It's More Than A Memory

Andy and Beth are Married!!!

2010-09-07T09:18:00.000-07:00

Sam and Kim are married....

2010-08-10T21:23:00.000-07:00

Sam and Kim were married July 10, 2010.

Here are a few of my favorites from their beautiful day...

Nicole's Trash The Dress Session

2010-08-03T08:04:00.000-07:00

Nicole and Nate took a plunge of a different type the day after their wedding.

Here are a few of my favorites...

Nate and Nicole are Married!!!

2010-07-25T06:45:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my favorites from their special day...

Meredith and Tony are Married!!!

2010-07-09T22:42:00.000-07:00

There is quite a story to be told about Tony and Meredith's wedding. However, I will save them from reliving some of those moments that they probably aren't quite ready to laugh about... Through the view finder of my camera, everything looked perfect. Here are a few of my favorites from their "SPECIAL" day...

I'm not the biggest fan of selective color, but it just worked with this photo...

Phil and Dominika are Married!!!

2010-06-18T09:04:00.000-07:00

Oto kilka z moich ulubionych z ich szczególnym dniu ...

Here are a few of my favorites from their special day...

Chris and Michelle are Married......

2010-06-10T08:33:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my favorites from their special day...

Dominika and Phillip are Engaged!!!

2010-06-07T19:41:00.000-07:00

Dominika and Phil were some really good sports. They were a blast, and very patient when dealing with a one armed photographer. I can't wait until the wedding....

Here are a few of my favorites from their Engagement Session...

Mr. & Mrs. Smith

2010-06-07T16:31:00.000-07:00

Christa and Irvin are married....

Here are a few of my favorites from their very special day...

Nicole and Nate are Engaged!!!

2010-05-29T18:56:00.000-07:00

Nate had one heck of a rough time. First he gets lamb basted by a female professional football player. Then when his back was feeling good enough for him to get back to his feet, a bird decided to share some love with him. Beaten, battered, and even crapped on; Yet Nate still found a way to laugh it off for the good of the pictures... It was worth it...

Here are a few of my favorites from Nicole and Nate's engagement session...

Brittini's senior session...

2010-05-29T10:00:00.000-07:00

Congrats on your graduation....

Look out IU here comes Brittini...

Here are a few of my favorites from Brittini's senior session...

Katie and Derrick are Engaged!!!!

2010-05-28T13:35:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks back I had the pleasure of taking Katie and Derricks engagement photos. They picked the coolest place to take pictures. You can't help but feel like a kid at heart while riding a carousel.

Here are a few of my favorites from Katie and Derricks engagement session...

Teresa's Video

2010-05-28T13:26:00.000-07:00

Teresa's Senior Pictures Day 2

2010-05-10T08:22:00.000-07:00

Ok, location number 2... This time there was a little less wind. The only thing that didn't change was the star of the show...

Can't wait to trash the prom dress...

Here are are a few of my favorites from Teresa's second senior location...

Mr. & Mrs Smith

2010-05-08T22:55:00.001-07:00

The 2010 Wedding Season has kicked off with a bang. If the first wedding of the season is any indication of how this year is going to go, we are definitely in for one heck of a good time. To start things off a lollipop ring instead of the wedding ring, a car filled with play-land balls, and a cake smashing that rivals the best of food fights. Normally we are lucky to see one crazy fun activity per wedding and this one had 3 really good ones and then some... Did I mention, that we have 2 more weddings in the same crazy fun family... Yes it definitely is going to be a fun fun year...

Here are a few of my favorites from Kyle and Jacquie's special "fun" day...

Teresa Class of 2010

2010-04-17T07:05:00.000-07:00

Part 1 of Teresa's senior pictures. Hopefully it won't be crazy windy on the next session... I will say that extreme winds and beach (sand) equals one sand blasting experience. Canon will be happy... Another camera cleaning before the full swing of wedding season... Overall, I think it was worth it.....

Here are a few of my favs from Teresa's Senior Session (Part 1)

Christa and Irvin

2010-03-14T13:30:00.000-07:00

When it comes to compatibility these two have it figured out.
Why they are together, there truly is no doubt.

