Photography is at its best a dynamic form of communication. Good photographs tell others and remind ourselves of all that makes this life meaningful...who we love, what we do, who we are, what matters to us.
The photos that move us capture that. They tell us something about the human condition, the beauty of the world around us, or on a simpler level, about the character and personality of the people themselves in the image.
This is what I want for you.
This is your moment...this moment counts! Contact me to discuss your photographic needs.
Why me?
Why should you hire me over someone else?
First, I know how to make you look great in photographs. I have taken many classes in photography, but I'm also always trying new ways to perfect my craft, both technically and artistically. Second, I know and appreciate value with quality, and I want all my clients to have both. I have created packages where you can get everything you want and need, for a great price! Third, I care about people and relationships. I want my photographs to be beautiful, but I want my photography to show your personality, your relationships. I want you and your family to feel cared for...(I can't help it--I've been a mom too long!)
Calling me will be the hardest part of your photography...the rest will be fun and easy. Call me at 708-751-0009. I look forward to talking with you. THIS moment counts!
Hey beautiful!
Print images, a new facebook profile pic, plus a DVD!
With the summer coming to an end, keep in mind that fall is a great time for outdoor pictures! Until October 30, I am offering a "Facebook special!" From about a half hour session, you will get to choose 1 image, which I will use to create a beautiful, retouched 8x10 desktop print, 8 wallet-sized prints, andthe same image "Facebook-ready!" The quality of these prints is beyond what you could ever get at any drugstore, or even online photo site. These prints are great for gifts! All these prints, and digital image, for just $95.00.
Now is the time to update your Facebook image with something fabulous...and share the same image with family and friends in print!!
Contact me to schedule your appointment today! Act fast to get a hi-resolution slideshow DVD of selected images from your session, with music...Schedule your appointment by September 1st to get this $125 bonus!
What do you do when you have just too many cucumbers, all ripening fast on a vine? The answer should be obvious…pickle them!
When I was a kid, my family would travel to my grandparent’s house in Grand Rapids, MI…my dad’s boyhood home actually. My grandmother, Nana, was an expert cook…we looked forward to checking out what cookies she’d made for us and were waiting to be discovered in her pantry. She also made the best pickles I’ve ever eaten, and I do like pickles! Her bread and butter pickles were the perfect combination of sweet and tangy.
A few years ago, my brother Bryan, and his wife Julie, resurrected the recipe and gave it a try. Julie, an accomplished chef, has since published it here in Sauce magazine, after naming it Mother-in-Law pickles, since Julie got the recipe from my mother (her mother-in-law), who got it from her mother-in-law (my grandmother).
My brother was in town recently, and we decided to make these pickles together, with the help of any of my kids who were up for the task.
I really wish I’d had the problem of too many cukes, ripening too quickly on the vine, but I’m afraid all I’ve grown this summer has been basil. We went shopping to find just the right cucumbers, peppers, spices, etc, and set to work….ending up with several pint jars of these great pickles! Thanks Bryan, for suggesting this activity. I had a great time!!
The picture featured in the magazine isn’t of these pickles however. I decided to try some food photography, and make an image that shows the beauty of the home-canned pickles, late summer variety.
You love pickles? Try these! Let me know what you think!
We had a block party yesterday, and though not all of our block could make it, those who did reminded me of why I like my town. Great people, they all are…family people who care about their community, their kids, their neighborhood. We had folks there who have been on the block for 40 years, and another family who have been here just a year. Our town has taken some hits with this economy…we have two vacant homes now on our street, both of which are in pretty sorry shape. But everyone else is all on board for living and working together…we even got into a conversation about somehow working together to improve those properties. Anyway, ’nuff said about that…on to the party!
I have to say my husband did a fantastic job with the homemade vanilla ice cream! Tasted great and brought back some good memories for many adults of former summer parties…
Homewood has an option for blocks partying together…to send their finest! We had Homewood firefighters, paramedics and police all come and show us their equipment, see the inside of their vehicles, chat with residents…thankfully because they had nothing urgent to take care of in town.
The firemen even hooked up a firehose and sprayed it so the kids could play in it. We got a lesson about tazers from the policeman who came over, the adults got to hold a rifle –because we “paid for it,” he said–we even had a chance to try on their bullet-proof vest. One of our littlest (Amy…featured a few weeks back with her brother) tried on the heavy, oversized black vest and actually made it look cute. How couldn’t she?
