Try Not to Cry....

I couldn't help it! So sweet!! This was on the set of Scrubs (one of my favorite shows!) Click play to watch the video...

Kelly & Michael Engagement

How cute are these two?!?! I have no idea how I end up with so many beautiful people for clients! What's really awesome is that their beauty is so much deeper than what you can see in a photograph- and I love that. ;-)


Kelly & Michael choose Brown County for their engagement session, which was the perfect place to share their love of the outdoors, comfy clothes, and just relaxing together. They prepared a full picnic, similar to the one they had when Michael asked Kelly to marry him, complete with wine from the Oliver Winery- where their engagement originally took place after some very crafty planning on Michael's part!!





I just stepped back and let them do their thing until they felt like they were done picnicking, and I just love what they gave me!!


This next trick is not as easy as it looks!! Michael - you crack me up!!




We climbed to the very top of the fire tower to see what the park looked like from the tallest point. Unfortunately the door to the very top was closed, but the view was just as beautiful from the stairs (despite the lack of room for three people to crowd in together at once!!) I'll probably never get my husband to climb up there, so I'm glad I could make the trip with Kelly & Michael! I love all of the neat things I get to do with my couples!!








I love everything about this next photo... it totally reminds me of something out of Abercrombie or J. Crew.


Shoes can say a lot about a person... and I think their shoes say... COZY!!! ;)


What a unique ring! Perfectly Kelly!


One of the first things Michael said when we started off was how cool it would be if there were monkeys swinging through the trees! I think Michael may secretly be a monkey in disguise! HA! I love this!!


The End...

LOVE IT: TED

My wonderful husband introduced me to TED over the Thanksgiving weekend through a series of video podcasts he had downloaded to his iPhone. All I can keep thinking is...

WOW

Here's an explanation of TED from the website..
"TED started out as an annual conference in Monterey [CA] devoted to Technology, Entertainment and Design. The content has broadened in recent years, but this annual event is still the main engine that drives TED's success, bringing together 1000 of the world's most remarkable people. The format is fast-paced, with 50+ speakers over four days (plus short talks, performances and evening events). In 2005, an additional conference, TEDGlobal, was inaugurated. It's held every other year, in a different location, focusing on a different theme. All upcoming conferences through March 2008 are sold out. However, the best content from all TED events is made available through this [TED.com] website."

TED is also available as a podcast download on iTunes- which is great for watching while you're waiting in line somewhere, or when you just have time to kill! I've been absolutely fascinated, inspired, and informed with each talk I've listened to! I'm SO glad they're offering the content freely and publicly- the ideas are priceless!! It's simply amazing.

== Attention Photographers ==

First, I want to thank you for stalking my blog! Of the hundreds of readers who visit this blog each day, I'm going to guess that about 75% of them are photographers... because I certainly don't have as many clients as I have blog readers!! I'm so honored that you find my work inspiring and worth watching regularly!! I puffy heart you. ;)


Second, in case you haven't found it yet, I have a separate blog dedicated to photographers and small business owners where I share business and marketing ideas, as well as a large variety of resources and websites to make your business life easier. Before pursuing photography, I had several different careers that involved marketing, managing, and finance- as well as several years of college study in business. While I relate everything to my experiences in my own business, much of the advice can be applied to ANY small business- because we all face similar challenges when we work for ourselves. Check out PHOTOLOVECAT.com to see if it would be useful to you!

Lastly, I've received a lot of requests about joining me for a wedding as a second shooter. With the permission of my clients, I'm happy to have you join me for a wedding to see how I work, or to help build your portfolio. It's not a paying opportunity, but it's a valuable experience that I wished someone had given me when I was starting out. Even today- I love shooting with other people, and the creative freedom that comes with knowing there's little to no pressure as a second shooter! There are so many little nuances about working with people that can't be explained- only experienced. If this is something you're interested in, let me know by telling me a little bit about yourself and why you're interested in working with me, as well as cities or regions where you'd be interested in joining me.

Thank you again for all of the photo love you've given me and my clients!! Your comments and praise has helped make a lot of my clients feel like the beautiful people they are!!

Holly & Sam's Wedding

When I did Holly & Sam's engagement photos - I came to find out that they were the perfect compliment to each other. They are the calm to each other's storm and they both bring new elements to each other's lives that makes them stronger as a couple. I think anyone who knows them will agree that their chemistry is impossible to contain.



This is one of those pictures that usually elicits a comment like, "why are you taking a picture of that?!?" My answer is often, "because I think it's interesting." It's not the bride & groom who ask these questions, because they pretty much expect me to take a bunch of "weird" pictures... it's usually the moms, bridesmaids, guests, etc. who are expecting me to only take "normal" pictures. So - if you're a bride, I encourage you to share my blog with your family or wedding party so that they're "prepared" when it comes to your wedding day! ;)


I really like the symmetry of the crinoline on the left and the wedding dress on the right, with the perfectly framed towels in between. Wherever your wedding dress is, that's where I'll photograph it!


Holly's maid of honor was too shy to give a toast, so the next bridesmaid stepped up to the plate that morning and together they worked out the perfect speech.

