Here are a few before and afters!

For me, getting the look I want depends on finding good light and not as much on post processing. Most of the time I add a VSCO preset and just play with the brightness, exposure, recovery and fill light until I’m satisfied. That’s it! I don’t ever touch clarity or contrast. It’s really easy to make an image too punchy and crisp looking. It’s amazing to me how a little of the right adjusting can really make an image sing!

Anyway, I’m honored that you guys asked me about editing! I hope it was helpful in some way! I’m definitely not an expert when it comes to editing, but I have found a system that I love. If you guys have any questions, feel free to ask them in the comment section. I will try to answer everything as best I can!

Happy Friday! I’m off to enjoy the weekend with my love! :)

I have been photographing the most adorable babies lately. Just take a look at this sweet little girl! She’s a doll baby if ever I saw one! Poor little Jessi Catherine had a fever during the session, but she managed to be so sweet and playful anyway. Her sweet momma, Lesley, told me that she wanted to capture her being herself. I think that is so beautiful. I love (sorta) posed shots, but it’s the natural ones that get me every time. My favorites are always the one of the bride laughing, the smile he makes when he wraps his arms around his love, the carefree dance of a little child, the lingering glow on your face after you kiss your man…those are the images that make my heart skip a beat. It’s those genuine moments that take my breath away.

These images of this little doll are %100 percent natural. She played and I got to capture it. Nothing could be more perfect in my book. I also found the perfect place for a sunrise session…complete with mist and everything! Le sigh!

Oh heavens! I’m just dying over those darling eyes…and lips…and hair. She’s simply put, gorgeous.

I can’t wait for part two of my session with this sweet doll once she get’s over that sickness! ;)

Happy Thursday friends!

“I walked out to the hill just now. It is exalting, delicious. To stand embraced by the shadows of a friendly tree with the wind tugging at your coat-tails and the heavens hailing your heart – to gaze and glory and to give oneself again to God, what more could a man ask? Oh, the fullness, pleasure, sheer excitement of knowing God on earth. I care not if I ever raise my voice again for Him, in only I may love Him, please Him. Mayhap in percy He shall give me a host of children that I may lead through the vast star fields, to explore His delicacies, whose finger-ends set them to burning. But if not, if only I may see Him, touch His garments, and smile into my Lover’s eyes – ah, then, not stars, nor children shall matter – only Himself.” – Jim Elliot

This is one of my favorite quotes by Jim Elliot. He definitely writes in the language of my soul. This particular portion expresses the desire of my heart today so well. I want to be so enthralled with Jesus that nothing else matters – not photography, not music, not what I do in life, nothing but Him. I want to taste what heaven will be like on earth. I want to know Him in as much fullness as I can here. I read this morning that “He satisfies the desire of every living thing.” He is great enough, big enough, wonderful enough and desirable enough to quench the hunger in every soul. He is the essence of every good attribute I can imagine. He is exciting, dangerous, exquisite, and perfect. To be in His presence is to be set on fire. To surrender to Him is a joy. To love Him is to filled to the brim, overflowing. Loving Him creates more capacity for love, for He is love. To know Him is to experience the greatest pleasure in all eternity. To encounter Him is to be forever and irrevocably changed.

Why then do I fill my heart will such small, fleeting pleasures when the ultimate satisfaction is in my grasp? Why do I settle for mediocre when I can have the unsurpassable? I need to remember to come to the hill, lay in grass and let my heart be filled with glory until I see more of Him than before. I want to yearn for it daily. What else could possibly matter more?

I can’t believe our 2 year anniversary is ONE WEEK from tomorrow. Craziness. I was looking back through our honeymoon photos the other day and so many fond memories flooded my mind. We were so blessed to be able to go to the exotic little island of Curacao. Ah, I wish I could go back tomorrow! Anyway, I realized that I’ve never shared about our trip on the blog before, so I thought it’d be fun to reminisce. Here’s a few snapshots of our adventures from my old point and shoot!

