In Bloom Photography

6 Months of Sweet Ava :: Abilene Children's Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2012-01-24T11:52:00.003-06:00

I'm telling you, I've just had a big, huge dose of adorableness in my studio here recently! These little girly sessions are just killing me with cuteness! Ava was no exception!!! She was such a champ to let Mommy change her so many times and still be happy for her photos! Her eyes are just gorgeous.... I'd kill for her eyelashes.... which have BEEN long and luxurious since her newborn session!! :) I just love it when families choose my first year package.... I get to watch them grow and change! Wonder what 9 months will bring?! :)

A few with Daddy's Airforce football gear!!! So stinkin' cute!!!

This just cracks me up!!! What a cutie!!

Kinley Turns 1!! :: Abilene Children's Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2012-01-21T22:09:00.004-06:00

I started photographing little Kinley while she was in her mommy's belly! I got to do her newborn, 6month, and now her one-year photo sessions and man, what fun to watch her grow and change!! I'm loving my little indoor studio space during these winter months!! With the West Texas weather being so hit or miss (usually a combination of windy and/or cold)... it really seems to be working out great to keep these sweet babies warm and toasty!! Kali (mom) did such a great job on her big cupcake smash-cake! I'm actually putting something very simliar together for my Lyla Grace's one year session here any day now! :) I love how she made all the fun colors inside so that the icing didn't stain Kinley's clothes! Smart mama! :) Hope you enjoy these... I sure enjoyed taking them!

I'm loving the combination of dimples and double chin in this one!!

Kaitlin :: Expecting Abilene Photographer, Abilene Maternity Photographer

2012-01-15T21:37:00.005-06:00

Kaitlin and Richard are expecting their first baby girl in about 5 weeks or so. Richard surprised K with my In Bloom & Baby Bud package a while back for her birthday..... though we hadn't met yet, immediately he scored points with me for doing that for his wife!! We had a beautiful session this evening, despite the crazy wind! I'm excited to complete this preview as we got a ton of great shots!! For now, here are two of my favorites so far!!! :) Be back with more!

She has amazing eyes... piercing blue! No enhancing here other than the actions I ran on the entire image.. on any of these actually!

Very excited to meet this little lady and take her newborn portraits too! Wishing you a blessed birth Kaitlin... Keep me posted!! :)

My "Daily Joy" Project.... Day 3

2012-01-15T21:33:00.002-06:00

This little pug has recently stolen my heart... "Chopper" is about 11 weeks old now and we just adore him! He has a face only a mother could love!! Captured this shot early this morning after his wild and crazy hour.... crashed out on the couch and I thought this little mug was a fitting subject for my little project!! :)

My "Daily Joy" Project.... Day 2

2012-01-14T20:21:00.002-06:00

Today was a special day for my daughter Elyse! One of her besties, Meredith, was celebrating her 4th birthday with a very girly tea party at 3 o'clock! Elyse could hardly wait and I think every hour of today felt like 3 to her. I arranged for a play date for Trystan so just us girls could attend and we got all dolled up and went over! I had the BEST of intentions of play photographer-mommy at the party.... hunting for adorable moments between the girls to capture for posterity. I was feeling super excited and motivated... well.................. I forgot one major element......... Lyla Grace. :) I'd have my one year old with me at the birthday party, and of course she was in a terrible mood due to a cruddy nap this afternoon. (((sighhhhhh))) Nevertheless, I managed to snap a few and this was my favorite... my beautiful princess all adorned in her jewels and sparkle! She's loved jewelry and glam since she was old enough to reach for my earrings or necklace. Oh, how I love her..... she is my joy!

My "Daily Joy" Project....

2012-01-13T13:46:00.005-06:00

So everywhere you turn these days, photographers & mom-ographers are doing these "365" projects or "52" projects where every day or once a week they are taking a picture of something meaningful to them..... or perhaps there is a theme for some "thing" they are working on photography-wise or WHATEVER... you get the idea. For the longest time I just looked and admired thinking, "Awww, what a great idea.... maybe some day I'll have time to do that?!" and kept on going. I'm usually not one to jump on the band wagon.... but usually by the time I get around to deciding that something is great idea it's been done and it's old news!! Well, this will be no different. I'm finally going to MAKE the time to pick up my camera daily.... for at least a month... and take some photos of the things that bring me joy. Prepare yourself for lots of pictures of my children and new puppy, Chopper...... and FOOD! Mostly... I just want to pick up my camera for myself and hopefully renew the joy I feel when taking pictures that are mine to keep. I'm not going to stress the composition, editing, or anything technical... I'm just going to shoot some of my daily goings on and see what I can discover. I'm really excited and the whole idea just gives me a peaceful feeling inside. Too many times my clients ask me "Gee, you must just take hundreds of photos of your own kids huh?" This is then followed with me lowering my head in self-loathing and say... "Yea, you'd think so eh?" I beat myself up for seeing the camera as work and not wanting to pick it up when I enter my own four walls. Of course, I LOVE my job... but like the shoemaker who has no shoes.... I tend to just stick the camera up on the shelf and clock out. So- that ends today... if I miss a day then so be it! Maybe I'll get crazy and post two photos the next day or something!!?! :) I hope you'll check back from time to time to see what I've been up to (mostly because I need the accountability!). I'm just excited to bring a little bit more of myself and my world into my blog!! It should be a lot of fun!

Day One: This week has been a great week for me. I got to have a day alone in Abilene to bum around and run some errands and have lunch with a new photographer buddy! I'm a girlfriendy kinda girl so that does wonders in recharging my batteries! Then this morning, I got the kids off to school, got Lyla down for her nap, and made a batch of my most favorite pastry on the planet... Orange Chocolate-Chip scones!!!!! Really... they are one of the yummiest things I've ever put in my mouth and I make them way too infrequently! Thought these were a perfect way to start off my month of joy-filled photos! :)

New Year Girls- 2012 :: Abilene Senior Portrait Photographer, San Angelo Senior Portrait Photographer

2012-01-12T17:59:00.005-06:00

Since moving to the little town of Sweetwater, I've had the opportunity to photograph a handful of lovely high school ladies every December for the annual New Year Girl competition. What's a New Year Girl... well, the girls are nominated by their peers, they have head shots taken, and the images are submitted to a random judge (this year, I believe it will be a pro football player... who? not sure!). The girls are judged on how photogenic they are... and man, I'm sure this is not an easy choice. I had 7 lovely ladies this year... and if the rest of the girls are anything like these.... that judge is going to have a ROUGH time deciding who takes the cake! I wish all of you the best of luck! You are beautiful.... no judge necessary!

Elise...

Seriously... this light couldn't have been any more beautiful... warm and dreamy! Not to mention Miss Elise workin' the serious face! Well done sister!

Caroline....

Megan...

Candice....

Taylor....

Shelby...

There's nothing like a sun-filled storm drain!! Beautiful!

Blake...

Rylan is One!! Abilene Children's Photographer, San Angelo Children's Photographer

2012-01-07T20:28:00.001-06:00

I got to shoot with this little dude this morning in honor of his first birthday!! He was so fun to watch as he toddled around my little studio space! This is not a complete post... I also photographed his 3 older siblings... but in the effort of keeping up with the blog... thought I'd just share these quick peeks for his Mommy here as well as my Facebook fan page! :) Enjoy!

Cutie-pie, showin' off!

Lauren- 3 Months Old... :: Abilene Children's Photographer, Sweetwater Photographer

2012-01-05T21:25:00.003-06:00

Well right about now I'm congratulating myself for blogging 2 nights in a row!! I'm wondering if I can keep this momentum going and get back to blogging each session as I go?! Hmmmm... something to strive for!

So, this little lady-cakes is Lauren... and this session was in honor of her 3 month milestone! So fun to see her growing and changing... her little personality was just oozing all over the place as she cooed and giggled at her mommy!! We started in her nursery where she was super happy!! Being a 3 month old... the happy faded rather quickly and when we got to my little studio space she was sleepy and just not having it! Thankfully, I had a clear day so I sent the princess home to get her rest and they came back an hour or so later.... fresh, happy, and ready to show us some more of her sweet smiles! I'm so blessed to get to document her entire first year.... next time I see her for photos she'll be sitting up and maybe even scooting around!?! Time flies... ((sigh))!!?!

Loved this serious face!!!

So sweet... looking forward to playing with this gorgeous little antique stroller again at her 6 month session!!!

Love this face!!!!

Love it! I guess she was about done with me here! And how funny is her little crown bling!!?! Too cute!

Hadley- 19 Days New :: Abilene Newborn Photographer, Snyder Newborn Photographer

2012-01-04T13:46:00.004-06:00

Well, the holiday madness is over and 2012 is underway already! Hard to believe it's January. Last holiday season was my busiest yet and that did not even include a jaunt to South Florida?! As much as I missed seeing all my clients at the beach, it was great to stay and focus my efforts here.

As usual, my blog get neglected when the volume of sessions ramps up. I need to collect some favorites from my late November/December sessions to share them with you here... but for now... I'd like to introduce you to Miss Hadley. This fuzzy little angel came to me 19 days old, and a week overdue... so really, it was like working with a baby that was almost a month old! For my fellow newborn photographers, you know that is not the easiest task that ever was! Hadley took her time making her debut and when she did, it was just in time for me to leave for Wisconsin for the holiday. Her mommy brought her to me just as soon as I returned and I must say... she did so very well for being completely out of that sleepy, curly newborn phase!!! As you can see from this preview... I kept the poses fairly simple... didn't move her too much once I got her comfy. It did NOT take much to wake her up!! Thank you Chelsea & Greg for sharing her with me! I bless you with sleep, the perfect latch, and some quiet family time in these early months together! :)

The princess shot!

Thanks to my sweet friend Jeanie Bohall who made this adorable pom-pom hat!! It was perfect for her!

Would you look at that fuzzy arm??! I just love it!

And thanks to the fabulous Studio412 Boutique for this adorable upcycled hat as well as the other sweet head bands and crown you see here! Whitney- you rock!! I can't resist your creations and may go broke one of these days! :)

Some of the Fun Over the Last Few Weeks :: Abilene Family Photographer, Snyder Family Photographer

2011-11-12T21:42:00.004-06:00

I could eat her UP!

The Chapman crew... LOVE this family to pieces!!

Rehearsing their silly faces... too funny!

The Von Atzigen family.... near and dear to my family's hearts! These are our Pastors and dear friends... such fun for me to get to shoot their beautiful family's photos! :)

Love how Miss Brenna is "workin' it" for the camera!!

I am always captivated by Brant's eyes and his sprinkle of amazing freckles! :)

Caden is one of the funniest kids you'll ever meet... but I must say he did a great job of playing it "cool" for the camera!

Here's one where is true colors are shining through!! :) Too funny!

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE!

The lovely Sydni...

Sweet sisters.... :) Little Davis was loving being in that basket!

Above and Below: Couldn't decide which I liked better.... ?!

Part 1 of Hannah's Senior Portraits.... what a gorgeous girly... I've been waiting for 2 years to do Hannah's Senior session.... managed to squeeze her in at the last minute Thursday night... wanted to get her to this gorgeous spot and it's best in the evening light! We are getting together this week in the morning to do a few more urban-inspired shots too!

