Amanda Abel Photography Blog

out with the old, in with the new

2009-02-19T23:27:00.001-07:00

i have a new blog! YAY! so everybody, change your bookmarks to www.amandaabelphoto.com/blog so you can see all of my new blog posts. and with this i am making a promise to blog more! yep i know, i know..you've heard it before, but i really do have A LOT of new things coming, so keep checking back often.

taggart- 1 year

2009-02-10T15:09:00.004-07:00

my sister in law, melissa wanted some pictures done of tag for his first birthday. you may remember him from this shoot and this shoot. he is such a good baby and i just love him to death! in fact i have decided to start offering childrens photography for anyone who is interested. in the past, i have pretty much only done weddings with a few side jobs but i am really enjoying branching out. so if you or anyone you know are looking to get their childrens pictures done shoot me an email amanda@amandaabelphoto.com and i may even have a good deal for you!

click here for slideshow

sindra and brian engagements

2009-02-08T00:06:00.003-07:00

i adore this couple! sindra and brian booked me a year ago and i can't believe their wedding is almost here! the day we shot their engagements was raining but sindra decided she wasn't going to let that stop us. so we planned to go to the salt lake library and the day actually ended up being perfect! i swear i was laughing the entire time i was with these two! sindra is so hilarious and she also has some great ideas and styles for her bridals and wedding. she has not one but two wedding dresses! i can't wait!

click here for a slideshow

luke, alec and noah

2009-01-29T14:25:00.002-07:00

i shot pictures for these sweet boys a couple of weeks ago. they are the sons of our neighbors and aren't they adorable? i shot the newborn and the three boys in their home and then took luke and alec out by myself to do thier pictures. they were so stinkin cute! they had the funnest personalities and were cracking me up the whole time! i loved the way they turned out and did some extra fun stuff in editing. i don't usually do much outside of weddings but if you are looking for childrens portraiture, i will be taking a some extra sessions in the upcoming months! i am really looking to get into a little more then just weddings. don't get me wrong i love weddings, but i am just starting to realize how fun other types of photography can be too. contact me if you are interested and i will be putting up some information on pricing on my website as well!

Book Review Monday (a day late)

2009-01-27T11:15:00.004-07:00

This week i am reviewing a book called- Miracles For Michael by Joann Arnold.

Synopsis:

A terrible accident in a strange town leaves nine-year-old Michael Downing alone and his mother hospitalized in a coma. Social workers place him under the charge of two women--Harley-riding Samantha Porter and her spinster sister, Hannah Allen.
As they care for him, Michael visits his mother each day in the hospital, singing and reading to her, and his spirit touches the town in maraculous ways.
When his unloving grandparents try to take custody of young Michael, his local caregivers resist them in court and help to shape Michael's future in a series of events that climax on a wonderful, life-changing Christmas day.

This book was so wonderful and touching! it made me bawl! my heart went out to michael and i cant even begin to imagine how hard it would be to go through the trials that he had to got through. you just feel so bad for him! but it does have a happy ending! Not only do the women he goes to live with help him, he helps them just as much. This book was very well written and easy to follow. i could not put it down! which is a good sign for me. Although the book was a little more geared towards the LDS religion, i would recommend it to anyone because really there wasn't too much religiousness in it. I give this book a 9 out of 10. it was fabulous!

The book I am going to be reviewing next week is PS I love you by Cecila Ahern, for any of those who want to read it. I reviewed a book by her already and this one has a movie to go along with it. i am going to have to watch it again before next week because i havent seen it in so long. i will let you know what i think of the movie as well!

jorgensen family

2009-01-20T10:43:00.002-07:00

i shot the jorgensen's family pictures at the first of december right before the big snow storms hit. it still wasnt even very cold outside so it was a perfect day! the jorgensens are friends of ours and i was so happy when they wanted me to do their pictures. they are such an adorable family! their boys were cracking me up the entire time. i only have girls, so being around boys is a whole new experience for me! they are into rocks and sticks and climbing trees and it is so hilarious! i had a blast with these guys and i hope you enjoy these pictures....

Book Review Friday

2009-01-16T16:18:00.006-07:00

Oh my heck! is it friday again already? where did my week go? on the upside, i did blog 4 times this week! WHOO HOO!

The book that i have chosen to review this week is actually not what i had originally planned. i just finished reading Secrets of My Suburban Life by Lauren Baratz Logsted. and it was great!

Synopsis:

Everything changed for Lauren ("Ren") after Harry Potter killed her mom. No,it's not what you think--Harry Potter didn't come to life and stab her oranything. A stack of those thick books crushed her. Now Ren is stuck out inthe suburbs of Connecticut, dragged out there because her father is too grief stricken to continue living in New York.
Ren tries to fit in at her new school, but the most popular girl, Farrin,keeps icing her out. Then Ren discovers that Farrin has a secret: She's been communicating online with an older man, and they are actually planning to meet! Ren can't let Farrin go through with it--she's witnessed enough tragicevents as it is. So she comes up with the perfect plan to stop the perv. But then she finds out who he is...

This book was fabulous! it is about teenagers and written for teenagers, but it really drew me in. I LOVED Lauren's writing style. The way she writes the story is soley from Ren's perspective. It helps to know the character better and to feel what she feels. She was very detailed in describing the story and the characters. You can practically feel Ren's pain over losing her mother and starting a new life and it is heartbreaking. I never cried though (I am an easy crier in books) The story line was very entertaining and creative with a very good message. The book is all about how dangerous internet chat rooms are and Lauren does a great job of putting it into fiction. I will definetely be reading more books by this author and if you don't mind a few (or a lot)of swear words, then i HIGHLY recommend this book! I read it in 2 days. It is about 300 (give or take) pages long, but I just could NOT put it down. and for that reason I give it a 9 out of 10.

i think i am going to move Book Review Friday to Mondays because i have lots of friday shoots coming up on fridays and if not it won't get done. so look for the next Book Review a week from Monday!

The book I am going to be reviewing next week is Miracles for Michael by Joann Arnold, for any of those who want to read it. It refers to the LDS church and is written by an LDS author but it is a fabulous book and isnt completely based on the LDS church.

WOW!!

2009-01-14T14:58:00.004-07:00

i have to say, i have the best friends ever! dustin (dustin izatt photography) not only did my amazing pictures, but he came over on sunday to do a family lifestyle session with video. he told us it would be about a month or two because he was waiting on some video editing software, but today lo and behold..... they were on his blog. check this out. isnt he amazing!?!?! you can check out his blog to see more pictures!

A Day with the Abels from Dustin Izatt on Vimeo.

brock!!!!

