Anyway, we managed to find some spots sans people and had a great time together. I especially liked the faux dance in the middle of Walnut Street. There were some very curious on-lookers. Amy and Chris were awesome, as was AJ, and I think you’ll smile with me when you see the slideshow and some of my favorites.

We photographed Katrena and Paul’s wedding five years ago and we all commented about how quickly time goes by and agreed that it was hard to believe. Anyway, this was a fun time for me. We met at their beautiful home and I really enjoyed Kyline and Isaac, their boys. I hope you will enjoy their photographs.

Newborn baby girl, McHaney, is ten days old in these pictures. Her Mom and Dad brought her to see me. Aunt Joanne and brother, Trace, came too and what a nice time we had.

Trace is two and half. He’s a good-lookin’ boy.

The proud parents.

McHaney.

I am totally thankful for the privilege to be a portrait photographer.

Thank you mom and dad for these pictures of my family.  You captured us the way we really are.  Love you guys.

This slideshow makes me cry.  Let it load and watch it full screen.  It’s worth it.

3 Really Ridiculously Good Reasons for a Bride & Groom to See Each Other Before their Ceremony

Should the groom see the bride before the wedding? When our son got married, I overheard the brother of our future daughter-in-law exclaim, “You’re not seeing each other before the ceremony, are you!!?? That’s not right!” and I was reminded that it is not just the bride and groom who question “to see or not to see”.
I suppose some people love the tradition of waiting till the ceremony, while others still believe it is bad luck. As a seasoned wedding photographer, I would strongly suggest that luck has nothing to do with it. In fact, seeing each other is much more likely to make the day run smoothly. I have seen over and over again that it is better to see each other. Here is why in 3 simple reasons: you get to be together, you get better pictures, and you get it all over with in one fell swoop. This translates to more time with all the people you love and more pictures to help you remember it all.

 You could be with the one you love:
If you choose not to see each other before, you will spend most of your day hiding from the one you are about to marry. This is not only stressful for many brides, but it also keeps nerves high. The minute you see each other, the nerves and stress melt away! In the 600+ weddings my studio has photographed, this has been true over and over again.
On the other hand, if you choose to see each other, you get to be together alone! There are no eyes on you, no pressure, just the two of you. This could easily be the only alone time you get until the day is all over (and believe me when I say it is over far too quickly)!

You could have better pictures of the two of you.
So once you’ve had your alone time, you could immediately start pictures together. Again, there are no eyes on you, no time pressure, and it is still just the two of you. This not only gives you a chance for a better variety of poses, locations, and expressions, but it also means you are still fresh. Brides, your makeup is still intact and your face is not yet tired from smiling so much! Grooms are not yet hungry and ready to get to the party. Win-win! (And I’m sort of joking about the grooms…sort of.)
When you wait till after the ceremony, you are doing pictures of the two of you last when you are both ready to be done and would rather be celebrating with your guests.

You could knock it all out at once.
Your wedding party and family will thank you. They may not realize at first why they have to be ready early (though we strongly recommend you tell them over and over again why they do!) but they will be grateful when all the pictures are done before the ceremony begins. This means they too are free to celebrate with you after you say “I do”. Your family will be free to entertain the guests they invited. And here’s the best part of all: those guests will not be waiting for an hour for you to arrive! You can immediately be announced into your reception. So your wedding party, family, AND guests will be thanking you. And don’t worry if you were hoping for some pictures with specific guests or extended family, that can easily and quickly be done either just before the reception, or even during it. Your DJ could easily round up specific people for you.

To see or not to see? I think you can now see what I see which is that it is better to see! Don’t you think? You have more time with the people you love the most. Your pictures will be even better. You will live happily ever after.

Ok, maybe that last one is wishful thinking. We’ll save tips on that for another post:)

Having friends like Laura Newton is one of the reasons I feel this way. She is an amazing woman and it gives me great pleasure to show pictures of the newest Newton, Kate.

I go way back with Elise and Mark (yes, I photographed their wedding) so need I say more? And, yes, I have photographed Jenna and Nathan, their adorable children. And now, Baby Three is on the way!!! And, yes, I am excited.

Congratulations to all and God Bless!

]]> http://lizpowerphotography.com/blog/elise-and-mark-randolph-family/feed/ 0 http://lizpowerphotography.com/blog/girls-inc-of-chattanooga/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=girls-inc-of-chattanooga http://lizpowerphotography.com/blog/girls-inc-of-chattanooga/#comments Thu, 29 Mar 2012 19:13:34 +0000 Liz http://lizpowerphotography.com/blog/?p=3078 “Honoring strong, smart and bold women in Chattanooga,” was the often repeated phrase I heard Wednesday morning at the 8th Annual Awards Breakfast for Girls Inc. of Chattanooga.

I was privileged to photograph the event held at The Chattanoogan and I heard about Girls Inc. firsthand. The experience of meeting the amazing leadership of this organization and getting to know what they have done and are doing in our great city was very inspirational.

In my opinion, Chattanooga is the best city in the world. I feel this way for a lot of reasons. One of the things that makes this such a great place to live and raise a family is that it is such a generous, giving community. Another reason is that the moral, spiritual and social values of our community have strong foundations. One such foundation is Girls Inc.

This morning I heard ten young women introduce women who have inspired and encouraged them. The honorees were chosen by the girls themselves and, as one lady said, it was especially meaningful to receive the award because it was from “women honoring women.”

Here is a picture of the honorees and their nominees. Congratulations to all and thank you for your service to our community.

Digital Watercolor Print by Liz Power Photography

I marvel at the amazing changes to my profession. Over the last seven years I have embraced new technology as I have learned a digital work flow and now use many of the powerful tools available. Even as I have been learning digital photography, I have had the desire to create art because I am an artist, not just a technician.

I already knew posing, lighting, proper exposure, and all of those technical things. But I wanted to create art. In fact, when I was an art student experimenting with the various media, I found I loved watercolors and I knew that one day I would paint with them. . .

And now I can through amazing digital watercoloring painting. I have learned the techniques that allow me to create a beautiful watercolor print from a photograph, and the possibilities are endless.

If you have a photo you’d love to have turned into a watercolor, contact me for more information.