At the very end of our time together... the moon was rising right next to this little "cliff"... can't wait to bring her back out during the spring and bring some off-camera lighting for this type of scene...

And that's all for this moment... have 4 sessions this weekend and a wedding preview that I'll need to add in... stay tuned and as always, thanks for stopping by and for your great comments! :)

The Majkowski Family... :: Hamlin Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2011-10-22T14:39:00.003-05:00

I met with the Majkowski family last night in Hamlin to do part 2 of our "Mommy Bloom & Baby Bud" package! You might remember Jasmine & family from her maternity session about 9 months ago!! It was so fun to get to see them again and see how everyone's grown! Little Chandler is 8 month old.... and mama wanted to wait and instead of doing newborn pictures, do this sweet age instead! As much as I LOVE newbie pics, this was such a great alternative. The 8-10 month age is just so much fun... oodles of personality and spunk! Talk about a fabulous little nook for pictures too!! Tons of possibility and I can't wait to go back to play a bit more... probably with a Senior or two coming up here soon!

Chandler is over the moon for his big brother!! So fun watching them interact!

What a handsome guy... I just LOVE his hair!!!

Such cute little "toothies" in there!

{SWOOOOON!}

Cutie.... :)

Just a tiny sneak peek! Until next time....

The New Mr. & Mrs. Whitmire... :: Abilene Wedding Photographer, San Angelo Wedding Photographer

2011-10-19T17:29:00.006-05:00

What a beautiful journey I've had with Lauren & Aaron over the last year!! Aaron proposed right before the Christmas holiday last year and just after it, I found myself (and my 2 week old, Lyla) in the William's home doing a photography consult. I had the privelege of walking along-side this sweet couple to capture their engagement photos and then Lauren's bridal portraits... and then finally, the big day!! Abilene Christian University's Chapel on the Hill provided a gorgeous back drop for the ceremony, and the "par-tay" followed at the Abilene Country club! This wedding just seemed extra sweet because Lauren & Aaron have been together since they were young teenagers!! So encouraging to see that young love does prosper when it's right!!! :)

Need to pay a huuuge thank you to my sweet photographer bud (who was 6.5 months preggo) Micah Schmidt who was an amazing second shooter for this wedding! Ugh, what will I do without you in the future Micah! What a joy it was to have you alongside me! :)

To the Williams & Whitmire family... thank you so very much for having us... it was an honor to document this very exciting year in your children's lives and I'm excited to get the phone call for a maternity shoot somewhere down the line (ha ha, but I'm totally serious!!)! :)

Lauren's Mom requested this shot.... I always love to see who really gets into it... the award clearly goes to the gentleman on the right! Nice job! :)

These two little sweeties looked like little fluffy marshmallows walking down the isle!!! LOVE! :)

I don't think Aaron's smile could have been any bigger!!!! :)

It's official!!!!!

Lauren's Dad ever-so-lovingly presented Aaron with a Texas Longhorns hat as a sort of initiation into the family... and being a Tech fan, Aaron graciously accepted like a good new son-in-law should!! :)

The father-daughter dance was QUITE the event at this wedding! As you can see from the middle image above... after about 3 minutes of traditional dancing, the music abruptly changed several times to several different styles of music and the bride and her Dad busted some serious moves... including the lawn mower, the fish hook & reel in, and the tango! The whole room was rolling as they watched!!! Too cute!

The photo booth was also a big highlight... I couldnt' resist taking a few pictures of the guests striking their poses! This one of Lauren & Aaron was hysterical!

One more family hug before the evening was over....

And they're off... to a romatic honeymoon in the Bahamas!!

Lauren & Aaron... God bless you both as you begin this new life together!! My best marriage advice I can offer is this:

1. Don't sweat the small stuff... none of it matters anyway!!
2. Do make date-night a priority... get dressed up and Aaron, come to the door and pick her up every now and then (trust me, after kids the concept of date-night will take on a whoooole new meaning!).
3. Do keep the Lord in the center of your marriage... invite Him in daily to the walls of your home and hearts.
4. Do learn each other's love language and get fluent!!! :)

Love to you both....

The Cherry Family.. Abilene Family Photographer, Sweetwater Photographer

2011-10-18T19:38:00.005-05:00

Well, let me just say that there is no shortage of beautiful families in West Texas.... and the Cherry fam is no exception!! Gibson, aka "Gibby" had fun trudging through the brush with his Dad and exploring! I was so excited to use my "newsed" purple sofa for this session... Jenny requested it a few weeks ago while we were planning for their session!! I think it turned out pretty well... though I may go a bit darker?!! Not sure! Hope you enjoy this session's images... :)

Gibson is such a great mix of both of his parents... :)

Love this!

Gibson's got a golf stance like you wouldn't believe!! :) Was just hoping he didn't smack Mommy in the face!! (He didn't!)

This shot makes ME giggle like I'm the one being tickled!!!

So handsome!

Miss Davis.... Abilene Children's Photographer, Snyder Children's Photographer

2011-10-18T14:43:00.003-05:00

This little sweetie was so much fun to photograph! Davis was the first lil' lady (non-newborn) that I got into my little studio space to play with this gorgeous and girly backdrop! I just love how these pics came out!! Of course, we had to venture outside to play too... we'll be finishing up this session by adding her big sister, Sydny into the mix next week! She's a beauty too, so I'm really excited to take pictures of them together!! :) For now, here are a few of my favorites from our session! :)

Is she cute or what? I am proud to say I made her head band flowers!!! Her Mom loved them both so much that she actually bought both of them!! Looks like I have a new little side gig!

It's so cute how babies at this age (7-8 months) go through a little "sticking out their tongue stage!!" ADORABLE!

One of my faves.... :)

Mommy loved this sofa in my studio space... had to take a few on it too! :)

There's that little tongue again!!

Sweetie... :)

The Dodd Family... :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2011-10-18T10:04:00.004-05:00

This gorgeous family has been on my "families I'd looooove to shoot with" for a while now!! They bid on and won a gift certificate for a mini-session I donated last year and cashed in a few weeks ago! We literally took maybe 30-40 mins to shoot this session... and man, was I happy with the results! I'll be adding a few more to this post, but for now here are a few of my favorites!! :)

Love the faces!! :)

Such a beautiful family.... :)

Natural Light Studio Fun.... :: Abilene Children's Photographer, Abilene Newborn Photographer

2011-10-08T10:42:00.004-05:00

So, just thought I'd share a few images I recently shot of my girls in a natural light studio studio!! I've been slowly but surely been working on setting myself up indoors for a while now with a set up like this... modern and fun back drops, faux wood floors, vintage props,etc. I mean, after all we do live in Texas and it gets COLD here (remember, I'm from South Florida), so another option for kids during the winter months, baby milestone sessions, etc. is a great idea! So far, I've acquired about 6 fun back drops like this one (see below for your options) and have a whole storage space full of fun vintage props... so stay tuned for more images like this in the future! I'm really enjoying this style of photography and look forward to more opportunities to experiment with some sweet lil' faces!

My Lyla Grace, 9 months!

My fashion model, Elyse! Is she delicious or what?!!!

Here are some of your choices so far:

Ok, so I like damask..... so sue me!! :)

A Few Recent Faves.... :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Photographer

2011-10-06T14:01:00.007-05:00

Some days blogging feels next to impossible?? For the month of October, I have 17 sessions booked and I just have no idea how on earth I'll blog them?? Facebook seems so much easier these days, but I love being able to see them nice a big here! Just thought as a nice in between, I'd upload and share a handful of my faves from recent sessions.... or should I say, some of my favorites that are already formatted, logo stamped (ok maybe not all of them?), and sitting on my desktop!!! :) This way, those of you that may be stopping in for the first time can see a sample what I've been up to recently! :) Perhaps I'm onto something here!!!?! :)

One of my most favorite shots ever.... what gorgeous kids in dreamy warm light... LOVE!

Little Miss Lauren Kay... will be doing her full session on Monday! I was so excited to get my antique pram out for a spin before it gets too cold!

This is Lauren's beautiful Mommy... I love love love this shot!

Sweet Brailey.... So snuggly!

The beautiful raven-haired Claire.... have you ever seen such a beautiful head hair on a newborn??!

Miss Brynleigh.. born 10 pounds of love and squish! What a doll she was to photograph!!

Taelyn & Emery... my 2nd set of twins in almost 6 years of photography.... are they sweet or what?!

Loved this shot of Genae... one of my Seniors from last spring! I really need to do a Senior post with selections from all my senior sessions... I don't think I've blogged a'one!?

One of my lovely 2010 brides... Ann, one her wedding day in South Florida!

The new Mr. & Mrs. Whitmire.. my most recent bride and groom! They had a lovely wedding in Abilene, Tx at the ACU Chapel on the Hill!! Watch for their wedding preview to come in a week or two!

The cutest little cowboy that ever was, Michael, at our final session celebrating his first birthday! I've had such an great time documenting his milestones during his first year!!

The adorable George family.... looking mighty good on my new beautiful sofa!

Miss Kinley, celebrating her 6 month milestone!!

Little Addie, what a love, had a great "Mommy & Me" session with them!

Justin & Ashley.... who's wedding colors matched my sofa beautifully!! :)

The Eaker family... I just love them, they were my first clients in West Texas... watching these boys grow and loving it!

My beautiful nieces & nephew... who came to visit over the summer! I just love their little faces and miss them terribly! We are so excited to get to spend Christmas in Wisconsin with them this year!!

My pretty Elyse... she was helping me test my light before a newborn session.... I could stare at her baby blues all day!

The New Mrs. Whitmire... :: Abilene Wedding Photographer, Snyder Wedding Photographer

2011-09-30T21:14:00.003-05:00

This lovely lady said "I do" last night to the love of her life, Aaron (wedding preview to come)!! It was a beautiful evening, complete with Opera singers, an awesome photo booth, and lots of crazy dancing!! I have been so excited to share these bridals images we took about two months ago!! The photos shot indoors are at the Historic Swenson House in Abilene.. such a beautiful place for a beautiful bride! Stay tuned for a glimpse of their wedding day!

My fave of all faves!!

The Yowell Family :: Abilene Family Photographer, Clyde Family Photographer

2011-09-21T14:25:00.006-05:00

It pains me to think about how any and every time (lately) that I start to create a blog post.... the first thing that comes to my mind is HOW LONG it's been since I've taken the time to blog a session! Ugh, so sad... but, at the end of the day sometimes finishing up a session is more important than the time it takes to format and blog it!! If I haven't blogged your session (and there are a LOT of you)... it's not because I didn't love your pictures or because I didn't want to share your images... I'm just swamped and don't want to keep you waiting any longer than necessary!!!!!! :)

That being said... let's talk about this adorable little family, the Yowells!! This session happened on a great morning... wasn't too terribly hot and we actually had a little cloud cover off and on to add a little light diffusion here and there! Not only were they a fun and relaxed family... but little Miss Teren was all smiles and happy for our time together (well, most of it anyway!!)! The session was in honor of her first birthday, but of course we incorporated her special shots into a family session and covered all the bases! They were a handsome bunch and I'm loving this preview so far!!

Mommy had her shirt made especially for the session.... it was the PERFECT color combination for my beautiful new settee!!

Big brother, Talan.... quite the handsome little dude!!