I have to take a moment and thank Irvin and Christina for being the greatest most patient people. We had originally scheduled their engagement session in October of 2009. We were going to do the whole fall colors thing, and then all of a sudden out of no where... our little baby Abby came 5 weeks early and made a mess of the plans. Instead of finding another photographer Irvin and Christa completely understood and postponed the engagement shoot. Well time flies when you have a newborn so we ended up doing winter engagements. The weather was as good as could be expected and Christina and Irvin were good sports and even sat in the snow for some pictures...

The extent of their patience doesn't end there... Not only did they keep me as their photographer, but CHRISTA hasn't kicked me for continually calling her Christina ... don't know why I can't get it right in my mind... Sorry again Christa...

And then... yes there is more... these people are not only patient they are forgiving as well... Wouldn't you know I told them I would have their pictures posted this past Friday. It was almost 2 full weeks to get them edited and posted. No problem so I thought.... Wouldn't you know.. Abby got her first cold from her Aunt Jo.. Then she in turn passed that along to Mom and Dad... a whole house full of cranky sick babies... Dad couldn't work on pictures because Abby wouldn't have it.. she had to be rocked no if's and's or but's about it... and then when Dad wasn't rocking Abby he was trying to blow his nose... and breathe... So it's now Sunday and we are finally get these pics posted...

So there it is.. a photographer who can't keep an appointment (missed the engagement shoot) can't get the clients names right, (Christina... Christa) and then can't even post pictures when he says he will!! (sick baby... really what next?)

It's a wonder how this guy gets anything accomplished... Well again my apologies CHRISTA and Irvin... I don't normally operate this way... and I promise there will be no more hiccups... You guys are great and I hope it wasn't too much of a pain in the butt.... dealing with me or sitting in the snow for pictures...

Here are a few of my favorites from Christa and Irvin's engagement session...

Andy and Beth are Engaged!!!!!!!

2010-02-05T10:46:00.000-08:00

It seems like just yesterday I was hanging out with my buddy Joe causing trouble. Sneaking out to see our girlfriends in the middle of the night. Getting delayed by the cat lady buying 60 cans of cat food at 3:00 in the morning. When we needed to get the car back before the parents woke up. We were quite the hand full. Not only were we causing trouble when we would sneak out. We would also cause trouble when everyone was awake. I had siblings to pick on and so did Joe. And pick on..... we did....

Now fast forward and Joes little brother (yeah the one we picked on) is getting married. Wow how time flies. What happened to that elementary school kid??? What happened to those rebels that would sneak the car out in the middle of the night? Well, I would like to think we are still rebels. Although it's not quite as apparent as it used to be. We only do those wild things when we are not busy taking care of our families, being dads, and doing responsible things.... Oh crap.... we grew up.... we are old...

Well Andy and Beth are just starting out on their journey to becoming old, and it looks like they are going to enjoy every minute of it...

Here are a few of my favorites from that elementary school kid and his sweet heart's play date in the snow....

Update.....

2010-01-28T23:11:00.000-08:00

I have totally been slacking on my blog. Having a baby can do that do you. However, I have been busy doing a daily blog of the baby. Here are a few pics of the little one... Wedding bookings are rolling in and that means lots and lots of photos for 2010. Stay tuned for a year of great things....

My 1st Christmas as a Dad

2010-01-01T15:15:00.000-08:00

There is no greater gift than the light in your child’s eyes on Christmas day……

It was Abby’s first Christmas. Even though she was only 2 months old the Christmas spirit danced in her eyes. Some may say it was the twinkle of Christmas lights that were shimmering as she gazed at the Christmas tree, but I know better. It was the magic of Christmas, the celebration of Jesus’ birth, and a reminder that there may not be complete peace on earth but for at least one day there is peace in my baby’s heart.