We literally had the best suite in the whole resort because of some precious friends. It was amazing. Yes, we woke up to this view every morning. I could have gotten used to it! We were constantly amazed by our surroundings. We really couldn’t have asked for anything more perfect!

I have never seen such a beautiful place. It almost didn’t seem real as we walked around. Of course, the fact that we were married and on vacation together didn’t seem real either. Awesome, but not real.

I loved just being able to relax on the beautiful beach with my man. After all the stress of planning a wedding, it was nice not to have anything on the agenda for a few days. Plus, it was the one and only time I’ve ever worn a bikini and I was actually tan! Hehe.

There were iguanas and these pigeons with funny rings around their eyes everywhere. They weren’t shy either!

One day we decided to venture into the capitol of Willemstad. This island is a little bit unique because it is officially part of the Netherlands. You can see Dutch influence in the architecture everywhere. It was also interesting to find out that we were a minority. Most people there were European. I think we met one other American couple. We joked about putting on our best British or Italian accent to see if we could blend in a little better. Although, I’m pretty sure our clothes gave us away as American…especially Jonathan’s. Most of the other guys were wearing capris, or whatever they are called. Oh, and he was also one of the only men in swim shorts and not a speedo. So funny!

I loved all the brightly colored buildings of the city. We had fun exploring, eating ice cream and observing a different culture. There were also lots of obscure restaurants tucked away up on top of different buildings. We took a chance with several and the food blew our minds. It was so fresh! Ah, I’m drooling just thinking about it now!

On our last morning we hopped on a boat called the Jonalisa and rode out to a smaller island off the coast called Klein Curacao to scuba dive and explore. It was such a neat experience. I love being on the water! However, food + the ocean + movement + cigarette smoke = a very sick Jen. I may or may not have thrown up my breakfast all over the deck. Now I know that cigarette smoke makes me nauseated. Haha. I felt really bad about it. Let me just say that I’m glad people don’t smoke everywhere over here!

The island was beautiful beyond anything I could have imaged and was relatively untouched. There weren’t any “you can walk here, but not here” signs and we were allowed to wander wherever we liked.

In the middle of the island was an old abandoned lighthouse. If we were in the States there would have been a fence around the whole thing because it was so run down. Old boards and glass everywhere make it rather precarious. Did I mention we didn’t have shoes with us either? We kinda left them on the boat. That didn’t stop us from finding adventure though! The view was pretty darn sweet.

While looking around another couple told us there was a ship wreck on the other coast, so off we went. I really couldn’t believe that such a mangled mess of ship was still there. It was like something you’d see in a movie. I loved it!

Ah, Curacao was so much fun. I’d go back in a heartbeat. I’m so thankful for the wonderful life we started together almost two years ago! I get so excited about celebrating our love! My sweet hubby won’t tell me what we’re doing for our anniversary next week, so I’ve been just dying to find out!!! Apparently, it’s a surprise. All I know is that we have 4 days off together!!! Woohoo!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Do you ever forget how much you love something? I do. I’m not sure why it’s so easy for me, especially with food. I guess I’ve never been one to crave certain things. Food is food to me. Still there are some foods that I really love, but it’s almost like I have to smell or taste them to remember. For instance, I ate a peach last night and thought “Oh my goodness! This is so good. I forgot how much I love peaches!” Obviously, I hadn’t eaten a peach in a while. A lot of that has to do with my grocery budget taking a huge cut when I left my full time job last August. Fresh produce was one of the first things to go…because obviously we had to have milk, cereal, peanut butter, bread, ice cream and nutella…obviously. Necessities I tell you, especially the nutella. :) Finally, I just got fed up with not having healthy meals. We haven’t been eating horrible, but cereal and pb&j can’t be good for you to eat for dinner…a lot.

One of my goals for the past few months was to have better meals. Once I set out to make easy and heathy meals, I found that it really wasn’t too hard to accomplish. The first step was to find and frequent our local farmer’s market. I go about once a week or so. It just takes a little discipline to make sure I actually cook what I buy. I can’t be wishy-washy with what I want for supper. It I bought green beans, then green beans we shall have. It’s just the two of us, so we’ll probably eat those green beans for 2 meals as well.

