Lauren Hughes//Athens Portraits

Ohhhhhhhhh so excited about this shoot for LOTS of reasons: 1. I didn't know Lauren at all before this, but after hanging out with her and her sister, Lindsey, I am convinced that I am their long lost other sister.

2. Lauren has beautiful teeth which are great to photograph.  Best part? They aren't real (well, at least a few aren't).  No worries, I asked Lauren if this is okay to write about and she was on board (because she's awesome).  2nd best part? I have fake teeth, too!!!! Some of you reading this may be totally grossed out, but don't be.  We just weren't born with all our adult teeth.  It happens more than you think.  My brother had 2 adult teeth grow in the same place where I was missing mine, so we always thought that he somehow got mine.  I can't tell you what a bond I felt when I was saying how beautiful Lauren's teeth were and she told me that it was a bridge.  And then Lindsey (Lauren's sister who came along for the fun of the shoot:) told me how Lauren used to have these fake teeth on a retainer that she could take out of her mouth... ME TOO! I had such a love/hate relationship with that retainer.  In high school I would freak people out by moving it up and down with my tongue in Physics class.  I also had to take it out to eat, so it was embarrassing to talk during lunch and let everyone see you as a jack-o-lantern.  All that to say, how could I not feel a unique bond with Lauren?  We are teeth soul mates.

3. Lauren is a writer, and an awesome one at that!  I read some of her stuff before we met up to get to know her better and loved it (check out her blog here; it is a really good read).  Lauren is graduating this May from UGA and will be working as a freelance writer either in New York or Atlanta, and I think she is going to do really well with it.  I also LOVE reading very honest, conversational writing, and her work is just that.  So that made my time with Lauren even better because I felt like I already had talked with her through her blog.

4. Okay, I promise only 1 more reason why I am excited to post pictures from our time together... Lauren and Lindsey are crazy like me! They are really close as sisters and seem to share everything, including amazing dance moves.  When we about to leave, we were having fun talking and they both did this super fun dance move that they apparently do when they're excited.  Soooo funny because I have the same move in my repertoire, too! One of my favorite quotes happens to be about dancing: "There's a little bit of insanity in dancing that does everyone a great deal of good..."  I wish I knew who said it, but I don't.  I just love that.  So I felt like we could all be a little insane together and really enjoy each other.

I loved doing this shoot and going through these pictures.  Lauren was awesome.  So much fun and she totally rocked in front of the camera.  My next mission will be to find Lindsey walking around campus or downtown doing some crazy dances and get some pictures of her.  I'm really thankful that Lauren was also so gracious when I showed up REALLY late because of a brain lapse.  Thanks, Lauren.  And Lindsey, thanks for making me laugh and running around downtown Athens carrying Lauren's stuff.  Here are a few of the pictures from our time together; enjoy!

These next 2 pictures CRACK ME UP.  We were crossing the street and I pulled out my camera to get Lauren in action (and Lindsey in the corner of the shot).  Lauren did some funny faces as we were running across the street and they are priceless! I am a huge fan of fun faces.

family + friends//Atlanta portraits

One of my brothers (Sean) works for CSS (Comcast Sports) as a television producer (and behind the camera, too).  He actually has won at least 3 Emmys in television for the Southeast Region and does some awesome work in sports television.  Sean recommended my photography to his friend and co-worker, Colleen, and soon after I took pictures of her son, Jackson, who was just 5 months old.  Now Jackson is almost 15 months old and breaking ladies hearts with his amazing blond hair and blue eyes.  We tried to schedule pictures at Sean's house in Cumming a few different times, but both Sean and Colleen were working in Orlando during Braves Spring Training and also the NBA All-Star game (you know, just rubbing shoulders with P-Diddy and 50 Cent... no big deal, right? I would have been freaking out, probably doing some sort of club dancing trying to get their autograph on my hand or something).  So finally the husband and I, with kids in tow, visited Sean and Jen to catch up, get some pictures of my niece, Audrey, and take pictures of little Jackson.  Colleen and her husband, Seth, and her grandmother, Gigi, came along to make Jackson laugh for pictures and they did an awesome job getting some good smiles from the little guy.  In between shots of Jackson I happened to catch Audrey and Ethan playing, and am posting some pictures of these cute cousins, too.  Sean and Jen have this amazing barn in their backyard that is just begging to be used for pictures, so all of these were taken there.  Check out these blue eyes... so handsome! I had to put this picture of sad Jackson... we had a little accident on the fire engine and Jackson was not excited about more pictures with it!  Sorry, Jackson- never again!

and here a few of my niece Audrey, and my own little guy, Ethan...

And I had to include this picture... I assume these are Audrey's paws on the window:) It's a good reminder to me that children are a precious mess.  One day we'll wish we could go back to the days of handprints on the windows...

The Snapp Family//Athens, GA

Soooo I technically don't take family pictures anymore in an effort to focus my work and time on wedding photography, but on different occasions I do photograph families I know and feel connected to.  I've known the Snapp family for nearly 10 years, first meeting them when I was a college student and their oldest son was only around 3 years old.  It was crazy for me to see him now (in 6th grade) and how this little boy was bigger than Angela, his mom, and on his way up to his dad, Bill!  Maren is their sweet little girl who made me laugh when throughout the pictures she pretended to be a kitty cat and we had to refer to her hands as paws:)  I had a good time catching up with this family and the best part was their understanding that family pictures sometimes turn out crazy because trying to get everyone in a family to smile and not blink and put their hands down and not slouch and not give bunny ears...well it can sometimes be challenging! But they were up for the challenge and had such a good attitude about it. Family pictures can be such a gift because it freezes time so that you can look at the people you love, almost from the outside looking in, and appreciate them more even though in the day to day minutia their little idiosyncrasies can drive you bananas!  I love looking through pictures of my children or husband because it reminds me how sacred family is, how grateful I am for my children and how precious it all is.  I always think as I'm taking family pictures that there will be a day when they look back at these photos and remember what life was like when kids were younger and the good times in the middle of the craziness.  So thanks, Snapp family, for helping me remember the importance and value of family life, and how before we know it 10 years will have passed and little faces will be big faces and we'll wish we savored those little faces more.  Enjoy!!