Merry Christmas and Happy 2009!

Please enjoy my 2008 in Review and all of the lessons I have learned from you, my loyal clients, this year...

(I don't think my music exported with my video, but if it did, please pause the music on the blog sidebar so that you can enjoy the video's music.)



Unfortunately, the quality is not like it is on my computer. Hopefully I can figure out better ways to do this before next Christmas... oh yeah, I'll do that in all of my spare time! :)

Thank you again for making my year an amazing one!

Kelsey

Tonight I did a quick shoot of Kelsey in her new, beautiful dress. This material was left from making her bedding and curtains, and I loved it so much, I wanted to do a portrait of her for her room in a dress made out of it. The timing is perfect with the metallic enlargements on sale, so Grandmother made her a dress from the material and I took these pictures tonight. The last one is the one we are enlarging to hang in her room. My baby, though she is growing up, still looks very much like a sweet baby sometimes! :)

Families at Christmas...

...Are Happiest When They Are Together!

One of the sweetest ladies at my church, Sister Mary Lou Palmer, asked me about a month ago if she could schedule a session for when her son and his family came into town. She wanted a big family picture of her whole extended family. I was more than happy to oblige (the Palmers are two of my grandparents longest-lasting and dearest friends), so I spent this afternoon with Milton and Mary Lou, their daughter Cathy and her husband and son, and their son LeBron and his wife and daughters. Unfortunately it rained the whole time and we did not get any outside pictures, but the studio sufficed and we got some sweet pictures. Palmer Family, you all are so sweet and I am so glad you trusted me with your family memories! Have a wonderful Christmas together!

Eight Little Davis's

I actually had forgotten to post our own "cousin Christmas session" that we did at Thanksgiving. It was a little bit of a challenge, but we managed to get all eight children dressed alike, looking toward the camera, and no one crying, all at the same time! :) They love each other so much and we do this every year for Nana and Papaw. It's a lot of work, but it's worth it. Check out all of the blue eyes! (They range in age from 7 months to 11 years. Erika is oldest at 11, Kari next at 9, Kaci is 7, then a string of close ones with Andrew nine months younger than her at 6, Emma nine months younger than him at 5, Alex nine months younger than her at 4, Kelsey a year younger than him at 3, and Kaleb two and a half years younger than her at 7 months.) Happy Cousin Christmas from the Davis's!!!

Home for the Holidays

My good friend and colleague, Anita Adkins, asked me to come over and take some family pictures when her sister came into town. For some reason, we picked basically the coldest afternoon of the year to do these pictures. :) I can't believe they turned out as well as they did considering that Anita's poor family was basically in pain, they were so cold! The girls (Emmaline, Isabelle, and Julia) were cute as could be and Anita's husband, sister, and parents were so kind to me. Guys, I am glad you are all home for the holidays and I am happy I was able to preserve it in pictures!!! Enjoy the pics!

On the Twenty-first Day of Christmas...

...the McClaren's came over for some cold pictures! I really enjoyed getting to know this sweet family of girls! Jenny had received a gift certificate as a Christmas gift from a friend and she brought her two daughters, Jessica and Jamie, to take some pictures. We started inside (which was good since we were NUMB when we came in from outside!), then took some great shots outside. The girls were just darling with each other and really seem to get along well. It was so nice to meet you all and I hope you enjoy your sneak peak!

Christmas Time's a Comin'!

The sweet VanNostran family came over today for a Christmas session. Michael is absolutely adorable in his sweater but was also so funny! He talked non-stop and is such a bright little boy. I did their Christmas pictures last year as well so it was neat to see how much he had developed in the past year. I know you guys are proud of him and I am glad you let me hang out with you all a while today! Enjoy your pics!

There's No Place Like Together for Christmas!

I was so honored to get to go to Lois's house this Saturday and take some pictures of her whole family. Everyone was in for Christmas and we got some really nice family pictures. Lois is a colleague and friend of mine (who was also my senior English teacher!) and she is such a loyal customer. Thanks Lois, and I had fun meeting Jack and John and Carter this time as well. The kids were darling as always!

Katelyn's Pomp and Circumstance...

Katelyn came over last Tuesday and we had a nice senior session before the weather got too cold on us. It was surprisingly comfortable outside and we were able to get some amazing shots. I really enjoyed chatting with Katelyn and Aunt Joan (owner of Charleston Treasures, a really cool antique store in Charleston-- check her out this weekend for a big sale!!!). Katelyn's friend Kayla had referred her to me (thanks, Kayla!) and I am so glad she did. How amazing are her eyes with that dark hair and beautiful turquoise shirt?!?!? Enjoy your pics, Katelyn. It was great to meet the whole family!

