Understated charm.. It's the eyes

Not often do we get to spend time, just the two of us..
There is always an older sister or a younger brother or a doting father around.. but today it was just me and my baby girl N.

No jeers from the peanut gallery (that would be her brother and sister) for this self motivated, smart, beautiful, determined, self professed middle child.... none of the comments... "that does not look right, fix your hair, you smile crooked, that will not work, look at me I can do it better.." Just the silence of the golden sun smiling down on us.. and the smiles between us... as I looked through the lens she seemed to morph into a young lady before me... not her mannerisms, not her words, not how she acted.. it was in my daughters eyes..looking back me (mom) as though I knew she was all grown up....It was all right there in her eyes! I swallowed hard and repeated what she has heard me mutter on many a photoshoot..."beautiful.." but this time it was directed at her and it was coming from me and she could tell it was different..

Life flies by really fast and sometimes I have to have to remind myself to stop, look, listen and feel those around me... Thanks N. for letting me work magic with your beautiful smile (complete with newly straightened teeth..), flawless pecan skin, cheerful disposition, understated charm and those awesome, perfect, almond-shaped eyes... I love you sweetie!



I love the way the sun caught itself in my lens..

The R. Family

She keeps it all together! With a kind and gentle spirit, I did not find out until way later that she once took photography classes! What an honor to be chosen to take these photos for the R family. Although the weather kept us on our re-scheduling toes (life happens) for many weeks She was determined not to have the boat chart off course because "We" wanted to make this happen.

" I promise if we wait for the weather you will be happier.. if we go today, you won't be able to get in the grass...it rained all day yesterday and the ground is soaked." I said.

I'm sure she was thinking that she was not going to be rolling on the ground, but she conceded to my best advise.. the sun was shining at that moment we were on the phone but the forecast had called for rain.. before long the sky opened up and the rain just poured...

Life happens.. and somehow it is always hard to predict.. but one thing is sure.. this family is not only beautiful but the kids, mom and dad are solid as a rock... they love each other and it shows. The kids were great... little A. even learned very quickly how to pop her leg, as I showed her mom she stood there and took mental notes.. she got it and she never stopped. It was quite cute, I'd look through the lens and Little A. would be off to the side with her hands on her hips and her leg popped. Way too cute!..

And as per usual with these family shoots, I always make time for mom and dad together, alone and it's always refreshing to see when mom and dad cuddle close the sparks that fly all around and then that smile comes across their faces that acknowledges they know I did it on purpose. (smile)...

The R. Family... thanks for allowing me to do my thing with you... never once did you complain and that is always nice..

Rhese and Donna - Wedding

Is it time to party yet?

That's where they met... A Party! Donna at Howard University and Rhese at Georgetown University but on that night.. just a party.. Do you think it went through their minds at the time? This could be my soul mate? Could we be together forever, loving through the good, the bad, the bliss, the blessings and all the rest that comes with this journey we all call life?

Probably not...but I know they danced!!

That was many moons ago, as many of their friends and family describe it, but one thing is so very clear to me... Rhese and Donna are well balanced... they don't have to say much, at this point, they can just look at each other and know what the other is thinking... he can just look at her and make her laugh and then they both laughing because her laugh is contagious and so is their LOVE!

Many times during the day I could see the joy, pride and excitement gushing from Rhese. Donna would look softly into his eyes and he demeanour would instantly mellow...don't get me wrong, he was still bursting at the seams but a smile would emerge... he would bend down and kiss her and she would kiss him back...

Rhese was ready to dance!!! Is it time to party yet? Both arms extended in the air...
When they opened those doors to the room announcing them as Mr. and Mrs. Gibson, I could feel their joy and excitement... The whole room erupted in cheers...They were married and you could not tell them anything...

Rhese, Donna... thank you so much for allowing Eric and I to be apart of your beautiful day... From the first day we met I was sure that this was going to be a special day for the two of you and one for us as well... Your family and friends embraced us and made us feel like we were family. May you and Rhese find all of the joy, love and peace this world can afford you...

Click here to see Rhese and Donna's slideshow!

Our New Website

O.K.... without further a do.. We hereby unveil our brand new website that We have been editing for what seems like months. It has been a true labor of love and We are so proud to present to some and re-expose to others our true vision for "a little bit of whimsy" and our future ... It looks a lot like the other site but much bigger and with the focus being on Weddings...

