Congratulations are In Order

Thanks for all those who participated in the senior mini-session giveaway. Kasi Jensen is our lucky winner, congratulations!

For all other participants, I have a special deal to thank you for participating, just contact me so I can get it to you, thanks!

Till next time,

Senior Giveaway Reminder

Thanks to those who have entered the senior mini-session give-away! I'm so excited to be able to work with the lucky senior who wins this giveaway. I'll be choosing the winner THIS FRIDAY, September 12. Entries must be received by Friday at 7:00 PM to count. You can enter up to three times:

1. Like Photobymemories on Facebook
2. Comment on the Senior Giveaway photo on the Photobymemories Facebook Page
3. Enter your email and say hi (or whatever you want to say) in the contact box to the right

It's that easy! Someone'll get a photo shoot, 8 digital edited images, and print release FREE!!

Love me some free swag :)

Skinny Minnie and Chunky Monkey

These two darlings are less than a week apart and are both so adorable.....around here we have nicknames for these types of babes. 

Skinny Minnie and Chunky Monkey- adorable to a tee. 

Seniors in Style

Senior portrait photography is all about capturing the unique style and attitude of an individual on the cusp of life's adventures. Each senior is so different from the way they style their hair, to who their friends are, to what their life story is all about. Senior portraits, carefully composed, capture a moment in time and (if you're lucky) they capture the beautiful essence of brimming hope and life.

Before we get into this fun senior shoot, don't forget to enter to win a FREE SENIOR SESSION for you or a friend. Entry details can be found on my facebook page or on the blog.

Take a journey with me and let's explore the different styles and moments captured in this personalized small-town senior session.

My subject for this shoot was full of personality! She's a hat-wearing, back-yard loving girl who is either wearing funky shoes or rockin' bear-feet. She has a favorite park where she tip-toes across wet-rocks to cross a small creek and hangs out on bright-red benches. She's a senior's senior who has seen good days and bad and has great empathy for others and an amazing vision for the world around her.

We started the session with some simple lifestyle pictures in an oft-frequented orchard. Catering to my subject’s love of hats, we found a fun, natural way to incorporate one of her favorites.

In this image (still in the orchard) I flattened my histogram while keeping a low aperture, resulting in this beautiful, vintage-style image that stands out from the rest for its muted color tones.

Next we move to the city-streets where a lone stair-case with amazing textures and shadows catches this senior miss mid-laugh. This beauty needed practically no editing- everything in it spoke naturally for itself. 

In this image, I was inspired by the gray stone of the building and sidewalk and the deep catch-lights in the subject’s eyes. Everyone has dark days and to me there is great beauty to be found in the difficult seasons of life. I wanted to capture the beauty of gray skies with this image that speaks to my subject's own difficult times and to the hope she has looking to the future.

My subject is a bit of an artist and is remarkable with side-walk chalk. Though we didn’t have time to capture one of her masterpieces, she did want to have her graduation year “chalked” onto a downtown brick wall- this image is a classic-style senior portrait. 

As a barefoot, blue-jean, small-town beauty, we had to capture the simplicity of life right now for my subject. This image reflects her laid-back home-town style with great up-town charm and simplicity. 

A rose might smell sweeter next to a natural lol-style smile. The focus on this was set to highlight the subject’s nearest eye and that GORGEOUS flower in her hand, the style was set to match the warm sun in her hair and warm laugh on her lips.

I love this final image most of all BECAUSE my subject requested this location and this pose. She loves the red benches to be found in her favorite park and the laid-back look of laying down, feet up in the air enjoying the soft-summer breeze. This picture was so natural, just her in her element. The red of the benches and the green of the garden around inspired me to pop these colors to increase the feeling of the fun kid-style warmth of summer.This photo is literally just as unique as the girl who conceptualized it. 

So…what style is your favorite? Subdued and modern? Rustic and vintage? Bright, bold and happy? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you and get your inspiration for upcoming senior photos! My personal favorite style is simplistic- I like to capture the natural beauty of an image and get it as close to the way it looks through my eyes as possible. It feels more sincere to me, more authentic. 

Talk to me, tell me what you think, and till next time,  peace out, all!

Fall Senior Sessions

Ah, to be young and a high school senior again. The world ahead of you, your troubles behind you, and a year of celebration to enjoy.

For all those seniors (and friends/parents of seniors) I'm running senior sessions this September. My dates right now are the 18 and 24 in the evening. I may look into adding a date if there is sufficient demand, so contact me if you are interested in a date outside these two.

September 18 I'll be doing an urban setting, September 24 I'll be doing a rural session, so chose your venue and your date and contact me before your preference is taken!

Below are all the details on this deal as well as a few teasers from Emily's senior session. You can like photobymemories on Facebook- you can comment on a post by Photobymemories, OR you can use the contact name on the right to submit your name. Done? Done.

A Gift from Me to Who?

Hi all! There are a lot of fun, good things going around the world wide web right now. From the ALS icebucket challenge to the #sharegoodness hashtag.

I am so blessed to get to take photos. I love working with people and capturing them. However, I've been thinking about all the amazing people in my community who for whatever reason are unable to have family portraits done. I'd love to give away a free portrait session and mini-print package to a deserving family who would cherish the pictures.

Only problem is, people aren't usually terribly open with their need and/or desire for free portraits. So, I'm hoping to ask family members and good friends of these individuals to speak up for them. I'm looking for all y'all to help me find an amazing family who really deserves some beautiful portraits and prints. I'm looking to make a difference for someone, and I need my readers to help me do it!

Here's the deal- if you know of a family or individual who would really appreciate this gift, fill out the contact me box to the right. Make sure to include the reason you are nominating the individual. I'll close nominations Friday night and will pick someone on Saturday. Then we'll privately work to set something up. Depending on the situation I'm willing to feature or not feature them on this blog (if they want to remain private, great, if they would like me to post to build awareness for some condition or ask for community support for something, I'm happy to do that too).

Bottom line is, photography is a gift that I cherish and I would love to find someone to pay that gift forward to.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Newmyers in a Storm

Here in the beautiful mountain valley I call home we've been having the most beautiful weather. Storm clouds have been thundering around the sky bringing wind, rain, and impressive lightning. Storm photography is amazing- just search for it to find some beautiful images. I had the privilege of photographing this very cute family as one such storm was brewing and before the wind blew us away we captured some great images. Enjoy!