Jeff Cleveland Photography, LLC

Chicago Wedding Photographer - Ryan and Chelsea

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 09:00:00 +0000

This past November when Jan and I were in New Orleans we had the opportunity to hang out with Jeff & Erin Youngren. Not only are they amazing wedding photographers but they are incredibly generous people too. We were talking about ways to get started in the wedding photography business and the benefits of shooting with other photographers when Jeff mentioned that they were shooting a wedding at Riverside Receptions in Geneva, IL in March. He said if I was interested I could spend the day with them, take some pictures and see what I could learn in the process. (I think this was one of those moments in life when I was so excited it might have shown a little bit too much.) Four months later and the day finally came. The day was beautiful and Ryan and Chelsea were a fantastic couple to spend the day with. You can see their engagement session here and here and see Jeff and Erin's wedding posts here and here.

This was the kind of day that makes wedding photography such a great job. This couple not only loved each other but they loved their wedding day. Their families were happy for them and their friends were having a fantastic time celebrating with them. I appreciated being included in the day by not only Jeff and Erin but also by Ryan and Chelsea and their families. Here are some of my favorite images from the day.

Ryan and Chelsea decided to see each other before the ceremony. Ryan was pretty emotional when he turned around and saw Chelsea for the first time.

I hung out with Erin while she photographed Chelsea and the bridesmaids and there was no shortage of laughing and funny faces.

The details were simple but beautiful.

Chelsea had a beautiful smile...

...and she didn't mind having fun either!

I think these two were still dancing when the venue closed for the night.

This day might have been the funnest thirteen hours I've had this year. Ryan and Chelsea - your day was amazing. And Jeff and Erin, thank you for inviting me to tag along! I had a blast.

Danny and Darci

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 09:00:00 +0000

My little sister and her husband Danny visited us from Tennessee a couple weeks ago. It was so good to see them. The distance keeps us from seeing each other as much as we'd like so we were so excited they were here. I asked if they'd like some portraits done and they accepted my offer. (Which was surpassing because when I first became interested in photography as a teenager, Darci was subjected to hours of modeling for me as I practiced shooting. Although if you know my sister, she can work up a smile for the camera pretty quickly.) It was a beautiful snowy day as we wandered through downtown Hartford. Here are four of my favorites from the day.

Milwaukee Wedding Photographer - Grace and Erik

noreply@blogger.com (Jan Cleveland) — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 10:00:00 +0000

A number of years ago I lived in a flat that offered me a front row seat to St. Sebastian Catholic Church. From my bedroom window I often caught a glimpse of the wedding parties as they came in and out of the church. I would look for pretty much the same things that any long-time wedding lover looks for: What is the bride wearing? What color are the dresses? How big is the hair? (This was the ’80’s). But the most important question was always, “Do they look happy?” Well on Friday I got to return to this very same place only this time I watched from a vantage point behind my camera and this time I got to go in thanks to the gracious Pamela of Pamela Strohl Fine Art Photography in Port Washington, Wisconsin who invited me to assist her in photographing this wedding. View her blog post here.

I had been warned that the bride, Grace, would be beautiful, and I found that to be an understatement. She wore a perfect, classic, simple yet elegant dress, with just the right amount of “twirl”. Her bridesmaids wore icy blue dresses, classic black heels and black gloves. And yes everyone, especially Grace and Erik, looked happy! Grace was the bride every young girl dreams of being. She was happy, excited and beautiful, and at the same time so comfortable, grateful and genuine. Picture perfect, literally. This was her day yet she made everyone around her feel special just for being there: her bridesmaids, her family and friends, even the people working for her. I believe she enjoyed every single moment of that day. During the ceremony I was touched by many things, but one of the highlights was watching the emotion on Grace and Eric’s faces as their family and friends, one by one approached the altar for Communion. I could see the joy, excitement and love that they felt for each of these people. (I wasn’t able to capture this emotion with my camera, so I guess that’s what memories are for.) They seemed to take it all in, to absorb every moment of their wedding day, and not only did they enjoy each other, but their loved ones who came to share their joy.

