I don't even know where to begin but I will tell you that I am so incredibly excited to introduce you all to my wonderful friends, the Sposas.  I met Melanie and Jason 4 years ago when they were first engaged.  They drove all the way down from the New York area to interview me to photograph their wedding.  They did end up hiring me but what came from that job was so much more than photos and a wedding experience.

Here's 2 of my favorite shots from their 2005 wedding.

Melanie has such a loving spirit it just makes you smile to be around her.  Jason is a WONDERFUL artist.  I eventually would like to BUY every one of his pieces.  I borrowed a couple of these off his site, www.UNDERNEATHMYTREE.com, to share with all of you.

"i love you but i don't want to talk about it"

I adore them so very much and although we haven't been able to hang out much because of the geographical distance, while in Mexico I was able to keep up with them every day via their BLOG.  What was so exciting about reading the blog was the opportunity to follow along on Melanie and Jason's FIRST PREGNANCY!

"waiting on you Olivia Bee"

Not ONLY an artist and writer but Jason and Melanie make music too.  Although Melanie sings on their previous album I am pretty sure THE OLIVIA EP is a Jason solo project.  It is REALLY GREAT!  Andy and I have been listening to it for a week straight.  You can listen to some of the tracks HERE!

Melanie is such an amazing writer, extremely candid and terribly funny. I am a sucker for a dry, cynical sense of humor!  Around month 8 I wrote Jason and Melanie to let them know I wanted to photograph their new baby as soon as she was born as a baby gift to them from me.  I was so flattered when they accepted my gift with arms wide open.  About 9 weeks later, last week to be precise,  we met in Richmond at Jason's mom's house.  It was sooooo wonderful to see them again and to meet their newest addition.  Because the Sposas are just so cool, a little retro and definite hip I decided to edit the photos to match their personalities.  I really love how they turned out!

World, meet Olivia Bee Sposa!

I must say, Olivia was not super excited to be photographed.  She really loves to be held, not put down,  so we had to work around her.  

Although a bit cranky inside, the minute we walked into the sunshine, Olivia was nothing but smiles.

This is one of my favorites of the day.

I almost peed a little after taking this photo.  Look at Olivia's little eyebrows!  HAHAHA!!!

She definitely loves her Daddy!

This one makes me smile.

A family portrait.

Once we were finished we headed back up to the house.  I didn't realize it, but I was there the moment Jason's dad met his grand daughter for the very first time.  I was so honored to be there to document the introductions.  Olivia had no problem hangin' out with Grandpa!

Finally, a little time with her biggest fan. . . . Jason's mom, aka, the best Grandmother in the world!

It was really funny, as I was leaving there was some debate about "Who likes me the most?" amongst the Sposas, Melanie, Jason or Jason's mom!  This was the last of the conversation before climbing back into my car and driving home to the Outer Banks.

"I liked her first," Jason's mom piped in, "From the moment we met her at the house I said I liked her first."

Melanie thought for a minute, eyes tipped toward her right temple, "Actually, I found her first online."

"Yeah," Jason exclaimed interjecting, "well I'm still paying off the credit card that paid for the wedding so THERE!"

HAHAHAHA!  It was so great to see you all.  You know I love you all the same and cannot wait to be uber close come September.  Thanks for letting me be there to document yet another monumental time in your lives!!!!

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of photographing Destini.  Although you might think it was for a senior portrait or MAYBE even an egagement session, which I would've guessed if I had just met her before knowing any details ahead of time, Destini is just 13 years old and preparing for the   Virginia American Coed Pageant August 7-10th.  The images are for the Most Photogenic portion of the contest, and personally I think she's got it in the bag.  She can submit up to 4, I have no idea how they will choose.  I really tried to keep in mind all of the factors:  

A)  This is for a photo contest so the quality of the shot will help in the competition.  

B)  Provide something DIFFERENT from what the judges might be looking at over an over again, so Destini's photos stand out.  

C)  Remind myself that Destini is still JUST a teenager so I tried really hard not to over-age her.  (this was really difficult)

D)  Keep her energy up and make her laugh, I wanted her to have a great time and relax as much as possible.

Destini was SO EASY to photograph.  Her eyes are ridiculous, seriously I have never seen eyes that color and I did nothing to alter their color in the photos. . . . they are exactly how they appear below.  I know she has taken pictures before but it was completely stress-free, not needing to give a whole lot of direction at all.    Destini's mom Sabrina came along and was A.W.E.S.O.M.E.  She was completely supportive of everything I wanted to do.  If I wanted Destini barefoot sitting on the dumpster, Sabrina was right there holding her shoes and giving her a lift.  She was right there to fix Destini's hair or assist in the wardrobe change.  I honestly had a wonderful time and can't wait to do more of these.

