The Forum shoot- Day 1

So I am finally sitting down to blog about the Forum shoot that I did back in October! Phew morning sickness is a killer! All day everyday! I'm glad that is behind me! I have just now finally caught up on all the housework and photography editing/designing that had backlogged while I was so under the weather. In the meantime, I went to Nicaragua, Central America for a friend's wedding and we got an offer on our house. We closed last week! YIPPEE!! Off to Spartanburg we go... and more importantly, Dada/hubby here we come!

Anyway... getting back on track... when I was down in Florida in October I did a shoot for the Florida Children's Forum. Their graphic design artist was tired of the forum spending bundles purchasing individual stock photos for their publications, and since she's a long time family friend and is familiar with my work, she came up with the awesome idea of having the Forum employees bring their kids to different locations for me to photograph them "doing what kids do." The Forum paid a lump sum for me to take, edit and deliver the photos for their unlimited use. We both made out well on the deal! It was definitely a HUGE challenge coraling so many kids at one time and trying to get shots of all of them (and at the same time avoid including the parents who were all standing around observing). I have definitely learned to have a little more backbone and say when I need adults to "vamos" from my shots. (Sorry I know.... that's horrible Spanish!)

The first day we went to a local day care center and I got photos of children of all different ages doing everything from reading, playing dolls, and building with blocks to climbing on a playground and riding bikes.  It was a crazy fun-filled day, but it went off better than I could have ever imagined!  Check out some of the fun photos from Day 1 below.

Happy Tuesday!  ;)

Amber... super fun maternity photos!

Here's a fall session that I am finally blogging. 

When I was getting ready for this session, I was both excited and nervous.  I always feel that way when I'm shooting for a friend.  I want to take the best possible photos and capture exactly the feeling they are envisioning.  This one had some added craziness because Amber had SEVERAL props that various family members had given her that needed to somehow appear in at least a photo or two.  She was so great though!  She took the time to photograph each item beforehand and email them to me so I could brainstorm before I got to the shoot.  That was awesome!  I also went to Little Mulberry Park (in Dacula, GA) a few days before the shoot so I could have a basic flow in my mind to hopefully keep my poor expectant model from walking back and forth all over creation while I scoped out a spot for each shot.

When the day came, the weather was GORGEOUS!  We started out early in the morning with sweet morning light.  Amber and Shaun were awesome to work with.  As a matter of fact, I was so shocked with how laid back Shaun was.  Some dads (and guys in general) get impatient with me during a shoot because getting creative shots is probably not high on their priority list, but Shaun was so easy-going about the whole shoot.  He posed however I asked him to, and he pushed Amber's clothes and props around all morning with a smile on his face.  (To really appreciate the last sentence check out the photo at the bottom of the post of the strollers we drug around with us!)

Amber was so precious!  I don't think she stopped smiling the whole shoot (except for when I asked her to try to look more "natural"... maybe "serious" is a better word because smiling is "natural" for her!), and it was obvious that she was so excited to finally be starting their family.  She was such as trooper as we marched up and down hills and I asked her to sit, stand, lie down, etc. over and over and over. 

After all was said and done, the photos from this shoot are my favorite maternity photos that I have shot to date.  This session really stretched my creativity level a lot, and as I've said before, "I like a challenge!"

Have a terrific Tuesday!

Feliz dia de amistad!

Happy Friendship day! ... I mean Valentine's Day... or maybe it's both!  Yep, in Latin America February 14 is both a holiday for "lovers" and for "friends" to celebrate their relationships.  What a great idea!  I remember celebrating many a "Singles Awareness Day" before Jim and I started courting in college.  Wouldn't it be nice if here in the states instead of just celebrating romantic relationships we celebrated the other important people in our lives too?!  Well, that's what I'm doing today!  Of course I'm so grateful for my wonderful husband, but I'm also thankful for the wonderful girlfriends that God has put in my life as well! First for my mom,Terri, and my mom-in-love, Celeste... for my sisters, Sara, Emily, Ginny and Lauren... and for Renee, Tania, Melissa, Jennifer, Khushnuma, Sonia, Eileen and Keri.  (If I forgot anyone else... I still love you too!!) You ladies keep me sane when I think I'm going crazy!  Thank you for your prayers, friendship, encouragement and support! You are all such a blessing in my life!

