Hello my first 2010 baby!

Ahhhh, I finally got my baby fix to start the year off right. I got to meet 3 month old baby "A" this morning. I was a little smitten with her and her beautiful brown eyes and hair and olive skin. I love black and white pics but her skin is so pretty I hate to turn the color pics black and white :) As often happens I had my bag full of tricks but she let me get away with just enough to complete the session and she called it quits. I always say this is a good thing because otherwise I end up shooting forever and end up with way too many pics to choose from. So, thanks to "A" for keeping me in check. Hopefully we can use the pettiskirts next time I see her!

See what I mean about this skin!


Is she so cute or what???


I love her little "o" face...

Pettiskirt madness!

Okay Moms I just bought FIVE new pettiskirts to add to the collection of four that I already have. So, that means I need some little girls to photograph :) I have to admit I am slightly addicted to pettis but they are just so cute I can't help myself. These are coming from far far away, but I will take a pic of the whole collection when they arrive so you all can see what you have to choose from. Spring is only a few short months away and there is nothing more adorable than a little girl in a pretty green field in a big colorful pettiskirt. Maybe I will have a pettiskirt mini session. I guess here in Tennessee the wildflowers really don't come out until May and last all the way until September, so plenty of time for me to use these guys. I have my first baby of the year tomorrow, woo hoo, so check back in the next few days for some cute new pics!

One of my fav pettiskirt pics from last year...

Reworking the website...

So, I finally had some extra time to re-do my website galleries. I have broken it up into categories (i.e. maternity, newborn, babies, etc.) vs having it in color vs b/w galleries. I am still doing some reformatting and adding some pictures, but for the most part it is up and running. Said goodbye to some of my old favorite pics to make room for new pics. I REALLY have a problem cutting down the number of pics b/c I just love them all so much. In the industry, it is recommended to only have small galleries with 10-15 pics each, but well I just can't do it :) I figure if there are too many and you get tired of looking, just stop, but if you want more there are plenty to see. I personally find when I visit other photographers websites I often end up wanting to see more in tiny galleries, but then sometimes I find people that have about 100 pictures all in one gallery and I get bored. So, I ended up with about 30 per gallery, so middle of the road I would say. Anyways, let me know if you like the new format or as always I am open for suggestions of ways to improve the site.

It's Me!

Well, I decided so many of you have let me take pics of your bellies over the years that I would share one of myself. This is my 25 week belly pic. The pregnancy is going really well and I have no complaints except for maybe my double chin :) I still have a long way to go so there is no telling how big my belly will be in another 3.5 months! In case you are wondering, yes that is a tattoo on my belly, it is not henna. It was once much smaller but after 2 kids it is a little bit stretched out. I will chalk that up to the crazy things you do in college, the tatoo, not the kids, ha, ha. I had planned on taking pics of my belly every 4 weeks starting at 16 weeks and was going to do a storyboard at the end tracking how my belly grew. I have to admit I was a little bit behind this round since my last one was at 16 weeks, but I vow to do better and will finish this project! If you are an expectant mommy and are on the fence about having maternity pictures taken, do it!!!! I know how it is when you feel all big and maybe not that cute, but you will be sorry if you don't do it. I have soooo many Moms look at my maternity work and say, man I wish I would have done that with my kids. You can't go back and get a do over, so better to just get it done, you won't be sorry!

Nature photography, crazy I know!

My family went to Colorado back in October and I am just getting the pictures off my memory cards today almost 3 months later. Sadly my own pictures take the back burner often times. At least I got them though, just a little slow doing something with them. Anyways, anyone who has been to Colorado knows it is one of the most beautiful places on earth, so I decided I wanted to try to do a little nature photography. I played around doing some big, wide landscape type photos but wasn't really finding any enjoyment out of that, so opted to get in close and personal. This is where I found something to peak my interest. All the colors and textures are so intriguing to me and I find them so beautiful. So, I just wanted to share some pictures of something a little different than the usual kiddos. Usually if there are not people in the pictures I am kind of indifferent to them, but I really enjoyed taking these. My mom, who is an avid landscape photographer, would be proud though she is more of a wide landscape type lover. I hope you all have a wonderful rest of 2009 and I look forward to seeing many of your beautiful faces in 2010! Let me know what you think of these nature shots!!!

"T" is 3 months

Well, today was my last session of 2009. What a crazy year it has been. My client base grew about 6 times over what I did in 2008, so needless to say I feel very happy and fortunate. Word of mouth has been huge for me, which of course is the biggest compliment I can get, so thanks to you all. So, on to "T". This was her second session with me (third if you count photographing her in the belly) and we have 3 more to go taking her through her first year. She is a very good and cooperative baby, so she makes things easy for me. She looks like a little doll to me, porcelin skin and sweet little cheeks. She is a beauty. I am sharing 4 sneak peeks instead of the usual three, since I will be absent for awhile. I will likely post some personal pics and general news, so don't forget to check back even though I am "officially" on vacation for the next 6 weeks. I am open to taking appointments after January 1st should anyone need to get in to see me. I only have one session left for March and two for February, so do not be shy about planning ahead! Like I said in a previous post, no working people in this year, when I am booked I am booked and if it happens as it did last year this will likely happen quickly and several months out :)

I was so loving this red tutu with the candy cane stripe ribbon!


See, a little doll, seriously...


Festive!


A little smile...

"O" turns 1 year old

I met up with "O" on Saturday for our final session of his "grow with me" plan. He is a cutey with some big blue eyes and lots of chub. I just want to squeeze him. We had to do an indoor session since it is just a little on the chilly side here now, so always a different dynamic. I always worry trying to keep a 12 month old on the backdrop but he did really well. I have one more session next week and then I am on break for about 6 weeks! I am excited to have some time to catch up on my own kids photos, putting prints into albums, finishing up their yearly books, etc. I am also going to be revamping my website galleries and changing some things up getting ready for 2010. So anyways a peek of this kiddo at our first session a year ago and a few now that he is all grown up :) I hope I get to see him again for his second birthday!

"O" as a sweet and tiny newborn...


Love this little half smile...


He loved my duck...


You have to do a smash cake at a 1 year old shoot!