This blog has been such a long time coming. I have been wanting to formally introduce our dog, Pony, for a while now. I'm kind of glad I waited, though, because over the past 7 months we have gotten to know all of his goofy quirks and build up a semi-obsessive photo collection of him.  We adopted Pony (formally known as Indie) from a wonderful organization called PapAdopters. Our journey to puppy-hood was not easy, because we fell in love with a dog on the opposite side of the country. Shawn and I had always said "we'll get a dog when we have a house", but that never stopped us from Internet window shopping different local rescue sites, or making lists of what the perfect dog would be. While Internet looking, I came across Indie's photo. Something inside me just knew, and as soon as I showed Shawn, he knew as well: this was our dog. Reading what he had been through was heart-breaking. Indie was a 2 year old Papillon mix from California. The organizers at PapAdopters told us that they believe he was in a hoarding situation with almost 200 other dogs. He was malnourished, dirty, and his tail was stained yellow from having to sit in his own mess. Our hearts broke for him and I cried after hearing all that had happened to him since no animal should suffer through that. We carefully filled out the application, and heard back the next day...

Taking it back to Charleston! Last month I posted about my adventures in South Carolina for the Creative at Heart Conference. It was an amazing time learning more about running my business and how to appeal to new friends (and spoil the friends I already have ;P). What wasn't seen in that blog, though, was that fellow photo-friend, Marlayna (www.marlaynaphotography.com), and I had a little portrait session around this AH-mazing city! Charleston has so much to offer in terms of backdrops and perfect lighting. We spent about 30 minutes getting knocked around by the wind just so we could photograph the sun peeking through the trees. A truer #photographerproblems has never been spoken until just now, haha. The level of fun that we had while practicing our "posing" was hysterical. We both have plenty of goofball photos of each other to last a lifetime. I'm so happy to have spent a great day in a beautiful city that offered so much to us as photographers. It was even better that I got to spend it with a wonderful friend who is just as obsessed with buildings, trees, and sunlight as I am, haha! :D   ______________________________________________________________________________ Lols SUNNY TREE! ...

When Shawn and I first met with Ali and Matt for their summer engagement session, we had a feeling that their wedding was going to be absolutely fabulous. Little did we know that not only was the day going to be beautiful, but that it was going to be filled with so much warmth and love from everyone involved. Ali and Matt were married on a gorgeous fall day at the St. Martin's in-the-Field Episcopal Church, a stunning location in Severna Park that was surrounded by orange and yellow leaf trees. Their family and friends all cheered when they shared their first kiss and gave high fives to the newlyweds as they recessed. The reception at Chartwell Country Club was glowing with flickering candles that created such a beautiful atmosphere. One of the most touching moments during the entire night was Matt's brother's speech; just thinking back to has me tearing up. We all take so much for granted, but not these families. They cherish their time with one another, and it absolutely shows with the amount of care that they have for one another. Shawn and I are so happy that we got to photograph this special day for these two incredible people. Ali and Matt are just amazing and I look forward to seeing where life takes them!   ______________________________________________________________________________ A little Blue Steel to finish off the portraits :P All of the amazing vendors that made this day the best day ever! Ceremony Venue: St. Martin's...

On Friday, Shawn and I photographed Melissa and Joe's "Christmas in July" wedding at The Mansion at Valley Country Club. It may have been a hot July day outside, but as soon as we stepped into the mansion it was a cool December evening. Melissa and Joe's guests were blown away at the attention to detail and many mentioned that all that was missing was snow. One of my absolute favorite details from their wedding was their guest book: their amazing florist (Raise Your Glass Event) set up a full Christmas tree in the foyer outside the ballroom with some red and white Christmas bulbs, markers, and hooks set up along side it. Guests were instructed to take a bulb, write their well wishes for the happy couple on it, and then hang it on the Christmas tree. By the end of the night, all that was needed were Christmas gifts for Melissa and Joe's daughter, Eleanora, to open :P. I am absolutely ecstatic to be sharing some of the wonderful images from their day. It is a wedding that Shawn and I will both remember for a lifetime. Thank you to Joe, Melissa, and Eleanora for allowing us to capture your beautiful day!   ______________________________________________________________________________ Melissa's mother made the cake and the delicious smell filled the entire mansion! So good! After their first dance, Joe and Melissa brought their daughter out to the dance floor :) A nice sweet cake cutting and then.... A second round of...

