Jessica Edwards Photography

Brand New Blog! {4 states photography}

2009-07-10T16:20:00.004-04:00

I'm sad to be leaving my very first blog, but I'm very excited about our new and improved blog!

This won't be updated anymore, so please bookmark and follow http://www.JessicaEdwardsPhotography.net/blog to stay up to date about what's going on with Jessica Edwards Photography!

Jessica

Bundles & Babies, First Year Baby Plan {southwest Missouri baby photographer}

2009-07-08T04:59:00.007-04:00

If you are expecting, or know someone who is, this program is for you! This is a great way for new parents to not only have portraits of their baby through the first year but also save money and receive great products at the end of the year.

Introducing our Bundles & Babies plan...

Newborn session...FREE ($100 value)
Six month session...FREE ($100 value)
One year session...FREE ($100 value)

25 birth announcements...FREE ($75 value)

Each session you'll get 10 sheets of 3 different poses ($1,200 value)

At the completion of the program (after the first year session) you'll receive:

25 first birthday cards...FREE ($75 value)
10x20 framed storyboard with one image from each session...FREE ($350 value)

Retail price for all the products and services included in this program is $2,000. By bundling it all together, you save $800!

There are 2 payment options:

$400 at each of the 3 sessions (plus tax)

or

you can save more than $200 by paying $1,000 (plus tax) at the beginning of the program.

*Maternity, 3 month, and/or 9 month sessions can be added to this plan.

**Ask us about our baby shower registry!

Example of birth announcement (double sided)

The Page Family {southwest Missouri Photographer}

2009-07-02T19:00:00.001-04:00

Abbey is one of our 2010 Street Team members from Liberal High School. All of our senior clients get a free family session and the Page family took advantage of that deal a couple of weeks ago. They wanted an urban styled session, so we hit the streets, walked around, and got some awesome shots!

We have a new look!

2009-07-02T15:59:00.004-04:00

We hired a graphic designer and she made us an awesome logo, blog header, letterhead, thank you cards, and business cards. She incorporated one of my favorite designs, the fleur-de-lis! I thought that with these new designs, it was time to give the blog a face lift. What do you guys think?

This is a work in progress. Some MAJOR blog changes are on the horizon! :D

Happy Birthday, Matt!

2009-06-29T19:19:00.002-04:00

Today, Matt turns 26! This whole weekend, we've had the pleasure of celebrating his birthday. Saturday was our get together with his family. We all headed down to Joplin to eat at Buffalo Wild Wings. My chicken salad was awesome and everyone's wings look really yummy too! We played NTN trivia, which I loved doing when I was in college. During the middle of our dinner, they announced on the loud speaker that we were celebrating his birthday and he was rewarded with some vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup. I wanted to lie and say it was MY birthday too!

Sunday, we had a family dinner at his parents' house so his daughter, Hayley could join us. Kathy made a fabulous dinner of lemon pepper chicken, mac and cheese, and fried squash. We brought over some McAlister's Tea a DQ ice cream cake which was just as good as I remember as a kid!

I took this video just as Matt had gotten a drop of hot wax on his finger and screamed like a girl! haha

I hope you've had a good birthday weekend, Matt! :)

You guys can wish him a happy birthday on Twitter @nfldraftscout and @mpix.

Candids from Matt's Senior Session {southwest Missouri Photographer}

2009-06-28T16:19:00.003-04:00

Matt G's (Fort Scott High) senior session went so well, I thought I'd post some more!

My boyfriend/office manager/assistant/second shooter, Matt M. took some candids of me shooting and also some of Matt G. from a different angle.

For not being a photographer, I think he did pretty well! What do you guys think?

By the way, Matt M's birthday is tomorrow...the big 2-6! For those who know him, make sure to wish him a happy 26th! :D

Matt, Fort Scott High Senior Portraits {Senior Photographer}

2009-06-26T04:00:00.003-04:00

Matt is our first 2010 non-Street Team member. I love it when seniors are on the ball and don't procrastinate having their portraits taken! :D

Matt and his mom, Mary, came to us from Fort Scott. He is a referral from our Street Team member, Angel (thanks Angel...you'll be getting something in the mail soon!).

When discussing where the outdoor part of his session will take place, his mom mentioned the Lamar City Park. She continued to tell me that she used to have family reunions there as a child and has a lot of fond memories of the park.

After shooting a few studio portraits...

...we headed over to the park!

Next to the park, the was a fantastic old abandoned building. It wouldn't be a Jessica Edwards Photography session without some images with killer texture and an urban feel.

He was such a trooper by climbing up this wall to pose in this awesome doorway!

Thanks Matt & Mary for a fantastic session! I can't wait until you see the final prints! Oh, and I'm really excited about designing some graduation invitations for you guys. :D

Senior Rep Program Kit for Photographers {Senior Photography Marketing}

2009-06-22T00:47:00.002-04:00

We've had some fantastic feedback from everyone who has purchased our marketing kits for senior photographers. We love hearing your success stories!

For those of you who may not have heard, we're offering 2 marketing kits:

Senior Rep Program (and how to use it on Facebook)
Blogging for Success

You can check out our website for full details. And for a limited time, if you purchase both kits, you get 20% off. Just mention that you found about about it from this blog post.

Be The Trend

Photographer's Cookout Summer '09 {southwest Missouri Photographer}

2009-06-21T02:08:00.004-04:00

Last weekend was tons of fun! Saturday started at Carousel Park in Joplin for Miller's Lab's company event. We began our day eating then a ride on the Farris Wheel {which was Matt's first time}. I kicked Matt's butt at the go-carts and got drenched on the water boats. That was a nice relief from the heat, so I didn't mind too much! We ended the day on a swinging boat/dragon ride that gave me a headache and Matt an almost-anxiety attack.

We are both more mall people than outdoor people, so we cut out early and went shopping!

A couple of outfits later, we headed to Lamar to get ready for our cookout. We have missed our photographer friends, so we decided to invite them to the studio and hang out! It went even better than I'd hoped...it was SO much fun!

While Matt was grilling, I set up the flatscreen and Wii and Mike and I rocked out on some Guitar Hero.

Mike giving me the stink eye

We wanted to share the fun, so we passed around Guitar Hero.

Matt volunteered to go first.

Then he passed it to Scott

and then to Denise Golubski .

Oh, and sorry, Denise, for the guitar not being calibrated! ;)

Soon, the food was ready...and it was GOOD! Thanks to Scott and Angela Plauche for saving my fingers by cutting up the tomatoes for me!

After eating we hung out, chatted, and told stories about the Mpix Oklahoma Shootout (which I have yet to blog about...OOPS!).

Lynda Hammers caught me doing what I do...taking candids of everyone.

Even Duke had a good time!

I decided that I wanted to have a group picture to help remember the day.

We wouldn't be a group of photographers without changing up the pose a bit and taking another.

And then a goofy one!

It was tons of fun, and I can't wait for our next get together!

Audrey & Max's Playground session {Lamar, MO Photographer}

2009-06-18T16:48:00.003-04:00

Last week, I had a great session with Audrey & Max. Max is a very energetic 5-year-old so we took advantage of that by shooting them at the city park in Lamar. I basically just let him run and play and shot him doing what little boys do. His mom brought along bubbles (which he wanted nothing to do with, haha) and a skateboard, which was a big hit!

In general, I'm a pretty indecisive person. I can never choose a favorite anything! However, for the first time in a long time, it was easy for me to choose a favorite image. Here it is...

This one is a close second

No, wait...this one is my second favorite

Or is it this one?

Ok, nevermind...all of the following is my second favorite!

Audrey & Max's Video

2009-06-18T16:47:00.001-04:00

Here are most of Audrey & Max's images from their session. I really love these videos! What do you guys think?

Free Puppies {Harlan County, Kentucky}

2009-06-13T02:51:00.002-04:00

My photographer friend, Melinda Dillman is giving away free miniature dachshund puppies. There are 2 available and are both boys. You can check out pictures of them and contact Melinda through her blog by clicking here.

Follow Us on Twitter!

2009-06-12T05:19:00.002-04:00

Yes, I decided to jump on the Twitter bandwagon a few weeks ago. It's starting to grow on me!

For the photographers out there who tweet, follow our marketing page @BeTheTrend
Everyone else follow the studio @JEPhotog

Oh, and follow some of my favorite Twitters:

@mpix
@plauchephotog
@moosepix
@Heather_Roach
@lebleuphoto
@birdsongphoto

Blayne, Harlan County High {Class of 2010 Senior Portraits}

2009-06-09T19:26:00.004-04:00

Meet Blayne! He's our first class of 2010 senior. He will be graduating from Harlan County High School, where he plays baseball.

His dad had emailed me a while back wanting to know if I would be coming back to Kentucky anytime soon. Luckily, I had been planning to go back for Memorial Weekend. I was so afraid that it would rain, because there was a 50% chance of storms Saturday and Sunday. It rained earlier that day, but cleared up about an hour before his session. Yay!

I had a few ideas of where I'd take his portraits, but that all changed when Matt mentioned something that I saw everyday when I lived there, but never paid much attention to. He mentioned the catwalk that crosses over US 119 in front of the old Cumberland High school. A light bulb went off above my head and I knew that's where I'd photograph Blayne!

We finished the session with some shots around the old high school and softball field. Check out what we came up with...

Memorial Weekend Visit to Kentucky

2009-06-06T19:39:00.006-04:00

Over Memorial weekend, Matt, Hayley and I drove to Kentucky to shoot some sessions and visit family. Check out Rebecca's blog to see her 2009 senior portraits. Keep an eye out for Blane's 2010 senior portraits and the Compton family portraits coming soon!

In the mean time, here are some of the snapshots we took over the weekend.

We brought along our cat, who made his bed on Matt's lap a large part of the time

even when he was driving

Our first full day there, we got pizza from my cousin's new business, The Black Mountain Pizza Company (which was awesome!) and took it to the Kingdom Come State Park and had a picnic. After we ate, the girls and Matt went rock climbing and went on a short hike.

*For the photographers who are reading this, these next few images were taken with a 45mm 2.8 tilt shift lens which I rented to try out. I love tilt shift, but I think I prefer the 90mm tilt shift.

As we left, we drove past the lake at the park and noticed that the paddle boat were open. I hadn't done that since I was a kid, so I was excited about taking Matt, Hayley and my niece, Hannah on the boats!