Another helpful tip has been to eat less meat. Now, my hubby loves meat. He’s very much a steak and potato kind of guy, but I’ve found several meat-less, husband-approved meals. We do a lot of cajun style beans and rice these days. It’s good for us and filling! Win-win! Cutting down on meat has really made a whole lot more room in my budget for produce. When I do buy fresh meat I buy enough for 2 meals and put half in the freezer. It’s usually cheaper that way!

It feels so good to know I’m putting nutritious meals on the table now. I’ve forgotten how much better local tomatoes taste and how delicious little new potatoes are. Don’t even get me started on fresh corn on the cob. I also have a whole lot less nutella…but I’ve found those delicious peaches satisfy my nightly sweet tooth. It is a little bit more expensive to eat well, but it’s so worth it. Now it’s more like a treat to eat McDonald’s fries, Taco Bell and pizza! :)

Do you guys have any tips for easy, healthy meals? I’d love to get some more recipes and such!

I ran into the bathroom for a final check before heading into the conference room. I wondered why I’m always so darn nervous before walking into a room full of strangers. For a moment I thought my butterflies might hold me hostage, but I pushed the conference room door open anyway. It surprised me to find a small amount of chairs in a circle, instead of your normal rows…that wasn’t the only thing I had wrong. As soon as the box of tissues was placed on the floor, I knew nothing was going to be like I had expected. Within minutes I was wiping my tears along with everyone else. Now, I’m not the kind of girl that cries very much at all. When I do cry, it’s because something deep inside me is coming out. If I must, I cry in prayer or on my husband’s shoulder. It’s a big deal for me. It means letting my guard down. It means being vulnerable.

That’s exactly what was happening all over the room. As the tears fell so did our masks. One by one, we started to peel back the layers and show our authentic selves…imperfections and all. It was a beautiful thing. One of the first things we did was to write out our biggest fears and then own up to them in front of the whole group. Fear is not a pretty thing, and admitting what you are afraid of is even less of a pretty thing. Getting down to the root of fear is painful, but necessary. As Lara said, “Feel the fear and do it anyway.” It was comforting to know I wasn’t the only one whose fear was so deeply implanted in my heart.

From that point on things were different in that room. We all started to move forward together. We identified our distractions, learned how to clear our minds of the never-ending to-do list, realized the need for a good team, discovered how to set ourselves up for success,  how to streamline and simplify, how to live out an ideal day and so much more. We got back to what is really important in life, what fires us up. We claimed truth for our lives. I can’t even begin to explain how much positive renovation went on in my heart. I could feel how much lighter the room became by the end of the day. It was incredible. With so much junk moved out of the way, I could finally see what I want to make happen in life a bit more clearly.

Personally, I really owned up to the fact that I was afraid of God’s voice. He has called me to do so many crazy things this past year (or at least that’s what it seems like to my finite mind). I’ve been living in fear of being so vulnerable and helpless. Those 2 months of waiting for direction after He told me to quit my job last August were terrible. I have been so fearful of having to go back to a place like that. I feared that I might invest so much into this business only to have Him call me to something else in a few months or years. I’ve been afraid this is where I’m supposed to stay…forever. I’ve been fearful of the pressure of success and the shame of failure. I can’t tell you how freeing it’s been to let those fears go. By the grace of God, they will no longer hinder me from moving forward.

By then end everything boiled down to what matters most in life. For me I want to bring glory to Jesus more than anything. I want to worship Him and help lead others to do the same. I want my words, my images and my music to tell stories that point people to Christ. I want to make a difference. I want to be completely spent for this cause. With my last breath I want to praise the name of Jesus. What will life look like between now and then? I’m still working on that. But one thing is for sure – I’m fired up and ready to live each day with purpose. I’m not afraid to run along the path the Lord sets before me.

