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Will It Ever End: Grand Rapids Part III

Posted on August 30, 2010

Yes, I have more pictures from Grand Rapids that I want to share. I will let you in on a little secret, I have at least ONE more GR post! What can I say? I took A LOT of pictures in Michigan!

Now several days ago I posted that I went to GR to attend Amy Wenzel’s Photography workshop. Which is technically true but the major and deciding factor in flying to Michigan was that we would get a chance to see our good friends who just happened to live minutes away from the workshop location. Win, win…win!

We had such a awesome time with Steven and Amie Jo and they have left such a hole in our lives by moving so far away. A funny, make us laugh friend shaped hole to say the least.

We went out one night, just us adults, to a super cool restaurant and as we walked form the car to the restaurant we had an impromptu mini-shoot.

Amie Jo is beautiful, Steven is, ehhh, not bad.

At some point I thought they should have a serious pose. Why I thought this I am not really sure. They are not serious people and forcing them into seriousness was unnatural and no fun for anyone. Don’t they look miserable…

Like a second later. One of the reasons we love these guys so much!

We ended up eating at Sanchez a Tapas Bistro, which I loved! I had never had tapas, which are small plates and I loved that I could try and share half the menu and not be forced into making a decision. I do so hate decisions. Too bad it was so dark inside or I would have documented all our food for you to enjoy.

Amie Jo and Steven we do so love you! Thanks for introducing us to Tapas and for making us leave Grand Rapids with a major city-crush. Let’s get together again!

p.s. Dustin says to tell you “You’re the best ever.”

Getting Learned : The Jasmine Star Workshop

Posted on June 8, 2010

In April, I had the opportunity to attend  Jasmine Star’s Workshop in beautiful Orange County.  Holy Smokes! No wonder Southern California is such a popular place to live. The area we were in was gorgeous! I have no pictures to prove this because I was too busy staring at everything with my mouth hanging-open to remember I had a camera.

I have followed Jasmine Star’s Blog for a couple years now. I love her writing-style, crisp and clean photography, and willingness to share everything that she knows. This was actually my second time to hear her speak, the first being Showit’s National tour in Houston a couple of years ago. At the finish of that seminar, I began making my way to the door. I had a long drive home, it was late and I was very busy trying to justify to myself why I should just dash instead of mingling with the other photographers.  However, as much as I wanted to avoid akward conversations with strangers, I knew that Dustin would kick my tail if I went home without at least introducing myself to Jasmine. I looked over and noted that she was surrounded by adoring fans. I would have to wait forever to talk to her, and did I mention that it was late?

I stood there debating my options when the crowd around her disappeared and she was standing alone. In a moment of  bravery, I nervously approached her. Our conversation went something like this…

Me: Hi, I just wanted to say hi before I left, if I don’t say something my husband will kill me when I get home. Okay,… well…. you’re great. Bye.

(And then I turned to bolt out the door)

She: No wait, why would he kill you?

Me: Ummm….Well, because I am always looking at your blog. He would be ticked if I was in the same room and didn’t say something. Ok, I don’t want to bother you. Bye.

She: No wait, don’t leave I would love to talk.

Me: Gotta go… (as I charged for the door)

…At this point I envision myself like Cinderella racing away from the confused prince and rushing off into the night. Well, maybe I am getting a little carried away.

So yes, it is sad that years later I can still recall our 45 second conversation with clarity and yes, it is a lot sad that I am comparing myself to Cinderella. My point is that she was nice, down to earth, and wanting to help three years ago; and now she is still nice, down to earth, and willing to help.

This is the part where Jasmine showed us her super-secret posing techniques. I am really not even supposed to show these, but I will take the risk…

Ok, so yes, that is a joke. Please, please, Jasmine if you ever visit my humble little blog- don’t hate me! I just couldn’t help myself.

So yeah, those are all the jokes I have. Let me get serious.

This Workshop was great.

The day long workshop was focused on branding and moving your brand forward. She shared her story and what has worked for her. Jasmine did not hold back with anything, she was 100% herself and shared everything she could. She gave tons of time to answering questions and to helping each attendee present. I am pretty sure that I drove her absolutely bonkers with my silly questions, but she always responded graciously to my pestering. JD, her husband and second shooter, was great too. I asked him an equal amount of questions to which he responded thoughtfully and affably. He was so good-natured and amiable that I am sure every attendee (well maybe not the guys) there left with a little JD crush (oh please, you know you did!).  She also fed us well and good food makes me very happy.

