My life is so insanely busy right now and I HATE that I just pop over to my blog randomly to post new shoots.  I will soon post a life update and a few changes that are coming and a few happenings going on but until then I’d like to share this maternity session from last week.

My MUA came to me and said she had a friend whom was pregnant, due any day and she really wanted to gift her with a maternity session.  We set up all of the details and met Thursday evening for the shoot.  We could not have had better weather and Elizabeth showed up looking stunning.  They say that pregnancy gives you a glow and it was surely there for her.  She really is due any day now and we thought she might have just had her little boy there in the flower patch but he’s not quite ready yet.

Jade, thank you for coming to me to capture these photos for Elizabeth and Elizabeth, thank you SO much for giving me the artistic freedom and guidance for your shoot.  Pregnancy can still be fun and sexy and beautiful and there’s no reason you can’t celebrate that side of it.  I wish you and your family and soon to be baby boy all of the luck and joy in the world and cannot wait to take his photo in a few weeks!

I had the pleasure of meeting and photographing Ashley’s family portraits last year and they were so much fun to work with.  Ashley and Brandon have been married for 5 years and since Ashley is also a wedding photographer, she started to really regret not having bridal photos made.  That led to wanting new bride and groom photos and she worked so hard to put this entire shoot together.  We had the perfect weather in early Spring at Tanglewood Park in Clemmons, North Carolina and it all went off perfectly.

There are soooo many photos to post from this session because I loved so many of them.  I loved all of the details from the shoes to her belt, to Brandon’s boutineer and of course her vintage makeup by Mac.  We also had amazing cupcakes made just for the shoot by the lovely and talented Cakes by Carrie.  Ashley’s beautiful and unique bouquet was made by Beverly Martin.

I think this shoot is a great way to celebrate a few years of marriage and to just add a little flare and something new with some hot new photos!  Ashley bought a simple new dress and designed this shoot around a vintage theme which she really enjoys to make them even more personal.  If you are interested in having new Bride & Groom photos made, please contact me to discuss your options!  It’s so much more relaxing and laid back then your actually wedding day and you get to have a little more fun with the planning without ruining your bank account.

Ah, I adore this family!  I have known Amy for about 6 months now as she was my boudoir client first.  She has since become a dear, dear friend with a golden heart and the family to match!  She spoke so highly of her husband and daughter from the very first time I met her and through other clients she has brought my way (both friends and family), no one has ever had a bad thing to say about them – so to say I was excited to meet them is an understatement!

Our session was actually rained out 3 weeks in a row and then Amy and her daughter Hannah got into a horrible wreck.  They were still willing to go through with the shoot but after rain threatened to ruin it anyway, we decided it was best to wait one more week.  After all, they were black and blue and swollen with bruises and who wants memories of that?

I was not disappointed one bit when I showed up at the barn the day of their shoot.  The shoot took place on her mother in-law’s farm in Winston Salem and the location and weather was perfect.  Her husband was just a studly and sweet and kind as she claimed him to be and her daughter Hannah was soft spoken and so, so beautiful!  Jade drove in from Greensboro to do Amy’s makeup and we all sat in the barn, surrounded by horses, young girls riding everywhere and talked and laughed.   And laughed.  And laughed.  This family loves to laugh and I have to say, laughing is one of my most favorite simple pleasures!

Amy, thank you SO much for introducing me to your amazing family and they were everything and more you had built them up to be.  You guys are such an inspiration to families everywhere and I really had a blast on your shoot!  Even when Devi swore your Jeep was made to go through the woods on a 4 wheeler path and I had to sit on your lap,  bumping heads because of the rocks and potholes – I still had a blast.  I adore yall!

This is how Amy and Devi looked at each other the entire day.  LOVE it!

Hannah asked if she could have her horse, Will, in some of the photos.  I was so excited and of course I LOVED the idea!  Aren’t they beautiful?

The beautiful Mrs. Mecum!

The handsome Mr. Mecum!

The sweet and smart Miss. Mecum.

LOVE this look on Amy’s face.  When she talks about Devi and you picture them together, this is what you see.

I love father/daughter moments.

Aren’t they such beautiful women?

I adore this couple and cannot wait until their wedding this autumn! Brittney and DJ compliment each other so well and were so much fun to work with. They brought along lots of props and ideas for their shoot (50s vintage) and actually made the bow-tie for their darling pup, Sprocket! They both have a vision – one that is similar and beautiful. They are patient, they laugh and they know how to have fun!  We were rained out their original shoot date but without a worry, we scheduled for the next day and the weather was perfect at Tanglewood Park in Clemmons, NC.