The girls were afraid of falling in the lake, so they looked to each other for comfort

Our view from the boat

The girls played with my back-up camera, the Canon 20D, in the back seat of the car. A couple of Hannah's pictures...

And Hayley's picture

The next day, Matt, Hannah, Hayley, my cousin JP, his 2 kids, and my cousin Nathan, his wife and 3 kids went to the park. I don't know who had more fun...the kids or the grown-ups!

Photo courtesy of JP's 5 year old daughter, in the white dress.

Hannah, the drama queen

JP, the drama queen

When you gotta go...you gotta go!

When you gotta get attention...you climb on the zip line!

Be very very quiet...I'm hunting 300 pound meat heads

The kids scarfed down the beef jerky like they hadn't been fed in days

Photo courtesy of one of the kids...can't remember which, but they did a good job!

Of course, cousin JP couldn't resist perpetuating the Kentucky "kissing cousins" stereotype

Each time we get together, we try to take a picture like we used to as kids...in birth order, oldest to youngest

As we left the park, Hannah jumped in the front seat and asked me to let her drive the Mustang.

That afternoon, we went to an old, abandoned parking lot and the girls took turns sitting on my lap and steering. They did surprisingly well!

As Hayley was driving, Hannah decided to practice her photography skill.

We had lots of fun in Kentucky! I'm really excited to go back for my 10 year high school reunion in August.

Rebecca, Knott Central High Senior

2009-06-03T15:05:00.002-04:00

Rebecca is the last of my 2009 seniors. She emailed me a few weeks ago wanting a senior session as well as graduation invitations. Talk about last minute...sounds like something I'd do! :)

Luckily, I had planned on visiting Kentucky over Memorial Weekend, so we made her appointment for then. She drove about an hour to my hometown to meet me and do a photo shoot.

We started at the Kingdom Come State Park...

Had some fun shooting her in her cap & gown...

Then we drove to a back alley behind my old studio. After she changed into this really cute dress, I found an alley close by that I'd never used before...

And then she changed into her last outfit and we finished the session in the alley where I loved to shoot...

That's it for the class of 2009! I hope you've enjoyed!

2010 Street Team Video

2009-06-03T04:30:00.001-04:00

Check out these this awesome video of our Class of 2010 Street Team members. Jessica Edwards Photography specializes in high school photography and provides services to southwest Missouri, southeast Kansas, and surrounding areas.

Marcus + Carla = Fabulous Portraits!

2009-06-01T20:22:00.002-04:00

Marcus & Carla's session was a nice change of pace for us. Although we do specialize in high school senior portraiture, I also enjoy photographing couples, families, children and maternity sessions.

Wouldn't you know it, that their session was on the hottest day of the year so far! Luckily, in the shade, with the breeze it wasn't too uncomfortable. We walked around the downtown area of Pittsburg and found a lot of fantastic places to shoot.

They live really close to where we were shooting so mid-way through the session they ran home and changed into outfit #2, which I loved! An hour after we got to the location, we were finished!

I'm more than happy with our results. I liked WAY too many to just pick 2 or 3 to share! So here ya go...prepare for an image overload!

One of my favorites...

SUCH a good looking couple!

3 letters:

H

O

T

!

A candid as we walk to the next location

I saw these steps a few weeks ago at the Mpix Shootout where I taught a photography class, but didn't get a chance to use them...until now!

Uh, can you say gorgeous?!

They were so cute when they thought we weren't looking!

...and even when we were looking! :)

Last one...thanks for stopping by!

Be the Trend, Marketing help for Senior Photographers

2009-05-26T01:35:00.002-04:00

This blog is for all my fellow photographer readers. After being asked for months about selling my high school senior photography marketing kits, I decided to go for it! Have you ever wanted to break into the senior market, but you just can't figure out how to start? Hear about other photographer's success with utilizing social networking and blogging but feel too overwhelmed to start?

Be The Trend: Reaching Generation Y via Social Networking is your solution!

For a limited time, get our Facebook Marketing Kit AND Blog Marketing Kit for 20% off when you purchase them both!

Email us for details:

Jessica@JessicaEdwardsPhotography.net

2010 Summer Specials {Senior Photography}

2009-05-21T01:43:00.004-04:00

Class of 2010, if you're not already, after graduation, you'll be a Senior... the top dog, the king of the hill. What a better way to start off your senior year than with some awesome senior portraits?!

Avoid the rush and book your session early. The sooner you do so, the more you save.

We're also giving away surprise freebies for the first 5 seniors who schedule their session!

Ready...

Set...

GO!

Miller Family Portraits, Southwest Missouri

2009-05-20T02:49:00.003-04:00

Most families don't have family portraits taken often enough. It's not easy to coordinate everyone's schedule with your photographer's, decide on a location, style, and clothing for the image. However, whenever it finally comes together, it is SO worth it. We had a really great time setting up these images despite the sun, wind and buffalo land mines at Prairie State Park.

We began our family day with family portraits then we headed to the bowling alley in Lamar to celebrate Michael's birthday. I dominated (won by 1 point, with Matt taking 2nd) even with 7 broken nails! We finished the night with a fancy dinner at Denny's where the mango tea rocks! On behalf of Hayley and Marcus, I have to apologize to our server for the iFart incident. haha I'm still laughing about that one! :)

The whole crew:

A couple of the brothers:

And a couple of Matt, Hayley and myself:

Melanie, Nevada High ~ Our Last Street Team Member

2009-05-18T21:36:00.002-04:00

Melanie is the last of our 2010 Senior Street Team members. I still can't get over what a great bunch of seniors that we have! I don't think I could ask for a better team. :)

I tried out a new background on Melanie, and I have to admit, I really like how it turned out. I can't wait to photograph Melanie's full senior session this summer!

My name is Melanie Ann Messick.

My nickname is Mel.

I go to school at Nevada High School.

My favorite class is chemistry, not because I like science but because the teacher is amazing.

My biggest accomplishment has been surviving high school and living with my family.

This summer I will play volleyball in my spare time.

My dream vacation is going to the beach with a bunch of my good friends and having the time of my life.

My dream job is a model, but it's most likely never gonna happen.

All time favorite movie the Lion King. The good ones last forever.

I love to listen to music I can relate to.

My all time favorite food is pizza. Who doesn't love pizza?

My favorite website is facebook. Duh!

My favorite place to shop is out of town? I don't have a favorite store really.

My favorite TV show is Family Guy.

An unusual talent I have is somehow being able to get lost in the town I've lived in my entire life.

The person I'd like to meet the most is my true love. Corny I know.

My favorite possession is my friends. I don't really possess them but I still have some!!

I never leave home without my phone.

A random fact about me is I play sports year round, volleyball swimming and track.

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because she let me model as a junior!!

Sarah, Carthage High Street Team Member

2009-05-18T17:24:00.002-04:00

Sarah's shoot was so much fun! It had been raining earlier in the day, so that that inspired me to use some new props. I purchased some matching rain boots and umbrella in a couple of different styles. Along with Sarah's great attitude and style, they helped us create some awesome images!

Check out what we came up with...

My name is... Sarah Goolsby

My nickname is... Super Sarah

I go to school at... Carthage High School

My favorite class is... AP History

My biggest accomplishment has been... Becoming who I am.

This summer I will... Attend a Ben Folds concert, go to debate nationals in Alabama, go to a two-week debate camp at MSU, go on a road trip with some of my friends, go to a service-oriented church camp and turn 17.

My dream vacation is... Going to Italy.

My dream job is... To be a social worker, or just to help people.

All time favorite movie... It's a tie between The Godfather and Fight Club.

I love to listen to... Graham.

My all time favorite food is... Coffee, if that counts.

My favorite website is... Postsecret.com

My favorite place to shop is... Thrift stores, or Romancing the Stone.

My favorite tv show is... I like pretty much anything on HGTV, but my favorite TV series is Invader Zim.

An unusual talent I have is... I'm pretty good at explaining things, though I don't know if that counts as unusual.

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Jesus. Think about how many questions He could answer for you. It blows my mind.

My favorite possession is... My Converse or my backpack.

I never leave home without... Pens.

A random fact about me is... I'm a chocolate milk fanatic.

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... I thought it would be a good opportunity.

Thanks, Sarah! I love postsecret.com too! :)

Hayley's Joke of the Week

2009-05-18T00:48:00.003-04:00

With 2 almost-tornadoes, American Idol finals, and senior Street Team retouching and design, I totally dropped the ball on Hayley's joke of the week. Oops! I'll try harder...promise!

If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring?

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

wait for it...

.

.

.

.

.

wait for it...

.

.

.

.

.

...Pilgrims! :)

Charles, Parsons High Street Team Member

2009-05-15T06:30:00.002-04:00

Charles and I were definitely on the same page for his photo shoot. He brought in nice jeans and shoes, a tie, white button up, and a skateboard. I love that combination! We had very similar ideas on backgrounds, poses, and the general style of the image. Charles has an eye for style and design!

Check out what we came up with and meet Charles!

My name is... Charles Gross

My nickname is... * Chuck G *

I go to school at... Parsons Senior High

My favorite class is... Media or Forensics

My biggest accomplishment has been... Figuring out that I need to be the best early and the only way to do that is with practice.

This summer I will... be spending a lot of time with Tyler and friends

My dream job is... To be an Oscar winning Actor

All time favorite movie... would have to be pretty much all Will Smith movies and much more to many to decide.

I love to listen to... all types of music. Pop, hip-hop, rock, rap, gospel, acoustic, soul, jazz.... I love it all. ;)

My all time favorite food is... BBQ and Mexican and Italian

My favorite website is... facebook, myspace, picnik

My favorite place to shop is... pretty much Hollister, and were ever there’s nice clothes.

My favorite TV show is... MTV and BET pretty much all of them but mostly “Taking the stage”

An unusual talent I have is... being so good looking ... haha not really

The person I'd like to meet the most is... I think that would have to be J.e.s.u.s

My favorite possession is... My friends and family

I never leave home without... Clothing haha ... and most the time my phone

A random fact about me is... That’s my skateboard ... and I love to play the drums and had been playing since the age of 3...

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... when you're like Chuck G you can do that. Have good a photo taken by a pretty lady ... and Tyler said I could haha ... NOT

Aww...thanks Charles!