We were also given the opportunity to watch her in action and shoot  beside her for a styled wedding session. It was very inspiring to see how she connected so easily with her clients. She made the models Michelle and Colton comfortable and at ease and she has a natural talent for making her subjects laugh. It was great being able to photograph such beautiful people in such a beautiful location but it was even better watching Jasmine work her magic. Afterwards, she shared her post-processing techniques and work flow. I appreciated her candidness and honesty in how she runs her business and I am in awe of how organized and efficient she is. I think as a photographer, I tend to look at wildly popular photographers and  think that their success came from luck, having money, or knowing the right people, and yes these things help but Jasmine showed us that hard work, intelligence, persistence, creativity, and business know-how go a long, long way.

Some of my images from the day…

Woah. That was a long post. If you are still with me, let me hear a “Hey! Ho!”

Seriously, I should have been in bed hours ago.

Etsy Showcase: Bee Creative Designs

Posted on June 2, 2010

If you have never visited Etsy, then stop what you are doing and go there. Right now.

Now for those of you who just ignored my advice  and have  not had the good fortune of ever visiting the site. Let me tell you a little about it. Etsy is a collection of stores featuring hand made items. I love buying from the site because I know I am supporting a small business owners, stay at home moms, and other creative types. Because the items are hand crafted there are plenty of unique and one of a kind items available. I have bought everything there from cloth diapers and fabric to logo designs and patterns.

The other week I met up with Amarillo Etsy vendor, Linda of Bcreative Designs. She is a seamstress specializing in fun and sweet children’s clothes. I had a great time photographing all the wonderful models in Linda’s creations.  Click on any of the images to see more info on the outfit pictured and to go straight to her site.

Normally, I wouldn’t want my children at a session (they like to crawl all over me, which makes it somewhat difficult to get a good shot) but the 18 month-old model couldn’t make it so Adalay made a guest appearance. I got to take the blue and brown outfit home. Too cute!

Thanks to all the beautiful and sweet models (and Moms) who volunteered their time for the shoot. I loved this and can’t wait to do it again!

Houston Children and Teen Photography

Posted on April 23, 2010

I am way behind in posting sessions so I decided to cheat and post two at once.

First up is Mariah. Once upon a time I taught Mariah’s 3rd grade Sunday school class, now she is a freshman. Crazy. Not only is she lovely, but sweet and spunky too. You got to love this girl!

Her Mother requested some images Mariah in her formal and cheer uniform. Unfortunately the cheer uniform was MIA, but here is the formal…

Next up is Matthew and Katie. Kelle, their Mom wanted some pictures of her kids in the Texas wildflowers especially the bluebonnets. Easy enough to do in this area of Texas because they are everywhere (except, I have learned, in Lake Livingstone)!

Katie and Matthew have a whole zoo full of animals and brought  along a few for much needed portraits…

If you are in the Houston area and interested in a session, contact me for info on our next trip at leah@thesaltedimage.com.

Libby: Turning Three

Posted on March 19, 2010

Libby’s Mom, Shelley, wanted some pictures to commemorate her daughter’s third birthday. We headed to downtown Amarillo for a fun photo session where I once again fell in love with sweet Libby (see her last session here). This little girl is so amazingly sweet, personable, and smart!

She is also quite the professional hair-twirler!

I love the outfits Shelley picks for Libby they are adorable and so unique!

Did I mention she is turning three!

Yes, three!

It was a pleasure to have Libby’s grandma along with us for the shoot and it is obvious that Libby and her grandma are quite smitten with each other. I loved having the three generations of ladies with me and watching them interact and love on each other.

I am always so impressed with Shelley’s gentle and quiet demeanor with her daughter.

Her patience and calm makes me feel like uber-spaz, but in a good way.

Libby you are so sweet! I could just eat you up (also, of course, in a good way)!

Shelley, thank you for the second opportunity of photographing your precious girl, she is such a treat! Happy third birthday Libby, I hope it includes lots of red flavored slushies!

Caleb: Class of 2010

Posted on March 14, 2010

Caleb will be graduating from Palo Duro High this spring, and plans on going to school to be a diesel mechanic. We have no doubt that he will succeed in whatever he does because of the enthusiasm and perseverance that seems to be such positive hallmarks of his character. Caleb was up to anything and we thoroughly enjoyed running all over Amarillo to get his pictures.

Now on with the show…

Dustin was able to shoot with me and I learned that Caleb plus Dustin equals major goofiness.

