Another Gratitude post

1.   A nice fluffy white snow.

2.  Having a perfect photo shoot with a 10 week old.

3.  Calibrating my monitor and no changes required.

4.  A good work out with an awesome personal trainer.

5.  Good health and the ability to participate in all the above activities.

Janet- Thank you for the personal training session today. You were wonderful. I was amazed at your knowledge. You knew the minute I started to lose my form, you caught me not activating my core every time I tried to skimp ; ) and you were able to give me just the right encouragement to straighten up, refocus and carry on. I was really impressed and see you going a long way. I wish you all the luck and look forward to our next meeting. 

Thank You to Jo and Baby B for an awesome photo shoot this afternoon.  You may recall, I randomly bopped into their place with my camera and did some photos of Baby B about 9 weeks ago.  Baby B and mommy and daddy weren't quite ready for me so we scheduled an official shoot and it went wonderfully. I am so excited to share some of the photos with you all.  B was so happy and smilie.  All I had to do was call her beautiful and she just lit up.    I later learned that Daddy sings to her James Blunts "Your Beautiful": ). Oh she was just the sweetest.  

Gratitude

Daily Gratitude:

1. I am grateful for "word of mouth" connections

2. I am grateful for the wide support and backing I have, and continue to experience during my photography adventures.

3. I am grateful for a restful 4 day weekend

4. I am grateful for good humor

5. I am grateful for a mothers love

Its hard to believe that this long weekend is coming to a close. Tomorrow is filled with homework, photos,  and Janet kicking my butt into shape at the gym.  I have two weddings in the post processing stage, I will get some of those images posted in the next week or two.   Hardcopy Portfolio is also in the works, very excited to see the outcome.  

Gratitude

My sister and I are starting an early new years resolution. Each evening we are going to review our day and list 5 things that we are grateful for.   Its a way for us to reflect on the positive things in our lives.  

1.  I am grateful that I got to sleep in today.

2. I am grateful that my first time making homemade chicken noodle soup went well. It was TAASTY.

3. I am grateful that my boyfriend is beginning to feel better after being sick all day.

4. I am grateful that I was able to be there for him today.

5. I am grateful that today was such a beautiful, sunny day.

It's nice to just take a few moments to smile and remember the good parts of the day : )  I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!

I will leave you with a very personal look into my soul.  Here is an image of my soul portrait from a few weeks ago. The artist is a Lake City local Lisa Owen.

Squish Face

I know I am probably a bad mommy because Mickers hasnt gotten his hair cut in awhile but i thinks its so cute!!!! Here he is this morning, he isnt very squish face here but i never have a camera at hand when he is ultra squish face.

Sarah, that last one is for you : )

Oops!

So I was rearended yesterday, that was quite exciting. Not bad and no injuries! The lady behind me was rearended, she then hit me causing me to hit the car in front of me. Its amazing how fast that can happen. Luckily i was near the front so all my car suffered was two small dents i think from her license, and the guy in front of me had no damage. Yay for bumpers!!

Its been awhile

I have been feeling all out of sorts lately. Not sure why, I think the thrill of my new school is gone and the pressure and lack of time is starting to get to me. I really want to take the dive head first into photography and quit the job I have but I know that its to soon for that. I just truly enjoy my photography and school takes up so much time, of all the things I have going on the job is the one I want to go. Ugh... But I cant. So here I am forcing myself to work through each day.

I had a soul portrait done this weekend which was an amazing experience. A psychic reading along with the portrait. I will take a photo of the portrait and post it when I have alittle more time. E said that it was more of a Soul Therapy session then a psychic reading, she was totally spot on! I left feeling rejuvinated and confident in the pathes I have chosen, though made me want to do the above even more. It was a very intimate experience, different then I had thought but definately worth it and I will see her again.

I also shot a wedding with Tony a couple weekends ago. I believe the photos are close to being delivered so I will post up a few of my favorites from the event when I can. I learned alot at this wedding, it was my first time shooting in a church. The lighting is lacking in a church and this one had large windows which gave quite the mixture of lights. And no flashes during the ceremony so that was the largest challenge. Then the father did not want the photographers to be more then half way down the aisle so zoom lens to the rescue for all the ceremony shots. It turned out not to be much of a problem though, the church had some nice angled aisle ways to get good shots regardless of distance.

As we were going through the photos Tony was asking me if I ever thought about Childrens photography, apparently I went alittle overboard with the cute little kids. But hey, my shots were great and I just couldnt help myself. There was this cute little flower girl who kept doing a popeye impression and then these adorable twin boys in their little tuxes. You will see when I post my photos : ). But yes, I am working on getting some experience in childrens photography as well, kids are definately a fun thing to photograph! I still need to set up my next shoot with Berit before she out grows the shots I want to do.

Well thats my rant for today, i will post pics soon

Testing

Testing 1! 2 3

hmmm.

I uploaded an app to my I phone which was supposed to make mobile blogging available. Ummm. I mobile blogged, anyone else not seeing it?? Guess I will have to try another one. So its officially a MN winter.

Winter is Mckinleys favorite time of the year. He had a hay day on our walk this morning : ) I didnt have my phone with so i'll post this photo.