2009-01-13T16:37:00.006-07:00

some of you may recognize brock, not only because he is my brother in law but also because he comes to a lot of my weddings with me! brock is an aspiring photographer although he is only a jr in high school! (i wish i was that serious about something when i was that young!) He is going to be around a lot more from here on out, so get used to seeing his bright and shining face! i am going to start teaching brock the in's and out's of my business and hopefully pawn a little work off on him :) HAHA. brock wanted me to do pictures of him because he just got his braces off and because i want to seriously get into senior photography and it is good experience as well as word of mouth. so brock, i expect you to spread the word around school! we really had a lot of fun! brock is like a little brother to me and i am going to be happy to have him working with me a little more. check out some more of his personal work on his blog brockabel.blogspot.com

my little photographer in training....

2009-01-12T17:35:00.004-07:00

i am so proud of jayde! she entered the reflections contest in november and won first place in her age category for her school! she got a medal and was so proud. of course being the lame mom that i am i forgot my camera on the awards night and so i didnt get any pictures of her. then her picture went on to the district contest and she won 2nd place and being the even lamer mom that i am we completely forgot about the ceremony and didn't go :( but i heard it was lame anyways.... this is the picture that she took! isn't she wonderful?!?! remember she is only 7 years old!

Book Review Friday

2009-01-09T12:29:00.004-07:00

if there is one thing i am passionate about besides photography it is reading. i absolutely love to read! i do it in all my spare time, while i am eating, drying my hair and curling my hair, before bed etc.... for a while i got out of the habit of reading. it was while i was starting my business and was so busy! now i know how to manage my time better and can find time to read. after i received the twilight series for my birthday i realized again how much i loved reading. i read the twilight series about 3 times. i am super picky about books, and i just could not find anything as "earthmoving" as twilight had been to me. it was really frustrating. for my birthday this year my brother in law brock gave me a gift certificate to barnes and noble. i took it as a good chance to find something i would love. after about an hour and a half of wandering looking for books (and a very impatient husband) i was so frustrated because i just could not find something that was "perfect" i finally picked a book off of the fiction bestsellers table and bought it. i took it home and read it and it was pretty good. not earthmoving but good. so i decided to continue on the same path and just go to the library and pick books based on the cover and the description of the book. so far everything i have picked has been at least good and some GREAT! it may sound dorky, but i went to the library, started in the A section and picked about 4 books, read them took them back and picked some more. some of the books are from the same authors because once i find someone i love, i try to find other books that they have writen. because i love to read SO much, i have decided that every friday i will review a book that i have read within the past month or so and review it on my blog (fiction or non-fiction). i currently read about a book a week but as wedding season picks up i may have to go back to some past books that i have read. i would love comments from people about books that they have read or want me to read and review! if you love to read, please participate with me. for each review i will give a description of the book, a short paragraph on my likes and dislikes and a rating on a scale of 1-10. 10 being twilight comparable (to those of you who have read it)

the first book that i am going to review is "There's No Place Like Here." by Cecila Ahern.

first a couple of things about the author that i didn't know prior to reading her book. she is the author of "p.s i love you" if anyone has seen that movie as well as the creator of the tv show "samantha who?" which i have not seen. maybe i will have to watch it now! her website is http://www.ceceliaahern.ie/

now onto the book. at risk of being biased or missing something i have taken the book description directly off of her website:

"Since Sandy Shortt’s childhood classmate disappeared twenty years ago, Sandy has been obsessed with missing things. Finding becomes her goal- whether it’s the sock that vanished in the washing machine, the car keys she misplaced or the graver issue of finding the people who vanish from their lives. Sandy dedicates her life to finding these missing people, offering devastated families a flicker of hope. Jack Ruttle is one of those desperate people. It’s been a year since his brother Donal vanished into thin air. Thinking Sandy Shortt could well be the answer to his prayers, he embarks on a quest to find her. But when Sandy goes missing too, she stumbles upon the place - and people - she’s been looking for all her life. A world away from her loved ones and the home she ran from for so long, Sandy soon resorts to her old habit again, searching. Though this time, she is desperately trying to find her way home…"

i first picked this book because the cover was really sparkly and pretty (who says you can't judge a book by its cover) i really really liked this book. it is one of the first books i read on my quest to find an earthmoving book. this book held my attention and pulled me in making me wanting more. the characters were great but not extremely relatable to myself probably because of the story line. the story line was great and it was very easy to follow. Cecilia Ahern does a great job at writing details and tying up her loose ends. it is comparable to wizard of oz where the girl stumbles into a world of her imagination and ends up coming back a better person with a lot more knowledge of her life. it was not earthmoving but it was good and i would defientely recommend it as a good read. i give this book a 7 on a scale of 10.

i hope that my faithful blog stalkers enjoy this new addition to my blog because i am very excited about it! this is something i have had in mind for a long time and although it is not photography related, i am very excited!

happy new year!

2009-01-01T20:10:00.001-07:00

i just wanted to wish everyone a very happy new year! i have some great things in store this year for my life as well as my business! i will be announcing some of those GREAT things in the next few weeks so stay tuned....

10 minute session!

2008-12-29T10:23:00.001-07:00

a couple of weeks ago i took my kids out for a quick shoot of them for christmas cards and presents, as well as jaydes 7 year old pictures. this was seriously the quickest session i have ever done. we were there for 10 minutes at the most and they were fabulous! even savana listened. sorry they are a little late with the christmas hats and all but hey... at least it is still december :)

me!!!

2008-12-22T15:57:00.003-07:00

i desperately needed a new picture of myself for my website and blog etc... so on thursday me and my good friend Dustin (Dustin Izatt Photography) went out to some killer locations to do my pictures. I seriously had no idea how big of a deal it is for people to get their pictures taken! i have so much sympathy for my brides now. I was so nervous all day and consumed with making sure i looked good and my hair and makeup were perfect and my clothes looked good and didn't make me look fat! oh my heck! it was seriously that bad! I am so sorry to everyone for what they go through for me :) but once i got their and we started shooting i was fine and possibly even fun, but oh so cold! dustin, you need to start taking a coat with you! i had on a coat and i was freezing! i am so happy with how they turned out! i am so very critical of myself and how i look, that i was very nervous. but i do love them and thank you a million times dustin!

i just had to show off one of my favorite pieces of equipment...my shootsac! i don't go anywhere without it. it is hands down one of the best things i have ever bought! it is so convenient and easy to carry. and not to mention, so dang cute! love it!

12 days of christmas...