This might be one of my favorite family pictures I've taken in a long time!! I just love everything about it... and might I say the settee looks FAB! SO excited to have added this to my arsenal of beautiful pieces!

Sweet snuggles... love the tranquil look on Teren's face!

And these are her eyes... nothing special done to enhance these! Some serious blues!!

She just too cute... :)

No doubt, blue (and any shade of it) is Talan's "power color!"

More snuggles... :)

Mommy & Daddy's turn.... is it me, or is Coby blushing a little bit here?!! :)

It was a super successful session.... hope you enjoyed this preview! :)

Pillow Fight Fun!! :: Abilene Children's Photographer, Sweetwater Photographer

2011-08-03T22:51:00.006-05:00

Just wanted to share this sweet story board I put together from a recent girly session! I was so excited to get my new antique bed out and give it a test drive!! These two sisters had fun with a pillow fight at the end of our session! I'll add to this post here soon with some more of what we got... but for now... enjoy! :)

Brittany & Zach... :: Abilene Wedding Photographer, San Angelo Wedding Photographer

2011-07-22T11:37:00.011-05:00

Brittany & Zach's big day was indeed beautiful in many unique ways. From Brittany's vintage styling to the sweet sentiment of their ceremony... it was a lovely event to be a part of! I swear there are about 60 + or - images here... and I swear I could have chose about 60 more to share but I want to get onto finishing ALL of them... so I tried hard to keep this post from getting too huge!! Brittany & Zach, I hope you enjoy seeing this glimpse of your wedding day through these photos... more goodness comin' to you I promise! I hope you are enjoying your first days as Mr. & Mrs.!!! P.S. - The song that is playing was their wedding song... I couldn't get it out of my head for at least a week!! It's now one of my favorites... :)

Cutie pies... their Ring Bearer and Flower Girl...

I loved watching Zach's mom, Lisa, loving on her grandchildren... :)

Zach had one of his guys bring a letter to Brittany to read before they saw each other for the first time! She was adorable to watch as she read the letter, laughed, and cried! I love when couples do this... :)

Brittany's girls wanted to pray for her before the ceremony... loved it!

The view from the balcony!!

A little fish-eye lens fun!!

I love how her pretty shoes were peeking out from under her dress in this shot!!

It was about 105 degrees outside with 25mph winds during this time.... I managed to twist their arms to let me take them outside for about 5 minutes so we could have just a few portraits of them in natural light.... this was one of my favorites!

Above, top left: On display at the reception were both Brittany & Zachs' mother's wedding dresses... they were so beautiful and definitely added to her vintage theme!

The yummy candy bar... a macro lens dream!!

Brittany surprised everyone by entering the reception in a different, dress... an authentic 1940s glam piece that she found in a local dress shop!! So fun!

Git it girrrrrl!

I think everyone had a great time!!!

And then they were off.... driving to Dallas that night to catch a plane the next morning to Italy for their honeymoon...... those punks!!!! Ha ha... yes, I was totally green with envy and wished they could have packed my camera and I in a spare suitcase!!! Oh well! I've seen their pictures... and trust me they had a wonderful time.... without me!! Lol! God bless you both as you start this wild and wonderful ride together!! Thank you for choosing In Bloom, I had a blast! :)

Awaiting Ellie... :: Abilene Maternity Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2011-07-18T13:23:00.004-05:00

Micah and her husband are awaiting the birth of their first little princess, Ellie!! Micah's family lives in Sweetwater, and so she chose to drive from Olton (where she and her hubs live) to do a maternity session with little ol' me! I had a great time with her and have had even more fun going through the beautiful images we captured! I hope you had a lovely shower Micah, and I look forward to hearing the good news soon! :)

Beautiful... :)

Ya gotta love a Mama with a little attitude!! :)

Kara & Ty... :: Abilene Wedding Photographer, San Angelo Wedding Photographer

2011-07-18T12:45:00.004-05:00

I'll have the honor of being with Kara & Ty in Lubbock on their wedding day this November! I'm SO looking forward to this as it will be much cooler outside and there should be lots of opportunities for creating some extra special images for them! Who knows.. maybe even some fall foliage? (a girl can hope!!) Kara's mom came along for this session and, after a little chit-chat I put her to work (thanks again Mom!). It was really nice actually because it gave me a chance to get to know her a bit too before the big day! Next in line for the festivities are Kara's bridals! I'm excited to see her dress and see some of the behind the scenes details! Enjoy your preview Kara & Ty... more to come soon! :)

Baby Weston :: Abilene Newborn Photographer, Sweetwater Photographer

2011-07-18T12:27:00.003-05:00

This sweet little monkey was born 6 weeks early and is finally home from the hospital! Mommy, Sharla, contacted me about doing a newborn session for him at their home in Sweetwater and I wasn't convinced that I'd be able to do a true newborn session with him due to the fact that he was already 6 weeks old!! As it turned out, he was still just a teeny one, at 6 pounds and still very "fresh" and curly! I was super proud of him for holding the heads up pose all by himself... for probably a full 3 minutes! I even had time to grab my iphone to take a picture of him to send to his Mommy who was at work! Thank you to Weston's Grandma's who were there with us during the session! This little guy is getting no shortage of love, THIS is for sure!! :)

Awaiting Brynleigh... :: Abilene Maternity Photography, Anson Photographer

2011-07-16T10:12:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to quickly share a few of these images from Kate's Maternity Session! She and her husband Matt somehow found the time to squeeze in a maternity session amidst moving into a new house.... which I know from personal experience is no easy task!! I don't know which is harder, moving with an almost full grown baby in the belly (like Kate just did), or moving with a 3 week old (like I did just 6 months ago)... but I DO know it's worth it in the end! They were a very sweet couple and I'm excited for them to receive their little sweet pea! The great part is, they booked my Mommy Bloom & Baby Bud package, so I get to meet Brynleigh and photograph her as a newborn too! Yay! :)

Blessings to you Matt & Kate as you enjoy your last days with just the two of you! I'm excited to meet your little angel and I pray for a smooth, easy birth for all 3 of you! I'll be waiting to hear the good news!

Blushing Brittany :: Abilene Bridals, Abilene Wedding Photographer

2011-07-08T18:08:00.003-05:00

Brittany, who is now officially Mrs. Zach Fullwood, had a lovely bridal session last month that I've been dying to share! Now that the wedding is over (which will be up on the blog here in the next week or so for a preview), I can show these off! Bridals portraits were a new concept to me when I moved to West Texas a little over 2 years ago from South Florida.. but I think it's a great concept! It saves a ton of time on the wedding day and insures a little creativity for the brides images before the pressure of the big day! Be sure to notice the beautiful Victorian settee that Brittany brought along!!! I've been feverishly searching for a settee JUST like this one and about died when I saw it.... had to be careful not to drool all over it!!! I tried like crazy to get her to sell it to me, but being a cherished family heirloom... she wouldn't budge! Can you blame her?! :) I sure can't! Thankfully, I've located one just like it and will be headed up to Wichita Falls on Monday to pick it up!! Meanwhile, enjoy this handful from Brittany's bridal session... be back with more from the wedding soon!

This was the dress she wore for the reception.. total 40s glam!

And her her more traditional ceremony dress...

ABOVE & BELOW: I was so glad to have a bit of dramatic sky... all it takes is a few clouds and a subtle texture to create a dramatic sky!! Yay!

Amy & Rafael... :: Spanish River Library Weddings, South Florida Destination Wedding Photography

2011-07-06T12:01:00.014-05:00

I recently had the honor of being with Amy & Rafa on there wedding day at the Spanish River Library in Boca Raton, Florida. This time was especially meaningful to me because Amy's entire family is like extended family to my husband and I. Being their chosen photographer gave me the opportunity to fly home to SoFla to be with all of them for the entire day!!! Bonus for me!! The weather was perfect, the venue was elegant, and the bride & groom.... well, see for yourself how beautiful they are together!

Getting ready at the house... with her little man, Lucas Jose!!

I can't ever resist a little face like this!!

Lil' Miss Rochelle, their sassy flower girl!

Looking beautiful and ready to head out!!

Here she comes! :)

Amy was such a gorgeous bride!!!

Oh my!!!!!!?!!!

Above & Below......might be my two favorite images from the entire day!!

These guys were fun!!! They just grabbed Rafa all on their own and went for it!

And then they grabbed Amy.... !!

The famous jump shot! These shots always leave me sitting in front of my computer laughing to see the crazy expressions and I'm always curious to see who caught the most air!! :) Good job everyone! Below: I had to post this one too, this was a happy accident (as I like to call them)... my second shooter, Kelly, fired with her flash at the same time off to camera left! Gave this shot a nice little OCF effect!! I love it, brought in a little more of the pretty blue sky behind them!! So fun!

This beautiful cake was made by Rafa's mom... who brought all of her supplies from Uruguay in order to make this for them once they arrived! It was lovely, tasted delicious, and was such a special touch to their day! Being a former pastry chef myself, I was highly impressed with her handiwork!!

These two knew how to get their groove on! I had so much fun watching them together...

That's all for now... :)

Tiny Bennett :: Abilene Newborn Photographer, Snyder Newborn Photographer

2011-06-23T22:46:00.004-05:00

Well, I've lost count of how many sessions I'm behind on blogging....but I thought I'd blow the dust off my blog in honor of this sweet little angel baby, Bennett! Born to Braid & Jeff just seven days ago (pictures taken at 5 days of life), he gets the prize for the teeny-tiny newborn award at 6#, 1oz!! I think he just seemed extra tiny to me because of my 15#, 6 month old!! He was so easy to work with.. curly, furry, and still peely! What a little face... I swiped him from Mommy after he ate mid-session and SO enjoyed holding and soothing him to sleep for round 2 of pictures! Here is just a sneak peek of our time together... lotsa freshy goodness! :)

Macro lens fun!!!

He was posin' it up here for me! Sweet boy!!

Snuggle Pod by Studio412Boutique.com

Mommy told me she had done Bennett's nursery in a lion theme.... so I jumped on that opportunity... my sweet friend Whitney of Studio412Boutique whipped this up for me in a flash!! Thanks again Whitney... you're wonderful as always!

Bennett's Grandfather had this beautiful name image made for him... had to incorporate it!

Thank you again to Braid & Jeff for trusting me to document these priceless first days in your baby boy's new life! Wishing you God's richest blessings as you embrace life as a family of 3!!

Happy First Birthday Miss Charlie June! :: Abilene Children's Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2011-06-11T16:15:00.004-05:00

Check out her little cowgirl boots and cut-off wranglers!!!

All decked out... I especially liked her lacey leggings!!

She certainly enjoyed her smash cake!!