After the ceremony, we moved on to the enchanting Wisconsin Club, a perfect spot for Erik and Gracie’s classic - albeit cold - outdoor winter wedding photos. Inside the toasts from various loved ones gave me a tiny view into the lives of these two people. When it was time for the bouquet toss Gracie broke from tradition and presented her grandmother with her real bridal bouquet and thanked her grandparents for all she and Eric had learned from their marriage over the years. They then invited all of the married couples onto the dance floor and expressed their gratitude for the role models they had been. The couples danced while the band performed “True Companion”. It was quite an emotional moment watching these couples dance. As the night went on, so did the sounds of Standing Room Only who I highly recommend if you are ever in need of an event band. These people danced and partied, they laughed and hugged...non-stop! I had fun watching these people have fun! And then I realized why we do this, why we celebrate in such a big way. Life is so full - of joy and sorrow, of happiness and pain, of laughter and tears. I realized tomorrow will be just another day, back to normal. But every once in a while we get to dress up and have a reason to celebrate and that is what Gracie and Eric did and that is what their loved ones did. And I was fortunate enough to be there with them.

Grace and her girls

An elegant father and daughter dance

I Am Your Miracle

noreply@blogger.com (Jan Cleveland) — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 10:00:00 +0000

My extraordinary niece Anna celebrated her golden birthday and her official passage into adulthood as she turned twenty-one on the twenty-first February. A party was necessary as this day could not come soon enough for her (oh, to not be “just a kid” anymore). This was a day to be celebrated! Anna’s life has been full of struggles that began the day she was born. She has endured more medical problems and surgeries than most of us ever will and she has faced more challenges and disappointments in life than anyone should. The things that most take for granted, Anna has had to struggle with.

No one knows this more than her friends because they share similar stories. With the help of Anna’s parents, Jeff and Terri, and her sister Lindy (everyone should have a sister like Lindy) the festivities took place at the Flannery's Bar and Restaurant in Grafton. In true Anna-fashion, there would be food and cake, there would be dancing, of course presents would be necessary, and it wouldn’t be a party without speeches. Anna confidently approached the microphone with her speech prepared well in advance (I secretly think she planned a big party in order to have an audience!). One by one she introduced the special people in her life; not surprisingly for Anna by the time she was done she had called everyone’s name! Then her friend Katelyn took the floor and spoke straight from her heart; she acknowledged Anna, her life, her struggles, and their long friendship. She ended this rousing and passionate speech with the declaration, “Anna, I AM your MIRACLE! I am YOUR Miracle, Anna!” This brought down the house: there was clapping, cheering, and laughter.

Since that day, Kaitlyn’s phrase has been repeated around our house, a memory of a happy day. But this morning I realized what she was saying. It does seem bold to tell someone “I am your miracle”. We are taught to appreciate those around us; after all life would be pretty difficult and colorless without them. But rarely do we tell someone in an honest, heartfelt way that yes, you survived because of me, your day is better because I am in it, your life wouldn’t be the same without me...essentially, I AM your miracle. It seems to be not only a declaration, but a promise. Making that promise binds us to the awesome and amazing task each of us has to contribute to the comfort, the happiness and the success of the people we love. I plan to take Kaitlyn’s challenge, to be a small miracle to my loved ones, and not only my loved ones, but I can extend that to everyone around me, my neighbors, my co-workers, my clients. It doesn’t take much, just one small miracle at a time.

Anna and her friends

“Anna, I AM your MIRACLE! I am YOUR Miracle, Anna!”

Lindy dancing with Anna and her friends

Anna and Katelyn

Look at the View

noreply@blogger.com (Jan Cleveland) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 18:58:00 +0000

I was once told that I focus too much on how I think things “should be” and I am disappointed when life doesn’t go that way. The flip side of that, this person told me, is to expect the worst in life and be surprised when it doesn’t turn out that way (that’s how she lives). I learned a lot from her. We had many more conversations, but only that one sticks in my mind.

