Lily's 6 Month Portraits | Little Rock Baby Photographer

It seems like time is flying by. I can't believe it's already March which also means it's time for Lily's 6-month session. I have so many "favorite" images that I'm doing 2 posts just so you can see them all.

Lily (and her wonderful parents) makes her sessions so easy and so much fun. Her mom gives me a few ideas as to what she would like and then lets me do my thing. We all laughed and chatted the entire time.

A couple of notes on all the images...the entire session was done inside their home with all natural light. And the only prop of mine I used was a cover for their bench. The next post will have a really fun prop of their's you won't want to miss. :)

So all of you who think your house isn't "pretty" enough and doesn't have enough light...think again! It's also where your baby is going to be most comfortable.

The second note is this is the first session I've edited with my new set of Kevin Kubota Photoshop Actions (Artistic Volume 2). And I have to say I'm thrilled with them.

Enough talking... On to the images....

This is probably my favorite image of the entire session. Her eyes seem to speak a 1,000 words while she's curled up safely in her daddy's arms.

Stay tuned for the 2nd edition of Lily's session. (See Lily's newborn and 3-month sessions)

A New Look for a New Year

Happy New Year!

Well, what do you think of the new logo? It was custom-designed by Tara Staton and I tweaked the colors and font. I love the tree and think it fits perfectly into the Life Breaths theme. I hope to have the website updated soon but it's going to require a few more changes than I expected.

Hope you all had a great Christmas break. I spent Christmas and New Years with my family in Tennessee. It was nice to get away but reality hits tomorrow. I'll try to catch up this week with some photos from Christmas.

Wiggles & Giggles | Arkansas Baby Portrait Photographer

Capturing Weston's 1-year-old pictures was so much fun! He was actually still sleeping when I arrived, but literally 2 minutes after waking up you would have never known. He giggled and laughed and "told" me all kinds of stories. He is Mr. Personality!

Love this series...

For those photographers - I got to shoot this cute baby with my new baby, 50mm 1.4 prime lens. Check out that light and those eyes at shot wide open.

Again, those eyes....

For moms wondering what kind of clothing to wear for sessions, Weston's mom picked out great stuff. Solid, bright colors work marvelous. And I got lucky when I spotted this great little bench she had that complemented Weston's sweater perfectly!

Prodigal Arts Festival Results | Fellowship Bible Church - Little Rock, Arkansas

You may remember a previous post about a very special arts event at my church, Fellowship Bible Church of Little Rock. This year's festival was based on the story of The Prodigal (Luke 15). I was able to enter two canvas images this year.

"Daddy" - In this first piece, I first wanted to draw on the prodigal story from the female perspective hence the "prodigal daughter". But even more important I wanted to highlight the relationship between a daughter and her daddy. Why? Because I have the most amazing daddy of my own. I know that no matter where I go or what choices I make, my Daddy will always be there to welcome me home with open arms and a joyful heart. Even though the persons in this image are very dear family friends my Daddy was the inspiration.


"Returned" - Verse 2 of Luke 15 was the inspiration for this piece. I was struck by the depth of emotion of the father as his son returned home. The father had accepted the fact that his son was dead. Then to see his son returned to him fully alive called for nothing less than celebration.


Results - I didn't win my division but I was able to sell "Daddy" to the precious family that this daddy and daughter belong as well as a second commission. "Returned" did not sell but is available for purchase. Please contact me if you are interested in either of these pieces. They are both 16x20 gallery-wrapped canvases from the incomprobable vendor Pixel2Canvas.

My Favorite Canvas Vendor in the whole world! (Pixel2Canvas)

A couple of weeks ago I ordered my first two canvases from this amazing company, Pixel2Canvas. When I opened the box and pulled away the wrapping all I could say was "Wow!" Seriously, I've ordered some other canvases before that were much more expensive, but they can't hold a candle to how beautiful Pixel2Canvas canvases are. And I wish I could show you the two I ordered, but they are for an art show/sale at my church next week. So they're a surprise until then!

But tonight I placed 2 more canvas orders. One is for a surprise birthday party so I can't share it yet either. Sorry! But...don't despair.....I can show you the other one...well, at least the image.

Little Zoe will have her precious picture hanging on her parents' wall in a few weeks.

To get a little better idea of the amazing work Pixel2Canvas offers, a fellow (and amazing) photographer, Carrie Schumacher of San Diego Barefoot Memories, put together a great image of the different types of canvases and was kind enough to share it with me for a donation to the wonderful organization Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep (more on NLMDTS later!). I will have more of canvas info on the website soon.

I personally love the Gallery Wrap. It has a thicker edge than a standard wrap plus the image itself can wrap around the edges. They've even started carrying a gallery wrap with a 2-1/2 inch deep edge! I can't wait to order one of those.


If you would like to purchase a canvas using an image of one your previous sessions, please let me know. I will be happy to do so. Also keep the holidays in mind. These beautiful canvases will make beautiful Christmas gifts. Just make sure to allow enough time to order them. They will take about 4-6 weeks, so the deadline to order one for Christmas will be November 21st.

Photographers 4 Africa

Today's "Wonderful Wednesday" post is very special to me because it involves one of my favorite wedding photographers, Annette Biggers of Triple Cord Photography in Laguna Beach, California and founder of Photographers 4 Africa along with her husband, Mike. She also just happens to be one of my photography mentors! :)

"In late 2006, Annette and her husband Mike hosted a Ugandan children’s choir at their home, while the group was performing in Southern California. They had several kids spread all over their home, in beds and sleeping bags. One night she struck up a conversation with the choir leader, Alex Mutagubya, and he mentioned that he would be getting married soon back home in Uganda. Annette knew that most Ugandans cannot afford to hire personal photographers for their weddings, so she immediately told him, "I am going to come to Uganda and photograph your wedding for you." The man's eyes welled up with tears as he told her he could not believe he was receiving such kindness from someone he barely knew. When she showed him ..." -click here for the rest of the story

Annette's story was also featured on the blog of highly-acclaimed Daryn Kagan (formerly of CNN).
Watch the powerful video "Power of a Single Gift"

Annette,

Just in the short time I have known you, I have learned so much. Your photography stands alone, but more than that, your servant's heart to share the gifts and talents given to you from God's hands is humbling and inspiring. Through your images we see the souls behind the faces and are forever changed. Thank you for giving of your time and knowledge and most importantly your prayers to me. You do not know the powerful reach of your gifts not only to me but the to the many people your generosity has touched around the world. And I most definitely hope to be joining you and the Heart 4 Africa staff on your next journey to Africa!

With much love and many thanks,

Amy

Scott Kelby's Worldwide PhotoWalk - Little Rock

I'm really excited about this! I signed up for this awesome photo walk that is taking place on August 23, 2008 in cities around the world. The Scott Kelby Worldwide PhotoWalk has added a walk for Little Rock this weekend, and I think I'm the first to join besides the leader.


So here's the premise:

It's a social photography event where photographers get together, usually in a downtown area or trendy section of town, to walk around, shoot photos, and generally have fun with other photographers.



What's even more awesome is you can win prizes for the best image of the day. Since this Worldwide Photo Walk is to celebrate the release of the update of the world's bestselling Lightroom book (Scott Kelby's "Lightroom Book for Digital Photographers"), the best photo from the day (as chosen by your local walk leader) will win a copy of Scott's new book. Check out the following link for all the F.A.Q.s



So if you're in Little Rock or in any of the cities listed around the world, sign up. It's going to be a ton of fun. Although I am secretly praying it isn't 105 degrees like it was this weekend. :)