2008-12-18T23:48:00.004-07:00

this is my absolute favorite time of the year. i love the music, the decorations, the shopping, the giving, the smells, the food....i could go on all night. one of the things i love the most is the time i get to spend with my family. i love my little girls and how excited they get to do all of the fun activities. to ensure that we didn't miss out on anything important i started a new thing this year with the 12 days of christmas. i made a cute little advent calendar to hang on my trees. these trees serve as year long decorating fun! i decorate them for holidays, birthdays and now they are put to good use once again. i made cute little cards with a number for each day and in the inside is an activity to do. they are usually pretty low key, but we get to spend good quality time with each other and that is so important to me. some of the activities are, on the first day we wrote letters to santa, 2nd day we made sugar cookies, 3rd we read christmas books around the christmas tree, 4th we watched a chrstmas movie and had popcorn, 5th went to the layton park lights. some of the other fun things we have planned to do is sing christmas carols, watch movie with hot chocolate (movie night is by far our favorite), paint christmas ornaments, make christmas cards, make a christmas craft, drive around neighborhoods looking for lights and make treats for the kids teachers. we have so much fun during the holidays and i am SO sad they are coming and going so quick! i can't believe how time flies! but i am always grateful after the holidays to get back to normal life. so everyone have a merry christmas! it is the best time of the year!

ketty + matt wedding (long overdue)

2008-12-14T01:30:00.002-07:00

ketty and matt got married in august. yep you heard that right AUGUST! where have i been you ask? not blogging that is for sure. i honestly have been catching up on my life a little more and doing computer stuff a little less. but i feel terrible for all of the people i have not blogged about. i really do have the best clients. and i promise i will get to each and every one of you! ketty and matt are mine and my husbands bestest friends! we hang out almost every weekend and they are the best! never a dull moment with these two! matt has been best friends with chris since jr. high (i think). i worked at shopko with matt about 6 years ago and he set me and chris up on a blind date. 9 months later we were married and the rest is history. ketty is from peru. she met matt and they fell in love :) they had been dating for about 3 years when he proposed. ketty moved here in june and they got married in august! i am so happy, because i have become such great friends with ketty and my kids just love her! and i have someone to obsess over twilight with! i love you guys!

soon to come...ketty's bridals and some christmas stuff! YAY!

amanda abel photography now offering maternity...

2008-12-02T23:39:00.003-07:00

i am now offering maternity portraits to any expectant mothers. you may remember heather and jay's wedding back in may. first of all they are fabulous people to work with and i have been lucky enough to have them back again. they are expecting their first baby any day now! YAY! this was my first time doing maternity pictures, so thank you heather for trusting me. i am so incredibly happy with the way they turned out and their session was so much fun, that i have decided to add maternity to my list of services. my prices are $50 for a one hour sitting fee at one location. if you want a disc of all of the pictures it is $150 or if you would prefer prints you can purchase them on my proofing site following the session. so if any of my past brides, blog stalkers, friends, family, whoever you are, if you are pregnant or planning to be in the next little while, please call me!!! i had such a blast that i am craving more :) if you book your maternity session before the end of december, i will be give you a discount, but you have to email me to find out what it is :) i promise it will be way worth it!

oh and p.s. this is my new FAVORITE location!

happy birthday my sweet jayde

2008-11-25T14:50:00.002-07:00

today is my amazing daugther jayde's 7th birthday. i cannot believe it! 7! that is out of this world. i cannot believe how the time has just flown by. jayde is such a sweet girl and i am so blessed to have her in my life. she brings so much joy and happiness to me. today me, chris and savana woke her up by singing happy birthday. then she opened presents and was off to school after a pancake breakfast (ps. i never cook :) she could not understand why she had to go to school on her birthday, but that is just the way it goes. me and savana went and had lunch with her at school. yum, school lunch :) and tomorrow she gets to have a party with her friends. i hope she has a fantastic day! happy birthday baby girl. i love you.

since i have not had a chance to do her 7 year old pictures yet, i will post some soon!

Jonas Brothers!

2008-11-23T23:54:00.003-07:00

My boys rocked it at the american music awards tonight! Check it out!

Twilight...

2008-11-23T15:42:00.003-07:00

So, i went to see Twilight last night and was a little afraid after hearing it was so terrible. But OH MY HECK!!!! IT WAS THE BEST!!!! I was so happy with the movie!!! It is exactly as I imagined. I have to admit that a few of the effects were a little lame, but over all two thumbs up! And furthermore, I was NOT sold on the Edward they picked at all, but now....OH MY :) He is so fabulous! I just loved it!!! And since my mom hasn't seen it, now I get to go again! YAY! I am still trying to convince my husband to go for a round 3 as well. Please Chris :) So to anyone out there who thought it wasn't good. I did!!! and if they don't make #2, I will be so so sad. One hint I have for anyone going to this movie... Do not drink a huge Diet Coke before the movie starts because you will not be able to leave. And I sat there in pain for 2 hours because I had to pee so bad and couldn't bear to miss a single part :)

Anna + Kile Wedding

2008-11-21T00:01:00.006-07:00

she was late, but he wasn't worried. the love they share for each other runs deep. he knew she would be there. when she arrived, he didn't look relieved. he had known all along she would come. as anna walked down the aisle, there were tears. in kiles eyes, in anna's and in everyone there witnessing them commit their lives to one another. they are perfect for each other. here is anna and kile's wedding as i saw it...

i love anna's viel. i love it!

one of my favorite!

how cool is this!?! there was a bowling alley in the basement of the country club! I love it!
ceremony and reception: Willow Creek Country Club

dress: the perfect dress
honeymoon-puerta vallarta (for 2 weeks! so jealous!)

the most fabulous couple!

2008-11-18T10:38:00.003-07:00

elisabeth and alex are made for each other. it's evident in the way they look at each other,the way he treats her like a queen and she looks at him with such adoration. they absolutely complete each other. their wedding was beautiful and not in the mere details. but the coming together of two people who complete each other so fully. i am so blessed to have been able to work with these two! they were amazing! if there is one thing i love about what i do, it is the people that i am so lucky to work with. my couples are all so fabulous and i love it when they trust me and let me be creative with them! elisabeth and alex were no exception. they were married at the bountiful temple, lucheon at the joseph smith memorial building and reception at the lone peak pavillion in sandy. it was right next to a skate park and alex and elisabeth skateboard so we went and grabbed some fun shots! i loved this wedding!!!!

my favorite :)

love it!

so busy...

2008-11-17T23:49:00.002-07:00

with the holiday season upon us, i have a little bit of down time and can now focus on my blog a little more. i have a ton of fabulous weddings and family shoots to post as well as a bunch of other fun stuff. and oh yeah.... disneyland pictures!!!!

halloween fun!

