Krista & Jonathon…Newlyweds!

Ok, this first picture has nothing to do with Krista & Jon…but I thought it was pretty funny and needed some blog-love.  This is my hunky husband’s facial expression when I make him be my BB (Bag-Boy) and lighting assistant on his day off.  Boo-hoo.

THIS is Krista & Jonathon.  …way better looking. 🙂
I haven’t done a session with pets in a while, but there always seems to be some excitement with doggies around.  The leash broke and their sweet big dog went and found himself a little dog to snack on. 🙂





A huge group of homecoming-dressed-students walked past and were “ooo & ahhing at Krista & Jon …so I kicked them out of my shot…and took a picture of my red shoes while doing it.  I wish I would’ve grabbed a picture of one of the girls, though…because she had on one of the most amazing green dresses I’ve EVER seen.  Darn!
Ahhh, La Plaza…
Poor Jon…he’s not big on PDA, but he was such a good sport…letting me boss him around.  They were such a fun couple on the wedding day and this session was no exception.  

Memories of New Orleans!

New Orleans, New Orleans, New Orleans…well, we actually got back from our trip a couple weeks ago, but we definitely won’t soon forget the trip.  We stayed 3 days…the first two were quite normal and almost boring.  The last night, however, was anything but.  To make a very long story somewhat shortened…my sister met a guy who took an immediate liking to her (go figure, right…she’s a pretty girl).  In the coarse of about 5-10 minutes of knowing this guy, he picked her up like a sack of potatoes and dropped her on the hard, hard pavement…to which she dislocated her shoulder.  I then sprinted 3 or 4 city blocks, IN HEELS, to find some cops to get help…to which I had to argue with 4 cops just to get them to call an ambulance.  When I got back to Amanda, the ambulance was already putting her in the bus.  I had to sneak and hide in the ambulance so that I could go with to the hospital…when I got there the hospital staff wouldn’t let me go in the room with her and threatened to have me arrested for trying to be a supportive sister and stay with her through the whole process (It wasn’t like she was in a critical state).  Can I just tell you that I am completely and totally grateful for the law enforcement and medical quality that we have here in the Kansas City area.  The whole time through that dramatic night, I kept thinking to myself what a Johnson County Snot I must be to expect the same level of care where ever I go.  We really have it pretty good where we live.
That’s not it…when they wouldn’t let me see her, I stupidly thought I would run back to the hotel (about 8 or 9 CITY BLOCKS…IN HEELS) and try to change clothes (put on running shoes), grab our cell phones, and credit cards.  I ran and ran and ran…oh my god, if ever my lungs felt like they were going to collapse.  Plus, I ran through some pretty scary city streets with some pretty scary people.  When I got back to the hospital, I found out that after I left to go to the hotel, 3 cops on bicycles when out to find me because they said that the area I was running through was extremely dangerous (especially at 3am).  The next day, on our taxi ride to the airport, the driver told us (as we pasted the street I ran on) that at 4am there was a man shot dead there that same night.  hummm…I guess I got lucky.
Oh…and then when we finally landed at KCI and found that Delta lost my sister’s luggage.  The whole mini-vacation was supposed to be to celebrate my sister’s birthday…and she ended up dislocated, with a hefty hospital bill, and without luggage.   Nice, right?!
Without further ado, here are some of the pictures from our portrait session early in the day before the hospital fun.


Let me just say how difficult it was to have a portrait session in New Orleans with a beautiful woman.  We couldn’t go anywhere without being harassed by people passing by or people up above (non-Bourbon Street areas) chucking beads at Amanda.  UG!



We went cheap and got our hotel at the Holiday Inn…but we passed by an upscale hotel with some valet drivers that were willing to pose for me.  How cute!


Yes….I MADE him do this. hehehe


NEW ORLEANS!!!

Here we are in the exciting New Orleans!
Three years ago we came here for one night before hopping aboard our Carnival Cruise and was had the most amazing night ever. The music, the food, the smells…well, maybe we could do without the smell (YUK)…it was a great time. So we decided to come back to the famous town.

More amazing than the experience is the character this place holds. It is definitely a photographer’s playground. So we are going to get some snazzy portraits or my sister, Amanda. …so here’s the first one….better ones to follow. (she’s really gonna hate me for posting this one. 🙂
Be back full force on Tuesday!

Megan, Casey, & Tyler…life is complete.

Well life and love is complete for my lovely client, Megan. I first met and photographed her and her lil man, Tyler, a year ago and it has been a pleasure ever since. She met and recently married her fabulous husband, Casey, and I can see happiness ALL over those three. Life is good.

I had to throw one in of just Megan. Isn’t she STUNNING?!!! She is the essence of elegance. That dress was made for her.

Tyler walked her down the isle and Megan’s ring was in that little red car. How CUTE is that!


This is just such a romantic angle…especially once we removed the bandaids. hehehe 🙂

WHAT HANDSOME GUYS!

This was Megan’s one and only request…when she got married, Tyler clung to her legs during her wedding vows and it was a memorable moment that was unfortunately missed by the camera. So…we redid it for that visual key to always remember that moment.
Thanks, Megan & Casey, for having me out for the special picture opp and invite on the sky diving. I ran it past Matt tonight and I think he might up for it. He’s like me…he’ll need someone to physically push him out of the plane…but will LOVE IT!

E-Session with Ashley & Derek!!!

Forgot to add this one…also one of my favorites!

Remember how I went to the AltF seminar about a month ago…well, one of the things I took away from the famous John Michael Cooper is that I should start writing down/sketching my ideas on paper so that I can remember to do them later on. Last week, I had the idea of giving one of my fun couples some bubblegum and having them compete against each other for BIGGEST BUBBLE. Cute, right?! I had my hands full at the time, so I made my husband run and find my notebook and draw it for me. …this is his fabulous drawing and supposed to represent my idea. …hey, I didn’t marry him for his drawing abilities. 🙂

ahhhamore.
This is my fav shot of the session! Great Height Derek!!!! Stay bouncy…I might make you do some more exercises in your tux later on.
O, how I love these old junk trucks. I refuse to let my Grandma get rid of them, just so I have something really cool to photograph. By the way, Ashley had perfectly smooth and flawless, exposed legs previous to going out to the land. I think she ended our session with 3 or 4 dozen chigger/mosquito bites. I am soooooo sorry.
And what’s one of my sessions without a little risk? This took a couple of tries…87th Street (west of 1-435) is a main road and plenty busy. And those people though they only had to worry about hitting deer. HA!
After I promised I was finished about 5 times…I forgot I wanted this one last shot. So this actually was my last promised finish. Wahoo!
This is their “The Personality Shot”. Ashley told me that ever since they started dating, this is has been Derek’s pose of choice. I told her she should have a huge collage at her wedding sign-in table with all the pictures of him doing this. How cute is that! Thanks Derek and Ashley for braving busy roads, putting up with non-blowable-gum, and being eaten alive. Anything for the right shot, right?! Hopefully your wedding will be less painful. 🙂