Elizabeth

To the rest of the world, this beauty is known as Elizabeth.  

To us, she will always be our Beth.  

She is funky and worldly, with a crazy amount of style. Among many other things, she loves Twilight (ok, maybe just Edward), Harry Potter, really good food (those risotto balls were to die for!) and the River. And her family means the world to her.  I am proud to be her big sister! 

I had fun with you, Beth, and I am so grateful that her and my mother got all gussied up and trusted me to take their pictures and show them to the world! Ok, maybe not the world - I think I only have 3 readers, but still, they put their trust in me and that gives me confidence!  A gift I can never repay.

Hopefully your pictures will help to say, "thank you." Hope you like them!

I am splitting them up a bit, since there are some with her daughter I would like to share.  There is one teaser here, just because I couldn't wait.  ;)  Enjoy!

same in black and white since I already sent you the sepia (you can pick your favorite!):

I am looooving this one - check out the glow on her cheeks!

Love the color combo in this one: the orange wall and the off-white sweater, the dark brown hair, the green eyes...

These look timeless to me:

Here's a teaser of Beth and Miss Em:

Hope you like them!  And thanks for the practice.

Sweet, Sweet Bailey

We lost another angel of this world today, my friends.  And he was the sweetest dog I have ever known.  

The other subjects I wanted to practice shoot this past weekend were my parents' two dogs, Jack and Bailey.  I had so many reasons to want to practice on them, since they are both black dogs (notoriously hard to photograph), two crazy, high energy dogs and they were two dogs! That in itself is hard to work out, since they both tend to level each other out.  One is crazy while the other mellow and vice versa.  Never a quiet moment together.  Plus they are physically opposite, Bailey being sleek and glossy and thin while Jack sports the long and wiry gray/black fur on a large, thick frame.

The other reason I wanted to go over was that on Friday, Bailey was diagnosed with a giant tumor on his spleen.  My parents were devastated.  My dad asked that I come over and take a few good pictures of him.  After some exploring, however, they found that they could remove his spleen and he might just be in the clear.  We were all pretty happy after that good news and started to let our guard down. 

So, I went over post-surgery to capture a few pictures of sweet Bailey anyway. He was doing pretty well, relaxing and resting afterwards at home. I was able to get a few good ones, but I figured since he was going to be ok, there was no pressure to get them all this weekend and I just let him be after a few minutes with him.  I honestly didn't want to put any stress on him after his surgery to hamper his healing. Though, I was amazed with his resilience, even for a dog. 

Today, my father called to let me know that Bailey had taken a turn for the worse, ironically in complications from the surgery that saved his life.  They have assumed that he had a possible stroke and his poor body has been seizing ever since, for two days.  There was nothing more they could do for him but let him go.  

Bailey, with his beautiful brown eyes, his habit of laying on the couch while his front paws were standing on the floor (a Great Dane trait, by the way), his smooth and glossy black coat shining in the sun and his strong tail always thump, thump, thumping on the floors and walls.  He was happy. Eternally happy. Always sweet and loving and ready to get in on whatever fun there was to be had. Whether it was playing ball or eating his food, Bailey always did it fast and furious, his whole being thrown into what he was doing.  When he wagged his tail, his whole back end wagged with it.  So much enthusiasm for life and we were lucky to have known him. His eyes said so much about him, forever entreating you to play with him, really to just love him.   

I am so sorry, Mom and Dad for having to lose him and having to deal with the pain that ensues. Please know that you gave him an amazing life full of joy and treats and snuggles in the waterbed.  He was part of your family and he will be missed every single day.  Know that he is at play in the fields of heaven, his soul at peace, playing blissfully with Jake and Ruger.  

And please kiss Jack for me.

Here are the few pictures I got of Bailey and I hope that you like them, even though I did him no justice at all.

  

Mamasita

This weekend, I had the pleasure of practice shooting with my mother and sister.  I have been wanting to take some iconic pictures of them both, since it is a way of leaving a beautiful legacy to your children.  I have always wanted a gorgeous picture of my mother, my children's grandmother, to frame, to save forever.  

That was my goal!  And thankfully they cooperated and didn't shove the camera out of their faces like I was the paparazzi.  Phew!  They were so cute and uncomfortable with it, but I think I got some good starting shots of them both. 

Today, we start with our hot mama!  She just recently got a new job and we are so proud of her. Way to go!  And don't think I'm done - I'm just getting started practicing on you two...  ;)

My ABSOLUTE favorite one...

This one I couldn't decide - I liked the feel of them both...the classic drama in the first and the color in the second, the way her hair was tinted a bit red and the green of the jade plant in the foreground.

Hope you like them mama!

Beth, you are next.  ;)

Miss Riley

Over the weekend, we got together again with our amazing friend, Sara, who just happens to have been the nurse who helped deliver our babies.  She also happens to be owned by an incredible Great Dane, Riley.  I asked if I could do a little photo shoot of her the next time we got together, for my portfolio, and she graciously agreed, even though it took a big chunk of our visit together - sorry Sara!  

This was my first official "not-my-own-animals-shoot" - and I learned a lot!  First, check your equipment.  I ended up there without the lens I normally use and no flash.  I had the short lens and the mega-zoom...and no flash.  Borrowing the camera from my mother (I need to get my own!), I grabbed the camera on the way.  I never checked to make sure what I normally use was in there, so I learned a lot.  Having the two extremes to work with, I only got a few decent pics. 

Here's a teaser of the lovely Miss R.  Once I send the others over to Sara (it's only fair!), I will share the rest!  We will be getting together again soon to re-shoot with the proper equipment. Silly me. 

She's so gorgeous - and HUGE!  I just love her.