I recently had the privilege of photographing the engagement party of one of the sweetest couples in the world. Sandra and Thomas are getting married this summer in Montreal where Thomas currently lives. Family and friends traveled from all across the globe to celebrate this BEAUTIFUL event at the Fredericksburg Hospitality House in Fredericksburg, VA. This sweet couple was obviously so in love with each other and in addition, they were so caring toward the people around them. Their family was one of the most kind and hospitable that I have had the pleasure to be around…they seemed more concerned with whether or not I had gotten the chance to eat or needed anything than they were with themselves! The whole night was filled with laughter, lots of hugs and kisses, and loads of music and incredible dancing!! I enjoyed just being around them and the love and hospitality that they shared with their guests! I am still working on their pictures but wanted to share some fun moments from the evening! Sandra and Thomas, it was an absolute pleasure to meet you! You are such a sweet couple and I wish you the very best marriage and future together!!

These two precious little twin girls belong to Brandon and Ann, two of our close friends and the most amazing people you will ever meet. These sweet little girls were a long time coming and it has been such a blessing to finally meet them. Despite being barely three weeks old they already look completely different! Reese (who looks like her mom) slept through the entire shoot. Dillon on the the other hand, not only looks exactly like her dad but was alert and active the entire shoot…much like dad who rarely sits still:) You can only image how excited I was to get my hands on these two little girls for this shoot! Here are a few images from their big photo day!

   Happy New Year (admittedly a few days late)! Maybe you feel the same way that I do…that the time between Thanksgiving and the start of the new year actually passed during one night about two weeks ago…and now here we are almost two weeks into 2009. Geez! In some ways I have been relieved to have this year come to an end.  It has been filled both with really incredible times as well as witnessing the deepest tragedy of our lives so far. The best part of it all has probably been the relationships that have grown and seeing God working directly and clearly in our lives and in the lives of our friends.

     On the photography front, this year brought more business and opportunities then I expected. I have had the opportunity to learn so much and to put what I am learning into motion developing my own style. The most exciting and challenging thing has been really trying to come into my own and decide what type of work I like and what type of work I don’t feel that I am gifted or interested in. I have been able to go from taking every shoot offered to me, to being selective about what I take so that it fits with where my passion and talents are. I often worry that I am already hitting a creative peak (not that I am so incredibly talented already but that I really don’t consider myself very creative at all and worry that I may never be!) and I often worry that I will not continue to improve but will level off and just maintain. Of course when I start to think that way Graham is quick to remind me of what I am capable of with God’s blessing on my work and how far I have already come.

     This next year is going to be an exciting one to say the least. Although I may not be able to take as much wedding work with the new addition to our family coming in early July, I am looking forward to taking this next year to refine the business side of my work. If I am in this for the long haul, and I am, then there are a lot of things that I need to do in order to be the most efficient that I can be. I am also pulling together fun ideas for ways to make my client’s experience with me even better. With all of the photographers out there I have to stand out and be memorable and that means finding ways to make my clients feel like they are the most incredible people in the world and presenting the most quality product that I can! The other day I began a list of all of the things that I want to do with my business in the next year. Let’s just say that I literally had to stop myself at two and a half pages! Right now I feel like my brain might explode with the number of things that I need and want to do!  Despite the feeling that time is passing faster than I am able to get these things done, I am excited to see what this new year will bring.

     If I have not already said so, thank you so much for your support and encouragement this past year. It has been especially meaningful to get comments and e-mails from people that I have never met, professionals and hobbyists, who have taken the time to offer simple words of praise or encouragement. Sometimes it is hard to believe the compliments from your closest friends (they are biased right?!) but it is super meaningful to hear from people who don’t even know you. Anyway, I have appreciated your encouragement and support so much – especially the support that has come from friends who believe in my work when I am having trouble believing in it myself!

     Ok – I didn’t plan on going on and on but if you have continued reading this far then I do want to say thank you to two people who helped launch me into the new year with a new look.  Thank you so much to Andy Spray for her awesome design work (and impromptu tech support) in creating my new branding!  You will see more of her awesome work in the months to come with my new materials!  Thank you also to Ashlee Proffitt – another incredible graphic designer and website critique extraordinaire!  I am excited to be partnering with Ashlee and Serendipity Designs in the next year to provide some incredible additions to my wedding packages and offering lots of fun new options to my clients!  I would love to have even an ounce of graphic design skill but since I don’t, these two ladies have been monumental in helping me to grow my business!

Wow – if you have made it this far through the post, you are a true friend and I love you.  Happy New Year and I really hope that this year bring incredible blessings for you!

Love,

Shay

Earlier this week I got the chance to do a really fun shoot with Ms. Cassie. I met Cassie at a wedding that I photographed earlier this year and soon after we started talking about some really fun ideas that she had for a special artsy shoot that she wanted to have done to show off some “artwork” of hers…maybe someday with Cassie’s permission you might actually get to see some of those images but what I will share is a few fun images from the second half of the shoot!! Not only does this girl have stunning eyes and can get all “dolled up” in a dress and boots but she is also a hard core mountain biker and athlete and would most certainly win an arm wrestling competition against any guy! Bottom line – this girl rocks – even if she would rather be outside on her bike then having her picture taken!! Here are a few images from her shoot!