Ms. Kappie's sneak peek!

I have been super busy editing my wedding and honeymoon pics... but I managed to take a quick break so I could do another session for the Lovely Ms. Kappie. I had the pleasure of doing one of my first sessions with Kappie and we had so much fun! But at the time she really wanted to do part of her session at the Fort and unfortunately, it was closed by the time we arrived. She is moving to Atlanta this week so I made time for her and finally managed to schedule another session just in time!

Ms. Kappie is an aspiring model and we had a blast trying to "beat the clock" (we were given only 15 minutes to do this session! But the park ranger was absolutely lovely and ended up giving us closer to 30 minutes total.)

More wedding pics!

And this time they are from mine :) First off, I have put my Uncle's pics online and you can check them out here:
Photos by Chris Stark


And Yay!!! Chyrel made a Blog entry!!! Check it out here: Island Time Studios Blog

My favorite picture she posted (and maybe out of all she took!):











Ok, I'll be back in just a bit with a few Honeymoon pics :) Thanks for looking!

Sorry I have been MIA...

but it was for a very good reason at least :)

Josh and I had a wonderful wedding; small and informal, just like we wanted! But for anyone else who thinks small and informal means NO stress... well I am here to tell you that is NOT true lol. But at least I didn't get to stress about every little detail for an extended period of time. I couldn't imagine what a stressball I would have been if I had been agonizing over all these decisions for a year!

I will hopefully get some wedding pics up soon. My best friend and sometime partner in crime, Chyrel of Island Time Studios, was my photographer. I also was lucky enough to have my Uncle there to help her out (also a photographer though he specializes in Studio photography). I have seen a few of Chyrel's pics and I can say I am VERY VERY pleased with them! I already have my uncle's pics and just need to sit down and figure out which ones I want to add to my blog... I'll hopefully have put some up by tomorrow.

As far as the honeymoon... St John, VI was PERFECT! So relaxing and beautiful! We spent most of our time snorkeling so I really don't have quite as many exciting pictures to share as I originally thought I would. But I could never find anywhere that would rent an underwater casing for my camera and the little disposable waterproof cameras pretty much just SUCKED! Better than nothing I suppose... but not by much! But I did take some wonderful pictures from our balcony overlooking Maho Bay; as well as some gorgeous pics of our walk to and from the Leinster House Ruins and the Anaberg ruins. And we did a LOT of walking! My butt hasn't been in this good of shape in YEARS! We are already trying to figure out when we can go back just for all of the health benefits! Plus it was so relaxing and secluded and peaceful... just HEAVEN! I definitely recommend St John!!!!



Ok, back to business! I have a few more straggler pictures from Ms R's session to show off. I finally finished proofing her pictures last week. With the wedding etc I just couldn't get everything done and she was sweet enough to allow me the extra time (thanks!). We have tentatively scheduled the 2nd part of her session for October. I have also scheduled 2 other shoots for October, so if you are wanting a session for early fall when you can still wear short sleeves but won't be sweltering, you need to contact me ASAP! I prefer to only take one client per week because I like to be able to spend quality time with each client and I want to take my time to make each proof perfect. I will only double-up a week if it is absolutely necessary!!

And on to the pictures! The first one is of the Lovely Ms. R and her Mom. I actually asked mom to take off her glasses b/c I could see the reflections of everyone (me included!). But, when it came time to edit them, I decided I actually liked having Ms. R's friends in the pictures, even if only peripherally. Seemed like a nice touch since they all mean so much to her!

The next 2 Pics are of Ms. W and Ms. A, both of whom were wonderful, fun models!

And the final picture is of Ms. R in her lovely brown dress. I wish we'd had a chance to get more pics of her in it as it was such a pretty dress and Ms. R looked beautiful in it! As it was, I only snapped about 10 pictures and I proofed over half of them. Hopefully Ms. R will find at least one or two to her liking!






























Thanks again to Ms. R, her mom, and Ms. A and Ms. W for a fun session! I hope you remember all of my modeling tips for the next time you are out taking pictures, they really will help any girl look better in front of the camera! (swivel those hips, smallest body part toward the camera, extend your neck, and try to look like you are having a good time ;))

A few more of Ms. R...

