Meet Wesley

 So I'm not sure why I had the sudden urge exactly, but for some reason, the past few weeks I have been really wanting to buy a fish. I would walk past the floral isles of the department store I work at and see the vases, stones, and plants... and the idea formed in my head. I want to combine all of that and put a fish in the vase! Just so happens that we sell a vase with a little sheet of paper inside that even has instructions on how to do this. Pretty simple. Self explanatory. 

So needless to say, I took a trip to the pet store with my little brother, and he helped me find the perfect one. 

Another motivation for this is the fact that I am redoing my room right now, so I wanted to spruce it up a little bit with some color and mood.

Now maybe you're wondering about the name? Wesley. "As you wish..." Farm boy. Ring a bell? The Princess Bride is one of my favorite movies, so naturally the first name that popped in my head was the main character's. It stuck. 

And here he is! Haha. Spontaneous decisions are sometimes the most fun.

Beach Day

I've decided to share some personal photos of a day I spent with my family at the beginning of this month. What fun! It was a two day trip to the Warren dunes in Michigan, where we spent the days at the beach, and the night in a tent on the camping grounds. Thankfully, it only drizzled once, and the second day we were there was absolutely gorgeous. I, of course, couldn't help but capture some of my favorite moments with a camera (I say "a" camera because it was my mom's; I didn't want to risk any accidents and I knew Mom's was gonna be good enough to get by with). 
The wind was strong, the waves were gorgeous, the sky was brilliant, and the overall atmosphere of the beach scene was just wonderful. I am definitely a summer girl. My idea of a good time includes laying on beach towel getting lots of sun and listening to Jack Johnson. :) It was great.


So here are some pics of my siblings, myself, and the wonderful world of sand-meets-water-meets-sky. I'll start by showing you the shot i've always wanted to get: the classic ol' heart-in-the-sand.

He loved splashing in the waves, and was so happy about these photos.

I found a little friend to play with. :)

I was, however, missing my best friend, who was on a long trip to Israel and London. One more week and we will reunite finally, after 6 long months!

My sister took these two of me. I was a happy gal! Beauty everywhere, and an amazing family to share it with.

I LOVED this sunset. What a perfect way to end the day.

Now finally, I'll end this post with some humor. The Warren dunes are probably most famous for this one particular dune which is quite large. It takes about 15-20 minutes to climb it, if you're doing okay with your breathing and energy. Sometimes the combination of heat and exhaustion makes it a pretty painful trip, though. As you can see in the photo below, the top of it pretty much a straight vertical climb! But back to my point.... I'm sure you've noticed by now the huge logs that some silly people had some fun with that day. I LOL'd! And made my dad stop the car so I could get a photo as we were driving past. 

Hope it makes you smile. ;)

Steve & Jennifer | Engagement

The fourth day into the Sarah Barlow internship, we did an engagement photoshoot of Steve and Jennifer. It was Sunday afternoon. The sun was hot and bright, bugs were swarming, and the tall grass was itching our legs, but Steve and Jen were so happy, you'd never have guessed! I loved seeing the way Steve looked at Jen... he didn't stop smiling and holding her! And Jen's sweet smile and laugh mirrored her affection for him as well. 
This location is special to them because it's where Steve proposed to Jen. It's also where Jen has taken horseback riding lessons for years, and where she had her senior photos taken by Sarah Barlow. Their story is so cute! With the help of the woman who owns the horses and property, Steve planned an adorable surprise out in the field, and asked her that wonderful question. Of course... she said yes, and here were are with some of the photos to document a special milestone in their life. :)
Shooting in the harsh lighting was a challenge, but I'm glad we interns had the experience and had Sarah there to give tips and advice. In all it was a great day, ended with some cold Oberweis deliciousness. ;) 

Natalie | Portraits

As I mentioned in my introduction post, I've been in a photography internship under Sarah Barlow this past week. One of the days, the four of us did a photoshoot of Sarah's younger sister (and one of my best friends!) Natalie. Natalie is seriously one of the most beautiful girls I know... amazing at modeling and a lot of fun to be around. She's so easy to take photos of! We all had a blast on this shoot. The lighting was perfect, the locations great, and there were a lot of laughs and jokes throughout the night. When we were trying to decide what we wanted the mood and style to be for the shoot, we decided we wanted something fun and crazy and wacky. Natalie picked out some clothes while Sarah helped her with the rest, and they pulled together this get-up! What's amazing is that Natalie still looks so gorgeous. ;) We were literally ooo-ing and aah-ing after every photo we snapped. And we made Natalie look like a movie star... four girls following her around with cameras snapping around everywhere.
I hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed taking them! 

A bird flew by JUST as I snapped the photo... how perfect is that!! Definitely one of my favorites.

Sarah Barlow doing what she does best! 

Let's end with a smile. :)

And the Journey Begins.

Hello everyone, welcome to my brand new photo blog! I'm reallyyy excited to be starting this new journey. Websites are great, Facebook fan pages are even more fun, but I feel like blogs are so much more personal and real. I'm looking forward to sharing my photography journey with the world - the first step being my new branding and blog. So climb aboard and have fun with me! 

Of course, I wouldn't be where I am right now with all this if it weren't for the wonderful Sarah Barlow! Check out her BLOG and WEBSITE. Sarah is an amazing person with an awesome personality and pure talent. Her photography has continued to inspire me for the last couple years, and its one of the reasons that I am where I am at today. Two other girls and I have spent the past week doing her photography internship program. We've had so much fun and have learned a lot. Early mornings, late nights, a couple photoshoots, lots of editing and designing and computer work, and then of course time for some fun... it's been an amazing journey that I'm so thankful I could take. God is good! 

I'lll leave you with some photos I took of the two girls interning with me. Both are adorable and are great models.

Kristin Serna | See out her unique and artsy blog HERE! She has a great style and I love her eye for details. (Check out her nature shots, super cool!)

Christina Moodie | She's super sweet and has that motherly touch which I think is evident in her clean, organized photos and designs. View her blog HERE!

I love that the three of us are so different, and yet all share the same common bond of a passion for photography. We've all gotten along really well and have even helped each other out with design ideas and photo tips... it's been fun! 

I never would've thought that I'd be able to do this, but God has been doing amazing things in my life lately, and once again I'm amazed at his provision. I've thanked Him every day for His faithfulness and love to me... I can't wait to see where this road leads me.

Here are a couple more shots I'll leave you with: