What to wear....

It's a question I get asked ALL.THE.TIME. so I wanted to take some time to help you out!

I will be doing "What to wear" blog posts here and there and will label them so you can find them easily! My famous saying though... "when in doubt... go all out". Photo time is the time to showcase what you LOVE seeing your favorite people in, so if you have been eyeing it... do it! With that said though... sometimes, less is more! If you kid has something you dispise but he/she wears ALL.THE.TIME. that might just be the perfect outfit to showcase exactly who your child is... most importantly... have fun with whatever it is ;-)

how absolutely perfect would your little girl look in this? a bit of frill, a bit of glimmer, yet still subtle enough to let their personality glow.

Dave & Amber Maternity - Dewitt, Michigan Maternity Photographer

“joy seems to me a step beyond happiness.
happiness is a sort of atmosphere you can live in sometimes when you’re lucky.
joy is a light that fills you with hope and faith and love.”
-adela rogers st. johns

being a photographer is.....

finding moments in life worth capturing.

loving and embracing those moments just as the subjects do.

caring for and respecting those moments like they are your own, because just for a split second, they are.

having the knowledge and practice to know where to move, how to adjust your camera, consider the lighting, the subject, the emotion…

and snap the shutter at the exact. right. second.

thanking your subject for allowing you to catch a glimpse into their life, their soul, their love.

selecting the perfect images to proof. the ones that most perfectly portray the expirience.

proofing in a way that reflects the subject, the day… proofing in a way that you’re sure to not only make the viewer feel deep in their heart what it was like to be there,

but also in a way that makes the subject remember, deep in their soul what it was like to be.

looking back on images once taken and recognizing how you’ve grown, knowing that as an artist, though you may reach your “happy place”,

you will never truly finish growing.

remembering that the steps you take in your career are not steps of mistakes and imperfection, but rather building blocks that fit perfectly together

to create a windy stairwell of experience, emotion and love.

knowing that the first thousand steps are just as important as the very last.

being a photographer is really important.

trust me.

Bittersweet Milestones

"Miss Dah-leens" gift
I HAD to have a picture of his last day, but he gave me a big fat Nooooooo... If you know him, you know the sound and look of that "Nooooooo"!

It cracks me up that he still had "puffy eyes" this morning. Something he inherited from his grandpa Carpenter. It's like their upper eyelids swell while they sleep! lol

Another big milestone here at our house today. My little guy Carson has completed his first year of preschool. It wasn't too sad for mom, simply because I know he will go there again next year, but I couldn't help but think on my way to take him this morning how much he has grown... again... over the past 9 months.

This preschool year started off a little rough... I knew that it would be a huge adjustment for him, but he was excited to go. He cried for the first few months when I would drop him off, and then some things within the preschool changed... one teacher left and the director was left to pick up the pieces. "Miss Dah-leen" as Carson has called her until about a week ago when he decided he could say, "DARLENE"! I kinda hate that he's loosing the babyish sounds... but I know it's necessary... again bittersweet. Carson lets very few people into his little "circle of people" (seriously maybe 5 adults really "know" him), but Miss Dahleen was able to break through his walls and he just adores her. Once things got back to a new normal within the preschool, Carson began to absolutely thrive. He was excited to get there everyday, began talking with us about his friends there, and even started to sing songs to us that he was learning... UNHEARD of. Anything that draws attention to this kid, he wants nothing to do with, so you can imagine my surprise and sheer joy.

I have told her many times, but again... publically... "Miss Dah-leen" thank you so much for enabling the opportunity for my son to thrive in your preschool! We are so appreciative of everything and look forward to another great year next year @ Treasured Minds Montessori Preschool ;-)

Kristen and Jason Wells... MARRIED! Jackson, Michigan Wedding Photographer

Emma turns 6! - Adrian, Michigan Children's Photographer

Some kids (people for that matter) are just natural in front of the camera. When I say that, I mean this little gal can go from posing to just being absolutely her self in .01 seconds and that makes for some awesome shots! The first time I photographed Emma, I came back to edit the images and was BLOWN away with how beautifully she photographed. As usual... this session was NO different!

Six a wonderful age and an age that I really enjoy doing pictures for. They are still carefree and don't have that barrier of what to do/not to do in front of the camera. LOVE it!

Emma, I can't believe you are already SIX!!! Happy Birthday Sweets!

