Joy Jill Photography- People and pet portraiture on Oahu

A New Project

2011-12-06T01:34:00.001-06:00

I have not been blogging here because I have been busy with a new project. A new goal. I am still doing photography, but not blogging about it. If you are interested in following my happenings you should head over and check out The Ninety K Project. It's a work in progress and I think it's gonna be awesome. I think it's already awesome :)

Eleven Eleven Eleven and Thirty Five

2011-11-11T20:11:00.000-06:00

CELEBRATE! Eleven Eleven Eleven will not happen for another 100 years! You should feel special to live in this century and be able to enjoy such a rare occasion. Really. What is extra special about 11.11.11 though is that it is Brain's birthday! That's where the 35 comes in... HOLY COW! I know, 35... (sigh). I say it every year and I will say it again... he will always be 28 in my mind (at least until I am 28!).I was thinking about making a list of 11 awesome things to do on this grand day, and then I realized I coulcn't think of 11 awesome things that Brian would want to do on his birthday, because there aren't eleven things. There is only one. Go to the beach! Well, and of course, HAVE NO PLAN! Plans don't seem to work for us, and they only seem to frustrate me so I decided not to have one and so far it has been grand! It is also Veteran's Day so be sure to hug your soldier or sailor! I know I sure will :)

Yes, this guy is 35... Doesn't look half bad for 35 if I must say so myself! :) Yes, this shot was taken mere days ago... so I guess THAT guy below is 34... Don't worry I will post the shots of the 35 year old soon :)

Doesn't he look SO much like his dad in this shot?! CRAZY, crazy.

Crazy Ideas & Helicopters

2011-11-09T01:08:00.000-06:00

I have a lot of crazy ideas. Crazy ideas followed by more crazy ideas. They breed like rabbits. My latest idea or goal rather is to become a helicopter pilot. Yeah, sounds random and I guess it kind of is. Last summer (2010) my friend Kristan and I went on a helicopter ride in New Zealand. We flew over glaciers and even landed on one. It was pretty awesome, especially as Kristan landed (oh so gracefully) on her bum while exiting the aircraft. Who knew the snow was so powdery and soft! There was definite skill because she was stepping out facing forward and she landed on her butt... a wonderful twisty move to save her dear camera :) Rabbit trail! The point is, the helicopter ride was pretty freaking awesome, and for whatever strange reason both Kristan and I have started seriously considering becoming helicopter pilots. Something about letting that experience fester for a year worked the same way on both of us. Problem is... becoming a pilot is EXPENSIVE. I took an intro flight where I was allowed to fly the plane (only under direct supervision of course) and it was, as I'd imagined, AWESOME. The shot below is directly after our flight in NZ when the helicopter left us on the side of the road for our bus to pick us up... I don't think there is a happier picture of us anywhere.

The school here in Hawaii is $90,000... it's painful to even think about that amount of money especially when we are still paying off our oh so painful student loans. No way I am taking out more loans, and really, how hard could it be to make $90k? I had a new idea almost daily for about 3 weeks. Some days I had more than one idea, but let's be realistic... there were a lot of bad ideas. No need to worry though, I bounce all ideas off Brian before attempting them. As of now I am going to attempt to make enough money with photography to at least get my private license. After that point, I am hoping to win the lottery. Actually, winning the lottery may be a little more difficult, all I really want to do is go on the Amazing Race and win that. Everyone's got goals they are working on, these are mine: Goal #1 is to pay down as much as possible on our student loans by the end of the year (I have a specific goal to reach each month and we JUST might make it!). Goal #2 Somehow muster enough photography business to at least get a small start on my helicopter plan by January. Goal #3 Apply to be on the Amazing Race with Kristan (and possibly my dad too) hoping that I can make it on with one of them. Goal #4 Enjoy getting there.

Number four is proving to be the hardest one this week. Life passes by too quickly. Don't sweat the small stuff.

Family Portrait Special - Oahu

2011-10-20T14:09:00.000-05:00

The holiday season is rapidly approaching, or it's not even approaching rather, it's HERE! We are a mere week and a half from Halloween at which time all holiday madness breaks loose everywhere. Thanksgiving things are everywhere and I have even seen a few Christmas things at the NEX. AND I am sure Christmas music is bound to be heard at the Lewis' house... (though I think that happens there year round). Holiday season is a time for many things and one of those things is family portraits! Everyone NEEDS family portraits at Christmas time. It's just the perfect way to end any year.

So here's the deal... the Holiday Family Portrait Deal! Any session scheduled between now and Christmas will include a print package (8 wallets, two 4x6, and one 5x7 $35 value!). I do also have a military discount so military members get a double deal! And if you want to get a triple deal email me with your address so I can send you some referral cards. If you have three friends that book a session with me (between now and Christmas) your session fee will be waved!!! Any more (after the first three) friends that book a session and you receive a $20 print credit per booking. If you know enough people interested in getting family portraits you could have your session and prints FREE!

So there you have it folks! Happy Holidays from Joy Jill Photography :) These portraits can be anything you want them to be. The whole family, just the kids, just the dogs, just the favorites... ;) One hour session at any location on Oahu, your choice. Whether you are the Family A example below or the Family B example it doesn't matter. Sending out family Christmas cards is bound to bring a smile to people's faces and who doesn't want to do that! Really. Get in the Christmas Spirit people! And if you are the Family A type... well, you're bound to bring more than just a smile to the face of those who receive your card and picture :)

Family A (we love you Tamara!)

Family B (this is purely for sibling rivalry kicks :)

For those of you who don't know the above pictures are both Brian's sisters :)

Desperate Times... Desperate Measures

2011-09-26T12:27:00.000-05:00

Life is an adventure. I have beenmarveling lately over all the adventures that Brian and I haveshared. We got married one year before we graduated college (in SantaBarbara, Ca) and we have since then lived in San Diego, Japan,Florida, and now we are in Hawaii. That is five very differentlocations in five years. I think that has to be some kind of record!I have done something different in every location. It seems I am aJack of all trades master of none. I completely thought that ofmyself in high school... little did I know it would follow me intoadulthood (I'm pretty sure I am actually considered an adult at 25now :). Photography is always on the side everywhere I go, but this timearound I am working at a dive shop. Because what other way can onetruly enjoy Hawaii? I spend my days on the water in a kayak and wenton my first dive Thursday. My question is how the heck did I get thisjob? The question can only be answered by the picture below...

I saw an ad on craigslist about a weekbefore coming to Hawaii. I had responded to a similar ad the daybefore (a job as a kayak guide). I really wanted the job and wasdeliriously responding to it late at night thinking, I have noqualifications for this job. I need to stand out. They want apicture? There are only two pictures of me on this computer...and so I sent the picture above in my response to the email makingsome comment about how I am outdoorsy and athletic and promising thatI am professional despite the ridiculous picture. Somehow I receiveda call from them a few days later (I had already forgotten about itthinking they had hired someone else). They asked to do an interviewthe day after I landed and asked how soon I could start. Next thing Iknew I was “working” three days after arriving in Hawaii. Theprogram that I work is called Warrior Adventure Quest (WAQ) and it'sa contract they have with the military. The people that come out forthis program are signed up by their unit and they get to do kayaking,stand up paddle board, snorkeling, and diving. I have been on thekayaks for the most part, but will be learning to dive next weekendso I can help in other areas. With my dive certification they willalso have me work in the dive shop on the days that they don't haveWAQ. Which means, I have a steady job Monday through Friday. I haveno idea how this happened. I just got lucky. Really lucky.

So... Hawaii. It's going awesome :)

Road Trip - Reno, Nevada

2011-09-19T17:21:00.000-05:00

Road trip of the year. I didn't exactly go on any other road trips in 2011 and now that I am in Hawaii “road trip” is not something really in their vocabulary. Or if it is, we did it yesterday because we took a “road trip” to the north island (a whopping hour drive). Which brings me back to my initial point that Florida to Indiana to California was and is the road trip of the year.

Brian's parents live in Reno, NV and they were our last stop before hitting my parents in California. We stayed the weekend there and enjoyed a visit to Lake Tahoe, a hike, and some good time with the family :) The flowers below are all snaps from our hike. I like the image below and I am not sure there is anything to say other than throw your arms in the air and sing... aaaahhhhhhhh! I don't know how to spell a tune. Sorry. It was light at the end of the tunnel. I enjoyed the road trip and time visiting all my family thoroughly, but I was SO ready to get to Hawaii, reunite with Brian, and get settled into my own space. It wasn't a bad tunnel. It was an exciting tunnel, but I was finally beginning to see light at the end of it :)

Oahu, Hawaii - Pet Portraiture

2011-09-16T20:24:00.000-05:00

We made it to Oahu! After driving 4,000 miles all over the USA Shugo, Chancho and I have arrived safely to Oahu, Hawaii. We are already quite settled and enjoying the beach and beautiful weather and of course Brian's wonderful company! I am still sorting through all our images from our travels, but promise to post soon! It was quite an adventure traveling the US with the pups in the back of the truck and we had a blast! Shugo and Chancho are ready to hit up the beaches here (that's right many of Oahu's beaches are quite dog friendly!!). I am very excited to finally be here and start doing photography again! 'Tis the season for family and pet portraits! Stories and travel pictures coming soon... ;)

Traveling Dogs

2011-08-23T21:55:00.000-05:00

That's right. Traveling dogs, not traveling gnomes and though I have packed my traveling gnome t-shirt, I have yet to wear it on my travels. My dogs will be the most well-traveled dogs you will ever meet. At the end of this trip I will be posting their photos of all the lovely locations that they have been able to visit. Chancho even swam in the Mississippi, but only because he took a dive off the dock... the water wasn't super nice at the spot we stopped so we didn't actually want to get in. I even asked the lady at the gas station if the Mississippi was nice and clean to swim in. Note to self: don't ask a local if their super famous river is gross.

Aren't my pups the cutest!?! They really do look like brothers :)

Hicks Family – Huntington, Indiana

2011-08-19T20:44:00.000-05:00

My brother and his family have just moved from Massachusetts to Huntington, Indiana. He is a new professor at the university in town and the timing was just right for me to visit just days after their arrival and days before the school year starts. The last time Jonathan and I saw each other was in May 2008 when I drove with him across the country to help him move all their stuff from California to Massachusetts. Adrienne was very pregnant with Camille at the time and sitting in the car for days on end at that time was not going to happen. So here we are in August, three years later. Camille is turning three in a few days and we all have really enjoyed the week together :) Her little curls are my absolute favorite!

Ethan is a wild boy. Loves to be loud and all over the place. Typical boy. Below is the reaction I received when I told him his parents were not coming home and I would be taking their place. They went out to shop for some birthday stuff for Camille and we had some good bonding time with the camera.

Camille is really difficult to make look at the camera. She unfortunately got over me pointing it at her rather quickly. I only got the shot below because I told her to watch for the camera to blink at her :) It worked! Then Ethan also wanted to see the camera blink at him.

I LOVE both the shots below. Awesome :)

I love grumpy kid pics too...

Looks like he's up to something, definitely my brother's boy.

Ethan's got that look again... JUST like my brother! Sneaky sneaky ;)

Cute little country girl!

Foster & Stella

2011-08-11T20:02:00.000-05:00

Meet Foster (left) and Stella (right). Two very sweetly spoiled pups :) Overwhelmed with all the new things to smell, they were quite distracted yet happy the entire shoot. Stella came out of the car first while Foster took a dive only to find himself still strapped into the seat belt. Stunt dog! It was pretty funny :) Unfortunately I did not photograph it. Personality? Definitely. These pups belong to my friend Lori. We have worked together for Alaqua Animal Refuge and make a pretty decent team. I provide photos and she plugs in the words. She makes my life easy because I'm not much of a writer as you can clearly read here :) Are you even still reading this? Thank you Lori for letting me photograph your pups! I enjoyed it and have thoroughly enjoyed working with you these past few months!

Stella was quite intrigued by a horse in the field nearby.

Sniff... sniff sniff. Sensory overload!

Balance

2011-06-30T04:52:00.000-05:00

Sleep comes in sets. It's better to sleep for 4 hours than 6, it's a rem cycle sort of thing. Not that I know that much about sleep, but I do know that I feel more awake now than I would have had I slept till my alarm clock. I am off to get balanced. I leave for Hawaii in a few hours to see my other half. My motto for life is all or nothing. It's not a motto that I chose, but rather just who I have always been. Brian of course was the one that brought this realization to me six to seven years ago when we first met. I have been ALL into my job and I am about to be ALL into my vacation/marriage. Brian and I are pretty independent from each other. When we are apart we don't talk as much as most couples do, or let me rephrase that we don't talk ANYWHERE CLOSE to as much as most couples do. We function better that way and it works. I am not sure where I came from, but it seems that I am the only one in my family that is this way.

I am off to find my balance. Brian is my balance. He helps me to stop, take a deep breath, and relax. I have learned to do it on my own, but he can do it for more than moment that I usually do. I am excited to meet up with him again, and excited to catch up on each others' lives. He has been thoroughly enjoying his time in Hawaii. He works at night and bodyboards during the day. It's a replica of his time in Puerto Rico and I look at his FB page and wonder who the heck he is! Since we have known each other we never really lived in a place with good waves so he wasn't THAT into it. Aside from San Diego, but he was working constantly while we were there. So... I'm off to get to know (all over again) this man I am married to and hopefully I recognize him despite his tan and extra blonde hair :)

I love the shot below. Usually I am the one with the silly face and Brian is the serious one that is concentrating the second the shot is taken... a perfect opposite to our usual :)

Vote for Alaqua!

2011-06-26T22:15:00.000-05:00

I know it's been ages since I posted anything. Sorry internet world, I have not cared to keep you updated any longer. Someday when I move and am going through my new living space excitement/boredom (yes my life is a conundrum) I will perhaps get back into blogging. Until then you can enjoy my very random posts. You have one job right now, ONE.

1. Go to this link and vote for Alaqua Animal Refuge (zip code - 32439). Do it! Go now! Don't waste another moment!

Alaqua Animal Refuge is a pretty amazing place (as you can clearly see in these pictures). It costs $50,000 a month to operate Alaqua. We receive no government funding and operate off of donations, fundraisers, grants, and fun contests like this! Please vote so we can win the $15,000 to help us continue to help all the animals! It's really easy and it only takes a moment. Thank you!

Chula - Pet Photography

2011-06-01T21:18:00.000-05:00

The plan is to get Chula adopted. She is my foster pup and I have precisely three months to find her a home. If I don't she will be stuck here at Alaqua. Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad place, but I know she will not do well in a kennel. She is already skiddish in new places as it is. I can't imagine her being in a kennel. She's a great dog. Minds well. Knows how to sit, down, come (most of the time), and she's crate trained. Seriously, if there is anyone in Northwest Florida looking for a fairly trained young dog, who LOVES her master, this is the one for you. Once she gets to know you, she'll stick by your side for anything. I'd keep her myself, but it turns out you can't have more than two dogs in base housing. And, realistically, three dogs is a bit excessive for the often moving military life. So here she is... born mid-September, Shepherd/American Bulldog mix, spayed, crate trained, and ready to go! If you know anyone interested in adopting her please contact Alaqua Animal Refuge at 850-880-6399.

