I feel no shame in admitting it: I envy the ability of West Coast photographers to create sun-filled, dreamy images of 70-degree weddings and family sessions during what for us is the obnoxiously frigid dead of winter. It’s not that I don’t appreciate the winter light on the East Coast — it is gorgeous and unparalleled — I just find it hard to forget that in order to capture it, we come dangerously close to freezing off our extremities, every time.
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say ‘cheese!’
Admit it: your child is more adept at operating your many digital devices than you are. It’s okay, really: if you look around you any day of the week, you’ll know you’re not alone. The way children absorb information is uncanny, and their ability to understand the role of technology in their little bitty lives is nothing short of astounding. So, I guess I shouldn’t have been terribly surprised when 20-month-old Oliver took one look at my fancy camera gear the morning of our session and knowingly chimed out, “cheeeeeeese!” (He then promptly darted away.)
forgotten apples
Some days, life serves you an extra helping of happy. Such was the case on this hazy fall afternoon, which brought with it the perfect recipe of close friends, ethereal light, a rustic apple orchard, and (more than my fair share of) apple cider donuts.
I slung my camera over my shoulder that morning thinking it might be a nice opportunity to shoot a bit for myself. Just one lens; nothing fancy. But much to my delight, in between the forgotten apples and the savory donuts, a little love session emerged. Tanaz and Carlo live in South Sudan and Italy, respectively, so I don’t have the good fortune of seeing them very often — nor do they see each other as much as they’d like. So when I saw how the light danced around them that day (and through Tanaz’s gorgeous curls), I was relieved I didn’t leave my camera at home.
a swoon-worthy Middleburg wedding
This wedding…oh my. I was at a loss for words then, and I’m at a loss for words now. A sweeping farmland venue engulfed in mist. A STUNNING couple with downright fabulous friends and family. A custom made Vera Wang gown. Need I go on? Let’s just say from a photographic standpoint, every detail was executed to near perfection.
I don’t always blog about weddings for which I serve as a second shooter — in this case, for the lovely Kate Haus Photography — but this affair is just so dreamy that I can’t resist sharing. It wouldn’t be fair of me to keep all of this gorgeous to myself, after all.
keeping perspective
On some days, it’s difficult to feel the magic in owning my own business. Take today, for example. I’m surrounded by forms and paperwork, wading through the sludge of DC tax code to determine whether or not photography services — not products, like albums and prints — are taxable in the District. I spent 45 minutes waiting on hold for the Office of Tax and Revenue, only to learn I’m to report my tax collection monthly, not quarterly. And no matter how many accountants I speak to, no one can give me a straight answer about anything tax related because it’s just not straight forward.