2008-11-05T22:32:00.003-07:00

hey better late then never huh? and i know there are some people out there dying to see the elevator costume..... my strange child, savana, wanted to be an elevator for halloween. she had been telling us that for so long and we were like "what the heck?" one day i was reading a book to her and low and behold, there was a little girl in it dressed up as an elevator.(i tried to find the book to scan but cannot. if it turns up i will scan the page in) jayde had originally wanted to be belle the princess and i could not find a belle anywhere! so i talked her into a witch. i am glad about that because she always dresses up "cutesy" so it was something different for once. i think they both looked darling, but i am biased. these first pictures are of us at our "pumpkin party!" we made cookies, carved pumpkins, read halloween books, and listened to scary music. it was fun.....

jayde's sketches of what she wanted her pumkin to look like

jayde's halloween parade at school

me and savana

savana got two costumes this year. the candy corn one that she could trick or treat in and the elevator just because she had to have it!

we are ultra creative :)

going up?

in honor of halloween

2008-10-29T22:32:00.003-06:00

i did pictures for my friend anne and her sisters at the first of this month and wanted to save them for a halloween post. oh halloween, how i love thee. i really truely love halloween and october. i love the beautiful colors of fall, the smells, the parties and birthdays, halloween, bearable weather, presents and of course unlimited CANDY!!! this is the time of year i really need to work extra hard on my dieting and exercising :) i had so much fun with anne and her sisters. anne is my good friend and i love her :) she is such a great person and i appreciate everything she does for me. thank you anne!!! anyways....anne and her sisters wanted witch pictures for their mom for halloween and what better place to do scary witch pictures then the cemetary. it was great fun!!!!

didn't they dress incredible?!?!!?

hey there sexy lady...

2008-10-28T13:50:00.004-06:00

ok, so i have been dreading this moment for a while. jayde lost her first front tooth last night and wow!!! now begins the awkward stage right?!?! no more cute little girl here. sure she is still cute to me.. jk she is cute. but you know what i mean?!?! and don't judge me on their hair and clothing choices, they had just gotten out of the bath tub :)

happy birthday savana!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-10-24T13:42:00.005-06:00

today is my baby's 3rd birthday. i don't know why, but it is so hard to watch them grow older. it seems like only yesterday we were going to the hospital to have her. she is usually such a handful and so wild, but today she is all smiles. we woke her up by singing happy birthday to her. we had her presents waiting for her to open and she has not stopped smiling since then. she is such a sweet girl and i love her so much. she is my difficult child but i still dont love her any less. so happy birthday savana, and i look forward to many more with you :)

about a week ago, i took savana alone to do pictures and to my surprise she was an angel. i got so many cute pictures of her, that are just so her. and i have no idea what is with the kissy face but she cracks me up! i love you so much girlie!

click here to see the slideshow

i'm back!!!!

2008-10-22T11:41:00.004-06:00

hey everybody! it is good to be back to blogging! i actually had to force myself to do it today, because i fell out the habit of doing it on a regular basis. ok, so i really shot this wedding clear back in august, but better late then never right? darci and eric's wedding was absolutely stunning! darci is so gorgeous and all of the details of the wedding were too. their bridal party was the BEST! they were so much fun! so without further ado..

click here to see their slideshow

the beautiful bride:

the beautiful bridesmaids

a prayer before the ceremony. i love this moment

the wedding ceremony was held at washington heights baptist church in south ogden

the awesome bridal party!

details!!!

my favorite!

please don't abandon me........

2008-10-20T23:24:00.001-06:00

to all my faithful blog readers... i am so sorry i have neglected you! i have been sooo busy, but i promise there is a TON of posts coming. have patience and i am going to try to post something tomorrow! i love you all!

guess where we're going????

2008-10-05T00:37:00.003-06:00

see you in a week! i will have email as well as phone access, so feel free to contact me if you need to! happy sunday!!!!

(please excuse the fabulous picture :) it is all that i could find)

isn't is wonderful???

2008-09-27T22:30:00.004-06:00

being a mommy (or daddy). i love.... how my girls fit just perfectly in my lap and arms. how they know when to kiss me. how they are there when i need them and even when i don't. how i can feel their love when they hug me and see it when i look in their eyes. how i know that they are mine and i am thiers. how i know i will be with them forever. oh, how grateful i am for my girls. i have to remind myself that once in a while because it is easy to take them forgranted. i am so happy that i am able to be home with them almost all the time. i am able to walk jayde to and from school everyday. i am able to volunteer at her school and take her to dance class and piano. i get to spend the day with savana and just love her and teach her. i get to be there for the little things in their lives that may not seem to matter that much, but they do. it is the best!!! i love my girls and hope that i never take them forgranted because before i know it, i will blink and they will be getting married. i love you jayde and savana. you are my life and i can't imagine life without you. thanks for the good times and the bad. you're the best!

this picture is from last year, but it is one of my very favorites! it shows both of their personalities to a t! i love it! and yes, i need to take more pictures of my kids!

amanda and preston's wedding

2008-09-20T09:55:00.009-06:00

i shot amanda and prestons wedding last month at the ivy lane reception center in ogden. there wedding was nothing short of amazing! not a detail was missed. amanda had an amazing wedding planner kari odell. if anyone wants her information please email me. she was absolutely phenomenal to work with! amanda and preston were such an awesome couple. they are so nice and down to earth and not to mention good looking! thanks for an amazing wedding! you guys are awesome and i had such a blast working with you and your families! i had so many pictures that i just loved so i posted a ton! and thanks brock for coming along to shoot with me and letting me boss you around! (brock is my brother in law, so i can do that right?) and also for getting some great shots!! future photographer in the making!

click here to see their slideshow!

sexy little bride...meow!!!!!

i love this moment between dad and daughter!

love this!
the most awesome bridal party ever!!!!!!!!!!

love the details! their amazing cake was done by layer by layer cakes. amanda wanted the lace on her dress to match the design on the cake. so she had picked out her dressed based on what she thought would look good on her cake! love ya amanda! you're awesome!
lots of dancing

i will be at the bridal fair today....

2008-09-13T01:04:00.003-06:00

so come see me :) the show is from 10-6 at the union station in ogden. i am running a crazy good "show special" for anyone who books me today. it is the best offer you will EVER get from me! the promotion is good saturday only! email me for details or come and visit my booth! i can't wait to see you there!!!!!!! (must recieve deposit of $250 in order to recieve show special)

tag boy...

2008-09-09T16:51:00.006-06:00

i did pictures for my sweet nephew taggart. he is so dang cute and smiley. i love it! if i could guarantee that i would get babies this sweet everytime, i might be interested in doing children's photography. haha! but for now i think i'll just stick with weddings. but isn't he absolutely adorable? melissa... his hair is so red!!! i can't believe it!

click here to view a slideshow!

brittany and rocky wedding + briley

2008-09-03T14:21:00.019-06:00

brittany and rocky got married a while back (i won't say when because then you will know how horrible of a blogger i am :) their wedding was beautiful and holds a special place in my heart because not only did they get married but they also had brittany's sweet daughter briley sealed to them. 5 years ago this month, we did the same thing. when i married my husband he made a commitment to love me and jayde and i know how incredibly special that is. getting married in and of itself is a beautiful thing, but when you add a child into the picture, it makes it that much sweeter. i am so excited for these three and hope they have the most wonderful life together!

heather & jay wedding

2008-08-28T16:10:00.009-06:00

i shot heather and jay's wedding a while back at the ogden river parkway. it was a beautiful rainy day. it wasn't pouring so it worked great for pictures, but it was wet enough that they had to move their beautiful garden reception under the pavillion. instead of a wedding cake they had cupcakes that were delicious and made by adventerous cakes in ogden. heather and jay were so amazing to work with. they are both so fun, down to earth and just the nicest people i have ever met. i havd the best time. everything about their wedding was absolutely beautiful! congrats you two... you deserve the best!!!

sorry everything looks so pixelated. i need to figure out what the deal is and get it fixed?!?!?! click on the picture to see what it is supposed to look like.

today my baby is a 1st grader...

