More Senior Moments

Here are a few more of Chelise's senior portraits that I wanted to share. There were just so many good ones . . . I'm going to have a hard time narrowing them down for proofs!!



I loved this outfit. Her shoes were so darling!! I had her roll up her pant legs, just so I could see those great shoes! And I'm really into brown right now.



She has such an all american look I think. And when she smiles, her whole face smiles!! She said she hated that about herself . . . but I think she's crazy! She has a beautiful smile and gorgeous eyes. And those sweet dimples . . . she's got the look for sure. Girl, you should love the way you smile, because when you light up, everything around you lights up too!



smile,
da

Senior Portrait Time

Well, it's that time of year! I've been getting calls, and have already had my first senior portrait session of the year! I have to say, I think shooting senior portraits is one of my favorite jobs!



My husband and I are youth pastors, and I have worked with teenagers in this capacity for about 16 years now. So, of course, I enjoy being around teens!! This business gives me plenty of opportunity to share my talents with them!!



I also love it when people think I'm a teenager!!! That is an inside joke between me and some photographer friends! Thanks guys, you made my week!



My first client this year is a young lady from our town who is a cheerleader, and very involved in the community. Not only is she beautiful, but she's just as sweet as can be. Chelise, thanks for choosing me to do your senior portraits! I have chosen some of my favorites from her session to share with you.



I also want to remind my past and future clients that I do offer a referral bonus of 8 free wallets for any of your friends that mention your name and have a session with me! Please email me or call me for pricing and scheduling!


My philosophy on senior portraits: Senior Portraits with Style, Your Style!!

smile,
da

7 Week Old Twins

Yesterday I had the most fun! I had the opportunity to make portraits of 7 week old twin baby girls!!! They were so sweet, and so beautiful . . . I had a blast!!!

I wanted to share some of my favorites with you. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

smile,
da

Wedding Pages

I recently had the privilege of shooting the wedding of a very good friend of mine. I have been working on her wedding album, which we are doing in story book style, and I wanted to share it here with you. I'd love to hear what you think of it.



I'm adding this story book format to my available products to tell the story of your life. It is a coffee table style book, with incredible photos in it that we make together.



Maybe it's your wedding. Maybe it's the birth of your first child. We begin with a maternity portrait sitting, and then your child as a newborn, then at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months and their first birthday! You can document your child's first year with professional pictures in a story book format. Think of the possibilities!!



This would also be a great way for a graduating senior to tell the story of their high school career.



As you can see, the possibilities are endless! We're only limited to our imaginations! Let me capture the moments that capture your heart, and I'll create a beautiful story book to share with friends and family for a lifetime to come.



smile,
da

The Single Strand

Not much to write today. Just not feeling well, I guess. But there was one picture of my daughter that I wanted to post from our trip to the pool yesterday. It's kind of different, but I think it's so sweet. It's a part of her that I want to remember. That one single strand, it's so beautiful to me.



Smile,
da

Lazy Hazy Days of Summer

Took the kids to the pool today. It was like, 103 degrees in the shade!! We were so hot, my dear husband took mercy on us and sent us to the pool. And I remembered to take my camera.



We splashed, and played and had some wet fun, for sure. This is Jackson, trying to figure out how to do flips under water. He eventually got it!



This image is Camryn playing in the sprinkler that they had laid out to keep the sidewalk cool. It was so hot, you couldn't stand on the dry ground for even a second! If you click on it, you can see the sprinkles!



I love the look on her face in this one. I think I'll title it, "All Ashore That's Going Ashore!"



In this one, she just looks so disgusted to see the camera show up! It's like, "Mom, do we have to do this NOW??"

After we swam, we walked around a small park in town to scout out the lighting for a senior portrait shoot I'm doing next week. The kids enjoyed just walking around exploring, all the while my shutter went click, click, click. They enjoyed themselves, and I enjoyed myself.



I just love it when they are getting along. All is right with the world, when my children are smiling.



Of course, we were hot and sweaty when we got done at the park, then we were ready to hit the pool again . . . but it was closed.

Ah, the lazy hazy days of summer, you gotta love 'em.

smile,
da

Summer Savings

Hi guys! Today I am posting a couple of my summer savings coupons. These are two great ways to get reprints of your favorite images for gifts or for the office!

The first coupon is a Buy One Get One offer! Buy one 8x10 at regular price ($16.00) and get a second 8x10 aboslutely FREE!! Best part is, there's NO LIMIT!

The second one is good for 25% off any large wall print!! And guess what, there's NO LIMIT! So you could create a beautiful wall of your favorite portraits at home or work!

You can't beat these exceptional savings on our print prices!! It's the perfect time to order reprints, don't you think??

smile,

da

Ta Dah!

Ok, here it is. This is not the best self portrait . . . as I cannot for the life of me figure out my self timer on my camera. But it will at least give those of you dying to see what I did to my hair, and idea.

Now remember, this is the first time I fixed it by myself too . . . so it could be better. But here it is. Like it or lump it.

da

Lavender Fields Forever

Tonight I am posting some images of lavender I took a couple of years ago in Stone Bluff, OK. There is a lovely little lavender farm there. I hope you enjoy them. The last one, titled, "Lavender Fields Forever," won second place at BetterPhoto.com.

