We've Moved ~

Hey there! 
Check out the new blog here...

Meet Noah~

Noah is one of the most beautiful babies that I've shot in a long time.  His pink skin was so soft and his peach fuzzy hair shimmered in the soft sunlight.  He's one of those little guys that makes my job so much fun.  As I walked into Natlie's house, I saw the gorgeous paintings that her grandfather did, and I thought to myself - now here's a girl who loves art.  My heart was leaping!  As I began shooting, I knew I wanted the pictures of this beautiful little man to be more artistic... more timeless... more 'capturing the moment' than just shooting a portrait. 

Natalie fell in love with every image of her little man.  Here's a peak at some of my favorites...

COUPLES EXTRAVAGANZA!

So, I'm updating everything.  EVERYTHING.
And that means I'm updating all of my imaging and pictures for the website and 'coming-soon' blog.  BUT...

I need to update my couples images.

Here's the deal, I'm offering sessions to couples in love - married, engaged, newly together, whatever - the entire session fee is $20.  TWENTY BUCKS!!!  Trust me, NOT gonna happen again.  This is a one time deal so, if you know someone... and we all do....  tell them to contact me as soon as possible. 

They'll get a write up with their love story on the new blog when it's released. 
*AND*
40% off all images and products they decide to order (provided they order within 2 weeks of seeing their online gallery)
*AND*
I'm throwing in low resolution images for web-sharing.
*AND*
If they tell me you referred them, you get $25 off your next session fee....

We're talking, win/win for everyone.

The only catch is that they need to contact me before September 15th.  Email. Facebook. Phone. Somehow, get a hold of me, and you/they can take advantage of this ONLY HAPPENING ONCE kind of event. 

Newborn Photography

I absolutely love babies.  Actually, I'm crazy about them.  There's just something so gorgeous about the smell, and the tenderness that makes me all giddy.  Tomorrow I get the privilege of shooting newborn portraits for a family that has become dear to my heart.  Mimi (baby's grandma) is my Ethan's Sunday School teacher, and ... well, I'm not sure what they're going to call grandpa, but these folks have been special to me and my family for quite some time.  It's an honor to shoot new grandbaby's pictures!  I'll post some as soon as I can.

In the mean time, I want to give you some REALLY helpful tips.  Here are some things that you can do to help your newborn session go as smooth as possible.  We all know, crazy things happen.  Unexpected things.  It's par for the course, and we roll on.  But the key to a great newborn session is to keep everything very relaxed.  After all, we're trying to capture the beauty and wonder of a new life... not the stress and anxiety of a photo session. 

• About the house – don’t worry about it. You just had a baby! I’ve had three of my own, so I know how crazy the house can look during those first days. I’m not there to write scandalous stories about your dishes-a-plenty, or the baskets overflowing with laundry. I’m there to do a job, and I’m not there to care how clean your house is.
• Loosen baby’s diaper 30 minutes before session time. It’ll help get rid of diaper imprint marks, and may just loosen up what’s in their tummy to move on out.
• Make sure the house is warm. Ideally, you want it between 80-85 degrees. As adults, we’ll be roasting, but baby will be toasty and happy.
• Collect any items you want to use in your images beforehand. Monogrammed blankets, heirlooms, anything that’s special to baby and this new season. We’ll go through them and determine what will work best for your pictures.
• If you want pictures of baby in the nursery, make sure the blinds and curtains are open for enough light. No need to clean. Just make sure clutter has found it’s way to a closet.
• Decide if you want pictures of you taken with the baby (which I WHOLE-HEARTEDLY encourage) or if it’s just baby. Keep in mind, there is nothing more beautiful and precious than the bond between a new baby and mama/daddy.
• A mother’s smell is so recognizable (and sometimes distracting) to a baby. It may be necessary for mom to leave the room for portions of the session. Trust me, it’s not meant to hurt your feelings, but only to allow me to get the baby thinking sweet sleep dreams, instead of hungry milky dreams.
• Be patient. If baby gets fussy or alert, don’t stress out. A new baby is very attentive to anxiety and we want to keep the atmosphere as mellow as possible. We’ll try to get baby as comfortable again, but if that just doesn’t seem possible, we’ll take a break or we’ll work with what he’s giving us. Sometimes, the best pictures come when the baby is following our plan.
• If there is ever a pose that we’re using that makes you feel uncomfortable, just let me know.