I hate to split these two up, but what else can I do? I'm sure they'll get over it. Not like they have a choice.

Chula loves this little pool. She dunks her head in as far as she can and swirls it around :) It's pretty hot here these days so it's a pretty good idea.

This is THE BEST shaking dog pic I have ever gotten. I have tried quite a bit too. Pretty stinkin' hilarious :)

Thunderstorms + Angels

2011-05-27T09:51:00.000-05:00

Thunder and lightning woke me up just before 2am. I lay there in bed trying to decide if what I heard was rain or the fan in my room. It shouldn't be a difficult thing to decipher, but I have confused simpler things when being awoken out of a deep slumber. Remembering that I was in charge of caring for Angel should it start to pour in the night I decided it wasn't raining, but knew it could start at any moment so I jumped out of bed, pulled on my boots and headed for the door. Chula hollered at me from her crate and I continued outside. It was only drizzling, but the sky was lighting up. Standing under the shelter I yelled for Angel. She nickered at me and started my way from the other side of the pasture. It amazes me how friendly she is, but I guess that's what happens when you get a horse from a neglect case and not an abuse case. She's a new arrival and seems to really enjoy the regular care and attention. Pretty happy to have a visitor in the middle of the night, she followed me straight into her stall. I gave her a few pats and made a run for the house. How often do people get struck by lightning? I love thunderstorms, but something about walking around outside during them makes me a tad nervous.

Shortly after I went inside it began to pour. Good timing :) There was quite a bit of thunder and lightning and I grabbed my camera hoping to get some cool shots. I have never got any lightning shots and this was my perfect opportunity. Great idea. Poor circumstances. I have no tripod, and as I opened the door thinking I would just shoot from the doorway (using the chair as my tripod) I realized I was blocked by trees. Door number two... a bright light coming out of the shed, buildings, and more trees. Not quite a perfect scenario for good lightning shots. Maybe if I went to the barn I could get some shots, but I would have to make a run for it and have something to cover my camera. Too much effort. Chula is upset that I have been up for a few minutes now and have continued to ignore her in her crate. Who am I kidding? I have never had the patience to shoot night photography or anything that requires tripods cause I hate setting them up; and really, it's 2am and I should be sleeping.

Cocoa

2011-05-26T13:37:00.000-05:00

I love this dog. I don't love all dogs. I can be picky. Small dogs have to seriously work for my love. This dog though? Instant. I think Cocoa has been here a week or two. Not sure how she was not instantly adopted. Clearly not everyone shares my affinity for large puppies with floppy ears. Do I need another dog? No. Can I turn down a puppy? It appears I am capable of such things!

If you live anywhere near Northwest Florida and want to adopt this puppy. Check out her link and call on her!

A New Season

2011-05-07T09:41:00.001-05:00

I do not know where to begin. There are seasons in life and I think I have started one in which blogging just isn't going to happen. Let me explain. In my worry about the dogs and where they would spend their quarantine time in order to get to Hawaii I found a great solution. If you want it done right do it yourself. I am staying behind to wait out the dogs quarantine and we will meet up with Brian in Hawaii in September. I am hoping to visit him in July, but I know how ships can be and if he is out to sea too much or cannot get leave, I might not be able to visit. I'm not getting my hopes up and am trying to enjoy our last two weeks together. By the time he leaves we will have been together for a full six months. It seems like it's been a lot longer (and I mean that in a good way!).

So my plan to stay was secured by a job at Alaqua Animal Refuge. My life seems to revolve around being a jack of all trades, master of none, and it seems I will be the jack of all trades at Alaqua (or one of the many there...). I've been busy with Alaqua, preparing to move, and making sure I am taking the proper steps with the dogs' quarantine. I will still be doing photography work, but to be honest I haven't got a ton of work anyway, so my focus will be shifting to Alaqua and whatever photography work I get on the side will be great. But it will be just that, on the side. I'd like to keep blogging for you people who actually follow me. I know people like seeing pretty pictures and I will be taking plenty of the animals at Alaqua. Perhaps I will turn this into a place to advertise pups up for adoption that I photograph. Yeah, actually that sounds like a plan to me. I need to keep it simple. Maybe some days I will just post a picture, and some days you will get a story with it. Either way I will make an effort to keep this going. I like blogs. I think their fun. So there you go, that's my plan. Just remember, the puppies that are on here are up for adoption! The one below on the right... he was howling at me, in case you can tell :) Or perhaps it was at my camera.

So here's to a new season, a new job, another move, another separation from Brian to make our hearts grow fonder. Sounds kinda sappy to me, but it's true. Our hearts do grow fonder. Four months of something different. Four months of not having any of my stuff. I don't really care about my stuff, so it's not a big deal. I'll have my dogs and that's what I care about. I'll only really miss my whiteboard and my ice cream shovel.

Freedom

2011-04-27T13:39:00.000-05:00

"Do you hear that? . . . it's the sound of freedom." That's what Brian said to me the other day when a jet flew over our heads while we were leaving the base. He then explained to me how when he was in school and they blew something up the instructors would say the same thing. Then, as we drove home we saw a new billboard that essentially said the same thing. I like it. It made me smile.

Freedom is an odd thing. I don't think that most Americans really understand it, myself included. When you are born and raised in America it is difficult to understand and imagine what other countries are like that do not share such freedoms. It's always nice to hear someone thank Brian for his service even though he has never served in a war zone. All military are a part of the process and it's a different life that is a choice.

Our freedom is a sobering thought. Knowing and thinking about what our military go through to keep us safe is serious stuff. Thinking about our government and what they do to control our country? That part is generally infuriating. I know it seems as though all generations think that things are getting worse and there is more corruption etc. I personally don't know if it's getting worse. I am horrible at following politics and until something effects me personally I often don't pay much attention to it. Well, it's personal now and I think with the serious debt that we are in our government is becoming even more crooked. We have recently had some issues with our pay that have thankfully been cleared up (I think), but it makes me wonder how many others there are in the same situation that possibly did not take the time to look into it, and had money wrongly taken from them. Is our government trying to steal from their own military to get out of debt? Has the government become so crooked that they would actually steal from those that gave their lives so others could have freedom?

I really have a love-hate relationship with our military, and essentially our government I suppose since they go hand in hand. It could have been an honest mistake, but deep down I feel it wasn't. It makes me want to write a letter to Obama. But then I figure he wouldn't receive it, or no one would care, it'd get lost in the shuffle. Can one small person in the military with a very weird situation be heard? I just hope that it was truly an accident because it would really be horrible for the government to be that corrupt. I'd like to think that the sound of freedom is what we think it is.

Travis & Sarah - Beach Portrait

2011-04-24T12:49:00.000-05:00

Congratulations Sarah and Travis! Newly married and newly pregnant! Two very exciting adventures and I was lucky enough to photograph them during this special time in their lives :) Sarah is a fellow Crossfitter and we enjoy getting tortured together at the gym :) She looked quite lovely in her dress and we enjoyed our photo shoot at the beach near the mid-bay bridge. Sarah is in the Airforce and Travis used to be in the Airforce. Yay for military people! We share the common bond of a love/hate relationship with the government within the military, and we understand the roller-coaster lifestyle that we all lead. Sarah and Travis, I had a wonderful time photographing you guys and I wish you the best with all the big changes you have coming!

Spring Baby!

2011-04-21T13:08:00.000-05:00

It is still Spring isn't it? Technically I think Spring is over here, but it is still happening in other states, so there. Meet the Spring baby at Alaqua! This little colt was a nice surprise to wake up to for everyone at Alaqua. The mama has not been at Alaqua for too long and it's great that everything went well because who knows what she went through during her pregnancy. Complications were definitely a possibility so yay for everyone being healthy! The mama was nice and let me in the stall and I stood at a distance taking pictures for about 10 minutes or so. When I was done she'd made her way back into the stall with the little one trailing behind her. As I started to step in to leave out the stall door she gave me a mean look and I thought maybe climbing over the fence would be a better way to escape :) No need to cause any more excitement than I'd already had. It's kinda nice being the designated photographer at Alaqua. It gets me all kinds of access to visit the cool new additions :)

Cute yawn!

I know this shot is blurry, but I really like it anyway :)

More Change

2011-04-20T12:38:00.000-05:00

Hello internet world. It has been a while and I was doing so well with posting regularly! I went into internet hibernation due to some serious changes going on. It seems we wait for weeks and weeks and then BAM! everything is immediate! Well, what if I am not ready to leave Florida? Leave Florida you say? That's right, this trip is coming to a quick end.

Turns out Brian was not meant to be an EOD tech. He is no longer in the program and as of today we officially have orders to Hawaii! It has been a crazy couple of weeks with all kinds of changes and waiting for information. The dogs will have to go through quarantine and I was pretty stressed about that for a bit. Turns out Shugo is still clear cause the FAVN test is good for 36 months. We'll make it just in time. But then there's Chancho... it crossed my mind to find him a home for about one day. If only I could find the perfect home who would take both Chancho and Chula... unlikely. And in reality, I don't want to get rid of Chancho. He is a part of the family. So, there are some other plans brewing and we are still waiting to get a move date, but we are officially moving to Hawaii and I am officially keeping both my dogs no matter what! Below is a very excited pup cause that is how my life feels most of the time. Exciting, crazy, all over the place. And right now I am excited about new plans and some upcoming changes :)

Chula - Alaqua Animal Refuge

2011-04-08T10:25:00.000-05:00

Alaqua is addicting. There is so much to help out with and it's nice to be contributing to the community. This is my first time ever doing so much community service with one particular place. And, to be honest, I have probably spent more time volunteering with Alaqua than I have with any other place throughout my life all combined! I have just never really done much volunteering. At least I am now though! So many different things they have going on and so many different ways one can volunteer. I feel as though I have done a little of everything almost yet I know I haven't! Chula is my new "thing" :) I am now also a foster parent! Please do not be confused by the picture... this is Chula. I promise :)

Chula is Chancho's sister. And by sister I mean litter-mate, not half sister, or look alike. They are positively 100% brother and sister! We found Chancho on craigslist. He was free and had two sisters with him. We went out there to find a odd situation. I didn't really like any of them a ton, but I felt obligated to save at least one. I considered for a moment taking all of them, but thought better of it. They all freaked out when something fell over and made a loud noise. One puppy in particular (Chula) never recovered. She was yelping the entire time we were there (about 30 minutes) hiding under a truck. We couldn't get her to come out and I knew she would be lucky if someone took her. Who would want a whiney/yappy dog like that? I know it seems heartless, but we are Barkers... we don't want barkers. Needless to say I was not one bit surprised when I saw her picture posted on FB and she was in fact, out at Walton County Shelter. I immediately knew it was Chancho's sis cause she looks just like him and is the same age. I figured I would call the next day to save her, but then realized that we can't spend the money to adopt her and spay her etc. I emailed Laurie Hood (founder of Alaqua) and asked her to pick her up as an Alaqua dog and I would foster her until adoption since I know they don't have any space at Alaqua. Less than one week later she's here!

Below, Chancho is on the left and Chula is on the right. Definitely siblings. At Alaqua when they get a litter of pups they name them all starting with the same letter for organization. So I figured I would pick a C name and keep it Spanish too :) They have not been reunited yet as we need to have a quarantine period to be sure no one gets each other sick. Chula is very sweet though. Skiddish, but coming around quickly.

These two boys can't wait to meet her. When I put her in her crate and let them out of the front room they RUN out the door to the yard thinking she might still be out there and perhaps they could all be friends. I trick em' every time! And Chancho... mister pig who wouldn't leave his food behind for anything? I locked the boys in the front and gave them breakfast and went to the back to take Chula into the yard and there he was... staring through the sliding glass door hoping to get a glimpse of his sis as she passed through the hall :) I put her outside and immediately went to rescue Chancho's food from Shugo's mouth. I had to lock Chancho in his crate so he would focus on his eating and Shugo wouldn't steal it! Ridiculous... Soon though they will be reunited and it will be sweet :)

Go Time!

2011-04-06T12:21:00.000-05:00

It's go time people! Go time. This morning I was photographing a dog and did this sort of jump to play, and I am pretty sure I scarred the boy for life. He didn't want to come near me after that. Apparently we didn't know each other well enough before I tried to play. I am like these dogs today. Ready. Intense. About to bounce. Why? In due time my friend. In due time. Life's a box of chocolates and you never know what your gonna get. I just hope I don't get chocolate :)

Dog Photography - Furry Fanatics

2011-04-04T10:46:00.000-05:00

Saturday I was out at Furry Fanatics at Gulf Place in Santa Rosa Beach doing dog photography! It was such a beautiful day and we had some lovely pups show up to get their portrait done. We started off with Bella and Jet. Bella is quite the model, but Jet wasn't too fond of me getting in his face with the camera. He was just a bit shy, but I got some good ones anyway :) It was a bit complicated getting a shot of the two of them together, but somehow we managed!

Next up was Buddy. He's an old fellow who kept giving me a side glance that, had he spoken human, would have likely included some expletives... He didn't want to sit or lay down so I followed him around as he strolled along shooting him like he was walking down a runway. I think the people who drove by thought we were quite ridiculous :) That's always my goal!

Next up was Gracie. She's a co-owner of Furry Fanatics, and has some seriously awesome floppy ears! No matter where we went, she had her eyes locked on the store like a good owner... or maybe it was Tim in the store that she was locked in on. Either way, we worked with it :)

Last up was Eliot. Definitely the easiest of the day. He loved the camera and was a natural model. I am serious when I tell you that dogs are just like people in that some like the camera and some don't. The ones that don't really test my ability, and to be honest I am not sure which is worse, a dog that doesn't like the camera, or a human... either way it makes my life interesting :)

I love that last shot on the right. He looks like he is drunk with happiness :)

Portraiture in a Wedding Dress - Niceville, Fl

2011-03-29T08:27:00.000-05:00

Monday was my first wedding-ish shoot in a while. I say wedding-ish because there was no actual wedding :) Jessica has been married for about 10 months or so, but has yet to have her ceremony. To some of you this may be odd, but for us military folk... totally NOT odd. They will be having their actual ceremony wedding bash in May, and though they have a photographer she really wanted to get some shots of just her in her dress. Her husband is out for the week so what better timing than now? Aside from the threats of thunderstorm (stupid weather.com!) we had a LOVELY session, and the weather ended up being perfect. So glad we decided to take our chances :) Jessica is absolutely gorgeous and we had a wonderful time near Boggy Bayou in Niceville... or perhaps it's technically Valparaiso. Seriously, I think she will be stunning on her wedding day! And I have to point out that nothing in photoshop touched her face. She is naturally just that beautiful.