Here are a couple of the greatest Christmas gifts a man could ever have…

Kim and Sam's Engagement

2009-11-22T21:42:00.000-08:00

The days were really starting to fly by, and my wife wasn’t getting any smaller. She even swore that there was no more room for the baby to grow inside her. We had a little over 5 weeks to go until the due date. We had one more engagement session scheduled for Sunday afternoon with Kim and Sam. My wife (Sarah) typically assists me on most of my photo shoots. However, I told her that I had a new person interested in assisting and I thought it would do her some good to kick back and prop up her swollen feet for an evening. I’m still not sure if it was hormones or something else, but that was the absolute wrong thing for me to say. I didn’t mean anything by the suggestion. I was just hoping for her to sit back, relax, and not feel like she had to follow me around while I took pictures. After all, we were doing the photo shoot at an apple orchard and then heading to Indiana Dunes. That is a lot of walking for a normal person, let alone one that is carrying a bun in the oven. Well needless to say, Sarah was not being replaced by “NO D*** ASSISTANT!!” She carried the baby this far and she could carry her through one more photo session. Sure enough she was a trooper… I don’t know if it was the endless supply of Apples at the orchard, or the desire to prove she could still assist that fueled her fire that day. Either way she waddled in and out of the groves of trees, ducking and running to stay out of the shots. Carrying lenses and bags and helping with what ever was needed. My wife was simply unstoppable…

So, it is a known fact that many pregnant women go through a crazy thing called nesting. This nesting phenom is a sudden rush of energy that sends most expecting mothers into a crazy cleaning spree. They have endless energy to clean and scrub their “Nest” to get it ready for the new arrival.
Unfortunately Sarah did not get to do any Nesting. She instead used her rush of energy on assisting.

There would be no dusting and scrubbing the floor with rags,
She was carrying camera lenses and camera bags.
At least that is how I think the story goes,
Is that a fact??? No one really knows...

She was right about one thing... There was no more room for a baby to grow in there. 6 hours after her nessisting, we found ourselves in the Hospital because someone's water had broke.

A truly amazing assistant helped to capture some truly amazing photos...

Here are some of my favorites from the day before the angel was born...

Love with a smile.... it's Jacquie and Kyle

2009-11-17T16:14:00.000-08:00

That Forrest Gump fella was on to something when he said "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what your gunna get!" Needless to say my box of chocolates is really crazy. My wife gave birth to our little one 5 weeks early and the whirlwind began. So I am behind on photo editing, meetings with clients, and a couple engagement sessions. For that reason the dialog will have to be short. Although Jacquie and Kyle more than make up for the lack of words by the story of love they emit through their photos. Here are a few of my favorites...

Chris and Michelle's Mackinac Island Engagement

2009-10-21T20:07:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I got the opportunity to do something very very cool. I got to shoot engagement photos somewhere that has a special place in my heart. I was able to take pictures at the place that a special lady agreed to put up with my crap for eternity. A place where that special lady (my wife) and I also had our engagement pictures taken. That place is Mackinac Island in Northern Michigan. Those of you that have been lucky enough to visit Mackinac Island know the breath taking beauty and laid back atmosphere that’s in abundance there. Those of you that haven’t made the 15 minute ferry ride back in time are missing out on a piece of heaven on earth.

Not only did I get the opportunity to take pictures at one of my favorite places on the planet, but I also got to spend a Baby-moon with my beautiful wife. Bet your wondering what the heck a Baby-moon is aren’t ya??? A Baby-moon is somewhat similar to a honey moon albeit with bigger bellies by all involved :) Yes I have the notorious "sympathy cravings" to thank for mine. Basically a Baby-moon is the last trip away before the joys of parenthood.

If it wasn’t for the frigid temps the Mackinac trip would have been absolutely perfect. I still get chills when I look at the pictures. I just can’t decide what it is that gives me the chills. Is it the cold weather we experienced, the breath taking beauty, or the return to the scene of our (my wife and I) proposal??? Who really knows??? Maybe it is capturing a young couple so much in love. Going through the same things my wife and I went through only 2 years ago.

Looking back over the last 2 years of my life, I am quite amazed…

I am truly a lucky man……

Here are a few of my favorites from Chris and Michelle’s Mackinac Island engagement session…

Hollywood... The Night Amongst The Stars Video

2009-09-02T20:08:00.000-07:00

Photo-Palooza Day 3... A Night Amongst The Stars

2009-09-01T19:43:00.000-07:00

Finally, day 3 of the photography crammed weekend…

After 2 weddings my body was aching from having 30 + pounds of camera equipment swinging from neck. I rolled out of bed like I was 80 years old. I really felt like I had been hit by a truck. You would never think that taking pictures could be so taxing on your body. It probably doesn’t help that I am not in the greatest shape, but still… maybe a tired finger from pushing the shutter release… What else could possibly wear you out???
You don’t really think about it, but photographers are up on top of things, down on the floor/ground, bending around people, and running to a spot to get the right shot. Photographers move all over the place. I would have never thought about it until I started doing it myself.

