was contacted last night about a local young girl from the Marietta area who was recently diagnosed with an inoperable cancerous brain tumor. Her name is Ava and she is only 4 years old. The family is asking for as many thoughts and prayers as possible and asked that I share Ava's Facebook Page here on my blog. You can visit her website by clicking HERE.  
 
We are thinking of you Ava!

am pleased to announce that I received three Accolades of Excellence awards in the Children's category of the WPPI 16x20 Print Competition. The competition was very stiff, so I am beyond thrilled! I also wanted to say a thank you to my clients who trust my visions and who allow me to take the photographs that allow me execute them.

"Facing His Future"  

"A Meadow's Lullaby"

"Sisterly Love"

t is moments like these that totally sum up why I love photographing babies and children!  
 
My dear little son, age 3, had been asking for asking for ice cream all morning. Finally, I gave in and gave him one of those Drumstick cones. He happily sat down to eat and within just a few minutes he proclaimed that he was done. I was busy doing some morning chores and without looking at him I said, "ok, go ahead and get down from the table and run and play".  
 
About 10 minutes later when I finished what I was doing, I caught up with him and found him happily playing...completely oblivious to the ice cream all over his face:)  
 
The fact that kids can be messy and fun and "in the moment" are why I just love capturing them with my camera. Their realness and honesty truly leaves me humbled.

aahhh, my dear readers in West Virginia and Ohio...spring is on the way! We have been having some MUCH needed warmer weather in these parts and oh what it does to lift the spirits! I was even able to open the windows in my house yesterday and let in some of the glorious fresh air!  
 
When I think of spring, I think of flowers, so I thought I would share a few images that I took last year in a beautiful field of yellow flowers. We don't have lots of open fields of flowers in the Parkersburg and Marietta areas, so when I stumbled upon this spot I knew I had found a treasure. I took a couple of clients there and then also went back several times just shooting for my own pleasure. All of these were taken over the course of about two weeks and all with different lighting conditions. It's interesting to see how different the same field can look at different times with different light.  
 
Speaking of spring, I will begin photographing sessions again mid next month. I cannot wait! My mind is buzzing with all kinds of new ideas and I've even got a few new locations in mind. I am nearly booked for the months of April and May, so if anyone is interested in a spring session...the time to contact me is now!

The adorable red number shirts can be found at Chasing Fireflies.

The darling little blue-eyed girls in the white dresses are the daughters of one of my very best friends, April, who is also herself a talented photographer from the Columbus Ohio area, Works Of Love Photography.