2008-08-25T12:03:00.006-06:00

how sad is that? seriously. i can't believe it! they grow up so fast. last night before jayde went to sleep she cried and cried because she didn't want to leave me for the whole day. 8:45 to 3:30 is a long day for a 6 year old (and her mom). wish us luck in this new adventure we have embarked on.. until then here are a few 1st day of school pictures over the years...

1st year of pre-school 2nd year of pre-school
kindergarten1st grade (if you can't tell she is on the verge of tears right now)
jayde and savana

checking out her new desk and classroom

i just want to tell jayde quickly how much i love her and how proud i am of her. for anyone who doesnt know jayde she is a dream child. she is so obediant and loving. she tries so hard in everything she does and is always trying to make mom and dad happy. i love you so much jaydee. you are the best!

new stuff! yay!

2008-08-14T15:58:00.005-06:00

last night i attended the david jay free to succeed seminar. it was awesome! he had tons of great information and even showed us how to use lightroom! so i came home and bought it and am editing with it as we speak. it seems like an incredible program and i am hoping to speed up my workflow tremedously. i also bought his product show it web and have been playing around with it a little bit. it is way fun! click on the link below to view a slideshow i made from tiffany and derek's wedding.... enjoy...

click here to view slideshow

breaking dawn.... i want your opinions

2008-08-12T00:10:00.002-06:00

so i finished reading breaking dawn on friday and i just want to know what everyone thought? personally i loved it! the first parts were a little crazy but once it started to all come together around the last 3rd of the book, i just loved it! no spoilers...just opinions on whether you liked it or not! thanks!

WHOO HOO!!!

2008-08-11T23:31:00.001-06:00

YAY!! guess what i just bought.....

thank you itunes for making your music available hours before the actual release date!

anna and kile engagements

2008-08-07T15:24:00.006-06:00

anna and kile are getting married in october and i shot their engagements at memory grove. these two are so cute and so in love. at the very end of the shoot anna wanted to get in the water for some pictures and as soon as she jumped in she started screaming bloody murder from the cold. i was laughing so hard i could hardley even hold the camera still long enough to shoot. people were staring at us to make sure everything was ok. i am so excited for their wedding! these two are so much fun! enjoy.... oh and thank you so much rebekah westover for the post on your blog about how to get bigger pictures. i have been wondering for so long and now i finally get it! check out this post if you want instructions

Let the countdown begin!

2008-08-06T00:50:00.002-06:00

when you are waiting for something for so long, it seems like it will never get here. but now i am on a downward countdown of less then a week, hurrah! if i have not officially declared my LOVE for the jonas brothers yet consider this a declaration. call me crazy or childish, whatever, i dont care. heaven knows i hear enough of it from my husband, miley cyrus loving daughter :) and brother in law brock. still love you guys. at least savana is with me. she screams and jumps and almost has a breakdown if she sees the jonas brothers (she does the same thing with dora and disneyland though) but i just love them! so now their new cd comes out in a week and i am so excited. so let the countdown begin... 6 days and counting!

I am quite possibly the worst blogger ever!!!

2008-08-06T00:11:00.004-06:00

ok, so i shot this incredible wedding clear back at the first of june, and here we are in august and i am finally blogging it. oh well. summer is just getting away from me too dang fast! camille and brad got married on june 11th at the logan temple. it was my first time shooting at the logan temple and it was so amazing! any future brides getting married at the logan temple (or anywhere:) call me!!! my husband knows brad from when they served their missions in new jersey. so when he called me i was thrilled to do their wedding. not only are camille and brad dang good looking, but they are also the sweetest nicest people ever! i only shot the temple portion of their day, but later that night i got to attend their reception as a guest! how often does that happen? and you would have never guessed from just looking at these pictures but it was colder than a warm day in winter. we were all freezing. that is utah for ya! beware of lots of pictures.....

check out these awesome people! they are all my past brides and grooms! heather and jay on the left, and tiffany and derek on the right. i love them all!

Jumping pictures are hilarious to me! I know they are sort of cheesy but I love them!

my family!!!!

2008-07-29T11:38:00.005-06:00

we went up to park city in june for a little get away and while we were there my mother in law wanted pictures of the whole family. so we went and found a cute little field and did family pictures. for the whole group we had some friends come and take the pictures after i had set it up. my brother in law brock, took the one of my family. i think he did pretty good. i am so proud! haha.

the whole fam-damily

my husbands parents and all of the grandkids
my husbands sister melissa, her husband jon and baby taggartmy niece ivy

my husbands sister nichol, her husband adam, ivy and isaac
my nephew isaac (this was one of the only pictures i got of him because he got allergies and his eyes swelled up really bad!)
my jayde aka little miss attitude
this is pretty much the best smile i got out of them. they hate pictures.

my husbands parents
my brother in law brock (you look so cute brock! haha)

yay us!

mad savana. this isnt unusual for her.

amanda's bridals

2008-07-29T00:26:00.005-06:00

i shot amanda's bridals at some new locations in downtown ogden. i always love new locations. first we started out at the hampton inn (which i have been to before and i love) then we went to the eccles art center, where we made a new friend, then we headed over to fort buenaventura. amanda is so gorgeous and fun to be with. she is so sweet and can't wait for her wedding on friday! stay tuned for more posts that i have to catch up on. my goal this week is a post a day. hold me to it. and leave lots of comments! i love comments!

our new friend. this cute kitty would not leave us alone. we had to shoot around him most of the time.

ketty and matt- you guys rock and we love you!!!

2008-07-23T00:17:00.007-06:00

haha! first a story...matt is the one that is responsible for me and my husband. period. about 6 years ago i worked at shopko with matt and he was best friends with my husband, chris. matt set us up on a blind date and BAM! 9 months later we were married. thanks matt! so now it is matt's turn. matt and ketty met online a few years ago. ketty is from peru and through a long distance relationship they fell in love. oh how sweet. so now ketty is here and they are getting married in august! YAY! i love these two. they are so sweet and fun and we just love being around them. as you can tell from the pictures they are so funny and i could hardly get a picture of matt without him pulling a face or looking at me when they were supposed to be kissing :) i will explain some of the pictures as they go along. enjoy...

yep he is definetly doing this on purpose.

