It’s been a while since I dedicated a post to our girl. She’s my favorite subject and with the crazy schedule of life my images of her get filed in their special folders to be enjoyed at a later date. Every morning I wake early to get my work done while she snoozes quietly next to me. She doesn’t mind the clicks of the computer or that she’s snuggling next to the cold, hard laptop. Lael inspires my work and her patient manner in front of the lens helps me to better my craft. She is patient with me when I work and allows me to easily balance my time with her and my work. I watch her mimic me as she carries my old 35mm around to photograph her ‘clients’ - usually the dog. The workings of the old camera intrigue and challenge her - I often hear the timer buzzing and then an ‘I made it just in time’ comes out of her mouth. Recently she said ‘I’m your little photographer momma’ - I imagine there will be some incredible images coming out of this little one in the not so distant future. My heart is more full than I ever imagined possible because of our girl. Enjoy a few of the many images we’ve filed away.

Cody is one of my 2010 Senior Hottie’s so ask him about his shoot if you catch him in the halls at school.

As we made our way around his property we chatted about his dreams of being a writer, college plans, a chick he’s had his eye on, growing up, sports, grades and family. In the midst of the seriousness we had some very hysterical laughs! The main draw to shooting at his house was the barn and after about 30 minutes of shooting around their two calm horses something snapped in them. When we opened the stall that houses the sawdust the horses literally went nuts racing around us!  The stall was piled at least 6 feet tall with sawdust and they decided they needed to get in it. One would race in and get buried up to the armpits and be struggling to get out as the other would charge in and do the same. They’d escape then run around the corral and buck like crazy then go back in for another try - this routine happened about 4 times until mom noticed the chaos from the house and came running out to rescue us. It was crazy! Cody was covered in sawdust and had quite a mess to shovel, but the shots were worth the memory that will always be sparked when viewing them!

So…after nearly being trampled by the horses, balancing on top of a 20 foot ladder for one of the shots and coming out of the snow/rain filled shoot looking nearer to a drowned rat that a trendy photographer I have to say I’m thrilled with the outcome and have had many full on laughs in remembrance of this shoot while proofing! Thanks for the adventure! Enjoy!

He wanted it all for his shoot…mountains, urban, athletic, rustic, trendy and we found a spot that captured all of those elements. Aaron is his Momma’s wild child, but he has such a sweet mix of confidence and tenderness - during the shoot as we moved through the evening he’d look to his Mom and his little sister for guidance “does this look okay?” or “which shirt goes better?” then it came time for the shot and he’d pull the look out of no where and do it effortlessly. I’ve loved watching this guy grow up  and I’m confident he’s going to great things in life. I had so much fun with this shoot. Thanks for a great evening Aaron! Enjoy.

I’ve been dreaming about this shot since the ground was snow covered and summer shoot cravings consumed me! First, I needed a mom who trusts me enough to allow her week old baby to float in the pond and a baby calm enough to sit still for me. I found the right mix and for a first stab at the concept I’m pleased! It wasn’t without drama and great effort for sure…it’s 37 degrees out and the sun is quickly setting. We pull up, check the water, test the bowl to make sure it’ll work, get Max dressed and everything appears to be set. I forgot my waders so I take my shoes off and roll up my jeans. We look up and we’ve got company - over comes a happy black lab to check us out. We say hi to the pup and hope he’ll leave. Seems like we can keep him occupied and out of the water until…over comes two very large rottweillers! Okay now we are nervous. They seem to be nice so we settle down and hope they will all leave. After ten minutes of trying everything to get them to leave with no luck, Max’s trusting mom decides she’ll play with the dog crew while I do my thing with Max. Into the cold water we go - baby in bowl, bowl floating, (albeit a little lopsided) it’s go time! I get comfortable enough to let the bowl go and the wind quickly pushes it towards the shore. Out he goes again and just as I get a couple shots fired, Mom yells “Cassy, the dogs are coming!”. I steady the bowl and prepare for them to join us in the water, but Mom is a quick thinker and lures them away again. Okay, baby has to go out a little further so I can get the shot I want before the wind blows him to close to me - out he goes, shots fired…um is he starting to wiggle? I throw my camera on my back and grab the bowl, settle Max and steady the bowl. Here we go again…out he floats for one last shot - GOT IT! Phew! My heart was racing - I could hear the dogs fighting in the distance as I was watching the baby in the viewfinder and freezing in the water all at once. It was an ordeal,but worth it don’tcha think?! I’ll share more of this shoot in the coming weeks so check back. Enjoy!

Oh and I love comments - so call me crazy, show me some love, whatever, just let me know you’re checking in!

What a fun shoot!  Nyk brought along his girlfriend Kelly for his shoot and they were sure cute together!  I know this is Nyk’s senior shoot, but since I know Kelly is super excited to see the pics too I included just as many teasers of them together as I did of him alone. He’s coy yet confident, trendy, athletic, loves his Momma and was just an all around easy guy to photograph. I’m grateful I got to catch a little glimpse of your world. I hope you have an awesome senior year. Enjoy!

These guys came to me for a little happy birthday to Dad photo shoot! They bantered back and forth, teased each other and laughed at me for my crazy suggestions the entire shoot, but I think in the end they had a good time and hopefully we got a few shots Dad will enjoy.

Meet Aubrey…she’s another one of my senior hotties - she’s a Lathrop gal so if you see her in the halls ask her about her shoot. This is one cool chick - she’s a black belt in Karate and she plays soccer! She was so easy going and up for anything I threw her way. She was able to rock it out ANTM catwalk style in her heels and mini and could slow it down for a little salsa esk dancing in her flowing skirt, bare feet and her hot pink tank. Though she’s quiet and somewhat shy there’s a lot of sass waiting to be coaxed out of this gal!  Thanks for braving the rocks and trusting my vision for your shoot.  You were a blast!  Enjoy!

I’m proud to introduce my first 2010 Senior Hottie…Jenna! She’s strong, confident, quiet, silly, carefree, smart, sincere, loyal and candid. Jen can be found roughing it at the cabin, glammin’ it up to go dancing, lounging at home with a great book, sweating it up on the volleyball court, or hanging at home cracking jokes with her family. She’s sassy and she’s got style. You can make her smile with just about anything purple and strawberries are her absolute favorite.

For those new to checking out a little glimpse of my senior world stay tuned for all my 2010 senior hotties. If you see one of them in school stop them and ask if you can catch a glimpse of their shoot - they are my reps and they’ll be happy to share. And Juniors be on your best behavior….these guys will be watching you and will be nominating for the pool of 2011 Seniors and if you are interested in learning about being a hottie ask them all about it.

Back to the brown eyed beauty…Jenna. Bitsy, thanks for being you. Enjoy!

Are just so stinkin’ cute together!

These two have a story much like ours…they began dating at 15, dated through the remainder of high school, headed off to a bigger city to brave college together, moved home, got married, became parents to a little chocolate lab to ease into the role of parenting and now after 15+ years together they are entering the most fulfilling role yet. Your new little guy will be here so soon and he is going to fill you with more love than you ever knew your heart was capable of. Like us you’ll likely wonder why you waited so long to have a family. You wouldn’t trade those years of fun and being together for anything, but the joy your little guy will bring you will give you reason to wonder. You are going to be such wonderful parents. I can’t wait to meet him and take his first photos - I have some fun ideas in mind for his photo debut. Stay tuned. Enjoy!