That was a long time ago, and I still struggle with that at times. My automatic response when something goes awry is to cry out to myself, “that is NOT how it’s supposed to be!” Ten years ago I found myself in a life-changing situation, of which I had little control. I thought, if only I could take charge and put everyone where they should be, that would fix it all. But, thankfully, that is not how it works! You see, what I have learned is that I am neither powerful enough nor creative enough to do this well. I would have messed it up! Moving forward in my life was kind of like making a puzzle where you have all the pieces but you don’t have the box top to see what picture you are making. Slowly, slowly, piece by piece, my life evolved in ways and images I could not have imagined. No, I didn’t get the story I had in mind, but I got something completely different, completely beautiful, completely creative! How outrageous of me to assume I knew how things should be, and who am I to complain about how things are. (Now the people in Haiti, well they have something to complain about, but I really don’t.)

So, I’ve learned my lesson, though it still takes some practice (and I admit I am guilty of going off the deep end at times). When my mind starts to wander towards how I think my life should be, all I have to do is open my eyes and really look at how my life IS. And when I do that, all I am is grateful for all I’ve been given. The view from here is pretty great and I wouldn’t trade if for anywhere else in the world!

Jan

Here is a picture from Jeff's birthday last year

(Disclaimer: Four teenagers, two tired parents and a run-away dog doesn’t always make for a “happy” view - but that’s one of the reasons we take photographs!)

Jeff's Coffee Rules

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:00:00 +0000

"I am not addicted to coffee! It's just that I get headaches if I go a day without having any." Jan laughed and told me it was one of the funniest things I'd ever said. (Yeah, I know: I'm not very funny.) So I want to set the record straight. I'm really not addicted to coffee. I'm just very particular about coffee. Here's what I really have to have to enjoy this amazing beverage.

WHAT
If I were to go to McDonald's with you for breakfast (only if there were no other restaurant around for miles, we hadn't eaten for days, and we had only a few dollars between us would we do this) I wouldn't order coffee. The same would be true for most restaurants. And don't even think about a gas station! Because I'm not looking for caffeine. If I were and we were at one of these places, I'd have to find it in something else. But when I say I like coffee I mean coffee. I don't mean a single shot Grande one pump vanilla non-fat extra whip mocha. I like plain coffee. And sometimes I'll drink an Americano because espresso and water is pretty much the same thing. But please don't put anything in it. I like it black.

HOW
It also matters to me what I drink the coffee out of. I of course will drink the coffee out of a paper cup at Starbucks because its…its…fine, I'll be honest: you're just a little bit cooler if you're carrying a Starbucks cup. And though I will take a travel mug with me when I work early in the morning, that's just because I don't want to spill. No, my favorite way to drink coffee is out of a ceramic coffee mug. It just tastes better. I don't know why: it just does. Now I realize I'm being fairly picky but I've gone this far, I may as well be honest and tell you the last couple preferences I have about coffee.

WHERE
There really are only two places that I really, really enjoy drinking coffee. This first isn't very original but I love coffee shops. Jan and I will never pass up an opportunity to sit in Starbucks' big, comfy, brown chairs and waste the good part of an afternoon. We have quite a list of fun memories of doing this very thing. But my absolute favorite? Our kitchen counter. When it's just the two of us and we have the time we love to brew a pot of coffee, sit in the quiet house and just be together that is the perfect way to start any day.

So you see, I'm not addicted to coffee. But I am trying to figure out a way to be able to start every day at the kitchen counter with Jan and a cup of coffee. OK, and I'm trying to avoid the headache!

If you want to know why there are two Adirondack Chairs in all these pictures you'll have to stick around a couple months: we're not ready to tell you yet.

