Lean In

We love them...

Our friends, the Sorrows..man, we love going over to their house and hanging out with them... and it always ends up being a VERY late night when we get together, cause you know  what they say, "time flies when you're having fun"...now that the kids are older, they take off and play, play, play and we get to sit and talk, talk, talk..and lots of laughing..they built the most beautiful new home that they moved into towards the end of last year and let me tell you, it is set up for entertaining..we plan to spend lots of time over there this summer..and Meredith and Michael are great hosts..and LOVE having people over..

We got together rather spontaneously last Sunday afternoon..saw each other at church and was like "let's get together this afternoon"..Meredith and I threw together our leftovers and we had a great time..here are a few shots..

Whoa! Check out THAT form!

I think this was some sort of dive...? lol..

Much baseball was played...

UNTIL a HUGE thunderstorm rolled in and ran us all inside...bummer...

Changing the subject, remember the family I was to photograph today? Well, I have to admit I was a bit nervous about the sun because we met at 10:30 ..you know, right when the sun is blaring..but this family (there were 12 of them all together) was SO fun..we found some shady spots and I got lots of great shots..so excited to show some peeks soon!!

The tassle was worth the hassle...

Today was graduation..kindergarten graduation for Chaz, that is..their program was "50's" themed and very cute..songs, hula hooping, hand jive..plus they got their diplomas..apparently public school doesn't do the whole cap and gown thing..bummer...

First though, here are the annual "first day/last day" pictures...

and then some pictures from the program 

I'm a little bummed about the diploma pictures..all of them stunk..but there were so many people sitting in the aisle waiting to get pictures, I hated to stand right in front of them with my booty in their faces..however, I did end up apologizing sweetly and standing right in front of some people..the program was in the gym = cruddy lighting and a split second to get my camera to focus in lower light..so this is what I got..

(Ugggh, the dreaded "flash eye" that I can't fix)

They had even put record tattoos on their arms..lol..

This was the best song..sung to the tune of "New York, New York"..."I want to be a part of it, 1st grade, 1st grade"..and they had changed all the words and all..very cute..

and then we went back to their room for awards and pictures..

His teacher is VERY pregnant..

Ms. Donna, the teaching assistant..so sweet.. loved her..

Tough guys..

And then my parents went with us to IHOP and the kids inhaled their whole meal of pancakes plus some stuff off of our plates...

So, summer is officially here and we're looking forward to sleeping late..going swimming, going to the beach, play dates, etc..

Tomorrow morning I have a session with a family whose son graduated high school tonight..I guess they are having family over to celebrate...doing the whole family..and then after that, I'm hoping for a bit of a break from picture editing once I get a few sessions completed..being on the computer so much is getting a little old..which brings me to something else I'm excited about..I ordered me a new shiny red Dell laptop..should be here in about a week and a half..yay!

Have a good weekend!

Let's rewind back to Mother's Day, shall we?

FINALLY...just a few weeks late..

First off, a funny story..on holidays that are on Sunday, when we get home from church, I won't let the kids go straight in when we get home..I make them meet me out back for pictures..otherwise, they would be changing clothes the minute they hit the door..so on Mother's Day, we got home, went out back and Brad took a bunch of pictures..the kids were being so cooperative and good..it went great..came in, changed clothes, ate lunch..and I went to check out the pictures on the camera...

And THIS is what I got a whole bunch of

Ummm, not quite what I had pictured..and I remembered that when I handed the camera to Brad I told him I had put it on "auto" and see, we had shot that wedding the day before and he had been shooting in manual mode (I had set the camera what it needed to be on, and he just focused and shot), so when I said something about "auto mode", he gave a stuck up look and apparently switched the camera to manual mode, but didn't pay any attention to what it was set on (and for people who know what I'm talking about, the settings were fstop of 2.8, shutter speed of like 100, and ISO of 800 cause that church was dark, remember?)...so, ummm, that's why all the pictures turned out like this..Brad was like "I thought manual mode just had something to do with the focus" and I was like "umm, NO, that's why I had put it on auto for you, Mr Cocky"....SO, everyone had to get redressed and go back outside..this time, the kids weren't has happy, so lots of fake smiles..but I have to have my Mother's Day pictures, ya know? I kept telling the kids to blame it on Daddy..lol..

Anyways, later that day, my sister in law and brother in law had us down to their house "in the country" to eat and to fish..they have a pond on their property that is stocked with some spoiled catfish that get hand fed most of the time..and they have been growing in there for a long time, so there are some big 'uns..the kids were sure to catch a few..

See all that "swirling" in the water? That's the catfish when you feed them..something about it is just spooky to me..

Hey Hook..he's a good dog..and there's a story behind that name..

OH, I think she got one..Brad helped her reel it in..

Go Bailey!

However, when it was time to mess with it, she was having NOTHING to do with that..she was scared of the fish..and stood off like this while her Daddy handled the gross stuff..it was so funny..

Working on my sun flare pictures..

"The girls"...

