Ann & Alex.... Engaged!!

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

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...

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

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

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! :)