hard at all to capture some special moments between the two of them.  I always say that the "cheesier" the bride and groom, the better the photos turn out.  Enjoy!

This was outside of the church - First Baptist Covington

Isn't she just an elegant bride?

OK...this is really more fitting for their personalities.

This may seem an odd placement for the rings, but there is a story.  Right after Brad and Kelley began dating, she put a bottle of orange crush on his desk with a note that said, "I have a crush on you."  So sweet!  So from there on out, they would randomly place bottles of Crush so that the other would find it. I couldn't resist!

This was by far the sweetest moment I captured.  Kelley is the Children's Minister at First Baptist Covington and these are some of her kids in her ministry who came to watch the wedding.  They couldn't see...and I couldn't resist.

á bientôt!

WPPI Las Vegas

Rachel and I the first day of WPPI

 

I just returned from one of the nation's largest photographers conventions - WPPI in Las Vegas.  I had so much fun!  I met my sister-in-law, Rachel, and some of her friends, Shannon and Lindsay.  We had a great time.  We got to hear some great speakers like Jessica Claire, Jasmine Star, Scott and Adina Hayne, and JB and DeEtte Sallee.  It's really great when once a year, you can meet with other photographers and find ways to sharpen your skills and improve your work for the next year.

My big purchase for this year was a Shootsac - which I think is going to make my life as a wedding photographer MUCH easier.  I'm really excited about it and can't wait to use it at my next wedding this month.  

I think the biggest lesson I learned is to make sure that I keep myself humble.  There are way too many photographers out there who think too highly of themselves.  My goal in photography will be to constantly improve my work and always strive to find something different to challenge myself.  I want to provide my clients with the best possible work that I can provide them with while making them feel comfortable and appreciated.  I want to try to make your wedding day as nice as I can by not adding stress to your life.  I'm really feeling refreshed and excited about what the next year has to offer and cannot wait to work harder to make my images even better.  Bring on 2010!!

Me, Shannon, Lindsay, and Rachel

á bientôt! 

How to Get the Most Out of Your Photographer, Part Three: The Reception

So, once you are finished with your formal portraits and your ceremony, the reception is quite easy!  All you have to do now is enjoy yourself and visit with your guests.....oh, and do whatever your coordinator tells you to do!

Most photographers who are covering your reception will know to cover the cutting of your cake (and when you stuff it into each other's mouths.....), your toasts, your first dances, the throwing of the bouquet, and the garter toss.  My suggestions for your reception are quite simple:

1.  Meet with your photographer and give him or her a list of the things that you will be doing.  This may consist of exactly what I've listed in the paragraph above, or it might include other things.  This is not so much to check up on your photographer or make sure that they will be available for everything.  It's more for your photographer - just to have an idea of what your reception will entail.  You should also include in your meeting the discussion of whether or not you are wanting your photographer to capture your "get-a-way."

And may I make a suggestion here?  Most of the time - especially in the winter - your "get-a-way" winds up being in the dark.  No matter how great your photographer, it's difficult to light up the entire walkway to get perfect pictures of you running to your car amidst your favorite family and friends.  One of my favorite things I have seen done to solve this problem is to have a "fake get-a-way."  The couple had everything ready for their "get-a-way" immediately following the ceremony.  They escaped to a room while their guests assembled themselves outside of the church, and then once everyone was in place - rose petals in hand - the couple ran out to their car.  After they had "left," the guests went to their cars to head to the reception site.  The couple drove around in their car for a few minutes, then headed to the reception site and received the same introduction as most do at their reception.  I thought this was genius because the pictures I took were in the afternoon sunlight and turned out beautiful!

2.  If you have plenty of guests and specific ones that you want pictures of, designate one of your friends or family who can point out guests that they know you would want a picture of.

3.  Once you have taken care of all of your "duties" during the reception (ie - cake cutting, etc.), enjoy yourself!  Your photographer should be capturing your first moments as husband and wife.  Be gushy, lovey dovey, and kiss lots.  Those are the best pictures!

4.  Get outta dodge!  And enjoy your honeymoon!

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