Ironically, this is another beautiful one year old baby girl named Charley who I had the opportunity to work with in honor of her first birthday celebration!! Just wanted to share a few in time for her birthday party!!! Hope you all have fun watching her demolish another little birthday cake!! :) I look forward to her 2nd birthday and our next session!! :)

Charlie Turns One... :: Abilene Children's Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2011-05-25T16:28:00.004-05:00

I couldn't be more pleased with the outcome of this fun session! Miss Charlie recently celebrated her first birthday, and what a excellent way to commemorate this important milestone than with some fancy outfits, an antique chair, and a tiny birthday cake!! :) Miss Charlie was in a bit of a fussy mood when I arrived at her house, but she perked right up when we plopped her down in the middle of this beautiful field! She has added walking to her newfound skills, so it was especially fun to see her toddle around from flower to flower. She really enjoyed showing her mommy and I how great she was at standing in the chairs and climbing in and out of them! The cake smash pictures were quite fun... she was extremely thoughtful about how she demolished the cake, taking great care to take a taste every minute or so as she dissected it's layers!! What a sweetie! Happy one more year of Charlie! :)

Welcome Ellie Ryan... :: Abilene Newborn Photographer, Sweetwater Photographer

2011-05-05T15:37:00.004-05:00

** Photographer's Pick! :)

Billie-Sue was so excited about this little ensemble... I thought there was no way Ellie would put up with what I thought was an itchy tutu... but she didn't budge!!

Another favorite flower of Mommy's....

2nd Pick!! :)

Well, well, well... if it isn't my long lost blog!?! Thought it was about time to blow the dust off of it and post some recent photographs... imagine that??! The truth is... I've lost count of how many sessions are due to be blogged.... why is it that when I'm busy the blog is the first thing to go?? Oh well, I've talked with other photog friends who lament in the same way... so I know I'm not alone in my blog-slacking ways!! But enough about that.... on to much cuter things!

Meet Miss Ellie-Ryan, my latest little squish! She belongs to our precious friends, Levi & Billie-Sue... their first little baby. Levi & Billie-Sue are super special friends to us out here in Texas... one, because they are our UFC fight-night buddies (haha!), but also because of the love they have both shown our Trystan and Elyse. My kids ADORE them... and seriously, they are going to make the most amazing parents because they just have a way with children!! It was an honor to gift them with this session for Miss Ellie... and I hope they enjoy these images! These were a few of my favorites!!

Class of 2011: Katy! :: Abilene Senior Photographer, Snyder Senior Photographer

2011-03-16T21:44:00.004-05:00

This vintage beauty's name is Katy and she is one of the few Seniors I'll be photographing this spring! Katy did a beautiful job styling this session!! As you can see, she is completely in love with the 1940s... everything from the clothes, to the hair & jewelry... she completely pulled off an authentic look for her senior session! We started shooting at the Windsor in Abilene... a place Katy has spent a great deal of time at as a kid. Her Great-Grandmother, "Gamby" used to live there and she is just in love with the Grand Ballroom and foyer area because of the 1940s feel... and the memories they hold!! It was a beautiful venue, and I really enjoyed playing with a combination of natural light and OCF with this session... especially creating images with dual color temperatures! It was an inspired session for me, something different!! Katy plans to have her wedding in this ballroom, so according to her, we'll be back there for pictures sometime in the future!! (Love that!)

Katy attends Highland High School and enjoys showing steers (and for those "city-folk" reading this... steers are castrated male cows... that's right!!), collecting vintage clothing, photography, and spending time with her sweetie, Caleb! She plans to attend Texas A&M University in the fall where she wants to pursue a degree in the communications field. Whatever Katy does, she'll do it with gusto, that's for sure! If you know her, you know that she's full of bubbly personality and positive energy! I enjoyed being with her so much that I recently hired her to be my production assistant until she leaves for college!! I'm really looking forward to having her help me with my sessions over the next few months, as well as helping her expand her understanding of photography too!!

Not only have I had the pleasure of taking Katy's Senior Portraits, but I get to photograph her newborn nephew, Kamdon,on Monday... and will be shooting her brother's Zach's wedding this summer!! What a treat for me!!!

Introducing Kipptyn! :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Newborn Photographer

2011-03-06T08:41:00.001-06:00

I invited Kip and his mommy Andrea to my home for this session to test out my living room as my new newborn studio. Much to my delight, it was the perfect set up and beautiful lighting through the big picture window we enjoy! I'm very excited to be able to offer my clients a new style of newborn session here in West Texas (not new by any means in the world of photography... but just a little different for around here!). These snuggly poses are something I've been working on for a while and I'm so excited to finally be doing the type of newborn work I've been wanting too! Of course, I have a long way to go, but so far... so good!!

Most of the homes here are built to keep light and heat/cold out and have terrible window light. Sometimes going to a client's home is difficult because you don't know what you are walking into. Well, now for these very important sessions... I don't have to wonder anymore!!! Yay for me! The only tough part about having clients into my home from time to time is making sure it's clean enough for a client to SEE! :) With a 5, 3, and 2 month old... and a blooming business... that's not always an easy task!? I made Andrea walk past a pile of folded laundry on my couch at one point when I decided to try one last series in a spot I hadn't planned to use... oh well, what can you do?! :)

Baby Ethan & Family :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2011-03-05T23:13:00.002-06:00

Big Brother, Isaac, who wanted nothing more than to play football with me almost the entire session!!

It's exhausting being this cute, apparently!?!

LOVE THIS, my fave of all faves for a big brother/sister pose with baby... way to go Isaac!!! :)

I go to church with Jennifer & Michael and their sweet little kiddos!! Baby Ethan was born just about a month after Lyla, and is already almost as big as she is!! He's a month old in these photos!! It's been fun getting to know Jennifer a bit better as we were both preggo at the same time and frequently chatted about how we were feeling and how our baby bumps were growing!! I especially love to do photos for church family, so naturally I was excited that they called me to take Ethan's first pictures. We ended up doing a combined family/baby session on a nice overcast day. These were a few of the first images to catch my eye when downloading their session!! Enjoy!

Baby Kipptyn Teaser :: Sweetwater Newborn Photographer, Abilene Newborn Photographer

2011-03-05T21:36:00.002-06:00

Ok so I'm in the thick of editing about 6 sessions that all need to be done like yesterday (ok well not all 6, but at least 2 of them), but I just HAD to share a few images from my session today with baby "Kip!" I couldn't be happier with these pictures... and I'll be adding to this post for sure because there are just too many sweet pics not to. I invited Kip and his mommy Andrea to my home for this session to test out my living room as my new newborn studio. Much to my delight, it was the perfect set up and perfect lighting through the big picture window we enjoy! I'm very excited to be able to offer my clients a new style of newborn session here in West Texas (not new by any means in the world of photography... but just a little different for around here!). Most of the homes here are built to keep light and heat/cold out and have terrible window light. Sometimes going to a client's home is difficult because you don't know what you are walking into. Well, now for these very important sessions... I don't have to wonder anymore!!! Yay for me!

Sweet baby....

The Johnston Family :: Sweetwater Photographer, Roby Family Photographer

2011-03-02T14:43:00.005-06:00

All posed and pretty.....

Now, just being themselves!! :) (Almost always my favorite shots!!)

QUITE the little personality!!!

Beautiful girly....

The Johnston's placed the winning bid on a photography package I donated to the Sweetwater Christian School's auction last year. After much patience on Valerie's part (think VERY pregnant, aching back, holiday craziness, etc) ... we finally made this session happen!! They were all 4 so warm and welcoming...made it so easy to have fun with this session. The Johnstons have a beautiful home just outside of town on a lovely piece of property (for now anyway, it's on the market... boooo!), and when Mom suggested we head back to the creek... I emphatically said "let's GO!" After trudging over a very small, but steep, hill.... we found just the perfect spot to catch the pretty sun-flare on the lake for their family shots. As you can see, "brother" was all decked out (thanks to Dad) in his hunting duds... and we even got his favorite hunting dog in for a few pics!!! We're talking some serious hunting too.... BEARS... in New Mexico!!!!? The family actually raises these dogs..... such fun to see them all in their pens and hear them howlin' at us as we drove by on the mule! Ok, and for those of you NOT from Texas... a mule is a souped-up, off-roading cross between a 4 wheeler and a golf cart on steroids!!! :)

I hope you all enjoy your preview... and many blessings to you as you relocate up to the Roby area in time! I hope to get to work with you again sometime in the future!!

Michael's 3 Month Session :: Baird Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2011-03-02T12:52:00.006-06:00

"GO HURRICANES!!! I loved this shot... Mommy and Daddy are Canes fans and even attended UM (small world, considering I grew up like 40 minutes north of that school!!) and had him all decked out! I especially loved the hat!

This little monkey and his parents live out in Baird, Texas, a quiet little town just East of Abilene. It was a chilly day for outside photos, but I'm glad we braved it for a couple of sunburst shots!! :) Poor little Michael's eyes were watering from the wind so our outside stay was brief! He tuckered himself out after being outside and needed a snack and a snooze, so we just relaxed and let him recharge his batteries for a little bit. When he woke up I got to get a glimpse of his funny little personality. The two shots of him laying on the blankets were accompanied by lots of grunts, arm throws, and smiles... I love that stage, where they "talk" with their whole bodies! What a sweetie! I'm excited to go back to visit him again for his 6 month session in a few months! :)

Welcome Baby Caleb :: Sweetwater Newborn Photographer, Abilene Newborn Photographer

2011-02-22T21:52:00.006-06:00

This sweet little man was just 7 days old when we shot this session. He made a believer out of me that earlier IS better for these snuggly poses. Caleb was a breeze to work with, and I was giddy behind the camera as I was easily able to pose him for these shots. Big sister Mackenzie give me about 5 whole minutes of her her sweet little face to photograph before she grew tired of me... and then she was off to have some goldfish crackers and read books with Mommy! Hard to choose which images to share from this session, but here are a couple that caught my eye right away!!! :)

Luke 12: 6-8

Is she cute or what, with that double chin!! Side note: the ONLY thing that could make me love this vintage couch any more is if it were cobalt blue or crimson!! LOOOOOOVE!! I had to be very careful not to drool all over it! :)

I can't ever resist the "piggies".... (but, I must resist biting them!!!) :)

Uggggh, what a little squishy doll... his expression here with those pursed little lips is just too much for me!!!

One more of big sister!! Ok seriously now, doesn't she remind you of a Precious Moments doll with those big gorgeous eyes??

Baby Sheperd :: Throckmorton Newborn Photographer, Anson Family Photographer

2011-02-22T14:59:00.003-06:00

UGH.... LOOOOVE this... and this is NOT a composite (meaning two images merged together)... he held his little head up all on his own!! Yay!

This is just a quick post, but I had to share a few images from Sheperd's recent session!! Is he just the sweetest little squishy you've seen lately? I'll be adding some more images to this post when I get back from Wisconsin next week so stop back in sometime next week if you'd like to see more!! I've had a nice little handful of newbie clients here lately... and I'm tellin' ya... they are so much fun! Up next will be Baby Caleb, Baby Micheal (who's 3 months old), Baby Ethan, Baby Kipptyn, and Baby Kinley!! Stay tuned for more adorableness! :)

Jasmine- In Bloom... :: Tuscola Photographer, Abilene Maternity Photographer

2011-02-12T21:23:00.006-06:00

This has got to be one of my favorites... Jasmine, wow!!!!

So in this series, I have 3 or 4 with a big beautiful grin on this sweet face... but I'm a sucker for a good serious face.. had to share it!

Noah picked these out for the session!! Cutie!