We were on the side of the road and she suggested we get in the middle of the road. Awesome. I love LOVE clients who want to do things like this :) She even wanted to sit on a tree branch and totally would have had we been able to find the right one... maybe another day.

Jessica and her man have the cutest story. She has known him since she was seven years old. Always had a crush on him. However, he is five years older than her so he didn't notice her quite the way she noticed him at first. Sometime around twelve though she got up the courage to throw it out there. Their families were friends and he had left his bag at her grandma's house (or it may have been a cousin, not sure which), and she slipped a picture of her with her phone number in the bag for him to find later. He found it, called her the next day,and the rest is history. How cute is that!?!

I was LOVING the dock and her shoes! So many awesome shots there. And I have to give Brian credit for finding this spot :) We were driving around looking for new locations to shoot at and he randomly found this little loop with all these great photo places. It's a real keeper!

Japan - A Few of My Favorite Things

2011-03-26T07:40:00.003-05:00

When the dog bites, when the bee stings, I simply just think of my favorite things and I don't feeeel soooo baaaaaad! Once upon a time I had the opportunity to photograph a very talented musical family. John wanted studio shots of him with his instruments, but we did the family shots outside because Nadine was allergic to dogs and Shugo is in fact, a dog. Their little girl Justine was SO cute with her curls and her little violin. I LOVE the violin. Not sure why, but I do, and if I ever had the patience for it I would learn to play it. I don't think my patience could last that many years though, so it will be quite unlikely.

As we were taking pictures I had them playing different songs. It was seriously one of my favorite shoots! As we were walking back toward my house/studio a neighbor excitedly came out of her home... "My Favorite Things Kudasai! Play. Kudasai. Hi. My Favorite Things. My Favorite Things." John response? Ughhhh... Honey? How does that go? The Japanese woman, my neighbor, whom I have never met, nor even waved to (or bowed since that is their custom), nor did I even knew she spoke a single word of English, bursts out humming the tune. He tried to play it, and she quite forcefully corrected him. iie. iie. La La LA la. La La LA la... We were in the middle of our shoot, and also the middle of the street, trying to move on and continue. He was very polite though and he later informed me that what happened was a completely normal occurrence. He made that woman's day. I bet she never thought she would get a personal performance from a US Navy Band member right in her own yard. Of course she probably also never thought an American musician wouldn't know that song by heart.

Japan is still hurting. The mess caused by the earthquake will not be taken care of anytime soon. The lives that have been forever changed... Japan is still in desperate need of our prayers and support. I realize this post is a day late (and probably a dollar short too), but I saw this on a fellow photog's blog and wanted to post it up too. It was the reason for my not posting on Friday. If you want to help Japan and are not sure where to start, here is an option. The picture below looks pretty terribly on here, but there was a bloggers "Day of Silence" Friday started by For Japan With Love. Check it out and help our Japanese friends!

Horse Photography - Alaqua Animal Refuge

2011-03-23T10:18:00.000-05:00

Saturday I had my first successful Horse Volunteer work day at Alaqua :) We got the horses groomed and got pictures of them for the website. There were a few that had to be complicated and wouldn't perk their ears up... *cough* Bucky *cough*... however! We got a great one when he was distracted by his girlfriend ;) His golden shot is the last one on the left. Directly below we have Joe. All these horses are adoptable and they are all pretty darn sweet. Some of the Alaqua horses are rid-able and some aren't. I think I mentioned it before, but I am heading up the horse volunteer department at Alaqua. We have a really great group of volunteers who are in love with the horses and want to help out in any way possible. It amazes me as to how much Alaqua does with the small amount of staff they have on hand. It is such a HUGE facility and they are very dependent on volunteers to help them do what they do. I am currently working on a "Day in the life of Alaqua" project with the Alaqua public relations girl (Lori). Our goal is to show people that Alaqua is not what you would expect from a animal shelter. It's an amazing facility on ten acres, and probably the exact opposite from anything you have seen or experienced when visiting a shelter or animal control sort of place. So! At some point you will see shots for that and maybe even an article somewhere :)

Sarah.

Bucky and Spirit are in the "senior pasture" at Alaqua livin' the life!

Nichole and Josh's Wedding

2011-03-21T10:41:00.000-05:00

I know it has been a couple of weeks, but what can I say? If it does not NEED to be done and I don't do it immediately, it just tends to sit on the back burner until I get sick of seeing it on my to do list. I was in my friend, Nichole's wedding a couple weeks ago in California. It was a beautiful wedding and I am so happy that I was able to be a part of it. She looked amazing and now she has a lovely new name :)

Nichole and I go way back to 6th grade when she was the new girl in school. We sat next to each other in class. One day in class we were all quietly working on some math homework when one of us went to pick up a hair that was sitting on the other's sheet only to realize that it was a pencil marking. This odd incident was quite hysterical from an eleven year old's perspective, and we hit it off from there. A weird way to start a friendship. I know. That's how it happened though ;)

Back to the wedding. It was at Catta Verdera in Lincoln, California. A pretty snazzy venue indeed. I had a wonderful time photographing us girls getting ready, and of course tagged behind the photographer and got some of my own shots of the bride :) I would recognize the photographer, but I cannot for the life of me remember their names... though I did see a couple shots posted on Nichole's Facebook and I must say they did a FABULOUS job! I am so excited to see the rest of their images! The wedding went off without a hitch, minus a few raindrops, or adding a few raindrops. Seriously, the second we stepped outside to begin the ceremony it started to sprinkle. Not a lot, but a little and it started a little harder and we thought we were in for it, but it stayed light and everything was wonderful. I think Nichole may have even been a little relieved because it forced her father and Josh's father to keep their talking under control :) So yes, a few rain drops to seal the deal and we were off for more pictures and the reception. The food. Oh the FOOD. Filet Mignon anyone? I would have taken a picture of it had I not eaten it so quickly.

I love love LOVE their family. Above is her sweet dad and below is her brother both getting teary eyed seeing her ready to be married ;) I can remember her brother driving us to Homecoming once as we were all dressed up and giving us advice on how not to be that ditsy girl smacking her gum. Not that we needed that advice, but it was said anyway ;)

All us bridesmaids. Her two sisters and a dear friend of hers. Yes I am totally blurry. At least I got someone in focus right? I am still working on mastering those hand held shots :)

Really though, who does not want this shot from their wedding day? It is a must. Absolutely.

This one too...

It was really a blast being a part of her special day. I really enjoyed spending so much time with her and her family the few days before her wedding.

Furry Fanatics Portrait Party

2011-03-18T10:17:00.000-05:00

Saturday April 2, 2011 we are having a party. A portrait party! Furry Fanatics in Gulf Place has invited me, Joy Jill Photography, out to do a portrait party for their clients! We are having 15 minute sessions all day long from 10am to 5pm! This is the perfect opportunity to get your Mothers Day gift early :) Yes, that's right Mothers Day. Because it is almost upon us yet again. Bring your pet out to get some nice portraits done and if you don't have a pet that's OK! I photograph people too :) We'll have 15 minutes to photograph whoever you'd like. Furry Fanatics will have frames available for purchasing and all images will be posted online within a couple days so you can order prints or albums for Mother's Day! Please stop by Furry Fanatics or give them a call, 850.278.6902 to sign up. There are limited time slots and they are filling up fast!

So come on out to Gulf Place in Santa Rosa Beach on Saturday, April 2, 2011 to get some dog photography (or people photography!) done. I'd love to see you out there!

Back in the Game!

2011-03-17T07:34:00.000-05:00

It's true! He's back in the game! YAY! Yesterday I got a lovely text from Brian that he will be classing up today :) I am so SO happy for him! It has been three an a half weeks now and I think we were both getting a little discouraged. There is no information on anything. He just goes in each day to work hoping that they will give him good news, but they give him nothing. Until today! Isn't it amazing? One day he's waiting and the next he is immediately back in class. Apparently he got into the Navy class behind him which is really cool. I was a little worried about him being in an Army class. Not that there is anything wrong with Army people, or that there is anything wrong with Brian's people skills. I just figured things might be a little more complicated for him if he was the only Navy guy in an Army class. Mixing different branches can be awkward at times. Since he is in a Navy class he already knows some people in the class so that is really cool. A friend of his is in the class, or was in the class. He double-tapped and that is the spot that Brian is taking. I told him he should thank the guy. He said he almost did, but thought better of it. Maybe another day.

Anyway, we are quite excited about this news! Just pray that things go smoothly and he isn't nervous. Three weeks off hopefully didn't make him lazy, or forget anything! He has a few days of practice before he has to take the test that he failed again. I am confident that he will pass it, but there are more difficult things ahead so keep praying that he keeps his head on straight.

Pray For Japan

2011-03-16T13:18:00.000-05:00

Japan has really been on my mind a lot lately, and I am sure many of yours as well. I know there have been a few huge earthquakes in other countries in the last couple of years, and not to sound heartless, but I didn't seem to care as much when the other ones occurred. It's hard for me to attach myself emotionally to something when I am so far away in my safe comfortable America. It's not that I didn't care about the other countries who have been hit by earthquakes, it's devastating but since I have no connection to them in any way I was not as interested in following the details as much as I am with Japan. I lived in Japan for almost two years and it was an amazing experience. I grew to love the country and it's people. I was not excited about moving to Japan initially. I was excited to go somewhere new and be in another country, but Japan was not exactly the top of my list on countries to visit. Yet I fell in love with the country and it became my home for two years.

It is amazing watching the footage and reading about the effects of the earthquake. I still have many friends there with the military and a few Japanese friends as well. Everyone is safe. The area that I lived in felt the earthquake, but thankfully they were not affected in the way that the Sendai area has been. I am in awe of natural disasters. Makes me remember that we are so small. We tend to think we can do and accomplish anything, but we are not as powerful as we tend to think we are. The people of Japan are not more special than the people in Haiti or Chili or any other country that has been hit by a big earthquake lately, but I have a personal connection with Japan and they have been in my prayers and on my mind a lot lately. Please keep praying for Japan as there are so many without homes and they are still trying to control problems that have arose due to the earthquake.

Both of these pictures were taken by Brian as he was heading out to sea. I know I put my name on them, but I could not find this shot ANYWHERE! I know it's on our hard drive, but Brian keeps his stuff in his own folders and I could not find it for the life of me. I just happened to have created a copy for something a while back and put my name on it so it couldn't be snagged. They are probably my all time favorite shots taken during our time in Japan. Enjoy!

Furry Fanatics

2011-03-14T18:03:00.001-05:00

Today I was in Santa Rosa Beach at Furry Fanatics in Gulf Place. I have talked about this store before and I will say again that Julie and Tim are wonderful people! They just opened their store in January and they have really done an awesome job. I was there today photographing their store and products for their website. It was nice to do something a little different from my usual portrait photography. All day long they have great customers coming in bringing their pooches AND we saw several puppies today. SO cute! Definitely a fun place to hang out :)

Here is a nice view of their overall store (or half of it at least).

And below are just a few fun products that I liked shooting.

Horse Photography - Alaqua Animal Refuge

2011-03-11T16:34:00.000-06:00

Yes, there are horses at Alaqua Animal Refuge. The proper question would be what animals do they not have? As most of you know I am a horse person. Since I don't have a horse anymore I have signed on to be the new volunteer coordinator for the horse department at Alaqua :) Now not all of the horses are ride-able, but it has been nice spending a bit more time with the horses even if it's not riding. Earlier this week I worked with a couple volunteers grooming horses and getting new photos taken. It took us a few hours, but we got five horses done and they looked MUCH better! Now is the season of shedding so they all were definitely in need of a good brushing. Next Saturday we are working on getting the rest done. Below is one of the minis at the shelter. Super cute and super sweet little guy. I haven't heard this one's background yet, but I know that many of the horses here came from some bad situations.

The horses could all use some extra love so if anyone knows anyone who might be interested in volunteering with them we'd love to have more people on board! Horses are much more complicated animals than dogs and if you don't know how to work with them it can be dangerous (even if you do know how to work with them it can be dangerous!). Safety is always of utmost importance, and I am currently revamping the volunteer plan of action so that we can have people working with the horses as often as possible and as safe as possible. The less the horses are worked with the more difficult they will become to handle. To keep them in a state of being adoptable animals we really depend on volunteers to work with them. So thank you to all volunteers! Every bit of help is much appreciated :)

Blooming Spring

2011-03-09T15:26:00.000-06:00

It's that time of year again. The time of blooming blossoms and the sneezing people who are allergic to them :) My trip to Auburn was wonderful and my friend's wedding was amazing (pictures are coming I promise!). I was excited to find that I did not miss Alaqua's 2011 Canine Carnival at Gulf Place, but disappointed to find that though I will be in town on the rescheduled date, I will unfortunately be in class that entire day :( It was not meant to be apparently.

I have lots of new pictures to be posting. Wedding, horses, dogs, cats, so many wonderful things happening this spring! It is spring isn't it? I am working with Furry Fanatics on scheduling something special :) so look forward to news on that! I think it's going to be a good spring. I have a lot of exciting plans and different things going on. More pictures and updates are on their way!

Back to Florida

2011-03-08T08:23:00.000-06:00

I am home in Florida today. Back to my busy schedule and warmer weather. Visits home are always nice, but tend to be a little busy trying to visit with as many people as possible while I am in town. It's not so bad though since I was in Auburn so recently. Long day of traveling yesterday though. I flew out of Sacramento at 9:30am and landed in Florida at 9:30pm. Not fun. You'd think I was flying to another country or something, but that is what you get when you select the cheapest flight possible that lands you when your husband is not at work. With that full day of traveling and the time change I think I want to do nothing and might just crash on the couch with the mongrels.

Japan

2011-03-04T14:17:00.001-06:00

Just a funny ad that I saw in Japan. This thing was posted all over and every time I saw it I just had no words. Still, seven months later there are no words.

Chancho

2011-03-03T10:24:00.001-06:00

Chancho is growing. It's what puppies do these days. The other morning when I got him out of his crate, I looked at him and thought he'd grown inches overnight! He has been very hot at night and wakes me up to let him out and he just runs outside and plops his tired body onto the cool sand (our backyard is basically sand despite the fact that we do not live on the water). So here is a shot of them playing when I first got him. Look at the size of Chancho's tiny little head!

And now... yesterday, the growth! Chancho's head can barely fit in Shugo's mouth now!

And Chancho can almost put Shugo's head in his mouth! This is the most important way in which to check the size change of your pet. Who's mouth could his/her head fit into?

Yet, they are buddies. Whether we take Shugo and leave Chancho or if we take Chancho and leave Shugo the one left behind is very depressed and sits by the door waiting until their return. It's so cute!