So there I was, desperately wanting to call in sick. I was tired, sore, and the nice professional side of me went out the window on the way home from the last wedding. I was tired and cranky. I wasn’t too sure on exactly what the game plan was for this Sweet 16 party I was to photograph. I just knew it was in the Chicago land area (a 1.5 hour drive) and it was going to be a 5 hour gig, and that wasn’t ideal in my opinion.

Happy go lucky photographer who is grateful to be doing a job he loves…… ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!

Tired cranky brat who just wanted his bed… Here I am!

So once again we load up the photography gear and head for destination Chicago. It was 2:30pm and the party was to start at 6:30pm. Plenty of time to drive to the location, check things out, and possibly have dinner before the party began. WRONG!!! Our friend LUCK decided to rear his ugly head. There I was driving along minding my business when I spotted an all too familiar Chicago trademark. Brake lights, yes lots and lots of brake lights. Just what I wanted to see, a traffic jam to try my already depleted patience. There I sat, fuming mad, and surrounded by utter annoyances. As if I want to see some 60 year old man knuckle deep in his nose tickling his brain. Or, a not so clean lady hanging her mustard yellow toes with moldy green dragon claws out the window for some air. I thought the smell that crept in the window was remnants of Gary, IN. Anyone who has ever driven through Northwest Indiana knows exactly what smell I am talking about. Well, I think I discovered the source, and she was riding shotgun in the rusted out mini-van next to me. If only I could turn the car around… If only I could take a nap… If only funky feet would take care of her screaming kids in the back seat of her van… If only I could put the car in reverse and slam into the 16 year old kid behind me. Maybe then he would turn down the stereo that is so loud it’s tickling my nose hairs. If only… Wait… a 16 year old kid behind me… and I was going to a Sweet 16 party… Great just freaking great… Don’t you just love the irony?

We arrived at the hall at 6:15pm, 15 minutes before the party was to start. YES! I said 6:15pm!!! A 1.5 hour trip took almost 4 hours. I thought to myself…”it couldn’t possibly get any worse”, and for once in my life I was right. Even though I still say I will never again book back to back or back to back to back events, things took a surprising turn for the better. Here I had spent the entire day dreading this Sweet 16 party. Only to have it turn out to be the most fun of all the weekends events. Nothing against the weddings on Friday and Saturday (they were extremely fun as well), but this Sweet 16 party took the cake. If you would have asked me what I thought about photographing a Sweet 16 party while I was sitting on I94 listening to the beats from the teen in the car behind me. You might have gotten a very ugly answer. Fortunately for me, Chantel and her entourage lit up my night. Surrounded by fun loving STARS having a night to remember made this Hollywood Party even better than the real thing…

Here are a few of my favorites from my night amongst the Stars…

Photo-Palooza Day 2 ... (Angels among us)

2009-08-26T23:27:00.000-07:00

Todd and Michelle were planning on an early morning wedding at the beach. They were going with a Hawaiian theme, and wanting to capture the sunrise over the water. They were planning on a small intimate ceremony with the serenity of a peaceful morning to complete their wedding bliss. So you can imagine my surprise when I talked to Michelle 4 days before the wedding and found out things had changed. The wedding was moved to a more typical time (1:00pm) but a not so typical place (a pavilion). I didn’t quite understand, but little did I know it was the absolute best pavilion in the world. No it wasn’t in the middle of a beautiful park somewhere. It wasn’t decorated like something out of a fairytale. You see this pavilion was next to a medical facility where Michelle’s daughter is a patient. Michelle’s daughter had some serious health issues and could not partake in the beach wedding. So, Michelle put her dream of a beach wedding in the back seat and took it to her daughter. They were able to roll her daughters bed out to the pavilion so she could be a part of her mom’s special day.

It often amazes me what lengths a mother will go to for her child. A mother would spend her last dime to help her children. A mother would give up things for herself to lay a “foundation” for her child or child’s child to be. Not because she has to, not because it’s her duty for giving birth, but because she loves. She loves with a love that is indescribable, a love that could never be replaced. A mothers love is truly a God send and we are all blessed from the day we are born to have a mother of our very own.

