November 2009

So….stinkin’….b-e-a-yuuuuutiful!  Their ceremony was directly in front of the shark tank at the aquarium; it was so pretty!  And the weather was absolutely perfect!  Rico from DJ Connections did such a great job gettin’ the party started; a good time was had by all!  Katie & Gary, it was a pleasure to work with you both, your laid-back personality is refreshing!  Thank you for letting us be a part of your Big Day!

Levi makes my heart melt!  See what I mean?

I just realized that I never posted a blog from this wedding and it was 3 weeks ago!  (www.StorybookWeddings.org) Brooke & Nate, I’m sure you’re anxious for a sneak peek, I’m so sorry!  I’ll get right to the point of the post…

A few weeks ago I traveled to Dallas to be with my friend during her labor and delivery.  I arrived the night before she was to report to the hospital; she had cooked a wonderful dinner and was just as calm as can be.  I wondered if I had the correct address.  (I began to see small differences in how she handled childbirth compared to how I had handled it just 3 years ago.  If you let them, your friends can teach you a lot.)  I was mentally, emotionally and spiritually prepared for the experience that I’d had with childbirth, but little did I know she would upturn my entire thinking and philosophy on childbirth and completely stump me.  I have never witnessed a birth like this one.   First we started with… …the  waiting…

… and the counting……the continual updating…

… and the hopeful expectation…Finally, the prize…

Meet Levi, the newest addition to “my” family.   (Levi’s daddy actually took that last picture.  Nice, right?  Levi was in the nursery, but I couldn’t go in there, so I gave dad about a 5 second crash coarse on how to use my camera and he worked some magic!)  To my friend Wendy, you have shown me so many things, thank you.  Thank you for being such an amazing woman of God and such a true friend.  I love you!

Luke and I were so honored to shoot James & Erin’s wedding (for Storybook Wedding Photography, www.storybookweddings.org).  What an amazing family!  I don’t have enough space or time to tell you all of the wonderful things I know about these people after spending only a few hours of one day with them… I will tell you this, though: James has style!  His incredibly stylish shoes possibly deserve their own photo shoot and definitely their own blog post!  Erin was a stunning bride, and judging by the tears that welled up in James’ eyes when he first laid eyes on her, he agrees with me! 

It was so wonderful to see the support system that James and Erin have within their family and friends.  Although I don’t know any of them very well, it was obvious to me that both James and Erin have many people in their lives who love them dearly and treat their son Keith as though he was their own child.  Forgive me for going off on a rabbit trail here, but I see that as such a blessing in their lives and wanted to comment on it. 

What a beautiful family!  Seriously, do people get any better looking than this?  I think not.  And to Gary & Brooke, you all were an absolute pleasure to work with!  Thank you so much for the opportunity! 

I so enjoyed working with this family!  They were such easy subjects to photograph and they’re all good-looking!  To Missy…Thank you so much for entrusting me with such an important task!  I hope you found it much less stressful than anticipated!    

Quinton & Myndi needed some “just ‘cuz” pictures.  But really, I think that’s a great way to do pictures; why wait until you’re in a hurry for them?  Just do it for a date night, or for family day!  Quinton & Myndi are the quintessential cowboy/cowgirl (can we call that a “cowcouple”?  Hmmm…that just doesn’t sound right.)  Hat, boots, Roper jeans, Southern hospitality and a perfect balance of his chivalry & her sweetness. 

I have to admit, I was a little grumpy during their shoot.  And they know exactly why, too.  I use to shoot in downtown Tulsa, Woodward park and other well known places around town.  But I hated running into other photographers at what I thought were “my spots”, so I set out to find some places that I could truly call my own.  (And unless you do a photo shoot with me, I’ll never tell you where they are!)  I knew that if I actually used “my spots” that I couldn’t keep them a secret forever; eventually the photographs would circulate and someone would figure out where these places are.  Well, Quinton & Myndi were with me when I witnessed, for the first time, a “scene poacher”.   I was crushed.  I even had to be courteous as we waited for this photographer to finish up using MY spot!  Oh, woe is me!  Quinton and Myndi, thank you for putting up with me!

Barbara & Shaun will be getting married soon, so we set out early last Sunday morning for their engagement session.  They decided to include  Erica in their engagement session;  she’s so fun and such a sweet girl!  (www.StorybookWeddings.org)