Michael - class of 2009

Michael was originally going to graduate in 2010, but he completed his requirements early, and decided to join the class of 2009. Congratulations, Michael!

His family are wonderful clients of mine - I've also photographed his sister Natalie for her graduation portraits (class of 2008? 2007? I'm getting old...) and we enjoyed a wonderful, whimsical family portrait session.
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Talisa - Class of 2009!

I don't want to slight my class of 2009 clients! Talisa came into my studio a couple of weeks ago. We had a lot of fun together - and I love her family!

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And the beat goes on....

The interest in modeling this year has been stellar! As most of you know, I only accept 50 high school students a year for senior portraiture. At this rate, my models will take most of those spots! (Just kidding - there's plenty of spaces left. Well, not PLENTY, but if you call early, you shouldn't have a problem.) Here are two more of my fabulous models, Ashlyn & Allie!

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Class of 2010!

Oh, my gosh. We've just started our model shoots for class of 2010, and if Sarah & Madison are any indication, it's going to be FABULOUS! Check out more pics on my Facebook & MySpace pages, but here are just a couple of my favs:

Ants

I love in a section of town affectionately dubbed by the exterminators as "Ant Hill". It's a pretty upscale neighborhood (I live in one of the smallest homes in the area, BTW) so you wouldn't expect critters here. But ants are no respecter of property - especially not mine.

They're back. After a winter of ant-free bliss, they have arrived in full force. The first couple of years that I lived in this neighborhood, I tried to avoid pesticides. I'm sort of a natural greenie, you see. I was an 'organic gardener' before it was trendy. (Yep, clear back then.) It just never occurred to me to put chemicals on the food I was going to eat. But the ants took over - EVERYTHING.

Now when it comes to ants, I stock up from the chemical store shelves - bring on the insecticides! My little traps are everywhere, ready to lure the unsuspecting ants. They take the poison back to their homes, and....the dirty deed is done. It takes several bouts before I really wipe out the nest, but then I can count on a relatively ant-free summer, fall and winter.

Thus I am a killer. It's antithetical to my nature, really - but so is being covered in crawling ants. The killer part of me wins. Welcome, Spring!

My Photo Mentor

We've unveiled it at last! Do you love picking up your camera? Do you look at some of your images and secretly think, “Hey, that’s pretty good!” Would you like to learn more, but:

1. You feel overwhelmed by the technical jargon in many magazines and articles;
2. You wonder if you’re creative enough;
3. You worry about the cost of pursuing your photography passion.

What if there was a place where you could gather with people just like you?
What if you could learn without feeling anxious about the technical aspects?
What if you could pursue your passion in an affordable and fun way?

Well, now that place exists! Check out our short (about 4 minute) movie and get a free article here:

I Am A Photographer

I would really value your feedback on this. I want to know what you think!

And then check out the website itself:

MyPhotoMentor

I'll be eagerly awaiting your opinion!

Women in Red!

I've become known for my images of women in Red.
In doing so, I'm breaking a cardinal rule of portrait photographers. As a professional, I'm supposed to prefer that my clients wear blue, green, white, tan - colors that supposedly draw attention to the client's face, not their clothing.

But I've never like that rule. I love red! And I think that red shows off a client in a way no other color can.

So that's how I started becoming known for my women in Red. A couple of my images have become iconic, and people immediately know it's me when they see them.

This year, I started an annual tradition. Every February, I invite women to come into my studio for a complimentary (FREE) portrait session. I ask that they wear something red and fabulous! I will use these portraits all year long for my marketing. Here are more images from my sessions:
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