There really are “Angels among us” and they go by the name of Mom………

After the ceremony we did visit the beach for a few photos…

Here are a few of my favorites from Todd and Michelle’s heart warming day…

Photo-Palooza Day 1

2009-08-24T21:50:00.000-07:00

Friday marked the beginning of one of my busiest weekends to date. I had booked 2 weddings (locally) and a Sweet 16 birthday party in Chicago all in a 72 hour time frame. I had this silly thought in the back of my mind… If I was going to make it or break it as a photographer this weekend would definitely be the deciding factor. All be it with a sore back, I am still standing. I also had a really good time to boot….

Gary and Kathryn kicked of the 3 day photo-palooza with a bang….

Here are a few of my favorites from their special day…

The Diva Video.....

2009-08-17T17:37:00.000-07:00

The Darling Diva Day...

2009-08-17T16:12:00.000-07:00

How do you really rock a family session??? You turn it into a baby session and an engagement type session all in one.

Anyone who has taken pictures of a newborn can tell you, that you are limited to what the star of the show will allow (or put up with). There are breaks on the set for feeding demands “mother’s milk must be 98.6 degrees or the poop is hitting the diaper”…. “Speaking of poop, can someone freshen up my backside?” Then there are breaks on the set for nap time. “Being a diva takes it out of ya…ya know….”

So as you can imagine the photo shoot can be quite taxing.
(for the parents, the photographer, and the diva)

Now throwing in some Mommy and Daddy lovie dovie pictures can make good use of “Diva Downtime”. It also gives Mommy and Daddy a little reminder of how and why they have a diva that makes their hearts skip a beat.

Here are a few of my favorites from the most rescent Darling Diva Day….

Morgan, Holly, and Joe........... The Video

2009-08-16T21:19:00.000-07:00

Family of 3 + 1 on the way... Sharing some laughs on picture day...

2009-08-16T15:49:00.000-07:00

Joe and Holly are our longest tenured friends. Putting up with Sarah and I for as many years as they have, and still able to stomach us, tells you how nice they really are (or are they just crazy?? jury is still out…). Seeing how well I know these 2 and their kindergartner to be (Morgan), you can imagine how excited I was when they asked me to take some family / maternity pictures for them this past Friday. Holly is due at the end of the month, but her easy bake oven is totally giving off the appearance of completely cooked contents. I think the little guy won’t wait until the end of the month to make his grand entrance. But for now….. A big belly (not just mine), an in love couple, and a 5 year old with balloons and ice cream… make for good times with the camera!

Here are a few of my favorites…

Kathryn and Gary's Engagement

2009-08-14T13:18:00.000-07:00

I’ve never seen two people who loved to laugh so much;
Smiling and giggling with every kiss and touch.
Their wedding is approaching and you can easily see;
These two giggle boxes are truly meant to be.
Laughter is contagious and brings joy to ones life;
Which makes these two perfect, a happy husband and wife.

Not a complete WASH.......

2009-08-14T11:15:00.000-07:00

The rain came and the rain went, but Jaime and Ryan had a dry event. Again the weather people were predicting rain, and to their credit it rained all morning long. Another outdoor wedding on the verge of being washed out. However, even when the weather folks are partially right, they end the day being totally wrong. The rain parted and the sun shined, when it was supposed to be a wash all day long. It must be nice to have a job where you are wrong 80% of the time and still stay gainfully employed. In the real world a person would be fired for having that type of success rate.

Here are some of my favorites from Jaime and Ryan’s sunny day…..

Justin and Ashley video

2009-08-04T00:34:00.000-07:00

I am trying something new... Here is a video of Justin and Ashley's special day....

Sprinkles of tears and laughter....

2009-08-03T17:06:00.000-07:00

Every time I photograph a wedding, I can’t help but think of how much fun it is to watch 2 love birds tie the knot. Every couple wants things to be perfect, just how they dreamed. The reality of it is things hardly ever go off without a hitch. If you are lucky, your day turns out to be controlled chaos with enough laughter and tears sprinkled in to make things memorable. At the most recent wedding I photographed, it was no exception.