Wedding info

If you are an upcoming bride of mine, it won't surprise you to hear how much I adore the work of a Jasmine Star. She's an amazing photographer.... sooooo talented and I often look to her for inspiration. Everytime I see her interviewed I am always in awe how she is able to put into words the thoughts that I try to get across to my wedding couples. See, she just has this "way" with people and personally (outside of the technical part) I think that's why she has the most amazing photos of her clients. Now... let's be upfront... I am NO Jasmine Star... the girl is FABULOUS, but she's someone I really admire the way she runs her business and look up to for her style of photography.

She recently did a interview with The Knot on their webiste. It's a recorded one, so you can watch it anytime here.

A couple of things that really impacted me from her interview... She talks about having a relationship with your photographer... this is so important to me. If you know me, I really want to and NEED to be involved with my clients whose wedding I am photographing, prior to the BIG DAY! Establishing that relationship is key for good photos. It's really tough to show up on your wedding day having never met you and try to capture who you each are and your relationship... having this established prior is ideal! Not always possible with distances sometimes... but you would be surprised how much emails and phone calls can accomplish when we work together. One of my famous lines is, "I don't want to be a drive by photographer, where I show up, shoot your photos, and leave... no part of my heart invested other that pics... INSTEAD, I really DO want to hear about what you are planning, why you chose what you did, how you feel about your fiance', and how excited you are". Truly guys.... that is just as important as picking up my camera.

The other thing I thought was really important... consider natural light... If you hire me as your photographer, you are likely hiring me partially on some of the natural light images you have seen. Planning your day (ceremony times/photo times) around the ambient light is sooo important. Those natural light photos you love, are almost always planned by where the light is at, at that particular time of the day. If you are a bride and we get a mostly cloudy day for your wedding (and im not talking rain, thankyouverymuch ;-) ) you know you will have a very happy photographer. I love the clouds when they cooperate with us! Now if I could just figure out how to let God allow me to be in control of the clouds on wedding days, we would be all set! ;-)

Cheers all! Hope your weekend is going great!

Loved this Post .... wanted to share it with you.

if you love someone, hurry up and show it.
if you have family or friends to forgive, forgive them now.


if you have childhood memories worth savoring or childhood friends worth calling, call them now.
if your mother, father, sister or brother is/are still living, start a fresh new relationship with them now.


if someone already died before you could tell them what you wanted to tell them...go ahead and tell them now.
if there are children in your life, give them the positive experiences that you may have missed as a child--
and do it now.


if you have a dream that is calling you to the heights, follow it now.
there are only so many tomorrows...


if you have special talents, gifts, abilities or energies to give, give them now.
if there's a cause in your community worth standing for--or a battle worth fighting for--fight for it now.


if you can help make someone else's dream come true, help it come true now.
if there is some kindness you can show to the people around you, show it now.

~from the book, One

all photos from the TML flickr pool

Baby belly! - Brooklyn, MI - Maternity Photographer

I have decided that maternity photos are really some of my favorites to do. I think it's a combination of the anticipation of a joyful event that is coming soon, a chance to meet excited families, and the bittersweet part of the whole thing. It's like you know it's almost over and you can NEVER go back to this moment to capture this precious time.

I fell in love with this sweet family almost instantly, but really got a chance to bond with them once we were able to concentrate on mom. As you can imagine, it's craziness with 2 siblings! You can only ask them so many times to touch mom's belly and be excited about that about 3 times and they are over it ;-) I can't wait though to watch them once baby Charlotte makes her appearance!

Thank you guys for a wonderful session! Looking forward to meeting your sweet baby girl!

Jason & Kristen Wells - Jackson, MI Wedding Photographer

Just one quick sneak peek. More to come within the next few days! This one makes me smile :-)

display ideas

Recently, I have had several clients asking about our gallery wrapped canvas prints. I cannot tell you how wonderful each of these canvas' are. They are the most amazing conversation piece, and look so unique in so many different locations.

This is one of my favorite displays! Check it out! Something to consider ;-) These are all sized as 11x14 prints.

I heart faces - "Celebrating Mom" Photo Challenge

Last weekend was Mother's Day, and I kept meaning to get a post up celebrating Mother's and well... it just never happened. It's the thought that counts right?! errr sorta.

Anyway... I figured what better way to make up for my lack of mother's day post! This photo is an oldie, but goodie. I love the way this mother is snuggled into her little guy. It's like you can almost feel the love she has for him.

Be sure to head on over to I Heart Faces to see all the other awesome entries!

Mara - Jackson, MI Children's Photographer