Keepin It Sweet With Lotsa Sugar....We're Talkin Photography Ladies and Gents! Throwin in Some Random Ramblings...Sugar~N~Spice & Everything Not So Nice:)
So this is what happens when I say, "Ok, I am turning it over to you! Be you, no poses or perfection. Just be Ali!" Oh how these images scream, "ALI!!!" I LOVE THEM!
If you know Ali you know she is OBSESSED with her music, takes being called band geek as a compliment, plays the trumpet in band and has since 6th grade, is always on time when it comes to anything involving music(other than that~forget about it), and LOVES...I mean beyond LOVES the band MUSE(another obsession).
So here you go, Senior Portraits~ Ali Style AKA Rock*Star Style! You can see more on my Facebook page click here. Enjoy! XO~MJ
P.S...Those are the Toms that got her through Marching Band season and notice she added the rock*star belt peeking out from under her shirt..that's my Ali:)
If you have been reading my previous blog posts you know it has been hard to get my Senior Ali to myself during her busy Senior year. This past Halloween weekend I finally got to take her into my world and grab moments I as her mother will remember forever. We had so much fun driving all over town, music thumping while finding just the right spots. What's funny is I kept rushing her to get the pictures done before the leaves changed and I don't think we stopped once to take pictures in front of a tree....go figure! It may be in part because I had a vision before hand and none of that vision included trees. I was going with a Vintage, Indie feel to capture her. Sure she doesn't wear high heel boots in real life, she is more of a Converse/Toms wearing shoes kinda gal. But to keep it real we pulled clothes from her real wardrobe and just added some killer boots, a vintage chair and a vintage hat(which I am in LOVE with by the way.) I am a sucker for all things Vintage, ask anyone who knows me well. So here are a few shots from her Senior session. I will post others from the session where I let her take control. She changed into her Toms turned up the tunes and rocked out while I clicked away. These are fun ones and I will share in another post titled Senior Portraits II(Ali Style) XO~MJ
Halloween weekend has come and gone in the blink of a missing pirates eye;) It was such a busy weekend with the kiddos, I am not even sure if I fed myself?!? I barely got to take Halloween pics after rushing home from my daughter Ali's band Competition at the University, their last and HUGE one! They kicked some major butt! Getting the only standing ovation of the night out of 24 bands! Yeah sure the ENORMOUS bands took 1-3rd place but that was a given. How could you compare bands who have money and are supported by the school and have expensive props. What made this awesome is our school's band is self funded, makes their own props and is all ran by the awesome band parents and of course their amazing directors. They ranked #4 overall right after all the top dogs! This is the first time in history the school has ever pulled #4 in a competition this big, that's huge! So after an amazing band day/night(they literally last all day 1pm-9pm) me and 3 teen girls ran home dressed Mikayla and began our Halloween night! In such a hurry we didn't get to wear our costumes..ughhh! I guess we shall save them for next year;/ We ended the night watching Mikayla get chocolate wasted and watching scary movies.
Sunday the actual day of Halloween started off slow. House cleaning only to get dirty again! I swear I can never keep a clean house. I give up and give in...heeeellllp! I finally got my Senior Ali to myself for the day and we got out on the most beautiful Sunday and took her Senior Portraits! I have lots of editing to do. She has no idea how beautiful she is...seriously! I love my girls!
So Goodbye October..goodbye Halloween! We had fun while it lasted! Cheers to the memories as we now Welcome November 2010! XO~MJ
Here we are Halloween Weekend and the last weekend to celebrate October 2010. I know there will be lots of costumes,chocolate faces, maybe pumpkin carving if you already haven't(We chose to do it tonight because I was getting tired of the moldy dying pumpkins before Halloween even arrived.) So whatever it is you may be doing don't forget to take those pictures. Capture those memories of Halloween October 2010! Have a Happy and Safe Halloween!:)
1. Well it wouldn't feel like Halloween without Oingo Boingo! Well at least in my mind:) When I was 18 I attended an Oingo Boingo concert on Halloween and it was AWESOME! Costumes galore and it was the year Nightmare Before Christmas came out so it seemed to be the theme of the concert. So in the spirit of Halloween here is Dead Man's Party by Oingo Boingo:)
2. I have mentioned Creative Live before! If you have not checked them out you are definitely missing out. They offer FREE well creative classes/workshops for those creative minds. I have had the pleasure of taking a few classes and even though they are free they are worth a million bucks seriously. I wrote about the Jasmine Star(wedding photographer genius) workshop I took awhile back~AMAZING! Well they are offering another great photography weekend workshop coming up in November with Tamara Lackey an amazing very well known children's photographer. You don't want to miss out these are top notch classes and you can't pass up FREE! Also today starting in about 30 min they are having a Pumpkin Carving workshop hurry and check it out!
3. Speaking of workshops people I have been scouring the internet for the best of the best because I live in a small town and I cannot find any local ones. Do not be put off by the internet ones they can actually do more for you and reach a larger audience making the experience just as if not more amazing! Head over to Big Picture Classes they too are offering a November workshop you do not want to miss! Love it!