I can honestly say I am surprised at how hard it is for me to concentrate this week! I never realized I would get so stressed out trying to plan a wedding! I am definitely non-traditional when it comes to my wedding and I erroneously thought this would mean I would have no problems continuing as usual this week... but suffice to say I haven't gotten much done!

Thankfully there are only 8 more days left for me to obsess, then I will walk down the aisle and then I will be in beautiful St John... hopefully catching a world record Marlin! But, since I promised these proofs before my wedding day, I better get my tushie in gear!

Here are a few more sneak peeks of the Lovely Ms. R and her friends Ms. A and Ms. W. Hope you and your family/friends enjoy!

I've Been busy...

and I have been a VERY bad blogger! But hopefully this post will make up for it :)

For those waiting on Samya's proofs... we finished all the edits last week and are just waiting for a convenient time to meet up with them to go over a few things. After that they will be free to release the password to their friends and family! In the meantime... here is one final proof for the happy couple to enjoy (and I have to admit it's one of my definite favorites of the day):





















On June 28th I did a mini shoot with a beautiful newborn baby by the name of Mr. A, he was so sweet and cuddly that I wish I had been able to spend more time on his session. We had planned on finishing his session up the following day... but for the next 4 afternoons it was raining and it just never happened. But here are a few for mom and family to see:






















For 7/7/07 I was invited to shoot at a second reception for a co-worker's daughter, but the official photographer ended up being able to make it so I was off the hook, which was just as well b/c I felt pretty crummy that day and there is no worse feeling than to have to work when you feel yucky! But, before going home to crash in my bed and fall asleep (at the grand hour of 6 pm!) I was able to take these adorable pictures of my co-worker's granddaughter and another co-worker's grandson:




















And finally, here is the LOVELY Ms. R who is a class of 2008 Senior! Unfortunately her session was cut short on Saturday (7/14) when the huge thunderstorms rolled in on Saturday; but I have to admit to being quite happy with the few images I managed to capture before the rain (and heat) ran us off! Ms. R is an incredibly sweet, funny and generous young lady... and a big reason why her sesssion was scheduled during the sweltering heat of summer is because she is donating all of her lovely golden tresses to "Locks of Love" this week. I don't know too many senior girls who would so readily part with such a mountain of gorgeous hair, so I definitely think she is someone special and deserves to be recognized for her charity!

Happy 4th of July!

Just one for your viewing pleasure today- hope you enjoy it!

Samya readies herself...

Here are a few more pictures from when Samya was getting ready. Don't forget to check out Chyrel's blog for more pictures from Samya and John's wedding day.

I love this first picture for a lot of reasons... but mainly for how well it shows off Samya's beautiful waistline!

This is a back view of almost the same moment. She had so many tiny buttons on her dreess that at one point she had at least 4 people touching her at once! I don't think it is quite Guiness book of world records worthy... but was definitely a new record for me.

I just love this picture of Samya's mom and sister helping her with her veil. Check out those smiles!

This next lady was both Samya's hairdresser as well as one of her soloists during the ceremony. She has an absolutely beautiful voice- and her hairstyling technique isn't bad either! I can personally vouch that Samya's hair was just as lovely (if not lovelier) by the end of her reception as it was at the beginning of the day! A definite tribute to Mrs. "T" (gosh I hope I got that right!)

And finally... another big star of the wedding day- the shoes! I must admit that I think anyone who will wear black maryjanes with a wedding dress is just about the coolest person ever! I couldn't help but smile every time I saw these shoes peeking out from under her dress. Stylish, elegant and fun all at the same time; and definitely unique!

Samya's Arrival at the Church...

I meant to make an entry yesterday but was on a roll with proofing and didn't want to interrupt myself and lose my mojo while it was still strong ;) So I apologize for not getting more sneak peeks up sooner! I would also like to take this moment to link to Chyrel's blog as she has added a few sneak peeks of her own: Chyrel of Island Time Studio's Blog. Definitely take a minute to check them out! She also plans on updating and adding a few more pics every other day or so, so make certain to check back often!