Whoa, Chaz caught one too!

Wow! Another one..all on his own!

and then Papa caught the duck decoy..long story there too, but man, we laughed SO hard..

It was great family fun!

Two silly boys and one great Mom...

I know I said the next post would be fishing pictures from Mother's Day, but just haven't gotten to that yet..SO, thought I would share some favorites (so far) from the session I had last Monday with Susan and her two boys..like I mentioned before, she had contacted me because she needed some updated pictures for some future articles she was going to have coming out (so I may see some of my pictures in print soon!!) and for her website..she was wanting less posed, more "everyday" interaction type of pictures..and she needed a new headshot..Her boys are 5 and 7, with the oldest one being on the low spectrum of Autism..

SO, here's a few that stood out so far..still have lots to edit!

Justin (the oldest) was just a big old teddy bear! and willing to do whatever I asked him to the best of his ability!

This little boy? Little brother..who was a total goofball until the camera was on him and he froze up..wouldn't smile or do anything goofy to save his life..so me and Mom had to pull out the old tried and true "whatever you do, DO NOT laugh" trick..it worked..

We went inside for some shots too..this is one of Justin's most favorite things..his red bus..

hee..this one cracks me up..reminds me of an old jazz player..

LOVE this one...

So, which one do you like the best?

The past few days...

Have looked like this...

Chaz had his "bff" over after school and to spend the night on Friday..

It has been raining on and off FOR DAYS, so after doing A LOT of this,

they sucked it up and went outside in the POURING rain and played baseball..it was so funny...

and then we got cleaned up and went and ate pizza..then the next day, we all stayed in our pajamas until about 12pm..

Later yesterday afternoon, we had my parents over to cook out and celebrate my Dad's birthday from Tuesday..

The rain held off just long enough for us to eat outside..and then a huge storm blew in..

Love this picture of me and my Dad..haven't had a picture together in a long time...

The kids made Poppie birthday cards..

They *heart* their Poppie..

Now, we're getting ready to pack everyone up and head over to our friends, the Sorrows, to swim, hot tub, eat, drink, talk, hang out, play, etc etc..and no one has to get up early in the morning..yay!! oh yeah, aand some picture taking of course..a totally spontaneous get together..we saw each other at church today and said "let's get together this afternoon"..and so we are..that's how we tend to roll with each other..

Tomorrow's post is going to be a rewind back to Mother's Day with pictures I haven't posted yet from our get together at my sister in laws house and some catfish fishing..

Have a fun Sunday!

Doin' the Chop...

The Tomahawk chop, that is..remember that? From back in the Braves hay day? I was in college during the Braves hype..and that one awesome game I'll never forget watching in my dorm room when they scored and won one of the final things (forgive my lack of sports knowledge..plus my memory is fuzzy), but if you lived in Atlanta, you remember..and I yelled REALLY loud cause the moment was amazing, and I was bummed because I was in my dorm room late at night with no one to yell with..anyways, I haven't been to a Braves game in FOREVER..never been to the "new" stadium..

Well, we went "for free" last Saturday due to a hook up on Facebook from a girl that Brad used to work with "back in the day"..she works at the stadium and when Brad posted something about watching the Braves in his status update, she jumped in and offered tickets if we were interested...ummm, yes! and the seats were really good..so, thanks Dawn! 

I was taking pictures like a mad woman cause the place is so cool..here are some shots..

(funny cause this older man saw me taking a picture of Brad and the kids and asked me if I wanted him to take one of all of us (I offer that to people too cause I know how that is to have someone missing..hate that), anyways, I just hand my camera to him and walk off..and then I thought for a second, turned back around and said "you're not going to run off with my camera are you?"..cause you know, we WERE downtown...lol..he thought that was way funny and said he wouldn't get very far (he was kindof a "heavy" man)..it was funny..

and just like at Disney, she saw him and almost refused to get near him, but I went with her..

Dawn was so sweet and left bags for the kids with goodies like hats and the tomahawks and stickers at Customer Service for us to pick up..the kids LOVE those tomahawks..

We hit the Cartoon Network area and they had a guy pitching to the kids on a little diamond..

Chaz had to get a few hits in..

(check out the tongue..lol)

Base hit (his first one was an in the park home run..lol)

and then we headed up to the top..this Coke bottle is awesome..made of all baseball equipment..tried to show some detail here..

and they have a few bases set up that the kids can run..they were getting their exercise in for sure..

Love this picture Brad took..

Like how this shows some of Atlanta..

He takes the National Anthem very seriously..good boy..we've taught him that..some kids don't even know to put their hand over their heart, or their parents don't MAKE them do it..makes me sad..

She begged and begged for cotton candy once she saw the guy walking around with it..and I caved..and paid dearly for it at 11 pm when they were still bouncing off the walls..

The ONLY reason I took a picture of Chipper Jones is because he is the only player I remember from the old days..but I don't like him because he cheated on his wife, but anyways..