Ok, I still don't have a picture of my new haircut. But hopefully I can get one tomorrow.

I didn't wash it this morning, I didn't want to risk starting from scratch for church. So it looked okay. I got a lot of compliments.

Tonight, my husband even said, he "thinks" he likes it. Whatever that means.

Till we meet again!
da

What Have I Done???

Ok, I finnally did it. I cut off all my hair today. It was down the middle of my back, and now . . . it's not. It's very, very short. Hmmm, so short.

I think I like it though. We'll see how it looks in the morning for church. That will be the deciding moment for me.

My husband said, he likes it more than he dislikes it. Hmmm. What does that mean?? He said he doesn't hate it and he wont be embarassed at church tomorrow. I guess that's good.

I'll have to post pictures tomorrow. I already took my makeup off tonight.

What have I done????
da

Babies

Today, I'm sharing some of my favorite baby images. I love to photograph newborns. I hope to be able to capture the moments of many more newborns to come. Here are a few of my favorite pieces.

A friend of mine and I were talking yesterday about babies. About how we wish we could have another one, but yet didn't. We both decided we were happy with having two children. A boy and a girl to each of us. But I have to admit, sometimes I feel sad that I am "done." You know, people ask you, "are you going to have any more?" and you say, "No way, I am done!" What a ridiculous thing to say. I'm done. Done being a mother? I think not. You never stop being a mother. I don't think there is any higher calling on this earth, than that of a mother. I think a mother is the closest thing to God's heart that we will ever see on this earth.

When a mother holds her newborn child for the first time, it's like, well . . . .magic. There is a bond that is created that will endure the test of time. Nothing can come between a mother and her love for child. Nothing. It's an overwhelming task at times, but so awesome. I mean, you get to help shape and form the mind and personality of another human being. What an incredible responsibilty. We who are mothers should be humbled to think that God trusted us enough to raise any of His precious children while we are on this earth. What an amazing thought.

Thank you Father God, for sharing these two precious angels of Yours with me. If only for a season, You have blessed my life with their presence, their smile, their joy, their person. Thank you so very much. Words are not enough to express how much they mean to me. I pray that You will help me do my very best at raising them to be Godly people, who know You, who will be known by You, and known as Yours.

Amen.
da

Puleeeeeze!

This is one of my all time favorites of my little one. She was 3 years old. We had been taking some pictures of her in her fairy wings, and I was ready to go in. She wanted to play longer. She looked up with this angelic face, clasped her little hands and said, "Puleeeeeezeee!" Obviously, it melted me. She got to stay out for like another hour.

I added the sidewalk chalk in Photoshop. She had been chalking on the porch, but it didn't show up in the frame. So I added some.

I'm so glad I have so many images of her to remember those moments. Because I remember that day very vividly because of this. It was the first day of school for her brother, in 2nd grade. It was our "last day" together, just us. I started babysitting the next day. So it was a special day, and we made the most of it.

da

Happy 4th of July

For the last few years, since I have been into photography, I have tried to capture some decent fireworks shots. But so far, unsuccessfully. So this year, I tried again. I took about 400 pictures, and honestly, only about two of them were decent. So, I decided to take those two pictures, and make my firework fantasy shot out of them. I colored each one individually, then applied them in layers to my canvas. I used the eraser to bring the layers through to show what I wanted.

I hope you enjoy my Firework Fantasy! And I hope everyone had a very safe and happy 4th of July, 2006!

da

Adoration

I adore my children. They make me laugh, cry and feel so proud. They have wonderful personalities and hearts of gold. They make the silliest faces, right when I'm trying to get a nice shot of them. But that's who they are.

I took these today, out at my mom's house after Sunday dinner. My daughter absolutely adores her big brother. But of course, he just wants to torture her all the time. This was a rare moment, of her showing her true feelings and him not trying to fight her OFF! I think you can see the "adoration," in her face here.

I was talking with my own brother today about this. My daughter thinks her brother is so swell, that she would like to marry him. Yuck. But of course, she is only 5, and that's the only way she can think of how to express her true love & admiration for him. I looked at my brother, who is 3 years younger than me, and said, "I can't remember EVER wanting to marry you!" And he laughed and said, "yeah, no attraction here!" It was so funny. We never got along as well as my kids do. Don't get me wrong, they have their moments when they fight and tattle, and get on each other's nerves. But for the most part, they really enjoy one another.

I'm glad my brother and I grew up. Because now, I just adore him. But don't tell him, it's a secret. LOL

da

Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head

Don't have much to write today. Kind of tired. Spent the day with family from out of town. It was a lot of fun, I miss them. Made me miss my Uncle Mike alot.

Decided just to share some of my favorite photos of my daughter taken this summer. She's just like me, she loves the rain! She loves to walk around in it with her umbrella, and splash in the puddles. Reminds me of childhood memories of doing the same. I love her expression in this one.

This is the puddle that forms at the end of our driveway. Kind of looks like a lake, eh? Love her pink crocs too. And that Hello Kitty umbrella. We love Hello Kitty. I want to remember this day forever.

da