Mpix/Millers Lab Shootout

2009-05-14T21:52:00.006-04:00

On Saturday the 9th, Mpix and Millers Lab sponsored a shootout for local photographers. Scott Plauche and I were mentor photographers for the event. Scott taught how to shoot couples on location and I taught shooting senior guys and girls on location.

This is the first of these types of events sponsored by the lab, but we had a great turnout! There were 30 local photographers and photography students in attendance. It turns out that Pittsburg is a fantastic place to shoot! Every corner we turned was a new, great location.

I'd like to thank our models, Daniel, Rachel, Megan and Marshal. They were awesome and helped us create some beautiful images!

Meet Dan...

Meet Rachel...

Rachel and Dan were very good sports. Although they are not a couple, they let me talk them into posing for some images together. Thanks guys!

and meet Marshal and Megan...

These are a few I took of the group...

Matt...

Scott photographing Megan and Marshal

Here are a few the others took of me teaching and also of the group....

I look forward to the next one!

Friday's Storm

2009-05-13T18:02:00.005-04:00

I survived my first Tornado Alley severe storm! Yay!

Before I moved to Missouri, I loved thunderstorms...especially sleeping through them. However, now I worry about having my bedroom ceiling disappear while I sleep through storms here.

So, on Friday, I was woken up by loud claps of thunder. Matt was getting his daughter, Hayley ready for school, so I woke up and joined them in the living room to check on the storm. It seemed to get better and we thought that Hayley would be safer at school than in our house with no basement, so he went on his way to drop her off.

While he was gone, the storm got worse, our satellite went out, and we didn't have a radio. I opened the blinds so I can keep an eye on the storm, but I couldn't see a thing! The rain and wind was so strong, all I could see was solid gray...until tree branches from the neighbor's yard broke off and started hitting our house. Since I'm a little freaked out about Missouri storms, I started getting my things ready in case it got worse and I needed to go to the photography studio, which is pretty close and much safer than our house. Before I could even finish, the tornado sirens started blaring.

Not wasting a single second...I made up my mind that I was getting out of there! I put my shoes on, grabbed my phone, my purse and my laptop. That's when it hit me... I didn't have enough arms to take everything that I needed to take with me. I put down my laptop and looked at it, my camera with my new rented lens, and my cat. I'll tell you...it was like making Sophie's choice! I pushed the photographer in me aside, and threw my coat over my 15 pound cat and ran out the door.

It was like a scene from a movie. I could barely see a couple of feet in front of me. Tree limbs, trash cans, and I think even a couple of cows flew past my car on my way down the street. Despite the winds, flooding, and my nerves, I made it safely to my studio. Although it wasn't much dryer IN my studio than it was outside, I felt a bit safer.

In the meantime, Matt had been in his SUV in line waiting to drop Hayley off at school. He realized that although he was in gear with his foot planted on the brake, that the wind was pushing him backwards toward a van! Obviously, it was time to get out of there. Before too long, they had joined me at the studio.

Luckily, the storm passed soon after they got there. While we were cleaning up, I noticed that everyone who drove by had their window rolled down, with their head hanging out of the window looking beside the studio. I went outside to check it out, and this is what I saw:

The building across the street had collapsed. Talking about scary!

After life started to get back to normal, Matt had to leave for work. School had be called off early, so I got to hang out with Hayley all day. I had rented a new tilt/shift lens that I hadn't found a chance to use yet, so like any photographer would do, we went out to take pictures! I gave Hayley my back-up camera, a Canon 20D and a 50mm 1.8 lens and we went out shooting!

Here's what we came up with:

Hayley's image

There were so much debris in the road, they got serious about the clean-up!

Our beaver friends came out to play...

Just down the street from the studio...

The city park...

The shot that Hayley got in the above picture... (Oh, and don't judge me, I was barely awake! haha)

Another one of Hayley's masterpieces...where the Subway sign used to be before the storm.

So...thats it! My first storm story. I don't think I'll get used to this weather, so stay tuned for more blogs like these!

Ashley, Pittsburg High Street Team Member

2009-05-13T03:48:00.002-04:00

It was really hard to chose which images to use for Ashley's senior portrait promo card! In the end, I think that we chose 2 great images which helped create a great widescreen wallet.

My name is... Ashley Lewandowski

My nickname is... LOU LOU! Its pronounced like- LEW-LEW-

I go to school at... Pittsburg High School

My favorite class is.... I'll have to say French class, I can get a nap in that class every once and a while

My biggest accomplishment has been... Going to state in all three relays for track and field.

This summer I will... probably be working since I'm being forced to.

My dream vacation is... PARIS, although I heard Hawaii is really beautiful.

My dream job is... Politician (that won't happen) so either a journalist or an organizer for a non profit organization.

All time favorite movie... Grease, just because I grew up on that movie.

I love to listen to... basically everything.

My all time favorite food is... I like a lot of food, so I'll just go with my mom's cooking.

My favorite website is... hahah.... facebook.

My favorite place to shop is... Charlotte Russe or forever 21

My favorite TV show is... Degrassi or Hey Arnold when I was younger.

An unusual talent I have is... I can bark like a dog really really good.

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Albert Eintstein would have been really sweet.

My favorite possession is... my iPod touch.

I never leave home without... underwear hahahhah

A random fact about me is...I'm the youngest in my class. I should be a sophomore.

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... she is really creative and artsy at this thing.

Zach, Liberal High Street Team Member

2009-05-11T22:21:00.002-04:00

Zach is one of the nicest guys out there. He's also really easy to photograph! He was very open to anything that I wanted to try. I'm really excited about his indoor and outdoor shoot coming up this summer...I have some great ideas!

My name is... Zach Lovell

My nickname is... Lovell ; Lovelly

I go to school at... Liberal High School

My favorite class is... Physical Education

My biggest accomplishment has been... teaching the wild "kids Church" group at my Church

This summer I will... Hang out with friends, go to the lake, an lift weights for football

My dream vacation is... Hawaii

My dream job is... Professional Baseball Player

All time favorite movie... Tommy Boy or Dumb an Dumber

I love to listen to... Pretty much anything, a lot of Christian music

My all time favorite food is... anything Italian

My favorite website is... lately .. youtube

My favorite place to shop is... Hollister or American Eagle

My favorite TV show is... Nitro Circus an Fantasy Factory

An unusual talent I have is... Drawing

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Jesus Christ

My favorite possession is... my truck

I never leave home without... Wallet and cell Phone

A random fact about me is... I write and throw left handed, but do everything else right handed

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... She does great work and she will know what looks good

Austin, Frontenac High Street Team Member

2009-05-11T17:48:00.002-04:00

Austin and I had a great shoot. We started the session with some high contrast, high key shots. He's the first guy I used this technique on, and I have to say, I'm a big fan. We ended the session with a different t-shirt and we used window lighting and existing walls in the studio.

Check out what we came up with...

My name is... Austin Lee Gossett

My nickname is... Austin

I go to school at... Frontenac High

My favorite class is... Graphic Design

My biggest accomplishment has been... Playing two concerts for my band

This summer I will... Go to Concerts, Make Money, Live the dream

My dream vacation is... Europe

My dream job is... Singer/Guitarist or Graphic Designer

All time favorite movie... Donnie Darko

I love to listen to... The Devil Wears Prada/ Dance Gavin Dance

My all time favorite food is... Pizza...pepperoni!

My favorite website is... myspace.com

My favorite place to shop is... pac sun

My favorite tv show is... Breaking Bad

An unusual talent I have is... Stamina..haha

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Will Ferrel

My favorite possession is... My Ipod touch

I never leave home without... My phone

A random fact about me is... I like to party

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... it seemed like a good place to get creative and artistic photos taken!

Samy, Nevada High Street Team Member

2009-05-11T04:09:00.003-04:00

Samy and I created some beautiful images! At the beginning of the session, we took some fashion-inspired images for her promo material. We ended the session with some gorgeous maternity portraits. You just gotta love that mother-to-be mother glow! :)

My name is... Samantha Savage.

My nickname is... Sam or Samy…usually I’m called one of those. Nobody really knows me as Samantha.

I go to school at... Nevada High.

My favorite class is... Desktop Publishing.

My biggest accomplishment has been... making UCA all-star my seventh grade year. I was the only seventh grader on the squad that did it.

This summer I will... prepare for my little girl and turn 18!

My dream vacation is... to go to Ireland.

My dream job is... NFL football coach. I love football.

All time favorite movie... Dazed and Confused. My sister and I love to watch this movie.

I love to listen to... 90’s rock. Bands like Counting Crows, Bush, Foo Fighters, etc.

My all time favorite food is... Chinese! I could eat Chinese everyday for the rest of my life.

My favorite website is... facebook.

My favorite place to shop is... depends on what I’m getting. I love to shop for gifts and things at Romancing the Stone. But for my clothes I would have to say American Eagle.

My favorite TV show is... One Tree Hill.

An unusual talent I have is... wiggling my eyes. It’s hard to explain but basically it looks like my eyes are vibrating. My mom is disagreeing with me right now though haha. She told me to say I’m a natural artist and I’m very creative.

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Tom Brady! He’s my favorite football player.

My favorite possession is... my cat Powder. I think I take care of him better than I do myself.

I never leave home without... my chapstick, my phone, and my ID.

A random fact about me is... in my family I’m known as the one who always has useless information. They all think I know too many things about stuff that’s not important. Mainly because I love watching the History Channel and things like Monster Quest or UFO Hunters.

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because...I love that she’s a young photographer and I like to work with people that I feel I can relate to or at least have something in common with. She is also very talented and has an outgoing and joyful attitude.

Thanks, Samy! You were awesome to work with!

Finally! A decent picture of my cat!

2009-05-08T17:51:00.003-04:00

I rented an awesome lens and was playing around with it yesterday. I can never get a good picture of my cat. For those of you who are cat owners, I'm sure you know exactly what I'm talking about! They never look at you...never sit still...never smile at the friggin camera when you ask them to...

Anyways...I finally got a good shot of the cat! I'm still shocked. I've had him for 2 1/2 years and the only in focus image I have of him was from when he was a kitten. I was sitting on my knees, he put his front paws on my knees, looked up at me, I snapped a picture and he attacked the camera. Yeah, he won't be a kitty model anytime soon.

So...without further delay... my cat's first (and maybe last) adult portrait!

Chelsey, Carl Junction High Street Team Member

2009-05-08T03:12:00.002-04:00

Chelsey was my guinea pig when I wanted to try out a high contrast, high key lighting style. I have to admit, it turned out awesome!

My name is... Chelsey Leigh Easter

My nickname is... Chels, Easter Bunny, or just Easter

I go to school at... Carl Junction High School

My favorite class is.... Advanced Foods

My biggest accomplishment has been... being regional officer for three years straight in FCCLA

This summer I will... babysit, go to dance camp, and swim as much as possible

My dream vacation is... Hawaii

My dream job is... Kindergarten teacher

All time favorite movie... Ever After

I love to listen to... all kinds of music but mainly country

My all time favorite food is... chicken alfredo

My favorite website is... myspace

My favorite place to shop is... American Eagle

My favorite TV show is... Law & Order

My favorite possession is... my cell phone and a teddy bear my boyfriend made in Chicago that is my favorite color and has my favorite name

I never leave home without... my cell phone

A random fact about me is... I have been in my school's talent show since first grade

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... I thought it would be fun to be on the street team and work with a photographer new to the area

Stacey, Frontenac High Street Team member

2009-05-07T02:32:00.003-04:00

Meet the beautiful Stacey. She is super photogenic and easy to shoot! We're adding some new products to our line, including an acrylic wall portrait. The following image was used as an acrylic sample in our studio (minus most of the text). We'll be photographing our new product samples (metal mural, metal print, and acrylic) very soon for y'all to see!

My name is...
Stacey Burke

My nickname is ...
Stace

I go to school at...
Frontenac Jr/Senior High

My favorite class is....
Art

My biggest accomplishment has been...
Getting over my stage fright, well partially

This summer I will...
Road trip?

My dream vacation is...
A week in London. Free, of course.

My dream job is...
Actress

All time favorite movie...
I love Across the Universe, or even Beetlejuice

I love to listen to...
Just about anything, preferably "hardcore" music? ha

My all time favorite food is...
Anything vegetarian friendly :)
My moms Eggplant Parmesan is awesome though

My favorite website is...
YouTube

My favorite place to shop is...
Forever 21

My favorite TV show is...
I don't watch that much TV

An unusual talent I have is...
I can lick my nose

The person I'd like to meet the most is...
Winona Ryder or Dita Von Teese

My favorite possession is...
My photo collage in my room

I never leave home without...
Blackberry

A random fact about me is...
I like to write, a lot.

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because...
The work she does is absolutely gorgeous

Eddie and Angel, Fort Scott Street Team Members

2009-05-07T01:57:00.002-04:00

I decided to blog Eddie and Angel together. They are really good friends and traveled & completed their session together. They also brought along a friend, Chavez.

This trio was a riot! They had tons of fun, as you can see...

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Now meet Eddie!

He has tons of faces...

My name is... Eddie Harryman

My nickname is... Eddie The Yetti

I go to school at... Fort Scott Sr High

My favorite class is.... anything involving food

My biggest accomplishment has been... making it this far without having any major regrets

This summer I will... Work out and hang out

My dream vacation is... I wanna snow board

My dream job is... anything that I can do that I can make people laugh while doing sounds good to me

All time favorite movie... kickin it Old School

I love to listen to... give me some AAR and I'm all good

My all time favorite food is... cheeseburgers

My favorite website is... facebook

My favorite place to shop is... where ever I can go to shop I guess it doesn't really matter to me

My favorite TV show is... That 70s Show

An unusual talent I have is... I can shoot pool one handed while texting...and not miss

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Warren Sapp, or Mike Alstott

My favorite possession is... a necklace my grandma gave me before she passed away

I never leave home without... phone

A random fact about me is... I'll sing along with any song even if i have to make up words cuz I don't know them

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because...it looked like a good opportunity to try something new

And now meet Angel!

(I love this one)

My name is... Angel Ann West

My nickname is... Ang

I go to school at... Fort Scott HighSchool

My favorite class is... Anatomy and Physiology

My biggest accomplishment has been... qualifying for nationals in forensics twice.

This summer I will... be attending girls state, nationals, and a prelaw camp at Washburn University.

My dream vacation is... Italy.

My dream job is... to be a famous prosecuting attourney.

All time favorite movie is... Armagedeon

I love to listen to... anything, music = all forms of emotion..there really is a song for every occasion!

My all time favorite food is... steak.

My favorite website is... facebook, twitter, or myspace.

My favorite place to shop is... AE outfitters, Hollister, or Abercrombie & Fitch.

My favorite TV show is... Law and Order SVU.

An unusual talent I have is... - hmm not many of my talents are unusual. do over question please??? lol.

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Jessica Alba, Katie Holmes or The Rock. :)

My favorite possession is... my dog Roscoe P. Coaltrain!

I never leave home without... cellular device.

A random fact about me is... I have 12 siblings.

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... her work seemed unique yet poised, and it caught my eye. :)!

Thanks guys! Y'all are awesome! :D

Ashley, Frontenac High Street Team member

2009-05-06T05:30:00.002-04:00

We have lots of new blogs coming up! The first is of the lovely Ashley. At first, we thought we'd have to reschedule because her face got sunburned, but we kept the session and ended up getting some really great images! Yay!

My name is... Ashley Lock

My nickname is... Assley or Ash

I go to school at... Frontenac High School

My favorite class is... Speech and Theatre

This summer I will... Babysitting

My dream vacation is... A week in Sydney, Australia

My dream job is... Teaching

All time favorite movie... Role Models

I love to listen to... Anything but classical and rock

My all time favorite food is... Salad

My favorite website is... Facebook

My favorite place to shop is... Maurices

My favorite TV show is... I don't watch TV

An unusual talent I have is... I have a super good memory!

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Marilyn Monroe

My favorite possession is... My laptop or cell phone.

I never leave home without... Cell phone

A random fact about me is... I'm going to Spain next spring break!

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... I love her pictures! I think she is great at what she does.

Southwest Missouri Photography Special

2009-05-03T00:05:00.006-04:00

To celebrate our studio's opening, all session fees are 50% off until May 31st! Please send us an email at Jessica@JessicaEdwardsPhotography.net to book your family, baby, senior, children, maternity, or engagement session!

Abbey, Liberal High Street Team Member

2009-05-01T14:57:00.002-04:00

For Abbey's session, we attempted to go outdoors for a couple of shots. Although the temperature and lighting was nice, the wind was relentless. We shot a few, but the wind made it look like we were shooting in a tornado! haha But, we went back in the studio and created some beautiful images.

My name is... Abbey Danielle Page

My nickname is... Arbs

I go to school at... Liberal High School

My favorite class is... English

My biggest accomplishment has been... doing well in school all while staying active in clubs and having time for my friends.

This summer I will... be working for Chicken Mary's and having a blast with my friends :D

My dream vacation is... Rome

My dream job is... a forensic investigator, just like those cool girls on CSI

All time favorite movie... is Hello Dolly or The Breakfast Club

I love to listen to... all kinds of music

My all time favorite food is... junk food of course

My favorite website is... facebook

My favorite place to shop is... Forever21, but they do not have one nearby so I don't get to shop there often

My favorite TV show is... Scrubs or Gossip Girl

An unusual talent I have is... I can make a clover shape with my toungue

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Justin Timberlake, my hero

My favorite possession is... a wood carving my grandpa carved for me

I never leave home without... my cell phone

A random fact about me is... I was born on Mickey Mouse's birthday

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... someone told me about her and I thought her pictures were rockin :P

Websites are Down

2009-04-30T22:23:00.001-04:00

Our websites are currently down due to technical issues with the company who hosts our sites. Hopefully they'll be back online soon! If you've emailed through the website recently, there's a chance we didn't get it because of this problem. You can email my personal account at jrayeedwards@hotmail.com until this problem is resolved.

Thanks,

Jessica

Natalie, Webb City Street Team Member

2009-04-30T02:35:00.002-04:00

Meet Natalie! These Street Team promo sessions were intended to be studio portraiture, with their outdoor images being taken in the summer. But, it was such a nice day, that we decided to venture outside and around the corner of the studio.

Here's what we came up with!

My name is... Natalie Ann Taylor

My nickname is... NAT

I go to school at... Webb City High School

My favorite class is... Marketing/Entrepreneurship

My biggest accomplishment has been... winning first at regionals my sophomore year of cheerleading

This summer I will... be super busy with weights, cheerleading, and my two jobs.....But I still plan on having as much fun as possible and hopefully going on a couple small vacations :)

My dream vacation is... Italy!

My dream job is... to own a health spa!

All time favorite movie... My Best Friends Girl

I love to listen to... all types of music {depends on the mood}

My all time favorite food is... ice cream

My favorite website is... facebook or myspace.

My favorite place to shop is... The Buckle, Forever 21, and TJMAXX

My favorite TV show is... HOUSE

An unusual talent I have is... I'm a redhead and I can tan.. ha! I actually don't know if that's a talent but I can't think of anything

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Rachel Ray

My favorite possession is... Probably my new laptop.

I never leave home without... My cellphone.

A random fact about me is... I love working out and baking!

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... she takes excellent pictures and makes you feel comfortable and have fun while you're taking the pictures. :)

Tyler, Girard High Street Team Member

2009-04-29T03:58:00.002-04:00

If I remember correctly, Tyler was the first Junior to inquire about our Street Team program weeks ago. I could tell from the first time we emailed that he was a good guy and would be great to shoot. I was right! He and his mom are the sweetest people ever!

My name is... Tyler John Egbert

My nickname is... Ty, T-Y, Eggy, Egbert

I go to school at... Girard

My favorite class is.... Ag

My biggest accomplishment has been... FFA Chapter President

This summer I will... be in Washington D.C., Manhattan, KS, or working on a farm in the middle of nowhere

My dream vacation is... Italy

My dream job is... Physical Therapist

All time favorite movie... Pirates of the Caribbean Series

I love to listen to... Everything except most Country music.

My all time favorite food is... Anything Italian

My favorite website is... Facebook, I literally don't do anything else on the internet

My favorite place to shop is... Aeropostale, Romancing the Stone, Brookstone, any of Silver Dollar City's shops

My favorite TV show is... Family Guy

An unusual talent I have is... playing Pong with my eyes.

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Zig Ziglar.

My favorite possession is... my truck, even though it's not really mine, haha

I never leave home without... phone, wallet, and sunglasses.

A random fact about me is... I lose my retainers at least once on every vacation I take.

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because...Jessica is an awesome photographer, a cool person with a very cool Kentuckian accent, and prices are very good with the parents. Also, she is a nice twist on typical Four-States photographers. Best of all, Jessica has the sweetest ride.

haha...Thanks, Tyler. I'm pretty fond of it too! :)

Rachel, Webb City High Street Team Member

2009-04-28T16:19:00.002-04:00

Rachel was my first guinea pig for our high contrast, high key senior pictures. They turned out beautifully! Check them out and meet Rachel!

My name is... Rachel Harter

My nickname is... RaRe (by the little girl I babysit)

I go to school at... Webb City

My favorite class is... probably Child Development

My biggest accomplishment has been... being true to myself and keeping my values

This summer I will... spend time with family and friends, go on a mission trip and hopefully spend a few days on the beach! ;D

My dream vacation is... a week of laying on the beach in 80 degree weather!

My dream job is... nursing!

All time favorite movie... probably the first Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, this is a hard one!

I love to listen to... laughter

My all time favorite food is... ice cream

My favorite website is... probably facebook or amazon

My favorite place to shop is... currently Express

My favorite TV show is... currently ER, but it changes

An unusual talent I have is... I am fantastic at hula-hooping

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Paul from the Bible

My favorite possession is... Bible

I never leave home without... keys, wallet, phone, lip balm, pencil, planner...

A random fact about me is... my car is a magnet for accidents!

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... I really like her style and she is great to work with!

Harlan County, book your session!

2009-04-28T14:32:00.001-04:00

We're coming home for Memorial Weekend. We'll be shooting a select few outdoor sessions while we're there. Send us an email at Jessica@JessicaEdwardsPhotography.net to make your appointment before we're booked up!

We'll see you guys soon!

Jessica

Come Out and Shoot with Scott Plauche and Myself!

2009-04-28T13:38:00.002-04:00

Millers and Mpix are sponsoring a shootout for advanced amateurs and professional photographers in Pittsburg, Kansas. Scott Plauche and I will be the mentor photographers who will help set up shots, talk about posing, lighting, and answer questions. Models will also be on hand.

After the shootout, there will be a Q & A session, a tour of the Millers & Mpix lab, and lunch! The best part, is that everything is free!

You can click here for more information and to register.

I hope to see you all there!

Brandi, Webb City Street Team Member

2009-04-27T12:53:00.002-04:00

Brandi is one determined gal! With her 2 jobs, school, and other activities, she found time to join us at our Starbucks Meet & Greet in Joplin and she made time to come to Lamar for her session!

Here's what we came up with...

My name is... Brandi Trammel

My nickname is... Scout or Chickmunk

I go to school at... Webb City High School

My favorite class is... Web Design

My biggest accomplishment has been... either buying my own car with my money or juggling two jobs, two sports, still helping around the house and school.

This summer I will... work a ton, help with kindercamp, and babysit :)

My dream vacation is... somewhere in South America or maybe Italy

My dream job is... a teacher

All time favorite movie... Ever After

I love to listen to... everything. Except for the scremo stuff...

My all time favorite food is... cherries!

My favorite website is... facebook

My favorite place to shop is... American Eagle

My favorite TV show is... American Idol or Dancing with the Stars

An unusual talent I have is... I can write with both hands!

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Jesus!

I never leave home without... my keys! or my phone!

A random fact about me is... I currently have two jobs!

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because...she has more creativity than all the others but doesn't charge an arm and a leg. :) and I love her work.

Hayley's Joke of the Week

2009-04-24T23:24:00.002-04:00

Welcome to the 3rd edition of Hayley's Joke of the Week! I'm a day late in posting this, so sorry Hay and all of her readers.

What's the difference between beer nuts and deer nuts?

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Beer nuts are $2.25 and deer nuts are just over a buck!

What makes this joke even cuter is that the punch line is actually "Deer nuts are just UNDER a buck". ;)

Hayley, you crack us up, Kid!

Tyler, Parsons High Street Team Member

2009-04-24T19:26:00.002-04:00

Meet Tyler! Having a great smile and serious look, he was super easy to shoot!

My name is... Tyler Johnson

My nickname is... Ty or T.J.

I go to school at... Parsons Senior High

My favorite class is... Anatomy and Physiology

My biggest accomplishment has been... making all A's since forever.

This summer I will... work (I have a car payment now, it sucks!) and travel as much as possible.

My dream vacation is... A trip to Greece or Italy (I love Italian food)

My dream job is... to be an A-list film actor. That would be amazing.

All time favorite movie... The Parent Trap, Little Rascals, House Bunny, Baby Mama, I Love You Man, and 17 Again.

I love to listen to... all types of music. Pop, hip hop, rock, rap, country, acoustic, soul, jazz....I love it all.

My all time favorite food is... I love chicken enchiladas and chicken alfredo. Basically just chicken in general.

My favorite website is... I have 3: facebook, twitter, and perezhilton

My favorite place to shop is... Heritage 1981, Express, AE outfitters, Hollister and Pacsun.

My favorite TV show is... well I just watch way too much TV. I'd have to choose Heroes, 90210, SNL, The Hills, Sonny With a Chance, Wizards of Waverly Place, Hannah Montana (dont laugh), and Ugly Betty.

An unusual talent I have is... I think I'm psychic! haha I just randomly predict the future every now and then. I guess you could call me a Some Time Psychic.

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Lucille Ball. She was the greatest TV actresses and physical comedians of all time. I'd want to know all of her secrets, there's so much about acting that I could learn from her.

My favorite possession is... my family : ) Does that count?

I never leave home without... money! I'm always prepared to spend some cash, which is probably why I'm always broke.

A random fact about me is... I never do these surveys right. I think the idea is to give one answer to each, but I can't do that. I just ignore the rules and do things my way : )

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because...I'm cool like that : )

Our Mascot

2009-04-24T13:53:00.002-04:00

We found a surprise in our studio yesterday. We came in to find a bird flying around in our space! Matt grabbed the broom and pretended to be Matt, The Bird Hunter. I told him that he couldn't make a move until I grabbed the camera. I was really hoping to catch Matt getting flogged on film (well...on memory card)! I propped the door open and as soon as Matt came close to it with the broom, it flew straight out.

Hasta la vista little birdie!

Newest Street Team Member, Courtney!

2009-04-23T01:58:00.002-04:00

Courtney was great to shoot! I really wanted to steal her zebra sweater! :)

My name is... Courtney.

My nickname is ... Court.

I go to school at... Webb City High School.

My favorite class is... News.

This summer I will... be out by the pool!

My dream vacation is... Italy.

My dream job is... graphic designer.

All time favorite movie... Austin Powers.. all 3!!

I love to listen to... all kinds of music.

My all time favorite food is... vodka rigatoni!

My favorite website is... pogo.com

My favorite tv show is... Family Guy.

An unusual talent I have is... I can do the belly dance. lol

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Heidi Klum

My favorite possession is... cell phone.

I never leave home without... cell.

A random fact about me is... I am the baby of 6 kids..

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... I love the work I've seen that she has done and the prices aren't outrageous like most places!

Karly, Webb City Street Team Member

2009-04-21T23:17:00.002-04:00

Karly and I have very similar taste. When she came in for her session, she told me that she really likes the damask pattern. It took all of .02 seconds to figure out what kind of portraits I wanted to create with her!

So...meet Karly and check out her new widescreen wallets!

My name is... Karly Sue Baldwin

I go to school at... Webb City High School

My favorite class is... yearbook

My biggest accomplishment has been... National Honors Society

This summer I will... volunteer at Kinder-Camp and work

My dream vacation is... Australia

My dream job is... photography

All time favorite movie...

I love to listen to... soft rock

My all time favorite food is... seafood

My favorite movie is... The Dark Knight

My favorite website is... Myspace

My favorite place to shop is... Romancing the Stone

My favorite tv show is... That 70s Show

An unusual talent I have is... I love doodling with pastels!

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Jesus Christ

My favorite possession is... my computer

I never leave home without... my phone

A random fact about me is... I have 2 ferrets; Rocko and Daisy

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... I love her style, the type of camera she uses and of course great prices.

Our Photography Studio in Lamar is Open for Business!

2009-04-21T00:23:00.003-04:00

After more than a month of moving and unpacking, we're open for business! We've already done several sessions of current Juniors for our upcoming Class of 2010 Street Team program.

To celebrate our opening, our session fees will be 50% off until May 31!

To book a session, send us an email at Jessica@JessicaEdwardsPhotography.net.

After April 30th (the date that our phone line gets installed), you can call our studio at (417)681.0808.

We look forward to working with you!

Jessica

Amy, Liberal High Street Team member

2009-04-19T21:17:00.002-04:00

Meet Amy, our newest Street Team member!

My name is... Amy Elaine Rose

My nickname is... Amos

I go to school at... Liberal High School

My favorite class is... Yearbook/Bio

My biggest accomplishment has been... getting A's in my dual credit classes

This summer I will... hopefully be traveling a lot

My dream vacation is... a long stay on a beautiful secluded beach

My dream job is... anything fun with people

All time favorite movie... Cry Baby/The Goonies

I love to listen to... music from the 50's/60's

My all time favorite food is... Chinese food

My favorite website is... Facebook

My favorite place to shop is... online

My favorite TV show is... Seinfeld

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Betsey Johnson or Steve Martin

My favorite possession is... sad-probably my phone

I never leave home without... my phone or my archos

A random fact about me is... I tend to snort when I laugh

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because...I love that I haven't already seen her ideas anywhere else.

It was great meeting you and your mother, Amy!

Andrea, Joplin High Street Team Member

2009-04-18T23:16:00.002-04:00

Hi all!

Meet Andrea (pronounced Aun-dray-uh) :) our newest Street Team member!

My name is... Andrea Taylor

My nickname is... Drea

I go to school at... Joplin High School

My favorite class is... Comm Arts CP

My biggest accomplishment has been... making varsity cheer and maintaining all a's and b's

This summer I will... spend lots of time with my family and friends

My dream vacation is... going to africa

My dream job is... being a model

All time favorite movie... Toy Story

I love to listen to... Christmas music

My all time favorite food is... mac and cheese

My favorite website is... Facebook

My favorite place to shop is... Forever 21

My favorite tv show is... The Hills and Sponge Bob

An unusual talent I have is... making my lips go opposite ways!

The person I'd like to meet the most is... Oprah

My favorite possession is... my Bible

I never leave home without... my cell phone

A random fact about me is... I am obsessed with lip loss

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because... her work is absolutely amazing!

Awww, thanks Andrea! :)

Kira, Our First Street Team Member!

2009-04-17T17:55:00.002-04:00

Hey everyone!

Meet Kira! She's our first of many Street Team members from surrounding high schools.

My name is... Kira Nicole Raymond

My nickname is... KiKi

I go to school at... Webb City High School

My favorite class is... Biology

My biggest accomplishment has been... succeeding in school

This summer I will... Life Guard

My dream vacation is... to go to Ireland

My dream job is... to be a Psychologist

All time favorite movie is... Dirty Dancing

I love to listen to... country and 80's music

My all time favorite food is... Cashew Chicken

My favorite website is... Facebook

My favorite place to shop is... American Eagle

My favorite TV show is... That 70's show

An unusual talent I have is... speaking 3 languages

The person I'd like to meet the most is... GOD

My favorite possession is... CHI

I never leave home without... my cell phone and sunglasses

A random fact about me is... I wrestled for 2 years in 6th and 7th grade to prove to my older brother that I was stronger than him.

I chose to have my senior portraits taken at Jessica Edwards Photography because (my shameless plug)... she is amazing at what she does. She puts a lot of thought and creativity into what she does.

Thanks, Kira! You rock! :)

Hayley's Joke of the Week

2009-04-16T19:41:00.002-04:00

Welcome to installment 2 of Hayley's Joke of the week!

What do you call a teacher who doesn't fart in class?

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

A private tutor! :)

Joke from Week 1:
What do you call cheese that's not yours?

Nacho cheese!

I hope you guys enjoy! Until next week...

Starbucks Senior Street Team Meet & Greet

2009-04-15T03:47:00.003-04:00

On Saturday, we met some of our 2010 Senior Street Team members. They are current high school juniors who are going to be photographed this month and their images are going to be used in our marketing campaign. I was excited about this process before, but after meeting these guys and girls, I can't wait to get started and see some of the awesome images that we're going to produce!

We had a fantastic turn out. In Pittsburg, there were so many of us, that we had to move outside. I joked about the sun not liking me, so I put on my coat and put as much of my body as possible in the shade. It ended up not mattering, because my chest got sunburned anyway. Go figure!

The Joplin meeting was more intimate and we got to know our kids and their parents really well.

So, once everyone got there, we introduced ourselves and shared a random fact. Mine was that I have 3 kidneys. Hmm...wonder how much I could get for one on the black market? :) We found out a lot about our Street Team members. In addition to having an extra organ, we can lick our elbow, bench 280 pounds, and fold our tongues into the shape of a clover! Obviously, we are an interesting group!

We all enjoyed Starbucks coffee and Frappachinos. The strawberries & cream Frappachinos are amazing, by the way! While geting our caffeine and sugar fixes, we talked more about the Street Team program and we answered any questions the members or their parents had. And...they had lots of great questions!

Oh, did I mention that we gave away prizes?! :) Yeah, it was a good day all around!

Now, here are a few snapshots, some courtesy of Matt.

The Pittsburg crew (minus Natalie)and myself

Enjoying our drinks...(sorry you were covered up, Natalie. I promise we love you!)

In Joplin, I was in the mood for some caffeine!

The banana chocolate chip coffee cake is the best!

Introducing Hayley's Joke of the Week

2009-04-09T02:38:00.002-04:00

Meet Matt's daughter, Hayley!

She's eight years old and is in the second grade. Hayley loves playing her Nintendo DS, watching movies, Texas football, and telling jokes.

Her latest joke cracked us up. I thought to myself that I need to write her jokes down because they are really funny and cute. That's when the blog light bulb went off in my head. After getting Hayley's permission, we decided to share her 8 year old insights with our readers each week.

George Carlin, here she comes!

Week 1:

What do you call cheese that is not yours?

Nacho Cheese!

:) We hope you enjoyed Hayley's debut!

Until next week....

New studio progress

2009-04-05T01:30:00.003-04:00

We're making some real progress getting our new studio up and running. Last weekend, Matt, his parents Keith & Kathy, and I worked on the new studio for a few hours.

We worked...

We posed...

We supervised...

and we fought...

BUT we made progress!

More pictures to come soon!

"Tots 2 Teens" photography seminar

2009-04-05T01:08:00.004-04:00

Today, Matt and I made a road trip to Kansas City to attend Sandy Puc's "Tots 2 Teens" seminar. Last year, I attended "Bellies & Babies" which focused on maternity and newborn sessions. I learned so much from it, including forming a baby plan for mothers-to-be.

"Tots 2 Teens" is the next step in her seminar series. She shared secrets of working with children and parents, marketing, as well as a live photo shoot of 3 children (individually and group) with multiple outfits and set changes.

If anyone is in the photography business or aspiring to be, I highly recommend attending one of her seminars. She still has many dates left around the United States.

Meez!

2009-04-01T19:57:00.002-04:00

Some websites just suck you in. I came across this site where you can create animated characters that look like you, and I ended up making one. I thought it was cute, so I wanted to share. If anyone wants to make one for yourself, go to www.meez.com. When you register, put JEPhotography as the person who referred you, then share it with us!

Class of 2010 Street Team Application

2009-03-21T00:29:00.004-04:00

Class of 2010:

Would you like to earn CASH for having your picture taken? Do you love being photographed? Would you like to see your images featured in our advertising campaign on Facebook, MySpace, our blog and website? Our Senior Street Team program may be for you!

How does it work?
If chosen, you'll get a free mini-session during your Junior year. We'll then give you promotional material featuring your images to give to your friends. During the summer before your Senior year, we'll do a follow-up indoor and outdoor shoot, and you'll receive a 50% discount on the session fee!

What do you get?
Depending on how many people you get to book sessions with us, we'll give you cash- and major discounts on your package price.

Where do you sign up?
Just send us an email and we'll send you our Street Team application. Fill it out, send it back and we'll contact you with more information.

What do I get for each referral? Check out the information below to find out what you can earn by telling your friends about us!

BRONZE LEVEL:
1-3 referrals
$10 per referral
10% off order

SILVER LEVEL:
4-6 referrals
$20 per referral
20% off order

GOLD LEVEL:
7-9 referrals
$30 per referral
30% off order

PLATINUM LEVEL
10-12 referrals
$40 per referral
40% off order

DIAMOND LEVEL
13 referrals
$50 per referral
50% off order

Submit your application here.

New Senior Website!

2009-03-19T20:19:00.004-04:00

We finally launched the new senior website and I really love it! It allows me to break the images down into categories and it has lots of room for information on pricing, session types, our awards, and our 2010 Street Team program.

Check it out and let us know what you think!

http://www.JessicaEdwardsPhotography.net

My new niece

2009-03-16T16:26:00.002-04:00

Meet Brianna Raye Edwards!

She was born on February 26, 2009 in Whitesburg, Kentucky. I only got to see her a couple of times before I moved, so I'm really sad that I didn't get to take more portraits. You guys will be seeing more of her after I go back home for a visit!

This is the first picture that I got to take of her before the nurses took her away for her first bath.

Dad and big sister, Hannah, wait for the curtains to be opened so they can see baby Brianna

The curtains finally opened and Brianna was revealed

She warmed up and finally got to come into the room for a visit

Mom waits patiently for her turn to hold Brianna

These 2 images are compliments of Hannah, 7 years old.

These were taken the day she came home from the hospital, 2 days old...also the day that I moved.

We Won!

2009-03-12T03:45:00.003-04:00

In January, I attended the Mid East States Professional Photography Convention in Covington, Kentucky. While there, I met lots of new and old friends, attended several seminars by the top photographers in the country, and entered a print competition. Especially considering it was my first PPA print competition, I was really happy with the results.

The print, "Face/Off" merited (score of 80+), got a Judge's Choice award (only one per judge given, 6 total), a KPPA Court of Honor, as well as the People's Choice Award. The People's Choice Award is given to the print with the most votes from professional photographers from Kentucky, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. That was an unbelievable honor!

Excuse the crappy camera phone image, but this is the only one with ribbons

Images taken of me getting the People's Choice Award at the MES awards banquet. Images taken by Kristen Gracies Originals

I'd like to thank Jessica Vogel (2009 KPPA President) and Dave Huntsman (2009 KPPA Photographer of the Year) for helping me select which images to enter while at lunch in Phoenix, Arizona at the ImagingUSA convention.

I had an awesome time with my friends, Donna and Kelly Schomaker from Kelly Michelle Photography and Kristen from Gracie's Originals.

My print "Sunshine on a Rainy Day"...

also merited and received the Court of Honor award as pictured below.

"Casual Elegance"

and "Hard Day's Work"

won an Award of Achievement.

The man who took home nearly all the awards that night, including Photographer of the year, Michael Timmons.

And now for the fun stuff...

Every year, after the awards banquet, there's an after party. My photographer friends are going to have to forgive me, but these are too good not to post!

Sabrina of Allied Photographic, Kristen of Gracie's Originals, and Kathy of Wurtzler Photography pose with "Oscar".

2008 KPPA President Brad Lamb and Dave Huntsman enjoy a photo taken by Linda Durham.

The official photographer of the convention, Linda Durham, behaving like a photographer...hiding behind the camera.

James Churchill and PPA President Ron Nichols pose with Big Boy.

Big Boy makes another appearance

And finally, my attempt at dancing...the Electric Slide

I hope everyone enjoyed the sneak peak into the MES Convention. There are a lot of people who owe me a HUGE "thank you" for NOT posting your images at the party! :-P

Sherry Edwards (March 10, 1955 - May 14, 1987)

2009-03-12T02:40:00.004-04:00

I'm a couple of days late on posting this, but I just got the Internet hooked up today. March 10th would have been my mom's 54th birthday. Her life was cut short almost 22 years ago, but I'm sure that she would have been just as beautiful as she was back then.

Happy Birthday, Mom.

The Move Is Complete!

2009-03-09T14:55:00.001-04:00

I'll preface this by saying that I'm attempting to blog from my iPhone for the first time, so please excuse any glitches.