Sorry Honey! I just had too!!!!

another one of the many faces of matt!

this is so funny to me!!!
acting like robots.
this was ketty's idea. i wonder who won?
lookin good. no, i know i am a major dork. but what do ya do???

Just for fun...

2008-07-18T22:09:00.004-06:00

I saw this on Brooke's blog and thought it looked fun. It was fun, so here ya go. You are supposed to answer the questions by going to google images and typing in the question and picking one of the pictures off of the first page to represent your anwers. So here is me....

My age

Screen name - (This is not me!!!)

Place I would love to go

My favorite place

Favorite thing- besides camera

Favorite food

Favorite animal

Favorite color

Where I was born

Where I live

Past pet

Past love. Still so is!

Best friends nickname

First name

Middle name

Last Name

Bad habit

My first job

Grandmas name

What I am doing now

Erin and Dan- Anniversary Pictures

2008-07-18T01:22:00.003-06:00

Sorry for the delay Erin. I tend to neglect my blog :) I know it is a bad habit....Anyways... I was flattered when Erin of Erin Langford Photography emailed me and asked me to do her and her husband Dan's 1 year anniversary pictures. Me and my husband met them down at the Gateway and had dinner and then went up near the Gallivan Center to do their pictures. It is always a huge compliment to have another photographer ask you to do their pictures. So thank you Erin. We had a BLAST hanging out with you guys. So without further ado....

Elisabeth and Alex's Bridals

2008-07-09T16:43:00.003-06:00

I decided it was probably time to post Elisabeth and Alex's Bridals since their wedding is tomorrow :) I am actually quite sad that it is finally here because I have had so much fun with them. They are both so much fun to be around. I know thier wedding is going to be incredible. My husband and I met Elisabeth and Alex at the Salt Lake Temple to do their bridals. After shooting there for a bit we headed up to the capital building. I love the last one of Alex by the lion. The girl that is in the picture with him is one of my past brides Elaina whose wedding I did last July, so Happy Anniversary Elaina and Jake. I will have more to post from these guys after their wedding so stay tuned!!!!

Angie and James' Wedding

2008-07-08T11:25:00.003-06:00

Angie and James' Wedding was so beautiful. The weather was perfect, an her dress was amazing. Angie and James are so cute together and so in love. It made my job easy. I love when I can just stand back and take candids.They got married at the Bountiful Temple and had their reception in Bountiful as well. Angie and James won my free wedding that I gave out at the Bridal Bliss Fair in February. I am so glad I got the opportunity to work with these two. Thanks for an incredible day!

Their amazing cake by Barbara Wachs of Exclusive Wedding Cakes
Their catering was done by Sally Ally. Her food was amazing! If you are looking for an amazing caterer send me an email and I will give you her information.

Darci's Bridals

2008-07-02T15:22:00.002-06:00

I shot bridals for Darci and Eric a while back. Darci is amazing to work with and boy does that girl know how to work the camera. Not to mention she is gorgeous. She made my job easy to say the least. Darci and Eric are getting married in August and I can't wait! Thanks for a great time guys!!!

Great Shoes!

Love this one! haha! About 2 minutes after he jumped down from the lion, a police officer walked out. Good Timing!

Tiffany and Derek's Wedding

2008-06-30T23:54:00.004-06:00

I shot Tiffany and Derek's wedding last month and Oh My Gosh!!! It has to be one of my all time favorites! I love this couple and I loved everything about their wedding. Tiffany has such good taste in everything she does. Their wedding incredible her dress was stunning and man, these two know how to work the camera! Their wedding was at the Bountiful Temple, Luncheon at Eldredge Manor and Reception at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. Thanks for an awesome time you two! I so enjoyed working with you!

WARNING: Lots of pictures!!!

Pictures around Temple Square:

The Reception:
Tiffany's friend played the harp incredibly well! It added such a nice touch to her already fabulous wedding!

Daddy Daughter Dance:

First Dance:

Anna's Bridals

2008-06-27T17:20:00.003-06:00

Ok, so I shot this bridals like forever ago and am just a wee bit behind on blogging. I am going to try to get caught up on all of my blogging by next week, so here is the beginning.... I shot Anna's bridals at the Castlebrook Reception Center in Layton, where her reception was held (Yes, I have already shot her wedding as well). I had never been there before and it was so beautiful. I loved all of the natural light and windows they have throughout the Reception Center. It was amazing! Anna is my sister in law Melissa's friend. Anna is so much fun to be around. She is so funny and crazy! (as you can see in some of the pictures) I am so happy to have been a part of her big day! Thanks Anna, you Rock!!

Locks of Love

2008-06-24T15:53:00.004-06:00

Over a year ago I started talking to Jayde about donating her hair to Locks of Love. If you don't know what Locks of Love is, it is an organization that collects donated hair and makes wigs for children who have lost their hair due to illness or other causes and who cannot afford to purchase a wig. The children get a new wig free of charge whenever they grow out of the old one until they are 18 years old. Jayde has always had long hair and we thought it would be really neat for her to do something like that. She has been growing her hair out for over a year. In order to donate hair it has to be at least 10 inches long. Well today we cut off 11 inches of hair. Jayde was really nervous before we went into the salon and I thought I would have a hard time, but in a way I am glad to see it go :) No more screaming when I comb her hair and spending countless hours curling her hair just to have it go straight within 2 hours. YAY! So here are some before, during and after pictures. After we cut her hair she said "This is the new me." and "You are not going to see me stop smiling all day!" I am so proud of Jayde for being so sweet and giving. She is such a wonderful girl and I am so proud of her in every way. I am a better person for having her as my daughter. If any of you know Jayde, you know that she has the biggest heart and is such an angel. I am so grateful to have her. I love you baby girl.

BEFORE:

There's no going back now!!!

AFTER:

Out of Town

2008-06-18T17:33:00.001-06:00

I am going to be out of town from June 15th- June 22nd. If you need to reach me you can email me at amanda@amandaabelphoto.com or call me (801) 710-9646. Thanks!!!

Brittany's Bridals

2008-06-13T15:38:00.003-06:00

I shot Brittany's bridals a while ago but couldn't post them because she was afraid that Rocky would see. But since I shot thier wedding last week I am now free to post away. We started out at the Ogden Temple because Brittany wanted something with flowers and then we headed over to 25th street to finish up. I love how they turned out and I loved working with Brittany. She is so sweet and gorgeous and so much fun! I got the cutest pictures with her daughter Brylee (I hope I spelled that right). She was so cute and excited to wear "her wedding dress." But like any kid she quickly got tired of posing and smiling for me. That is alright though, we got some cute ones. Enjoy....