 Happy Friendship Day!!!

And because a blog post isn't any fun without photos to go with it, here's a sneak peak of a maternity session that I'll be posting next week. 

Simply Stunning in a Sari...

I can't believe that this time next week, the movers will be here to pack our stuff for our move to Spartanburg! 

I am finally back to blogging, and I have several fall sessions to blog in the next few weeks so keep your eyes peeled.  I am praying that by the time I finish posting these fall 2010 rewind posts I will have some new content to post about.  If you know anyone in the Spartanburg or Greenville areas who is looking for a photographer, please pass my name along! 

And now back to our regularly scheduled programming...

Back in November, I got a chance to go out with a dear friend and former student and do a "just for fun" session.  Khushnuma (Numa) was one of my best Spanish students, both a hard worker and a talented language learner... maybe that's because she grew up speaking two languages, English and Gujarati?!  She also reminds me so much of myself a few years ago!  Our personalities are so much alike!  We both stress(ed) over school, and we both love learning about other cultures.

Numa's family is from India, and we've dreamed about going out to do photos in her Saris for months.  We finally found a day that wasn't too hot or too cold and that her mom was free to come along and assist in properly arranging Numa's attire.  (It would have been a little complicated for this incredibly southern... American... girl! Ha ha!) 

I have to share a little bit about the story behind her saris.  The pink and green one at the bottom was the one she wore to her sisters wedding in India last year.  The blue one was her very first Sari.  The way it works in Irani Parsi culture is the material is selected before the daughter's baptism (Navjote) into the Irani Parsi religion (a sect of zorastrianism), and their first sari is made from the material when they become a woman (i.e. have their first cycle).  I love knowing the story behind something!  It makes photographing it that much more special!

The day we took these shots, the clouds gave us fits, floating in and out and constantly changing my lighting, but we still managed to get some beautiful shots.  I love, love getting the chance to photograph someone of another culture.  It is so eye-opening for me and such a fun new challenge!  I hope this opens the doors to photographing other Indian families and maybe eventually even an Indian wedding!  Hey... it could happen!

Have a marvelous Monday!

November wedding in Macon

I am so late posting this wedding, but I am so excited to finally share it with you! This couple was wonderful to work with! Leslie is so sweet, and Troy was such a wonderfully laid back and accomodating groom. They were both willing to do pretty much whatever I suggested... even if it meant losing a suit button while getting photos in a wooded gully near the reception site. Sorry Troy! I hope Men's Wearhouse didn't charge you too much to replace it!

This couple was so obviously in love with each other, and so fun to be around! Their families were very warm and helpful too. The wedding really had the atmosphere of true southern hospitality... I love that!

I also loved that Leslie and Troy asked me to somehow incorporate their love of baseball in their photos. While I admit to being a little nervous beforehand, I love a challenge like this! I think the final outcome really did them justice! A big shoutout goes to my friend Jackie Buitrago (of Life's Journey Photos) for assisting me and helping me think outside the box! We made an awesome team, and I would shoot every wedding with you if I could!

Thank you Leslie and Troy for sharing your special day with me and giving me the privilege of documenting your memories!

And without further a-do, enjoy the following pages from Leslie and Troy's album!

Ally

Catching up...

Well.... it's been a long time since my last post. I keep telling myself to get on here and post SOMETHING.... ANYTHING... so I don't get further behind, but there's always something more pressing to get accomplished. On top of being CRAZY busy with photo sessions and a wedding this fall, we found out we are expecting again, which means I have been exhausted and nauseated for about 6 weeks now. It seems like everything I was just barely keeping done in the house and in my business has run way ahead of me. But I guess that's just par for the course, and I'll finally get caught up again when I feel better. :) There is a light at the end of this tunnel!

I am working through the photos for my last wedding, and I hope to have at least a sneak peak up by the end of the week. (But don't hold me to that!) Until then... enjoy the following cartoon that a friend emailed me this week.


Happy Monday!


Ally