Yes we will still shoot other sessions but our focus is the wedding market.. Know anyone getting married? Send them a link.. belong to a social group in the area please feel free to pass it along to everyone in your mail box...

We will still be posting to the blog more frequently so don't forget to bookmark it as well....

so here goes..

www.alittlebitofwhimsy.com

If you don't see it right away keep checking back and once again... thanks for looking and sharing..

ps. some of the slideshows will be down until uploaded again to the new server.. bear with us!

David and Beverly - married

They met over the phone and carried on with hushed whispers for a while. She playing hard to get and he, hearing the soft voice, playful tone but graceful strength, wanted more. She could tell but chose to carry on with the phone conversations for a while.
At some point they agreed that they needed and wanted to meet... that was four years ago and although they have been so much a part of each others lives for the years they understood that something was missing.

David told me "It just did not make sense anymore not to carry it to the next step"

They stepped alright... right into each others arms and with grandeur, class, whimsy, tease anticipation and lots of thought.

After much hesitation I spoke to Beverly one day about the timing of the day...
"It's going to be dark after the wedding and although I'll do alter shots.. I'd rather have my eye teeth pulled! Would you consider (I proceeded with my request) seeing David before the wedding for a "The First Look"... I'll set up the location and you two can see each other before the wedding and complete your formals as the sun is setting... After the ceremony my can take your time with your guests"
"It's a perfect idea" she uttered..
"I was trying to find a way to see him and spend some private time together before the ceremony but for the life of me could not figure out how to make it happen....Ah wow! It's just perfect"...

And so it was... Just like out of a fairy tale.... Eric shot David at the famous Gaylord Hotel and ushered David over to the house where he waited for Beverly. On my cue Beverly came sashaying down her red brick walkway, flanked by her handsome sons. They essentially gave their mother to David... I could not have asked for a more perfect couple to launch what I hope to be common place for many more brides to come.

Introducing "The First Look" featured in their slideshow!!

For the sake of surprise, Beverly walked down the aisle to the song in the slideshow with her utterly fabulous hat (that David had not yet seen)... keeping it fresh!!... Oh! and YES, he did sing to her!

Age, beauty and confidence

Baby ____ is well on her (I'll call her a her just because I can...not because I know).. you see Kim and Victor have 3 beautiful boys already so I'm personally wishing for a Girl for them...

Of course Kim and Victor are well pleased to have a healthy, happy child no matter what the gender and are so settled with whatever they are blessed with, the automatic question from family and friends just gets a slight smile in response. I took pictures of them years ago when they were "with" child number two or three and made shower invitations for their party.. they, thereafter, moved to Florida and then back again and low and behold she stumbled on my website and e-mailed me with excitement that my photography business had taken off...

Kim is a natural, a self-proclaimed perfectionist, a hard worker, a mother and a wife. She is so comfortable in her skin and with the God given natural form that is giving new life that she even tried a few "Demi Moore" poses for her portfolio. I must say.. they are outlandishly beautiful, tasteful and fierce!! Want to see them? you'll have to ask Kim for her code... ha, ha, ha....

But here are a few!!

It's just me and you!

We welcome with love the oh so precious Baby S! Look how adorable she is with her tiny lips, tiny nose and precious eyes. Her mom and I tried and tried to get her to sleep.. wouldn't you know, it took Dad to calm her down and fall asleep.

"Hey little one.. it's just me and you!" and she was out....

Guys congratulations on your little bundle of joy.. I'm so happy that I had the pleasure of capturing some of your little one's first photos..

It's about THE LOVE!

I never heard the news, but when I saw her for the first time after her abundant love started growing inside of her I refused to acknowledge it until I was sure.. I kept a straight face and laughed and talked as though her abundant love was not staring me in the face...literally...
"Alex and I want you to do our shoot.... let's set a date... right now....."
and later
"we will do another shoot when..."
and then
"we'll come back when....."
meanwhile..... I was still at the abundant love part... (smile)

I understand why you two came to me but as I shouted over and over during the shoot, THIS shoot was really all about the love.......
THE LOVE that you two have for each other is so very easy to see.. it's in your smile, your wiggled nose when he talks to you, it's in the silly stories you tell about the other, it's about how you lean on him even when the camera was on the floor, the jesters, the uncomplicated notion of it all ...... and last but not least...... it is in those eyes...