Homeward Bound

2011-03-02T04:50:00.000-06:00

I am leaving town today to head to a friend's wedding in California. Off I go to my homeland and the wonderful wedding madness. Actually, it won't be wedding madness because my friend, Nichole, is a super organized awesome person who will be totally calm and relaxed and have everything in order to enjoy her day. And if (or rather when) something goes awry (because something always does) she will not bat an eye. And likely because of her awesome perfectionism whatever it is that may go wrong will be so minor that no one in their right mind would care anyway. And she is definitely in her right mind.

When I return I will absolutely post some special moments from the day. I will not be the photographer, but actually a bridesmaid so the images you see will be limited as I will not be standing up there with my camera in hand (how weird would that be!). Yet, you will see images from the wedding I promise! Let's just hope they don't come 3 months after the event like my travel images :) For now just LOOK at what I get to go home and visit for possibly the last time. Dear, sweet Gunther is getting old and who knows when I will return and if he will be there or not...

Random Life

2011-02-28T18:35:00.000-06:00

Life is so funny. I am one of those people who loves to be really busy, but it also drives me crazy from time to time. I am VERY happy though to say that I have finished my comprehensive examination questions for my Masters Degree in Human Relations! For my degree I don't have to do a thesis, but I do have to write these two papers. Definitely much easier than doing a thesis, but I am still very happy to have it over with! So happy. I now have one more class, finishing up my internship (at Alaqua) and then I will be done! This was my bright idea that I wanted to accomplish during our time in Japan. It was going well until the school closed the program in all of the Asia locations. Not cool. I am glad that I will have my Masters though and it has been a fun experience :)

I feel weird sometimes about my life and think that I am just one of those people who dabbles in a little of everything; jack of all trades, master of none. If I gave the list of jobs that I have had in my lifetime you would all be quite impressed with my versatility... or maybe unimpressed with my lack of dedication :) I had a nice conversation with Laurie Hood (the founder of Alaqua Animal Refuge) today and got to learn more about her background and how she ended up here. I love hearing people's stories (especially when they have an interesting one). She has a good story, and it's encouraging to know that most people at my age do not have everything figured out and they too have a random mix of experiences. Perhaps someday my life will all come together as Laurie's seems to have. Surely God has some greater purpose for all the randomness in my life and one day all these experiences will be put to good use :)

I love this puppy below. Reminds me of Shugo when he was a pup. I am really just a puppy you know? My life divided by 7 is still practically puppy. Ok, maybe not entirely puppy, but I still have a lot ahead of me and love it when I meet people that remind me there is no mold for life. No rules. No set plan I have to follow. Who knows what my future holds. Everyone always says, "Well, I never thought I would end up here..." That is my one goal. To end up somewhere I'd never imagined I would. And by that I mean somewhere good, not rehab ;)

Six Months

2011-02-25T18:29:00.000-06:00

So it has officially been six months (on Feb 21) since my return to America. I feel like Japan was forever ago! It was such a wonderful experience and I HOPE that we can be stationed overseas again. How was it transitioning back to America these last six months? Weird and not weird. The hardest part initially was adjusting to my crazy family. Two years away from them and then getting thrown into the madness was a little overwhelming at first, but at the same time wonderful :) America is wonderful, but being in Northwest Florida I am experiencing a whole new part of it. I am definitely in the South and most people have a special southern twang and speak English a little differently than I am used to from time to time. Despite that, I can understand everyone perfectly so that is one big change from Japan. It wasn't difficult adjusting to the right side of the road, but I STILL have to think twice when walking the dogs and which side cars are going to be on. There was a really odd moment in the first month of my return where I was driving on the freeway and looked over and thought Huh, that's funny. She must have got her car in another country cause her steering wheel is on the wrong side... and then I realized our steering wheels were on the same side.

There are some definite things I miss about Japan. I miss our lovely neighbors. It was always fun to attempt conversation with them. They were the ones who made our stay so wonderful. Always very kind and loved Shugo as much as we did :) I miss the random awesome trails that are everywhere that make you feel like you are not in a city or residential area. I miss the song that played everyday at 5pm to let the kids know it was time to head home. The garbage truck that played Fur Elise when it stopped. The amazing soft serve ice cream and our favorite Indian restaurant Appu Ghar. SO GOOD. I would return to Japan just to eat there again. I seriously miss our shower, because it was basically a room. So much space and it had the BEST drainage system to prevent clogging. I miss how I was so intrigued with everything and I didn't ever have to go far to feel like I was exploring something new. I miss the cool little rice field that was right around the corner from our house. It was fun to watch it grow and wonder when they would cut it. Sadly the day they cut it I had photo shoots booked all day so I was not able to capture the moment with my camera, but I burned the image into my brain so I can at least enjoy it :) Very cool to watch even for the short moment that I drove by. I even miss our wood floors because it was so easy to clean. Sure it got dirty extra fast, but at least I knew it was dirty. AND there was no worry about paws leaving stains. Mopping solved anything.

Things I do not miss... our tiny tiny yard that was not enclosed. The ridiculous recycle system that did not have a category for American trash and the fact that I had to dump half of my trash on base and hope I didn't get caught (because I wasn't really supposed to do that). Exchanging dollars to yen and always losing. I really can't think of much else. I really liked it there. I don't know that I would like to be stationed there again because I would really love to go somewhere new, but I definitely would not be upset if we were sent there a second time.

Below you can enjoy a cute video of Shugo with the neighbor dogs. They would play together almost every weekend. Shugo's best friend Ed (pronounced Edo) always made him happy. We all just loved watching them play together.

Blind

2011-02-23T21:30:00.001-06:00

So this lady came into Alaqua today with her mother and I happened to be the only one in the office at the time. They came in wanting to see dogs cause they are looking for a new pup. Sitting in the back office I hear a loud Hellooo... No one was in the front at that moment so I walked out and saw a very excited woman with her mother on her arm. The mother was clearly blind, but they were both quite excited to walk around and see what dogs we had available for adoption. As I walked out the door with them I was immediately grateful for my eyesight. It was clear that the daughter cared deeply for her mother and thought nothing of having to hold her hand everywhere. Steps are coming up. One. Two. Three. Last one. Ok. It was second nature to her. Leading her mother around and describing to her all that she can't see. Oh look at the puppies! They look like little mini dobermans. And there's one brown one. Oh he likes you. He is looking at you and licking the fence. Amazing. Just amazing. If you are reading this you have your eyesight and I think that is something that we all take for granted. I am sure there are some blessings that come with blindness, but for now I am quite grateful for the blessing of not being blind.

Wasn't sure what picture to post with this, but it seemed like a good story for some sad puppy eyes. And for those of you wondering about Brian. We don't really have anything new to report other than he is getting rolled. We won't know when he will class up with his new class until it happens and until then he gets to be a janitor with all the other rollbacks! Go Brain!

Horse Photography - Alaqua Animal Refuge

2011-02-21T18:36:00.000-06:00

I went out to Alaqua Animal Refuge again today. There are SO many different areas a person can volunteer in out there, I am finding that I could spend all my time out there working on different things and helping out in different areas. Today I learned more about what is going on with the horses and what they need volunteers to do with them. I am definitely going to be working with the horses more since I am seriously lacking in the horse time now that I sold my dear Almond. If our next stop is somewhere in the states I am absolutely getting another horse. For now though working with the Alaqua horses will have to suffice.

I find it funny that every time we move I am always a little crazy bored at first and then before I know it I have too many things going on. Between photography, school, Alaqua, my dogs, and taking care of the household I am definitely no longer bored :) And due to my busy-ness I am posting a shot of a mini out at Alaqua. A little more of the artsy horse photography. I have a serious backup of images that I need to get through right now so I don't have anything new to post at the moment. Or, I do have plenty new images, but I haven't had the chance to even download them yet. A big thank you goes out to Brian who helped me photograph the dogs out at Alaqua today :) He went out there with me since it's a holiday and he had the day off. I am still working on catching up with all the animals. It's really an endless task, and I will never be caught up with the rate that they adopt out and save new animals. It's a good thing though and I am glad to be helping out the Northwest Florida community in any way that I can :)

Double Tap

2011-02-18T18:35:00.001-06:00

Sounds cool right? Not cool. Double tap is what Brian did today. It means he failed a test twice. I figured realistically this day would come, but I was anxiously hoping that it wouldn't. The funny thing is that as I was praying for him to be confident and calm and pass his test this morning, I began to wonder about the "what if's" of him of him failing. I will admit though, I also began to wonder these same thoughts last Friday when we found ourselves in the same place. The thoughts this time seemed a little more haunting though. What if he fails? He'll get rolled. What if the class he gets rolled into sucks? He is with such a good group of people. I hope he doesn't get rolled. What if he gets dropped? One year left in the Navy and then what? Where will we spend our last year? Where will we spend the rest of our lives? All good questions, but ALL so unnecessary. Really. They are. What if he blows up and dies? I mean really, if I'm gonna play the "what if" game, then why not go there? And that right there is exactly why the "what if" game is stupid. There is nothing I can do about any of that whether it happens or not. And I may as well not torture myself by playing that game. Right? Right.

So he double-tapped. What does this mean for us now? Ready.... it means... I DON'T KNOW. Isn't that a lovely answer? Welcome to the military. Apparently it's a three day weekend, so when Tuesday rolls around he is supposed to find out where he goes next. There are no choices on our part, but the possibilities are: a) he retakes the test and gets to stay in his current class (VERY unlikely, maybe 1% chance of this occurring), b) he retakes the test and gets rolled into the class directly behind him, or c) he goes to rollback limbo-land for a couple months until a spot opens up in a class. I am rooting for option a, but planning for option c. Looks like we may be here in Florida a bit longer folks. But let's not get our hopes up, cause you just never know.

Brian was extremely disappointed and upset with himself yesterday for failing, so I was quite surprised that he seemed totally cool with the fact that he failed today. It's good though, cause if he freaked out, I KNOW I would have too. One of us has to always have their head on straight I suppose. So, the long weekend begins, and the annoying part is that I know when Tuesday hits and I want to know our fate immediately... we won't know a thing. Such excitement! Such thrill! Such... irritation. I think to some this may sound intriguing possibly (or not, I don't know you tell me...), but let me tell you that it is and it isn't. Part of me loves not knowing what is next. It keeps me on my toes, and it's definitely not what I would call boring. Yet, it is rather tiring at times having everything undecided. EVERYTHING. I mean, part of me almost wanted to cancel the second half of my internship because, well, what if we aren't here by then? Thank God I decided that scheduling and shooting weddings was a bad idea. I can't imagine how stressed I would feel if I had weddings booked throughout the summer and be sitting here wondering if I am even going to still live here by then. Ugh.

So, my plan? Think peaceful thoughts :) Peaceful like the beaches of Oregon. Deep breath in... and slowly out... Hmmm. I already feel better :) I am just glad to be in a place that I can roll with it. It's a place I have chosen and I am glad I did, because living any other way with this man that is my husband would be torture.

Let me just add a little addition to this post. In case I sounded dramatic (which I am thinking I may have). We are not freaking out. It was bound to happen at one point or another. We will be fine, and Brian will continue on through the school. We are trusting that if God really wants him to be an EOD tech that he will help him through it. So we are continually seeking God for direction and praying that we will have our faith strengthened (which I think he is doing just that!).

Pet Photography - Alaqua Animal Refuge - Cats

2011-02-17T08:54:00.000-06:00

Well, I have been posting entirely too many dogs on here and figured I should ad in some felines. Cats are wonderful creatures. Very simple. Don't require nearly as much attention as dogs. However, it is those exact reasons that make them MUCH more difficult to photograph. My barking, meowing, chirping, and any other weird noises I may attempt to make do ABSOLUTELY nothing to these things we call cats. Don't get me wrong, I love cats, but I refer to myself as more of a dog person. Brian is also a dog person, but he is not as kind as me, he refers to himself as a cat hater. Which is why I have vowed to one day own a cat :)

One project that I am working on is getting updated photos of all the animals at Alaqua Animal Refuge. For those of you who do not know, Alaqua is quite a large facility and there are 300+ animals there. So when I say I am working on a project, I really mean that it's a project! Pet Photography, dog photography, Cat Photography, Horse Photography. I am even finding new specialties of pig photography :) I am really learning to branch out and expand my area of expertise.

So, feast your cat loving eyes on some cat photography! All of these cats are up for adoption and they are all quite the lovers. One even climbed onto my back as I was bending over photographing another! The first is my favorite. I call him, the birdhouse cat :)

As I photographed the next cat, I couldn't help but think of Anchorman... "I'm in a glass case of emotion!"

A New Backdrop for Portraiture

2011-02-15T19:09:00.000-06:00

I have a new backdrop for studio shoots! A test shoot was absolutely necessary and I was lacking in models so I of course recruited the dogs :) Chancho was not too interested in sitting still, but I figured it was good for his training. I think I got some of my favorite shots of him with this backdrop! Yay for studio dog photography; it's basically high class pet photography :) I do a lot of location shoots, but I am also available for studio photography (pets or people). So take a looksy at my dogs modeling their lives away :) And let me just say that my dogs' floppy ears are my absolute favorite!

He got very good at listening. Sit up straight...

Turn your head and look off into the clouds...

Now smell the camera and look curious.

Shugo also was not excited about this modeling endeavor. I think he thought he was being punished at first. Clearly, not a happy pup.

But then Chancho did a little dance and got a better look out of him :)

Furry Fanatics - Dog Photography

2011-02-14T08:33:00.000-06:00

Well Saturday was a success. We had one pup adopted and a few people who went out to the shelter to look at the other animals available and a couple were adopted out there as well :) Any adoption makes it a successful day. I had a lovely time photographing a few beloved pups for those who donated to Heart Worm treatment. Below is this a sweet little dog who followed his mom everywhere. No leash or bribing required.

Next up is this beautiful Golden Retriever. He was VERY excited to see all the animals we brought and he really just wanted to play with them. We just had to set it up so I was shooting from the direction of the puppies cause he wouldn't look any other direction :) I know they are not super different, but I cannot decide which shot I like better. Votes anyone?

And last pup that was photographed was the lovely chihuahua. Such tiny creatures they are. I just don't even know how you are supposed to pet these dogs. I feel like one pat and I could knock him over! For that reason I am pretty sure I only pet him a little :) So, it was a good day. Thank you to all who came out to support Alaqua!

Furry Fanatics and Alaqua Animal Refuge - Pet Photography

2011-02-11T08:52:00.001-06:00

Tomorrow I will be at Furry Fanatics with Alaqua Animal Refuge. Alaqua will be bringing out as many furballs as they can for a Valentine's Adoption Day. If you haven't been out to Furry Fanatics, this is the perfect opportunity! Tim and Julie are wonderful people who are serious volunteers for Alaqua and they just recently opened this cute little shop! There will be treats for the furballs and their humans and even some champagne to sip! Furry Fanatics will be giving 20% of their sales to Alaqua. There will also be a raffle for a beautiful Donna Burgess Gallery animal print - Matted. Every $2 donation gets you a ticket for a chance to WIN!

Also, I will be there doing portraits for anyone who wants them! A $15 donation will get you a digital file to print and post as you please! 100% of the money will go to Alaqua to pay for Heart Worm treatment for some of the animals that come in. Many of the dogs that come in have Heart Worms and the treatment is quite expensive. So come get a portrait done and donate some money to saving the animals :)

So, as you can see there will be a lot going on at Furry Fanatics on 30A this weekend. Hope to see lots of people out there!

Pass/Fail

2011-02-09T16:26:00.000-06:00

My phone started ringing and I instantly got a little nervous. That better not be Brian calling. It's too early to be getting good news. Sure enough there was his name on my phone as I nervously answered. Two and a half years ago I got a call in the middle of the day and it was not exactly good news (at the time). Brian failed another test on Monday and I had been praying all morning on Tuesday that his re-take would go well. We both believe that God has brought us through to the point that we are now. There have been too many crazy things going against us (but yet we are making it through) and it is seriously by the grace of God. Will Brian make it through EOD school? I think so. But then again I thought the same about BUD/S. I have clearly learned to not get too set on any one idea over the years. All I know is that Brian is not exactly the world's best test taker. Anyone who went to school with him would know that (and oddly enough I am one of those people). I knew this school would be hard, and I knew that there would be a lot of prayer and faith required. What I didn't think would happen (and am still not too sure will) is that Brian would actually have the possibility of making it through without getting rolled. If he does I would just like to state now (before it happens) that it would truly be an act of God. For those of you laughing, please, do not mistake this for me making fun of Brian's brain. It's just very rare for people to make it through this school without getting rolled at some point, and in Brian's case (because he does not always test well) it would be an act of God.

So, back to the main story. The phone rings. "Don't freak out. I just got off work early," he immediately reassured me. So did you PASS?! Yes. Thank the LORD. I was a little extra concerned, not because I didn't think he could do it, but because when he failed he did so with a very low grade. I don't even remember what it was but I think it was in the 20s. And what did he get on his passing re-take? 100%. Weird-O. It's completely wonderful, but I swear it is quite the roller coaster of emotions. And really, for those of you who know me, a roller coaster of emotions is an interesting ride for me.

Brian's favorite thing to say as he is going through all the testing is What do they call people who get a D in medical school? DOCTORS. Makes me a bit nervous, especially since he is working with explosives. But that just brings us back to the whole having faith right? Right.

Puppy Bowl 2011 Destin Commons - Alaqua Animal Refuge

2011-02-07T11:45:00.000-06:00

The Puppy Bowl went quite well on Saturday :) There were lots of people who came out despite the cold weather and few sprinkles. A big thank you to Bark Avenue for being the sponsor :) There were banners and t-shirts and toys and treats for all the players! I have to admit it was my first Puppy Bowl and I was impressed. I personally fell in love with the referee. Brian says no though. Three dogs is apparently too much for him (even if the third one would be small). A Basset mix though? SO necessary to our family! I agree that it would make our lives more complicated especially since we are military and move every couple years. And it would really make moving overseas complicated (and expensive). Not to mention who would we find to watch our lovey pets when traveling... but STILL! She is SO cute! I have not given up, and I just might bring her home despite Brian's protests... unlikely that I will do that... but I'm still trying to convince him! We already have two large dogs (at least we think Chancho will get large). Bassets are the only small dog that I like, and yes, I realize that they are not actually small dogs. They are much smaller than my regular dogs though! Brian's thoughts? No. Where does it end! You will never be satisfied. Get control of yourself! No. Heartless man. I will tell you where it ends. It ends with me getting this dog and a mastiff. That's all I ask for! Is it really too much? Maybe I will wait to get my mastiff in ten years when Shugo dies. But we need the Basset mix now.

Back to the Puppy Bowl. Please. Enjoy the pictures :) We had some hard core players.

Quite a bit of rough-housing around in the beginning. Lots of foul play.

Even against team members

The ref took a lot of heat for some of her calls.

Eventually they started to get tired though.

Really tired.

They all got treats. This is seriously pretty much my favorite shot. This dog would fit in my family! We NEED her!

And everyone got lots of love from the fans :) It was a good day, and there were several applications put in for puppies!

Happy 2011!

2011-02-04T12:27:00.000-06:00

Yes, it is February and yes I am still saying welcome to 2011 :) I thought I would post our family picture of the year that we sent out with our yearly letter. For those of you who did not receive one please do not be offended! We had to shorten our list this year as tight as possible due to lack of funding (we are dearly missing our Japan paycheck). So, for those of you who didn't get one, this is for you!

It was an exciting time taking these photos. It was right at dusk and we were rushing to get the shot before all the light was gone. It'd be easy if there were no animals involved cause me and Brain know how to sit still for a slow shutter, but we were lucky to get the dogs to sit still for anything at all. Let me just say that I truly hate self timer. I don't have the patience for it, and I also hate tripods (due to a lack of patience I am sure). Someday maybe we will have someone do the pictures for us. This was shot at ISO 800 (hence the graininess) and it was super dark (cause we couldn't do a slow shutter with the pups) so I brought it up in photoshop. Oh the madness. Brian suggested we just do it tomorrow. The problem with tomorrow is it never comes! What if there is no tomorrow!?! There wasn't one today! - absolute favorite line from Groundhog Day. If you haven't seen the movie... shame on you.

Below was a close second, but Brian's face was impossible though. Smile! I thought about photo-shopping it, but didn't feel like spending any time on it, cause we all know how I truly despise spending too much time fixing any one image (even if it is working on my dear beloved's face...)

Why did Shugo roll over? It literally happened seconds before the shot was taken... I wanted to kill him. He is supposed to be the easy one.

Got tired of the dogs for a shot, but decided we could not send out a shot without them (and I truly think that that thought goes through every person's mind as I am shooting their family photos. Some parents even say that to their children).

And one without Chancho, because he too was being impossible. And Brian, "smiling with his eyes" as he calls it. He has a hard time smiling on cue 99% of the time, and this is his default.

Dog Photography - Puppy Bowl 2011

2011-02-02T20:52:00.000-06:00

Saturday Alaqua is having a Puppy Bowl at Destin Commons. It's basically a Superbowl for puppies. That's right. Puppies. In a Superbowl. I think there may be puppy jerseys and someone dressed as a ref and/or a cheerleader or two (maybe even a pup dressed as a cheerleader). Alaqua people get creative to raise funds for what they do. Real creative. I will be there Saturday and and I am sure it will be tons of fun because really, who doesn't love hanging out with puppies? It will be quite interesting I am sure.

If you wanna see the puppies below and their other siblings in action on Saturday, come on out to Destin Commons for the first ever Alaqua Puppy Bowl!

Pet Photography - Alaqua's "Teddy"

2011-01-31T09:18:00.000-06:00

It's raining today. It was raining all night last night. Pouring really. I like it and just might go out for a short bike ride with the dogs later :) The only thing I don't like about it is I have to wipe down the dogs every time they go out and come back in. It's going to be a rainy week here in Northwest Florida as we move into February. February is going to be a good month. Lots of photography to be happening and lots of pet photography out at Alaqua, something that I am growing to love more and more :)

Below is Teddy. Very sweet dog out at Alaqua. Wonderful temperament and who doesn't love a fluffy dog?

Northwest Florida

2011-01-29T07:31:00.001-06:00

This is the lovely view that I get to enjoy every time I drive home from Alaqua. I am usually on my way home as the sun is setting and it is a very enjoyable ride. Yesterday I drove down 30A to see the sites and stop by some new doggy businesses I heard of. First stop was Bow Wow Meow Pet Company. I heard about them through working with Alaqua as they are also big supporters :) I met John and enjoyed talking to him about travel as he has lived in a handful of different places. It's a very nice little shop and if you are ever in the area you should definitely stop by.

Next stop was Furry Fanatics. Julie and Tim just opened this little business out of Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. I met Julie and Tim walking dogs at Alaqua (they are also huge supporters of Alaqua!) and stopped by to check out their place. Very nice shop, and wonderful location :)

Last stop was Dog n' Suds. This is a self-serve dog wash company. New out in Santa Rosa Beach off 98. Very nice clean place to take your dogs to get 'em all spiffed up! I brought the boys along for the ride and they enjoyed each stop. They of course wanted to eat all the treats for sale, but they settled for letting me buy them each one treat (not like they had any say in that!).

It was a fun day exploring the lovely 30A area. The dogs enjoyed the ride and I enjoyed the scenery :) I love the beaches here and I have the opportunity to drive through some beautiful views quite regularly, but I always wish I could take the dogs to the beach with me! I hate that they don't have a great dog beach... :( But! I am still learning the area so I await the day I find that perfect little place that I can enjoy with the dogs :) I need to take more shots of the awesome views. There will be more!

I couldn't decide which image I liked better.

Alaqua Animal Refuge - Dog Photography

2011-01-26T20:24:00.000-06:00

Today I spent the day at Alaqua Animal Refuge. I am working with them as an intern for part of my Master's degree. I do a mix of different things helping out April the fund-raising and events coordinator. I also am starting to photograph more and more of the animals. I am hoping that more can be adopted through getting better pictures of them. Two of my favorites are below, Sissy and Weezy. They have been at the refuge a while and when I first started volunteering at Alaqua I remember them distinctly because everyone had a hard time getting them to go on their walks. They are total sweethearts, but kennels are just not where dogs are meant to be and these poor things need a good home. I LOVE dogs with boxy heads and if we didn't move around so much you better believe I would take these in!

I LOVE the shot below on the right. I was annoyed when I took it cause I knew the moment I snapped it that it was great and it was a real split second that she looked at me, but then I looked and she had blinked (I clearly missed the split second!). But then, I really liked it with her blinking cause she looked even cuter. However, I was disappointed when I got it on the computer and realized that it is out of focus. I still like it though. I just have to look past the technical errors :)

And these last two dogs. The one on the left, Victor, is very sweet and has also been around the shelter a little while. The one on the right just came in today. He's a wonderful looking dog who seemed super happy to be at Alaqua. He was at a kill shelter and was going to be put down today. Yay for Alaqua saving him!

Pet Photography - Chancho and Shugo

2011-01-24T17:32:00.000-06:00

So once upon a time, I did not take as many pictures of my own pets. My beloved first dog, Sandy, the St. Bernard lacks in the photo department. I got plenty of happy snaps, but actually taking the time to get nice images of her did not happen as often. Part of that is due to the fact that the majority of her life was pre-photographer Joy Jill :) Now I know to document everything, and that is just what I am doing. I realized yesterday that I missed celebrating the one month anniversary of our dear sweet Chancho! We got him December 9th and it has officially been 1.5 months! Amazing how time flies and how quickly little weeds grow. Actually after thinking about it, I have always documented my animals lives. As soon as I got a camera the animals were the first things to get their pictures taken. Back then though they were not good pictures. Just happy snappys :) Sandy was the only one that made it through to the quality pictures. Below is my favorite happy snap of Sandy :)

I took a few moments today to capture some very much needed portraits of the two dogs. I like the shots below because they remind me of engagement and wedding poses that photographers do :) I refuse to be the shoemaker who's children have no shoes! I am a pet photographer and my pets will have their portrait taken (regularly!).

Chanchito is growing daily and he gets on our nerves quite regularly. Today he stole a ball of yarn and drug it all over the yard. So far he steals shoes regularly, but has only actually ruined one shoelace (he apparently just likes to carry them around). Overall though he is a wonderful pup and we love him dearly. Shugo's favorite thing to do is sit on him. Literally, you can see it below. He often puts all his weight on him and Chancho makes this terrible groaning noise like he is dieing. It's funny, but we feel somewhat obligated to save him from the wrath of Shugo. We LOVE watching them play together though; brings a smile to our faces :)

Worst idea of 2010

2011-01-21T14:20:00.000-06:00

I hate being trapped at the house waiting for someone to show up. It's like my entire day ends up revolving around this one thing. Now here I sit wondering where this idiot is cause he is 25 minutes late. Should I call? Yes, but I am hoping beyond all hope that he is on his way cause the last thing I want to do is attempt yet another conversation with his wife/secretary on the phone.

Let's backtrack. I moved into this place on November 1st. There are washer/dryer hookups and smart me I figured it would be cheaper to get a washer and dryer as long as we got them cheaper. Of course, I never buy anything unless it is cheaper anyway. Though this predicament I am now in may have spurred a serious turning point in my cheapness.

I will admit that Craigslist is mainly for crap, but there are always hidden gems on there and I look for them regularly. Chancho made it into the cheap gem category, my washer and dryer didn't. I found this used appliance store on craigslist in Crestview (about 30 minutes north). Now if you need to buy used crap, why would you drive 30 minutes to do so? Let me just say that this was a lesson learned. I arrive at the place and immediately laughed at how redneck/ghetto it was. Small warehouse looking place with used appliances littering the front. Not exactly classy looking. Being my first experience with southern-redneck-recycle-other-people's-trash business, I didn't think anything of it and figured I could surely get a good deal. I paid for a washer and dryer and it was delivered two days later. Two weeks after that the washer stops working somewhere during the spin cycle. We have a lovely 45 day warranty so I immediately called the company to have them come out and take a look at it. They come out realize it needs a new belt and order the piece and it is fixed one week later. About one month after that (just after getting back from our three Christmas') I had the washer running and it was rattling kinda loud and when I went to look at it, the thing was smokin' somethin' fierce!

I had my doubts about my cheap decision after the first problem. At this point, I knew it was a stupid idea. Not to mention I noticed the day after purchasing it that there is a used appliance store just a mile down the road that looks like an actual store. After many calls to the place, a scheduled fix date with no show and many more calls and angry messages I finally have an appointment with them coming today. As I was typing this they showed up (30 minutes late) and are currently working on my defective machine. Last week we had to use the laundromat and learned that the washers on base in Japan are WAY cheaper than what they have here in Niceville.

All that to say that I don't think I will be quite so cheap in the future. There are certain things that are better purchased from actual companies and not random backyard fixer-uppers on Craigslist. Thank you Florida and Craigslist for giving me this important life lesson.

And I would like to add for all you smokers out there. You have no idea what smoke smells like. You sit in your cloud of smoke and are immune to the stench, but the rest of the world who doesn't smoke, we hate you coming into our homes and stinking it up. Air yourself out once in a while. There are plenty of smokers out there who don't wreak so badly nor do they smell up other people's homes. I am happy to say that my brother is living proof of that!

Alaqua

2011-01-19T10:39:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was my first full day at Alaqua. We were working on several different things for future events, the main one being the Canine Carnival that is March 5th. I also took some pictures of a few dogs. Some cute, some so hideous they are cute (that would be the last one on the left). There are tons and tons of animals at Alaqua. I asked yesterday and they said they adopt anywhere from 50-100 animals a month! That is so crazy to me.