The day started out beautiful! The sun was shining, the birds were singing, “Oh what a beautiful morning”! Then a tree branch fell on my car… Ok, not really (one too many car insurance commercials), but things did look like they were going to turn to doom and gloom. The skies started to darken and the rain clouds moved in. The ceremony was indoors, but the reception was partially outdoors (dinner outdoors / dancing in the barn). This was going to be one of those Alanis Morissette deals ““it’s like raaaaaaaaaainnnn on your wedding day… a freeeee riiiide when you’ve already paid”. You get the irony...

So the clouds rolled in, the skies opened up, and down came sprinkles of tears and laughter. Just enough to make memories of Justin and Ashley’s happily ever after….

Here are some of my favorites...

Family Photo Fun

2009-07-30T11:40:00.000-07:00

Monday afternoon I received an email from Kristy R. We were scheduled to shoot her family session on Tuesday evening. Kristy was concerned because there was a chance for rain. So, I surfed on over to weather.com to check the hour by hour forecast. It looked like it might sprinkle in the afternoon (30 % chance), but blow through for a partly cloudy evening. I told Kristy not to worry. We should have some cloudy skies that would make for some dramatic photos. She was excited about the idea, and to be honest, I was too.
I woke up Tuesday morning, and made my way to look out the window. Wiping the sleep from my eyes, I realized it was sunny with some pretty cool clouds in the sky. It was going to be perfect for taking pictures. Now all I had to do was wait for 7:00pm. So I sat down to my computer for a few hours of photo editing before the big family session. I sat there working away and then I hear a familiar noise in the distance. I thought for a moment that it was my imagination, but then I heard it again. I actually said to myself, “Please, Please, Please let it be, God bowling in heaven???” When I was younger someone told me that thunder was God and the Angels bowling, and to this day that has stuck with me. Hopefully they were only going to bowl a few frames, after all they knew we didn’t need it to rain on our parade… (Figuratively speaking of course) As the photo hour drew near, things kept getting worse and worse. This wasn’t an average game of bowling in the heavens, this was chaos. So I emailed and then called Kristy, here it was nice all day and then the storm blows in. We decided to head to the beach and see if things would blow through.

What a ride to the beach….

The windshield wipers were going 100 miles an hour and still couldn’t wipe the rain away fast enough. Then there were road blocks (trees down in the middle of the road). It looked like a disaster zone. We met at the beach and quickly decided that it just wasn’t going to work. I guess this is one of those situations that helped coin the term “Rain Check”. So Kristy and family opted to cash their “Rain Check” on the very next day. 1 day removed from 5.11” of rain in a 3 hour time frame (our photo session time frame) and the heavens decided to shine on our day. The bowling balls were put away, and we couldn’t have asked for a more perfect weather. We had an absolute blast farting around on the beach. Here are a few of my favorites from the day…

I almost forgot the highlight of the day.....

The little guy decided he wanted to play Leap Frog. It sounded like so much fun that everyone wanted to give it a try. Everyone lined up to start their game of leap frog but before they could get started, one of the frogs spoke!!! Someone was confused... this was leap frog, not Bull Frog croaking to the frog lined up to their rear... :)

Jimmy and Jessica's Majestic Paradise

2009-07-28T20:53:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of shooting a vow renewal for Jimmy and Jessica. They married quite young and never had a big wedding like they both had hoped and dreamed of. After 5 years of marriage they decided they were finally going to have “Their” wedding. This time they decided to things right. It was amazing to see both his and her families working together to turn a back yard wedding into majestic paradise. They spared no expense or detail. Here are a couple of my favs from Jimmy and Jessica’s special day….

Splish Splash - Macy's 1st Birthday Bash

2009-07-21T20:01:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I received an email from a couple asking me about taking photos of their daughters 1st Birthday Party. I thought it sounded like a heck of a good time. The only thing better than capturing weddings and engagements is taking pictures of children. Did I mention it was at a PARTY, not just trying to set a 1 year old in front of a back drop and coaching them into smiling like our friends at Wal-Mart, Sears, etc… This was going to be a heck of a good time. As I corresponded with Jamie and Mike about their daughter’s party I learned a few more cool things. First was the reason for wanting a photographer for a 1st birthday party. They told me they wanted to document the party, but also wanted to enjoy the party with their daughter. I had never really thought of it that way, but it made perfect sense. So many times we have birthday parties, graduations, etc.., and we are too busy trying to take pictures of the event to actually enjoy it. And that is the whole purpose of having party to begin with. So... Jamie and Mike set out to get a photographer. Heck of an idea if you ask me. Then they told me where they were having this extravaganza. It was going to be a pool party!! How cool is that for a 1st Birthday party!! You get cake, ice cream, presents, and a swimming pool all in one day. That is what 1 year old dreams are made of…. Here are a few of my favorites from Macy’s Magnificent Masquerade…..