Isn't new life all about THE LOVE!... yeap.....

Family Reunion - Moore/Kent

I don't agree to do Family Reunions often.. it's hard to venture amongst a union of people whom have known each other for... well... forever, and blend in as though you are a distant cousin with a camera..
I'm so happy that I agreed. This family was so friendly and proved my theory wrong.. From the moment I got there they clapped and shouted exuberant hello's with big smiles and welcomed me as though I was that distant cousin. Little did they know I was about to ask them all to walk a mile to the lake to take their family picture (smile).. I heard no one complain... they just took the hike, to the lake..

To the family.. thank you so much for allowing me to come and document just this day that brought you together in D.C. from all over the country.. may you always be close and blessed!

Click here for the slideshow

Senior- Class of 2009

Quiet, composed, reserved.. really quiet.... Beautiful, smart and without a doubt she is a generous leader and advocate for all of the girls on the soccer team. In school she is focused and balanced... no one has to tell me this about her, I know...

Thanks JBH for trusting me to take your senior pictures and for allowing me to trudge off through the thicket, with camera in hand, ready to make my vision of days earlier come to light. You were perfect for this capture.

Click here to see her slideshow

In the eyes?

I see it all the time and this time was no exception. The hair, the matching bows, the clothes to die for, the perfect location and the sun just right peeking through the trees. Everyone, including my helpers (my kids) are all set to go... then the little one is released from the carseat ready for the day in the park.. they usually take one look at me and my gear, my kids, my props and they peek out of the corner of their eye at their mom and without saying a word, without even a murmur... it's all in the eyes.... Lady.... you have 3 minutes to get this... me, I mean, in all of my two year old-glory and then I will be done...
Oh No!! Don't pull out the gum, candy, pennies and even dollars... Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled that you want me to see myself in the back of your camera.. but that does not mean that you will ever see another smile on this face for the next hour... Hey Lady... I'm TWO.. and it is my job to make my mom crazy.
As I try to reassure the mother that I have succeeded in getting the shots, that the little one looks perfect to me, that the smile is really not necessary... that the day is not lost and she will be surprised and happy with the pictures... I look in my cameraback and what I see is simply perfection.. Time and time again. Because you see, the truth behind the perfect shot is not the smile... It is and will always be in the eyes...
Just look at this beauty...



she smiled plenty.. it was just quick and then gone in a flash...


thanks mom.. we got it..

50 Years Of Wedded Bliss!

What an absolute pleasure it was to witness the renewal of vows between Mr. and Mrs. Wilson. After 50 years of marriage they once again expressed their love for each other before God, family and friends. Mrs. Wilson with her Barbadian rapture evokes a longing to move a little closer to hear her spoken words... her wit is contagious and charm is unmeasurable. You need just look into her beautiful blue eyes to see it... need I say more? Mr. Wilson, with a demeanor so strong yet subtle, kind and soft spoken it is easy to imagine how they fell in love with each other so long ago.
We were honored to be there to capture what was truly a spectacular event that their daughters expertly planned. These ladies are classy... no doubt!
Bolling Air Force Base Officers Club was the perfect backdrop for this amazing couple. Floor to ceiling windows with the mid afternoon sun setting on the reception made for a beautiful glow that filled the room and set the mood. Dexter Fields, as usual, worked his magic on the glorious floral creations and tablescapes and Vince Chapman and his crew had everyone swaying and softly rocking their heads to the cool smokey jazz that infused the room.

Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, Happy Anniversary! We wish you many more years of that ultimate wedded bliss that you obviously have a good handle on!

Click HERE to see their slideshow (p.s. Mr. Wilson picked this music for he and his bride to dance to. At one point, there were three of us, telling him that we did not think "you and me" was the name to this "Aretha" song. He gently smiled and started singing the words all the while gently insisting that "yes it is... I know". It tickled me, just a bit when I thought back to the conversation.. thinking this must be the equilevant of my children telling me that I don't know that "The Commadors" sang "Just To Be Close To You".) Life is funny!!




