My first senior session! (pic heavy)

A little background info:  Savannah (the gorgeous gal in the photos) is the daughter of my very favortie teacher's assistant ever.  Yes, I'm partial.  I adored her then and I adore her now.  I have met few people in my life with a heart as huge as hers.  When she asked me to do her daughter's senior portraits, I was over the moon excited!  I was even more thrilled after our shoots were over!  These images are some of my absolute favorites that I've taken to date.  I got to play around a lot with my camera and with the light (which was perfect both days!) and Savannah was oh-so-patient.  I couldn't have asked for a better subject.  She smiled easily and seemed so carefree.  I remember myself at that age, feeling so unsure of myself and awkward in my own skin.  If she felt that way, I certainly never saw it. 

The first photo session was down at Fort Fisher.  What an amazing location!  If someone knows of a place similar to this in Charleston, please do tell!  Love, love, LOVE this images...

 This is where I started to really enjoy the beautiful light...

 Savannah and her mom...

Their love for one another was so inspiring.  I can only hope to have such a wonderful relationship with my own daughters when they are this age.

Our second photo shoot was at the Carolina Beach boardwalk.  The color at this place is fabulous! 

Savannah and her dad...

So simple and sweet.  You can easily tell that these two adore eachother and it melts my heart. 

This session was awesome on so many levels...the people, the photos, the love...and I got to be a part of it!  Yay me!  :) 

A few tips for beginners

One of the best things about learning something new is getting to share that with other people.  Maybe it's just the teacher in me, but I adore it!  While it seems kind of odd to be giving tips, since I'm only a beginner myself, I thought it'd be fun.  Here goes...

* Natural light is almost always the best light (in my opinion).  If you can't get outside, shoot near a window. 

* If you are shooting outside, the best time would be early in the morning and late in the evening.  Bryan Peterson said it best in "Understanding Exposure" (buy this book!  it's fabulous!) when he said that 11am-3pm are poolside hours...meaning that if you have a pool, that's where you should be.  It's not a great time for photo ops.

* Play with your light...use it for front light, side light, or back light.

*Focus on your subject.  Get rid of background clutter and distracting items. 

*Don't be afraid to make mistakes.  Shoot away and LEARN from the bad ones...and then delete them!  No one has to see your photo failures. 

And as always, I'll save the best for last...

*READ YOUR MANUAL!!!  If you don't know how to use your camera, nothing is going to make you a better photographer. 

Oh, and just because I hate to post without a picture...

Here's a recent favorite from my very first senior session.  I'll be posting about it soon!!  :)