And on to my pics of the day... As opposed to last time, some of these *are* my faves from her arrival at the church... I just couldn't constrain myself any longer :)

Here is the lovely Samya arriving at the church; check out that gorgeous smile! Definitely the epitome of a radiant bride!





















This is the Bride's younger sister, also just-arrived, and also looking radiant and fresh... based on the huge smiles everyone had when they stepped out of the van, that must have been a fun car ride over!






















Their lovely mother in her beautiful dress; you can definitely see where her girls got their beautiful smiles from!





















Bridezilla or helpful friend?? You decide! (actually, I have enough pictures of Samya seemingly slapping people to make an entire blog entry about just that! They are quite funny to see :) I may just do an entire "bridezilla" type posting if I ever find the time... and assuming Samya wouldn't kill me ;)). This is one of her bridesmaids, Anya. I think Samya was cleaning off a kiss, thought the jury is still out... It sure does look suspiciously like a slap!














This is the Bride's baby brother and his lovely girlfriend (who also sang beautifully during the service). You can definitely see that good looks aren't just confined to the ladies in the family!
















Samya's 3rd lovely bridesmaid. She is watching as Samya is getting finished with dressing.






















And the final picture of the day is of the dress... one of the most important details of the wedding day and a definite star in its own right! Samya's was absolutely gorgeous; and it looked even prettier on her!




















I hope you enjoyed these! I will add more tomorrow (I promise I actually will this time!)

Samya and John

Samya and John's wedding was absolutely lovely!

I am so honored to have been a small part of their very special day. I definitely teared up quite a few times during the day; notably during her brother's toast and when she saw herself for the first time in the mirror. I promised that Chyrel and I would both put a few pictures up every couple days. These first few don't follow any specific order, nor are they necessarily my faves; but I have too many of those to list! Usually I want to put my faves on my blog... but in this case I am going to try and restrain myself so I can surprise Samya and John with the best of the bunch. Then I'll freely and liberally fill my blog full of them!

So, without further ado...

These first 3 are just a tiny sample of the images I was able to capture while the Lovely Ms. Samya readied herself:













This is the very proud momma of the groom, watching her son and new Daughter-in-law as they danced for the first time as husband and wife:







This is the Groom's utterly adorable nephew playing with the bubbles... all the kids had a blast with the party favors!






and finally... a sneak peek at one of the many great pics we captured of the newlyweds on the beach:



I know Chyrel is planning on having a few up by tomorrow and I will link to her blog for easy access. I hope this tiny sample brings a smile to the newlyweds!

my new lens is here!

I've been practicing with my new lens!

This little girl was a sweetie and agreed to be my first model! Isn't she cute? The sun flare is b/c I was trying to test the lens in full sun/backlighting.



This was shot later the same evening. I was coming home and saw the way Monsanto was lit up and I just had to stop and take a picture! I was surprised at how well it turned out considering my Shutter speed was incredibly slow (1/6th to 1/15th second, handheld!). I think I am going to print this one on metallic paper! (if you click on the picture you can see a larger version)





These last 3 pictures are a few sneak peek shots from the quick walk-through we did with Samya and John. They were so much fun to watch- very fun and affectionate! I can't wait for their wedding next week! The first two pictures are of their lovely chapel. The final picture is of a chandelier at the Officer's club, where their reception is being held. I just love the way it is lit up.. so beautiful!

Piggytails!

Adele enjoying the first watermelon of summer... while wearing piggytails!

We usually get quite a few watermelons as soon as they are in season, but this is the first one of this year. Last year Dele didn't seem to like them very much... today you couldn't get it away from her! But this post is more about her cute little ponytails... 3 to be exact! Check out that top view... I told you she had hair finally!

This first picture is just pure her! That is, in fact, generally how she smiles! I can never explain it to people, but she smiles by turning down her little lips into an almost frown. Only her eyes let you know it is her little smile :) Doesn't she just look like trouble? (and boy is she a handful lol!)

















and one of Cameron... this is the look you get when you tell him he needs to leave his water gun at home...