Mrs. Wilson looking on as her 4 of 5 (a baby) grandchildren surround her on the dance floor... I personally love this one!

That's a Wrap..

There are only a few words to describe it when Yvonna and her mom (and Auntie Candace) come to visit the studio for a shoot. I heard mom utter softly.. "You have to just stop Delores.. or you'll be here forever. "

I look around put my camera down trying to figure in my minds eye that I really do have enough and then.........there is another shot..

"Don't take her away.. oh look... look at her... there is another." My camera seems almost to have a life of it's own and yes.. you almost have to just pick up and call it a wrap for me... Not a bad thing I suppose. Just a lot of pictures to choose from (not for the weary or faint at heart) but that is why you come to me in the first place.. right?


How could you possibly deny me getting this one... Behold... it was the last shot!!! and when I saw it I knew it was special... and so is Yvonna...


How special...


Can you look at this one and not smile? if you can... there is something wrong....

Happy Anniversary Church Choir

Music that ministers to your soul. Every time I hear my Church choir my spirits are raised and my soul is nourished. It reminds me often of my grandmother... slowly making her way down the big cement steps (one at a time) from her home in Baltimore, getting in the car with plastic bubble seats.. you know the kind you would slide around on if you were not holding on... I know you remember... My legs would hurt later from gripping my patented leather shoes under the seat trying desperately to navigate the hump in the floor, not slide into my brother who would be bothered by the imposition of being touched and not get black marks on my white shoes... That ride to Church would either turn into a giggle fest, as we slid into each other around every corner, or a fight... depending on which side of the bed he (my brother) woke up on... either way, the noise was going to get someone in trouble. Grandma did not play..

She would give us each a few quarters to put in the collection plate and would sit beside us proud..... just happy that her grandchildren were there with her I suppose.. or perhaps (this is more like it) she was just happy to be in the house of the Lord. When the music began, the church would heat up and the people would start to sway and if it was a particularly moving song people would stand and sometime even walk the floor... I would look at her for assurance that everything was alright and sometimes see tears in her eyes... She was just happy to be in the house of the Lord...

Grandma Beulah is gone now but I still hear songs, to this day, that remind me of her and move me the same. Sunday night was no exception.. Fort Washington Baptist Church Family.... I love you guys!!

Click here to see their slideshow

Mike and Kia - Wedding

They met one faithful night at “Dream”…. That’s all I needed to know. The rest is apparent through their eyes when they look at each other. “Love is precious, love is kind ….” Michael and Kia embody all of what this verse promotes and then some.

As I stepped from the car the heat took my breath away, I was embarking on a day that had been planned for months, maybe years (the shoes). After all is said and done we all know that it was His plan that made it all so…and for me to be there as well. Grateful? You bet. There were too many treats for the eyes for me to describe… a photographer’s dream wedding for all to witness. But this day was not about me, it was about Michael and Kia.

Whitehall Manor was the absolute perfect setting for this glorious affair. Situated at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the sun shown perfectly through the trees as the ceremony began. Susan Smith from "Simply Elegant Weddings" beamed with pride as she lifted the back of Kia’s dress helping her cross the graveled path to her father. All that was planned and dreamed was coming together perfectly via her coordination and would unfold before all of us like a perfect orchid opening slowly on a Spring morning. With Kia’s hair adorned with orchids, makeup perfectly applied by Ky and a perfectly fitted Lazaro dress from Ann’s Boutique, Kia and her father made their way across the lawn to greet her soon-to be partner for life.

Looking at the scene from afar it was hard not to notice the breathtaking floral decor skillfully created by Linda Merritt that graced your eyes at every turn. With "Ewabo", the Pan players ready to play, dinner in preparation, three cakes ready for guests and a DJ ready to rock the manor, the day was unfolding just as Kia and Mike could have only hoped for.

Kia and Mike, thank you so much for choosing me to document your wedding. From the time we all met at your engagement session I could tell that we were going to have a blast at the wedding. You are both kind, thoughtful and trusting people whom Eric and I took the greatest pleasure in capturing. Thanks ..

Click Here to see their slideshow
(may take some time to load.. please be patient... it is worth the wait)










Thanks to Doll, my ever persistent sister-in-law, who insisted that Kia at least look at my website.