Below is one of our guests…hey, I had to feature SOMEONE on this post…why NOT a handsome firefighter? And after that is the group shot I took of many of the kids, with all the men who came from our Fire Department. Those guys were really great sports! Scroll through the photos at the bottom for more, too.
Would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below
Parkview Christian Church just concluded STAND, a 3 day event for junior high school kids…for the first time ever! Put together hamburgers, messy games, great music, worship, cotton candy, great leadership, a ton of fun volunteers and 300 or so junior high kids, and well, you can’t go wrong! The kids had a blast! And so did I making these photographs…
On the left is Adam Cappa, who with his band led the inspiring worship services each night…on the right are 3 victims players in one of the several messy games planned. That’s whipped cream on their noses, and their teammates are squirting if off with water guns. The messier the better!
Several churches participated, and it was so successful, we’re all hoping STAND will become at least an annual event!
What’s better than Oreo cookies, chocolate ice cream cones, and bubbles on a summer day?
Jason, Amy and their mom came over to my house for an outdoor, all-about-summer photo shoot…and we had a blast. While it is great –and I like– to take photographs of kids where they’re posing for the camera, and looking right into the lens, sometimes just having fun together can capture some pretty neat images. So I planned for a few activities that they could do while I was photographing them. If I could get a relaxed natural smile while they were looking into the camera, great! If not, then I would capture instead this moment in time…this one summer day… when these kids are 7 and 4.
Jason was a natural and seemed comfortable in front of the camera. Amy, though, was a little camera shy, so my goal was to help her relax…giving her a cookie to eat, bubbles to blow, having her brother around to play with and her mom right there. All those things take the pressure off, and I think made for some wonderful shots. And I’ll bet next time I photograph Amy, she’s going to be even more comfortable, because I’ll be that much more familiar to her.
You just don’t get those kinds of custom shots, except from a custom photographer!
Having all these shots thematically-related, I could see how they might look fantastic on a wall in a storyboard format. Two to three gallery wraps of selected images, 1 1/2- 2″ deep would look so cool on a wall, wouldn’t they? They could also be incorporated so easily in a fun “slice of life” album, and mini-accordion albums for grandma and grandpa! Who needs a special occasion for a photo shoot when you have a summer day?
Finally, you have to see this sweet video I put together with the images, thanks to Animoto!
I’m one of them too, a woman of a certain age. Our kids are older, maybe even grown…and our faces show it. But our photographs don’t have to show every line, do they? Joe McNally, in his book The Moment it Clicks, tells his secret to photographing us, using as an example his photo session with Sophia Loren well after her movie career was over:
“When lighting, especially women of a certain age, … think soft. Think of your light as a soft blanket that needs to wrap the face gently, open up the eyes, and eliminate shadows and lines….”
Ever since I read that, I realized that I, too, could photograph all women in a way that they can feel beautiful, minimizing lines but not erasing them. After all, we enjoyed making those laugh lines, didn’t we?
I had the great pleasure to photograph my friend Sue. We met 23 years ago, each of us pregnant with our first child, in LaMaze class. Talk about the “moment it clicks!” We clicked for sure, and even when my husband and I moved back closer to our parents, Sue and I have faithfully kept up our friendship, for long leisurely lunches, picking up where we left off. Sue and her family will always cherish these photographs because they show the beautiful woman she is, inside and out.
Sally-This is fantastic! I love it! The post, the photos, and the model!
July 19, 2010 - 9:08 pm
Mary Richards and Me – what is beautiful? who can say?-[...] as God designed it. Unfortunately, I seem to repeatedly forget them at crucial moments. I have this post to thank for inspiring the following musings on [...]
There has never been a better time to arrange for a photography session for you or your family...I know, because my kids grew up so fast, and before I knew it, they were on their way into adulthood.
Photography for your family doesn't mean stiff pictures in front of a backdrop...it can be fun, relational and real.
As the need arises I will add pages here to explain aspects of the photography business in general, and my business in specific. If there is something you would like addressed, please contact me!
–we even had a chance to try on their bullet-proof vest. One of our littlest (Amy…featured a few weeks back with her brother) tried on the heavy, oversized black vest and actually made it look cute. How couldn’t she?
by Karen
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