If I could have a newly adopted second family it would definitely be this family.  They are so super sweet to me and I feel like I owe them the world.  They  have always been my cheerleaders, my advice givers, supporters.  I could not wait to document Jessica and Richie wedding this past month.  If you can imagine how beautiful a wedding would be, if your parents  were wedding facility owners and a wedding coordinator, that was this wedding.  Simply beautiful.

You have to keep it to your self how beautiful Lauren looks, because her groom-to-be does not want to see.  He is sweet, sincere, giddy, and obviously in love with his soon to be wife.  He met her at the photoshoot and would close his eyes at any glimpse of roses, big white dress, sparkles, or fabulous-ness (and mind you, she was not even dressed yet).    He was sweet and the anticipation he has to see his beautiful bride, on their wedding day, warms my soul.  It is obvious that he knows she is stunning (inside and out) and I guess that will hold him over until later next month when they say “I do”.

I am trying really hard to keep Lauren’s bridal portraits as incognito as I can, but OMG….stunning, breathtaking, and simply gorgeous.  She invested time looking for the right people to accent her wedding day and she certainly found the right dress, hairstylist, make-up artist, and me, her shutter clicking girl who loves this sweet couple.  In November, she and James will vow their love to one another and rest assured, everything about their wedding will be gorgeous.  Most of all, the love they have for one another, is the most beautiful detail of all.

Here is a sneak peek of Lauren.

Here in Texas we do things a little different.  We love weddings, barbeque brisket, wildflowers, barns, boots, and big hats (in no particular order).    Laurie and Marcus had all of the above at their wedding.  All of these grand details were shared with family and friends.

Throughout the evening I caught glimpses of well wishes and hugs being handed out.  A real and genuine love of family and friends.  I think Laurie must have twirled around the rustic dance floor hundreds of times that night.  Each time with a smitten husband by her side.  She laughed, cried, smiled, and laughed some more as her special day was here, she was present, and living and loving life in the moment.  Laurie has such a special touch and captured the essence of  if being a blushing and beautiful bride in the Lone Star State.

I loved the tiny details that made the day “Texas perfect”.   Thank you Laurie and Marcus for allowing me to capture memories during such a special time in your life.  Cheers to the many more dancing twirls to come!

Today I was eating a ham and cheese sandwich, wanted to blog stalk a little, and came across a posting that asked how confident are you as a photographer.  Hummm…. I don’t think I have ever thought about that.  I think that right before I go to a photoshoot I have a few butterflies dancing around in my belly, but I think they are doing the happy dance.  I hope the day never comes that I am not giddy with excitement about capturing people’s stories.     I love and admire so many other photographers work and hope to one day produce such brilliant images as them (so in no way do I think I am even close to being the overall expert at shutter clicking).  But what I do know what brings me some confidence, it is I knowing my clients aka…my soon to be friends…aka…my supporters.

I always make efforts to have a conversation with those wonderful people I put in front of my lens.  Yes, I like to talk a lot, but I also like to get to know people a lot.   I want to hear their story.  Not long after I get to talking/emailing/texting with someone, I begin to visualize their idea of the perfect picture for them (mind you each couple, each bride, each mommy’s perfect idea is so very different).  But, because I take the time to know my clients, I know that when the day comes, I will have the confidence to make them a beautiful time keeper we call a photograph.

Here are some of my new found hippy-chick  friends.  Their mommy was a model and I think in this case, the apple does not fall far from the tree.

I have looked at this picture a dozen times.  It is a SOOC (straight out of the camera) picture that happened to be taken at the right time (the biologist in me is fascinated).  My 7 year old snapped the shutter for this capture of  the perfect time.  She is working on a project for school and the topic is “Beauty is….”.  My immediate thought of beauty is red high heels, a chic dress, a new hairdo, freshly painted toes, you know those miniscule  things that in the larger scheme of life really don’t trump much.  Lissy wanted to find something in nature that was beautiful (she is a nature girl like her momma) but insisted that it not be flowers or anything obvious (because Gracie, her best friend, would do that).  So we went for a walk along our property and came across this rotting orange that had fallen from our orange tree.  I immediately scolded her and told her to throw it down and she said, “but mommy, I saw something in it.”  It is something’s BEAUTIFUL home.  She found beauty in something that was present, ugly, decomposed, and had creatures in it.  As she walked inside with the rotting orange her daddy went on to share with her (and my shallow high heel thinking self) about how beauty is in the eye of the beholder and what a wonderful treasure of beauty she had found.

I swear, just when I  loose sight of important things, this kiddo whips me back in shape.

Here is a picture she will share with her friends and teacher in San Antonio.  ”A Beautiful Home”.  In case you are wondering, those creepy crawlie things are termites (I know that from graduate school…. I told you guys I was a pocket protector nerd).  And yes, the orange and its inhabitants went far…far…away from our beautiful home when she was done….haha……