Thank you Brittney and D.J. for having such a fun time at your shoot! You were so easy to work with and the love between you two is beyond obvious. When I told D.J. that I was happy to see men get excited and actually have fun at their shoots he said “Hey, if it makes her happy, why not?” Good answer, I think! I think you guys have no worries at all about being happy for a really, really long time – and I am so honored to capture these moments for you!

I have “known” Jenn for probably 5+ years now.  Remember Livejournal, the journal community that was around way before Facebook and Myspace?  We had mutual friends through there and while she lived in Charlotte, our friends and paths seemed to cross frequently, though we never actually met until this past weekend.

When I found out Jenn had become engaged I nervously sent her a message asking who her photographer would be.  She told me she would like for me to shoot their engagement photos but hadn’t made up her mind on a wedding photographer yet.  Of course I was ecstatic and we set a date.  The date just so happened to be her and Ryan’s 5 year anniversary, which was this past Sunday!  She had mentioned photos I had taken of a couple of my friends and liked the setting, which just so happened to be on my farm.  I invited them over and we could not have asked for a better Sunday in January.  Seriously, it was over 60 degrees and beyond beautiful!

Jenn was even more amazing and kind in person that I expected and Ryan was such a handsome and kind fellow as well.  I could feel the love between them as soon as they arrived and all throughout the shoot.  They were kind, patient, forgiving and they loved to laugh and have fun.  Jenn was so easy to talk to and laugh with and this shoot is the epitome of what my photography style is.  Bright, colorful, relaxed and fun!

Jenn and Ryan, I cannot thank you enough for letting me capture this time in your lives and most of all, for hiring me in the end to document your actual wedding day this fall.  You are an amazing couple and so inspiring to be around.  Your kindness is so contagious and I am so glad to finally meet you after so many years.  See, the internet isn’t just for creeps!

Jenn is an amazing tattoo artist at Blood, Sweat & Tears Tattoo Studio in Charlotte, NC (go see her, now!) so I really wanted to incorporate her tattoo machine into the shoot somehow.

I loved the way they looked at each other – so full of love and life.

You two are beyond gorgeous!

Jenn really likes to knit, so I wanted to incorporate yarn into the shoot somehow.  I really liked the results!

This is where it starts to get fun!

Save the date…

Mmm, such yummy light!

Seriously – how cute can you get?!  I LOVE this shot!

Simply & beautiful.

Let me start this by saying that I adore Madison.  This was the second time I’ve had the pleasure of doing a shoot with her.  Madison’s friend, Carrie, gifted her with a “just because” shoot 2 years ago for her birthday, when she saw the photos I had taken of her friend Leann’s wedding and mentioned wanting to do a session.  A few months later, Carrie then came to me to have her own shoot.  When Josh proposed to Madison, she came straight to me and told me there was no other option, to tell her my prices and that they were ready to book me.  She also went on to tell her other friend who had just gotten engaged, Allison, about me.  Allison then booked me for her wedding and I posted her engagement photos a month or so ago.  Are you still with me?

All in all, I adore all 4 ladies in this circle whom I have photographed.  I was beyond thrilled when Madison contacted me to shoot her wedding, as she was single when I photographed her 2 years ago and by her looks and personality alone, I knew she would have to score an amazing guy soon – and she did!  Josh compliments Madison so well.  He lets her be herself, he does silly things for her without getting embarrassed.  He looks at her when she talks, and listens.  He asks her opinion and when he’s smart, he takes it.    He is handsome and funny, lets her dogs kiss him on the mouth (much to her disgust) and I really think they are perfect for each other.

Madison & Josh, I cannot wait to shoot your wedding next year!  Josh, it was so great to meet you and I really think you have an amazing lady on your hands.  I cannot wait to see where your lives together take you and I can only hope I am there to document it for you all along the way.  I really had a lot of fun on this shoot and have to thank Allison for coming along and dog sitting for us.

I love sunset in the autumn.

Madison, you are gorgeous!

I love little details, such as this.

Probably my favorite from the day!

Introducing Stewie and Dexter.

I want to blow this photo up and have a canvas in my office.  It’s so bright and cheery and happy.

I love the way Josh looks at her.

…and the way she looks at him.