Now, I can't stand having a blog post without an image, so I'm going to give you something from the very first newborn shoot I ever did. 

I can't wait to spend some time with Noah tomorrow!!!

Helping With The Dollars~

It’s the time of year when I tend to change things up just a bit.
I don’t know why it works that way. Really I don’t. Most people reinvent things at the first of the year, but for some reason, that seems to happen for me in the late summer/early fall. Maybe it’s because the holidays are just around the corner, and I tend to really come alive during that time. Maybe it’s because a new school year is beginning, and I just ride that wave of new beginnings.Anyway, I’ve been taking a look at the business, and I’ve made some decisions that are solely in your benefit.

I’ve been writing about money a good bit, lately, and I figured that - with the last few posts encouraging people to better value their family photography – it might be wise to give a little practical help. I’ve always been the type of person who likes to know all the steps to achieve a result.

For example, I have this phrase seared into my brain: “Do not grow weary in well doing.” Great! Don’t grow weary… But HOW, I ask. I still have to do the same things. My load has not been lightened. When I learned the how, I felt much better prepared.  I knew exactly what tools to apply in order to prevent weariness, despite the fact that my circumstances were exactly the same. 

After the last three post you have a better understanding of the value of quality portrait photography. You know why it’s worth more. You know why paying a professional photographer benefits you. But – let’s face it – the economy isn’t fantastic, and more and more often it feels like money is tight.

“So, what’s the answer when you’re faced with the struggle between what you need vs. what you can afford?”

I’ve made it easier for you by giving you some great options.
First, I’ve split the payment system for you. Instead of paying a large chunk at one time, we separate the payments between the session fee, installment 1, and installment 2. Here’s how it works.

Session Fee – this is due when the photo session is booked. It reserves your spot on the calendar and no one can take it out from under you.
Installment 1 – this is due when the viewing/ordering session is held. We sit down together to place the order for your pictures/products and go through the list of what you need to purchase, along with all the proofed images. Once we have the total cost for the entire order, we’ll split it down the middle 50/50. Installment 1 is 50% of the total order.
Installment 2 – this is due when the pictures/products are delivered or picked up. Installment 2 is the remaining 50% due for the order.

Secondly, to make things even easier, I’ve decided that I will begin accepting payments via PayPal, as well. It has been so secure and reliable for years, and I finally feel comfortable offering this as a payment option for your images. The great thing about PayPal is that you can set up any type of credit card to be used with your account, giving you the freedom to make monthly payments if you need.

Money is tight. Things aren’t always easy. I know. I just can’t stand the idea that portrait photography is one of the first things that gets set to the side in times like these. I suppose it breaks my heart because I'm so guilty of it. When Elise was just a baby, Derrick and I were living on one income with a budget so tight that we could barely breathe. In her first year, I had only two photo sessions done for her. Did you get that? TWO sessions. Didn’t even have her 1-year pictures taken. And the boys – None. Zilch. Not a single portrait of my boys…AT ALL. I can tell you, as I look back, it breaks my heart. I have snap-shots, and those are precious, but they’re not the work of a professional, and they’re not the quality of a portrait.

Now, my kiddos are older and I shoot their portraits every 6 months… WITHOUT fail. Elise is old enough now to be enamored with her baby snapshots, and she pours over her baby scrapbook several times a year. Both the boys have books – neither are anywhere close to being done. I can tell that it hurts their feelings, too. Especially Evan.

Please know that when I share with you about the importance of those pictures, it’s not coming from a business woman. It’s coming from a mom… One who’s had to explain to their child why there’s not pictures of him. One who’s had to piece together various snapshots for school projects because there isn’t a family picture of all of us together. One who’s had to apologize to their child.

Something happens when my kids see their pictures – old and new. They see themselves as valuable. They know their memories are valuable. It happens as they get older. Ethan doesn’t get it as much as his big sister. Elise, though, she lights up in a very special way when we look at her pictures together. It’s like a message from me to her, without words, that says – I love you so much that I want to keep this moment forever. She TOTALLY gets it.

When I showed Evan this picture of him and I together, he smiled really big and said – “I love my mama.”

I wouldn’t trade that moment for anything money could buy!