Don't Be Left Crying at Christmas!

Hey, just a quick reminder for everyone... I have to have any orders to my color lab by December 18 in order to get them by the time they close for Christmas. Therefore, I need to hear from you by December 17. Any of you who are still considering Christmas gifts need to decide ASAP in order to get them back in time! Thanks again for a great year of photography!

With Visions of Sugarplums...

I finally (with a little help from my mom-- thanks, mom!) got our family Christmas card session done today. The past several years, we have done pretty formal pictures, usually of a religious nature. This year, after the sweet ones I got last night, I wanted to do something silly and fun. SO, I embarked on a journey to find us matching (or at least coordinating) pajamas for our family picture. This proved more difficult than I expected, especially when I wasn't willing to pay upwards of $40 per pair. I finally found some for everyone that worked, and the pictures below are what we came up with! Merry Christmas from us!

Fredrick-Claus

For my final session of the day, I got to spend a (few!) minutes with the Fredrick boys and their mom, Kari. We had to hurry so that they could get to the church in time to ride our Royal Ranger float in the Christmas parade. These guys go to church with me and they are always sitting on go! :) They ham it up for the camera every time and I have so enjoyed doing their Christmas picture for the past few years. Kari, thanks for coming out and I hope you like the pictures!

Sweet Miracle Baby and her Mommy and Daddy

Shantelle Fergusen's mother-in-law saw my photography display at the Stuart In the Nick of Time Fair and gave my card to Shantelle. She called a few weeks ago and we set up a session for today. We checked weather.com earlier this week and were assured that the weather would be sunny and in the high 40's... not quite. Shantelle, Steve, and Lillimarie armed themselves in beautiful red scarves and weathered the cold, cloudy afternoon with me for some great pictures. I'm telling you, this is one adorable child! And Mom and Dad absolutely dote on her... she is a much-loved little miracle for sure. Guys, I am so glad we hung out for a while today and I hope your pictures are just what you wanted! Come back soon!

The Vaughn Family Christmas

My first session of the day was with Paul and Amy Vaughn and their brood, Isaac, Sarah, and Elijah. Kraig went to college with Paul, so I have known them since Kraig and I started dating. Amy and I are now in the same book club. Their kids are so cute (and smart!!!) and I always have a good time doing their Christmas pictures. Today was the first time I had been around baby Elijah, and he was just such a happy little fellow. Amy, I had fun and I hope you enjoy your pictures!

Christmas at the Davis House...

...and That Means Pictures!!!

After doing three sessions of other people's children and families, I finally settled my own down long enough to do a Christmas session of the girls. Our family session will have to wait until I have a little more time. Emma and Kelsey were hilarious, as always, seating and posing themselves, telling me what needed to be adjusted thus so. I am kind of excited about their knowledge of photography... perhaps one day I will have someone to take some pictures with ME in them! :) Anyway, although it might be a little overdone, my favorite really is the first one. I just think it captures the real meaning of Christmas, which is, after all, the greatest gift of Jesus.

(I also have to tell this funny story. As they were looking at the book (see below), Emma told Kelsey that the picture they were looking at was after Mary and Joseph got married, before they were pregnant with Jesus. I kind of found myself in a dilemma over whether or not 5 and 3 is the time to introduce the concept of the Virgin Birth or if that might get me in over my head. I ended up deciding that God won't mind if I wait a year or two to throw that piece in there!)
I HIGHLY recommend the book-- it's called Father and Son, The Nativity Story-- and it's from Joseph's perspective. As an English teacher, I appreciate beautiful writing and it is truly beautiful and such an interesting perspective.

Cuties, Coyotes, and Cold...

The Guffey family braved the cold and fought off a coyote to get some pictures of their cuties on Wednesday afternoon. :) (Really, the coyote was just playing in the field and there was no fighting, but we certainly did enjoy watching it for a few minutes!) Stacey, Stacie, Hailey, Lylia, and Brenden were so sweet and cooperative and we got great pictures as a result. I have to say, these kids were darling, and I have never seen an almost three year old who was easier to photograph than Brenden! Thanks guys, enjoy Disney, and I hope you like your pictures!