Jasmine and Adam are expecting their second little man sometime in the middle of March! She found me online (which I love) and decided to have me out to their beautiful home in a very quaint neighborhood tucked away in the hills just south of Abilene. We started the session using the gorgeous natural lighting in their master suite. She had printed out a few composite sheets with a bunch of images she'd seen online from various photographer's websites to show me the style of images she wanted to mimic. I actually love when a client does that, because first... it shows me they have really thought about the session, and two... it allows me to get inside their head and know exactly what they want and what mood they are wanting to create for their pictures! This session actually felt very remniscent of the types of photos I took when I first started my business (which was focused on maternity photography)... the flowers, the low-key lighting inside... very romantic and feminine. As you can see, she has an adorable little "big" guy, Noah, who talked my ear off from the minute I walked in the door and was so cute I could have taken him home with me!! Adam did a great job keeping Noah happy by playing their xbox360 until it was their turn!! And all of this..... with my Lyla asleep on my chest in the sling!!!! Amazing!?!

I'm excited because Jasmine and her husband went with my 2 in 1 Package... the "In Bloom & Baby Bud" package so I get to return to meet their new little man! I think they may wait to have me back when he's a little bigger, more towards holiday time instead of doing a newborn session! And they can- the second part of that package is good for anytime within the baby's first year!! On that note, the Mommy Bloom & Baby Bud package is also able to be purchased by anyone who just wants to use it purely as a 2 for 1 package.... even if you have an older child, but want to do two sessions within the same year with me... that's your package!! You'll save a little cash!

Thanks again Jasmine & Adam!! I hope you enjoy your preview, more good stuff to come!

Fun Stuff :: Abilene Wedding Photographer, San Angelo Wedding Photographer

2011-02-08T12:35:00.003-06:00

My sweet little distraction.... :) Lyla Grace!

Ok so I'm behind... again! I no sooner get caught up and I look around and see "the weeds" all around me... who am I kidding, I LIVE in the weeds!! :) I've got a few sessions to blog and will be getting to those here soon! I also need to post some of my birth story photos and images of my little Miss Lyla Grace! She's the reason I've disappeared over the last month or so... that and we moved into our new house... AND have battled a ton of sickness! We are feeling all better now and I'm slowly jumping back onto the work horse! I've missed it, and as much as I've loved the break... shooting/editing/blogging somehow feels "normal" to me.

For those of you in South Florida... stay tuned as I'm going to be releasing my April schedule for appointments here in the next week. I have two weddings to photograph, Ann & Alex and Amy & Rafa while there, and will be taking probably only 2 appointments a day during the week. I've already had a slew of requests and based on those.... I'll be booked up in no time.. so book quickly once you receive the email with the available appointment slots! :) I'm so blessed to have such a loyal clientele in South Florida... and somehow I manage to pick up new clients with each trip!! There is a possibility that I may be shooting another SoFla wedding in May, so I may have a long weekend in town and will likely take a few portrait appointments then too! I love my job!!

So... here's some fun news... one of In Bloom's images was chosen AGAIN to be the "Pick of the Day" on the ColorInc. Printlife Blog, and Facebook & Twitter pages! Woo-hoo, what a fun honor! They see thousands of amazing images a day from amazing photographers... so I feel extra special to have had 2 of my pictures featured! Yay!

Check it out here & here!! :) Thanks for stoppin' in, as always!

Sweet Baby Cambell & Big Brother Creagh :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Newborn Photographer

2011-02-04T17:37:00.007-06:00

Love a newborn's peely skin... wouldn't dare edit this out!!

This is one of my favorites... check out the little piggies poking through!! :)

"This is my tongue!!! Precious!

Handsome big brother.... check out those eyes!!

Creagh's mommy is a big fan of black and white images... they have an entire hallway lined with them... so I thought I'd best be sure to include a conversion of this fun shot!! :)

Little ham-bone!!! Such the charmer!

This little princess was my very first client of 2011! I had told myself I wasn't going to work very much in the month of January since I had a newborn at home, but sometimes a session comes up that you just don't want to pass up!! After chatting with Cambell's mommy about what she had in mind for the session, I just could resist a girly newborn session!! Born just about a week after my Lyla Grace, Cambell was a little angel for her first photo session!! We also did big brother Creagh's photos in honor of his 18 month milestone! As you can probably tell, he was on the move for the entire session... exploring and seeing what he could get into outside the family's home!! What gorgeous kiddos, and such a sweet family altogether!

My husband came with me to this one so he could stay with Lyla.... had to keep her close by in case she needed to eat! I'm still figuring out how to go to appointments and have a nursing newborn on my hands?!! Cambell's family was so gracious to them and made them both comfortable as I chased Mr. Creagh around and played with the snuggly Cambell. Thankfully it all went well and we got some great shots in her beautiful nursery (and I DO mean beautiful) and in several places in this family's lovely home! Thank you so much friends for having me... I am in love with several of this images... hope you love them too! Can't wait for our next session!

The Ramirez Crew... :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Children's Photographer

2010-12-23T13:10:00.006-06:00

Check out all these little munchkins in their fancy matching Christmas dresses! What fun to take their photos... they were full of energy and spunk! Mom, Samantha, has become a sweet friend of mine and I was excited that she wanted me to do their holiday photos. They were one of the last families to get to have their pictures done in all the pretty fall foliage... this was one of my favorite spots this season too! Enjoy these sweet little faces! :)

Miss Dailyn- 4 Months :: San Angelo Children's Photographer, Abilene Children's Photograper

2010-12-23T12:44:00.002-06:00

This little lady definitely deserves a blog post with all her cuteness! These images were in honor of her 4 month milestone! You may remember her from her newborn session a few months back... it was so fun to drive down to San Angelo and see how much she's grown and changed since her sleepy newborn pictures! :) Still sleepy, but even more sweet and alert! This session was supposed to be a family session as well, but big brother Peyton ended up getting sick in the middle of the session and was down for the count!! Poor guy! Hopefully we'll have better luck at the 8 month session!!

My Dusty Blog... and Some Gorgeous Gals :: Abilene Senior Portrait Photographer, San Angelo Senior Portrait Photographer

2010-12-23T11:48:00.004-06:00

Ugh, I decided to go to my blog this morning to listen to some music (I put all my favorites on here) and was horrified to really see just how behind I am on posting. I don't even know if everything I've shot this holiday season will make it up onto this page... mostly because I'm about to have a baby literally any day now... and in January I'll be figuring out how to do life as a mommy of 3 AND packing my house to move! Yep- slight insanity, but we are excited to be buying our first home and I know once we are in, it will allllll be worth it! I've been much better about uploading client previews to my Facebook fan page, so if you want to check out a good selection of my holiday shooting... click here!! Otherwise, I'm going to try to do some quick posting just to update this blog a bit for those of you who randomly find me or don't do the Facebook thing! :)

So when you live in Sweetwater, Texas... November and December is the time for the local high school's New Year Girl competition. What is a New Year Girl, you ask... well, the girls get nominated by their peers and are required to submit an 8x10 for the contest. The images are sent away to be judged by some mystery person (who is usually announced after the deed has been done) and the title is awarded! All of the nominees get their pictures in the paper too. I personally think the school should give them some sort of prize or something... maybe a gift card or SOMETHING for going to all the effort?! But that's just me.. what do I know!

Photographing these girls was a lot of fun... I tried really hard to create different looks for each of them and find the sparkle in their personalities... some of the girls had very specific looks they were going for (i.e. out in the country/foliage look) .. and others left it entirely up to me! I told my husband that seriously, I could shoot these sessions all day long, every day! Girls this age are just so much fun! Fortunately, a handful of these girlies were Seniors and will be enjoying a $50 print credit when they return for their Senior Portrait Sessions in the spring! I look forward to that because we can have even more fun and not be limited to head shot and 3/4 length shots! :)

Just wanted to showcase some of my favorites... the only girl not featured in this post is Megan, who I actually managed to get blogged earlier on! :)

Miss Genea....

Miss Joselyn....

Miss Caroline.....

Miss Heidi....

Miss Sarah....

My Dusty Blog...

2010-12-23T11:48:00.000-06:00

Sweet Baby Will :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Children's Photographer

2010-12-12T21:15:00.006-06:00

Never seen a little guy so excited to be plopped into a tin bucket!!!

I had the opportunity to work with Will's sweet family a week or so ago for their holiday pictures... I fell in love with these shots and since I'm struggling to keep the blog updated, just thought I'd do a very quick post to share these! Mommy, Lesli, brought this great stool and I about gasped thinking of trying to put him on it.. it was so tall I was afraid he'd fall off!! She assured me he would be fine and boy was he!!! I've got about 6-8 shots of him like this... complete with arms flailing and wide open mouth joy-filled smiles... and he stayed on the whole time! LOOOVE it! Lesli gets the bravest first time mommy award in my book! :)

New Year Girl Candidate- Megan :: Abilene Senior Portrait Photographer, Snyder Senior Portrait Photographer

2010-12-02T14:38:00.003-06:00

So this is Megan, she was my first NYG candidate for 2010 that I had opportunity to shoot with! Megan said she wanted to more urban look and bright colors for her images... so we scouted out the scene and found some fun places to shoot (always the adventure portion of a session with me!!). She did a great job, just posting a couple of favorites of hers (and mine)! Mom wanted to add onto the session and have a few family pics taken too, so glad she did because WOW do I love these pictures! Another great addition to my updated family gallery on my website (one MAJOR item on my to-do list I have YET to accomplish?!!).

I'll be doing another post here soon with my favorites from all of the NYG sessions I've done this season so you can see.. I have one more this weekend before I'm all done so I think I'm going to wait for her and be able to do a complete post then!! Enjoy!

The Andrews Family :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Family Photography

2010-11-22T00:15:00.006-06:00

Is this a beautiful bunch of little faces or what?!!

Seriously, I could adopt this cute little face!!!

Caught the train coming in.... :)

I had to be sure we did some pictures of the only girly in the family in the girly chair!! :)

This shot cracks me up... I told them "ok, serious faces" and my little man, Carson, on the right couldn't do it!! Mom was saying "don't smile, don't smile," and he just thought that was hilarious! There was no way he was going to comply!! I kind of love the fact that he's got that clever grin on his face all by himself! :)

As I sit here, wide awake at 12:45am.... Braxton Hicks contractions crunchin' down... feeling my little girly tumble away in this ginormous belly of mine... I'm thinking about what an amazing holiday shooting season this is/has been!!! I still have a good handful of appointments left after Thanksgiving week... but can't help but feeling like I'm on the last half of the "back 9" and slowly are starting to wind things down!!

Along with all my South Florida families, I've been blessed to work with some precious families out here in West Texas in the last month or two of holiday photography craziness!! The Andrews family is no exception!! The Andrews bunch are new clients for me... but I've seen Mom, Leah, around quite a bit in one place or another!! She is friends with some of my best clients and I've seen some of her design work (she designed Whitney & Andrew's wedding invites and they were gorgeous... and totally meshed with my own style!) and loved it!! I was way excited to get a call for an appointment from her, not to mention the fact that she told me she's been following my blog and work for about a year and a half now! When ever I'm meeting with new clients (esp. ones with 4 kiddos), I always feel a bit .... not nervous.. but just have the feeling of anticipation of working with a new family that doesn't know me whatsoever... and trying to find a way to make them feel comfortable with me... so they loosen up and I can get to the "real" expressions and personality!! Well I'm tellin' ya... that feeling of anxious anticipation lasted for all of about 2 seconds... I got out of my car and Dad, Kirby and little man Kaden were waiting for me in the driveway! They warmly greeted me and Kirby immediately engaged me in conversation about the session... he was ready to rock and roll!! I met the whole family and we were off on our photography adventure! I sooo enjoyed chatting with them and getting to know them throughout the session! I seriously felt as if they were old friends by the time we were done... they just seem to be those kind of people.... easy to love and be around... the kind ya just want to invite over for dinner and hang with!! Each one of their babies were just as endearing and polite as they could be too! What fun!!!

Leah & Kirby, you have a beautiful family and I seriously look forward to working with you again in the future! Thank you so much for having me!! Can't wait to show you the rest of your photos!

Kali's Maternity Session :: Abilene Maternity Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2010-11-18T23:22:00.004-06:00

I met with this sweet little family tonight for a maternity/family combo mini-session of sorts! We decided on an outdoorsy country look (my favorite lately) and actually just found some random trees with wild "stuff" growing below them for our sunset setting! I'm a huge fan of this warm, dreamy light and am having so much fun with the images I get from sessions like this! Kali is expecting a baby girl and looks beautiful, don't you agree? I'm excited to get to the rest of their images... but for now this post will have to due as a little peak into our time together!! Enjoy!

Happy Early New Year- Wedding Promotion :: Abilene Wedding Photographer, San Angelo Wedding Photographer

2010-11-17T09:07:00.006-06:00

So the recent round of beautiful bridals has left me in the wedding mood... and since I'll be having a baby around the beginning of the New Year, I'm thinking I'd be smart to post this now... otherwise it may not happen! I'm excited to see who will get the be the ones to take advantage of this great savings!!

***If you have a bride in your world.... pass her the link... if she books, YOU will get $50 off any portrait package!!!

Jenny... Getting Married :: Abilene Wedding Photographer, Sweetwater Wedding Photographer

2010-11-16T23:12:00.004-06:00

What an opportunity this session was for me!! Jenny, the gorgeous bride you see here, sent me an email this past Sunday morning after reading In Bloom's feature article in the Sweetwater Reporter!! After a visit to my website, she decided to drop me an email to see if I might be able to squeeze her in while she was in town from San Antonio visiting her parents. It just so happeed that she had picked up her wedding gown in Lubbock a few days before and was ready to have her bridals done! Bridals and TTD sessions are so much fun that I decided to switch a few things around and was able to fit her session in on Monday night! When Jenny told me her Dad had a WWII airplane at Avenger Field that she wanted to be photographed with... I swear my heart skipped a beat!! Originally, I was hoping to do some sunset shots with the plane, but it was positioned next to the hanger and it just seemed to work, and gave a retro, authentic feel to the whole scene. A little artificial lighting and the warm light from the sunset coming in from the side, and that's all we needed!!! It's always tricky with bridals.. .because you must take so many pains to keep the dress clean... doing anything too crazy is usually out of the question... but man-oh-man can I just imagine that plane with a "Trash the Dress" session.... what fun we could have!!?! :)

I was so happy to have found the gorgeous spot with all the fall foliage too.... considering that most of that is dying off out in the country areas around here... the timing for this session was perfect!

Jenny- I hope you love these as much as I do!! I wish you and your fiance a perfect wedding day and a blessed marriage!! Thanks so much for allowing me to be a small part of your wedding festivities!!!

The Ward Family :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2010-11-15T21:47:00.002-06:00

Love Heather's face here... she looks so sweet snugglin' on her man!!!

Above & Below = My faves of the kiddos!!

Another sweet family from my church that I've only recently begun to get to know... with 2 beautiful kiddos that I've hoped for the opportunity to photograph since I met them! I give kudos to Mom who styled the session beautifully... all wearing something in the same color family, yet not matchy-matchy! Love that! It took me a little bit to crack Mr. Caleb into showing me his real smile... but I managed to grab it eventually using some tried and true methods... which left him cracking up several times! I think he had fun with the touch guy serious poses... and little Miss Hannah sure knew how to turn on the cute! I am proud to share that as Dad was settling up with me after the session, he reported that our time was "the most fun" he's ever had taking family pictures!! Mom chimed in and told me that "Yes, he doesn't usually enjoy this"... and I was actually shocked because he seemed to at ease and go with the flow the whole time!! Apparently, that's because he was actually enjoying himself and the experience of going on my little wild goose chase of "where will she take us to shoot next?" How great is that??!!! :) Thank you so much for having me... hope you've enjoyed these so far.... more to come!

The Chapman Crew :: Sweetwater Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2010-11-12T23:03:00.009-06:00

Cutie-Patootie!

Beautiful Big-Sis!!!

Miss Thang!!

As I said, I loved the colors so much in this session... but I figured I should post at least one black and white!!! What beautiful babies you have guys!!! :)

Love it, Dad actually requested this shot... he loved the "Bus Shot" from the EFC Youth session and wanted to try to mimic it.. minus the bus!! :)

Mara brought her favorite, well-loved bear along and wanted to be sure to get some pictures of him!!!

I think the image on the right should be on their Christmas card this year!!! :) HA!

Ok so this session has been a long time coming!! The Chapman family are some of my favorite people in Sweetwater... Jaci (mom) was one of my buddies in the 1 year old class last year at Cornerstone and I consider her to be one of my "peeps!" :) I've enjoyed getting to know her hubby and kids over the last year or so... and was way excited to get them out for a session! We drove out to the spot where Jaci & Stewart did their engagement shots many years ago, it's out in the middle of no where... save one house that is diagonal to this old abandoned bank building that we shot at. Upon our arrival, we were greeted with a menagerie of large dogs... I'm talkin' like 6 or 7 big mutts surrounding the vehicles... checking us out! I could tell they were friendly dogs just by the dopy, curious grins on their faces... so we call got out and proceeded to get to know one another! There was this one curious black lab who had the terrible habit of jumping up to say hello.. very sweet pup... but sort of annoying! It took a little while for the greetings to get themselves over with and the dogs to lose interest... but our curious black lab stuck around for a bit. Apparently he didn't appreciate being ignored very much... and as I was setting up the standing family shots that you see here... I saw Stewart and Jaci's jaws drop to the ground and look of horror come over them! I immediately looked the direction they were facing and saw our black lab friend so kindly lifting his leg on my camera bag!!!!!! True story!!! THANK GOODNESS I had zipped it up completely and had an old towel in my car to clean up the mess before it soaked into the material!! What could you do but just laugh!!?? At this point, it just felt like a scene that should have been on a hidden camera comedy... and certainly, "the incident" made this an extra memorable session!!!

I'm loving the warm, fall feel to these photos!! Of course, today we had a cold front blow through so we had to jacket-up everyone for a few minutes to warm them up, then shed the layers and go for it! I had 3 little Popsicles on my hands... so I tried to keep it as simple as possible! They were great sports and managed to have a little fun too! Hope you've enjoyed this preview!! Stay tuned for the Ward family tomorrow evening!!

Danielle & Andre's Maternity Session :: South Florida Maternity Photographer, Sweetwater Photographer

2010-11-11T11:01:00.007-06:00

Danielle came with the balloons in hand! She has no idea, but the random bunch of balloons had been a trend in photography over the last year or two... one which I have yet to explore, but I was so glad she brought them... it was adorable!

Her dress was perfect... so flowy and it hugged her curves so nicely! Loved that I caught these Seagulls in the back ground too!

Warm fuzzies.... :)

Andre just did this on his own... so sweet! He's completely smitten with his new baby girl Chloe...!!

How cute are they with their bubbles and giant lolli-pop?!! :)

Danielle & Andre were so delightful to photograph! Why? Well there was just something about them... they came prepared with some great ideas and props for the session.... Dani wanted it to feel whimsical and fun... childlike and innocent! I loved that! Second, they were both just so comfortable in their own skin... they needed hardly any direction and just naturally loved on each other almost like I wasn't even there! You can't ask for anything more than THAT, my friends! :) I always tell my clients that what they do together on their own (without my direction) is going to be what looks best anyway.... and man, did they have that concept down! :) Dani wanted to do the whole session at a fair or carnival... but there weren't any in town at the time, so I suggested Sugar Sand Park where I knew there was a merry-go-round! I think we accomplished the feel she was looking for!! We dodged rain drops the whole time... actually did get showered on but I was happy to grab a bit of blue sky in some of the photos on the beach at least!

Posting this session just reminds me of how far behind on the blogging I am! Their sweet baby girl, Chloe is already here and Mommy reports that Daddy is a complete "gonner" for his little angel! I'm only sorry I'm not there to take her first portraits... but perhaps I'll get to meet her in April when I return to SoFla for 2 weddings and a handful of portrait appointments! We'll see!?! If I haven't blogged your session yet, it's not because I don't love you... I'm just focusing on getting all my finishing done while balancing my crazy shooting schedule.... oh ya and then there's this big girl in my belly and the 2 that are already "on the outside!!" HA!! :) Such is the life of a Mommy-photographer during the holiday season! Don't let my lamenting fool you, I love every minute of it! Stay tuned for good things on the blog... and oh, if you live in Sweetwater, be sure to grab a Sweetwater Reporter on Sunday to check out my next feature article!! :)

It's That Time Again.... :: Sweetwater Senior Portrait Photographer, Abilene Senior Portrait Photographer

2010-11-08T11:28:00.004-06:00

Ok girls... it's time to get that one fabulous head shot taken for your New Year Girl competition!! You want to look like you, but the BEST version of you... I NEVER offer anything with prices this low... but here it is! Call me to schedule asap as I am only taking a limited number of girls for this promotion!

Special offer for Seniors.... book with me for your New Year Girl images and receive a $50 print credit towards your Senior Pictures in the Spring!!! Woo-hooo!

Lillian & Paul's Sweetheart Session....

2010-11-07T13:48:00.008-06:00

Paul & Lillian are sweet friends of mine... church family actually! They are some serious prayer warriors and I have personally prayed with each of them for various reasons... one of the most memorable times being when we prayed with Lillian when we lost our little baby Grahym last year, and then again that Matt & I would conceive this baby girl I'm now carrying in my belly!! :) God is SO good and so faithful!!

We started the session in town... I thought the staircase would be a good warm up!! Then we moved to the old feed store with the huge silos (love those)! Finally, we went back to their home and explored their land a bit! The field of milo served as the perfect back drop for the sunset shot... OH how I love playing around with shots like that!! The image you see of the rock pathway... each one of those rocks you see..... and folks, this is not a short pathway.... represents a prayer Paul has prayed for someone over the last 4 years or so!! My favorite part of our session was listening to Paul tell me the story about how the rock path came about and how faithful God has been through the years to answer his prayers. Somewhere along that path, there is a rock with my husband's name on it from when we first moved to Sweetwater and Paul prayed for a job for Matt while he was in school. There is also a rock for me from when Paul prayed for the healing of a VERY wicked sore throat that had been plaguing me for too long. I'll tell you, God answers prayer!! The last series of images are on top of a beautiful hill with an amazing view (we're talking miles and miles of visibility) where Paul goes to pray... so naturally, I wanted to be sure we incorporated these elements into the pictures! They were precious to work with... and make it just more obvious to me that everyone needs to do a Sweetheart session... not just couples who are getting married!! They've been married for 13 years and haven't had any pictures like this taken since their wedding!! It was a great pleasure to create some new keepsake images for them! Here's a little taste of what we got! Thanks for stopping in! :)

Git it girl.... :)

Looooove this, love these trees... such a gorgeous spot!!

