cute peanuts below....

this family was a ton of fun to shoot...thanks to Xavier, Lila & Sabrina for being such good sports!

i dont know if it was the time of day we met, or that we are getting close to super hot summer weather, but i was drawn to finishing some of their shots with a lighter feel to them. the end result reminds me of lemonade and popcicles {ok, i really mean sangria and chilled pinot, but i was trying to keep it kid-friendly}

a 6 year old boy & his guitar...

the bus stop

my oldest daughter was recently complaining that I didnt have as many pictures of her as compared to her little sister. when I politely pointed out that her sister is significantly more cooperative when it comes to taking photos, she agreed to do a little photo shoot to up the number of pics in her portfolio (and by that, I mean 4x6's in her photo album). so, we went out one day and started to take photos, when she looked over and saw this cool bus stop and asked to take some shots there...

she asked if she could give me a 'sassy' shot, and for other mothers of girls aged 6-8, you will understand that this was quite an easy shot to get...

happy b&w wednesday...may your hump day be relatively quiet and peaceful :)

oh pickles....

meet 4 year old Brianna, who thinks that saying 'oh pickles' is just about the funniest thing this side of the mississippi. at first, i didnt really believe her dad when he said that it cracked her up every.single.time it was said...but, luckily for me...he was right and i got a big grin each time we said it!


{these adorable piggies belong to her baby sister, Hailey}

oh, pickles!

philly photo walk

I participated in my first photo walk this past weekend, and it was an absolutely wonderful experience. I met up with about 30 other photographers in Chestnut Hill...we were divided into 3 groups and were able to work with several different models to work on our skills and, well, just have fun shooting photos with one another. I had a great time meeting other photographers and have enjoyed looking at their amazing shots, and comparing them to mine. Its very cool to have been standing beside someone, looking at the exact same thing, and having the end result be two distinct and very different photos.

There were flowers...

a groom serenading his bride...

one pretty bride...

and a baby...and a couple, who after two years of marriage is still so in love with each other that it was exuding from their pores...

another pretty bride...

who also had a sassy side to her...kids that were let loose in a toy store...{chaos!}

and interesting new toys {i love the message of these blocks}

cant wait to do it again :)

parker & p-dog....

this was a such fun shoot to do...her parents are absolutely divine and these sweet girls are adorable. thanks P & P for a really enjoyable evening, you rocked the lens!!

i am calling this her 'wha...what??' face...love it

this last one is my favorite shot of the whole session, and i seriously edited the raw image at least 6 different ways because i kept on getting inspired as i played around. i like this shot so much because of the composition, the curls, her expression, the gently tensed muscles around her mouth, and the fact that if you look really close, you can see her daddy reflected in her eyes...

Flight 93

I was asked to photograph a recent event, which was a local effort to raise money for a memorial for Flight 93, called Banding Together for Heroes Concert and Rally. Two community bands played, one from my local area and the community band from Somerset County, PA, where Flight 93 went down. It was a beautiful, touching day, filled with music and personal stories of loved ones lost on that day.

photos of the planned memorial...it looks amazing

names of loved ones lost that day...the most touching part of the day was when the director of the Somerset Community band shared that he had a piece commissioned for the event by a local composer. it gave me goose bumps. info on this grassroots effort can be found here: www.honorflight93.org

you snooze, you lose...

were his last words to me as I trekked back to my car. He was a ham and his little sister was all girl...thanks Jaden and Maya, for a lovely saturday morning behind the lens!

and one with an antique texture applied...