On Sunday, Shawn and I traveled to the Shoemaker Homestead in Taneytown, Maryland for Samantha and John's wonderfully rustic engagement session! It was quite possibly the hottest day of the summer thus far, but that didn't stop these love birds from wrapping each other in sweet hugs. I was able to get glimpse of what their wedding day will be like since Shoemaker Homestead is where these two will be exchanging vows and dancing into the night. It is a breathtakingly gorgeous location and Laura, the owner, is as sweet as can be. I cannot imagine a more perfect place for Samantha and John to be married! Samantha and John both attended York College in Pennsylvania where they actually were neighbors for a bit. However, it wasn't until they ran into each other in Baltimore that they started talking and eventually dating. Being so close to one another, but never even realizing it until your paths cross in some fateful way, is really an amazing thing. I adore when love stories begin before either person even realizes it!   ...

The morning of Hannah and Terry's engagement session was absolutely gorgeous. The sun covered the entire venue in a beautiful gold, which made every corner of Emory Grove breathtaking! The greatest part was that Emory Grove is where Hannah and Terry are going to be having their wedding. It was such a special morning and seeing these two in their wedding element just made me even more excited for their big day. I'm fairly certain that I hit a new record in awwing, which I'm sure everyone will be doing when they get a glimpse of Hannah and Terry's adorableness. These two are just too cute, and I adore the way they both look at each other. Their moments together during the session were so sweet and genuine that I was constantly doing internal happy dances, haha! I cannot wait for their September wedding! :D   ...

Two weekends ago my best friend, Christy, got married to the love of her life, Nate. I was in the bridal party of this beautiful wedding, and what a change it is from photographing weddings to participating! I actually got to dance! Every wedding I photograph I'm always silently singing along to the music, or tapping my foot, or even doing a light variation of the Night at the Roxbury head bob. I always keep it 100% professional, though :P. But at my best friend's wedding, Shawn and I completely put our dance training to good use and it was a blast! When the weekend was over I was sad about leaving, and even now I'm tearing up a little reliving all of the great moments I had with Christy, Nate, and their family. They now all live in North Carolina and I just need for teleportation to be a thing. Enough sappy stuff. Shawn and I ended up staying an extra day in the South and I just cannot believe how breathtaking it was. We strolled around the wedding site, which was at this great spot called Oldfield River Club and really enjoyed the change of scenery. I now want more than ever to photograph a wedding down in South Carolina or Georgia because those trees are on a totally different level. We went over to the Hilton Head area and determined that it will be our next vacation spot :P. Ate lunch next to the water, played some...

This Christmas was pretty cool. I received a lot of great camera stuff from my mom and step-dad and even got a Kinect from them too! What was more fun than the things I got was the fact that the previous night I had spent the whole day with parents and, since I usually stay next door at my grandma's house, I spent the night in my old room. It was a lot of fun getting to wake up on Christmas, go into my parent's room, and bug them at 7:30am, instead of having to call them, and then walk over, and blah blah blah boring stuff! Unfortunately, my mom wouldn't wake up, so I had to sit for 30 minutes with my dog, Thor, by the Christmas tree. I started thinking how his health and spunk haven't been what they use to be and that he's already 10 years old. I decided right there that I would show how Thor's Christmas went, it was a fun little project for the morning and helped past the time while my mom and step-dad slept (but seriously? Who sleeps on Christmas?).   Thor waiting patiently (much better than me) FINALLY! Mom woke up! Ready for presentssssssss   Hahaha   Wasting nooo time (he also stole a lot of his Busy Bones behind our backs)   After chowing on his treats, it was time for breakfast. But Thor's begging got him kicked out of the kitchen :P Thanking Mom for his...