Today I will be at the Dine for Dogs event. Dine for Dogs is this great thing they do with restaurants. They pick a day and a couple hours where they will donate a certain percentage to Alaqua. It's a good turn out usually and they have more and more restaurants getting interested. We'll be bringing a few pups in hopes to adopt and it should be an interesting evening.

I really like this dog below. He's pretty skinny and very energetic, but super sweet. And really, I just love larger dogs and especially dogs with a boxy head.

Windmills

2011-01-17T18:21:00.000-06:00

On our way through Texas we hit windmill land. It was wonderful. Julie was on the phone talking to her husband and I was attempting to photograph the windmills while driving. Dangerous and not super successful. It was a lovely time though :) Windmills are kinda peaceful and eerie all at once.

Tomorrow I will be starting my first full day of my internship at Alaqua Animal Refuge :) I have to do an internship to complete my Masters degree and have decided to do it at Alaqua. I will be spending 20 hours each week working with the fund-raising and events coordinator trying to raise money to save more and more animals! I will still be doing photography and I hope to do photography for the animals they get in so they can get more adoptions. I don't know if that would work, but personally I think if you have a nice photo it could really sell a pup better (just like with anything really!). So, I am looking forward to have something else to focus my energy on!

2011-01-14T19:41:00.000-06:00

"Do you remember back when you felt you could actually do something to make the world better?" - Sarah Summers from Little Bee.

I remember. It's a moment frozen in time and I still wait for the glorious plan to come to me of how I will change the world. Someday the plan will emerge and it will be.... glorious :)

This is Life

2011-01-11T10:46:00.000-06:00

Life is frustrating and weird and all over the place. Before we came to Florida I promised myself that I would give my photography a real effort. San Diego failed. Japan, I didn't try (because of the failure of SD) yet I did it as a side business and did better than ever. In Japan as we were nearing our time to leave I thought that if I had not gotten a job immediately and I had actually given my photography business a real shot, I could have likely done very well with it. So I decided to force myself to give my business a real shot when we hit Florida.

A great idea and a terrible idea. It's a great idea because I needed that focus. The dedication. I could do it and it can work, and I will make it work. Florida will be amazing! It's a terrible idea because in reality things are easier said than done. In reality it's not easy to start a business from nothing (and by nothing I mean literally nothing because it's a whole different game when you go somewhere where you know no one and are brand new to everything this part of the country has to offer). In reality, we will only be in Florida for one year (and even that is unknown, it could be less!).

Who starts a business that is non-transferable and moves a year later to start all over again? Where will we be next? Spain? Guam? Hawaii? Virginia? California? None of it matters cause either way I will be starting from nothing again. At least our next station will be for at least three years. I look forward to that and at the same time I dread it cause I am not sure I can be in one place for that long. I will adjust because that is what I do, but I have become quite accustomed to moving regularly.

So, my point is, was my promise to myself to give my business everything I've got stupid? Maybe I should have planned that for our next duty station that will actually last more than one year? This is what I think about daily, because really, I don't know how to answer those questions. I see hope for my business here. I do have a few things going. At this point though I see it becoming a good side job in about a month or two, and well, the problem with that is we will be on our way out in six. My business will likely begin to flourish at the time of departure. Wonderful timing.

This is life. I spent yesterday online looking for a job. I applied to a couple, but more than anything I became frustrated with my situation. I just want a simple job. Something that pays halfway decent that is Mon-Fri and no evenings. I don't care if I am a receptionist or janitor. Problem is any jobs that I actually qualify for are below $10 an hour, and if I am going to work for less than $10 an hour I may as well put everything I got into my photography because I would likely make the same. So what is my plan? I am back on the photography plan. The thing that I have to remember is that no matter what I do with my time here in Florida it is going to be short lived. So I may as well enjoy it! Last night I was irritated because I want work. As we got into bed I apologized to Brian for being in a grumpy mood and he said, "That's ok. I know your frustrated, but really, I don't understand why. If I had nothing to do and could just lay in bed all day if I wanted that would be great!" That's one difference between the two of us that we've always known. I tend to be a bit of a workaholic so if I don't have enough work, I could go crazy! And that I am ;) Brian's comment made me realize that most people would likely be happy to be in my situation. I have a fresh start and all the time in the world to do what I deem important.

So here's to my photography business. Whether it takes off in the short time I have or not, that is what I will do here (unless I here back from those jobs I applied for yesterday...though they are unlikely). And my free time? Well, I have a puppy to fill that up. The little thing needs some serious training. Shugo too actually. I think having a puppy around makes him think he can break all our important rules... like last night he actually got on our bed! I don't know what he was thinking, but I was facing the other way and Brian was brushing his teeth. I felt a sneaky weight on the corner of the bed and rolled over to see giant Shugo attempting to literally sneak on the bed. Clearly, I have work to do!

Grand Canyon

2011-01-09T13:31:00.000-06:00

This was from my road trip out here. My sister Julie and I stopped at the Grand Canyon. It was my first time and it was truly amazing! I want to go back and spend more time there. We got there in the afternoon on 10/10/10 (what a memorable way to spend that day!) and then left town on the 12th so we really only had one full day there. We made it a good one though and had a lovely hike down to Skeleton Point and then spent the rest of the day walking the rim with Shugo :)

The funniest part was when we got down to the end of the Skeleton Point trail. Julie and I were talking about the Grand Canyon and how amazing it is and wondering to ourselves what the story is on how it was formed because neither of us knew. As we rounded a corner checking the view on the last side before heading back up we found a guide with a group of about 5 people and as we walk up he says... "And that is how the Grand Canyon was made..." What timing!! Made us laugh :)

Family

2011-01-06T11:28:00.000-06:00

While on our two week trip to three Christmas' we first stopped in Utah. Above is Brian with his 4 sisters. Yes, he has four :) It was a really awesome trip to Utah because his sis Tamara was there with her three kids and we don't get to see them very often. AND his three step sisters came out too which was also nice cause we REALLY never get to see them.

We did some family pictures since we were all together and I can't remember a time that that has ever happened (not even at any weddings... at least since I have been around). Below are all the cousins. Surprisingly there was only one screaming child (you get that many together and you just never know what will happen). My favorite thing is the concerned look on Max's face (the blonde one).

Then my top two favorite family pictures. First, Amie's because there family just looks so sweet up on that tractor, I love old rustic things, and the mountains in the background are quite beautiful. And second place is Tamara's. Because really, anyone with children is laughing with her and at her and also feeling for her all at once :) I don't have kids, but I have photographed enough to know that all mothers dread that this is what their photo shoot will turn out to be. Tamara, thank you for allowing all mothers out there to feel better about themselves knowing that they are not alone in the toddler fight!

Welcome to 2011!

2011-01-03T12:39:00.000-06:00

Well here we are one full decade into the 21st century. It is currently 3 days into the new year and I am feeling a little behind only because I didn't exactly get in my "reflection" time before 2011 hit. We made a blast out of our three Christmas' though and were welcomed back to Florida with the heaviest rain storm I have yet to see (and I swear it was because I kept telling everyone that it had not rained nearly as much as I was expecting it to here). So what are my goals for 2011? I don't know. I have goals, but I really need to sit down and take note of things specifically because I like to be able to look back and see what I did or didn't accomplish. Below you will see my lovely niece, Serenity. She is sure excited for 2011!

Our trip was filled with family and food. We had a wonderful time despite a few disappointments.

1. I learned that I have for sure become lactose intolerant. For those of you who know how I feel about ice cream and quesadillas you will know how devastating this news was. Yet, I look forward to no longer spending half of my life nauseous :)
2. On Christmas day I found (not one) but several white hairs in Brian's beard (they really stood out against the snow). How will he ever stay 28 in my mind with those growing! Good news is he has to shave for work, so I will not be reminded daily. Bad news is, I REALLY love(d) his beard.

The wonderful things of the trip were:

• seeing family I hardly ever get to see (a lot of Brian's family :)
• snowmen and snowball fights
• snowboarding and snowy things in general
• games and good food (Tara, Brian's stepmom, is seriously the best cook ever)
• silly children
• sister outings
• marshmallow launchers (seriously, coolest toy EVER)

So it is good to be back. I think Shugo thought we for sure left him. Chancho doesn't care about much of anything as long as he is chewing on Shugo's neck meat (poor Shugo). So lets get this Florida party rolling! What does 2011 hold...?? Sadly I think there will be a shortage of beards :(

Big Family

2010-12-18T23:27:00.000-06:00

I had the opportunity to photograph a lovely large family today! I myself am from a big family (I'm the youngest of seven) so I love large family gatherings and since I have been in Japan for the past two years I have really missed out on such things. Laurie Hood is the founder of Alaqua Animal Refuge and she hired me to come to their holiday family gathering to photograph them all together and all the individual families as well. It was glorious. Made me miss the large family gatherings back home. Laurie and her husband Taylor are wonderful people. Very kind and genuine. It was an absolute pleasure to photograph their extended family. Since there were so many pictures taken I am just going to post my favorite images, so here goes nothin' :)

The boy above was hilarious. This was the conversation... So what do you want for Christmas? Ummm, he says with a huge smile, This is gonna sound a little weird, but I really want a massage chair. I burst out laughing and said I thought that was the best idea ever and I wanted one too :) I love that he prefaced it with "This is gonna sound weird..." He made me smile. Below is the craziness you get when you attempt to photograph a pile of cousins (also reminded me of my family. Love it!).

This little girl had the best smile.

Gotta love it when kids just do their own thing and it is super cute.

This darling little thing was teaching me all about seashells.

This was my favorite family (I know I probably shouldn't say that, but seriously, look at how giggly they all are!).

2nd place here. I think it's the younger children. They just make pictures extra cute.

And last but not least the grandparents with the chitlens :) My favorite images are always the ones when everyone is looking a different direction. It's just more realistic to how things really happen right?

Just so you all know, I am leaving town for two weeks off to visit family for the holidays. It'll be our own version of Four Christmas' only a lot less drama (hopefully) and it'll be three Christmas' instead :) So, on that note, if you email me just don't expect a reply right away cause I will not be checking regularly. MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Chancho!

2010-12-15T09:51:00.000-06:00

We got a new puppy! This is Chancho. We love the name Chancho mainly because of Nacho Libre, but it is also very fitting for this lil' pup because he is a serious pig. I love Nacho Libre. I just have t get that out there. And I love Chancho. I just got back from taking him to the vet and he is all healthy! Aside from a couple worms... but that is an easy fix! Yay for healthy puppy :)

I love his ears. Nice and floppy just like Shugo's.

Who could turn that away? Really. Shugo wasn't super sure about him at first, but they are now great buddies! We love to just watch them play. It's nice to have a pal for Shugo and I think he is happier with Chancho around.

Now below we have some baby pictures of Shugo. I think they look similar (minus the obvious color difference). Floppy ears. Boxy face. Sweetness. We are very curious to know how big Chancho will get. Are his paws as big as Shugo's were as a pup? Will we have two ginormous dogs? Only time will tell :)

Alaqua Open House

2010-12-13T15:15:00.000-06:00

Saturday I was out at the Alaqua Open House. It was a very nice event and I hope they raked in a lot of good donations. Alaqua has so many animals and it cost them so much to operate each day ($1,000/day) any support is always greatly appreciated. There was lots going on and I had my own booth set up (a photo booth) where we did mini 10 minute sessions and also held a raffle for a photo shoot. It was great to be out there and meeting people while also helping Alaqua. We had some awesome people get pictures done and had a blast doing it :)

Below was my first up. She volunteers her time with the cats regularly. She comes out with her dad and they clean the cat house and give all the kitties some love :) I loved talking with her dad and he loves his daughter so much it was very sweet to hear him talk about her.

The little boy below was next. He was SO cute! Love his blue eyes. He was full of silliness and lots of fun to work with. Definitely a little daredevil. I asked him what his favorite thing to do was and he said, "Race dirt bikes and do back flips!" He will be a wild boy for sure!

Next up was a pup :) He was actually reunited with his brother right in front of my booth. So sweet!

More boys next. Typical brothers who refuse to get too close ;) They were lots of fun though and I somehow was able to make them laugh and get some good smiles!

Last round was a sweet young family. They caught me right as I was packing out. There was just enough light left to capture their sweetness :) Gotta love the chubby cheeks! That was my day at Alaqua! Definitely excited about the people I met and getting new clients! I will be settled here with my business in no time :) Thank you everyone who came to the Open House and visited my booth!

Trees

2010-12-10T12:50:00.000-06:00

Cool mossy trees like this are all over Northwest Florida

Trick or Treat

2010-12-07T21:47:00.001-06:00

The sun was so warm as I sat and read my book. Shugo slept happily behind me. I knew Brian would be home early cause he told me it would be a short day. Reading a book in the sunshine isn't so easy on the eyes. I realized that when I heard a knock on the window and couldn't see in. There was a glare and it was in the shade, yet I knew Brian was on the other side likely making some silly face trying to get my attention. I can't see. No reaction from me and Brian stops clearly disappointed.

As expected he comes out the side door to see me. I finish the sentence I am reading and look up and instantly my stomach lurches. What's wrong with his face?! Oh wait, maybe it's paint. They must have done some weird face painting. No. No that's not right...

Brian says a very slow and drained, something might not be right, Heeeyyy. This is Brian though. He always sounds like that! I nervously respond, "Hey, uh, what, What's wrong with your face?!" He gets closer, but it's still hard to see cause his face is in the shade. "There was a frag I don't know. I screwed up. They say I'm probably getting dropped." "Dropped?! What happened?! Are you ok? What the heck. Come inside." I start for the house, Brian trailing behind me (I am sure trying desperately to hold back his laughter).

As we start up the stairs and I am asking questions he says, "...is it that bad?..." Yes, psycho. Have you not looked in a mirror? Clearly you must have brain damage. "Uh, yeah. Are you OK? Is the rest of your body damaged? Where are you hurt?" We are in the house at this point and now I really can't see cause my eyes are still slowly adjusting from the sun. I stop in the hall cause this whole thing is weird and I can't see anyway. "Tell me what happened." Brian continues, "I dunno Holbrook and Fro had to walk home cause they crashed his truck...." Incoherent. This is not making sense. You said there was a frag. What is a frag? What is going on?! This is a trick! "Are you joking right now?!" Laughter. Now there is laughter! I swing at his face to cause some real damage but of course he blocks it.

All of this happened in a matter of probably 30 seconds. It seriously looked real from a distance and in the direct sun it was kinda bright and hard to tell and then once we got inside my eyes adjusted in time for me to swing at his fake wounds. I don't know what they are doing out there everyday. All I know is that he did say they were out in the field and already blowing things up. Personally, I am not sure that is the greatest plan so early in the training, but hey, what do I know? I would like to just point out that I did not freak out. I was very calm and rational (as always :) AND one time he came home looking like the below pic, so really, it could happen.

Welcome to EOD school. Brian better be watching his back cause he's got it coming for that one!