Dollar for Dollar III

There once was a ship that cost a company millions of dollars. Much to the dismay of the company, something had gone wrong, and the ship was stuck in the dock. They decided to call various “experts” who, in turn, spent weeks trying to fix the issue in the engine room, and spent thousands of dollars. All to no avail.

image courtesy of usstexasbb35.com

Finally, they called an older gentleman who came in with a small tool bag and a hammer. He immediately began pinging on various parts of the enormous engine with his hammer, and finally settled on one area. He spent just a few minutes more, pinging in what seemed like random places, and then took out a few more tools to fix whatever was wrong.

After a few moments the man stood up, looked at the captain, and told him, “Start her up.”


image courtesy of historicalstockphotos.com

The skeptical captain grumbled as he marched to the engine room, and then marveled in disbelief as the engine roared to life. The old man tipped his hat, grabbed his bag of tools and gave a polite wave to the staff as they stared, dumbfounded by the man. All those experts had come on board for weeks, spent ridiculous sums of money, and the ship remained lifeless. Just a couple pings from a hammer in an old man’s hand, and the thing was back in business!

A few days passed and the office received a hand-written invoice from the old man for $10,000.
The accounting department called him immediately, for all the rumors from the staff told that this man had only spent ‘a few minutes’ fixing the ship ‘with his hammer and a couple of other random tools.’ They asked him why the bill was so high, wondering if, perhaps, he accidentally added a couple of extra zeros to the number.

The man confidently respond:

“In fact, the time was worth $1,000. The other $9,000 was for the years of experience and the ability to discern the issue as quickly as possible for the company.”

Many are the people who think that starting a photography business only requires the use of a camera and a computer. Many consider themselves experts in the art of photography. The truth is, a camera doesn’t make someone a photographer any more than a plane makes someone a pilot. Mark Cuban may own the Dallas Mavericks, but a professional athlete he is not.

The value in hiring a professional photographer is intrinsically related to the value of your images. Do you trust your only newborn pictures of your first child to a young person with no photographic training? Those are moments you will never have again, and there’s no margin for disappointment.

The only things that link you to your memories are your pictures. How valuable are your memories to you? Will you cherish them forever? Will the beautiful faces of your children decorate your walls and bring your home to life? Will you share them with your family? Will you pour over their baby pictures as they grow up? And what if something were to happen? What if your son were to join the military and be stationed overseas… would you gush over every image of him that you could find while he was gone? Of course. We all would.

What makes an image so valuable is the relationship and connection you share with the person in it, and the moment it captured. So, why would you want your professional portraits to be of mediocre quality with less than genuine expressions?

It all boils down to this – custom portrait photography is more expensive because it is more valuable. The dollars and cents you spend pay for the experience, quality of work, quality of professional relationship, authentic expression, completely customized products, carefully hand processed final images, archived files for later ordering if necessary, consultation services, AND a session that is completely designed to be uniquely yours.

Even more than that, in terms of the photographer, there is a huge difference between someone who has simply picked up a camera and started pressing the shutter button, and someone who has devoted their time and money into becoming educated, skilled, and consistent in the quality of images they produce.  In thinking about a photographer's value, consider whether they are building a sustainable business, or if they are simply shooting for cash.  Have they honed their skills?  Is there diversity in their portfolio (meaning, does every newborn picture look the same, or are they unique to the family)?  How long have they been investing their time and money in the building of their business?  Would you be a new relationship, or a temporary client with $ signs attached?  All of these things are contributing factors.

That’s it. Money=Value. You cannot compare a chain store photo shop to a custom portrait studio any more than you can compare a gourd to a green bean. The only similarity is that there’s a camera involved. What you have to decide is the value of the experience… knowing the experience extends for generations to come each time someone sees the picture you purchase.

I’ve given you three full posts laying out the reasons custom portrait photography doesn’t cost the same as a chain store, and the difference in value between the two. Only you can determine what is valuable to you and your family.

Dollar for Dollar II~

Welcome to Part II of our installment in the quest to understand –

Why does custom portrait photography cost more?

Let’s begin by saying that – in reality, comparing a chain store photo department is TOTALLY different than a custom portrait photographer. It’s apples and banana’s my friend. They’re not even the same shape, my friend.

But, for the sake of education, we’re going to take a few minutes to explain why the prices are different. We won’t discuss the fact that chain store photographers are mostly unfamiliar with the rules of composition, the technical aspects of the camera they’re using, or the effect of various forms of light as it relates to aperture, shutter speed, and exposure. Most of the time, they’re employees uneducated in the field of photography, who have been trained to use the company owned and supplied camera in the same way a fast-food employee is trained to use a deep fryer. And we won’t talk about how a chain store model is geared toward getting the highest volume of customers in the door, and then offering the same exact experience to each person. Nothing customized. Nothing personal. And we won’t talk about how they herd you through the system like cattle.