In order to live each day with purpose I have to clear out the clutter in my life, physical and virtual. That means spending very little time on facebook and twitter and cutting out a lot of the blogs I read. Less screen to screen. More face to face. I moved all social media to the last page on my iphone. I don’t want it to be easy to reach. I also started clearing out the clutter from my home. I took 4 trash bags of worthless stuff to the Good Will…and that’s just from our bedroom! Now I have my ideal day scheduled and sitting on my desk next to a list of things the fire me up. Fear isn’t a crutch for me anymore. My goals aren’t that far out of reach. I can see how attainable they are now. I’ve got a game plan to live by.

I can’t thank Lara, Emily and Gina enough for sacrificing of themselves to give us all such a gift. They led the way for us by being to transparent, genuine and compassionate. I was completely blown away by how beautiful, amazing and passionate they are. I will never forget that day, nor will I forget the beautiful people that I met. The passion for Christ in that room was incredible. I can’t wait to see where God takes all of us. I am so thankful for a sweet, new friends and a support group for this exciting journey we’re on.

Anyway, I could go on and on and on and on (ok, you get the picture), so I’ll just leave you with just a few practical things I took away. I highly encourage everyone reading this to go take The Challenge and start pursuing your passions. I’ll definitely be posting more about this!

- Gut your social media. Be aware of what you’re letting in. Get rid of distraction.

- Turn down the volume on negativity.

- Stop looking at the competition! It’s just another reason to be critical of yourself. Instead, be inspired by those who are truly the best in your field.

- Remember, “I am not my photography.”

- Emails are just a bunch of decisions to be made. Go make decisions.

- “How you start the day determines the day.” (Simon T. Bailey) Thus, it is vital to start the day well. Set yourself up for success by preparing for tomorrow today. PLAN AHEAD.

- Progress is the important thing, not perfection.

- Which is greater: risk or regret? Put yourself out there. Feel the fear and do it anyway. You’re going to hear “no” more than “yes” anyway.

- Constantly remind yourself of the most important things in life. Keep a list nearby of what fires you up.

Well, that’s all from me for now. I’m off to make things happen today!

PS: I’m thinking about all you lovely MTH ladies today! Love you all!

I am constantly amazed at the uniqueness and complexity of each couple I photograph. I love engagement sessions because they really showcase the personality of my brides and grooms. I knew this was going to be a fantastic session before I even started shooting. Nicole and Dru are such a creative pair. They had so many good ideas throughout the process of planning their session. I about died when they emailed me a possible location…it was a waterfall! Hello, amazingness! I’ve known Nicole for a few years through my best friend Ashley. She is one sweet, creative girl and does some photography herself. It’s always fun to photograph another photographer! Together she and Dru make an incredibly passionate couple. They’re the kind of people that just overflow with love for Jesus. Actually, they just got back from a mission trip to Guatemala before this session! I love that God allows me to serve couples that share my heart like Nicole and Dru. I am so blessed to know them and to be a part of their wedding this fall!

So without further ado, I invite you to witness the sweet love of Nicole and Dru…

We got up super early and had breakfast at a pretty waterfall. :)

Hello gorgeous girl!

I loved the second location…even though there were hobos living inside!

Of course, we had to pay tribute to Nicole’s love of photography.

Dru is such a hipster! Love it.

Ok, you just have to know that I die inside a little bit every time I look at this next image. Whoa, what love!

I love doing personal work. I love my clients dearly and enjoy shooting them, but there’s something so freeing about just shooting for myself. There’s no pressure to perform. I’m free to let my creativity run wild. Give me a model or two and I could shoot all day! I love having an idea in my head and making it come to life. Doing this helps me learn who I am as a photographer and also hone in on my style. Afterwards I pick everything apart. What works? What doesn’t? Why? Art is very much so achieved by trial and error. There are rules to art, but they are meant to be broken. I could be an expert on all the technical aspects of photography and never be an artist. I could know all the rules and still create a boring image. An image needs a spark of life to truly become art. How does that happen? That’s what I’m trying to figure out.

