What about the weddings you’ve got on your social calendar this summer? Give them something they’ll be really grateful for . . . a gift certificate to use towards their wedding photos! Be unique, be fresh, be creative… be a part of the bride’s first family heirloom. Gift certificates may be used toward the purchase of prints, wedding albums, and gallery wrapped canvases. Help them decorate their new home with beautiful images from their day.

I’ve had requests for these so I’m very proud to be offering them. There are two types of certificates available so you can customize your gift for the recipient. One geared towards engagements/weddings and another aimed at family/children/newborn photography.  Each one comes in a nice petal envelope with ribbon enclosure. All you have to do is hand it to the recipient, no wrapping involved!

We all know the second most important thing to rescue from a fire (after our loved ones & pets) is the pictures. Pictures are the way to capture moments now to create memories for later.

If you are interested in giving the gift of memories please go to the proofing section of our website. You’ll need to login (if you’re a previous customer) or create an account (if you’re a new customer). From there you’ll be able to place your order online and your gift certificate will be shipped to you complimentary!

Below are some images I took of Jason & Kori Hudson, a totally cool husband/wife photographer team out of Arkansas. I’d say they’re really good at being opposite the side of the lens they’re usually on! Joseph from JVS set up the lighting and we all got a chance to shoot. This is a pretty simple lighting technique that I’m excited to work with. I want to incorporate this look into some engagement shoots I have planned this spring.

Here’s another image just showcasing some of the behind the scenes shots. If any photographer is interested in this workshop I’d tell them not to miss it. I learned tons about off camera lighting in a way that was fun and exciting. They had so many different lighting modifiers and it was cool to try them all out while photographing fellow photographers. It’s always a blast to work with others that share your passion. They have no problem trying a funky angle or holding that pose just a tad longer while you adjust your settings, etc.

Below is this year’s examples:

Another way to view these is by going to the proofing section of my website. This is also where you can place your holiday card order. As soon as your session is proofed and loaded to your private gallery I’ll send you an email with the link and password. From there you can choose which card you’d like and which photos you want to include. We can also customize the greeting and family names, etc.

Most of my clients have gotten a sneak peak at the card examples but in case you didn’t here are the specifics:

• Press Printed Cards are not photographs, but are produced on state of the art digital printing presses. The printing facility uses real liquid ink, not toner like a color copier as some other printers use, to give the cards the look and feel of a very high quality printed piece.
• Cards are double sided (more room to show off your gorgeous photos!)
• Size is 5″x7″
• Ordered in increments of 25
• Pricing includes envelopes
• There are multiple paper finishes available (matte, glossy, watercolor paper, and pearlescent)

I am always excited to place orders for the Holiday cards. I love designing/customizing the cards and waiting to see the end product once it’s shipped out. Everyone loves them since they’re such a personalized item. And the other good thing about these cards is all you have to do is address and stamp the envelopes and you’re ready to mail. No need to sign the card since we’ve already customized them with you family’s name.

And since I can’t post without a picture I snapped a quick one of a couple of last year’s cards. Remember when I said it was a rainy, dreary day? Well please forgive the lighting in this photo since I had less than desirable natural lighting conditions!

Edited: I don’t have to keep it under wraps anymore . . . THEY’RE ENGAGED!!
I was honored when Matt asked me to help him pick out *the ring* at the end of November. We had fun looking at all the bling and Matt made a beautiful choice. My favorite part of the night was him thanking me as we walked out to our cars. Squeezed tight in a big bear hug, he told me he couldn’t have done it without me. I was sure glad to help.

I can’t even tell you how excited I am that Ashlie is joining our family. She’s so good for my brother!

Excuse the goofy smile from Matt in the second photo, I think he was done with picture taking at that point. Just like a young kid he was probably ready to open another package!

Sorry for such a lapse in between blog posts. I plan to have a “catch-up” post very soon. Can’t wait to show you what I was working on in Nov. & Dec.!

This last photo is one of my favorites I’ve taken lately. So much expression and closeness between these two. I had a great time with Elise and Doug. We were pretty much laughing the entire afternoon! They were a little late getting getting to our location because they had some trouble finding it. (so they said!) I kept teasing Doug that it was because he wanted to drive around awhile longer and listen to the Nebraska game on the radio!

Take care you guys. Your online gallery is up and ready to be viewed. I just emailed your invitation. And be sure to let me now when you close on your new house ’cause I’d love to take your first “official homeowners” photo!

I had a great time with these two. They are without a doubt in love and perfect for each other. The whole shoot was comfortable and so casual just the way I like it. I feel I really captured their personalities and their relationship. These types of photoshoots make me love what I’m doing even more.
I can’t wait to attend their wedding next May. After hanging out with these two I know it will be one heck of a party!

We went to two different areas to photograph in. One being the Old Market. There are so many cool little niches to photograph down there. Do you love the giant “O” that’s part of the Omaha O! Public Art Project? Here’s a video showing all the different “O” locations. hmmm, I just got an idea. How cool would it be to have every engagement session have at least one photo snapped at one of these locations? I have a couple more engagement sessions coming up. I may have to run it by them and see what they think.

One more cool thing about this couple . . . I share the same name as the bride-to-be. She even spells it the same! I don’t run into that very often. I love the way Cara told me how she explained me to her friends. “Her name is Cara and she even spells it correctly!” Love it, meaning there’s only one RIGHT way to spell it.
Well, take care Zach and Cara! I will have your online gallery setup and ready to be viewed before the weekend. Thanks for such a fun photoshoot.

I wanted to thank everyone that has passed my name on to their friends. To me there is no bigger compliment than good word of mouth publicity. To have you love my work and want to share it with others . . . wow, what a great feeling. Thank you.

So I’ll leave you with one of my favorite recent pictures of my favorite little buddy “C”. This photo is featured a couple times on my website. Can ya tell I love it? And check back within the next couple days. I’ve got some great photo shoots coming up that I can’t wait to share!

Every detail of the ceremony was very special. During the ceremony they had friends speak, the tables had Japanese candy favors, and there was even sake at the bar. There was so much thought put into the preparations of their special day.

It was such a privilege to get to photograph this couple. Even though I’ve only spent a short time talking to know them I can tell they’re very special. They have such a neat story with how they met and got to know each other.
Congratulations E and H!

One of the things I’ve been working on lately is a new website! I’m so excited to share it with you all once it’s just right. Designing is a lot of fun but also very time consuming. I’ll be sure to announce when the official launching day is!

In the meantime here’s some photos I took at the workshop. We were so lucky to get to work with such talented, adorable models! Not only did we have great kids to work with but the surroundings were incredible. The windows in the studio and the urban surroundings outside were wonderful to work with. I’m on the lookout for a place like this close to where I live now!

We did a photoshoot in June when L was in town and had so much fun watching the two young ones interact. With nothing but a vintage quilt and the green grass as our background it was a very casual, comfortable time.

And these last couple of photos just melt my heart. We thought we were all done but when baby snuggled into mommy I couldn’t resist. They were playing and then she just laid down on mommy’s cheek and stuck her thumb in her mouth. Priceless!