I have another shoot set up with Baby Berit now that her jaundice has gone away, I am excited to try some of the really cute baby shots like the baby on the arm and tucked up in a basket and that type of cutesy stuff. I cant wait. I hope everyone had a good commute into work this morning

Reflections

I have been going through some of my old blog posts and I find myself amazed at how different my life is today, then it was at this same time last year. Last year I had what felt like all the time in the world. My blog was appropriately described as "My adventures as an up and coming mountain biker" Andy and I were meeting tons of new people in the mountain biking community, biking everywhere and during every second we could. We had both just finished up a successful MNSCS season and were sad we wouldnt see our new friends for half a year but thrilled with the up and coming winter mountain biking and snowshoeing season.



This year... now, I am satisfied with another great MNSCS season. However, this year I was the photographer for the series rather then a kick as* Citizen racer. Yeah thats right, I rocked the citizen class, bee otches!



There's this cute little joke for all the religious folk out there, yeah I know Im not religious but i beileve in fate and spirituality and all that jazz, but thats a whole nother blog post so here it is:



How do you make god laugh? .....



Ready.....



Here it comes.....



You make a plan!



My plan was to train all winter and race my butt off, literally, over the summer in the MNSCS sport class. Andy and I sat down and put our winter training schedules together and we were all set. Well winter came, I started school and my training went right out the window. I had just signed up for the peace coffee racing team again and had decided to hang my head low and rock the citizen class again, when I got an email from Jeff with the MNSCS. He had gotten my name from someone and was wondering if I would be willing to be part of the series. Possibly write some articles for the website and of course take photos of the riders. Photography was my fav past time. I was loving running out into the field to capture photos of the riders after I was done with my race. I discussed it with Andy and since my training fell through I decided to give it a go.



All summer I spent approx every other sunday out in the woods with Mckinley. We ran around and shot photos of the racers. It was much more challenging this year, I had all new gear that I was learning and I was trying really hard to do new and different things then I had done the previous year.



All and all I can see a great improvement from the beginning of the year to the end, and looking at last years picture. OMG! I have heard from many racers that they love looking at the photos so I have acheived my goal and I look forward to growing with the racers again next season.



Being the Official photographer of the series and a MORC member put me in touch with some other photographers in the area. I got to know a few of them pretty well and have shot with them a few times.. During a conversation with one of them, I say, "I dont want to shoot weddings, too much pressure, I like just hanging in the woods capturing the mountain bikers" I get the reply, "Yeah, why would you want to shoot weddings, its only the happiest day of these peoples lives, everyones happy, having a great time, and they look beautiful." K enough said!! I start seriously thinking about weddings, my photography, and where its going to go from here. Good deal my cousin is getting married in a few weeks. I give her a call, "Hey do you have a photographer" K, "Not really, we have a friend who is going to be doing our photos" Do you mind if I bring out my camera and shoot your wedding, hey, how about I come out early to get shots of you getting ready" And history was made!!! Thanks K & J!! I had soooo much fun shooting this wedding and honestly I was absoluetly astonished at how well my photos looked for being a first timer.



I owe a ton to Tony, hes helped me fine tune and tweak some things that I needed some help with and has just been there for guidance when I need it. He has been so open to letting me come along and shoot with him when he has gigs or weddings, I have gained a ton of experience and knowledge from him. So Tony, Thanks Man!!!!!



I cant help but feel like this post is leading into a really bad acceptance speech or something. Awards, Hmmm...... Best slacker?



So anywho, this is getting to be quite the story so all in all. I now have 3 weddings under my belt, 5 on the books for next year. I have shot families and a new born, engagement sessions, and more to come. So my blog description has been rightfully changed to "My adventures as an up and coming photographer". Dont be afraid to walk the new path life lays down for you because it just may be the best experience you've had so far!! I havent been on my bike in a few months because of school and photography but luckily I have a large expanse of mountain biking friends who are not letting me forget it. Things may have changed tremendously but I am very happy with where they have come and I look forward to the many adventures that lie ahead. I have a couple rides scheduled in the next few weeks! Woot, so quit reading this dang blog and get out and ride!!!!



Oh yeah, I posted this last year around this time and I thought it is extra appropriate in my life right now because free time has become all to obsolete. enjoy



Life
Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry go round or listened to the rain lapping on the ground?

Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight or gazed at the sun into the fading night?

Do you run through each day on the fly?

When you ask "How are you?" Do you hear the reply?

When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next hundred chores running through your head?

Ever told your child, "We'll do it tomorrow." And in your haste, not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch? Let a good friendship die? Just call to say "Hi?

When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift....Thrown away. ... Life is not a race. Take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over.

More photos

I had wanted to share a few photos from a family shoot and a new born shoot but hadnt had the chance, so here are a few of my favs from those days. I'll tell you, I learned that its quite hard to get three kids to all smile at the same time for very long : )

This sweet little Baby's name is Berit. She was approx 1 week old here and had developed a bad case of jaundice so we fixed that with some black and white images : ) I was only supposed to be taking pictures of the baby but you know how that goes, cute things just need to be photographed.