Looking back at 2009 has reminded me what is most important in my life. Regardless of what happens throughout the year, with the day-to-day ups and downs, what matters most are the people in my life and the relationships we share. I have some really amazing people that I get to walk through life with and I am exceedingly grateful for them. Some of those wonderful people allowed me to be a part of their lives through photography. This slideshow includes an image from *almost* every session I shot in 2009. Thank you for the honor of inviting me into your lives. I am excited to see what 2010 has in store!
Tomato Plant
This spring I really wanted to grow a tomato plant, as well as some other fresh herbs like basil and mint, so I planted a little garden that could grow in pots on my porch. Everything was going so well and the tomato plant was really flourishing. It grew tall and started to show little yellow blossoms that would become sweet, homegrown, sun-ripened, delicious cherry tomatoes. I watered the plant regularly and it got plenty of sun. Then one day a sad thing happened. Some sort of little green baby inch worms attacked my tomato plant and devoured most of the green leaves and yellow blossoms. I tried to pluck off the inch worms but I seemed to always miss one or two. Less than a week later and there was barely anything left to my tomato plant and various herbs. Last night I had to throw the plants away, but before I did I salvaged the six little tomatoes that had managed to grow amidst the hungry inch worms. I actually ate one of the tomatoes and it was surprisingly bitter. The following photos are to showcase the few tomatoes that grew this summer. Then I got a little carried away and wanted to show how little they are and put them in our wedding rings for a size comparison. The last photo is a quick shot I took of my husband, Brandon. He always encourages me and helps me to laugh... even when my tomato plant died. Thanks for being so wonderful and caring... I'm lucky to have you.
I think it's still early enough in the year that I can try to plant another tomato plant.
We're Married!
Brandon and I got married on December 8, 2008 at Temecula Creek Inn! We had a very small, intimate wedding ceremony with family and friends. We decided to see each other before the ceremony so we could take photos with good lighting at that time of day. We are so glad that we did because it helped calm our nerves to see each other beforehand. We had such an amazing day and felt so blessed to be together with each other and surrounded by our loved ones.
The first image is of our first moment together on our wedding day.
These photos are a few favorites from the day, but if you would like to see more you can watch the online slideshow posted below... just be patient while it loads.
A special thank you to all the people who helped make our wedding possible! Thank you to our dear family and friends for all of your practical help, emotional support, and for traveling to join us. We appreciate and love you and could not have done this without you! It was very meaningful for us to share this time in our lives with you.
Thank you also to Amanda, Melissa, and Kim from Jim Kennedy Photographers for creatively documenting our day through still photography and video. Amanda and Melissa took all these great photos on my blog! Thank you to Pete and Justin from Generations Entertainment for the great music and running everything seamlessly. Thank you to Amanda from Fantasy Floral Designs for adding beauty to our wedding. Thank you to Alison and Crystal and the staff at Temecula Creek Inn for making our wedding dreams become a reality. Thank you to Carina, of Flawless Faces, for making me feel beautiful all day; and to Lani for taking care of my hair.
Thank you for stopping by the blog to see our wedding. Please feel free to leave us a comment.
::Visiting Kara in Colorado::
I finally planned a trip out to Colorado to visit my dear friend Kara. Kara lives outside of Denver in a town called Parker. We had such a fun, relaxing, full, funny weekend together (along with her golden retriever Sadie)! Somehow the whole weekend passed and I didn't get one photo of Sadie, so maybe Kara will email me one I can add to this post. If you ever want to feel loved all the time no matter what you do, you should adopt a golden retriever. Each morning I awoke to a dog sighing outside of my bedroom door just waiting for me to wake up. Apparently she enjoys having guests and wants to be with her guests all the time. As soon as I would wake up and open the bedroom door, she would be so excited and wiggly and happy. I couldn't help but smile. :) Kara and I did a lot of fun things... I included photos from out trip to the Crepe place that made the most heavenly crepes ever! We also drove up to Brekenridge and stopped in a few towns on the way up. Overall, I had a great time visiting Kara and Sadie! Thanks guys!
WPPI Print Competition 2008
WEDDING & PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHERS INTERNATIONAL
Professional wedding and portrait photographers from all over the world gather together in Las Vegas every March to take classes, see new cameras and gadgets at the tradeshow, network with other photographers, AND view the photographs in the print competition. When I began my pursuit of photography eight years ago, I entered many competitions in the category of black and white fine art photography. The more involved I became with weddings and portraits the less I participated in art shows. This year I decided get back to my photo roots and enter WPPI's 16x20 Awards of Excellence competition in the category of "Engagement." Although this is a completely different type of photo competition for me, I stayed true to my love of black and white photographs. Enjoy the shots below: