{Personal} - Pumpkins and a Little Something From Us...

its been a long while since i've really posted anything personal here....so our trip to the pumpkin patch yesterday was the perfect fix for that. we dressed kiera up in her perfect pumpkin patch outfit and headed out with a few friends....here's some fall art and funny & favorite moments from our morning...

kiera LOVES nic!!! i think its their affinity for black and white decor that bonds them... :)

ok, and for those of you who know nic, this is her saying "WHY IS IT SO FLIPPING COLD?!?!?!?!?!" followed by the classic Nic laugh....i'm sure you can just hear it!!! :) love it.

so we all picked our own pumpkins, which always makes me laugh to see what different people like....grant picked the standard big, orange and round great for carving pumpkin. i ended up with this swan gourd thing that isn't even a pumpkin at all...but its ridiculously cool looking! and GREEN. and it looked cool sitting next to a bright orange pumpkin and this was kiera's pick...she's been carrying it around the house with her ever since we got it home.

i love fall...i don't know if its the colors, the relief from the summer heat, the crispness that's in the air, the spices and the smells, or the fact that i get to bust out my favorite boots, sweaters and scarves....but at any rate i love to soak it all in. and soak in moments like these along with it. seriously, it doesn't get more adorable than kiera tromping around the pumpkin patch in her little boots!!!

just a little update....we are winding down around the flynn house getting ready for little caedmon's arrival. i have one more event to photograph, a few projects to finish editing, some last orders to fill and then capture photography is chilling out until spring. as you can see, i am large and in charge!!! we've got a month left till his offical due date, but kiera "officially" showed up over two weeks early, so we're preparing for any time.

not to worry...you'll still see work from us! especially when our little man shows up. but i plan on giving myself plenty of time to get used to two before starting back to balancing wife, mama x2, home, and photography again.

it almost feels like we're going into hibernation mode or something...and, in all honesty, i'm welcoming it. its what our family needs for this season.

and what i need for this season i think.

SO much has happened in the past year on all levels, i am looking forward to stepping back and really getting to process everything...and i'll be sure to share some thoughts about photography, life, and whatever other randomness may come along, over the next few months. so keep up with us, even if my posting seems a bit erratic (which i know its started to be already!).

on that note, we hope you're enjoying your fall and whatever other season of life you may be in at the moment as much as we are...you'll hear more from us soon....

{Seniors} - Sam

meet one of our great 2010 seniors, Sam!

i love senior photos....i love the time in life, i love to see the different personalities come out, hear different dreams and goals....they are just great! but i have a sneaking suspicion that senior photos are WAAAAAY more fun for girls...unless the guy just really loves being in front of the camera. so, in my book, any guy that powers through a senior session is a total trooper. however, any guy who powers his way through a senior photo session AND does so with a big ole' prego photographer is automatically a total rockstar! so....way to go sam! he did a great job of just hanging out and staying super relaxed while we ran around all over downtown. as with all of my shoots, i had a great time watching more and more of his personality come out as the session went on.

sam...you really did a terrific job. plus, you were a great sport with having to deal with a camera for an hour and a half. and i think the sam i am shirt is definitely one of my all time favorites. :) can't wait to show you all the rest of your images!!

{Engagement} - Joy & Andy

The long awaited Joy and Andy photos are here!!!!! i know...you're going to feel like you're scrolling forever....it is a looooong post, but its my sister! and almost brother in law! they deserve it!!

if i'm not careful, i'm totally going to write a book...but again, this is family, so i'm allowed :) this is probably one of my favorite shoots i've ever done. and for obvious reason....how often does someone ask their photographer to photograph the ACTUAL engagement. and how often is that your SISTER?! i will never be able to stop thanking andy enough for letting grant and i be a part of that and be able to capture those once in a lifetime moments for them. that is a huge gift to be able to give anyone, not to mention your own sister!

so here's the rundown of what happened. and i'm writing all of this so that you can give MAJOR props to andy and his mad planning skills! he is a TOTAL ROCKSTAR:

andy, grant and i all fly to chicago on a thursday morning. joy thinks andy is in meetings all day, and that i'm getting ready for her and andy to show up here in columbus that night.

the three of us bum around chicago all day, eat geno's pizza, scout out the local area for great photo spots and make sure everything is good to go for andy's master plan....all the while dodging phone calls from anyone who might suspect and accidentally slip something to joy and/or having to duck into buildings to take calls from joy so that she wouldn't hear all the street noise (hilarious....), or think something was weird that i wasn't answering my phone on the day she was coming into town!

i get a call from joy that afternoon with her screaming into the phone "a driver just came to pick me up...i'm going to chicago where i guess i'm meeting andy....AND I NEED A DRESS!"

i, of course, know everything that's going on, but played totally dumb with comments like "what?!" "i can't understand you"..."whats going on?" "so you're not coming to georgia?????" etc, etc, etc...

finally joy just yelled "I DON"T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON, BUT I THINK ANDY'S PROPOSING AND I JUST NEED YOU TO TELL ME WHAT TO WEAR!!!!!!!"

LOVE IT!

so...finally about 7 that night, joy rolls up and gets dropped off right where andy is waiting to drop on his knee and pop the question....they have this great moment and meanwhile, i'm across the street trying to conceal my very large prego belly and zoom lens (after my original stellar hiding spot got totally axed by some really mean horse and carriage drivers), and grant is 10 stories up in Andy's room getting shots from that angle.

the second andy waltzed joy inside, i booked it across the street to a ritz camera (how perfect was THAT?!) edited a photo for them, slapped my logo on it, had it printed and mounted super fast, and got it all wrapped up. then grant and i went to go get ready and wait....meanwhile i'm getting texts from joy saying "I'm ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!"

(uh, yea you are, i just saw the whole thing!!!)

so they're having dinner, andy texts us to let us know when it was time to show up, we hand the host the wrapped photo and watch as he takes it to their table, she opens it and starts to look a little puzzled.....then she got it and said "WHERE IS SHE!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!"

and wala! grant and i waltz around the corner and totally get to celebrate with them.

it was sweet sweet sweet.....

so then the next morning we did their engagement shots all around downtown. which was so fun...it was totally refreshing to get to do something super personal to them and yet unique and creative at the same time - capture them in a city that they will forever go back to and celebrate in....capture some of their everyday life like starbucks and andy's "minor" obsession with all things disney...even when we were going through what they were going to wear, they ended up in their first date outfits (not planned, but fit perfectly!!!!).

and there you have it. the start of one more way wonderful adventure of one more amazing couple...one of THE MOST amazing, if i may say so....

love you two SO MUCH!!!!! thank you again for such an amazing mini-weekend in chicago and for letting us be able to share in this awesome time with you. we can't wait to see how jesus keeps weaving your hearts together and the creative ways he makes your story YOURS...if that makes sense. we are excited for everything that is ahead of you...and stoked to walk along with you and support you in that....and super glad that you're there to do the same for us :) you are the best. LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!

{One Year Photos} - Ella Grace

check out sweet n' sassy miss ella grace!

i say this all the time....i L-O-V-E my clients. i don't ever really stress if i don't book every inquiry that comes my way because honestly, i know that i will end up with the folks who are supposed be my clients, not someone elses....if that makes sense. the reason i mention that is because i think of how much i love how photography works that way whenever i do a shoot for ella grace and her mama, Tasha.

let me just tell you how our morning went...

i roll into Fountain City to meet the girls...admittedly a little late, but not so late that i can't grab a mocha and a muffin and chill outside.

tasha and ella round the corner...a little later.... :) ella munches on cheerios while tasha and i finish coffee and get totally carried away talking about all sorts of creative things.

we finally jump in the car and Tasha says "ok, lets go wherever!" (I LOVE THAT!) so we headed to my new favorite, random back alley way.

we get out of the car, and i start digging through the huge bag of fun outfits that tasha brought...we do a couple of shots in what ella had on, then Tasha says "ok, i totally want to get shots of her in her tutu, boots and pearls because thats what she stomps around in the house in all the time".

i, of course, am all for that, but then tasha says "hey, can you grab me the shirt that i threw in there to go with this tutu?"

"um....Tasha, there's no shirt in here".

"WHAT?!"

"nope...no shirt...more tutu's, but no shirt".

"well....honestly, this is how she runs around the house anyway, can we just do it like this?!"

OF COURSE! i mean really, i couldn't have planned the morning better had i sat down and thought all of that out. it just happened that way...and it was great. and then it didn't stop there...we headed to K-Rawks Closet, which ella's aunt, Kirsten owns! she graciously let us tear up the store for a bit for something fun and different. check out her site, HERE, and then go downtown and SEE HER!

all that to say (and i know this is practically the longest post ever, but hang with me for a sec)....

this is a perfect example of what GREAT stuff can come out of just letting things be as they are instead of forcing things to be perfect...i am so all about that and thankful to have clients who think the same way.

Ella Grace - you rocked it little miss! thanks to you and your mama for making it a wonderful morning!!!

{Family Session} - The Johnsons

Say hello again to the Johnson Family!

this is photo shoot number three for this crew....i love it because they are always up for something new and different than what they did the last time. we bummed around downtown on a recent saturday morning...stomped on storm drains, played with rocks and bells (this is how it goes when you're 4 and 1!!!!), caught some sweet moments and great laughs of everyone just enjoying each other! AND...this was my first photo shoot on record where we drew blood....no kidding! we're not sure how it happened, but all we know is it ended up all over jack and his dad. it probably didn't help that i had the kids tackling their parents....

johnson fam....we love you guys! and your SHOES! ;) and most of all your hearts...thanks for letting me capture another round of great, GREAT photos for ya'll!!!

One Sweet Moment

so grant i were in chicago this past weekend....anyone who's been to chicago knows that it is THE COOLEST city.....ever. but we weren't just there to explore chicago....we were on a mission....we were there to photograph this:

this is my little sister joy....TOTALLY GETTING PROPOSED TO!!!!!! she and her now new fiancee' andy were "coming to georgia" to see us on thursday. but unbeknownst to her, she was actually going to fly to chicago first where andy was waiting with one killer plan to sweep her off her feet. and we were waiting to photograph it all! (he is a SERIOUS rockstar when it comes to making out of the box, creative plans....if you can't tell!) so after that huge surprise, she got another one...the fact that grant and i were there to celebrate with them!

it was a sweet, sweet moment...and will forever be my one of my favorites that we've been able to capture. i mean, really, you just can't beat moments like this!!

we did their engagement photos the next morning while bummin' around the city...so you'll get to see some of my favorites from that shoot soon. we also did a few cool night shots too after surprising joy during dinner....the one you see above is andy's absolute favorite, so i had to post that...and probably will again, just for him. :)

joy & andy - CONGRATULATIONS....for like the 50th time. and i know we've both told you this all weekend, but we were so blessed to be able to celebrate with you and to offer you these precious photos that will forever freeze your incredible moment in time!!! we love you both so, so, SO much and couldn't be more thrilled for you both.

{Family & Newborn} - Hart

All the way from Baton Rouge...the Hart family!

When M.E. found out that she was prego with John Thomas, i immediately got an email saying "umm, you'll be coming to baton rouge when he's born to take his photos!" which i was TOTALLY excited about...we are always up for a good road trip, especially if it means getting to hang out with great folks like the Harts. and what a joy to get to meet this little guy! he was super chill and let me move him all over the place all day long...he just snoozed through the whole thing. Bryan and M.E. enjoyed loving on their little one and were just totally their chill selves while i tore apart their house in the name of getting creative, personal shots for them (thanks guys.... :)). even jake was super cooperative when it was his turn to model. i will tell you, kids and animals can be tough, tough, tough to shoot...and these two made it look like a breeze!

so hart's...its so fun to see ya'll with a little one! especially him working his mind powers on Bryan ;). really though, ya'll were still you guys - just +1 now and that is always great to see! THANK YOU for the ridiculously good food, for being way, way flexible, letting kiera "help" with your photos, and totally understanding when my camera died. (i'm SO thankful we got what we did before that happened! ugggghhhhhhhhh......). there's more goodness for you to see - i'll post your proofs soon!

**and yes, you heard right, my camera TOTALLY died for no good reasonwhile we were in Baton Rouge. not a pretty moment...so it is having some quality time at the Canon Repair Factory and i am incredibly grateful to have AMAZING photog buddies here who don't mind helping me out with equipment while mine is fixed. but more on that later....

{Family} - McNay

once again....the mcnays!

so, this year, the mcnay's schlepped it down to Columbus for their yearly photo shoot. while making a 9:01pm run to Target to find something different for the girls to wear, ami and i were laughing about all of their fun photo shoots over the past four years...

year #1 - mcnay family photo shoot in a castle in europe with an itty bitty Hadleigh Claire. i had JUST decided to try my hand at this photo biz thing and was just getting my feet wet. they were brave enough to say "sure! we'll totally let you take our pictures!"

year #2 - grant and i head back up to ATL and set up shop in their living room seeing as it was August in the South and ami was prego with miss annelise. a few months after that, ami, the girls and i were plopped down in their front yard doing a surprise photo session for dave for fathers day.

year #3 - the entire mcnay family climbs a giant tree in piedmont park at dave's request. and we totally get shooed away by a pesky security guard.

and year #4 - we wake up the morning of their shoot and it is POURING rain in columbus. i'm not talking just normal rain, i mean like monsoon quality, you can hear it on the roof so loud you almost have to talk a little louder to hear each other type of rain. instead of saying "guess we'll have to reschedule...", ami looked at me and said "ok, what sort of creative thing are we going to do here?!" love it...but i still was begging Jesus for the rain to stop. it was still pouring while we drove downtown and then all of a sudden.....it totally stopped! hello jesus - THANK YOU! so we were able to mosey around downtown for a while before heading the children's section of a local museum to let the girls play for a while.

whew! what adventures! mcnays - we LOVE IT! and always love when we get to see you be it here or there. this time being no exception!

{Family} - Griffin

Time for the Griffin Family!!!

just a few short months ago, we were getting shots of kristie's belly before her 2nd little one made his appearance. for that matter, almost TWO years ago, we were doing the same for Wheeler, and not long after i was in the hospital getting shots of his first new moments in the world. now he was cutting up and TOTALLY working the camera while his baby brother was getting ready.

CRAZY!

i love that though...getting to see so many unique families change and grow and hopefully freeze a few of those moments in time for them.

anyway....say hello to Jason Thomas Tifton Griffin. aka JAKE. is he not the YUMMIEST little thing you've ever seen?! i could not get enough of those baby bunches of fat rolls. we had a great time, just hanging out in their home, letting them be as they are where they're the most comfortable and share the most life. and kristie totally let me prick her brains about a). having a BOY and b). having kiddos who are not too far apart. i could have jabbered on and on with her for hours....

griffin's - we always LOVE US some griffin family!!!! ya'll are so blessed...and thank you for letting me share in that for a few precious minutes. can't wait for you to see the rest of your wonderful shoot!!

{One Year} - Lena

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JAN.......your photos of sweet lena are up!!!!!!!!

ah, lena! let me tell you about this little one...she, obviously, is BEAUTIFUL, but she also has the most beautiful, generous little heart. jan and i were driving around with her and kiera in the back and i looked back to see lena handing kiera toys because she didn't have any. pretty soon, lena didn't have any because she was so intent on sharing. she just gave and gave until she didn't have any more to give. now how many one year olds do you know who do that?!?!?! it is clear that she was built with a thoughtful little spirit.

lena...thanks for teaching me a thing or two about being generous and caring. its a little humbling when that come from a one year old, but i'll take it. your tri-auntie absolutely adores and LOVES YOU and trusts that you, with your giving spirit, will pass some of that onto your mama too when she needs it.... :)