Monthly Archives: April 2009

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Sneak peek! | Cute little model in Raleigh

April 30, 2009 – 10:00 pm

It’s 9:45 pm and I am wrapping two marathon work weeks with bleary eyes and sore feet but a big smile!  I have crashed into bed so tired I can’t think most nights this week and last, my kids miss me and my house is filthy so I will not be online this weekend and will reply to messages on Monday.  Just in case you’re worrying that I will be getting too much rest, no need to be concerned.  This weekend includes an out of town family visit, my kids’ combined birthday party extravaganza, a marathon at my son’s school, a soccer game, a Durham Bulls game, and delivery of our summer entertainment - a boat!  And this is just Saturday. I can’t even consider Sunday yet, one day at a time :) The last two weeks have just been fabulous enjoying the weather and shooting 1-2 sessions most days so I will have many peeks to share soon. Today was the Career Day event at NCRA and we just could not have had a better time.  I hope to hear from some of those students in the future, you all know that I am always able and willing to help in any way you need.  Thank you to everyone that shares their children with me, I truly have a blast!

So, back to the shadowing session; I sent out a client newsletter about a month ago and offered up this mini session.  I was hoping for at least one available family or I could end up shooting flowers and bugs with the girls but instead of a few replies I ended up with a TON, over 60 interested and available parties!  Soooo, we set about the very high tech method of selecting that involved my 6 year old home on spring break, a pen and scissors.  In the end my son was entertained for at least a solid hour and a name was chosen and it’s a face you have seen on this blog before several times before.   We met at WRAL gardens to soak up the pink and she handled having an audience quite well…in fact I think she enjoyed it!  And it was Mom’s birthday so it was just a great day all around.  Thanks for coming out!  (And if you did not receive the newsletter but would like to, send me a note!)

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By Season | Posted in Sessions, baby | Comments (12)

Photographer for a day | Wake County Students

April 28, 2009 – 4:42 pm

One of the perks of this job is getting to share my love of photography with students.  I just found out that two of the students from Bethesda Christian Academy in Durham that I mentored at the beginning of this school year placed in a national photo contest for yearbooks staff (one of them placed 1st!) and I hope to have their winning photos to share here soon.  I will be speaking at North Raleigh Christian Acadamy’s career day this Thursday and last week I had a few Wake County students job shadow me for day.  The girls shadowed me as I chased a 2 year old around a park - I figured no better way to get them started with what I do then a 2 year old!  Granted, she’s a doll and sweet as can be (photos of our model coming soon) but it’s a bit different than working with older children or adults.  We shot for about an hour and then went over a bit of the business end (most people don’t realize that taking photographs is one of the smallest bits of this job!) and what happens after the session is over.  I love what I do but I also take it very seriously.  It makes me excited to see kids interested in photography as a potential career and I want to see them do it the right way.  Studying photography, fully understanding the technical aspects of what makes a great portrait before jumping into a business and also understanding the reality of running a business and the time and costs involved.  These days it seems that the only thing you need to be in business is a camera and a website and it hurts my heart!

But hey, that is a bit of a tangent!  Back to the students, who of course did not want to be photographed ( I mean come on, what about me might lead you to belive that I am NOT going to take your photo?!) but obliged for one quick shot before we left for the day.  Very sweet girls that will be moving on to high school next year and I wish you all the best!

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By Season | Posted in News and Updates, kids | Comments (2)

Sneak Peek! | Brother and Sister at Duke Gardens

April 27, 2009 – 5:23 pm

The weather made a turn for the better and I have been using every second of it to get caught up on all the reschedules from earlier in the month.  I apologize if my replies to emails and voicemails are a little slower than usual.  The last May spots are in the process of booking now so I will be filling June’s remaining spots next.  It’s just a great time to be outside in North Carolina!

Back to the peek - these kids were just truly gorgeous little people.  We were out on that day last week that seemed like it would be warm and great until the 25 mph winds kicked up chilling us all to the bone and pounding us with face fulls of pollen and dirt.  So it wasn’t the most ideal day, but we stuck with it and the end result is just perfect.  They didn’t complain (yes, the grown ups did) and just smiled and played and kept high spirits the entire time.  I am so glad I was able to spend the morning with this amazing family!

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By Season | Posted in Sessions, kids, siblings | Comments (4)

Updates

April 21, 2009 – 12:33 pm

A quick update on scheduling, I have an opening next week on April 29th.  For May I have two dates remaining, May 6th and May 11.   If you are interested in a spring session please contact me asap so we can make it happen.  The colors are spectacular outside and I am so thankful that the weather appears to be turning for the better and I may just get caught up again!

My first newsletter went out to past client a few weeks ago.  The response was huge and I am already thinking about what to write about next time.  The newsletter will contain new and updates that don’t get published to the general public here on the blog.  If you did not receive the newsletter and would like to please let me know!

Also, come see me on Twitter and Facebook!

By Season | Posted in News and Updates | Comments (0)

Sneak Peek | Brothers in Raleigh

April 20, 2009 – 1:23 pm

We had a quick break in the rain for this session with sweet brothers that were ready to play.  We dug in rocks and climbed walls, I even snuck in a few cuddles here and there.  It was such a great day, thank you for sharing your sweet boys with me for the morning!

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By Season | Posted in kids, siblings | Comments (14)

Almost 5 year old I know and love | North Raleigh Photography

April 10, 2009 – 6:04 pm

So this is a little girl I know well and love very much :)  She is about to be 5 whole years old.  Five is an age I don’t alway see very often for sessions but it a huge age to capture.  This is just before they start “real” school, start losing those sweet baby teeth and the last bit of baby chub on the cheeks.  It’s the end of toddlerhood (ok, I just got myself teary eyed).  I love working with this age.

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By Season | Posted in Sessions, kids | Comments (31)

Flashes of Hope at Victory Junction Gang Camp

April 7, 2009 – 4:04 pm

A few weekends ago I had the opportunity to photograph family day at Victory Junction Gang Camp in Randleman, NC with Flashes of Hope.  I can not begin to describe Victory Junction Gang Camp in any way that will do it justice.  Their mission statement describes it well:  “Victory Junction Gang enriches the lives of children with chronic medical conditions or serious illnesses by providing life-changing camping experiences that are exciting, fun, and empowering, in a safe and medically-sound environment”.  And boy do they ever - we were absolutely amazed by every aspect of this place from the staff to the facilities to the grounds that were beautifully decorated.  We left bright and early (well actually it was very dark and early) and you can imagine the excitement a group of photographers would have getting to spend a day shooting in a place like this.  Everywhere you look is a bright, colorful, fun design - really it’s a photographer’s dreamland!  I wish I had some photos of the grounds to share with you to give you an idea of what I mean…but I don’t.  Why?  Well because it rained like Noah himself would be making an appearance.  It was dark as night and the rain came down heavily all.day.long.  We shlepped our gear through the rain and mud into the few indoor spots large enough to house us and made it work.  So yes, I shot family sessions in…a gym.  Against a lime green cinder block wall on a metal gym bench.  Right, so you can see what I mean by “make it work”.  But it DID work and the perpetual game of kickball going on right behind us kept us going all day long.  Here is a small peek into our day!

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By Season | Posted in Flashes of Hope, Sessions, kids, newborn | Comments (10)