13 years of marriage... built on THE Rock!!! :)

The Baker Bunch :: Sweetwater Family Photographer, Abilene Children's Photographer

2010-11-06T21:06:00.003-05:00

I've waited for a while to get my camera on these cute kiddos and sweet family! This turned out to be such a wonderful session... a home run in all areas! I had originally wanted to take these guys to a nearby overgrown field of wheat looking grass... and much to my dismay, it was murdered. ... mowed to the ground... dead!! So, my plans were foiled by some unknowing city worker (the nerve!?)... but God had better plans! The Bakers have a beautiful plot of land and I was elated to see all the potential when I showed up for the session this morning! We got to stay right there at their house and had all this variety to work with!! The kids did such a great job... I love how these pictures turned out for them!! Hope you enjoy this quick preview!

Above: LOOOOVE this sassy little expression I managed to catch!!!

Are they cute, or what?! :)

The Crisp Family... :: Sweetwater Family Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2010-11-06T14:17:00.009-05:00

It seems I get to have the privilege of shooting with this sweet family about 2x a year and I think this might have been our best session yet!! Connor, the handsome little man you see here has become a serious "pro" and was giving me tips on how I should pose everyone and where to stand, look, etc! It was quite adorable and I just ate it up! Better to have my little ones directing me and be so engaged than the dreaded opposite.... not interested whatsoever and checked out!!! (It happens from time to time!). I'm especially in love with the family picture in the trees... a little out of the way spot that Dad actually pointed out. I knew immediately that it would be excellent... and boy, was it!! This is a teeny-tiny preview... but I wanted to get something up for them to see before the weekend got away from me! With 3 sessions this weekend and this big preggo belly I'm luggin' around, that's pretty easy to have happen! So, here's a quick taste.... thank you guys for having me back!! :) See you in the Spring!

Oh, and if you have time, stick around for a while and listen to this great Phil Wickham song that I just added to my playlist! I only put my personal favorite music on the blog... and I can't seem to stop listening to this beautiful song!!!?! I was told he's playing live in Lubbock sometime soon... man, I want to go!!?! We'll see... :)

Loooove this family shot above!!

Beautiful Mommy....

Sweet Sienna... l South Florida Newborn Photographer, Abilene Newborn Photographer

2010-11-01T09:32:00.004-05:00

This little dark-haired beauty is the first born princess to Leigh & Billy, my Bahamas bride & groom from a few years ago (what a gorgeous wedding, oh my!!)!! On my recent trip to South Florida, Leigh asked me to come back and photograph Sienna... and of course, I was thrilled! It's such a joy to get to work with a couple for their engagement photos, wedding, and then their first baby! I'm only sad I wasn't there to do a pregnancy session for Leigh, but the timing wasn't right for me to do it!! :( She was a perfect little angel, and a sleepy angel at that! Leigh & Billy had a gorgeous home, and I fell in love with the yellow guest bedroom and decided to let that be our back drop for a good part of the session! It's funny, I'm usually partial to color images, but I found myself going for the black and whites quite a bit here too... go figure!? Anyhew, hope you enjoy these!

These toes remind me of little peas in a pod!! Delish!! :)

Two Beautiful Ladies... :: Abilene Family Photographer, Abilene Children's Photographer

2010-10-29T19:00:00.010-05:00

Gorgeous... and yes folks, those are her eyes... free from any major photoshopping!

Ohhhh, look out world... :)

Ughhh, I love this shot.... SMOKIN'!

This is my sweet friend Kirsten and her little munchkin Gracie! So excited to get to take those pictures for them! Kirsten is a fellow pro photag from SoCal, though she's not working her business here Texas! I've been blessed to know her during her time here in Abilene... good photographer friends are sometimes hard to come by in the same area! I love the way she styled the session... her eye for color and accessories really worked well.... of course, it doesn't surprise me being that she's used to being on the other side of the camera and knows what looks good! I'll miss her, she's getting ready to move to the metro-plex area around Thanksgiving... but, that just means I'll have someone to go see when I head into the big D to fly out to South Florida for sessions! A rather agreeable alternative (as opposed to not seeing her at all!)!!!

The Grizzle Gang :: Abilene Family Photographer, Abilene Children's Photographer

2010-10-21T11:44:00.004-05:00

A bunch of little cracks-ups! Mom was standing behind me mimicking the "whining" that she frequently hears in the morning time... doesn't take much to get these guys going! Worked like a charm! :)

I was thrilled to see this fun wood pile in the yard.... made for a perfect back drop!!

Hiya!! Just wanted to share a few of these fun images from my recent session with the Grizzle Family!! As you can see, they were all decked out in their holiday "festives" for this shoot! We got some beautiful family photos on the dirt road you see here.... but I won't post those because I don't want to spoil their holiday card!!! Aren't their boys beautiful?? I've loved watching these little faces grow and mature over the last year and a half since I moved to Texas!! I was so glad to grab a few shots of Mommy & Daddy together in the Milo field too! No wonder their babies are so beautiful.... look at them!!!

Ann & Alex.... Engaged!!

2010-10-13T10:00:00.005-05:00

Love this....

Are they cute, or what?!!

I met Ann a few years ago at a Tastefully Simple Party in South Florida. We coincidentally both joined the same chapter of a business networking group shortly thereafter and got to know one another a bit better. She's always been a sweet supporter of my photography and joked that one day when it was "her turn" that I'd be sure to be her photographer for the big day!! After moving to Texas, we lost touch for a bit... until one day I received a wonderful email from Ann... telling me about the whirlwind that was Alex and how he had changed her world!! The proposal had been made and indeed, she wanted me to be the one to document their love story! What an honor!! So, next April... my new baby girl and I will be hopping a Florida-bound plane to capture Ann & Alex's wedding day (baby will be visiting with Grandma, of course!!)... scheduled to take place at the beautiful Sundy House in Delray Beach.

I had such a nice time getting to know Alex at the session and hearing how they met and discovered their love for one another... I could really see how much he adores Ann. He was so content to just go with the flow and do whatever she (or I) wanted to do, and he did it with joy which was so refreshing!! He's a keeper Ann!!!

We started the session at the amazing church you see here. I was so excited to have persuaded them to do the session there because it's one of my most favorite places to shoot in South Florida..... I think that's because it doesn't LOOK like a typical South Florida location! The dark woods and beautiful architecture make for a gorgeous back drop. We then went back to their home for a quick bite (so sweet to include me and my trusty assistant, Kelly), and then headed out to Atlantic Avenue for some photos at the Colony Hotel in all it's beautiful colors! On our way back to the car, I spied a new cupcake/candy store called Couture Cupcakes and it was just beckoning me to take some photos of them inside! Alex & Ann opted for some gelato and I enjoyed snapping some fun photos of the two of them feeding each other and being adorable! All in all, it was a great time... exactly the kind of time I want to spend with a bride and groom before I photograph their wedding!!

Ann & Alex, I can't wait to come back and be with you for this important day!! I couldn't be happier for you... and since I know and love you Ann it just makes it even more special for me as your photographer to get to be a part!! May God richly bless you both as you enjoy your holiday time and last months as an engaged couple!! See you soon!!

Introducing Eva.... & Some Holiday News

2010-10-11T08:47:00.010-05:00

So this precious little girly belongs to Shana & Brad, one of my bride & grooms from a few years ago in South Florida. I got to spend some time with this happy little family on my last work trip to South Florida. Eva had a gorgeous nursery, and really the whole house looked like a pottery barn catalog page so I was in serious luck for the photos, not to mention great big windows with lots of natural light!! :) Couldn't ask for much more for an indoor baby session!! Eva's sweet little round face is one that is hard to forget... I've had so much fun editing these pictures and staring at her. Her mommy & daddy are hopelessly in love with her and I couldn't be happier for them! May God richly bless your growing family Brad & Shana... I can't wait until our next session!!

Holiday news that can save you some $$ at the bottom of this post!! :)

Above: Ugh, I love this shot too!! I did a whole series on this beautiful carpet they had in the living room.. I could have blogged every one in the series too.. her facial expressions were adorable!! Brad was amazed at how the pictures looked when I showed him in camera... all you need is a little fall off in focus and you'd never know it was just a rug!! :)

Ok, so had enough baby cuteness??! Let's chat about the holidays! Holiday shooting is in full swing and I just returned from a work trip to South Florida. Even though there was lots of rain and a tropical storm (for goodness sakes!!?!).. I still managed to get in 24 out of 26 scheduled sessions! I'll be posting some of my work as I edit each client's files, but I invite you to check out my Facebook fan page to see an even greater selection of what I was up to there. As usual, the blog gets the "short end" when I'm crazy busy so you may see a bit more there than you will here... as it's much faster and easier to post there.... sad, but true. I prefer blogging because the pictures are nice and big and I can share a bit more about the session... but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do, right?!! :)

As a special treat for my holiday clients, I've linked up with Merely Madison Designs for this holiday season.... Madison is a very talented graphic designer who designs all kinds of cards, announcements, and templates for all occasions! Please be sure to check out her holiday card section on her website to see what she's offering! You might recognize some of the photography on her cards (wink, wink!) and she's kindly going to be offering a discount to all my clients this season! So- won't it be great to just email her an image from our session (or better yet, I will!) and she can design your holiday card this year... she even has options for envelopes, address and return address labels to take all the work out of it for you! I don't know about you... but less work around the holidays sounds GREAT to me! Send her an email to find out the specifics of what she's offering... and be sure to tell her I said hello! :)

Thanks for stopping by!!

Workshop Goodness...

2010-09-20T21:04:00.003-05:00

Sooo, went to a fabulous lighting workshop in the Salt Lake City area of Utah this past week! Just wanted to share a few of my favorite images from my time there! It was a blast... crammed full of intense learning, great food, girl time, and beautiful fall scenery! Hope you enjoy my lighting experiments!! :)

v
Caught a little sun through the trees!!

Rule Family's Sneaky Peak! :: Sweetwater Family Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2010-09-15T14:00:00.005-05:00

So normally this little dude is laid back and all smiles... not so much today.. his newly acquired skills of walking (away) were waaay more interesting for him to practice... (can you blame him?)! We ALL worked hard for the smiles we got!! :)

OHHHH... how I love this!! Tiffany... you are BEAUTIFUL!!