Squirrels

2010-12-07T10:15:00.000-06:00

Little tree nuts in Bagdad, Florida. I had these same things on my tree in Japan. Their not really special, but I like getting macro shots of things. Anything. Speaking of nuts, I feel like a squirrel. Trying to get a nut. Which is similar to my dog, Shugo, trying to catch the lazer. The lazer to Shugo is the nut to the squirrel which is also life to me at the moment. I want to do everything! Too many things. Too many distractions. Shugo actually loves squirrels more than the lazer. It's scary.

Photography. Masters Degree. Internship (for the degree). Brian (he's really at the top of my list I promise). Meeting people. Holidays. Walking homeless puppies. Wanting to adopt all homeless puppies. Alaqua Open House. Crossfit Destin (yes, I have finally joined the cult).

I feel hyperactive at the moment! I am not overwhelmed (which is nice) I just feel like a crazy squirrel. Let's do everything all at once! Ready... GO!

Civil War Re-enactment - Bagdad Florida

2010-12-05T18:18:00.000-06:00

Heritage Tour and Civil War Re-enactment. Bagdad, Florida. This was my first gathering with the Emerald Coast Photography group that I found on meetup.com. It was a pretty cool event. I love antiques and some of these houses are SO old! It was really cool to walk through them. This whole town was so cute. Just one more place I would LOVE to photograph a couple at. Lots of character. Makes me think exciting things are coming soon. I just know it ;)

The Oasis - A Place to Photograph

2010-12-02T15:05:00.000-06:00

This is the Oasis. A beautiful crazy gem I stumbled upon one day as I was driving to Alaqua to walk puppies. I really want to photograph someone here cause it is fun and quirky and different! Old buildings, weird buildings, old and weird paint jobs... all are things that I love to photograph people with :) It has character and that is what I like. Life needs character! And Characters for that matter! What would life be like without those people we call characters? I mean really, we must all admit it would be boring. We need those awkward times to create good stories and excitement to the routines we all have.

So here's to the Oasis! A place of character that will battle the mundane in your life ;)

Cold

2010-12-01T16:46:00.000-06:00

It is getting colder. Frosty colder you ask? Well, no. This picture was taken in New Zealand. But it is getting colder here in Florida! This state is weird though because it will be chilly for a day and then it rains and it gets muggy, and then the sun comes out, and then it is perfect, and then it gets overcast and muggy again. So much back and forth! It's nice and annoying all at once :)

I have a plan. A plan I have discussed here before, but am now possibly ready to partake in! Blogging everyday is impossible. For me anyway. I have been feeling a little frazzled lately with moving here and getting settled and I want to do this little project to have something. Something that is consistent in my not-so-consistent life. My plan is to post a picture every other day. I will not always have a wonderful story, because really people, I am a photographer, not a writer. So pictures it is! From the recent to the not-so-recent. Things. Animals. People. Life. This is what I will post about. Every OTHER day :) I think I can handle that, and I think it is an attainable goal :) Yay for goals! I love them.

The Scharenbergs

2010-11-29T13:52:00.001-06:00

Many weeks ago while I was visiting family I photographed my big sis and her family.

I was lucky enough to actually be there when my most recent nephew, Sasha Oliver, was born. He was quite the tank barely beating out his big brother at 11.8 lbs (his big bro was 11.5). Lucky Christy huh!?! It'd been a long two years away from these rascals in Japan, and it was fun to get to photograph them :) Their a great wild bunch!

Bugs and Creatures

2010-11-18T14:29:00.000-06:00

I kill spiders, and other small creatures. This poor lizzy was an accident; one that may not have even been me. Generally though, when I kill spiders I leave their dead carcasses lying there as a warning to all others who might think about entering my domain. The carcasses of spiders and flying insects often decorate our walls. I am not much of a decorator, but this I am good at. And it regularly bothers Brian. I do feel bad about this lizzy, but it is funny at the same time. I mean, really, what are the odds? I have yet to bury the body and it has already been over two weeks. The nice thing is these things are so tiny their decaying remains don't smell! That, and it's on the outside of the door. Who really has the time to clean up after such accidents anyway?

Last November and Today

2010-11-16T12:48:00.000-06:00

Last November I had the opportunity to photograph Yabusame while I was in Japan. Basically the people and horses are all dressed up like Samurai and they race across the beach shooting arrows at targets. It was really awesome to watch. Probably one of my favorite experiences from Japan.

Today Brian is arriving and will be here to stay! We are finally here. Together. It has been a long process as always, but it is exciting! He is checking in today and will have his first full day of EOD school tomorrow :) It's a bit nerve racking cause I know it will be really hard and stressful for him. Military life is something else. It really is. Always changing. Always unpredictable. I love it and I hate it all at once. What does this year hold for us? Lots of time together (I think), stress, studying, new puppy maybe? and a whole lot of excitement I am sure!

That's how this life is. One year your on a beach in Japan photographing Yabusame and the next your in Florida wondering why they still have not picked up your garbage when you set it up two weeks ago...

Two Years Ago

2010-10-31T17:44:00.000-05:00

Two years ago today we were on a plane to Japan. An exciting time in our life that just breezed by. Now here I sit today in Florida anxiously awaiting the arrival of our things (from Japan). It was a great experience to say the least. I desperately needed some change in my life at that point and Japan completely filled that need. Though I miss Japan I am excited to be here in Florida and am enjoying finding my way around a new place. Shugo loves how many squirrels are around and the dog park in town is the best we've ever been to! I know I have been terrible about updating, but I feel scrambled and out of sorts with no home. Our stuff arrives on Tuesday and hopefully I can get everything settled quickly! The pic above is actually from our trip to Australia. I just think it is funny and it makes me smile :)

A House!

2010-10-21T12:32:00.000-05:00

I hold in my hands the signed lease agreement! We officially have a home and we officially move in next week and our stuff officially arrives next week :) It's official! Ha :) I am quickly getting settled and formulating a plan to meet with all other redheads and slowly take over this part of the world. You people can all think you are safe and that us redheads are "going extint" but I tell you now! I am formulating a plan! Ha ha ha.

Florida

2010-10-19T21:17:00.000-05:00

Been a long time. Sure. One road trip and turn around to another road trip/change of life/this is my life :) I had a wonderful successful trip across the country with my sister Julie. Pictures? Yes, took many, but have yet to download being as I am prioritizing my time to getting a home. I arrived in Florida late Friday night and have since found some promising places and hope to fill out paperwork and get into one in the next day or so.

I am learning amazing things about life and people in the last couple of weeks. I love my family. I love my dad and really appreciate him despite all his crazy moments. I love Brian despite all our time apart and my difficulty readjusting to his presence (the poor man thankfully has a lot of patience). And I REALLY love my time to myself. And my time alone with Brian. I don't want children. I don't want to have to share my husband. I am selfish. First step is admitting it.

So I am still not sure what my life here will hold. So far it has been quite interesting. I will have to update past and present as time goes by cause there has been much too much on goings ons :) The picture is the road signs I miss from New Zealand. Nothing quite so interesting in the USA. Although there was a sign in Texas that I unfortunately did not capture... "Don't mess with Texas!" Then in small lettering it said something about not littering. Crazy Texans!

Horses

2010-10-01T13:57:00.000-05:00

I am off for a week with horses. Today I am heading up to Reno to check out a horse show and from there I am leaving for Idaho to photograph a bunch of horses for my dad's friend. It'll be a fun trip with my dad, and if any of you know my dad you know it'll be an interesting trip too :) So off to the show I go! And off to explore a new state :) Always good news!

Anxious

2010-09-30T11:02:00.000-05:00

I am anxious. Tomorrow I leave for almost a week for a photography job (photographing a horse ranch in Idaho). I will get back next Wednesday and be leaving for Florida Friday. I'll be in Florida by mid-October and I am sure I will breeze right into November being busy with getting settled into a new place. Somehow October has not even started yet and it's already over in my mind. I hate it when that happens.

I am excited for the move, anxious for the question of what will I do with my life now? This should be exciting. It is, but it's also causing some anxiety. Should I get a job? Should I just do photography? I don't want to work evenings or weekends. Will I be able to find something that I can make enough money? We will only be in Florida for one year, what is that enough time to do anyway? The only reason why I get anxious about this is because I want to pay off our student loans as fast as possible and just not think about it anymore. They're not going to go away fast at all if I don't get some kind of work.

So what do I need to do? CHILLAX and enjoy the ride. This is my life. It changes constantly and I want to enjoy it. So this picture reminds me to relax and enjoy the ride. Cause that is just what I was doing :) I can't get the stupid pic the right size so I am letting it go, unperfected, cause life is just that way sometimes (or a lot of the time).

No Children Please

2010-09-27T16:15:00.000-05:00

There has been a children overload. My goal was merely to spend some much needed time with all the nieces and nephews that I haven't seen in two years and in the process give their parents a little break along with reinforcing my birth control. All of that worked, but I also reached an overload of children. They are so cute and yet they can drive you so crazy. Two sisters, each with four children, a cousin with two kids and a close friend with two more. That many kids in close proximity can create serious madness for one who so loves her single life (and by single I mean NO CHILDREN, not single/not married... me and Brian are single together :) and after this weekend I think we'd like to keep it that way for quite some time.

Tricky little rascals that draw you in with their cuteness and then destroy you slowly and painfully over several days.

South Island New Zealand

2010-09-26T23:54:00.000-05:00

There are many many MANY pictures from my trip. I want to show millions but I also want to move on with the whole posting of thing that happened two months ago. So here's to cramming all the South Island into one post. We went on a day tour to Te Anau and the bus made stops for pictures along the way. Very beautiful scenery. Very terrible time of day.

Beautiful Mirror lakes. Kristan got a WAY better shot with her super cool fish eye. And she also got a super cool video with her super cool 5D MarkII. Just a tad jealous :)

We went on a cruise through Milford Sound. Awesomely awesome!

Dolphins were racing our boat...

Seals waving hello...

What's a trip to the south island in winter without taking a helicopter ride onto a glacier?

Our beautiful drive from Queenstown to Christchurch

This spot was SUPER windy. The water was SO aqua blue and beautiful!

A lovely view of Christchurch. We had a great time on both islands. We saw less of the south island, but we also spent more money and did more exciting things there. Things that will likely be posted of on some random day. Actually, there is only one thing missing since I have pics of the Milford Sound and heli ride. Very very beautiful. MUST go back! Brian definitely missed out and I will have to go back with him and backpack through some bush country :)

Castlepoint - North Island NZ

2010-09-25T08:43:00.000-05:00

Castlepoint was our favorite place to photograph. It was a small town that was real quiet and seemed like a ghost town by the time we arrived there, but it was beautiful. We got there right as the sun hid behind the hills and we ran as fast as we could to the top of the stairs to get some sunset shots (just barely catching the tail end of it).

As the sun went away I turned around and couldn't find Kristan. I thought she'd went back to the car though I wondered why she didn't say anything. I was yelling and whistling for her and saw and heard nothing. A little worry crept over me as I thought about the one man we saw once we reached the top of the stairs. He seemed nice, but what if he was a weirdo and nabbed her? We are practically in a ghost town! Foreigners! As I walked back to the car this is what I looked over to see... in case you miss it, she is that tiny speck on top of the mountain.

Beauty at dusk

We saw a lovely moon rise

Awesome lighthouse with clouds

I thought this looked like a painting

And here is Kristan in front of the painting :)

Sheep and Kiwi - North Island NZ

2010-09-21T18:35:00.000-05:00

Sheep are everywhere in New Zealand. It's one of their largest exports. Many many sheep, many more than people even. I never got "the shot" I wanted of some baby sheepys. There was a perfect opportunity with them frolicking near the fence, but it was on a nasty blind curve with no where to pull over.

My favorite was this... I am driving along and out of no where Kristan screams about a sheep. "Ah! That was the most beautiful sheep in all of New Zealand!" Me - "What?" K - "I'm serious! She was perfectly fluffy and clean with long beautiful eye lashes. Turn around if you don't believe me!" I didn't turn around cause I didn't want to risk our lives on the top of that hilly narrow road so we never got a picture of this supposedly perfect sheep. Somewhere she is still out there, unless someone made a perfect soup out of her... :/

I love Kiwis. Kristan will tell you I am psycho about them, but really, they're just really cool :)

Rotorua --> A mountain - North Island NZ

2010-09-21T18:22:00.000-05:00

I didn't take good notes on the locations of all my images. I'd have to ask my travel buddy cause she is OCD about note taking and having all the correct info to go with her images and life :) (which is great for me!). This first shot is some super cool orange moss that I found in a Thermal Wonderland park in Rotorua. A very stinky but interesting place with all kinds of geothermic activity.

Lake Taupo. Very nice city. We were told it is just like Lake Tahoe 30 yrs ago. Definitely want to go back in the summer time and enjoy it more :)

There is SO much beautiful country in Kiwiland. SO MUCH. We drove a lot everyday, but it was so beautiful neither of us cared. We enjoyed many wonderful sunsets along the way.

Some shots we would take from the car while driving, but many times we would pull over and jump out to get the amazing stuff! And so we could be in the pic too :)

We drove up to this lookout point. I don't remember the name of the town it was overlooking or even the name of the mountain, but it was lovely up there and a nice place to hike around and get pictures.

North of Auckland - New Zealand

2010-09-21T16:57:00.000-05:00

Ok, ok, enough avoiding this necessity. I did travel all the way to New Zealand and Australia and have tons of images to show for it so it's about time you see them :) We landed in Auckland where my family met us at the airport. My grandfather is from New Zealand and moved to America when he was 20. The first several days were filled with visiting family that I had never met. It felt like I was discovering some long lost family. Everyone there are cousins to my granddad or mum. We drove all over visiting different family members and exploring the country. The image below was north of Whagerei in the Bay of Islands.

We stayed with Auntie Gill and Peter in Whangerei. Gill is short for Gillian and she is my granddad's cousin. My mom's cousin Joye picked us up at the airport. So, one thing I learned from this trip was where my name came from! Who knew!

This crazy girl is my best travel buddy! Somehow the horses loved her and walked away from me :( Good travel buddy, bad left-side of the road driver...

This is a shot of a road worker immediately before he gave us the "crazy foreigner" look. Only because once we were allowed to go Kristan went RIGHT around the cone and swerved to the left side when I yelled at her... I think the guy probably heard me. We made him laugh.

A random shot from a random town, and I like it :)

This is the most beautiful country ever. So much untouched land. I almost don't want to post and talk about it with people cause the more people that know about it the more people will go there and then someday it will be ugly like all the big American cities.

A lone tree.

The Smith Family

2010-09-20T13:05:00.000-05:00

This is the Smith family and my cousins family. Being gone for so long in Japan one of my goals was to do some nice family portraits of everyone in my family. All the different families that is. My cousin Cindra was the first.

It was really fun to photograph them. I have spent very little time with Cindra's kids so it was really nice to be able to capture this time in their life. They are such cute boys!

