Jane McComas Photography

2011-07-22T10:47:00.000-05:00

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A Very Exciting Day!

2010-01-30T20:15:00.004-06:00

Disclaimer - this story is told in classic "Jane" fashion, so if you would like to skip every detail I find pertinent to the story. then scroll down to the last paragraph. Thanks for visiting Jane McComas Photography.

Oh, so you're a glutton for way too many details, eh? ;-) As a few of you know my husband's family lives in Oklahoma. I spend many hours driving from Omaha to Central Oklahoma a number of times per year. Often my husband and I are driving separately for a variety of reasons. So, I find myself with a lot of quiet time. In the past year I have really begun to notice the large number of hawks I see long my drives. I see them everywhere! So I have begun counting the hawks - thrilling I know - but it gives me something to do aside from paying attention to the road. This little pastime has left me with a habit of closely watching the sides of the road - like a hawk! (sorry couldn't help myself;)

Upon returning from a trip home from Pawnee City (my hometown) after Thanksgiving, once again I was back to counting my beloved hawks. Driving up highway 50 we come to the Weeping Water corner and I noticed these two ENORMOUS birds sitting in the trees! I screamed at Shannon to stop the truck and turn around. I could not believe my eyes...EAGLES!!! I had never seen an American Bald Eagle in real life. Now I know that their sightings are not as rare as they once were, and they are no longer on the Endangered Species list, people see them frequently - but I live in NEBRASKA - not the Rocky Mountains. I was shocked to see them and tried as hard as we could to get closer. But there was no way into the woods where they were perched. We spotted the two in the trees and a third flying overhead! I went back a week later after the snow storm but they were gone. I wondered if they really were in fact eagles. They were about 100 yards away, after all. Regardless, my big birds were gone.

Fast forward a week or so...this time we are on a Sunday drive (a favorite pastime of ours ;) north of Omaha in the bluffs along I-29. AND THERE IS ANOTHER ONE!! This time there was one bird out in the middle of what was a corn field! He flew off quickly after we spotted him - but wow!! I couldn't believe we spotted yet another eagle!

Then another sighting last week north and west of Elkhorn. THEY'RE EVERYWHERE!

Last week, ironically, there was a special on the American Bald Eagle on PBS. It was fascinating to hear how quickly their numbers are on the rise again. What magnificent creatures! I quickly followed up my viewing of the show with a search online. Nebraska was last reported to have 34 mating pairs in the wild! And the site was confident there could be more. It mentioned an actual nest location down along the Platte River. So today, we went for a drive -THIS TIME WITH A REAL CAMERA ;) We arrived and voila there was the nest - I couldn't believe it! No sighting of an eagle, but there was a real nest - it too was huge! I could sleep in that thing! We waited and waited but nothing. We drove and drove and drove around the area hoping to get a peek at one. Of course, with camera at the ready there wasn't even so much as one of my countless hawks soaring. I conceded to turn in for the day after one last drive by the nest. As we approached the nest maybe 1/4 mile away - THERE HE WAS SITTING IN A TREE RIGHT NEXT TO THE ROAD!!! I yelled at Shannon "STOP!" I quickly picked up my camera and hit the window button! The window! WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE WINDOW? "SHANNON! TURN OFF THE CHILD LOCK FOR THE WINDOWS!!"

I managed to get about 8 shots fired before my beautiful eagle took flight. Here are the best ones.

You can bet that I will be out again looking for my eagles - what a thrill!

Kelly + Scott

2010-01-11T22:02:00.002-06:00

A Wallick Family Christmas

2009-12-29T20:54:00.018-06:00

Now that Christmas is over, I can post these cards and video. This is the Wallick family and their Christmas Card Shoot. We had a blast shooting this little cookie making session with the girls. With a double egg yoke, floured noses, and yummy treats for all this will be a card they will never forget. Enjoy!

Christmas Blizzard '09

2009-12-26T14:59:00.008-06:00

Well another Christmas Day has come and gone, once again. This by far has been one of the more interesting years - weather wise. I have never seen so many hours/days of snow and wind here in Pawnee City. It seems the weather is finally beginning to let up a bit today. Here are a couple of pictures from the trip home this year. And now we'll see how long it takes us to get home to Omaha as many highways are closed and reporting blizzard conditions - still.