This little hambone is one of Trystan's (my son) best buds.... I probably could have centered the whole session around him... he was all smiles and cheese! :)

Ok so apparently I like to push it and I am putting up a blog post when I SHOULD be packing and getting my gear together for my trip!!! More about that in a second! I could not resist posting a few images from my session this morning with the Rule family!! What a beautiful and photogenic bunch these guys are!! Hat's off to Mom who styled this session beautifully based on the colors of the location I had given her! I absolutely cannot wait to get to the rest of these... I started the download and was glued to my computer!! As a photographer... you always know whether or not you "got it" at the session... but I must admit I didn't realize just how MUCH we got! :) I was especially taken with the couples shots... just goes to show ya what great light and gorgeous people can do! I'm sorry, but Tiffany's skin is flawless... NO retouching. In fact, these images are practically straight out of the camera minus a sharpen, one vignette, and my logo stamp! I promise to post a few more later when I return from Utah... just had to give them a little taste! :)

So.... my trip, ya.... I should be packing but this is so much more fun! Where am I going? Well, I'm headed back to Provo, Utah (near Salt Lake) to attend a Pro Lighting Workshop.... the part 2 of the amazing work shop I attended in February. I waaay excited to get away and meet up with my two "PFF's" (photag friends forever..lol) Jen of Jen Graber Photography and Leah of The Salted Image and have some girl time too! I'm in for a real treat.... Jen is doing a maternity session for me tomorrow afternoon... so stay tuned for a few shots of ME (imagine that?) and my baby bump! I'll be back with a post early next week before I leave for Florida... 26 appointments... in 10 days!! Gotta love it! :)

Billie-Sue & Levi Celebrate 5 Years- Sneak Peak :: Sweetwater Wedding Photographer, Abilene Family Photographer

2010-09-09T21:06:00.008-05:00

They just bought their first home not long ago... I thought it would be fun to do a few with the house in the back ground for the memory books! :)

Love it when I can catch some great rim light and sunflare... so pretty!

These two are just the sweetest couple!! Celebrating 5 years, they wanted to do a special session to celebrate and have some updated pictures to share with family!! I first met Billie-Sue last year when she started working at my kiddo's preschool, and was actually working in my daughter's classroom (Elyse affectionately calls her Miss-Soupy... lol!). Anyone who knows Billie-Sue knows what a vibrant and sparkly personality she has... her hubby Levi (or "Vee-Vi according to Elyse!) come across a little quiet at first, but he's just as awesome as his sweet wifey! They are the Youth Ministers at 4th & Elm Church of Christ and have a heart for kids and youth!! Perhaps that's why my husband and I love them so much?!! (We have the same heart!) Spending time with them this morning was so much fun... I did something I NEVER do and I brought my kids to the session! Granted, they stayed in the car and watched a movie on the dvd player as we jumped out and snapped away... and I must say, they were SO good!! If I was ever going to bring them to a session... this was a great one to chance it on!! :)

Happy Anniversary friends... I wish you 55 more years of bliss! I hope you have a great trip to OK at the end of the month to see your families!! :) P.S. These are just a few for a sneak peak... be sure to check back as some of the MOST fun and creative shots I have yet to post!! :) Stay tuned!

Oh, and yes... I sized these images incorrectly... that's why they are smaller than usual... and easy fix, but I'm going to bed!! Is that totally wrong of me?? I guess I'm a slacker!!? I promise I'll correct it when I finish this post! :)

In Bloom In the News....

2010-08-31T07:32:00.005-05:00

Well, I'm so excited to share with you two quick little accolades that In Bloom Photography has received over the last few days!! I happen to live in the town of Sweetwater, Texas and a few weeks ago, our local newspaper asked me for an interview! The Sweetwater Reporter featured a full page article, complete with a 10 image sampling of my work on the front page of the Focus section. I was quite proud to share my work with all of Sweetwater and the response has been wonderful so far! Could it get even more exciting?? Yes it can!! Every month I'll be choosing a session to highlight and will have that same front page again!! I'll be submitting an assortment of images from that session and a little back ground info and I get to share my work with Sweetwater once a month! What an opportunity!! :)

The article wasn't available online, but I've had so many requests from non-locals to read it so I've decided to post the text at the bottom of this post! :)

Before you read the article though... I have one more fun thing to share! About 2 weeks ago I did an impromptu shoot for my wonderful church, Emmanual Fellowship. Actually, our Youth Pastor, Loran, requested the session. He (and a bunch of helpers) has recently redone our youth room and given the whole youth ministry a make-over... calling it The Salvage Yard. Well, instead of bringing a bunch of junk into the youth room... Loran's idea was to bring some of the youth into the junk yard and take pictures!! He got permission from a local scrap metal salvage yard for us to come in and pose it up for a session... and MAN did the kids to a rockin' job!

This first image below was chosen by ColorInc Professional Photo Lab as their Photo Pick of the Day today!! They have it posted on their Facebook page, Printlife Blog(you'll see it later today), and will be using the image in a new promotion for a new print product coming soon! How stinkin' exciting is that!!?! I must admit, it felt great to have an industry leader recognize my work and say "Hey- good job!" :)

Anyway, that's all for now! I'm up to my ears in wedding photo editing so I'll end this post so I can get back to work! :) As always, thanks for stopping in!! Enjoy the article below!

ColorInc Professional Photo Lab's Photo Pick of the Day- August 31, 2010

And here are a few more of my favs from that session.... :)

Aren't they just so tough!!?!

This image is blown up nice and big in the youth room, along with 3 others! They look fab! Really polished off the look of the room! What an awesome idea Loran!

Loran, our fearless leader!! I should mention too that my husband and I serve in the youth ministry... and that made this session even more fun because I know and love all these kids!!

And now on to the article... thankfully the paper had emailed me a draft before the article ran so I could just copy and paste it here!!

From a Different Angle...

It's all about seeing more than meets the eye.
Six years ago, Karyn Carbone, realized just how much could be expressed through a photograph.
While expecting her first child, Carbone was gifted a pregnancy portrait session. After seeing the photos, she was amazed by the emotion and sentiment behind them. She knew that she had found a new calling.
"I was overwhelmed at the beauty of the outcome," Carbone said. "It was the sentiment, the mood behind the picture."
Before this portrait session, she had been pursuing her dream as a pastry chef. Almost immediately after, she knew that she had found what she was meant to be doing. After mentioning the idea to her friend, she decided to begin her photography venture.
" I knew that other women would want this feeling, that I had from my photos," Carbone said. "After mentioning it to my friend, I asked if she minded me doing it and she gave me her blessing. From there, I just started booking appointments."
She started out taking maternity portraits, then added kids, families, seniors and weddings. About two years ago, she photographed her first wedding.
"I took a photography class in college, but it wasn't anything I was serious about," Carbone said. "It just seems now that I've found my artsy side, in the photographs."
Two years ago, Carbone brought her artistic side to Sweetwater. After her husband decided to enroll in the wind energy program at Texas State Technical College, the family moved from Florida to Sweetwater. Even after the move, she kept her clients in Florida and picked up a new client base in the Sweetwater area.
"After about a year of starting, it became a serious source of income," Carbone said. "The good thing about it is that I can be as busy or not busy as I want to be."
Taking photographs, has not only allowed her to be part of the happy times in people's lives; it has provided her with many opportunities to give back. She recently signed up for Operation Love Reunited. It is a program that allows photographers to set up sessions for soldiers and their families, free of charge.
"God has always provided what I need," Carbone said. "Giving back just makes it more enjoyable."
On top of giving back, she is also taking part in a photography phenomenon, that is currently sweeping the country. Most brides to be like to have their bridal photos taken, but there is always that uneasiness of not messing up the dress. During the bridal shoots, extreme care has to be taken when picking locations. However, after the wedding is over; there is no reason that the bride can't slip on the dress one more time for a photo-shoot.
"Basically, we can go places that you normally wouldn't go," Carbone said. "All the wedding day stress is gone and brides are just able to go out, to places that may not be as neat and clean, and get some amazing shots."
Trash the Dress photo sessions don't always end up trashing the dress, but sometimes it just happens. The main point is to capture those moments and scenes that just wouldn't normally be caught. Rusted iron, peeling paint, and some tall grass can make for a damage dress, but a beautiful photo.
"Great photography happens when you can find that creative perspective in any given situation or location," Carbone said. "This was something new and fresh for this area, and it is exciting to be a part of it."
Through the years, she has gained many lasting relationships. Capturing the perfect moment is one side of the story, but helping others be able to capture those moments is the other.
"I also enjoy sharing what I know," Carbone said. "I love to teach, share my learning experience."
She divides the teaching into two sections; learning the basics and then photoshoping. She has even compiled a photography book that helps explain what she is teaching. She makes sure that the person knows how to use the camera, goes over aperture, shutter speed and then has them take photos.
"For the first part, I take photos side by side with them," Carbone said. "Then I like to have them take certain photos and we come back and learn photoshop."
Sometimes the perfect photo can be enhanced even more, with a little bit of tweaking from photoshop.
"Through this business, you get to be a part of families," Carbone said. " You get to share the happy times and watch families grow."
If you would like to find out more about In Bloom Photography visit www.inbloomimagages.com. A complete list of pricing, her blog, and a photo gallery can be found there. Appointments for weekends are scheduled about a month in advance, due to the high demand on weekends.
For appointments call 325-338-2453.

Two Out of the Three Most Amazing Men in My Life...

2010-08-29T00:11:00.004-05:00

My family had a very big event happen last weekend!! My wonderful husband graduated from TSTC with his Wind Energy Technology degree... the whole reason our family relocated to Sweetwater about a year and a half ago! I can't express how proud I am of Matthew... all his hard work over the last year, starting over to get into this great career field to take care of his family!! The Lord gave Matt the scripture out of 1 Thessalonians 4:11 ".... and make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your hands..." After much prayer and a drive-it-straight-through trip to Sweetwater from South Florida... we decided to take the leap of faith and come... and now another new chapter begins! Matt started working in his field a few months ago and is loving every day he goes to work!

I love this photo... my heart just about bursts when I look Trystan & Matt, my two amazing men and their beautiful blue eyes and warm smiles.... my cup overflows! God is so faithful....

My Weekend... & This Morning with the N Family.... ::Abilene Family Photographer, Abilene Children's Photographer

2010-08-28T15:52:00.006-05:00

I'm having a GREAT weekend, I must say! It started with Friday morning dropping my sweet kiddos off at preschool and driving to Abilene to meet my two "besties" at Starbucks for the first ever morning coffee date with them! Then, my handsome husband and I were invited to crash in on our friend's Sarah & Brian's date night... making it a double-date to eat what turned out to be a verrry yummy steak dinner at Texas Roadhouse and my favorite (decaf) coffee drink at Tuscany's!! Yumm!

This morning, I met up with Christy, Ernesto & their sweet boys for their first every family photo session!! What a treat (Christy's one of the "besties")!! We started out in the country in a green grassy field, made out way to Kirby Lake, and then onto downtown Abilene for some very fun photos!! Here is just a VERY quick glimpse of what we were up to!!

Ps. My new plan is for this crazzzzy holiday season I'm about to go into is to download, sort, and do my first run editing, as well as a quick sneak peak for each session THE DAY I shoot the images (ok, so maybe not for th 21 sessions within 10 days in Florida next month?!!! We'll see how that goes... but this has been a great first attempt! :)

Adorable Asher.... this was a total candid grab... he was just waiting patiently for everyone else to get it together! LOVE these moments! :)

Big Bro... Ernesto.... who wasn't all that into the session today, but I got him anyway!! :)

And we can't forget some shots of Mommy & Daddy together.... it's not JUST about the kiddos!! :)

This might be a favorite so far!

Tonight, my hubby is letting me sneak out with Christy (the lovely Wife/Mommy on this post) and about 5 of her closest girlfriends to celebrate her birthday!! Woo-hoo... girls night! What a great weekend! :) Happy Birthday Christy, hope you enjoy this little sneaky peak!! See you tonight!