brandi and chantele- married

Everyone in the place was relaxed and calm.. hushed voices spoke of details, particulars and how the day was shaping up.  As I looked around, I noticed there was but a door separating Brandi and Chantele from seeing each other... from being together.  I think it was the most enormous suite I've ever seen and just perfect for the anticipation between the two to build.  Family and friends moved between the rooms and made comment on how beautiful the other looked.  From my standpoint I'd say they both were glowing... sure, calm, purposeful, deliberate.... in love.  It was like standing in a slightly dew quenched grassy field looking at the sun slowly rise on a beautiful spring morning... sure, calm, purposeful, deliberate... love.
Chantele and Brandi.. thanks for it all.. your wedding was spectacular in many ways and the party was just too much.  All of your planning and hard work payed off in all the gorgeous details.

Wedding Coordinator: Shawna Parks & Katharine Ronald of Romance is Bliss
Photography: me (smile)
Videography: Blue Sky Films  Silver Spring, Maryland
Dress: Pricilla of Boston Salon,  Tysons Corner, Virginia
Make-up: Beauty Behind the Scenes, Candace Hill
Florals: Village Flower Mart
Reception/catering: Waterfront Marriott, Baltimore, Maryland
DJ: DJ G-Nice

To see more of Brandi and Chantele, CLICK HERE for a slideshow! 
and HERE for part two..

aisha- senior lifestyle session

another beautiful teenager making her way towards me for her portrait session. i was thrilled!!  this is such a speccial time in the life of a teen and i'm always happy when they allow themselves to be transformed through my lens if but for a day..

i met her mom at the beginning of the school year at starbucks and we quickly became morning coffee buddies. discussing the perils of teenagers, the school, grades, finals, christmas break, spring break, school, school, school.. oh.. and.... have a great day. i told her i was a photographer when we first met but she came to me much later to see if i would take pictures of her daughter.. "sure" i said.. secretly thinking "i thought you'd never ask.."
We decided on a time late in the day.. before sunset, at the park.
i must say, i shoot at this park often but i'm always amazed at the spectacular portraits that spring from my camera, as the river in the background always makes for a stunning backdrop.. add to that a stunning young lady in a..... oh you just have to wait and see!!

Aisha.. thanks for accommodating all of my crazy requests...You are a stunning young lady and i wish you all the best as you go off to college.  Mom.. thanks for allowing me to capture her before she goes off and grows up on you.. she's got a good head on her shoulders and will be just fine.. You have taught her well..

Click here for her slideshow..

the sunset made for beautifully warm toned pictures!!





just spectacular!!

From the Bottom of my Heart.. Thank You!

So the Project Prom Dress went off without a hitch and I must say that the project sponcers were so pleased that every girl left that day with a dress.  For all of you that follow me here, heard the call and responded,  I say thank you from the bottom of my heart.  I was surprised at the response in such a short period of time.  It warmed my heart that you came through with such conviction to do what you could.  I think it is a woman- girl thing.. looking back, remembering how if was for us as a teen.  You really came through.

Project Kissing Frogs was able to provide over 30 dresses to DC Public Schools for the day and helped make a lot of dreams come true.  I was happy that my daughter, Kai, was able to be a part of such a special project for the girl's in DC as well.  She was thrilled that her efforts made a difference to girls that she could relate to. Fashion, jewelry, dresses, prom, pocket books, shoes = happy teen girls.. she, along with the girls receiving the dresses, could not stop smiling.

click HERE for a preview of the days events!!

Kissing Frogs - The Prom Dress Project

Do you remember the night you went to the prom.. the buttterflies, the hair, the corsage, the dress..?
Just in time for prom season.. please consider sponsoring a teen girl from the metro DC area with a prom dress. Sponsor donations begin at a mere 25.00 (give more if you like)!!  Now is your chance to make a young girl's dream of a beautiful prom dress come true.. Act now.. time is running out.. (midnight tonight)!!