Reflections are rad.

I thought this shot was a lot of fun!

I loved the way all these colors worked here.

I love this shot in color but I thought the aged look was great.

AYKM?!?

See what I mean about the eyes.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with my more personal work, I love incorporating unintentional written imagery with my intentionally composed imagery.  This one was definitely more for me than for Destini but it is by far one of my favorites.

Gorgeous and unpretentious.

This, believe it or not, was not staged originally.  She was checking to make sure there was not gum on her shoe but I missed the shot so I had to make her do it again.  I rarely do that with candids but it was just too great not to.

This shot cracks me up.  Destini was blowing a kiss to her Mom, I thought it was so funny immediately after taking it.  I knew I would fall more in love with it during post production.

HOLY HIGH JUMP!  LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT!  She is even looking right at me with nothing but fierceness.  Tyra would be so proud.  I definitely think this shot should be one of the four entered in the competition.

The very last thing we did was a FUNNY BOOTH.  It was great to see that even though Destini is mature beyond her years physically, she's still just a kid who likes to goof around.  It didn't take much prodding or pleading to get her to have fun!

Destini and Sabrina, I had such an amazing time getting to know the both of you.  Although it was my first pageant shoot, it felt just like any other fashion shoot I've worked on.  Thank you so much for asking me to help you win first place in the competition, I have no doubt you will take it.  I am sure all of the readers will be anxiously awaiting the results just like me so I will be sure to post as soon as I hear from you in August.  If you advance we will continue to keep an eye out as you go to Orlando in November!!!    GOOD LUCK, enjoy your summer and keep in touch with me.

This is the last of the Tori & Billy trilogy!

To see the 2nd slideshow go HERE!

I just had to break the wedding up into 3 posts because I was so happy with how everything turned out so if you are just reading this blog scroll down to the other 2 days of photos.  The reception took place at the Jefferson Lakeside Country Club in RIchmond, Va.  THe grounds were spectacular and the staff were as awesome as apple pie at Thanksgiving.  I worked directly with Curtis who was extremely organized and accommodating.  I really had a blast.

Okay, seriously . . . the next few shots with Tori and her dad are my favorite father daughter dance photos I have ever taken.

There were tears throughout the entire room.

Then it was time to get down! Tori & Billy's dj Dave Hettinger was great.  I really loved his choice in music and he knew exactly how to get people on the dance floor.  After the wedding I spoke with he and his wife for quite some time.  Seriously, they are really wonderful people and I highly recommend them if you are looking to get married in the Richmond - Norfolk, Va area.

. . . . literally.

Some cutting and smoooshing.

Don't you just love the rallying of the girls to clean off their friends' face!?!

Love this shot.  They really had a blast the entire time.  

Okay, so here is Tori's brother stealing the garter like a covert football move.

Little did he realize that he was going to have to put that trophy on his aunt! HAHAHAHA I hadn't laughed this hard at a wedding in a REALLY LONG TIME!

mmmmmmmm, i heart sparklers.

Thanks to all of those fabulous people who made Tori and Billy's wedding a success.  It was great meeting you all, family and friends alike.  Tori & Billy, CONGRATULATIONS!  It was a pleasure, a ball and a real honor.

I must admit, Tori and Billy's wedding took place on one of the hottest days of the year so far.  You would think, because of the heat, that it might have been unbearable however, everyone was in great spirits and Tori couldn't have been more beautiful if she tried.  I had such a wonderful time getting to know their friends, they all had a great energy that filled the day with sunshine.  I really felt a special connection the family, they really made me feel at home from the moment I arrived at the rehearsal dinner.  It was almost like I was surrounded by my own family, forgetting that we had just met.  I could not have hoped for a more perfect day!   There were so many favorites for me that I have broken the day up into 2 parts so be sure to come back tomorrow to check out the reception.  

You can go here to watch the slideshow!

It's been a while since I've hung out with 13 yr olds.  While at the Salon, the only time these two took a breath from text messaging was to actually get their hair done!  So funny.  I didn't even have a pager in highschool, just relied on payphones.  My how things have changed, the kids these days.  Holy s&%t, I just said "the kids these days."  I'm going to go get my jelly shoes and Thriller album out of the garage and submerge myself in youth.

I love these two moments between Tori's Dad and brother.

There was a lot of emotion leading up to the ceremony, I thought this moment was really touching.

See you all tomorrow for the last of Tori & Billy's amazing wedding!