All I Want For Christmas is ... to go VIRAL :)

I won't waste too much time typing this blog. I made an umbrella tree this Christmas, alongside my very supportive roommate. We want to get it pinned. Not in any formal ceremony, but in the ceremonial way of Pinterest. The problem? I have no Pinterest. This is usually surprising to people (which is fine), but I already have a whole slew of things that suck my life and time away and I was just trying to avoid having one more. My roommate and I have one goal of living together, though, and that's to go viral, and we realize that Pinterest is just the place for this handcrafted gem. So I'm just posting this so people can repost it to Pinterest (read: all the people I've lovingly coerced into doing so). So here's my photo. I don't know if it's Pinterest worthy, but if you read this and care to help me and Caitlin reach our dreams, let the pinning begin :)

Floods, Fire Ants, and Friday the 13th

The fact that we were able to do this photo shoot is basically a miracle. It was scheduled during the week of what would become the worst flooding in Colorado history. Highways were destroyed, homes were washed away, lives were lost. And here in Colorado Springs, the rains came down and the floods came up, too! Leading up to the Friday of the photo shoot, I just kept my fingers crossed and hoped for the best because I'd been majorly looking forward to it! Thankfully, the weather did exactly what we needed it to.

Rebekah and Emily (the high school seniors who are the lovely subjects of this shoot) have become near and dear to me in a very short amount of time! They are identical twins. They grew up in Italy from age 3-17, so they are not only bilingual but they also have a super cute Italian accent to their English :) And they make me both laugh and think a LOT. They're pretty wonderful.

The first part of the shoot was in an open space right across the street from where I live; I've been wanting to photograph there for a while. But of course I couldn't just do a "normal" shoot up there; I had to suggest we haul a recliner to the top of the hill! (which is where the fire ants come in) I didn't realize how heavy a recliner becomes as one has to cross a street and climb a Colorado hill with it. Let's just say it took the place of my Jillian Michaels' workout that day. Then, we were so tired when we got to the top that we kinda set the chair down wherever, and that "wherever" just happened to be on top of a large fire ant hill. So my thighs were burning the remainder of the shoot until I fell asleep that night... and not from climbing the hill! I think I was bit at least 5 times. Did you know those little buggers have VENOM?!

 In other news, I recently discovered a photo technique called steel wool photography, and these 2 were the perfect candidates to do a test run with! This part of the shoot involved lots of things including, but not limited to a whisk, steel wool, a camelbak tube, 2 tripods, a headlamp, a 9 volt battery, and a cave! They were such great sports, even though being up on Gold Camp Road in a cave on Friday the 13th was a little spooky at first. When Emily took her turn on cave duty, she sang Brandi Carlile at the top of her lungs the entire time. I thought she was just being funny, but when we got back to the car she told us she sings when she's scared :) At any rate, it was a very eventful shoot and they are such beautiful girls (inside & out), so I hope you enjoy the pictures!

Sisterly Love ;)

Destination: Wedding!

This summer has been a combination of things that I love: traveling to beautiful places, telling stories through photos, and being with wonderful people! I feel so blessed to have set my eyes on some of the places I've visited this wedding season. From the gardens of England, to the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico to an Indian wedding near Aspen, to the wildflower ridden hills of Crested Butte, this summer has rocked my world! Not only were these places lovely, but these people also... some of them have been my dear friends for years and some I've only just met, but I had a genuine blast at each one of these sacred events.

At the last wedding, I received one of the greatest compliments of my life. Before I get to that, there's one thing you should know about me: I LOVE to dance. I've even had friends tell me I should market myself as The Dancing Photographer. So I was dancing to some hip hop in between photo ops with these lovely Indian women (and with the bride's permission, of course), and one of them came up to me at the end of the night with her lovely accent and said, "Ohhh, Allison, watching you dance is like watching Cirque de Soleil." Speechless. So many emotions. Could've died happy... as long as she meant it as a good thing  :) 

Small showcase of the dance moves.

The BFF and I. Showcasing our full service photography. We make signs, we take kids to the potty, and of course, we sing when "Don't Stop Believin'" comes on. 

Here are some highlight shots from the summer:

Windsor, England.

St. Petersburg, Florida.

the breathtaking Crested Butte, Colorado

Glenwood Springs, Colorado

The BFFs.

Let me tell you something about my best friends in the world, dear reader. They are FUNny. I'm talking clever, I'm talking witty, I'm talking inappropriate in all the best ways possible. The point is: I love these people. They're some of the best ones I've ever known. I had the chance to do a photo shoot with not one, but both of them last summer. Yep, last summer. Almost a year ago and I'm just now posting it (throwing up the guilt trip wall now for my own protection). One of my best friends is a fellow {amazing!} photographer but lives in Tennessee (www.byshea.com), so we like to team up whenever possible, and the other one is ... pregnant (among other things). Well, she was last summer, anyways. She now has a beautiful, playful, and chubby little boy named Garrett that we all love. But before we knew Garrett, we had this photo shoot and had a lot of fun in Knoxville around dusk at a little park. And since these are my BFF's, I know they'll forgive me for all the funny outtake pictures I'm about to post AND for taking almost a year to post them. Right, guys?  :)

Who's excited for parenthood?

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A time for everything: a time to kiss and a time for funny faces.

Well, hey there.

It's for shots like this that I LOVE Matt & Lindsay.

And this.