Sara Cleveland - Senior Portraits

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 10:00:00 +0000

She will graduate from Port Washington High School in June but I knew her when she watched the Barney: Live in Concert video non-stop. She was just accepted to Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin but I knew her when she came home from elementary school and said, "Today I learned that Lucky [our dog] is a bitch!" She has learned to play multiple instruments and been in more music programs at school than I can recall but I was the one that took her to Summerfest to hear Billy Gilmann only to have her tell me she didn't want to stand in the rain: we turned around and went back home without listening to one song. She became a fiercely independent person at a young age but I was the person the doctor handed her to just minutes after she was born. So even though Jeff Cleveland Photography, LLC isn't focused on Senior Portraits, when it came time for Sara Cleveland to get hers, neither one of us would have wanted it any other way.

I posted this sneak peak for her friends awhile ago but here are the rest of my favorites.

Sara, out of all the girls in the whole wide world - I'd choose you!

If you know Sara and have a favorite memory of her, would you share it with me by leaving it in the comments?

Jeff

Why I Take Photographs

noreply@blogger.com (Jan Cleveland) — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 10:00:00 +0000

I have always loved taking photographs, anywhere and everywhere. I always had a simple camera, just anything that would capture where I had been and whom I was with. I started with a 110 with a “magic cube” for flash pictures (wow!), and I had slides made instead of prints because they were cheaper (the only problem was, we didn’t own a slide projector!). But that didn’t stop me. I kept shooting. My cameras evolved over the years, as did my life. College, career, new friends, old friends. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. A trip to Europe prompted an investment in a 35mm point and shoot and a lead bag to protect my precious film. More friends, family, weddings. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Then, the best photo opportunity of all! Two little ones, eager subjects for the constant snap and flash of the camera upgrade they so deserved (you just can’t have a cheap camera when you have kids!). Kids are filled with never-ending magical moments. When you have kids it is easy to forget there is an outside world as there is just nothing better than what is going on right here inside. Your main purpose in life is to document every single moment of this. Every expression, every funky hair day, every lost tooth, the first steps, blowing out the birthday candles, year after year. In the midst of this what you don’t realize is the sad fact that some day all too soon, you will not be able to remember but a fraction of these moments. No matter how hard you will yourself to remember each moment, sadly most of them are gone. That is when you realize why you were compelled to take so many photos.

I have 3 siblings and our Christmas tradition is to gather at my parents’ house every year to celebrate. (My mom is somewhat of a photo-fanatic as well - just ask her grandkids!). We tend to do the same thing every year, and it’s been going on for decades: same foods, same people. Santa shows up around the same time. At some point my brother sets up for the group photo. With a few exceptions the same people are there; sometimes a new face is added, for years the babies just seemed to multiply. This year, sadly, we lost one face, our Uncle Allan. Our typically giddy group photo time was just a little quieter this year as we all remembered him and realized life is a little different now. But that is life.

A few years ago my brother put together a slide show of that year’s Christmas gathering. When I watched it I was overwhelmed - I was in tears! The house, the tree, the people I loved! The photos documented this family having a perfect Christmas celebration! Subconsciously I thought, “Hey, I want to be a part of that family!” and then I quickly realized “hey, that is US! That is our family!” In a strange way I was shocked. Here it was only a few months after the day, and I had already forgotten all the laughs, the conversations, the tears, and the fun that we all shared that year, just like so many others. Here was proof of what we had, hard evidence...no longer left to our memory banks to preserve (or lose). Nope, we have our photos. That is the moment I realized just why I have to do this.

We need photographs for many things, they have so many uses in our lives, but none is quite so important as to document a moment in time, whether it’s a special event, a spectacular scene, or a humble quiet moment. We need to save it, in case our memory can’t. We need to bring it back for the times when life is hard, so we can remember that it was and can again be good, and we need to bring it back when life is easy, to remind us that life is precious and not to be taken for granted. That, now I know, is why I take photographs.

Jan

My Inspiration for 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 09:00:00 +0000

I recently came across a great quote from Mark Victor Hansen. Mark and his business partner Jack Canfield created what Time magazine called, "the publishing phenomenon of the decade," with over 110 million Chicken Soup for the Soul books sold worldwide - one of the most successful publishing franchises of all time.

“Don’t wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident and more and more successful.”

