Jessica + Joseph

Jessica + Joseph are an amazing couple. They are truly meant for each other. I had the honor of photographing their wedding yesterday. Jessica, who is beautiful on any given day, looked radiant on Saturday. She maintained an amazingly calm demeanor, which I can only guess comes from knowing deep in your heart, without a doubt, that he's the one.

I was thrilled to have Debbi Gerdt drive in from Chattanooga to assist me. Thanks so much, Deb--I couldn't have done it without you.

The ceremony was very touching, as Joseph played guitar and his father sang, while a slide show of the couple played. Jessica's father, Neil, walked her down the isle, lifted her veil, and gave her to Joseph.

After the ceremony, we finished up the photographs of the family and the couple, and headed over to the reception. Cheryl, Jessica's mom, worked wonders turning the Fellowship Hall into a beautiful reception, where the couple enjoyed the well wishes of all their friends and family.

Congratulations, Jessica and Joseph! May you be blessed in all things!

A Different Kind of Session

Yesterday afternoon, I had a session in downtown Nashville. This was a little different from my usual session...Parrish is a student at the University of Hawaii, with a double major in Dance and Sports Medicine. She plans to go to graduate school to be a trainer and physical therapist for professional dancers.

A Downtown Wedding

I had the pleasure of working with Amanda Hagler of Shutterbelle Photography this evening. We photographed Amanda and Jarred's wedding, and had fun photographing the wedding party on the pedestrian bridge over the Cumberland River. This was the most important part of the photography for the bride, and we had to work fast. Not only did we need to get them to their reception, but it was getting dark, and it was about to storm! We finished up and got everyone to the reception right before the downpour hit.

A little hero...

Yesterday afternoon, I had the honor of meeting Briceton and his family. I met them through the Littlest Heroes Project . Briceton has Cystic Fibrosis and liver disease. He will need a lung, liver, and pancreas transplant at some point in his young life. He just turned two, and is pretty typical of any other two year old boy. The only outward sign of the battles he fights is the port in his chest, which his mother says is a blessing since he has to have IV's so often. About every six months, he ends up in the hospital with pneumonia and a collapsed lung.

Briceton loves what most little boys his age love--fire trucks, airplanes, trains, and cars. He also took a serious liking to the balloons and soap bubbles I brought to the session last night!

Briceton has a big sister, Haliya, who adores him. I am sure she does everything a four year old can do to help take care of her baby brother. Haliya is beautiful and well-mannered, and loves to have her picture taken.

Their parents, Kenton and Sherry, are kind, patient, and were wonderful to work with. They have my utmost respect as raising a 2 year old and a 4 year old is tough enough without one of them having major medical issues. They seem to have an unlimited supply of patience and love for their kids.

To find out more about the battles Briceton and others like him face, please visit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. See what you can do to help these little heroes and their families.

New Orleans

Wow, it's going to take me a week to recover from a three day vacation...

We returned last night from a long weekend in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. If you have never been, I highly recommend it. While New Orleans is famous for Bourbon Street and consuming dangerous quantities of alcohol, I enjoy it for the history and the food. Creole and Cajun cooking is something everyone should experience. The flavors are so rich and so interesting that it wakes up your whole mouth. Creoles are generally known as a people of mixed French, African, Spanish, and Native American ancestry. Other people define Creoles as those who originally colonized the New Orleans area. But regardless of how you define them, their cuisine is fantastic! Cajuns are the descendants of exiles from the French colony of ACADIA (present-day Nova Scotia and adjacent areas) who left their homeland in 1755 and found refuge in southern Louisiana a decade later. Their cuisine tends to be a bit spicier and less sophisticated than the Creole recipes. But delicious nonetheless.

One of our meals this weekend was at The Pelican Club on Exchange. That had to be one of the best meals I have had in years! We started off with bakes oysters on the half shell, with apple-smoked bacon, roasted red peppers, Parmesan and garlic herb butter. Parrish then had the Blackened Drum with grilled shrimp, and Kelly and I both had the Filet Mignon with lump crab meat and a Bearnaise sauce, served with truffle mashed potatoes and green beans and asparagus. All this was accompanied by a bottle of champagne. It was an amazing meal! If you ever find yourself in New Orleans, please make reservations at the Pelican Club.

A trip to New Orleans would not be complete without coffee and beignets at Cafe du Monde. For those that may not know, Beignets were also brought to Louisiana by the Acadians. These were fried fritters, sometimes filled with fruit. Today, the beignet is a square piece of dough, fried and covered with powdered sugar. They are served in orders of three. And they are GOOD!

While we weren't eating, we visited the Aquarium of the Americas, St. Louis Cathedral (where we saw a wedding party emerge Friday night to celebrate in the streets), Jackson Square, the French Market, a Haunted History tour, numerous shops, and walked. And walked and walked.

Oh, and in case you didn't know, New Orleans is hot. Not just your average "it's June, so it's warm" kind of hot. I am talking life-sucking heat and humidity hot. People down there move slow, and drink a lot. Because it's too dang hot to do much else. I told Kelly that if I even suggest going to New Orleans in the summer again to slap the sense back into me. The heat index on Friday was 108! By 9 AM, it's was well into the 90's. And still in the upper 80's at 10 PM. Next time, I'm going in February!

Wall Galleries

As a full-service custom photographer, one of the services I offer is creating wall galleries for display in your home. These galleries are a collection of images from one or more sessions, and can be done in prints or canvas, framed or unframed, hung on the wall, or sitting on ledges. I wanted to share, so that you can all see how easy it is to create an eye-catching gallery in your own home. These photos were all taken at my mother's 70th birthday party earlier this year. By placing them on ledges, it's easy to re-arrange and update without filling your wall full of holes. It also makes it very easy to use a variety of sizes and framing options. Notice that some of these have mats, and some don't. This particular collection uses prints in sizes 5x7, 8x10, and 11x14. Some of the frames are 16x20.

As you can see, galleries can work even in small spaces! This gallery only encompasses a section of wall 4 and a half feet wide.

During your ordering session, or even before, I can help you choose a layout and design that works in your space. I can even frame your portraits for you. Don't forget to ask about wall galleries when you book your next session!

They grow so fast!

I just love seeing my little clients grow! I first photographed Lily Cate last October. Then I photographed her baby brother, Henry in January. When I photographed them both today, I realized how much they have grown in just 6 months! They are both beautiful and sweet, and I look forward to photographing them for many years to come.

I had fun trying out my new background colors, and these great hats made by my friend Farrah, from 2Peas. Of course, Henry wasn't as thrilled about wearing the hat as I was about photographing him wearing it, lol! And the pettiskirt Lily Cate is wearing came from Kaiya Eve. What little girl can resist these beautiful, soft skirts?

Here's a sneak peak from this morning's session--enjoy!