When Meghan met Tyler at a mutual friend's party two years ago, she was not interested at all!

She had just gotten out of a relationship a couple of months earlier, and was in no mood to get into a new one.  Besides that, she thought he was a nerd!

Fast forward and Tyler called me a couple of weeks ago to book a beach portrait session for their trip to  Sandestin. He planned to propose to Meghan while they were in town, and looked to me for some suggestions. 

We decided that he would put the ring in a shell that I would bring to the beach as a "prop" and would do the actual proposal close to sunset, after we had already taken some other pictures.

The proposal went just as planned, and Meghan was totally caught off guard! In fact, Tyler said he had a speech prepared, but she was so surprised and kept walking away from him, so he didn't get to say what he had planned!

This Birmingham couple got engaged on 30a, and will never forget their time on the Emerald Coast!

A Rainy Day Recharge

Things get so busy this time of year...I get to take somewhat of a break in the winter months, and then it's full speed ahead once spring kicks off! There are family portrait sessions at the beach and other environmental locations, high school senior sessions, maternity and newborn shoots, engagement sessions and proposal surprises! 
And added to all that this fall is video/cinema production that I added to my business.  That company I named 30a Films, since I live in the south Walton 30a area, although we do travel for on-location commissions. 30a Films (www.30afilms.com) produces weddings, community events and promo films for websites. We are proud to be currently working with Garden of Life to film some of their sponsored athletes with their inspirational stories of the results they see in their performances and overall health using the USDA organic products,  "offering some of the most effective nutritional products in the world," according to their website.
Today is a much needed rainy day at the beach, giving me time to recharge my batteries...Between editing images and videos/films, I can get pretty much overloaded! We all need a break sometimes, and this day is mine.

Have a great week ahead!

A Video Production

As I stated a few months ago, I am expanding my business to producing films/video for business promo films for websites, weddings and instructional videos for corporations.  My background is in television and newspapers, as a reporter/videographer/photographer, and I have known for the past 10 years that I was going to get back into video.
This weekend I have the opportunity to film some videos for Garden of Life--a sponsor of YOLO board athletes. Garden of Life is the #1 whole foods supplement company company in the industry. Go check them out and look for their products in your local health food stores.  We use them in our household...Raw Protein, Raw Fit, Raw Meal, etc.

What should I wear for my beach portraits?

This time of year I'm getting a lot of calls from clients who are planning their vacations to the Emerald Coast and wanting to book their photography sessions at the beach.
Most all of my clients want to know what to wear for their beach portraits, as many have said online that they should wear all white. Well, I don't agree at all.  A lot of people have their minds set on wanting to wear white: the men in white shirts, and the women in white dresses.
If clients ask me ahead of time; before they get to the beach, I always recommend that they wear color.
It looks so good against the white sand. I feel that white shirts and dresses blend in with the white sand.
However, know that whatever you have decided in your mind to wear, please do wear what you want!
I am showing a number of families and what they wore in their sessions, so you can have a choice to see what you may like!
xoxoxoxo,

Melanie