meet "w"

i could just stop here.

"w" fondly referred to as dubbie was my first experience with four legged wonderment and photography. he did quite well….and i…well i managed. getting people to cooperate is one thing….getting a dog…completely different ballgame! we had fun though and dubbie cooperated for the most part. 

paul, belinda & valerie are the beautiful family dubbie chills with.  if they weren’t so darn nice i’d hate them for being so beautiful (did i just say that outloud?) ok, maybe not….but kindess & beauty has been bestowed on this family that is certain. here are a few from our day together…..some with…and some w/out the little furry dude.

These are shot from my friend Sherry’s shoot. I know her & her family through church and they are just the sweetest, kindest, most devoted family.  I have so much fun with them.  We had only one obstacle to overcome during the shoot, her son was so not interested in having his photo taken….really does that even surprise you? boys are so not about photos.  they’d rather be rolling in the dirt and playing with light sabers. i’ve said it before…and it never changes. with that being said, like any other photographer facing this challenge you realize you must stand back and act as if you are NOT shooting….then you end up with this

and this…..

here are some other faves from the day

When Hudson started attending preschool he had a sweet little dude in his class that he instantly bonded with.  They became "best buddies" and to this day that is how they refer to one another.  Inseperable.  Then went on to enjoy 3 years of preschool together and this year is has been quite an adjustment to watch as they went off to seperate elementary schools (ok, i think it may have been harder for sandy & I….but the boys do miss each other) Here’s a little shot of them at their preK graduation in May….aren’t they too stinkin’ cute???

Anyway, I was sooo honored when Sandy asked me to take their family photos.  We had sooo much fun and this was another session where everyone was totally laid back and having a good time. Cole was totally himself in every single shot, and Samantha…well, she’s a little model. She loved being in front of the camera and completely posed herself and took all the pressure off me.  Sandy was awesome and I loved watching her interact with the kids and beam at them….which she did alot…. So much fun! Here are some faves….

Sandy, thank you so much for the opportunity to do this for you.  I love ya’ll so much and feel so blessed to have been able to freeze their innocence for you for a bit longer.  They are such amazing kids and yo have done an incredible job at loving them and giving them the chance to be the amazing kids they are!  Thanks for making this process so fun and so darn easy!

i have so many shoots to catch up on and post here. the last couple months have been soooo busy and hectic and i’m still trying to figure out how to juggle all of this and make it work. i thought i had a good handle on it until i was completely booked with christmas shoots & had to figure out how to fit them all in, plus some last minute amazingly fun senior sessions….and then work on all the proofing and orders.  anyway, i managed…my head is slightly above water and as i wait for parker to wake up from his nap before heading out to run some last minute christmas errands i thought i’d play a little catch up.

back in october….or was in november…i did a session for a friend of mine who i adore and who is just such a ray of sunshine.  she has the most amazing laugh and can always make me smile.  trish & her family were soooo much fun. i mean….like i did not want the session to end. they were so realaxed and comfortable and ready to have a good time. i loved that they showed up in red…as opposed to the regular white / black combos i usually get (not that there is anything wrong w/ white or black people…let’s remember how CLASSIC those are…but color…always good!) anyway, they looked amazing and trish’s mom was in town from michigan and cam along which i loved. always cool to get to capture 3 generations in a photo.  here are a FEW of my very faves….(my gosh there were so darn many)

this was by far one of the most fun shoots i’ve had. it’s rare that you get an entire family that actually WANTS to be there and is enjoying the process.  most of the time the guys show up dragging their feet and the only person that wants to be there is the mom and by the time they get to the shoot they are about 1/2 hacked off because they’ve had to try to bribe the entire family just to show up.  but the entire hopkins family rocked this shoot! ( perhaps trish offered up some serious bribes ? )

thanks guys! your love for one another and the connection you have as a family is inspiring!

that’s what i try to remind myself.  especially lately.

yes, i am making a quick appearance in blog-land to say "hey, what’s up" but not time for much else right now. i have a ton of editing to do plus, i’ve been dealing with sick kids, being sick myself and a plethora of other day to day events/problems/occurrences that demand my attention but i promise promise i will catch up and post photos from all my sessions lately and catch you up on my trip to st. louis w/ pics from there as well!

just a quick …

"hey, what’s up?"

c-