As I consider 2010 and what I hope to accomplish in my life and my photography business, this quote is going to be my focus. I tend to be the type of person that wants all my ducks in a row before I'll take the leap and start something. But this year I'm going for it! Wish me luck.

Christmas Music

noreply@blogger.com (Jan Cleveland) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 13:31:00 +0000

I like to read blogs but I never had one of my own. Today at breakfast something happened that I wanted to share and since Jeff and I are working on this photography business together, I thought this would be a great place to post this.

Jeff and I have been married for three years. We each brought with us two children, we have one dog, some ex’s, step-brothers and sisters, and a half-brother and sister. (In-laws are a breeze for us!) We were able to help each other survive divorces neither of us wanted and head into single parenthood. A few years later we decided to get married, no delusions about what that could be, with our eyes wide open.

We have our difficulties. Normal life with four teenagers who have activities, jobs, money, time, and chores would be enough but add the blended family issues and we have our hands full. But for the most part, we move along in life doing the best we can, trying to grab and appreciate every happy moment with the kids and with each other that we can. Certainly our lives aren’t always what each of us planned and dreamed years ago, but we make the best of it and we have some great times. All in all we have a great marriage and a great family. I know it’s only been three years but marriage can be filled with adjustments, compromise, even learning new things about the other person. For the most part I can say nothing earth-shattering has come my way. Jeff is just “what you see is what you get”. (Though one thing I didn’t know until recently is that he loves swedish fish. Who knew?)

Something happened this morning that briefly made the ground under me shake a bit. I have to say that I LOVE Christmas music. I start listening after Halloween right up through...let’s just say I don’t stop when the stores do. I own lots of Christmas music of all kinds. I have some favorites that have to be played for it to be Christmas for me. Bing Crosby and David Bowie’s Little Drummer Boy...Sinead O’Connor’s Silent Night...

So this morning Jeff and I were having coffee, making breakfast (well he was cooking for me) and spending a few minutes together before he had to go to work. We were talking about some of the thing going on in our lives when I turned my iPod on. Josh Groban was singing one of my favorite Christmas songs. Jeff immediately said “do we have to listen to this right now?” I was stunned, shocked, scared, and sad. I took my iPod out of the dock but wondered what was happening. After all this time and it’s the Christmas music? I thought I knew him. I thought he loved it too! Where do we go from here?

So Jeff turned on his iPod and suddenly the sounds of Josh singing a different Christmas song filled the air. I was confused but he just said “I didn’t want to listen to the same songs we always listen to”. He had turned on the Michael Buble Holiday station on Pandora. It wasn’t about the Christmas music at all - just the selection. Wow, I can live with that!

And I do live with that. I gladly and gratefully live with that. Every day. This is how we live. In our marriage we are like our iPods. Mine has some newer artists but is mainly filled with lots of the old stuff - the ones that touch my heart, make me cry or laugh, give me hope or make me feel warm and loved and understood. (There is one song that immediately takes me back 30 years to a road-trip to the big city in my parents station wagon with my sisters, the wind in our hair, a fistful of John Denver concert tickets and the 8-track player blaring. There is another song that takes me back to a heart-wrenching moment on a Christmas Eve that signified the end of something for a dear friend. My heart still goes out to him when that song plays.) Without my old songs I wouldn’t remember the things I need to remember.

Jeff’s iPod is filled with lots of new music, lots of different artists and styles. He is often touched by a song while watching Grey’s Anatomy or ER. He has been known to walk out of the theatre with the soundtrack of the movie he just watched already downloaded to his iPhone (even though you’re supposed to TURN OFF your cell phones in the theatre!). Well, thanks to the SHAZAM App on our phones the process to identify, purchase, and download music is so much quicker than it used to be. He brings the new, the fresh - some of it is even similar to the old stuff.

We work well together. We live well together. We both are music lovers. In fact, love of music is where our friendship started. Our marriage is like our iPods. We each have very different playlists, but we REALLY like the others’ playlist too! We need both to survive. If left to myself I would choose the same, the stuff that I know works. But Jeff brings a whole different world, a different perspective, a different way. I love the music he brings to my life; things I never would have heard without him I get to hear and live with and love. I get to have it all; my favorite playlist (you can feel the emotion in Vince Gill’s voice when he sings “Blue Christmas”) and a whole new set that I wouldn’t have found otherwise.

If you haven’t guessed, Jeff is one of my most favorite people in the world, and I got to marry him too. He is the nicest, easiest, most loving, kind and generous person in every way. He is really great at being a husband but he’s also that same good and kind person to all the people in his life. His calm loving self has been a gift in my life from the moment I met him. Our life isn’t perfect, but it is pretty great. I look forward to what life will hold for us. Back in the day, I confess I used to watch Dr. Phil on occasion. He used a term that he felt described what a spouse should be, and that is your “soft place to fall”. At the time I thought it a little hokey, melodramatic, maybe even impossible (or maybe I was just cynical). That phrase says it all. No matter what is going on in life, he’s always my soft place to fall. Now I know what that means.

I’ll blog again if there are any serious surprises that come up. Like if I find out he has a secret stash of photography equipment!!! THAT would be bad, I’m just saying.

Camp Minikani Wedding - Calie & Erik

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 13:08:00 +0000

You may have noticed that Jan and I have started a photography business. I’ve wanted to do something entrepreneurial for awhile and after reading Dane Sanders’ book, Fast Track Photographer, we wondered if starting a wedding photography business would be a possibility. But how in the world do you start something like like? It doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence to walk up to someone and say, “Could I be your wedding photographer? I’ve never done this before but I have taken some really good pictures of my kids in the back yard!” I began looking for someone who was already an established wedding photographer with the intent of asking them if I could tag along at one of their weddings to learn from them and get some experience of my own. So I did a Google search for Milwaukee wedding photographers.

When I came across Molly Michel’s website I knew she would be one person I would ask. Not only did she have a great site with some fantastic pictures but I really felt that there was something unique about her style and I wanted to learn how she went about creating that. I sent her an e-mail and asked if she would meet me for lunch. She has turned out to be not only a great photographer with a successful business but an incredibly generous person as well. And she did give me an opportunity to shoot a wedding with her.

On September 12 we met at Camp Minikani, a YMCA camp in Hubertus, Wisconsin and it turned out to be a beautiful, fall day. The setting was perfect, the couple was fun and we had a fantastic day. You can read all about it on Molly’s blog post. When I got in my car at 10:30 that night I was exhausted but I couldn’t stop smiling. I couldn’t remember ever having more fun working! Driving home I knew that this was something I wanted to do.

Here are some of my images from the day.

Calie and Erik chose to see each other before the wedding ceremony. This is a shot of Calie as she walked toward Erik and saw him for the first time that day.

Camp Minikani is such a beautiful setting and had so many great spots to take pictures. The light was also fully cooperating that day.

The ceremony was held on the spot overlooking the lake where Erik proposed to Calie.

Happy (Belated) Thanksgiving

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 18:23:00 +0000

If you know me then I don't have to tell you that Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. To me it's literally the best meal of the year. And while I do think that Jan, Sara and I make a delicious meal it's not just the taste of the food. (I should give credit where credit is due - Chandler helped prep the brussels sprouts and Lizzy grated some lemon zest.) It's also not the fact that we're all at the table for the meal because we manage to do that on an almost daily basis. No, it's that moment when everyone is finished eating and some of the plates get moved out of the way and then we come back to the table and just stop. We stop! We literally just stop.

You see our family has a crazy schedule. And yeah, yeah I know that you think you do too but just ask my neighbor Joe or my brother-in-law Jeff. Those two regularly tell Jan and I that they get tired just hearing our stories! We've got the regular stuff - work schedules, homework, football and swim practice, band concerts and packing lunches for the next day. In addition to that Sara lives with her mom forty minutes away and while she is doing most of the driving back and forth this year, she's involved in quite a few things that we like to be a part of and so we still make that drive fairly often. So that makes four kids in three schools, each with different sports involvement and extra-curricular activities. Then we have to take Alex's work schedule into consideration, Chandler's math tutor comes over every Wednesday, Lizzy has girls club, I work 'til midnight or later every Tuesday, Jan regularly signs up for extra hours at a second job and oh yeah - we're starting a photography business. (And you thought it was crazy the last time you asked one of us if the kids were with us this weekend or their other parent and we said we'd need to look at our calendar!)

Back to Thanksgiving dinner. We clear away the plates, refill the glasses and sit back in our chairs. No one is in a hurry to leave the table. And did I mention we stop? Chandler gets a ceramic jar that sits on our counter all year and brings it to the table. It is a wedding gift from our neighbor and says "Blessings" on the side. All year long we've added slips of paper that list things that we're thankful for. That jar gets passed around the table as we take turns removing a folded up piece of paper and read out loud what each other have been thankful for. Sometimes we smile, occasionally there's an "awww" but I mostly enjoy the fact that the people I love are together, in no hurry to go anywhere and reminding each other of the important things in life. Yup - it's my favorite meal of the year!

After reading all this you may wonder why I look so angry in this picture. I'm not angry; I'm just not used to being on this side of the camera!

To understand Lizzy's headband you might have to go here.

My beautiful daughter made this amazing pie. If you can believe it, it tasted even better than it looked!

Sometimes I think I asked Jan to marry me just so I could sit across from her at the table and see this smile.

Sara's Senior Portraits - Sneak Peek

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:15:00 +0000

I know that her friends ("Hi Sarah and Michele") are anxious to see Sara's senior pictures but they're not quite finished. So I thought I'd put up a sneak peek until they're ready. Here they are!

To be notified when Sara’s image are online and available for viewing and purchasing, sign up for her online gallery here.

Lizzy and Lainey

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 22:53:00 +0000

I'm not saying she's not a talkative person. I'm just saying that when Lizzy talks about her half sister she's extra talkative. The conversation is punctuated with various renditions of "she's so cuuuute" or "I lovvvve Lainey". And it's been that way since Lainey was born. The story goes that shortly after Lainey came home from the hospital Lizzy and a friend pulled a chair up to the crib and just sat and watched Lizzy's new sister sleep. At one point Lizzy's step-mom came into the room and said, "Don't you girls want to go do something else?" The answer was evidently "no" because they continued to sit there for a really long time.

Last week for Lizzy's birthday, she arranged for her little sister to come over for a party and I had the pleasure of following them to the playground at Rossman Elementary School for a short portrait session. I know that it'll be very difficult to tell that these two love each other but see if you can't find just a hint of love in these pictures.

An Exhausting (but Awesome) Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:35:00 +0000

On Saturday night I walked around the house picking up half-empty cans of soda and bottles of water. The silverware tray in the dishwasher wouldn't hold one more fork. We had to be creative to fit all the leftovers into the refrigerator. When I finally finished I sat down on the couch and almost feel asleep, exhausted. It had been a great day.

My wife's family came to our house to celebrate birthdays. Everyone is so busy that it had to be squeezed between the morning's football game, the evening's homecoming dance and studying for big exams on Monday but we did it. We had great food and better conversation. And while days like that are always exhausting, they are the best kind of days. Here are some photos.

Sara's Saxophone Birthday Cake

Lizzy's "Chucks" Birthday Cake

New RSS Feed

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 20:04:00 +0000

If you subscribe to this blog in an RSS reader, please update your feed. This is the new address: http://feeds.feedburner.com/JeffCleveland

The First Day of School

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:23:00 +0000

When I was younger, I loved back-to-school time. Dixon Ticonderoga #2 pencils, college ruled paper and a Traper Keeper could make my day. I can't remember why but I always wanted to shop at the small-town office supply store and not Kmart. My dad would always get to talking to the owner and I could browse protractors and staplers and drink out of the cool water fountain in the back of the store. It's funny but I can picture that store perfectly in my mind today.