For this year’s prom season, my friends at Polished Image and The Capital Fashionista have teamed with Project Stitch and DC Fashion Foundation to sponsor Kissing Frogs - The Prom Dress Project!

                                                                 Click here to donate .. 
           (follow links to donate.. i takes just a few minutes but will warm your heart when you are done)

                                                  Deadline midnight tonight April 13, 2010

This year they are looking for sponsors for approximately 65 dresses by designer Alfred Angelo that will be made available to DC high school girls at DC Public Schools Boutique Day on Thursday, April 15th. Dress donations will benefit the GWFCC DC Fashion Foundation’s Project Stitch Studio at West Potomac Academy Fashion Design in Alexandria, VA.

sarah - senior session

she seemed a bit shy at first but when we got a moment to talk she voiced her opinion freely about what was to come for her in the days, months and years to come. she was positive, sensitive and yet strong with definite opinions concerning life, friendships and love.  she has a smile that lights up a room and an electric personality to equal that of any superstar.
we had so much fun shooting this session and i can't wait to here all about her ultimate college choice and her rocking prom date.. because there are a plethora of choices to make, in all things related to life, at her age and i am so refreshed to hear that she is examining hers....

here are a few of my favorites.. click here to see her slideshow

I shot the cover for Eco-Beautiful Weddings Magazine!

i'm really speechless but it is true, i had the honor of shooting the cover for the eco-beautiful magazine and the featured editorial on elizabeth st. james wedding dresses pages 86-94. i'm thrilled to have been chosen and delighted at the result. those who know me understand that i am screaming right now and those who don't... well... i'm screaming with joy!!
Click on the cover below to see the entire "virtual" issue!!

Words..? Where Are They..

People who know me are shaking their heads at my excitement for this latest venture that I am associated with. I am really speechless because of the opportunity and can not quite find the appropriate words to express just how thrilled I am to be a part of the second edition of the Eco-Beautiful Weddings e-magazine. I'm so thrilled in fact, I allowed myself the liberty to include uppercase letters on my blog for the first time in a long time..

This e-magazine is produced by Katie Martin creator of Elegance & Simplicity, Inc. & Eco-Beautiful Weddings. What does "e-magazine" mean? Well to me (and don't get it twisted..I'm really no expert on the subject nor do I claim to be) it means that it is a virtual, on-line and (in this case) a bridal magazine thus making it "Eco-friendly" because it is not printed. It does not come to your home and take up space on your pile of magazines to "throw away" or take to the recycle-bin (although technically that would be "eco-friendly", the recycle part) BUT not everyone recycles...ah-ha!! This is super special in these days when most people spend (I know there is a statistic on this.. but I'll pull something remote out of my head and say...) 48% of their day on computers. It makes so much sense, really. Brides are shopping, looking, researching and booking on-line at an ever increasing rate, so this Eco-beautiful Wedding e-magazine is simply perfect. Paring the e-magazine concept with the Eco-Beautiful Wedding website is a marriage (no pun intended) made in heaven for the eco-conscious, savvy, sophisticated bride.

The whole team of individuals that made the shoot possible were a joy to work with and super fun. Robin Fisher of Polished Image and Style pulled together the most beautiful looks for the shoot with the gorgeous wedding dresses from Elizabeth St. John , David Morley of Zinnia Films shot the video and put together this awesome clip that I can't stop watching. The talented Carla created glamorizing hairstyles on the ever beautiful Persephone, the model of the day, and Jeff Enriquez from InnerBeauty, Inc. rounded out the team with flawless makeup.

The magazine comes out on Monday so stay tuned.. I'll have a link here and if you listen very carefully Monday morning I think you may be able to hear me scream.. In the meantime watch the clip below..