Nope – not going there.

Let’s just talk about the cash. Cold, hard cash. If a print is a print, a photo is a photo, why does it cost more for a custom photographer than for a chain store?

One word – TIME

Let’s say you plan to take your children to Sears for family pictures. You call, 5 minutes later you hang up, having put your last name on a time slot for Saturday morning. You get there with your children, and wait in the lobby while they finish up the crew ahead of you. All the while, you’re trying to keep your daughter’s bow in her hair, and your son from getting what only little boys can find all over his white shirt. Finally, the girl – barely 20 years old – calls your last name.

She ushers you into a cramped room with a narrow background pulled. You wonder – is that the same background the family in front of me used? I wonder how many people’s Christmas cards will have that winter scene? She sets your kiddos on a stool and steps behind the camera. Feather duster in hand, she gives them a tickled and then CLICK – the shutter goes off. 10 minutes later, she’s taken 8-10 shots – you’ve frantically worried about the bow, wiped the tears from your son’s eyes from his stranger/danger reaction to the girl with the rainbow duster, and added at least 10 gray hairs to your scalp.

“Stranger/danger”-twenty-something takes you back to the lobby and tells you that your photos will be ready to be looked at in 30 minutes. You decide to reward the kids – it was not an easy morning, and ½ hour later you’re back to see your pictures. She brings them up on a computer screen and you see the wonderful product of your morning. That stupid bow!, you think. Little man’s cheeks are still red from the fear you’re not exactly sure if baby-girl is looking at the camera, the duster, or you.

I could go on and on, but let’s take that – rush-‘em-in/rush-‘em-out model and compare that to what happens in custom portrait photography, shall we?

• Booking time~30 minutes to one hour  
• Time spent with client through phone conversations and emails
• File prep – create file, fill out documents, prepare welcome packet
• pre-session prep time~1-2 hours
• Studio preparation – planning props, lighting, and backdrops
• On-location pre-shoot scouting – includes evaluating light for session time, test shots, and general shooting directions, as well as props for session.
• Equipment checks and vehicle checks
• Travel time~1-2 hours
• Depending on the shooting location, this would include travel to/from the session.
• Session day prep~15-30 minutes
• Setting up for the session includes, camera and cards (spare), tripod, lighting if necessary, prop location and storage for easy access, and final light analysis
• Shooting with client/in-session~90 minutes-2 hours
• Taking time to get to know the subject to build relationship
• NEVER rush the capture of images. We work fast when we need to capture babies and kids in their ‘happy time’, but are fully prepared to relax and take our time if that’s what we need to do.
• Uploading and backing up images~30 minutes
• Shooting in RAW takes longer to upload.
• Back up of all images better insures longevity and security.
• Post-processing~2-5 hours
• Edits are made for blemishes and other faults, such as eye circles, gnats, stray hairs, etc.
• Custom white balance, color correction, etc.
•  This includes everything we need to do in order to present you with a full gallery of edited images.
• Photo presentation prep~1½-2 hours
• Inclusion into online proofing gallery
• Back up of final edit images
• Inclusion into presentation display program for in person ordering session.
• Paperwork prepared for in person ordering session.
•  Files updated.
• In person ordering session~1-2 hours
• This includes the consultation regarding images, and the time spent with the client working through everything they need to order, as well as the presentation of sample products and custom work.
• Order confirmation and placement~1-2 hours
• Time spent working through your order, image by image, resizing for specific print orders, sharpening images for print, placing the order with the professional print company, and double checking order completion.
• Order deliver~1 hour
• Once the order is received, it is double checked against the order placement
• Packaging
• Client time spent preparing order delivery/pick up.
• Session/Order conclusion~1 hour
• Time spent on email/phone with the client as a follow up
• Completing file documents

Just by looking at this schedule, it’s easy to see how a photographer could conservatively spend upwards of 15 hours working for a single session. Consider, also, that a huge percentage of the time scale above is completely non-existent in the chain-store photo department model.

This, my friends, what your session fee covers… It’s the “time and talent” of the photographer. If you think about a $75 session fee vs. the, let’s say 15 hours spent, you find that your professional is actually making $5 per hour.

