Addison

Addison is one of the young ladies that came to The Secret Workshop in May... seriously, she is just sooooo pretty!! Just thought I'd share a few of her pictures!

{And I realize she isn't looking at me in any of the pictures... there were dozens of us all hunched together trying to snap some shots- it was practically impossible to get her attention when 30 other people were all going, "Addison, look over here!", etc... I'm not exactly a quiet person but I sure wasn't going to scream in order to get her to look my direction! Luckily, I like the pictures anyway.}

A Little Crop...

... can make a lotta difference in what a picture looks like!

I took this picture at The Secret Workshop... how beeeeautiful is this new momma and her baby? Oh my goodness...

This is actually the same picture, but I cropped it two different ways.





I have a lot of fun playing with different crops when I'm working with pictures... sometimes it's really hard, though, because I can't decide which one I like best! (Which is definitely the case with the two pictures above... Love them both).

Cheryl

One month ago today, I was headed home with April from The Secret Workshop.. I was (and still am) just in awe of all the wonderful-ness... I haven't gotten to do a full post yet highlighting my favorite things about the workshop, but it's looking like that will be years from now at the rate I'm going, so I'm going to break it up into manageable parts. This is where I want to start...

Cheryl. This woman is one of the most amazing, uplifting, vivacious, passionate, inspiring, humble, beautiful women on the planet. I got to watch her for two days, and I can't even explain just how moved I was by her and the things she said~ she encourages you to only do things that bring you joy, and not to do things that don't. If you have to do something anyway, find a way to change your perspective about it. She helps you let go a little~ "it's totally fine!" She makes you feel beautiful and special and helps you feel like you are worth MORE than you give yourself credit for. And she shows you that photography is a gift, and that photographs are more valuable than you could ever imagine.

Cheryl lives in Texas. She is a mother and a wife and a photographer~ and a total inspiration. I feel incredibly blessed to have been a part of her workshop, and I know without a doubt that there were moments with her that weekend that only I got to have. Special, unbelievable, unforgettable moments. {I still get chills and tear up}. She gives people this incredible gift when she gives so freely of herself~ and I'm not kidding, I will never, ever forget her and her beautiful spirit. You just don't get to meet people like her everyday...

I spent most of the workshop following her around, just wanting to soak in every tidbit of her and her advice that I could. Here are a few shots of her doing her thing...











{Click here to see a photo of April and I with Cheryl and Amy Smith, another AMAZING woman and Cheryl's best friend}

Behind.

There is not one picture on this blog that wasn't taken by me... until now! I'm breaking the rules to post this picture that one of the nice workshop attendees took with my camera of April and I in Dallas this past weekend. I also used it for my Project 365 picture for Sunday... wow, I'm totally breaking all kinds of rules!! I'm such a rebel.



But it's totally fine.

{Smile to workshop attendees who realize I'm channeling my inner Cheryl...}

The weekend in Dallas was... amazing. But, even in reading that it just doesn't sound quite right in my head. It was waaaaaay more than amazing... I definitely can't put it into words, and to be honest~ I doubt I'll even try, other than to say it was amazing, wonderful, overwhelming, completely inspiring, and one of the best memories I will ever have.

There.

I do have a lot of pictures from the weekend in Dallas that I will eventually work on and that I will absolutely post here, but I'm behind on a lot of things (including editing a session of two sweet girls from a couple of weekends ago~ thank you so much, Ann, for being patient with me during this crazy-busy time!). I also plan to post a Top Ten of April pictures sometime soon~ but, again, I'm behind on just about everything in life and there are photos from April that I still haven't edited yet, so that's going to have to wait it's turn as well.

I'm happily overwhelmed with everything, seriously. I live a blessed life and although I knew that before this past weekend, I know it even more wholeheartedly now.

More from me soon...

This Weekend...

This weekend I am headed to Dallas, Texas, with my friend April to attend The Secret Photography Workshop. It is a two-day workshop put together by some amazing photographers who specialize in children's portrait photography. Words cannot express how unbelievably excited I am to go, and to learn and play and laugh... I just feel so blessed for the opportunity to attend something like this, and of course~ I will post lots and lots of pictures from the workshop when I get back!

So, I wish everyone a very happy and safe weekend! I'll definitely be having fun, and I can't wait to share stories and pictures next week. In the meantime, here is a picture I took this last weekend of Peyton and Landon, two of the sweetest boys in the world.