Freed.

Lately I have been in a rut. Almost more than any other season, I love winter. I love the calm serene feeling I get during a snowstorm, the beautiful blanket of white that can hide almost anything, the quiet, the solitude we see in our area this time of year, and the magic of how the world around me can look completely different from one minute to the next. This winter however, I have become completely reclusive. I am not much of an outgoing person unless I have my camera to hide behind, but even that didn't bring me out a great deal. Last week I had a gentle warm reminder that winter (a season so near and dear to me) is almost over and I have done so little to enjoy it. No snowshoeing, no sledding, no little adventures, nothing. This rut has been not only creative, but also internal and personal. Today a dear friend stole my daughter away for an overnight visit with her daughter now that all of us are finally over all the colds we were sharing. After sitting around trying to figure out what I would do with all this time to myself (my husband worked some OT and is currently down at the CHAD Battle of the Badges hockey game with his father), I grabbed my bag and a Twix egg (why did they not think of those sooner? They are FANTASTIC) and ran out the door. I have a lot of trouble leaving my house unless it involves caffeine so I stopped real quick for a coffee and headed to one of my favorite portrait locations to see if I could dig up some inspiration. As soon as I arrived I was a little discouraged by the never ending layer of ice that covered the entire area. I was able to safely grab a few shots that I liked enough, but decided it just wasn't worth risking the safety of me or my gear and headed home. Feeling a little down still I warmed up for a minute and polished off the rest of the Twix eggs (which, I am paying for dearly now...... I had three left and they are not a light snack). Determined to get over myself, I headed out the back door and down to the brook. Craziness happened and the last photo I snapped has to be one of my absolute favorite nature shots I have ever taken. EVER. Feeling so much better..... The following are the shots back at home taken with a variety of lenses (50mm 1.4, 85mm 1.4, and lensbaby composer pro with edge 80 optic). These two here were done with the lensbaby..... tricky at first, but here and there I am getting it. The one on the left is my absolute favorite from today (and from the past several years...). I don't put much work on my walls, unless they are portraits of Emma or Aaron, but this is going up (and it will be the first canvas I order for myself, ever). I was worried since these were handheld shots at crazy low shutter speeds (as far as handheld shots go anyway....), but I squeezed that camera to my face so hard I'm pretty sure I have a rectangular imprint in my face.

Amanda and Greg: Engaged | Ashland, NH Photographer

Many fellow photographers can sympathize with gear envy. We've all had it at one point or another, even if we try our hardest not to (and not to admit it). It stinks, it brings you down. Especially after you have rented some kick ass gear. A couple weeks back I rented the D800 (FANTASTIC, it did everything I told it to and the images were exactly as I intended them to be). It was hard not to cry when I had to send it back and return to life with my now dull crop sensor consumer level camera with only one lens that I really love that is really designed for full frame cameras. After a good chunk of time spent pouting and feeling sorry for myself and my sad little two-piece (well, to be fair, I do own more than one lens, I just don't really care for the others much) show I finally pulled myself together and got ready for my next session. And I rocked it. And rocked my gear. I shot this entire session with my consumer level crop sensor camera and a 50mm lens. It was nothing short of amazing and beautiful and it is one of my favorite sessions yet.  

Now about this fantastic couple..... 

 Amanda and Greg are recently engaged. They came to me through a myriad of mutual friends and clients (thank you guys, you all know who you are!). Though we've met before in passing at parties here and there, we have never really spent any time together. I had a great time getting to know the both of them. Greg is a firefighter and Amanda is very close to being a nurse (so close, like, less than a year!) so they already have a special place in my heart. I obviously appreciate those in the fire service and especially those who stand by them. And of course, I have a profound respect and admiration for those in the medical field. They are both super easy to get along with and be around and I had so much fun photographing them. I really hope that our paths cross again soon and that this time, we actually get to spend some time hanging out. 

 Many congratulations to Amanda and Greg on their engagement!

 

Flowers to make it through the rest of the week....

Oh it is Wednesday. For many that means the halfway point in the work week. That just so happens to be the case for me this week. It doesn't happen often, but it sure is exciting! Although, I have a wedding to shoot this weekend, but who doesn't love that? It can't possibly count as the kind of work that I am just dying to get past me for the week..... it isn't a walk in the park, but it is a lot more exciting and fun than the regular old grind. 

Anyway, I ventured outside for a bit because after being cooped up all weekend and part of last week with the worst "cold" I have had in years, I really needed to check out a few things I only saw through the windows. Enjoy the rest of your week!

And of course...... the white lilacs. Another favorite of mine...... :)

 

How I Spent Mothers' Day

Around here we don't do a lot for days like today. Little holidays in between the typical holidays for mass gatherings. We don't celebrate Valentines Day (we do a little something for Emma, because it is fun when you are a little, but pointless as an adult), we don't do a lot for birthdays, and while my husband is the king of cards, I'd much rather phone calls instead. On days like today I like to get away from the ordinary and keep the television turned off. Since my husband is working today I decided I would drag Emma along on a few outings (she would have much more preferred to be left to her own accord with her ipod or wii). Instead of the usual day of work and games inside the house we headed outside for some adventures with my camera and her ipod (I gave the camera Emma used to use to a friend a while back who was in great need of taking photos for her booming business). At first she wasn't terribly interested, but eventually loosened up and started getting right into it. She used to love to do this with me when we would go hiking (pre-everything that prevents us from getting out there these days). After our little adventure we had a quick lunch and were off again. Not too much later we returned with plants, seeds, soil, and dinner. We got to planting right away, cleaned up a bit, and enjoyed a nice dinner on the deck in front of our happy little greens. Mothers' Day success.

NH Photographers Blog Circle | "Mothers' Day"

Happy Mothers' Day moms, grandmoms, aunts, friends, and anyone who fits into any sort of "mom" role (single dads, if you are playing both roles this means you too!).

This month's blog party is appropriately themed "Mothers' Day". I struggled with this one (believe it or not). I did not even want to attempt to do mother/daughter photos of my daughter and myself. Getting one of us to look normal (no deer-in-the-headlights looks or scowling faces) is a challenge. Getting two of us in the same photo, at the same time, looking normal: mission impossible. So is parenting though. It is the easiest and most challenging thing in the world to do. I see mother's out there that magically fit into that role and have since the day the were born. They were MEANT to be moms. I see so many mothers out there carry themselves with grace and seem to get everything right. I am NOT one of those mothers. Oh how I wish I were. I make mistakes. I don't know how to do this. I have days where I feel all of my energy is maxed out and that I might be failing miserably as a parent. I have been given those looks in stores when Emma was young and would cry or throw fits and I had to simply let it ride out and essentially ignore her while I raced to finish up whatever shopping I could before someone called some sort of authority on us. It isn't all a trip downhill with no breaks however. Sometimes, I feel like I have gotten through. Like Emma has HEARD me. Or I have heard her. For instance, after her birthday celebration, she came to say goodnight to me and gave me a big heartfelt hug as she said "Mom, I have something to say to you; Thank you for making my birthday so special to me. I had such a wonderful time with just you and Dad having a picnic, shopping, eating cupcakes, and driving around". It meant so much to me that something so simple could make her feel so good. I have to be doing at least a little something right here. And so, I continue believing, that somehow, I am not a complete failure and I might just be better at this mom thing than I think.

This afternoon I managed to capture the (almost) impossible capture. Topped only by a few fantastic photos that Meg Hamilton of Rodeo and Co. Photography took at my wedding of Emma and I that I just adore to pieces (I think you know the ones Meg!). Here they are, and it surprisingly did not take us nearly as long (I suppose because I wanted it to be over even more than she did!).

Happy Mothers' Day! Be sure to head on over to Erika Follansbee's blog to see what she came up with! Thanks for visiting!

My Mom

Cannot believe she let me do this. I recall countless photos of my mother scowling or covering her face (and everyone wonders where I get it from.....). I love that I was able to take some nice photos of my mother. My parents are both very important to me (so Dad, if you are reading this, you are next). It means a lot that I can have some nice recent photos of them to put up in our house (whenever we decide to take the plunge and buy one that is....). I should just tape one over the caller ID display on my phone though...... ;)

Anyway, I thought I would share my two favorites with all of you so you could meet the wonderful lady who is my mother, friend, babysitter, crisis call center, and keeper of the washing machine. I just can't say enough good things about her....

Senior Portraits Class of 2012

This fall I spent a lot of time building my portfolio and trying new things. An opportunity came across my plate to shoot some senior portraits and I was eager to take it. Having little time to get them in and having spent the summer doing no research on seniors, I was a bit nervous, but knew I had to make it work.

With the short time frame we headed down to the Ashland town beach and were lucky enough to have the weather cooperate. Kay was so easy to work. I can't thank her and her mother enough for this wonderful opportunity!



Through the fence.....


Love this one, she's just so pretty....

A few on the bridge...