There is so much more to be considered here, though. Think about the cost of the website on which you have a password protected image gallery. Your photographer pays for that. And what about the equipment? If he/she is a bona fide professional, they won’t be using standard equipment. Great images require great equipment, cameras/lenses/high-def cards/lighting/props/tripod/wireless remotes… the list could go on. Trust me, your professional photographer is not editing your photos on Google’s free Picasa. And your images are stored on hard drives, and external hard drives, and CD backups.

All of this is paid for by the photographer, and it’s NOT going to happen on a $5 per hour budget. There’s a business to be run. Marketing to be done. Samples to be bought for you to see. So, you see, even that $5 per hour doesn’t pay the photographer. It wouldn’t even pay for everything else needed in order to make your session happen in the first place.

So where does the money come from? How does the photographer make enough money to pay for the business, purchase the products you order, and make enough money to live on?

The pictures you order.

Keep in mind that those pictures are NOT printed in the same way as that which you get from the local Wal-Mart. Oh, no, my friend. Totally different product, again. But, if your photographer only charged you the exact cost of the print itself, there would be no business at all.

The service you enjoy, the session and the attention, the luxury of custom photographic work is fueled by the session fee and print profit working together to bring you a phenomenal experience, complete with professional knowledge and wisdom.

Because this post has taken so much space and time, I have decided to split it into another installment. Tomorrow, we’ll discuss value…

Did you hear that? VALUE, VALUE, VALUE…

How valuable to you think this is going to be when she's 60 years old? 

Dollar for Dollar

Today, I’m tackling the hushed topic of money.

“Why,” you ask, “are you going down this path? It’s such a beautiful day outside! The birds are singing, the clouds are puffy, the sky is blue, the sun is shining and all is right with the world! Why, on a day like today, would you want to talk about money?”

Because I love you.
Because those of you who faithfully read this blog know me. You know that relationships, to me, are the most important things that we can build. And I’m trying to help you.

“Money? You’re trying to help me by talking about money?”

Yep. Here’s the deal – we’re going to get a little education that will color your lovely minds for the rest of your lives. Be brave. Work through it. You owe it to your families, your kids, and grandkids, and fantastic generations to come.

“Alright, fine. What’s this about?”

Buckle your seatbelts, my friends, because - in the words of Heath Ledger: “here – we – go”…

You don’t know how many times I’ve fielded the question – “Why are custom portraits so expensive? It’s just a picture, and I can get a picture printed at the drug store for $1.00.”

Have you asked that? Maybe you’ve just wondered it to yourself as you’re looking at the latest chain store flyer advertising 8x10 prints for $7.99. Or, maybe you've wondered exactly this as your pondering the annual holiday picture package that offers you thousands of small scale prints for ONE LOW PRICE!!!  Who cares that it's thousands of prints of the same pose?  (No customizing, please.  Should you choose to customize your package, well that'll cost you out your nose.  But hey - who cares when you get so many mini-wallets that you could send one to every soldier in Afghanistan?! - after you cut them out yourself).

We live in a very strange consumer driven society – one in which we expect extreme quality with no contribution requirement.

"What, on earth, does that mean?"

Just this, our society wants the world at our fingertips, and we don’t want to pay a dime for it.

The tragedy is that we don’t even realize how our standards for quality have plummeted because of our unwillingness to pay for a better product and service. Somehow, we’ve become satisfied with a thousand prints of one single posed picture, thinking we are getting a steal! Our mouths have become so used to horrible $1.00 cheeseburgers, that when we go to an authentic burger joint, complete with a waitress for our table, we gasp at the thought of paying the $10.00 they charge.

Suddenly, we’re getting our own drinks at a drink station. We’re cleaning our own tables before we sit down. We’re standing in line, waiting for a mass produced frozen product. And we’re okay with that.

It wouldn’t be so bad if we actually appreciated the $10 burger – and all that goes into it.

Now, let me make this disclaimer. I’m not down on chain-store photo shops. Not at all. It serves a need for some people, and that is important. After all, not everyone can afford custom work. And not everyone values photographic art.

All I’m saying is that custom work, custom art – it’s valuable. And you’ll never get the quality of the $10 burger, complete with service, atmosphere, and experience, when you’re only willing to pay a buck…

Tomorrow I’m going to spell out more about the distinctions between chain store photography and custom portrait work. We’ll compare burger to burger, (actually, photo store to custom work) and clearly differentiate the separation in value between the two different types of photography.