Lisa and Nathan's Wedding

2008-06-13T08:46:00.006-06:00

I shot Lisa and Nathan's wedding at the Ogden Temple in May. It was my first time shooting there. It was a bright, sunny and probably the hottest day that we have had all year! They are such a cute fun couple! They are so in love and so kissy it made my job easy. Thanks for letting me be a part of your special day guys!!!

Love it!!

2008-06-10T22:50:00.002-06:00

I shot Amanda and Prestons engagements a couple of weeks ago. (I am once again behind on blogging:) Amanda and Preston were so much fun! And not to mention gorgeous!!! They were so candid and cute and in love. They were awesome in front of the camera and so natural. I love it when couples can just totally be themselves because the pictures turn out awesome. I have a ton of pictures to post because I am so happy with how they turned out! Thanks for the great time guys and I can't wait for your bridals!!!

We came across this old truck and loved it!!!

Love this one!!! In the top window if you look close enough there is a little cat! Cute!

My Brother...

2008-06-04T11:16:00.004-06:00

This is my little brother Trent and his girlfriend Jackie. They wanted me to take pictures of them for their 4 year anniversary. They have been together almost as long as me and my husband but they are entirely to young to get married :) Although I am sure they will sometime soon! They are so cute together, but I am sure I made them feel a little funny by asking them to kiss so much! Jk. They were great! You guys are so cute and I love you little brother and Jackie too!!

Savana's idea of a good time....

2008-05-30T23:43:00.003-06:00

Before I get onto that subject, I wanted to post a few of Jayde on her last day of school :( I am still not ok with her growing up, but I am very proud of her. She got a perfect report card and I know it is just kindergarten but I am still so proud. She is such a sweet girl. She always wants to help out and do her best. I couldn't ask for a better daughter. Great job baby!! I love you.

Back to the original post....If your idea of a good time is eating oreos and jumping off of the porch again and again and again, then you and Savana have something in common. Gotta love the summer time!!!

Love this one despite the oreo face.

Stacey and Troy's Wedding

2008-05-30T22:52:00.005-06:00

I am a little behind on blogging. I shot Stacey and Troy's wedding at the first of May. They were a referral from Dustin. Thank you Dustin! Stacey and Troy are such a fun and cute couple. Troy is so funny and was constantly doing things to make Stacey laugh. They are going to have such a great life together and I want to wish them the best of luck!!! Thanks for a great day guys! Enjoy...

Isn't this time of year amazing!

Stacey's uncle gave her a clock that he had carved himself and she was really emotional about it. It was so sweet.

My Girl....

2008-05-29T23:14:00.003-06:00

Tonight I am feeling a little bit sad. Tomorrow is my daughters last day of kindergarten and tonight it hit me like a ton of bricks. I can't believe she is growing up so fast. Even more than that is all of the precious time that we now have together after school, to eat lunch together and have movie days and just spend quality time together is now coming to an end. Sure we will have the entire summer together but starting next school year she will be gone all day. My husband says I am overreacting but I am sure any of you moms out there understand what I am talking about. Besides that, kindergarteners still feel so little and precious. They are still so young and get to come home halfway through the day :( Anyways... Jayde had her dance pictures on Tuesday at the dance studio. So I decided that since she was already all dressed up and pretty that I would take advantage of it and take her out on my own for a quick photo shoot. Oh how I just love and adore this girl.... Isn't she so cute and sassy?!?

Savana had to get in on some of the fun!

Tiffany and Derek's Bridals

2008-05-26T17:41:00.007-06:00

Isn't it crazy how time just flies right by??? I swear it was only yesterday that I was meeting with Tiffany for her wedding and now her wedding has came and went. I did Tiffany and Derek's bridals a couple of weeks ago and never got around to blogging them. Their wedding was yesterday so I decided that I needed to blog their bridals before I got to the wedding. I am so so happy with how the bridals turned out. It was my first time shooting at the Captial Building and I loved it. They look so elegant. And aren't Tiffany and Derek just an amzing couple? Tiffany's dress was stunning. I loved everything about it! She got it from Bridal Image in Bountiful. She just looked amazing! These two were so much fun to work with and I so loved getting to know them. I will miss being around these two. They are so natural in front of the camera and always laughing and kissing and having a great time together. Thanks for all of the fun you guys and have fun on your cruise to Mexico! (I am so jealous!) Stay tuned for their wedding as well as tons of other weddings I hope to get on the blog in the next few days. Enjoy....

Website and Email down

2008-05-19T18:54:00.002-06:00

Who knows why??? I surely don't, but we are trying to get it fixed. My website and email (amanda@simplybeautifulphoto.com) are down. If you need to contact me, you can email me at amanda@amandaabelphoto.com or call me at 801.710.9646. I hope to have this problem fixed soon.

I have been Tagged...

2008-05-15T23:03:00.004-06:00

I have been tagged by Erin of Erin Langford Photography.

This is how the game works:
The rules are:
1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged.

What I was going 10 years ago: 10 years ago I was a cheerleader in Jr. High School YAY! GO Spartans! haha

Five things on my to do list today: 1- Finish up my editing. 2- Be a Mommy to my beautiful girls. 3- Take pictures of my brother and his girlfriend for their 4 year anniversary. 4- Do Laundry. 5- Run errands (Walmart, bank, dry cleaners, library, piano practice for Jayde etc...)

Things I would do if I were a billionaire: I would make sure all of my family members bills were paid for life. Start a charity. Let my husband quit is job. Go on a killer vacation. Buy new camera equipment of course. And go on a major shopping spree.

Three of my bad habits: Biting my nails ( I am doing it right now). I am a junk food junkie. And I am a clean freak (just ask my husband)

Five places I’ve lived: South Ogden, Utah. Roy, Utah. Clinton, Utah. Oh wait that is only 3 and all within 5 minutes of each other. I am pretty lame :)

Five jobs I’ve had: a couple of fast food, Telemarketing, My dad owned a dance club that I worked at, CNA work for an assited living home and hospice, Shopko, and my favorite.. Amanda Abel Photography YAY!!!

People I want to know more about (a nice way of saying TAG!)

Kellee, Dustin, Heather, and I can't find anyone else who hasn't been tagged so 3 is the magic number!!!

Heather and Jay's Bridals

2008-05-12T22:22:00.003-06:00

My husband and I shot Heather and Jay's bridals last week down in Ogden at the Union Station and 25th Street (probably my favorite Ogden location). Heather and Jay have been so much fun to work with and are the sweetest people in the world! Heather brought some awesome umbrellas to use in her pictures that she will also incorporate into her wedding. They were killer! I love it when people bring props along to represent themselves. It makes the shoot feel so much more personal. I love the shots we got and am so excited for their wedding! It is going to be so beautiful and I love all of the bright colors. My kinda girl! Now for some pictures...Enjoy...