With Holly's permission, I get to show you one photo from a super-mini bridal boudoir session we had before she got into her dress. It was no more than 5 or 10 minutes, but she had some extra time to kill before heading to the ceremony site, and it was something she had always wanted to do for Sam. Doesn't she look HOT?! ;) BTW- that's all natural beauty - no photoshop work!!


For their wedding, they had lavender details with pink accents, a candy buffet, and a sand ceremony - which has become the outdoor substitute to the unity candle...


One detail not to be missed: Holly included a special memorial charm on her bouquet as a reminder of her grandfather.


... and just for fun, here's a picure of me taking a picture of Delia taking a picture of the family frames - HA!


The guys hung out in the bar while the guests started to arrive..



The moment that Sam sees Holly for the first time... I just love how he's trying to hold back his emotional response- it's just so genuine. ;)


Their ceremony was held outdoors at Greystone Golf Club in Romeo, MI a perfect day with big puffy clouds against a blue sky!


I love the movement and negative space in the next image.. it's as if there's so much more to come.


Ahhh yes, family portraits... loving, loving, family portraits...


This was one of Holly's special requests: to get a picture of her maid of honor's "real smile". Isn't she gorgeous? It kills me when people don't believe they're as beautiful as everyone else thinks they are!


Candy Buffets are for kids of all ages..


This may have been a little bit more of a roast than a toast, but we loved it!




I just loved the DJ's lights.. they gave me a lot to play with. ;)



That last image is one of my favorites. Near the end of the Mother/Son dance, Sam's Mom invited Holly to the dance floor to dance with them. Such a beautiful moment. I haven't encountered many mother-in-laws that will go out of their way to do that!

"For every couple that gets on the dance floor, 1 year of happiness will be added to their marriage..."


I LOVE it when grooms get on the dance floor! "Go Sam, go Sam, go, go, go Sam!"


Can't you just feel the love?!

Holly & Sam - thank you SO much for sharing your lives and your hearts with me. If there's ever a doubt in anyone's mind about your love for each other, just send them to me and I'll show them the proof! I miss you and I hope I get to see you again!!

SOLD OUT for 2008!

WOW- you guys are FAST!! The blog stalkers definitely staked their claim while I was gone and snatched up those last few wedding openings I had!! Either I'm some kind of rock star, or I'm too inexpensive- I don't know which it is!! In any case, I feel incredibly blessed to be doing what I love and sharing it with others. There were times in my life when I felt like I would never find that one thing that made me want to wake up early and stay up all night working out of pure joy... but that's exactly how I feel when it comes to photography. Without the love and support of my clients, I wouldn't be here. This Thanksgiving, I give thanks to each person who has supported me and helped me share my passion with others. You mean the world to me. ;-)

If you're still looking for a wedding photographer for 2008, here are some resources that will lead you to some amazing photographers!!

• Wedding Photojournalist Association
  
• Wedding & Portrait Photographers International
  
• Love, Unscripted
  
• Don't Box Me In
  
• Pictage Professional Photographers

And now, for pure entertainment... the shoe throwing scene from Austin Powers... (click to play the video)

HI! I'm working!

We have some down time between the ceremony & reception, so here's a photo of me & Kelly working... well... uh...

PS. This is STRAIGHT out of camera - no sharpening, no color correction, no extra contrast.. I'm sure most people would be happy with it... but I look at it and see tons of little things I want to do to make it better. Oh well, I thought you'd enjoy seeing what one of my images looks like straight from the camera.

Only 3 Wedding Openings Left for 2008!

I only take a limited number of wedding clients each year and I'm very close to my limit for 2008. Last year I didn't give any warning and I ended up with a bunch of people who wanted to throw pointy shoes at me, so this year I'm letting you know in advance! My policy is straight forward- a signed contract and $1000 retainer fee saves the date with me (wow, I rhyme.) If you missed the boat, please don't cry or grab the nearest pointy shoe, I know lots of other great photographers I can refer you to! (hot poop, I did it again!)

===THANKSGIVING WEEKEND UPDATE====

I will definitely be in the Detroit area for Thanksgiving weekend. If you're one of my current Detroit area clients who needs to schedule an engagement session, or wants to schedule a boudoir, contact me this weekend to set up a time. Clients who've already signed contracts with me have priority over unsigned clients. Sorry... I gotta take care of the peeps who take care of me (and I don't mean marshmallow peeps).

Baby Oz

The last time I saw Oz, he wasn't more than a big bump in Erika's belly! Look at him six months later with tons of personality and style! I can't get over his itty bitty fauxhawk! Oz is going to be one of the coolest kids ever!




I went really retro with some of the processing... which somehow seemed appropriate for the mixed tungsten/natural light I was working in. I don't like to use flash around kids because it startles them- so I try to keep it "au natural".








Erika & Steve wanted something urban for the pictures with Oz, so we were lucky enough to find this cool run down looking building really close by with bright color, graffiti, and busted windows for something a little more "city"!

I LOVE these next two... I think they should be a set...




or maybe a series of three with this in the middle...




"Muffin"




Erika, Steve, & Oz - I'm so glad we could get together again in Charlottesville, VA!! It's pretty cool how life works out, and I'm so glad that Beth & Fred brought us together! I had so many favorites that it was nearly impossible for me to narrow them down!! Oz is the coolest and I hope that one day I'll get to photograph him again!! Who knows, maybe the next time it will be in Egypt!