Then, you’ll know EXACTLY why custom portrait work is so much more valuable than photo-store offerings.  In the mean time, let's take a look at one more beautiful custom image that - ahem - could never have been captured in a chain-store shop...

See – that wasn’t too painful, was it?

Beauty Queen

I shot this beautiful baby girl last weekend, and couldn't wait to get her parents the proofs.  And let me tell you, she is just as sweet as she looks!  Even though we were shooting in the late afternoon, and she was working without a nap, she was still just as perfect as she could be.

Here are a few of my favorites!

Okay, so everyone knows that we're in South Georgia.  And it's H.O.T. - HOT!!!  By the time we were 1/2 way through the shoot, all of us were starting to sweat.  I'm sure my face was 3 different shades of red by this point, because we started shooting really fast.  I was all over the place with my camera, and baby-girl was exploring this new grassy park, and chasing the bubbles my daughter was blowing.  Her cheeks were getting more and more rosy, and her hair was starting to saturate... but I just couldn't hold back the fun she was having!

This precious baby girl is the first newborn that I worked with, and I was so honored to take her 1 year pictures as well.  Here is Claire as a newborn...

And here she is now...



I love watching kids grow!

Just a quick plug - if you're interested in pictures for Christmas (prints, cards, etc.), let me know as soon as possible, and we'll get you 'on the books'.  We start shooting for Christmas in the fall, and the schedule fills up quickly.  The entire month of August is already booked!

Back To Life ~

Oh my goodness.

I cannot believe how long it’s been since I’ve posted to this blog. It’s just not right.  So, this is going to be wordy (because, if you know me, you know I'm a 'wordy' person), but I have excuses to make.  If you're interested, read on.  If not, skip this entry and move on to the beauty queen I'm featuring...

In an effort to make up for my regrettable negligence, I’ll spend this week catching you up on what pulled me away from my home computer in the first place. If you read this blog regularly, I don’t want you to feel slighted… I haven’t really posted anything to Facebook all summer either.

Sooooo – here’s my top 10 excuses for my summer distraction.

1. Kids on summer break from school
Yep, the kiddos are were out of school (yep, it took me so long to write this, my kids are no longer out of school), and everyone who has kids in school knows exactly what that means. There’s something that happens to them when they collectively breathe a long sigh of relief – especially my older ones. It’s like, with one long breath they say,

‘no more hours of homework, note cards memorizing vocabulary words, required reading, science concepts, flash cards, multiplication, division, fractions, or percentages. No more memorizing historical characters. No more writing assignments and standardized test preparations. No more school lunches, and breakfasts, and recesses with kids who aren’t always nice. No more getting out of the bed at 6am and no more hours on the bus.’ Yeah, Evan and Elise both said it in one long sigh.

Ethan, however, is just happy to do whatever. “School?” he says. “No problem! I got this.”

2. Working loaded hours at the office
It’s enough to say that it’s been hectic. REALLY hectic. I’m thankful that things are starting to calm down now, and that I can get back into some semblance of a routine. It’s never fun to lose sleep just because you’re worried about the next day’s to-do list.

3. And then exhausted evenings crashed on the sofa or by the pool
Needless to say, with a really crazy hectic pace at work, the evenings became solid r&r. I sat by the pool a lot, and watched as my summer swimmies took to the water. By now, meaning August, they’re more casual about swimming, but at first, I couldn’t keep them away from that glorious water. And, while my qualities as mother-of-the-year contender can be debated, I will clearly state that I would rather be watching the kiddos swim than blogging away at my computer – for obvious reasons… safety being the main primary, and - well - I just plain love 'em. Summer sun – silly kids – laughter – splashing – lemonade evenings… WHAT COULD BE BETTER????

4. Family vacation to my parents house, and Holmes Beach
For one week, Derrick and I took the kids to my parents’ house in FL. They were amazing, as always. Mom and Dad hung with the ‘chillies’ (as my mom calls them) while Derrick and I got some much needed time alone. It was a great spot. The condo was okay, but the food?! O…my…goodness!!!! I’ve never had scallops that fantastic in all my life! Oh, and the shopping. I forgot how nice it was to shop without someone saying – “Are you going to buy me a toy?”

5. Shooting hiatus – I took June/July off from portrait sessions
Just a little time off. For good reason. I could say that it was all because I just needed some down time, but there were additional reasons, as well. I didn’t want to schedule any more sessions until….

