There's no place like DOME...

At least not for these two "young and in-lovers"...I just happened to walk by the truck in the middle of the session and saw the sticker and thought it was just too good--had to shoot it...and see the smile on her face?? I think she would have to agree with it!!



I'm just about finished with the show-give me another day (or so :) but in the meantime I thought I'd share a few "fun" ones...(I have to save the announcement worthy ones for the announcement!! I wouldn't want to spoil your fun :)

Well Hello Beautiful...

I'm not sure if this was what she was saying to her precious new little bundle...BUT it was EXACTLY what I said when I came to this image while editing. It put a smile on my face and I thought... "well, hello beautiful"...

It always makes me laugh when I try to do baby feet picture...the baby's feet always settle right above their bottom and their is nothing you can do to get them to stretch out!

My cute little rice pod...

And now...for some behind the scenes at Holdsworth Photography-- Here is what everyone saw while I was taking the "folded up" picture:

And here is what I saw:

(nothing a little dodging and clone stamp can't take care of!) These were all shot in my home with natural light and my 17-55mm or 50mm lens.

Little bit of play and LOTS of work

Okay...back in town and back in action from a crazy wonderful weekend in sunny shark-ridden CA...I have way too much to post, but I'll get to that a little bit later today (after I start the laundry)!

Feet

I'm choosing to show feet that are attached to a smiling, happy family this time (for the feet lovers out there don't worry there's one of JUST FEET...) BUT to prove to ALL of her sisters (who teased her about only getting "feet" shots--which I happen to really like!!) I'm going to show how wonderful their family was to photograph :) LOVE LOVE LOVE this!
And because she swore she wanted to see ALL of the pictures a.k.a. "out-takes" (even the ones with closed eyes)...I thought I'd share a "fake" out-take (I'm calling it a fake one because it makes me smile and that's one of my criteria's for a great image.)
AND ONLY BECAUSE KATHY (aka my mom) ASKED FOR THIS PARTICULAR SHOT (family in a field in Yuma...and this field just happened to be one that the Dad oversees--coincidence?? :)....will I post a slightly more traditional shot. Plus I think its a great way to end my Yuma session posts!
See ya next year YUMA!!

What do you get...

when you have a car (doesn't even need to run) a big fat chopper (cruising down the street) and a dirty ol' truck?
A totally radical shoot (yes I used the word radical)--and a very male dominated post!
(okay and there was also a forklift but I figured I'd exceeded my image limit so you'll have to wait for those :)

Oh wait!!! See there are females in the family...cute funky females!

Oh-and how could I NOT include the hand-drawn poster (complete with gold spray paint)...5 bonus points to whoever knows what its from...

P.S.S. A huge shout-out to maranda for helping me during the marathon shooting session and for letting me dig into her camera bag of goodies!!! (and for the idea to open her sun-roof so I could shoot the moving motorcycle!! :) Thank you!

Just Do It

His sister said something along those lines when she booked his senior session. I think there was a quick "unbiased" description along with the number 6'5"...that didn't sink in until he showed up...and I had to look up! The next time someone throws in a height description...I'm throwing in a ladder...or making them squat :) The end of the shoot was very out of the ordinary--we went inside the gym and shot some & I loved it!--and NO there was no trampoline necessary for the dunk shot ;) and NO girls...he can't be found anywhere near Prescott!

MAN...I love this shot!!!

Ohh...here's the rest of him ;) (click on the image below for a larger view)

Make me smile...

This past weekend I went to Yuma and was able to do a few sessions. It was fun, crazy, exhausting and very rewarding. I know that some are anxiously ;) awaiting some previews--just remember that I won't post "Christmas Card" worthy images on my blog (we have to save the excitement for the holidays :) ...I love to share the images here, that put a smile on my face! The dad in this family is responsible for making everyone's smile in Yuma beautiful. My cousin boasts that she was the poster child for awhile in his office (however, I'm not sure if you'd really want to boast about being the orthodontist's poster child but...)

I couldn't decide which made me smile more...this first image--where the daughter starts bookin' it to her parents:

Or this second one--where she re-establishes her place as THE "center of family--life--action"
"Who did your hair?? G.E.?"

There are just some lines you never forget (only because they put a smile on your face--not because you couldn't help it if your mom had just PERMED your hair when you were 10 and it was a little "overly curly" and your friends older brother pointed it out :) So ONLY because we're all about smiles here today...I'll post one "outtake"...

(click on it to really get a "feel" for the image :)

Rockin' "R"

We braved the cold and the serious drop in temperature -- but you'd never know it right? Miss "R" even humored me and my lovely "borrowed" GREEN funkadelic chair (which is probably being recovered as I write this...) Ahh...Stunning and gorgeous :)

Jace

I have to interrupt my crazy editing/proofing to post one of the last images I took this past weekend while in Yuma. I saw him standing out on my parents balcony and literally felt myself being sucked back in time to when my youngest brother Jace was brought to our front door (many many times :) naked and wearing cowboy boots. At the time, Avenue B wasn't 4 lanes...in fact they were just adding the stop light and there was a huuuuuggge massive pit behind the house and I believe one of the people brought him to us (his older responsible siblings who should've been watching him :) and said "He was just standing by that pit out there leaning over and peering in" (as traffic was streaming by)....yep...naked...cowboy boots (which he wore soooo much he completely wore the heels out and the nails started to come through so they were thrown out.) It must've been the white blonde hair that helped me on my trip down memory lane and not the cute naked boonie:)

I have many many many sessions to post and many many many

more to take in the next 2 weeks. Thanks in advance for everyone's patience! (wink wink...) I had a great time in Yuma and will probably do it again...NEXT YEAR :)

Engagement "Guest" Book & Wedding Invitations

I'm soooo excited! I've been waiting to get this and it's finally here! (Thank you to Jess Curen for use of the images from their engagement session in Utah). This is the best idea and use of your engagement images (that are so incredible and awesome--but will soon be crowded out by the wedding images :). I've compiled them into an "Engagement Guest-Sign-In Book". So instead of walking into a reception and signing your name in a little ol' book...you get to leave your name with lots of comments and add fun ideas for the bride and groom. I will be adding them to my Wedding Packages, but for the weddings I've already booked you can add them on for $75.00

AND...we used the aqua and brown "theme" for their wedding invitation. This is a 5x5" tri-fold card. And we did a 4x5.5" RSVP card and a smaller card.

Photography 101 & 102

For Relief Society (Church) I did a powerpoint presentation on "taking better photos" and then 2 mini-classes where the ladies were able to bring their cameras and practice what we learned (and be critiqued). We had a good time, and I'm glad I was able to do some church service (this counts for the next 2 years right?). I told the ladies that I would include some before/after PS editing images. I had some fun little models who did a great job. Moms of models can email me if they'd like any of the images.

The next 4 shots were done on an ugly, grey, concrete wall to show how sometimes location DOESN'T need to play a huge part in creating a nice image...

A little playful interaction to get the models laughing...

Before PS:

After PS:

Working on including someone in a beautiful landscape/scenery shot...

Before/After PS



Before/After PS