I've now been living in Missouri for a week and the house is finally starting to look like a house and not a storage space. After 4 straight hours of cleaning (thanks Kathy, Kelly, Becca and Matt) it has really come together nicely!

This week, my goal is to tackle the studio. This includes lots of shopping! (darn) ;-)

We need a new couch, lots of curtains, wire to hang my competition prints, and fabric to freshen up some old chairs.

Hopefully, we'll be open for business in early April. Wish us luck!

Posted with LifeCast

Heather ~ Harlan County High Senior

2009-03-08T20:22:00.002-04:00

Heather is the last senior that we photographed before we moved to Missouri. Our studio session produced a ton of cute images!

Here are a few favorites.

Kristin ~ Harlan County High Senior

2009-03-08T20:18:00.003-04:00

Meet Kristin! She's a class of 2009 senior who I photographed the week before I moved from Kentucky. We had a blast capturing images in the studio as well as in the alley behind it.

Here are a few favorites.

Keyeria ~ 2009 Senior

2009-02-19T16:53:00.002-05:00

The last couple of weeks we've been finishing up some 2009 senior sessions. Keyeria is an upcoming graduate from Harlan County High School and she brought along the cutest prop for one of her portraits...her son!

Here are some of my favorites

Erika ~ 2009 Senior

2009-02-19T00:23:00.002-05:00

With the rush from the Fall and Christmas season and then being out of town at photography conventions almost all of January, it had been a while since I'd had the opportunity to photograph a senior. That changed last week when I took Erika's senior portraits.

We got really lucky, when the day of her appointment it was in the 60s! We started our session at the Kingdom Come State Park and there, we created some of my favorites from her session.

I also used her as a guinnea pig to try out my new background.

Miss Lilly

2009-02-11T02:33:00.002-05:00

Miss Lilly is six months old and trying to master sitting on her own. Her session lasted almost an hour and she was all smiles the whole time! Her mom ordered a diaper bag, a purse, and a bracelet with Lilly's portraits and I can't wait to see them.

Here are some session favorites

The front says "Mommy's Angel"

This is the cutest smile ever!

Lilly was my first model for our new Baby Legs, leg warmers. We chose blue and white because her family is die-hard University of Kentucky fans.

Thanks for looking!

Maternity Portraits

2009-02-06T00:10:00.002-05:00

My sister-in-law is due in a few weeks and I couldn't wait to shoot some maternity portraits with her daughter, Hannah. These are the first portraits taken with my new maternity wrap, and I really love it! At the end of the session Hannah wanted me to take some portraits of just her. We used a black tutu and a new blue hat that I bought recently, and I love the results!

Here are some favorites...

ImagingUSA ~ Phoenix, Arizona

2009-01-31T15:25:00.002-05:00

My farthest trip West happened this month. I attended ImagingUSA, a professional photography convention in Phoenix, Arizona. After wearing short sleeves in 70 degree weather for almost a week, it was hard coming back home!

Here are a few snapshots from the convention taken with my iPhone.

The Phoenix Convention Center

A view of the food court from the 3rd floor of the Convention Center

Looking out the window from the 3rd floor

With hundreds of professional photographers from all over the US in town, this was a common sight in Phoenix

The first time I ever saw a large cactus (yes, I'm a dork)

Fellow Kentucky professional photographers, Jessica Vogel and Dave Huntsman spoke on behalf of the world's largest professional photography lab, Millers Imaging. Harry Spillman of Spillman Photography sat in on the seminar and photographed Jessica and Dave.

Trade show images

Award-winning prints from all over the country

Evarts Elementary Cheerleaders

2009-01-10T00:38:00.003-05:00

Just before Christmas, I got the opportunity to photograph Evarts Elementary's 5th & 6th and 7th & 8th grade cheerleaders. We had such a good time! They loved being models for the day and I loved having such great girls to shoot.

Baby Siara

2009-01-09T03:27:00.002-05:00

I finally got a chance to try out my new baby cocoon. I really love the way it hugs the her body and frames her face. She loved it too! At one week old, these are baby Siara's first professional portraits!

Time For Another Change

2009-01-06T23:30:00.002-05:00

Now that the holidays are over, I thought it was time to update the look of the blog again. I've not been doing a great job at keeping the blog updated for the last few weeks, and I apologize for that. I've been traveling a lot since Christmas and will continue to do so throughout January. It is my intention to do a better job of blogging while I'm gone. Now if I can just figure out how to blog from my iPhone that I bought myself for Christmas, my problem would be solved! :)

I hope everyone's holidays were enjoyable!

Jessica

Oops!

2009-01-02T14:45:00.002-05:00

I've been out of town since Christmas and before I flew out, I forgot to change my answering machine greeting to let our clients know that we were going to be closed until January 5th.

If you've called and left a message and no one has returned your call yet, I apologize. Our phone messages will be returned on Monday. If you need to get in contact with me, please feel free to email JessicaEdwardsPhotography@gmail.com or JRayeEdwards@hotmail.com as those will be checked regularly.

Thanks!

Jessica

The Cornett Boys

2008-12-21T18:02:00.002-05:00

These little guys are so photogenic! They were a little slow to warm up (literally and figuratively). It was incredibly cold outside that day! But after a short time, they did and their portraits turned out beautifully.

Here are a few favorites

Their mom was shocked that they actually did this because she said that usually, they refuse to touch each other!

100th Blog Post!

2008-12-21T18:00:00.002-05:00

When I first started this blog, I made a promise to myself that I was going to update it regularly. With my 100th blog post, I suppose I can say that I have kept my promise!

Here's to 100 more! :)

Jessica

The Estep Little Ones

2008-12-17T01:29:00.003-05:00

I went to school with these cuties's mom and dad. It's so funny to me to see former schoolmates bring their childeren in for portraits and they look and act just like their parents did. Sometimes that's not a good thing! :P In this case, it definitely is! Johnathan and Jennifer are both great people and I'm glad I had the opportunity to photograph their kids. They are so cute and funny.

Love this one...

The Day Family Christmas Portraits

2008-12-17T01:21:00.001-05:00

This is the second year in a row that I've had the pleasure of shooting these adorable little girls. The twins are 2 this year and are incredibly well behaved! I get to shoot the best kids! :D

The Brewer Kiddos

2008-12-17T01:14:00.002-05:00

These little cuties we so much fun! I knew as soon as I saw their outfits that I wanted to shoot them on my red wall with natural lighting. Toward the end of the session we did some shots of the baby in just her diaper and socks. By far, those were my favorites! Have a look...

Miss Allie is 6!

2008-12-17T01:03:00.002-05:00

Heather, the owner of Heather's Nail Studio, brought in her daughter, Allie, for portraits to celebrate being six years old. She's the tiniest little thing ever...and so cute! I could have taken pictures of her all day, but it was already hard enough for Heather to decided on these.

The Cress Kids

2008-12-12T12:00:00.000-05:00

These cousins came in for Chrismtas portraits recently. The girls are sisters and the little boy is their cousin. All were great to work with! I had previously photographed Connor in his Halloween costume and this was the first time I had the pleasure of photographing Miley and Shawnee. All three kids are so photogenic that it made my job so easy!

Their headshots were my favorites.

Someone's going to have a very merry Christmas!

The Long Family

2008-12-11T18:21:00.002-05:00

I recently had the pleasure of photographing the Long family. Like many families with older children, it had been years since they had a portrait taken. They decided to celebrate their daughter, Valerie's graduation from the University of Kentucky with a studio session.

Here are some favorites...

and my very favorite from the session...

Baby Addy is 1!

2008-12-11T16:07:00.002-05:00

Addyson Grace is our first graduate of our Bundles & Babies program. We completed her first birthday / family Christmas session recently. In addition to a portrait package, they received a 16x20 framed print, a 10x10 hard cover book of her portraits from birth to her first birthday, as well as 50 custom designed cards.

To read more about our Bundles & Babies program, click here

Let's see how Miss Addy has grown...
newborn

four months

six months

nine months

and Addy's first birthday portraits

The front of their Christmas card

And the back

The Empty Stocking Fund

2008-12-10T18:28:00.005-05:00

The Empty Stocking Fund is a charitable organization that delivers toys and food to the less fortunate during the holiday season. Jim "Muggins" Bennett started the fund in December of 1980 after getting laid off from the coal mines. Without a job, he had more time on his hands, he decided to use it to help those less fortunate.

The fund plans on distributing 3,000 gifts and 600 100 pound food baskets just before Christmas. The cost of this is estimated at $35,000 to $45,000 per year. To offest these costs they take donations and hold fundraisers including the annual Empty Stocking Fund Auction which airs on the Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College television station.

This year it was held over a 3 day period. I volunteered (and bought a lot of homemade candy) each of those days. The first night I spent delivering items that people bid on and won. The second night I answered the phones, delivered bids to the auctioneers, and was the butt of a lot of jokes (thanks Paul). :P The last night I spent photographing the auction and spending lots of money bidding on candy and a knit hat (which you may see on some of my upcoming senior clients!). Jessica Edwards Photography donated 2 items. One was a studio session and a portrait purse valued at $205. The other was a studio session and a portrait heirloom necklace or bracelet, also valued at $205. To those who bid on these items (and all items) thank you!!!

The fund is accepting applications to receive toys and food baskets this week at the Access Cable office (in the Springfield section of Cumberland) 9:00am to noon and from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm.

As you can see, Muggins was a busy man...

Making sure the auction items got where they were supposed to go...

Answering the phones...

Making sure everyone had a drink (whether you wanted one or not!) :)

Giving an interivew to Brandon Goins of the Harlan Daily Enterprise

And doing what he does best...making everyone laugh

His wife is also very dedicated in making the fund a success. She helped keep track of money and the auction items. Norma tested out all of the homemade candy (and must have been saving some for later). :P

The phones rarely stopped ringing

There were many donations of handcrafted items like this cinnamon scented broom

Phyllis Branham is famous around here for her baked goods. It's rare for one of her cakes to go for less than $60. She helped raise hundred of dollars with her donations...like this carrot cake.

This hand knit hat was one of the items that I bid on and won

So I thought I'd test out how it looks in portraits on myself

This picture was the last one that I took because his ugly mug broke my camera. :(

(Just teasing, Paul)

Miss Harley ~ Round 2

2008-12-07T12:00:00.002-05:00

This is the second time this month that I've had the pleasure of photographing Miss Harley. The first time was for her two year old portraits and the most recent session was for family and Christmas portraits.