There is one surprise I have not mentioned here.. Come back on Monday and I will fill you in!!

all in the family

"You are kidding me you are having another boy!" i exclaimed.. like it was any of my business at all.
"yes, yes.. i knoooowwww" she concedes in her raspy slow moving voice.. it's like molasses (her voice), so smooth and thick, the southern accent, you can almost reach out and touch the words as they come out of her mouth.
"we don't care.. as long as we have a healthy baby.. it will just be us and all those boys. i really don't know anything different".

but all i could think about was how precious they were. all of them. long ponytails, big eyes, nice smiles and polite ta' boot. each one of them has their own personality.. but don't they all, kids i mean. there was something about these boys that shouted "photo shoot" so when she called i was thrilled.

here are a few of my favorites from the day!

Look a little bit trying to hang with the big brothers!!



Throwing leaves= irresistible!

Inseparable- family session

sonya contacted me after a co-worker (Sandy) showed her a slideshow. i could not get her in before the holidays but she was clear she wanted it sooner vs. later. spring was too far.. she wanted to show/assure her family and friends back home that her son (the oldest) was doing well and that he had recuperated nicely from heart surgery earlier this year (2009). the urgency was noted and i was so honored to be able to make it happen for her as mom, for them as a family and for him as a pretty awesome person.

being 20 years old means that there are no smiles.. none...nada... even the youngest son tried not to smile during the entire shoot but i joked like a silly person until both of them shot me a fast one. i had to catch it quick or it would have been gone forever but catching those looks unexpectedly is what i do.. seeing or revealing the true personality of a person comes when they feel comfortable.. it takes a while but i try to always get what i want..

the family as a whole is awesome.. that is always nice to see and feel.. but as per my usual getting mom and dad to give me a little umph is always nice..

thanks for letting me into your world for a little while and to tell your story through my lens if not but for a brief moment in time..

take a look at their slideshow and you will see it all..

Sean- Senior 2010

sean was apprehensive at first.. his mother had set this up. all he knew was that he was supposed to take his senior pictures.. he had not seen my website, my pictures and did not know me from adam.. but after the family shoot it was his turn..

he asked if he could change clothes and I told him of course. his mother protested and wanted to know what he was going to wear and he reluctantly told her but all i could hear was..
"no Sean.. not the t-shirt and the flannel.." i asked if he was going to wear the sweater first and he said yes so i was good.. a little something for mom and a little something for him. i could tell he was happy!!
he ran upstairs and came back with two outfits and we left.. what i did not understand was just how the bow and arrow thing-ee was going to translate but when he slipped the bow behind his neck and started walking towards the woods with the t-shirt and the flannel, i understood and was happy for him.. i was determined to help him express himself through my lens.. he wanted something something different.

needless to say Sean did an awesome job and quickly got the hang of looking the part.. you know.. grown but not grown, handsome but not sweet, and he wanted to translate what was important to him.. his truck, his dog, his hunting and the farm (memories of growing up there).. he chose this song and i could not have been more pleased as to how it all translated in his slideshow







ready to go hunting!!

they're so much better when we're together - St Mary's County

"you really ARE a photographer."
meta exclaimed, after she viewed my website for the first time..,
"i mean, you have to take sean's senior pictures next year and we really need a family portrait and i have to have christmas cards... we have not done any in years...."
we spoke about how we wanted to set it all up in between exuberant calls from the sidelines to our girls playing on their high school soccer team. one day i picked my daughter up from the farm and as i meandered slowly down the long, curvy, tree-laced driveway and laid eyes on the pond and her beautiful red-roof home, i knew that i had to shoot them right there.. it was just perfect...a photographers delight.

time passed and we scheduled and canceled several times as the kids, work, family, travel, hair scalping (her son shaved all of his hair off for a bet) and life just seemed to make it impossible for the two of us.. but persistence prevailed and finally i was able to travel down to their farm to capture them together.. all together, before the oldest goes off to college..

we had a lot of fun that day on the farm and i think these pictures reflect the love they hold dear for one another and the fun, joy and laughter they share in each other's presence.

thanks meta and jim for trusting me to make this happen for you. i can't wait to see the canvas.

here are a few of my favorites and their slideshow. come back later to view Sean's senior session.







the guys and their truck!