Anyway, it just so happens that I have a perfect excuse to do some personal work every time I visit my family. A while back my momma asked me to help her update her photo wall of us kids. I’ve been trying to do some portraits of each of my siblings whenever I can. This time was my littlest sister’s turn. I love photographing my family. My siblings especially are so photogenic. My momma was always taking photos of us growing up, so I guess that made us well trained for the camera! (Seriously, you should check out the plethora of albums stuffed in my momma’s cabinets!) However, I’m certain my baby sister received a double portion of the photogenic gene. She has a natural grace that flows beautifully. I can mold and move her any way I like. She’s like clay in my hands. Sometimes I’d look up from my LCD to find her in a perfect pose. What other 9 year old does that? I could go on and on cute her little freckled face, but I’ll let you see how adorable she is instead.

Just a warning, I couldn’t pick  favorite! :)

Is it really already May? This year is going by so quickly! Craziness. I am very excited about this month!

Things I’m looking forward to in May:

• Making Things Happen Conference – I’m so thankful for the opportunity to attend MTH! It’s put on by the sweet and fabulous Lara Casey (she’s the amazing woman behind Southern Weddings). If I could only tell you the reason I’m able to go! It was such a blessing and took me completely by surprise! I already know this conference is going to be life-changing. I’ll be headed out THIS THURSDAY!!!! I can’t wait!
• Using my new Kelly Moore bag – Oh man…I’m so in love with this bag. Seriously. After hearing so many raves from all my photog friends I just had to check them out. As soon as I got on the site I was hooked. They have such sleek and professional looking bags. Love!
• Our 2nd anniversary – I really can’t believe it’s been 2 years since we got married! It just keeps getting better and better! I’m so excited about celebrating on the 22nd. My hubby has a few days off, so I’m sure we’ll figure out some way to take advantage of that!
• Getting ready for summer weddings – I’m so excited about my weddings this summer! Most of them are late summer, so I’m enjoying the down time before things get a little busy…in a good way!!!
• Spending time with 2 sweet girls – Some friends of ours asked me to nanny a little bit this summer. I’m actually super excited about it! Now I have an excuse to go to the pool, eat popsicles, and do other fun summer things! :)
• Possibly moving – We are waiting to see about moving soon…we’ll see if it works out this month! Yay!

• Cook healthier meals – For the past several months I’ve been trying to cut back on the grocery budget. Thus, the nutrition factor in our meals has decreased drastically. I just can’t do that anymore. Even if fresh fruits and veggies are more expensive, we need them anyway.
• Alternate running with yoga – Back in March I set a goal of running 3 miles 3 times a week. Well I accomplished it, but  apparently my knees can’t take it. I think running a little less and doing a little bit more yoga will be a better fit for me and my joints!
• DRINK MORE WATER – I’m so bad about not drinking much…of anything. I need to fix that.
• Clean the ENTIRE house once a week – Let just say I’ve been slacking. Enough said.
• Go out to lunch with a friend once a week – I need social activity, especially now that I work from home most days. Just seeing people lifts my sprits and gives me the drive to be super productive when I am by myself.
• Find another good book to read – I’m taking suggestions! If you know of any, shoot them my way!
• Go canoeing – Just because I want to do it…that’s all. :)

Well, I think that’s about it! What do you guys want to do this month?

This is Samantha, or Sammy for short. She is my family’s new German Shepherd. They got her about a week ago. I couldn’t wait to go home and meet her this past week! She is such a sweet natured little puppy. I loved watching my little siblings play with her in the front yard. However, I have to admit that I’m so jealous. I don’t just love doggies, I lurve them. Cats, no. Dogs, yes!!! It just so happens that a German Shepherd is exactly the kind of dog Jonathan and I want someday. Oh well! :) Until we do get a little pup of our own, I will enjoy coming home to visit Sammy.

Sammy has already mastered the game of fetch. :)

Welcome to the fam Sammy! We love you already!