If only she could say what she was thinking when she shot this look my way :)

And a party wouldn't be a party unless some adults lost their inhibitions and found their inner child. Macy is going to have a good time growing up with a Mom and Aunt's like these...

The Independence Day Success

2009-07-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

It was about 3:30am the morning of June 30, 2009. I was lying in bed, trying everything possible to fall asleep. It was imperative that I get a few good hours of sleep. After all Sarah and I were going to find out the sex of our first child. Obviously that can weigh on your mind quite a bit. I tried all the common fall asleep fast techniques (a warm shower, followed by warm milk, and even some counting sheep). Low and behold, sleep was a long way from happening. As you could probably imagine it was the night before a very exciting event. Were we going to have a boy that I could play catch with in the back yard, or a girl who would just melt my heart away? Everyone had an opinion; everyone had their reasons, as they always do. Even Sarah thought she had figured out the sex. Wouldn’t you know, most of those people were wrong. Most thought that we were having a boy, and as it turned out it was a girl…… Daddy’s Girl

However, sometime the night before we found out Abby was going to be Abby instead of Aiden. I lay restless tossing and turning in my bed, my mind racing a thousand miles a minute. I was thinking about the baby, about the future, and about the photography business. I was thinking about how I could connect my photos with the masses. How and where I could reach the most people for the least amount of $$ out of pocket? Then one of those silly cartoon light bulbs lit up above my head (heck, I couldn’t sleep so why not have a light bulb above my head). The 4th of July Parade was the following Saturday. There were at least 50,000 people going to be down town, with their full attention on the event. Shoot, why hadn’t I thought of this sooner. I could have made a float and been in the parade tossing candy and handing out business cards. Talk about maximizing the advertising possibilities… Well obviously it was 4 days away so there was no way I could put that kind of operation together. Then that cartoon light bulb got a little bit brighter. I have an oversized tricycle and wagon in the garage. What if I could get someone to ride that through town before the parade began??? That would get some attention. Then of course I could have someone walking with the tricycle rider passing out cards. Now that is advertising on a shoe string budget. Thoughts poured in… I could have shirts made, thousands of cards for passing out, bags of candy to toss to the kids, and some oversized prints printed up to attach to the wagon. How in the world could that happen in 4 days??? I didn’t even have anyone to ride the trike and pass out cards. I could possibly do one or the other, but Sarah couldn’t. Her feet swell up like overcooked hot dogs after a few minutes of standing (due to the pregnancy). Then it hit me, I knew the perfect people for this type of fun. They are the most free spirited, fun loving, adventuresome people I know. They were my brother-in-law Cary and his wife Erin. They were perfect, now I needed to talk them into it. Hmmmm how could I persuade them into this crazy idea of mine. Well it turns out all I had to do was start to mention it and they both lit up like kids at Christmas. They were twice as excited as I could imagine. Then the fun began. I now had 3 days to get enlarged prints, cards, and shirts made up. I placed rush orders with my print shops and had the cards and prints expedited for the event. That just left the shirts. Who in the world could make me custom shirts in multiple sizes with a 3 day turn around??? Then Sarah mentioned her Aunt Mary and Uncle Duke. They happen to run a part time screen printing business. So I called up Mary to see if it were possible. Mary and Duke Brooks of Faith Walkers Screen Printing (219) 879-1900 pulled through in a pinch. They made me 5 different size shirts that turned out perfect, and all with very little notice…

The 4th of July came and Cary and Erin took off down the parade route. They made it completely down one side of the parade route and 1/3 of the way back when the police asked them to exit the route. Overall the event was an absolute success. Not because the phone is ringing off the hook with leads from the parade but, because my friends and family pulled together to help promote my photography business. And they did it because they wanted too, not because they were forced or made to feel guilty. They did it to help me, and that is what family and friends are about. With friends and family like that, ultimately Life is a Success….