And look at these freaking awesome blue eyes!

Cindra and Michael are unique. That is my nice way of saying they are totally weird ;) Growing up with Cindra though, I am used to it. I know what she likes and they picked this location because they LOVE rocks, nature, cool sticks etc. I do to and that is not why I think they are weird (just to clarify). I liked the shot below though cause I thought it fit them well with their love for nature.

Uriah loves leaves and stuff too :)

This one is my favorite. I would like to title it "What really happens at a family shoot" Ha!

Awesome.

And to end with one stunning image of Michael and Cindra. SO glad we were able to do this!

The Great State of Oregon!

2010-09-19T00:03:00.001-05:00

Well, I have finally visited Oregon. All these years living right below the state and I have finally explored a little more :) My friend Melody flew down last Sunday to hang out for the afternoon and enjoy the drive with me up to her home in Silverton, Oregon. I got to see Portland and the coast. Beautiful state and I am pretty sure I could live there :) Below is Melody.

And then the drive to the coast. Beautiful.

And then of course, the coast.

Gotta love the beach fuzz

An ode to Brian. Always miss him on these adventures.

And last but not least, crab-lady :) A wonderful trip and someday I could definitely see myself living there.

TEST

2010-09-16T02:10:00.000-05:00

This is a TEST Yayaaaaaaaaaaaaaa it worked!!!!! Large pictures of all my lovely travels are on the way!! Something to look forward to people :) Something to look forward to :D

Culture Shock

2010-08-28T23:03:00.000-05:00

Yes, there is culture shock. Funny thing is I am not out and about that much. I am mostly home visiting with everyone. It just so happens that I am having culture shock with my family. I am the youngest of seven children. That's a lot of family and it's even more now that most of us are married and others have children. Not everyone lives in California, but there is generally a decent sized group when we have family gatherings and even without a family gathering there always seems to be a lot of people about.

I love my family. I really do. I have deeply missed being away for two straight years and I know that I will never do that again. It would be expensive and difficult to visit, but my family is worth it and if we are stationed overseas again I WILL visit.

That said, a lot of people can get crazy and it has. There seems to be some event or drama every day and it is just a lot to take in when I am used to it only being me and Shugo 80% of the time and the other 20% is only ONE other person (Brian). Today's event was birthdays. My brother Norman turned 33 on August 18, Dad turned 57 on Aug 25, Klaus (in photo above) turned 3 today, I turn 24 on the 3rd, oh and Nan turned seventy something on Aug 7. It's a busy birthday month. I am EXTREMELY grateful for our wonderful neighbors, who have always been very close family friends, who have allowed me to stay in their spare room for the time that I am here :) Yay for a quiet home and space to myself. YAY! I want to visit my family for a while and enjoy it and because I have this little space to myself I CAN enjoy it :)

Not Enough Time

2010-08-27T22:24:00.000-05:00

Well it's Friday. I have almost been back in America for one week and it feels like a month. Brian and I had a day an a half with his parents in Reno and then he had a day an a half with my family in Auburn. His mom and sister also came to Auburn to visit while we were there. It was really awesome to see everyone, but it was definitely not enough time. I will be in town for a while so I will have plenty of time to visit with my family, but Brian didn't get much. I know he is used to it an all, but I always wish we were able to spend more time with each other's families.

Below is a picture of Brian with our niece (his sister's daughter), Amelia. She is super cute and of course loved Brian to death, as did my sister's daughter Tiffany who literally would not leave his side. We all had a good time at the river on Tuesday and I can't wait to go back with all the nieces and nephews again :)

Be Myself

2010-08-26T06:11:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a long day. These last few days have felt long. Good, but long. Japan feels like it was ages ago and though I have not even been in America for a full week (and I am still hitting the windshield wipers instead of my blinkers) I feel like I am picking up right where I left off. I dropped Brian off at the airport first thing yesterday and then I spent the rest of the day at the WPPI Road Trip in Sacramento. A lot of speakers. A lot of good information. A lot of new plans. Only problem is there are so many ideas I am afraid I might do nothing due to the paradox of choice. It was really good though. Inspiring. Overwhelming. I only have one year you know. To start a business before we move. Three years in the next place and the next. My life is not like everyone else. Due to that fact, here are the key points that I learned:

- I need to be myself
- Do what works for me in MY life
- Create MY business (MY brand, MY style)
- I am never too old to learn and I should always ask questions
- Just because I went to Brooks does not mean that I should know it all and I should not be embarrassed for not knowing it all cause no one does
- Also being a Brooks grad does not mean that I should have been able to immediately have a successful business and I should not let the length of this process get me down just cause I think I should be more capable
- Last thing was that there are MANY businesses out there. Many printer companies, album designers, "We do it all" companies.... so many. So many choices. So many successful photographers use different ones. There will always be something bad and good about each. I need to pick one and stick to it. I cannot switch every time I see a new great company. It doesn't matter what Joe Buissink, Jasmine Star, or Becker use. I need to find what works for my business and my life and run with it.

So, though I came out with many new ideas it is all kinda scrambled in my brain and due to the scramble the above is what I came up with to calm it and ease my hyper activeness. Below is a reminder to chillax. I am very happy to be back and be able to spend time with the family. Monday a bunch of us went to the river for a few hours and it was really awesome. I am overwhelmed with ideas and plans and the enormity of our transition right now, but I don't want it to control me. I want to take time to enjoy the little things and enjoy my family. I don't want my life to breeze by me. I want it to go nice and slow so I miss NOTHING.

2010-08-23T09:05:00.000-05:00

Oh the traveling madness! Oh the incredible blog slacking! I definitely need to post images from the trip to New Zealand and Australia, but first I need to go through them. Upon arrival home in Japan we were rather busy packing up and preparing for our move so I haven't even had the chance to look through the images. We arrived in Reno to visit with Brian's parents on Saturday and are leaving today (Monday) to head over the mountain and visit with my family. Someday, and hopefully soon, I plan to go through all my images and post my favorite's from the trip. For now these happy snaps that I stole from Kristan's FB will have to do :)

Above is from our wondrous helicopter ride :) Oh yes, South Island of New Zealand, over the glaciers and landing to play in the snow. It was a glorious time! Below, you can clearly see us all quite happy to be in Sydney, Australia. Brian was unable to take enough time off to visit both countries so Kristan was my travel buddy for NZ and Brian met up with us in Australia.

Yes, we are officially back in America. I officially have jet lag (been up since 3:30am) and I am officially excited to be back. Our lives at the moment are quite official :) There are many plans going through my brain right now for my photography business and getting things started up again here in the states. I have great plans, and many are still in the works. I do plan to be posting more though and will keep everyone updated with said plans. I still have lots of traveling ahead of me before I settle in Florida. Plans are constantly changing and at this point I am thinking I may get there in mid-October rather than late September.

So, I will be making a greater effort in posting pictures from my ever changing life and updating as plans change and things happen. Maybe I can get some regular blog readers again :)

This pic... this is back in Japan. Enjoying one last picture of Brian's glorious scruffage before he shaved it... so sad it is gone :(

New Zealand - FAIL

2010-07-23T07:53:00.001-05:00

Alright, well, here is a short and sweet update for you all! New Zealand is awesome so far! Above we have the best picture of the trip so far :D and below is me trying to distract myself from Kristan's attempt at killing us by driving on the left (I only had to remind her to stay on the left oh... 5-10 times!). There are tons of pictures, but I am having issues with certain applications that did not download properly before I left so this is it for a bit.

So we have been on the North Island so far visiting my long lost family (and seriously that is exactly how I feel about them!). So much family that I never really knew about. It is great getting to visit, but frustrating at the same time, cause we have so little time and there are so many all over. We will be coming back, that is for sure! Lots of beautiful country and beaches. 12 days is no where near enough time. So, yes, we are having lots of fun. Good food, great company, cool accents, beautiful scenery! Who knows when I'll have internet again, but I will update when I can!

Engrish

2010-07-18T17:43:00.000-05:00

Above is some good Engrish for you. Probably the best I have seen in my time here.

I am leaving town tomorrow for New Zealand and then Australia. I am going to be gone for 3 weeks and when I get back we will have one week before we move back to the states! I can't believe the summer has gone by so quickly... I will miss different things here, but I am looking forward to what we have ahead of us :) I don't know that anyone is checking my blog anymore since I have been slacking, but I am hoping and planning to blog every couple of days while I am out exploring and photographing new places! So, please come back for some cool pictures :)

Happy Be-lated 4th of July!

2010-07-06T21:30:00.001-05:00

Happy 4th of July! Brian and I had a lovely 4th celebrating on base with a good 'ol American BBQ and fireworks :) This was actually my first time photographing fireworks. I didn't get a ton of shots that I like and I blame my tripod for that. The stupid thing was too limiting on how high I could aim it so I basically just rested my camera on it. I think Brian may have got some better shots with his super cool tripod, but we haven't looked at the images yet.

For those of you who do not know, I only have two weeks left here in Japan. I leave for New Zealand on July 20 and will be going from there to Australia on August 2nd and then returning to Japan on August 12th where I will frantically be cleaning the mold off everything before it gets packed up and shipped off to America. Time is flying by and I am really excited, but will definitely miss this place. I plan to post pictures every couple of days of my travels so check back here to get updates on New Zealand and Australia! :)

Emily Lyn-Cook

2010-07-03T19:46:00.000-05:00

This is Emily. She is four years old and super cute! Her mom and Aunt brought her and they were fantastic at getting the cutest little smiles out of her :) Her dad is American and her mom is Japanese and so she of course speaks English and Japanese and I seriously think that is THE coolest thing ever! I wish I could speak two languages, and it is awesome that she will grow up bilingual. So here is the cool bilingual four year old!

She was a great little model and was really workin' the camera!

PS. Yes, I changed the layout to my blog and I like it better, but I am still trying to figure out how to get my images bigger, cause that would be better...

FOUR Years!

2010-07-01T18:12:00.001-05:00

Four years.... FOUR Years! I literally had to think about it for a minute last week as I realized our anniversary was coming up. Has it really been four years? That sounds like such a long time! That means that we have known each other for six years, and that is just a chunk of time. Now, please excuse the lack of recent pictures. I am at work right now and have not been on the computer at the house in quite some time (which is completely awesome!). So I am making do with stealing shots from my old blog :)

So, yes, four years. My favorite thing right now is that Brian is here. He has been home for about a month straight now and is not leaving anytime soon! I really don't even know what to say. Four years of marriage, Santa Barbara, graduating college, San Diego, Navy, Japan, Travels, moving again... so many big changes and yet we are still the same. We like to tease each other, use lots of sarcasm and movie/The Office quotes, and wrestle. It has been a great four years and I love that I am still learning things about him.

One thing I learned this last year is that he will never say anything bad about anyone. If he says someone is a good person you can take his word for it cause he wouldn't lie. If you ask him what he thinks of someone that isn't the greatest, he will honestly tell you that that person is not the greatest, but only because you asked. Otherwise he would just avoid talking about that person. It is funny to me that it took me so long to realize this, but it really wasn't until this last year that I realized he would say nice things about a few people and I never really believed him and then I would meet the person and say, "Wow, Brian, yeah he's a really cool dude". I know, I should believe him, but I am just skeptical. I have learned though that I don't need to be skeptical with Brian's opinion (on people that is :) So here's to 4 years! We're gonna head out to Yokohama and explore this afternoon, take some fun pictures, and enjoy Japan while we're still here! The picture below is just one of my favorites that Brian sent me while he was away. It's not often that I get to see some good scruffage on his face ;)

2010-06-15T17:27:00.000-05:00

Ah yes, thanks to Brian I have documentation for my first ticket EVER. It's wonderful how handy that fish eye is. First I would like to point out how wonderfully long my hair is getting (that comment is for you Melody). I was not speeding, I did not cut someone off, I did not in any way place anyone in any danger, but they felt the need to give me a ticket. I got in a right hand turning lane and decided that I wanted to go straight, then I LOOKED and saw no traffic coming and went straight from the turning lane. Immediately I hear a siren from the police car that is sitting at the light across from us. Not good. I knew it was for me cause the timing was just too right.

So I pulled over into a parking lot and the first thing the guy says is, "Do you speak English?" NO (I said it very nicely). His English was fine, and he proceeded to explain why I was pulled over and that they were giving me a ticket for 6,000¥. That's fine. Whatever. I broke the law apparently, but it was the SAFEST law breaking thing that I have done here. So on Monday, Brian went and paid both our tickets at the post office. Wait, what? Both? That's right, Brian also got a ticket :) He got a ticket for driving through a round about thing at a train stop that was for "taxi's only". So, yeah, been here for over 1 1/2 years and we are almost leaving and we both get a ticket in the same week. Why.

Janelle

2010-06-13T18:05:00.000-05:00

This little sleeper is Janelle. Fantastic, content, little sleeping baby :) Despite all our efforts to wake her she slept through pretty much the whole shoot. Sleeping babies are pretty darn cute though so it was cool with me :) This is Angela and Jeremiah's first baby and they are just beaming with excitement! Such a cute wonderful family. I am very happy to have had the opportunity to photograph them and capture this special time in their lives.

I mean, really, how stinkin' sweet is that?

Auburn

2010-06-09T21:24:00.001-05:00

Shugo is now in Auburn. Since we are moving in August we thought it would be better to move Shugo now before it gets really hot so we don't have to worry about them not letting him fly out when we leave. Last May when Shugo got here it had been a rough trip for him. He was feeling very sick and was not happy. He didn't even feel good enough to wag his tail when he saw me. So, leaving on Friday, I was a little nervous about the trip. I didn't want to put him on the plane, but it had to be done and when I got him at our layover in Seattle he was AWESOME! Happy, healthy and clean! He even got back in his crate for the remainder of the trip with no problems :) Things could not have gone any better. He seemed a little bit sleepy on the ride home from San Francisco airport, but it was a long trip since we hit Friday afternoon traffic...

I have not seen any of my family since October 2008 and let me just say that I am pretty sure I will never do that again. That is just way too long to not visit my family. I was only there for a quick two days, but it was really great to be able to visit with everyone. Below is a picture of me with my parent's St. Bernard, Gunther. He is a BEAR! SO HUGE! He makes Shugo look tiny!

I had a St. Bernard, Sandy, who died early in 2009. Gunther was sad, and he has since lost his mind. Seriously. On that table is my nephew Joel's lizard, and Gunther is apparently in love with him. He sat there staring at him for hours. The other dogs came and went, but he stayed just like that. He sleeps in front of the lizard's cage on the deck too! ALL DAY LONG. Something is seriously wrong with this dog. I love him to death, but he is now officially cookoo.

My sister's kids are below. They have gotten SO big! They are a lot of fun, and I can't wait to be back in August to spend more time with them :) It was a great trip, and I am glad we are moving back soon cause it made me realize how much I miss my family and the countryside!