Nickelodeon comes to Town!

This weekend we will be doing production stills for a web series for Nickelodeon! A production company, Small Media Extra Large will be filming their web series, "Exit Strategy", a story about a girl who lives in a funeral home.

Part of the filming will be done at Snowdon Funeral Home, and part at the North Pocono High School.

They are looking for extras, so if you know anyone who is 18, 19, 20ish; or older but looks like a high school student, please give them our name and I'll give them the info. We'll post some photos as we get them.

The Ball of Hope

The Ball of Hope is a charity event run by the American Cancer Society. This is our second year shooting this event and I always have a blast. So many inspiring stories. Hopefully some day, there will be a cure for this awful disease.

The ambassadors who helped plan the event.


The theme was "a Return to the Classics"




The Exact Change Band


This car was donated by Toyota to be raffled off at the Ball


This lovely young lady came to the Ball this year to say thank you. Because of the donations last year, she was able to go to Camp Can Do this summer. This is a camp for kids with cancer. She was able to find kids with the same fears and hopes that she has. She also told us that she is now cancer free! YAY for her! I hope there are more that are able to say that!


I cannot do a blog post about cancer and not talk about Sandy. She is the biggest supporter of the ACS that I know. This woman works two job, is a mom and a grandmother, and is a good friend to us! Every where she goes, she promotes awareness. She is usually in the background, volunteering all of her time to this cause, so I just wanted to say, thank you Sandy, for all that you do!

Models

Dayshawn is a model from Scranton who needed some new shots to build up his portfolio.

High Tea and a good cause

For those who don't know, we do some work with Teen Parents. Its run by Youth for Christ. They help teenage girls who got pregnant to learn how to take care of their babies, themselves, stay in school, provide a good life for their children, and if they are lucky, come to know the Lord in the process.

One of the girls from Youth for Christ decided to help put together their annual fundraiser for her senior project. Their fundraiser is a High Tea. This year they had formal evening gowns to auction off after the tea. There were also a couple vendors that were willing to give back a percentage of what they made that day.

Danae, Cyndi, Aylene, and the rest of the ladies did a great job putting this together!
Aylene and Cyndi, who run the Teen Parents program


Some of the dresses that were being auctioned off


Danae, who made this her senior project

Cady and Ben

We met Cady and Ben through a friend of ours (thanks Sandy)! I don't know how but we have ended up with the coolest couples! They are all ready to have fun and pretty much let us do whatever we want. Too bad my kids weren't like that!

Since they live about an hour away, I suggested they meet us at the Lehigh Zoo for their engagement session. Its a really nice little zoo tucked away in the gamelands down by Allentown. We found it one day while looking for a place to shoot for fun. If you have never heard of it, or have never been there, you should check it out! They just got some penguins this year to add to the exibits. On the way out of the property, you have the option of driving through the gamelands. This road take you to a shallow riverbed which you have to cross. All along the river, there are picnic spots for families to spend the day with the kids. Its not ususual to see kids in the river catching crayfish and having fun. After you cross the river, you drive up into the mountain, where there are elk and buffalo. At the top of the mountain, you can see the whole valley. This is what we wanted to use for the setting for Cady and Ben.

When we got there, the river was blown out from all the rain. They were not letting anyone cross, since you have to actually ford the river to get across. So, we set up camp at the river and did our session there.

They are a very playful couple and I really think it shows in their photos. I can't wait til the wedding!

Wedding Bells

This is Jackie and Ryan. We met them through our friend Jason. The day started out a little rainy, but ended up being really nice! Very fun couple. We had a blast doing this wedding! They were willing to do pretty much anything we asked them to do, including scaling a stone wall at Nay Aug! Much happiness to the two of you!

Computers! Can't live with them, can't live without them!

When did we become so dependant on computers? We didn't have them when I was growing up, but they are every where now. And when one goes down, it's like total meltdown.

This has been a bad week for computers of all kinds here. My kid's computers got infested with some kind of virus. While fixing that, I found out that my older computer could not sign onto the internet for whatever reason. My MP3 player wouldn't update. My cell phone was acting wacky. Is there a full moon? Or is it just the meteors that are shooting around us this week that are causing it? Luckily, I was able to fix them all with little swearing or yelling. But, I am done. If I hear, "Mom, my computer is acting weird" any time soon, I might lose it.

This totally random image that Im uploading here (if the program works) is a test. I tried posting some last week of my kids at sunset, but this software was acting buggy.

If it doesn't post, Im pulling the plus and giving up for a while!

Baby John turns 1!

Wow! I have really been behind on my blogging! I thought Id share a few shots from last night. I was on my way to my sister's house for my nephew's 1st birthday party.

As I drove, the sun was setting. It was turning the sky an amazingly bright orange color. I was so glad I had my camera with me! I quickly pulled over, made the kids get out to pose for a couple shots in front of the sunset! They even got along while they did it! I ended up being fashionably late for the party, but I think I got a couple cool shots of the kids.

The party was fun. My sister's kids are more energetic than I remember my kids being at that age. I don't know how she does it!

Anyway, here are a few shots from the party as well as the sunset. (all photos of the highway were taken by Jess. I didn't shoot and drive)

Fall 2009 Newsletter

Fall is a beautiful time of year. The trees each have their own color, and give perfect contrast to the bright blue sky above. Footbabll and soccer seasons have started and are almost over. Soon the kids will be Trick or Treating and before you know it, Thanksgiving and then Christmas is here. Its amazing how fast the year seems to fly by! When we were kids, it seemed like forever. Now, they just kind of all blur together.

Wedding Season

This year we have met a lot of great couples who are getting married. We've done a few engagement sessions, and some weddings this year. We love being a part of their special day. The nervousness, the excitement, the love, the magic of it all.
We had a booth at the Bridal Expo in Wilkes Barre this month. This was a first for us, but we really enjoyed ourselves. We hope to do the next one in the winter at the Scranton Cutural Center.

Outdoor Studio

The digging for the outdoor studio began back in the summer. Thanks to Jeff from Fischer Brothers Landscaping, the wall is complete. We are now working on the floor of the patio in front of it. Our only obstacle is the weather. It doesn't stop raining long enough to get anything done. We have used the wall a few times for some sessions. In the spring we hope to add flowers and ivy all around the wall. By adjusting our angles of the camera, we hope to be able to get totally different looks from that one wall. We also have other plans for next year if the weather cooperates.
Senior Class of 2010

You do have time to make the yearbook if you haven't gotten your pictures done yet. Most schools need the photo by December. We can proof right after your session so you can choose your photo for the yearbook. We will edit that photo, and get it to you so you can hand it in on time.


Upcoming Events
These events are open to the public. Please contact us for more details.

November 7, 2009
12-2pm
YFC High Tea to Benefit the Teen Parent's Program
This will take place at the Grace Bible Church in Dunmore $22 for tickets
They will also be auctioning off prom dresses after the tea. Preview is 2:30, auction begins at 3.

November 13, 2009
6-11pm
American Cancer Society's Annual Ball of Hope
This takes place at the Scranton Cultural Center. Ticket price is $100.

Sundays starting November 8 through February.
FC U-18 Girls Soccer Time dependant on schedule.
Riverfront Sports Complex in Scranton
There is no charge to watch these teams play.

Another Senior

This is Maria. She is a senior at Dunmore High School. We have known her family for a while now. Instead of taking the summer off like most kids her age, Maria spent the summer in boot camp.

We did a few indoor shots, but she really loosened up when we got outside. I think she did a great job modeling! Any of you last minute seniors who go to Dunmore, be sure to get a card off Maria. You'll receive 16 free wallets!

Girls on the runway

Monday we had the pleasure of getting some girls to come in to model for us. Danae is a senior from North Pocono. For her senior project, she is helping organize the Youth for Christ's high tea which benefits their Teen Parents program. At this year's tea, they will be auctioning off prom dresses. Danae and some of her friends came over to model the dresses so we could make a catalog for them. If you would like to attend the high tea, or bid on a dress, please contat us and we will get you the information you need.

First Friday

The city of Scranton has a monthly art show, held on the first Friday of each month, appropriately named First Friday. Each month, local businesses and a few churches, display art made by local artists. We have had the honor of being asked by St Luke's Church to be part of their display a few times.

October's theme was pet art. Pets were welcome to come, and Father Pete had a pet blessing in the church. There were dancing dogs, along with pets looking for homes that were there with the Griffin Pond Aimal Shelter. Springbrook Kennels, K-9 Training and a few other facilities were there to educate owners on pet care, grooming and training.

It as a fun night and we got to meet some great people. If you are looking for something to do on a Friday night, google First Friday in Scranton and get a list of establishments displaying art.

New to the family

Last week we drove down to Virginia, just outside of DC to take some photographs of Sophia, a daughter of my friends Pietra and Vanjela. Pietra's grandmother and my grandmother met back in the 60s when they both bought vacation property at Lake Wallenpaupack. Her mother and my father grew up together and then Pietra and her brother and my sisters and I grew up together.

Needless to say, I was thrilled to go see her baby. I dragged Ed along for the ride. She was having a little bit of a belly ache, but we worked in between cries. Here are some of my favorites.

K's Cake Smash

We finally had the pleasure of doing a cake smash! Our first victim, I mean client, was Miss K. It's hard to believe she is 1 year old already! We put the cake in front of her and she didn't know quite what to do. After some help from mom, she was soon covered in icing and bits of cake. We put some music on, and she really started jamming. Such a cutie and such a mess she made! Good job, K! Mom and I went upstairs to give her a bath and left Ed to clean most of the mess. Poor Ed! Here are some of our messiest and favorites from her session.

Jason and Jess

We met Jason a few months ago at our local B2B meetings. The day we met him, he told us he had a friend getting married and he would pass our card along. Now it's his turn to get married, and we will be shooting his wedding as well.

Jason and Jess are an adorable couple. We met them at their favorite spot in a back area of Nay Aug Park. We did some shots with the tree they got engaged under, and then moved to other areas.

Here are a few of our favorites from their session. Thanks again Jason and Jess! We can't wait for the wedding!