They chose to get a 20x24 gallery-wrapped canvas of this print and it was beautiful!

Harley loves reading books

But she loved playing with the flowers even more. We almost couldn't get her to look at the camera after the flowers grabbed her attention.

We finally got her to sit in the new chair that I bought for the studio. I have a matching red one as well.

The Johnson Kids

2008-12-07T00:06:00.002-05:00

This isn't the first time I've shot these kids, but it is the first time I've shot them in the studio and together as siblings. These kids are very involved in sports and extra-curricular activities and I've had the pleasure of photographing their sporting events and school homecomings.

They opted to go casual for their portraits, wearing Cumberland Redskin outfits.

The Littles

2008-12-07T00:00:00.002-05:00

We participated in three school fundraisers in 2008. They brought us many great clients, including the Littles. We took advantage of an unusually warm day and had a photo session at our local state park.

I hope you guys are having a great time in Cancun! :)

Coal Mining EMT

2008-12-03T00:23:00.002-05:00

My cousin, Nathan, stopped by the studio the other night on his way home from work. I almost didn't recognize him because he was so dirty and bundled up. After talking for a couple of minutes, I noticed his hand wrapped up in a dirty rag and black tape. He had cut his hand at work and joking referred to his bandage as "coal mining EMT".

At first he was camera shy

So I took pictures of his bandage

and his wound

Finally, he warmed up to the camera

Halfway to Hazard

2008-11-30T04:00:00.004-05:00

Okay, so I'm really late in posting this blog, but I think these guys deserve all the attention they can get.

I saw Halfway to Hazard in September at the Black Gold Festival in Hazard and I was really impressed. These guys sure know how to put on a good show! They've toured with Tim McGraw (who also co-produced their album) and Jason Aldean. They were also nominated for an ACM Top Duo award. What I like just as much as their music and performance is that they are proud to be from Eastern Kentucky.

Be sure to check out their website www.HalfwayToHazard.com and pick up their self titled CD.

Here are some shots that I took during their show at the Black Gold Festival...

This girl is H2H's biggest (and smallest) fan. She stood on the stage, sang, and danced for the whole show. She even caught the attention of the camera man who was filming their performance for an upcoming music video.

One of their most loved songs is called "Daisy". I captured this expression right after she sang, word for word, the line "...because my sweet Daisy loved the HELL out of meeeeeeee!" You should have heard the roar of laughter from the crowd. It was very cute!

I wasn't the only one taking pictures!

Jeremy Popoff from the band LIT joined them for a couple of songs

The guy on the left was the happiest person I've ever seen! lol

Even the kiddos love Halfway to Hazard

I'll end my blog post with my favorite image from that night...

The Carmical Kids

2008-11-30T02:57:00.002-05:00

The Carmical kids were so easy to photograph! They were naturals in front of the camera...whether it was for sibling portraits, individuals, serious shots, or candids.

Take a look at these cuties...

My Big Fat Redneck Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T22:06:00.002-05:00

Today, I had the most redneck Thanksgiving ever. :)

I thought I'd share some snapshots from the day.

We started dinner off right...with the finest Tennessee wine! We looked for Mason jars to drink it from, but could only find these small plastic cups. We each had at least one "wine shot".

The ferrets were total attention hogs

The pets ate...

The kids ate...

and became infatuated with a troll's butt...

Aunt Sonita had too many wine shots and forgot that although we are in KY, it's still wrong to make out with your nephew (poor J.P.)

Although cousin J.P. has been neutered, he still can't resist humping the occasional leg.

The wine made us all a little too happy and started showing each other some love...

Aunt Sonita wanted a perfect picture with her grandbabies and great neice and nephew

Cousin Nathan shows us how to properly accessorize a plaid shirt... with Bass Pro Shop camo hat, a gun, and a missing tooth.

A Kentucky thanksgiving can not be complete without ending it with shooting a broken TV on top of a mountain.

Although I obviously wasn't dressed for the occasion...

I was still forced to participate in the broken TV's death.

Dang it was loud! Luckily I also had my redneck earplugs...

J.P. REALLY loved Nathan's gun (probably a little too much)

And finally, a photographer can't resist taking a shadow self-portrait

Remembering Brent (1974-2008)

2008-11-26T20:07:00.008-05:00

Around 2:00am this morning, I lost one of my cousins, Brent. He was struck by a car while walking home from his brother's house. He left behind his mom and dad, brother, sister-in-law, neice, and countless cousins.

Like all of us, he had his share of problems, but had some amazing qualities as well. He graduated at the top of his class with a degree in x-ray technology. At his graduation, we were all so proud of him when he accepted his award. Although he was pretty modest, you could see in his eyes that he was so excited and proud of himself for what he had accomplished.

It's odd what stories you remember most when you look back on someone's life. One that always made me chuckle is a mildly inappropriate one to tell, but I'm going to anyway! :)

This took place a good 12 years or so ago, but I can still remember it pretty clearly. He was very close friends with my brother, so he spent a lot of time at my house. The internet was still pretty new, and not everyone had a myspace page with 12,000 photos of themselves from every angle. Back then (this makes me feel old, by the way) you were lucky to have one photo of yourself to be able to share with your online friends. Anyway, Brent, who was probably about 22 at the time and my brother met two girls from Northern Kentucky (I think). They had talked for a while online and exchanged phone numbers. One day, they got a call from one of the girls saying that she and her friend were a couple of towns away visiting family and wanted to know if they would like to meet. They thought "why not?" and gave them directions to our house. Well, to say the least, they looked nothing like their picture (which turned out to be more like a glamour shot that had been taken many many years ago). You should have seen their reactions when the girls got there.

They decided they'd hang out for an hour or two, the girls would go home and that would be that...lessoned learned. For the lack of anything better to do, they took the girls off-roading on Black Mountain. For those who may not know, Black Mountain is the highest point in Kentucky and its snow accumulations are usually 2-3 times more than at the bottom of the mountain. They drove up there and ended up getting stuck in the middle of nowhere! After realizing they couldn't get it unstuck without some help, they packed up their pride and started hoofing it down the mountain. Luckily a passerby picked them up and gave them a ride home.

Considering it was already dark and too late to get help with their vehicle, the girls ended up having to stay the night. So what the guys tried to make the shortest date ever, turned out to being one of the longest! After coming back home and thawing out, Brent and my brother made them dinner and made the best of the rest of the night. Although they never went out on a second date, they remained friends for a while.

Brent always joked that that was the worst first date ever! It was years before I finally quit teasing him about his "internet girlfriends".

Sorry for telling the world about your embarrassing date, Brent, but I couldn't resist teasing you one last time. We'll miss you!

***Edited to add:

Being a photographer, you'd think that I'd have more pictures of my own family than I do. Since my cousin passed away a few days ago, I've been going through old family photos to help me remember and to share with his family. I'm really sad to say that I didn't find many pictures of Brent. I did find a few snapshots that were probably 8 years old. That's it. If you take nothing else away from reading this blog post, use this experience as a reminder to stop and take a few pictures of those you love. You never know...those snapshots might end up being extremely special one day.

Here are the few that I found...

Brent and myself (terrible picture of me but he never took a bad picture)

He loved his red hat

He also loved fighting with my cat

The current Health Department building used to be Long John Silver's, which my mom used to manage. Brent, myself, his brother, Jake, and my brother, Stevie posed in front of their sign.

Halloween Costume Contest Winners

2008-11-26T04:31:00.002-05:00

Part of the prizes for our 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners is a photo statuette. I thought these were so cute that I just had to share!

All of the images as well as the statuettes are available for pick-up.

1st

2nd

3rd

Photography Class Field Trip

2008-11-23T16:32:00.006-05:00

On Wednesday, the Harlan County High's photography class took a field trip to our studio. They got to stay for 2 hours so I did a sample senior session and explained how and why I do things. They brought along their cameras and also got to take portraits of each other. I think that was their favorite part!

No one was safe from my camera! Each student demonstrated a different pose and had their portrait taken. At the end of the field trip, I uploaded their images and briefly explained my retouching techniques. Thank you to the brave soul who allowed me to blow up his face 300% and explain my digital workflow! :D

He was such a good sport for allowing his classmates (and myself) to photograph him.

Our retouching volunteer

I'd like to thank the photography teachers, Carlton Hughes and Chris Jones for arranging this field trip. I hope to do it again soon!

I found a couple more pictures to add!

A Rocking Reception

2008-11-20T18:52:00.002-05:00

Two friends of mine eloped in Vegas in September. They didn't want to do the big wedding thing, but they did, however, want to celebrate with their friends and family. They decided to have a Las Vegas themed reception this past weekend. You might remember their engagement pictures that I took over the summer...

They held their reception at Glass Works in downtown Louisville. They had it decorated in a Las Vegas theme complete with glass palm trees, slot machines, and two blackjack tables. Those were a big hit! They got to gamble with fake money and the biggest winner of the night won a prize.

They also had a table of their engagement and wedding portraits for everyone to view.

The event started at 4:00 and they made their appearance at about 4:30, dressed perfectly for the occasion...

Since their friends and family didn't get to attend their wedding, they played the video for everyone to see. While the video was playing, they changed into their wedding attire. After they mingled for a bit, they had another suprise in store. There was a stage area that had been covered by curtains. When the curtains opened, there was a band starring the bride as a bass player, the groom as the drummer as well as a singer and guitar player. They played 3 rock songs for everyone and they sounded great! The groom has played the drums for years in several bands and the bride has played the bass for a long time, although not in a band.

It was a really fun, unique reception and I was glad to be part of it!

Baby Russell and Family

2008-11-19T15:59:00.004-05:00

Before all the leaves had fallen and the color faded, I got a chance to photograph baby Russell and his family.

Then we went back to the studio for the rest of the session.

I love diaper portraits!

And as a Christmas card...

The Creech Girls

2008-11-19T01:53:00.002-05:00

This is the second time that I've had the pleasure of photographing Christina. The first was for her Harlan County High School dance portraits.

Our latest session was for a mother/daughter photo shoot. We took advantage of the nice day and beautiful fall colors by shooting at Kingdom Come State Park. As you can see, both ladies are beautiful, so it made my job very easy!