Summer Giveaways! | Birmingham Photographer

Let’s beat the heat together by having a little fun… I am going to do three contests in the next five weeks, each announced here and on my facebook fan page.   Each contest will have different ways of entering to spice things up, but the prize will be the same each time:

One 30-minute mini-session and One mounted 8×10 print.  You decide what you want me to photograph:  some cute couple pictures you’ve always wanted in everyday clothes, your child, pictures with your new pet or just a classic family session for your Christmas card.  You must live or be willing to travel to Birmingham, AL or Raleigh, NC.  These sessions are not transferable (don’t worry, I’m going to do a big giveaway towards Christmas where you can nominate someone else who deserves one.)  We’ll work out a location, and the session must be completed in 2009.

Best of luck to you!

Drew + Caroline | Birmingham Engagement Photographer

Caroline and Drew are getting married this fall in Charleston, but we spent their engagement session exploring their new town, Birmingham.  Everything looks a little different early in the morning on a Sunday, but it was still fun to share some of my favorite spots with them.  They wanted to start out at the Botanical Gardens, one of the few places they had visited in town.

Then we headed to Five Points and walked around, I tried to point out all the great restaurants that they should be going to (like Chez Fon Fon!) and also explained where to park.  Drew is a Clemson grad, and they enjoyed doing a few pictures that expressed his love for his Alma Mater.

Finally, we ended up at Cobb Lane.  Caroline loved the brick street that reminded her of Charleston, and Drew is excited about heading to the J. Clyde, our favorite neighborhood spot for a beer, so I was glad to share it with them.

We love Birmingham, and can imagine living here for the rest of our lives.  Randomly, I spent four years as a tour guide at UNC-Chapel Hill, getting good at walking backwards and waxing poetic about places I love.   So, this session that merged with sharing about Birmingham was immensely fun for me.  I hope Drew and Caroline find Birmingham as hospitable and homey as we have!

Thomas | Birmingham Newborn Photography

Meet one of Birmingham’s newest babies, Thomas:

This one is especially for his grandfather, a big Red Sox fan.

What a beautiful family.

I love smiling newborns, absolutely love them.

Thomas comes from good Alabama stock.  He’s going to be the envy of his elementary school for sure with that Saban-signed ball.

Truly, he was the most expressive baby I’ve photographed in a long time, and I had a great time hanging out at their house for this shoot, which made choosing for this preview difficult!  So I put a few bonus shots below.

Robert + Lindsay | Birmingham Engagement Photography

A few more from this sweet couple, looking forward to their big day in August!

Hale | Birmingham Baby Photographer

Last week I caught up with another “grow with me” client, who wanted a special 3 month shoot to commemorate the end of her maternity leave.  You’ll remember Hale from his fun and creative newborn shoot.  Look how he’s grown!

Involuntary smiles result every time I look at the sweet photo of Hale sleeping on his mom.  I am so looking forward to watching this little one grow up.

Tom | Birmingham Child Photography

Tom is one of my baby plan children and I got a chance to check in with him again a few weeks ago.  I started photographing him before he even arrived, and his parents are sweet friends of ours, so it was a joy to capture his spirit.  (Should have taken some of him eating, what a little foodie!)

Tom’s mother is the president of Babywearing International, and the one who co-founded our local babywearing advocacy group with me so it’s no surprise Tom is a happy, carried baby.

More previews to come this week!

Landon + Amber | Auburn Engagement Photographer

We hit the road last week for an engagement session in Auburn with Amber and Landon.  Though their wedding is in Birmingham, they met and live in Auburn, so it seemed like the obvious choice for their engagement session.

Landon and Amber laugh a lot, so this next one captures them to me:

The bench where they got engaged.

We found some barns on campus, hiked around a pond, and subjected ourselves to mosquitoes aplenty for these next few.  Amber is a trooper!

So looking forward to their wedding this fall!

Create Your Own Package | Birmingham Wedding Photographer

Brides sometimes ask why I don’t offer packages.  There are certain minimums that I think all brides deserve.  An engagement session so I can get to know the couple and capture them in non-wedding day  clothes.  A full day’s coverage with two photographers.  A custom album designed with the bride’s input.  Other than that, different people have different needs, so I have worked to price things competitively and allow each couple to build a personal, perfect-for-them package from my offerings.

Here’s an example of what someone could do with a budget of $3000 for photography and prints.  Most of the cost is being absorbed by the bride’s parents, so she would like to be sure to thank them with a small album of their own.  The groom’s parents, their grandparents and others are welcome to order their own “mom’s albums.”

for $3000

An engagement shoot.  Wedding day coverage (up to 10 hours, by two experienced photographers).  Online proofing, an online slideshow and a facebook gallery.

28 page UPDGRADE album of the softest leather and thick, mounted pages and one 8×8 mom book with the same design as the bride and groom’s album.

a set of 100 5×7 prints.  Some of these will be duplicates to be given as gifts.

3 medium wall prints (11×14 – 14×14) to be hung in their new home.

3 small wall prints (8×10 – 10×10) to be given to the parents of the bride and groom.

a DVD of all pictures at their highest resolution and a DVD of the slideshow (Gifts from me because the order has over $500 worth of prints and $750 worth of prints and album orders combined.)

Ellen & Justin | Auburn Wedding Photographer

I shot a sweet wedding this weekend with the lovely and talented Camille.  The bride and groom started dating as sophomores in high school!  Their friends and families were so delighted to see them wed.

Congratulations, Ellen and Justin!

You can see more pictures from their wedding day at Lakeview Baptist Church and the Hotel Auburn at the KSP facebook page.

Avery | Birmingham Newborn Photography

I had the privilege of spending a few hours with four week old Avery and her parents, isn’t she super cute?

Mess happens, and impromptu baths result.

Her nursery is really cute!

Daddy – daughter moments are so sweet.

She fell asleep nursing, how peaceful!