Let's just say my son is nothing like me. All he cared about was the Volcom backpack. He was perfectly content to let his step-mom pick out the rest of the stuff. But he was excited about going to school. This was the first year he would be able to live with me during the school year and since he was in the same grade as his step-sister, they could finally go to school together. So for us, the first day of school was something we were looking forward to.

Like every good parent, I forced them to go outside before the bus came to take some pictures. Here they are. I'm off to the store to see if I can find a Dixon Ticonderoga #2 pencil.

Our Summer Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:50:00 +0000

This is going to be a busy summer. A couple months ago my wife and I pulled out our calendars to plan a vacation. In the end there was only one week that our entire family was free. Sara had a job she would be at Monday through Friday the first two month of summer and then Alex started football the last month of summer. We decided to take that week and drive to Michigan to visit friends of ours who recently moved there from Wisconsin. They had a boat and promised to fill our week with fun. And that's exactly what we had. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the week.

Here is a portrait I took of our friends, Carole and Nelson the morning we left.

Noah

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 20:22:00 +0000

My two kids have a half-brother named Noah. Sara was thirteen and Chandler was nine when he was born. They both love him dearly and talk about him constantly when they're not with him.

We picked him up yesterday and took him to the park. Our bribe was that if he would pose for a few pictures we'd take him to the playground. Let me just say that this experience gave me a new respect for photographers who specialize in children. There was nothing easy about this shoot. But I did end up with a few shots that I liked and here are two of them.

Sara's Junior Prom

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Mon, 11 May 2009 00:43:00 +0000

Last night was a big night for my daughter, Sara. It was her junior prom. I picked her up at noon and took her to the salon to get her hair done. I waited for her in the Starbucks next door and I wish I had taken my camera along because the smile on her face when she came to get me (you know, so I could pay) was so cute. I dropped her off at her mom's house with the plan to meet up at her friend's house for pictures. You can see my favorite below.

But the best part of the evening was when pictures were all through. Every other kid I noticed just walked out the door to get in the waiting limo but Sara crossed the room, said goodbye and kissed me on the cheek. Yeah; I'd say I have a pretty special daughter!

My Birthday Wish List

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 03:47:00 +0000

BEWARE: PHOTOGRAPHY CONTESTS CAN BE HAZARDOUS TO YOUR HEALTH

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 15:58:00 +0000

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Nailed 'Em - Amtrak Photographer

Colbert Report Full Episodes
Funny Political News

Christian Bale Parody
Joke of the Day

My Beautiful Wife

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 03:42:00 +0000

My Beautiful Wife I
Originally uploaded by Jeff Cleveland

Yesterday I participated in the Cream City Photowalk, a group of photographers who get together once a month to hang out and take pictures in and around Milwaukee. Fortunately the weather warmed up from the below zero temperatures it had been and there was a nice blanket of snow on the ground. Jan, my wife, went with me and we had a great time. This was my favorite picture of the day. Check out the rest of my pictures here.

Andy McKee - Guitar - Drifting

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 21:33:00 +0000

This is why I struggle to get my guitar out of the closet and practice. This guy is an amazing talent. Check him out at http://www.candyrat.com

My Review of Lexar Professional Series CompactFlash (CF) and Secure Digital (SD) UDMA Dual-Slot High Speed Card Reader with USB Interface

noreply@blogger.com (Jeff Cleveland) — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 22:30:00 +0000

Originally submitted at Adorama

Lexar Professional Series CompactFlash (CF) and Secure Digital (SD) UDMA Dual-Slot High Speed Card Reader with USB Interface

It's not sexy, but...

By Jeff from Hartford, WI on 1/6/2009

Pros: Long Cable, Lightweight, Fast Transfer

Best Uses: Image Transfer

Describe Yourself: Hobbyist/Enthusiast

OK, so it's not the sexiest piece of gear you'll buy by wow is this card reader fast. I actually can't believe how much less time it takes to import files than over USB from the camera. Maybe everyone already knows this but I didn't. If you're in the market for a card reader, this one is compact, fast and simple to use. I'm not sure it needs to do more than that.

(legalese)