A picture is a poem without words....

2009-07-08T12:16:00.000-07:00

A few months ago my sister-in-law (Erin) was looking through some of my pictures and volunteered her services as a guinea pig. She offered to do a trash the dress session with her wedding dress. She had been married for a few years and the dress was just hanging in a closet (like most wedding dresses do). She had one stipulation; she had a location picked out where she wanted the photos taken. She told me it was a church in Gary. She said it was really neat. Not thinking too much about it, I nonchalantly agreed. Little did I know, this wasn’t just some random church. This was a photographers dream! A run down church that looked like it was out of a horror film (interestingly enough they are/were filming a few scenes of the new Nightmare on Elm Street at this church). So we planned a day to do the shoot. Erin and her husband Cary came over the night before the shoot, and my wife did her hair. Trashing the dress pictures had to have a just slept on hair do to go with it right???

Day of the shoot:

Cary and Erin picked me up right on time. Off we went to Gary (about an hour drive, give or take a few trips around the block and driving in circles). Talk about nervous energy, all 3 of us were so excited and ready to capture some amazing shots. As we drove by the church Erin shouts, “There are people working there”. She was right, as we drove up there sat a huge crane, a truck full of studio lights, little guys with head sets on, and security everywhere. No way, No way could there be people working at our awesome photo shoot location!! Well there were, there were those stinkin Hollywood movie producing folks. Shooting scenes from a dream sequence in Nightmare on Elm Street. Wouldn’t you know, the weather was absolutely perfect! It wasn’t too hot, wasn’t too cold, the sun was shining, and there were those big cumulous clouds everywhere. Perfect for taking pictures or shooting movies it seems. So we had to reschedule our shoot…

3 days later we returned to the church and this time there was no movie crew. The beauty of this church and a bride (yes she’s still a bride) in a wedding dress, just sent my photographic mind into overload. I probably could have shot for a month and still not captured all of the beauty in the place. There were only so many hours of daylight and usable light, so we just might go back and give it another go… But for now, these are a few of my favorites….

"Be careless in your dress if you will, but keep a tidy soul."
~ Mark Twain

Jaime & Ryan are Engaged!!!!!

2009-07-06T18:45:00.000-07:00

On June 27, 2009 I had the pleasure of meeting Jaime and Ryan for an engagement shoot. The shoot took place in downtown Fort Wayne. We had some good times soaking our feet in a beautiful fountain... Well let me rephrase... they had a good time soaking their feet while I jumped knee deep into a fountain that had a homeless man taking a bath a hundred yards away. A foot spa + a bath tub = the perfect place for a photog to jump in and take pictures.... Luckily I didn't come away with a rash or a bad case of swimmers itch. Instead we came away with a few good pictures of the day. Here are a few of my favorites.....

How did this photographer come to be?

2009-07-06T16:57:00.001-07:00

So many times you read about a photographer and you hear that they started taking pictures when they were 5. Their Mom or Dad gave them a camera and they have been taking pictures ever since. Interestingly I am not one of those people. I wasn’t fortunate enough to be a 5 year old Ansel Adams capturing the “moments” down at the local playground. My interest in photography wasn’t a childhood dream that I longed for through years of dead end jobs. In some sense, I honestly think that photography found me. A few years ago my girlfriend’s father lost a long grueling battle with cancer. He was quite a man and was loved by many. Interestingly this man enjoyed taking pictures. He was more than a point and shooter; he enjoyed the pictures that were produced with good equipment. I don’t think I would call it his passion, but something that he enjoyed. I can’t recollect exactly how it came to be, but somehow my girlfriend ended up with his camera.

Fast forward a few years and….

That girlfriend is now my wife, pregnant with our first child, and I am venturing into the photography business (capturing memories as often as I can).
And that camera, the one that belonged to a man I will forever admire, sits on the corner of my desk. It is a constant reminder of the moments it has captured and the memories it has helped create. It sits here waiting to capture the next chapter, to tell the next story. It sits here waiting for a little girl, so that one day she can see the story her Grandpa is still writing for her from heaven…