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!! :)











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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! :)

In Bloom In the News....

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...

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....