The Real Candid Portrait Session!

During a recent portrait session, I had three cousins who wanted to have fun during their session...and I'm all about that! I photograph hundreds of people every year, and I always tell them that I want to capture them having fun and showing love to each other. I don't like people just standing there...with their hands by their sides! So these girls just made the session all about their fun with each other, and it was great!!

Santa Rosa Beach Photographer--Indiana Family

When Jennifer and her husband and son traveled to the Emerald Coast from Indiana for vacation in July, they knew they had found a gem on the beach! Destin and Santa Rosa Beach are known for their white sands and emerald green waters, and 30a in south Walton County is even a better kept secret. Their son, Sterling, is getting older now, so they know it is going to get more and more difficult to get together for vacations....there are jobs and college and girlfriends and wives to create more stumbling blocks for all family vacations. Their interactions were sweet and you could tell they have a special bond!
Thanks for the opportunity to photograph your time together!

A Surprise Beach Proposal

Tyler brought Meghan to the beach for her birthday. She had no idea what was in store for her while here! He told her he had set up a beach portrait session, but unbeknownst to her, he had called me ahead of time to let me in on the surprise he wanted to execute. I had some suggestions for him, since I had photographed surprise proposals in the past...and I have to say; I am about as nervous as the grooms!
She was sooooo surprised and so EXCITED, that I am glad I captured it on video for them!

Meghan & Tyler--A Surprise Proposal! http://vimeo.com/71177747 "Tyler called me about a month before he was bringing Meghan to Destin for her birthday. He let me know he wanted to pop the question, so he allowed me to help him plan "the deed" as a part of the photo session he told her he was giving her a part of her birthday. I suggested he use a shell I would provide, and wait until the end of the session. Meghan was totally surprised, as you can see in this film."

Congratulations you two.....and best of a future together for you!!

Jess and Ryan met at FSU and had an attraction for each other. But, alas, Ryan knew he had to be serious about classes and grades since he was med-school bound! Yet he realized he couldn't let this gem go, and they became engaged.
They both are in medical school, and have dreams of somehow using their skills in the mission field.

Congratulations you two, for a match made in Heaven!

Click on link below, or copy and paste the link.

https://vimeo.com/70087470

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.