Richard Shindell!!!

So, I have some fun announcements regarding some cool weddings I'll be shooting later this year and another big business surprise but I'm going to wait until the weekend to share my great news.

I also wanted to share my great plans this weekend. For Christmas, I was surprised with tickets to see one of my favorite singers Richard Shindell. I first saw Richard in concert when he opened for Joan Baez a few years ago at the Tampa Theatre. First of all, he's such a great songwriter. I stole these words of WMNF's website:

“Shindell is a master builder of songs, yet always leading listeners toward the emotional essence of the moment or character he is evoking. As with all master craftsmen, knowing what to leave out is as important to him as what he puts in. Shindell has uncanny sense of the theater of a song, building his ballads sparely and subtly, set to sweeping graceful melodies.” — The Boston Globe

“A tour-de-force of brilliantly crafted songs, passionately delivered songs that consistently create three-dimensional vishttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifual and emotional images which move through the listener’s mind’s eye.” — Stereo Review

“Shindell is a master of subtle narrative.” — The Wall Street Journal

Here's the WMNF announcement which includes an embedded video of him singing "Are You Happy Now?"

I mean, how can I not love the music of a man who sings about dreaming of driving a Kenworth Rig around the country? Can you tell I'm excited?




Oh yeah, and I just realized that he looks just like my friend Janel's husband, Ray.



Thanks!

Family Portrait

When I'm asked to photograph other photographers and their families, whether it be a portrait or a wedding, I always get butterflies in my stomach. Of course, it always has worked out and everybody is happy but I just get a little thrill because I feel like the standards are high. So, when my friend Chris, and an extraordinary photographer himself, asked me to do a family portrait for his extended family, I was honored to be asked. Here are some images from that afternoon. I've already added a few images to my website, but here are my other favorites.


This is Eli and his mother Cristin,

Eli sure loves his gator...

Isn't she cute?

Eli has the cutest curly hair :)

Thanks!

Ride Without Limits

If you get the chance, pick up a copy of the March 2008 issue of Bicycling Magazine. The editor, Steve Madden (not the shoe guy who's in jail), wrote about his experience of cycling over 200 miles with Ride Without Limits here in Tampa Bay. This is a ride that I raised money for and rode with my cousin, his partner, and my husband. Hank, a cycling nut, even talked to Steve for a while about the ride and how great the ride was. The experience was incredible. Here's a copy of the article. Enjoy.

Mountain Workshop

The Mountain Workshops website is finally up. For those of you who have not heard me talk about the workshops, it's one of the best workshops out there. It's for photographers to learn about storytelling and photojournalism. I have been a volunteer at the workshops for the past 7 years and am a workshopper-for-life :) What makes the week so special is that so many award-winning photographers volunteer their time to help better the profession. This year I worked on the multimedia team and produced two projects for the final show and helped Tim Broekema with editing the show. Check out the Mountain Workshops website! Especially fun is the Hollywood Squares-type video of many of the top photojournalists talking about the future of photojournalism.

Good News!

So our good friend Megan is pregnant. She told us the great news on New Years Eve! As a birthday present, they decided to surprise James' mother with a cool game of scrabble. Watch the video here. My good friend Bob (who happens to be James' brother-in-law) shot this for them and I rate it two thumbs up. I laughed, I cried, it's great!

Fun Stuff

A story ran in the New York Times a few days ago about the new movie, 27 dresses. The story was so fun. You can read it here. Now, I don't know about you but I know a lot of women who can relate to this movie. I have one friend who has been a bridesmaid in 12 weddings. The story mentions a website called Ugly Dress. It's a hoot. Now, I don't want to make fun of anybody but I think we can all relate to fashion that looks good one year and look terrible the next :)

So I did a little research on the web and found these images:
a renaissance theme with a blueberry twist...

Sooo patriotic...

Thanks!

Engagement Session

When I got a phone call from Rick asking me to document the moment he was going to propose to his girlfriend, Ashley, I was ecstatic. How exciting! We set up a family "portrait" at Indian Rocks Beach and Ashley thought we were just taking pictures of them and Rick's son Bryce. I took some images before and then said Ashley, let's do something a little different. So I had her stand by herself and then added Rick into the picture having him get down on his knee. I said it was going to be very casual. I then decided I didn't like the way he was positioned so I made him move. Then I made him move again. I think I was more nervous than him. hah! Anyway, as he was asking her, his son Bryce started running for them. Thankfully Hank was there to scoop him up and keep him occupied while they were enjoying the moment. Ashley said yes, of course, and we took some more portraits afterwards. It was such a special moment and it was very special to me to be able to capture it with my camera.

The moment...

she said yes!

her ring is gorgeous!

sunset is always so beautiful, reminds me of everything I love about Florida

Bryce was shy at first but he quickly warmed up to the camera


isn't he a cutie?




this is a fun portrait




I like this quiet moment...


Congratulations Ashley and Rick!

Portrait Session

I wanted to share a portrait session that I did recently with Jack and Ben. We had a blast! They are such cute kids and have such a fun relationship with each other and their parents. We started out at their house and then made our way to Clearwater Beach.


Isn't this suit adorable?


Their dad Brad is one of the nicest guys!


What a cute kid...

They have such a loving relationship...


Thanks!

Fun Stuff

In my house, my husband is the cook. He just about cringes when I say I'm going to cook. The funniest thing is that whatever I start, he usually finishes up. Well, my friends, this is about to change. For Christmas he got me a book we had heard about called How to Boil Water.



The book was written by the chefs of the Food Network and is filled with lots of photos and tips that are not mentioned in most recipes. It starts with the basics like boiling water and making coffee. It moves on to risottos and other dishes. Finally, a book that will teach me how to cook. I'm soo excited. Watch out Hank!

DWF Conference 2008

I just finished up attending the DWF (Digital Wedding Forum) Convention at the Grand Hyatt in Tampa. All I can say is WOW. I envisioned that I would learn while at the convention but not nearly as much as I actually did. There's soo much to describe. Wayy more than there's space available. Mostly, I learned about business and some of the things I need to do to improve my business. It's so exciting because I have no business background and am learning so much.

The speakers were all inspirational. Some of my favorite speakers were Tony Hewitt, Lena Hyde, Laura Novak, Marcus Bell, Denis Reggie, Jerry Ghionis, Yervant, Jen and Steve Bebb, Greg Gibson, Cliff Mautner, and
Jeff and Julia Woods, and Jessica Claire. I was so impressed with Jessica and her bags that I even bought one!


Basically everybody I saw speak was amazing! I'm so excited to put into practice the pointers I learned. It's so exciting!!!

Portrait Session

I just wanted to share this portrait session I recently shot with Monique and her two beautiful children, Nadia and Simone. This was my second session I've had with the family and I just have to say that it's such a joy to see how much they're growing. Simone is such a sweet little girl. I liked the image of her running so much that I added it to my portfolio. While Monique and her husband Ken have now moved to Alabama, they me that they'll be booking me for just about all of the girls' special moments so I've already saved the year be waiting to book their weddings somewhere around 2032 :)

Simone and her bubbles :)

Nadia is too precious...

look at this smile

I love the old time feel of this image.

Thanks again Monique and Ken for the opportunity to spend some time with you and your family. Best of luck to you all in Alabama! I'm going to miss you!