NOVEMBER 5-ON-5

This month started with a camera malfunction; that's always fun! And (of course) there has been a delay with the part that had to be ordered, so my camera has been in the shop for a looong time. This means I've had to rely on my 'back-up' camera. It is not as fast as I would like, but this process has been a good reminder that it is less about the equipment and more about the person holding it. This has been a good reminder for myself when I doubt my skill level.

When I first started out, I would shoot mostly newborns inside of their home, using natural light. And if I shot the whole family, we would use their front porch and yard. The concept of capturing a family in their space, where they do life, was what I loved about those shoots. Unfortunately, my gear at the time did not allow for a very high ISO, so I quickly moved to more outdoor photography. This month I found a few families to allow me to test out my newer camera inside of their homes (thankfully right before the aforementioned malfunction!). I loved the end product!

Screened in porch counts as their home.

The rest of the month I had my 'old' camera, so it was back outside. But late afternoon fall light is my favorite!

And any pictures containing my middle child are my favorite too.

Check out more awesome photos in the blog circle: click to see Sam's work this month!

OCTOBER 5-ON-5

That month flew by! Between the up and down temperatures, school, sports and the usual influx of fall photo shoots, October was gone in the blink of an eye!

The first session I had this month was for a family I've known for over 10 years. We've raised our oldest together from birth, and they've lived in this house since I met them. This month they will be moving to a new house and leaving behind a home with amazing memories. I wanted to give them photos to help them remember the family they've built in the home.

Even though I prefer to shoot outdoors, I am trying to grow and improve my indoor (no flash) abilities. I took the boys up to their rooms to get a few shots of them in the only bedroom they've ever known...Loved the way this boy just 'was' for this part of our session!

My favorite shots have always been the little moments that happen between the 'poses'.

I got to shoot this little peanut at her aunt's wedding...she stole the show and her aunt couldn't have been happier about it.

I stumbled upon a cotton field a few weeks ago. So. Cool. I'd never seen a cotton plant before; they are very complex and beautiful. 

Finally, another example of why I try to 'lightly' pose my families and then let them fill in the blanks. Big sister knows just what to do!

Check out more awesome photos in the blog circle: click here to see Stephanie's work this month.

SEPTEMBER 5-ON-5

We are entering a very busy season for our house. Fall sports for all three kids, full-on school projects and activities, my busy photography season, and the holidays fill our calendar in a way that unfortunately makes my favorite time of year fly by. On a positive note, there are plenty of things to capture with my camera!

We escaped to the panhandle for a few days while the kids had the week off from school. Ruby's love of everything 'beach' made the trip oh-so-fun.

Last month we attended our first Dragon*Con Parade. We saw many of the same costumes we see at the L5P Halloween Parade, making it a fun event to photograph.

 

One of those lazy afternoons cleaning out the garage. Ruby was facinated with the small fan we had running.

 

We took the girls to the Beltline Lantern parade one night. This meant a trip to the smallest playground ever, which surprisingly my big kids love.

Sports are probably my favorite thing to photograph as they offer so many cool action shots!

Check out more awesome photos in the blog circle: click here to see Stephanie's work this month.

AUGUST 5-on-5

This month snuck up on me! We were busy, and thankfully I had my camera with me most of the time :)

First off, I got to shoot an engagement session for a good friend of mine. She wanted to try the sunflower fields so we braved the MANY MANY other photographers there that night to get some fun shots just before the sun went down.

I have a family/friend that has hired me very consistently since their family started expanding. I feel privileged to have shot the three boys so many times in the last five years!

Two of my favorite girls. Unlike the family above, I've only shot them a few times, but they always give the best smiles (and it doesn't hurt that blond hair and blue go so well together!). 

Before the sunflowers wilted, I brought the girls back to the farm for a quick morning shoot. Maddux shot along with me and Ruby was the subject for both of us. While my girl was 'working' with Ruby, I turned my attention to the flowers (and bees).

But you know I caught as many as I could of the two of them!

Check out more awesome photos in the blog circle: click here to see Nicole's work this month.

JULY 5-on-5

I did a few senior sessions this last month, a few events, several swim meets, an indoor show and our church's summer camp. Plenty of opportunities to stretch my camera legs, for sure!

I love this time of year because my kids are fish. Eli and Maddux have always loved swimming, and swim team's craziness is also fun-ness. I'm so happy to shoot our neighborhood's swim meets so that all of the parents can have pictures of their kids. An added bonus is being able to play around with my skill set to capture things in new ways.

Music is a big part of our lives. We love it, we (not me) play it, and we try to support it. A friend's new band had a show last week that needed some coverage. Since taking photos of shows and festivals is part of my dream job, I jumped at the chance to try my hand at it.

Our church camp is SO fun and there are so many amazingly fun and funny moments throughout the week. Outdoor games never disappoint!

Senior sessions are something I only started doing last year. I'm still working through how to keep it interesting with only one person in the frame, but this last session was a success. The senior in question is comfortable in front of the camera and had that 'outside of the box' mentality regarding our shoot.

Finally, it's summer which means my garden is my happy place. And by garden, I mean flower, not food (much to my family's dismay). This year I finally grew a sunflower that wasn't eaten.

Check out more awesome photos in the blog circle: click here to see Stephanie's work this month.