Christmas Eve

2009-12-24T14:43:00.003-06:00

Greetings everyone from beautiful Pawnee City, NE - aka "the hometown". As I sit here in anticipation of a Christmas Blizzard, listening to the wind blowing and ringing the front porch bell, I reminisce of Christmases of long ago. Christmas as a child was a special time simply because the rest of the year could be considered dull in comparison. My Mom always found a way to make Christmas a special time of the year. We certainly didn't have much throughout the year. A warm bed and groceries were the blessings of everyday. I frequently heard the words "...no, Jane, you can't have that" or "...no, we can't afford that". So every year at Christmas while I didn't expect much - my Mom always found a way to surprise me. I remember when I was 11, in the days leading up to Christmas there were nameless gifts under the tree. I thought nothing of them and figured they were gifts for cousins, friends, strangers - I never knew what Mom was up to. As I opened my gifts overjoyed with the surprise of wonderful wonderful gifts, she says to me "Well, why don't you open those other gifts too!" I couldn't believe my ears - more! I don't really remember what was in those particular gifts (clothes I think). But I certainly recall the special surprise Mom had managed once again.

You see Christmas holds a special place in Mom's heart. Growing up as a child with very little, the simplest things made for a magical time. Things, as a child, I took for granted. Like oranges. So many of us received oranges in our stockings on Christmas morning. I remember thinking - what in the world! Why is there an orange in my stocking? Accompanied by the ubiquitous peanuts still in the shell, and hard candy - none of which I was very thankful (I was a well documented brat as a child fyi). Today however, I realize what those oranges and peanuts meant to my Mom. A piece of fresh fruit in December for a family of 9 barely making ends meet was a culinary delight for those 7 children. And she simply carried on that tradition for me and my brother, as well.

Looking forward, as my daughter Hadley is now 3 and excited as ever for Christmas, I really have tried hard to make sure she sees the beauty in this magical time of Christmas. This time full of surprise, hope, and magical wonders. We've made our cookies, wrapped gifts for others, and talked about the birth of baby Jesus. (She's mostly into the cookies.) It is my hope that I too can live up to the precedence of my Mom set before me.

Merry Christmas to you all and may your holiday remind you of the magic of others.

Love,
Jane

The Dorsch Family - Some of Them

2009-11-18T19:39:00.002-06:00

The Adams Family

2009-11-16T18:13:00.012-06:00

Here is the Adams Family! We managed to eek out one more shoot from the beautiful Fall weather we had this year. A quick trip to Memorial Park here in Omaha made for beautiful Fall pictures. Take a look!

The Dokter Family is Back!

2009-11-03T15:00:00.004-06:00

Here is the Dokter Family with their new addition - Quincy :)

Laura Powers and John Ashford Wedding

2008-09-08T19:49:00.006-05:00

This is John and Laura and they are quite possibly the cutest couple on the planet! I shot their wedding out at Soaring Wings Vineyard just south of Springfield, NE this past weekend. The weather was perfect until about 8pm when it poured down rain! Thank goodness for a huge tent! I really enjoyed shooting John and Laura because they were just the most fun and pleasant people. Best wishes and Godspeed to you both!

Ahhhh - No More Garage for Milk!

2008-09-05T19:46:00.000-05:00

I'm happy to report the fridge is back in working order!

Day 7 - NO FRIDGE!

2008-08-29T06:32:00.002-05:00

I always had my suspicions but now I know for sure - I would have never made it as Pioneer Woman. My refrigerator blew up on August 22. So now I have been treking out to the garage to the fridge (the one I'm sure came to Omaha with the Pioneers) every time I want ice or cheese or whatever. It has gotten so bad Hadley, my 2 yr old, says "Garage...milk...in garage? Mommy go to garage for milk!" I love how repair people tell you "oh sure, it's the condenser. we can have one here in A COUPLE days. But technically it could take 3-5 business days. However, I think I could find you one in town - today!" Yea, that was Monday. So as I sit here typing this at 6:30am, I'm really wondering how chilly it is outside this morning....because I need creamer for my coffee.

Little Red Trucks Grows Up!!

2008-08-27T15:55:00.003-05:00

As many of you know, my husband Shannon is a pretty handy guy. And recently, he decided to push his Little Red Truck Home Improvement Company into Keystone Remodeling focusing his work on remodeling work. He'll do great, I know he will! You should see the work he has done on our house! Congratulations Shannon!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KARLIE!!!

2008-08-18T20:30:00.000-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!
We miss and love you!!

Gigi All Good!

2008-08-16T13:35:00.002-05:00

Lots of you know my Grandma, and if ya don't know her personally - you've heard her stories! She is an amazing woman and humbles me every time I walk in her door. Weeks before I graduated college in 98, I was awakened by a call from my Mom early in the morning. She was calling me with instructions to immediately get over to the hospital b/c my Grandma was on her way. I had no idea what to expect or what was going on. My Grandma was invincible. And downright scary when the occasion called for it. The thought of her going to the hospital was one of my life's most frightening moments. I arrived at the hospital and was the only member of my family present. The doctor came out to the lobby and escorted me into the surgery room where they were about to do a cath and investigate why she was having chest pains. Now it was getting really serious. Here was the Matriarch of our family in one of her greatest hours of need. My instructions from the doctor were very clear: go in, touch nothing, and give your Grandma a hug. I walked into a room where her heart was on a screen, lights and people everywhere. I looked down and there was my Grandma....wearing bright red lipstick? My Grandma is just about as country as it gets and that doesn't include red lipstick! Whatever, she looked scared and I knew I had to dig deep and fight back a lake of tears. She hugged me and assured me everything would be alright, as she had done a million times before. Well that day passed like all others do with one exception, now we knew that one day Grandma would in fact pass away. It was that day but for a brief moment. They managed to save her precious life. God could not take her just yet - we all needed her too much.

Fast forward 10 years, through numerous surgeries, lots of plain grilled chicken, miles of walking, a little slower pace of life - and she's still fighting this heart disease. Yesterday I received another one of "those calls" where my Mom calls to say "I'm with Grandma at the hospital...she's fine." Which is a total lie in reality - nobody is fine if they're at the hospital. But in our family, my Mom was really saying is "She's still alive and it doesn't seem to be undeniably life threatening at this point." So yet another trip to the Heart Hospital in Lincoln. And today brought really great news!! She's fine. Her 1 artery that is blocked has by-passed it all on it's own - the heart is amazing! Her pain was from these new little arteries working so hard. But everything looked good. Whew! What a relief!

Love ya Gigi!

Oh, the lipstick - she was heading to Omaha that day. When my aunt picked her up, my Grandma said she wasn't feeling well. She had been having pain in her arm since the night before! I told you she was tough. She had a blood clot in her heart for 9 hours and lived - you should be afraid ;) 6 months later is when the heart disease kicked in blocking her arteries. Thank God for that blood clot. After that blood clot, she started getting regular heart check ups.

E-Newsletter Black Hole Conquered - Finally!

2008-08-07T22:48:00.007-05:00

I am a magnet for challenges that seem easy, but really are a pain in the rear. I frequently hear that little voice in my head that says "Seriously, how hard can it be? If someone else can do it, so can you, Jane!"

Sometime late in the winter, I thought "Hey, let's put together an "E-Newsletter"! Everyone is doing them. It'll be great. We can say Hi to everyone without spending Hadley's college fund in printing and postage. How hard can it be?"

So I set out to do my very first newsletter. I put together content and layout and daydreamed about style....yea, not nearly as easy as it appears....come to find out. Over the past 7 months I started and gave up at least a dozen times. But, alas! I have conquered the E-Newsletter!!

Get some coffee, take a peek, let us know what ya think! We're eager to hear from you!
Jane McComas Photography Newsletter

Long Overdue Vacation to AZ!

2008-07-21T20:02:00.001-05:00

This summer Shannon and I were invited to Scottsdale, AZ by our great friends, Bec and Mike. Our trip included lots of golf, the longest manicure EVER, lots of pool time, did I mention golf? Oh and a trip to Sedona - very cool if you ever get the chance. I must mention too that this was our first trip without our baby Hadley. I must admit I was a little nervous. But, thankfully, Shannon's Mom was able to come spend some quality time with Hadley. Come to think of it, I'm not sure she realized we were gone. And I made it thru the trip without wanting to come home. Too bad for Hadley - there will be more trips for her to Mammer's while Mommy and Daddy are off globe-trekking!

Here's Shannon in Sedona (do the red rocks give it away?). Those of you who have seen or had the pleasure of taking Shannon's picture you should be just as surprised as I was once I saw a "normal" smile. Thanks, dear.

These are my girls! L-R: Bec, Jenn, Me, Jen. We have been friends now for almost 10 years. I can't believe how fast time has gone and how things change. It all started with the girls weekends. Bec was a newlywed and the rest of us were single, but we were all having a great time! Wedding after wedding and baby after baby - our Facebook pages have changed but we're all still having a great time!

This is a little more Shannon's speed! There's that fun loving, mischievous smile we all know and love!

Good little Catholic Bec. I bet she's praying to move from Minneapolis to Kansas City ;-)

Creepy? Cool? Creepy? Cool? This is the kind of plant they make horror movies out of to haunt my nightmares.

Who knew there were big fat cacti like this? Btw this is a Pineapple cactus. Cool, eh?

They have a Monsoon Season in AZ - no kidding. I had no idea. And we were there for the whole thing. It was kinda crazy. But it made for some wicked pics. I thought for sure I was gonna come home with a thousand pics of dry dusty rocks and maybe a lizard if I was living right. But oh did I get lucky!