Our rendetion of the class of 2010. If you don’t get it you obviously are missing our vastly superior and refined artistic intellect.

I imagine at some point I will get sick of Cadillac Ranch. Just not yet.

Caleb we had such a great time with you! We loved your enthusiasm and excitement for the whole process and it was so awesome to see a senior who isn’t afraid to brag on his Mom!! Speaking of Moms, Jonnie, thanks so much for letting us take your son’s senior pics! We enjoyed getting to know y’all and hope to see more of you both in the future!

A Warm(er) Break

Posted on February 14, 2010

So yesterday was actually pleasant, not exactly balmy but no snow, wind, or freezing temperatures.  That makes taking pictures much easier for me, I do love the snow but I can’t stand being cold. Really, I detest it. Strongly.

Anyway, it was a perfect day for a photo session!

We were lucky enough to have two great Randall High Seniors booked  and I had such a great time with them both!

I will be posting more of their images over the next couple days. For now, here is a peek at Madeline…

 

Check back soon to see more !

Laura: Natural Born Reflector Holder

Posted on December 24, 2009

Laura is Mary Anne’s equally gorgeous and sweet  older sister. I like to think of her as my younger sister and if I had a younger sister I would hope she was just like Laura. I mean really, what’s not to love? She is smart, witty, well-read, confident, brave, and I admire the heck out of her!  She is also a natural in front of the camera…

Not to go on and on about how great Laura is but I just have to mention how good she was assisting me with the reflector. She’s a natural. I would say “Make their eyes POP!” and without further instruction, she would. I wish I could take her with me to every shoot!

One of the great things about Laura is we are pretty much long lost book/movie twins. I mean if I like it I can pretty much bet she will like it and vice-versa (I admit there have been a couple exceptions, but very few considering!). She is also a great writer and should start a blog so I can absorb all the witty goodness that comes out of her mind.

Laura you rock. Seriously. Thanks so much for making that day so fun!

Mary Anne: What’s the deal with the horns and whistles?

Posted on December 22, 2009

It has been weird watching Mary Anne go from a little girl into a full fledged hottie. The coolest thing about it is that she is one of those people that doesn’t know just how gorgeous she really is. So her disposition is perfectly sweet and unaffected. She is like a package of sweet tarts, without the tarts or some fresh squeezed orange juice (because orange juice is all sunny and sweet).  You get the picture. Maybe this is why my son loves her to the moon and back. His number one complaint since we moved is ” I want May bat!” which roughly translates into ” I want Mary Anne back, because I miss her sooo much!”

Anyway, where am I going with all this. Who knows. But here she is. In all her sunny and sweet glory…

 I did not have to retouch her skin one little bit, it really is that perfect…

 Ummm, yeah!

 I am use to the honking horns, cat-calls, and whistles while doing shoots anywhere near traffic. But this session was defintely a record breaker with 7 horn honks and 2 cat-calls/whistles (not to mention the man who came up and said she was beautiful, as well as the other man who came up to Meredith and told her to keep bringin’ the energy. The joys of city shoots!). Now Mary Anne, please go change out of that dress before I have to beat some one up!

Mary Anne, you know I love you so! Thanks so much for being such a little (big) treasure in my life. I can’t wait to do your senior session, engagement session, maternity session, newborn session…

Meredith: Bringin’ the Energy…

Posted on December 16, 2009

This session had been a LONG time in the making (I think our first date was set up in July). For various reasons it was always pushed forward to another day. So wouldn’t you know it, the day of the session I woke to rain. Drizzly, nasty, foggy, rain. Plus, I had a cold that made me talk like an alligator (if alligators could talk). I considered canceling but decided to just bump it back a couple hours, hope the weather clears, and go for it. The rain stopped the fog thickened, and the alligator stayed. It was perfect.

I had such a blast with these three ladies! I mean really, that was so much fun!

I am breaking the session down into three blog posts because there are too many images that I love. Plus, they each deserve there own post, right?!! Umm, yeah!

First up Meredith…

I love it when people crinkle their noses when they smile and laugh. If I see you are a nose-crinklier, you better believe it will be my mission to get it on film (or more likely, digital CF card).

So where did you get those glasses? So cute, and the lenses are AMAZING! It is almost like nothing is even there.

Meredith! I am sooo glad you came with us, it was great getting to know you better and I am so pleased that I was able to take your pictures!! Keep bringing the energy girl!