JUNE 5-on-5

My five favorites from this month...the transition month, not just from school to summer, but (usually) from me taking a break to shoot my own world to starting to shoot for others again.

These siblings are some of the sweetest I know. They spend most days running between our yard and their own, and it has been my joy to watch them grow up.

The start of summer always means jumping right into swim season for our family. The last few years I have had the privilege of shooting our neighborhood swim meets. One of my favorite assignments.

Check out more awesome photos in the blog circle: click here to see Sam's work this month.

May 5-on-5

Here we are again: my five favorite personal images for the previous month. We traveled to NYC for my middle daughter's upcoming 10th birthday. So much fun, so much to photograph. I only brought one fixed lens (85mm) with me, which I don't use often. Yet another attempt to stretch myself!

This girl literally skipped and jumped and danced around that city.

 

The view of the city from the other side of the water was just perfect. After we walked across, I couldn't stop taking photos of it.

 

 

We went to the top of the Freedom Tower. The kids loved using the iPads provided to see what the *tiny* buildings below us were...they thoroughly enjoyed the view from 100 stories up.

 

As we waited for our turn to board the ferry to see the Statue of Liberty (from the Jersey side), there were so many repetitious opportunities...lights, benches...a photographer's dream.

The trees. Oh my, the trees. The temps were still cold enough that not much green had started. That was fine by me and my lens...I love the shapes the tree skeletons make!

Check out more awesome photos in the blog circle: click here to see Charlotte's work this month.

APRIL 5-on-5

This month was another busy one, but I did manage to pick up my camera a few times :) The month started with some amazing weather warranting many outside adventures. For us, that usually means traveling into town to walk on a trail, go to a park, and definitely eat food (preferably outside). On this day, Lehr and I took the girls to our favorite pizza place and ate on the deck, soaking in the sunshine, the spring and the welcomed family time.

Our day always starts with a smoothie, and if we're lucky, we don't drink it until the sun comes streaming in the kitchen window.

I have so enjoyed the pace this spring has taken! None of my plants have been adversely affected by the back and forth weather we had in March, but instead they've slooooowly emerged at a pace I prefer.

We are back at the soccer field Saturday mornings. And this girl is back in her element. While not an especially aesthetically appealing photo, it sums up Maddux on the field: a natural. Check out that leg layout!

Finally, this girl again. She is pure joy. She had her grandparents wrapped around her finger for a few days in March. I love Grandpa's hand reaching in to brush her cheek here.

Check out more awesome photos in the blog circle: click here to see Charlotte's work this month.

MARCH 5-on-5

Another doozy of a month in the too-busy-to-focus-at-all-on-photography department, but thankfully this last 10 days we have experienced two or three seasons in Atlanta, so nature provided me with inspiration.

Jasmine...my favorite smell. Unfortunately, my huge vine that does so well does not produce much in the aromatic department. But it more than makes up for it with this gorgeous showing the first few days of March.

That first flower on the clematis vine...signaling to the rest that it's go-time.

My favorite, for sure. New life totally pushing the dead out of the way to reach the sun's rays.

My girl. This falls under the category of trying to capture the very real moments of our every day. She drinks a smoothie every morning, and she often tips it this way, even though she knows 'it's a sipper, not a tipper'.

Unrealistic because she'll never keep anything in her hair for more than a few moments, but I love the contrast created by the bright sun, and I love how she fits in the shadow of the tree.

Feel like seeing more photos? Continue the blog circle to Nicole's post.

FEBRUARY 5-on-5

This was a very non-photography busy month for our family. So busy that there was even a full 7 days at one point that my camera didn't get touched! But the month started with a bang, giving me so many fun photo opportunities within 36 hours, so I can't complain too much.

I had the honor of shooting the wedding of two 'kids' that I have seen grow up over the last 6-ish years. They are in a band together and I've been able to take photos of the band and be fans of the band, all through them growing their relationship. The wedding was beautiful - more beautiful than any I can remember because of all of the cool details that made it their day. And then, God gave us a random snow/ice storm in the midst of two weeks where the temperatures hovered in the high 50's. When I say God gave them that storm, He absolutely did...it made the wedding even more amazing and an absolute dream to photograph.

This was one of my favorites because of the moment it was. Bride-to-be getting her hair and make-up done by two of her friends while her little sister peaks in. This all took place in both girl's older sister's house. Memories, memories, memories.

Is there anything more special than the moment when a bride and groom see each other for the first time on their wedding day? I do not shoot weddings often, but I am such a fan of the 'first look' because of the quiet moments (outside of my camera clicking) it gives them in what is usually a noisy day. Oh yeah, and when your couple is super cool and wears homemade ties and gold dresses, every photo looks amazing.

Again, weddings are not something I usually shoot, mainly because I don't feel creative enough to make the day look anything other than cookie cutter. This was my attempt to make a simple bridal party photo interesting. I love how it turned out.

The ceremony and reception were in the darkest of dark places. The beautiful string lights made the atmosphere so dim and intimate, but they did not give off nearly enough light for my comfort zone. I decided to test my camera for the ISO it boasts. Almost all of the ceremony photos were over ISO2000. Big step for a girl who likes to shoot at 400 or less.

 The moment right after they walk out of the ceremony, right after they have been pronounced husband and wife. You can't script this stuff...

Feel like seeing more photos? Continue the blog circle to Stephanie's post.