6. CAMERA UPGRADE
Yep! So jazzed about this. (Nerd alert!) If you’re a camera junkie like I am, then you’ll appreciate this little digression into tech talk. I invested in a full-frame Canon 5D MarkII, and I must say that I could not have made a more fantastic decision. It’s incredible the way it handles noise in high exposure, and is super fast. Notice, I didn’t yet mention that it records video in high-def… We’ll talk about that later. (Digression complete)

7. Getting ready to go back to school - translate - going back to school
Oh the wonder of school supply shopping! Ethan, having just turned 5, stunned us all with his vocabulary on our supply shopping morning. Here’s a sample –

Mom – What’s 100-17
Kids – silence
Mom – Okay, what’ 100-10
Elise – That’s easy. 90.
Mom – Well, what’s 90-7
Pause
Ethan – 83!!!!!
Elise – (eyes as big as dinner plates), I was going to say 84
Evan – HE JUST GUESSED!!!!

And another sample –
Ethan – Mom, look at all that tall grass (he said as he pointed to the overgrown brush in the pecan orchard). That is a great snake habitat!
Mom – What? thinking - surely, the little man didn't just say habitat.  He only JUST turned 5!!!
Ethan – That’s the kind of habitat snakes like to live in.
Mom - Yep, he said 'habitat.'  That' right, Ethan.  It's a perfect snake habitat!

And my favorite sample – as people were shoving and arguing with strangers about notebook paper, folders, and glue, Ethan says (in a voice as loud as he could without screaming)

Ethan – Don’t they know that people are more important than school supplies?! Why are they being so rude?! (you should have seen the looks I got after that. Needless to say, we hurried out of the store with less than what we were after.)

8. Getting ready to go back to ballet
Yep. It’s that time again. Elise has blossomed into this girlie, lip gloss loving, creature that has fallen in love with a good mani-pedi, and was more excited about getting sized for her ballet, tap, and jazz shoes, than she was about her school supplies. We’re not totally sure what to make of that… yet.

9. Getting ready for a soccer try-out with a new league
My Chandler-man has been at it for weeks now - working out to get ready for a soccer try-out with a traveling team. Frequent have been the evenings that had me running soccer drills in the front yard. Evan works and sweats (despite his severe loathing of Georgia summer heat), and then runs, and dribbles, and shoots. All the while, Ethan subtly tries everything he sees big brother do. We stay ‘mum’ about that to Evan, or there’d be war, complete with the phrase “STOP COPYING ME!!!!” Ironically, last night Evan offered to be Ethan’s soccer trainer at the house. He said, and I QUOTE, “Dad can train me, and I’ll train Ethan.” Those are valuable words, my friend.

10. Did I mention the extra time at the office and then exhausted evenings that followed? Oh, well, August had me recovering from that….

So, you now have an idea as to why I’ve been so … gone. But no more. We’re getting back into the swing of things, starting with some regular blogging about the summer, complete with pictures (though I know this post is painfully missing the visual images - they're coming). If you know and love the Eldridge clan, stay tuned, my friend.

And for those of you who are more interested in the business of photography, I have some things coming up for you, too. Here’s a little teaser – I had my first photo shoot with the 5D MkII, and I’ll be putting more images out there for all to appreciate, but I'll add one of my favorite's here.  Have I mentioned how much I'm loving my new camera???  Does it show???


Loving those baby blues!!!!



2011 Ballet and Jazz Portraits ~

One of my favorite things in the entire world is dance.  I love the expression... the emotion... the power of dance!  I always have.  One of my favorite childhood memories was the day I was sitting in my bedroom by myself, and my daddy brought me a present.  It was for no reason... not a birthday or any other holiday.  It was just because he loved me.  When he pulled it out, it was a porcelain ballerina from swan lake that was about 12 inches tall.  When I wound her up, she would spin to the theme song from the ballet.  Oh, I loved that gift.

My daughter has taken a dear love of ballet, as well.  She's not a huge fan of her tap class - hence the reason there are no pictures of her in her tap shoes - but she loves her ballet.  She flutters and gracefully spins all over my house... and I love it.

Here are her dance pictures for this year ~

This is my favorite of her...

This is her favorite:

Yes, that's eye liner.  She had just come from her dress rehearsal when we shot these.  NOT an everyday occurance... just in case you're wondering!