We hit the original Chick Fil A Dwarf House in Hapeville on the way home and ate food way too late..We used to go there all the time when we all lived in East Point growing up...

Ok, getting ready for a fun weekend, just hoping it doesn't rain the whole time..it's in the forecast..uggh..Chaz has a friend coming home from school with him today to spend the night and we're going out for pizza..was hoping they would stay outside playing all day until we went to eat, but not if it rains..that means football throwing in the house most likely..umm, NOT....I'm of course going to try to get a few cute pictures of Ryan while he's here (lol)..tomorrow afternoon, my parents are coming over to cook out for my Dad's late birthday celebration..and then from then on out, no more plans except church..ahhhhh..Chaz's last day of school is next Friday--Kindergarden graduation..fun fun! 

Have a great holiday weekend!!

Wondering what to wear for family pictures?

Hi..popping in from work to share a really good link on one of my favorite photographer's blog (Lisa Russo) talking about what to wear for pictures..I get asked this all the time too..love the "visual" she gives!

Enjoy!

(OH, and looks like I'll be owing Chaz $5 for our bet..see previous post..lol)

All Done...

with preschool, that is..Bailey had her last day yesterday with their program/party...

She's letting her light shine here..apparently off beat from everyone else..lol

Aren't these program pictures always so good? ha..

Getting her certificate from Ms Hickman..

Let the party begin!

She had two great teachers..the same ones Chaz had when he was in that class..they really love the kids!

AND then, the big treat, Bailey got to have her "bff" Elizabeth come home with us for the afternoon! They were pumped about it...and they had a great time..

This was so cute..they had decorated these bags at school with their footprints and the teachers had filled them with little gifts..and they took them everywhere yesterday..

and you know I couldn't resist a new child to snap a few pictures of..Elizabeth is the prettiest little girl..love her blue eyes and olive skin..

and that's a wrap...

On other subjects..

Chaz and I have a $5 bet going on who is going to win American Idol tonight..he says Chris (I have no idea why he keeps insisting that..so funny) and just to play devil's advocate, I say Adam..we'll see..

I've got to get crack-a-lackin' on editing those wedding pictures and getting done...

The session on Monday went pretty well..will have peeks soon..I was having difficulty with lighting/exposure..ugggh..thank goodness for Photoshop is all I'm sayin'...and I've decided for outdoor sessions, we need to start meeting a few hours later due to the sun still being so bright at 5..

I forgot my Dad's birthday yesterday..totally completely forgot it until he called and asked me what day it was..I was still clueless because I lose track of the date if I'm not at work..and then it hit me like a ton of bricks..so a late Happy Birthday to my Daddy! ..and we're having them over to cook out this weekend to celebrate..

Have to go put in my 12 hours at the hospital tomorrow..

Running out to do some shoe shopping a little while..

Have a great hump day..

Finally, some wedding shots of mine...

Here goes nothing...

Love this one of she and her grandson...he was the cutest thing!

One of my most favorite..totally unplanned..love it when that happens..ahhhhhh, natural light --it was a nice break from the REALLY low light inside..lol

and at this point, up to the balcony I ran and switched lenses..

Look how clear that lens shot FROM THE BALCONY!!..so glad I decided to rent that baby..

He sang her a song..so sweet..love the sweet look on Betty's face..

and then he planted a BIG one on her..(at this point, I had run back down the stairs and was standing in the back waiting for them to come back down the aisle..hence the heads at the bottom, but I kindof like how it looks..I got my workout for sure..

and I fired off about 6 in a row..bam bam bam..and caught these...

THIS shot was worth the workout..really proud of this one..

This was the whole wedding party..both of their families..can we discuss big group shots in low light for a second? Ummm, haven't figured it out yet..my lens kept wanting to focus on just one side of the group and I COULD NOT get it to change..so, one side is in focus and the other is kindof blurry..anyone have any ideas? I need to learn to shoot in manual WITH my external flash..I always just shoot auto with that thing on because I don't know how to use it otherwise..that's why the camera got to pick where it focused..usually, I shoot in manual and pick my focus point using the back button focus method...hmmm? very frustrating though..

moving right along..

This one cracks me up..they were so fun!

I still have tons of reception pictures to edit..this wedding was short, but there were 250-300 people there..!

Mr. J was in a major hurry to get out of there and hit the road..he was practically dragging Betty out of there..so funny..

Alrighty, that's a "smattering" of pictures..MANY more to go through..but I didn't want it to be too long before sharing some..

On another photo type note..I'm leaving in about an hour to go photograph a neat family at their home..will be back later and tell you all about it..here is the Mom's website..she's an author of a book about Autisim and diet. These guys have been in magazines (including Real Simple Family!), on TV, all over the place..I have Meredith to thank for this referral..Susan has a very clear idea of the types of pictures she's wanting..very editorial, photojournalistic, casual kinds..I hope I do a good job!

Can you guess where we went last night?

Lots more later...

Photographing a "red carpet" event at church tonight..honoring the "stars" of our church...