The Big Day

2008-07-08T15:22:00.003-05:00

Finally the big day! My cousin Katie and AJ are finally married! Congratulations! I think they may have set a record for the longest engagement ever. Even though I was in the wedding party - I still managed to sneak in a few shots here and there!

Ok maybe I took advantage of being a bridesmaid....with seats like this are you shocked that I staged a camera in the front row before the ceremony began?!? I knew God would look after my equipment, no worries :)

I love images like these where you have multiple subjects but small areas of focus. Tells a much better story. And then to switch the focus and show the other side of the story. Makes me go "Oooooo, nice".

This picture is worth a million dollars....in fact, wait a tick! All the pictures from the reception are worth a mint since all I EVER hear from Katie is "I hate to dance". Let's just say, she danced more than a few (eh em, a lot more than a few) dances that night! I think we all did.

Billy Z cuttin a rug! Everyone should have an Uncle Bill.

There is something very special about shooting pictures of people you know well. You know their stories. This picture makes me miss my Aunt Linda, Katie's mom. I was really afraid that I would find myself really missing Linda that day. But I think she was looking down on us all, ensuring we all had a great time.

Kickin off Senior Season in Chicago!

2008-06-16T14:04:00.002-05:00

This has been the summer of family. I have shot more family this year than ever before. These are my cousins (I have a bunch just so you know), twin sisters Emma and Elyce. Clearly not identical twins, for those of you who were wondering. I have known these girls their entire lives. And ohhhh the stories I could put on this blog - but I won't. Sincerely, every time I look at them I am truly amazed. I can't even begin to imagine navigating the waters of High School in today's society. God had fun when he made these two. If one doesn't have a trait, the other one does - and sometimes I think they swap back and forth. Truly, these girls are smart, athletic, beautiful (clearly visible here), and most of all... grounded. They manage to remain humble despite having the whole world going for them. Best of luck to you, two - love ya! Janey

Oh to be 17 again!

These were taken outside the Museum of Art in Chicago, where the girls live (Chicago that is - not the museum). I had originally planned to shoot at Millennium Park but that went out the window thanks to an enormous Gospel Festival. But OH HAPPY DANCE when we went around the corner and here was the museum and it's gardens. One door closes....another opens :)

Ok, so last year I shot their sister, Sam's Senior pics downtown, as well. Some of you may remember the heels and mini skirt shots? Here we go again. Let's just say I couldn't have looked that way when I was 17 if I tried. We were wearing athletic apparel out on Friday nights. These girls were hot! I know where to go for models should I ever get into that type of photography.

This is Elyce to the core - easing going, big smile, lots of laughs.

This is why I cherish shooting Seniors, you never know what they'll show you. Elyce certainly has a serious side, and now I know that part, too.

Those heels - CANARY YELLOW! LOVE IT!

I love this picture. Totally by happenstance but I fired, and voila! That is so Emma with that look on her face like "I dare ya!" and Elyce back there totally into her own thing. I love it!

Can you say ad for Hollister!

The funny thing about this chic, urban, image is that 20 seconds later the train would stop and the girls were "hit on" by some REALLY strange guy. Harmless, but strange. They were 18 shades of red!

It is true what they say about twins having a special bond. And these two definitely have that bond. It shows every time I see them.

Katie is a Beautiful Bride!

2008-05-25T10:23:00.002-05:00

Of course we had to end the day with a picture of Hadley and Katie!

Katie & AJ are Engaged!

2008-05-20T09:17:00.000-05:00

Here are my cousin Katie and her fiance' AJ. I can't wait for their June wedding! We had a great time in the Old Market laughing and laughing and laughing! Congratulations, you two!

The Wallick Girls - I don't even know where to begin!

2008-05-01T12:51:00.009-05:00

Stacy & Billy

2008-05-01T12:41:00.008-05:00

Despite the Como Park Conservatory staff chasing us, we were able to shoot some great stuff! I love these images and cannot wait for the wedding!

The Sun is Back!!

2008-04-22T14:03:00.000-05:00

After months and months of winter, spring has FINALLY arrived in Omaha! Hadley and I celebrated by a trip to the park. Unfortunately the princess side of Miss Hadley came out and did not think much of the playground sand!

OUR BIG NEW SHINY WEBSITE IS UP!!!

2008-04-21T14:56:00.004-05:00

YAAAYYY!! We have the new site up! I'm so excited! All the images are full screen now - how great is that! And now we have our very own proofing/ordering gallery! Click on the pic below and take a look!