4. Some more freebies!! Head over to Simplicity Photography and show some love and download her free Christmas card template FOR FREE! It is beautiful, she is talented and Christmas is right around the corner..YIKES!!
5. Head over to You Capture part of I Should Be Folding Laundry blog written by Beth for her amazing Photo challenges/link ups to share your Halloween images this week. It's fun, you meet other like minded people who LOVE photography and you have a GREAT reason to put off the chores! Check it out!
So Cheers to another Fab 5 Friday, Cheers to another Halloween of 2010, Cheers to chocolate faces, trick or treats, goblins, ghosts...most importantly Cheers to picture taking! Preserve those memories~Capture those moments! XO~MJ
I woke up this morning and decided to organize and go through all the photographs I took just in October. Phew...I took quite a few! As we come to the end of October the month which I adore by the way, I thought I would share some photos I can't believe I over looked to share. Most are of random things I saw beauty in, some I saw Fall, some spooky but all in all I saw beauty in each and every one. Who knew right in my own backyard, here in town I could find Gold. Things most people pass by everyday and think, "ehhhh...that's old!" Well in my love for all things beautiful and old here are a few more to close out the month of October. I get one more weekend to photograph the month and I hear it's going to be a beauty! I have been dying to get my Senior Ali into the spot light but she has been too darn busy. Hoping this weekend I can steal her from her world and bring her into mine! I miss her..like A LOT! XO~MJ
What started out as a routine nightly check in to tell my girls good night and to make sure all electronic devices are put up(with the exception of anything that plays music but minus the texting or any socializing abilities) I walked in upon one of my baby girls. My baby girl who seems to thrive off of all things in the social networking world. But unlike any other night she was hunched over her IPOD in hand sitting on her knees with a look on her face that looked far from happy. My first reaction was to get angry because she knew better. It was way past her bedtime! But I digressed! I pushed the anger down and joked, "Did you think I wouldn't notice you were still awake?" Mama notices everything! Without saying one word she got up and gave me the longest biggest bear hug I have ever received from my now 14 year old. I hugged tighter, we rocked back and forth in silence in the moment. I wanted to panic! I NEEDED to know ASAP what was wrong with my baby girl. But I digressed once again. I played it cool not letting her in on the panic attack I was having on the inside. I told her I love her, stroked her long shiny black hair. I couldn't take the suspense! "Sweetie what's the matter?" I asked still hugging tight. "I miss my family!" I in a sincere response, "Well sweetie we are right here, we are right outside the door come join us!" I broke the tears into laughter...sighhh:) "No mom my family back in California. I miss all my cousins, my grandma, my dad." Of course I knew this is what she meant. But see sincerely I thought she was handling it well. I thought unlike me she was having the time of her life making new friends. I was so wrong! EVERYTHING IS NOT OKAY!
We walked out of her sleeping sister's room who was oblivious to the tears over the foot of her bed. It was 1am and I was about to shut my tired eyes before I came in to find her. But I felt the need to stay up with her...IT WAS A NEED! My baby girl needed me right now. "You wanna watch a movie?" I asked. "No I just wanna talk. I like just talking to you." she said. My heart melted. "Oh ok" I played it cool again but was totally jumping for joy on the inside, "MY TEEN DAUGHTER DOES LOVE ME!" I thought for sure I was hated through all those rolling of the eyes, the demands to clean, go to bed, GET OFF THE COMPUTER! I thought I was uncool and just mean mommy in her eyes. Come to find out~ She Loves Me! She loves talking to me...sighhh! My tired eyes instantly get a second wind and we did just that. We sat on the couch talking for 3 more hours! We talked about Home..sighhh. Funny times, sad times, friends,boys, and of course God. She had a lot of questions, but I knew this. Cassie has always been full of questions and curious about every little thing. We talked and talked. It felt good! I think..NO..I KNOW I NEEDED that just as much as her. As I was about to get up to call it a night she grabbed my pant leg the closest thing she could grab and kissed it. We both started laughing hysterically:) I reached down to give one more great big hug before hittin the pillow. "Mom, how could anyone not like you?" Sighhhh....I wanted to cry but instead I giggled with delight. My reply, "Well honey how could anyone not LOVE you?"
The clock struck 4am and our hurting,frustrated hearts were able to sleep in peace that night. We gave into the moment. We didn't let our sleepy eyes dictate the outcome. Had I went to sleep I would have missed out on an unforgettable night and my baby girl would have went to sleep crying instead of smiling. I love night's like these when Everything Can Be Made Okay with a hug, a talk, a kiss! Sighhhhhhhhh..... XO~MJ
Everybody see's life differently! THIS is how I see Life through my camera lens. My handy dandy camera and I will tell my life story. I Love Pink! Polka*Dots make my world go round! I Crave Sushi&Great Company(both at once is my delight)! Laughter is music to my ears! I have stayed true to Rocky Road ice cream since I was a lil girl. I could listen to the Acoustic Guitar 24/7~365 days a year! I Love breaking out in song out of the blue especially when I'm cooking! I'm Obsessed with anything Vintage! I Dance when everyone is looking~especially my kids. Most Importantly~ I LOVE MY FAMILY~They truly do complete me:)
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