Shooting Babies Is Fun! :)

Sweet little Ella is the daughter of my good friend, Jayme Mac (as we called her), who was a fellow counselor with me at Eagle Lake Camp in 2003, '04, and '05! It's always a little weird when your friends start having their own offspring, but it really is a beautiful thing! It was a fun shoot because Jayme and I were able to hang out and catch up in between shots... especially when Ella felt like she needed to get some screams out :) There were definitely some funny outtakes that I'll have to include, because babies just make the most awesome faces when they're screaming bloody murder. But Ella did so great overall and was a really good sport, as we changed her outfits and locations multiple times, made her lay naked on the floor, and tried to stick wedding rings on her toes. Here's some of my faves.

Business & Arts Luncheon - Colorado Springs

I really love my job. Well, both of them. But there are some days I come home from a shoot and just think "No, I REALLY REALLY love my job today!" Being at this luncheon was one of these days. Not only was it a collection of some really amazing, trailblazing, artistic, and brilliant people who have made big things happen in our community, but I also got to photograph breakdancers and acrobats! And, for those of you who don't know me that well, if I could snap my fingers and be really amazing at one style of dancing, I'd be a b-girl in a heartbeat :) So, of course I asked if they taught lessons and picked up a business card from one of them before I left. In addition, I had the privilege of photographing a breathtaking opera singer, who indeed received a full standing ovation after only 1 song. To say that she gave me chills would be an understatement. I could have photographed and listened to her all day, as her beauty was not limited to her voice alone.

The Business & Arts Luncheon was designed to bring together people who are making a creative difference in our community, via having creative workspaces, giving big money to the arts, or thinking of innovative ways to combine creativity and business. I hope this is an event I get to capture with my camera every year, and many thanks to COPPeR for making it happen.

Look out for the Goats!

I have seen a lot of B&B's the past few years, as I've been the staff photographer for Acorn Internet Services, and the more you see of something the less it excites you. But this was not the case with the Mountain Goat Lodge (dba CO Crossroads B&B)! From the moment I walked in, I felt at home! I also was really impressed with the way my fabulous hostess, Gina Marcell, decorated in a modern rustic fashion and was able to combine the woodsy, outdoor feel of a cabin with the more modern feel of Pottery Barn or Crate & Barrel. It was wonderful!

My room had view that rivals the ending scene in The Sound of Music, and to top that – there were chickens and mountain goats! Gina is actually quite the MGL (mountain goat lady), and she raises them, milks them, and even uses the milk to make her own cheese and to put in lattes (that she's happy to make for all her guests!). I was pretty impressed. And I remained impressed throughout the shoot... until we got out to the pasture with the goats. Then I got scared :) You see, Samson, the "man of the house" (if you know what I mean), was kinda eager to rub his scent on me. And you may think "Why be scared of a goat?" But this was no ordinary goat. No. This was a small buffalo! But Gina was awesome, as is normal for her, and I got back out the gate without a trace of smelly goat scent. All in all, it was such a splendid time, a great photo shoot, a wonderful hostess. Point being, if you are ever the Salida/Buena Vista area, visit Gina at her Mountain Goat Lodge. You won't be sorry!

ps - The reason I photographed Gina's inn is because she's having her website redesigned, so just know that the one you see linked above is NOT her heart's desire :)

1,2, down, UP!

It was time once again for one of my favorite recurring photo shoots - the Manitou Springs High School Cheerleaders! They are so FUN and enjoyable to photograph. The bright sun made it tricky for some of the top of the rock shoots, but we made it work somehow. Building & doing stunts at Garden of the Gods is always a crowd pleaser, too, with plenty of people stopping to watch (which the girls don't mind. ha). At any rate, I love photographing this group every year cause they are not scared to ham it up and be awesome. Go Mustangs :)

Linds & Matt!

Two cheers for photo shoots with best friends! And three cheers for shooting at the county fair! I would do this again in a heartbeat, although I wish I'd brought some external lights of some sort. This was my first session with the new d300S, and it was a blast... but I'm pretty sure my subjects had a lot to do with that. Lindsay and I have been friends since the summer before 9th grade, when we bonded at cheerleading camp over a love for the rap tune "Big Poppa" :) We've been tight ever since, but this was our first photo shoot together!

Lindsay and Matt went the non-traditional route and decided to elope our senior year of college (well, my senior year, since I had 2 of them). It was crazy and secret and such a big deal (at the time), but because of that they never had any fun couple pictures taken. Which is where I come in... And I will let the pictures speak for themselves. It was a b.l.a.s.t.

Amara

“A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous.”

:: Coco Chanel ::

And that is how I would describe this wonderful TCA Senior, Amara.
I was initially excited just to photograph her bright red, wondrous hair, but was even more excited to find out she was a cowgirl and wanted some cowgirl country shots. I love it! We had a great time photographing in their friend's garden/backyard where Amara used to play growing up. With the country, though, come the country animals. I expected we'd have interference from a horse or rooster, but we actually had the darndest time with the cat! I had to crop cat tails out of a chunk of the pictures since the cat seemed pretty smitten with her. At any rate, a good time was had by all (cat included), and here are some of the favorites.

Latigo!

I love shooting for COPPeR! This organization does SO much for our community, specifically for the arts community, and I'm proud to work as their official photographer. They run a website called Peak Radar that is chock full of exciting (and sometimes f-r-e-e) cultural events happening in Colorado Springs.

Having said that, now I am glad to tell you about this concert COPPeR had me photograph for them the other day. Latigo. According to Wikipedia, latigo has 4 definitions:

Latigo has four meanings: Latigo Is a type of leather used on saddles to help them stay in place. It is part of the girth. For a definition on girth please refer to the folllowing lnk:

• Part of a girth (tack)

Latigo is also an automobile

• Fisker Latigo CS, an automobile

Latigo can also refer to a newpaper comic strip by Stan Lynde.

• Latigo (comic strip)

Latigo can also refer to a Mexican-American Surname and/or Last Name. It also came from Spain and expanded to Mexico Throughout The U.S. Ex. Pancho A. Latigo.

Those sound pretty nice and all (especially the name Pancho Latigo), but they failed to mention the up and coming country band from here in Colorado! Now, I really don't like country music, which I feel shameful about sometimes seeing as that I'm from Nashville. But, I just can't get into it. This band was really fun, though, and I was surprised at the number of people up north who came out to 1st & Main off Powers & Carefree to sit in the grassy field in front of a movie theater and rock out for a few hours. It was so fun! There were cute kids playing, teenage boys dancing, older people flapping fans, and the lead singer ... well, he was either flirting with me or the camera. But the camera sure did love him, so I guess that's better than nothing :)