Look it's me!!!

2008-05-08T13:15:00.002-06:00

I had my husband take a picture of me for my website and blog so here it is... It's me!!

(Good Job Honey!!!)

Angie's Bridals

2008-05-07T13:40:00.004-06:00

I shot Angie's Bridals on Monday at the Salt Lake Temple. Angie and her fiance James won my free wedding giveaway at the Bridal Bliss Fair in February. Angie looked so beautiful. Her dress was so simple and elegant and I just loved it! She got her dress from Bridal Image in Bountiful and so far every dress I have seen from there I have loved! Angie is getting married next week and I am so excited for their wedding. Now for some pictures...

Winter, Summer, Spring and Fall...

2008-05-06T22:57:00.007-06:00

....all in one day that is. Right before Kamille and Chase came out of the temple it was hailing so hard, people were running for cover. When they came up the steps it was cloudy on the verge of sunny and as they made their down to greet their families on came the snow and hail. We ran to the steps and hurried through family pictures with everyone holding umbrellas only to finish and have the sun come shining through. Throughout the rest of our time shooting at the temple we got a mixture of sunny, cloudy, windy, and rainy. I have to say it was a very interesting day, but I love the way their pictures turned out. Kamille and Chase are so cute together and just perfect for each other. I have so enjoyed working with these two and Kamilles mom is just the nicest person ever! Thanks for a great day! Enjoy....

Twilight fans, your gonna love this!!!!!

2008-05-05T23:36:00.006-06:00

If you are a die hard Twilight fan like me, you are going to love this.... (click this link)

Elisabeth and Alex Engagements

2008-05-02T12:55:00.004-06:00

I love this couple! My husband and I met Elisabeth and Alex on Saturday for their engagements and I could tell right away we were going to have an awesome time. These two are so dang cute together and so comfortable in front of the camera that it definetely made my job easy. I shot Elisabeth's brothers wedding last July and I just love their family. I am so happy to be able to work with them again! Me and my husband took Elisabeth and Alex to some fun spots around Downtown Salt Lake. I love doing downtown pictures. They have to be some of my favorites. We had such a blast! They were so willing to do anything I wanted. And sorry for scaring you guys and almost jumping on that homeless guy :) JK Well, anyways... Enjoy..... Oh yeah, if anyone knows how to make my horizontal pictures BIG, please email me. I am so bugged by the way they look.

I love this vintage black and white!

Thanks to my hubby for this one!

Love this one!

How much sleep are you getting?

2008-04-30T15:21:00.005-06:00

I am posting this because it is something that has made a serious impact on my life. I am sure all of you photographers and business owners are familiar with being up at all hours of the night and getting viturally no sleep during the busy times. I have to say that was so me. Staying up until 3 or 4 in the morning and then having to be up by 8 to get my daughter off to school on time. There were so many days when I didn't get up until 8:30 and then having 15 minutes to have my daughter up, dressed, hair done, breakfast and all of the other run around to get her there on time. I admit I was a horrible mother and had her late many days, eating a granola bar in the car on the way to school. Not to mention, I was always tired. I couldn't make it through the day without taking a nap and I was so grouchy with my girls and husband. My body always hurt and I had zero energy. Then on top of all of that I would spend the whole next day trying to make up for all of the time I wasted during the wee hours of the morning, and getting mad at my kids for bothering me when "I had so much to get done" It was having such a negative impact on my whole family. Sound familiar anyone?

After one particularly bad day, of getting my daugther to school late, she missed her show and tell and was so upset. I was upset with her for crying which made her even more upset and that is no way to send a kid off to school. That was when I decided to make a change. I have been going to bed at 12:30 and no later. I get up every morning feeling refreshed at 7:30 (I know that is still not super early, but I have never been a morning person.) We now have time to eat breakfast together and get both of the kids ready and make it to school on time. I cannot tell you the difference it has made in my life. I am more productive and if I have something to do I have to have it done by 12:30. Even if that means I have to work for some time during the day while my kids are playing, my time is spent so much more wisely and productively. And I am not onry with my kids, and understand that they just want attention and mommy. So if this sounds like you, just try it for a week. Go to bed at a specific (early) time every night and I promise it will make a 150% difference in your life. Now that I have beared my heart and soul to you, leave me some comments and let me know what is going on in your life. And now for a picture....

Heather and Jay's Engagements

2008-04-29T10:44:00.005-06:00

I shot Heather and Jay's engagements a while back (I am so horrible at blogging, but I am trying to be better :) We went out to Antelope Island. The day was threatening rain and I almost thought we were going to have to reschedule but the day turned out to be nice after all. Jay has a motorcycle and him and Heather like to ride it together so they thought it would be fun to incorporate it into their pictures. I loved it! It is so much fun to have a little bit of the couples personality in the pictures! (Hint to future brides) They were so much fun! Heather and Jay are getting married in May and I can't wait for their wedding! It is going to be so beautiful! I will be shooting Heather and Jay's Bridals at the end of this week so stay tuned. Until then, Enjoy......

Brittany and Rocky's Engagements

2008-04-28T12:00:00.007-06:00

I shot Brittany and Rocky's engagements about a week ago. We first went up near Causey Dam to Brittany's property and then we headed up to Causey Dam to get some sunset pictures. While we were waiting for the sun to set I had a great time talking to Brittany and Rocky and getting to know them a little better. They are both so much fun to be around and I can tell we were going to be great friends! Brittany and Rocky are getting married in June and I can't wait! Their wedding will be so beautiful! Thanks for such a great time you two! Enjoy...

Lisa and Nathan Bridals

2008-04-22T09:04:00.007-06:00

I shot bridals last week for Lisa and Nathan. They wanted to go to Memory Grove in Salt Lake. It is such a beautiful park with so many spots for pictures. The sun that evening was amazing and I love all of the flare and direct sun pictures! Lisa is so spunky and just wants to have fun all of the time. She is constantly pulling faces or doing something out of the ordinary. Her and Nathan are so cute together and their wedding will be a blast. Thanks for a great time you guys! Enjoy...

Tiffany and Derek Engagements

2008-04-21T16:48:00.008-06:00

I shot Tiffany and Derek's Engagements last week at Liberty Park. I had never shot at Liberty Park before and I loved it! There were so many different places to shoot. Also having a couple like these two totally made my job easy. They were so fun to be around and so cute together. Also they were so willing to do anything I asked them to which was awesome! I loved getting to know them better and cannot wait for their bridals and wedding! They are both so sweet and down to earth. Derek was making Tiffany laugh the whole time and it was so fun to watch and capture their love for each other! Enjoy.... and please leave comments. I love comments!

Lindsay and Braden's Wedding

2008-04-14T12:20:00.010-06:00

I absolutely loved Lindsay and Braden's wedding! It was so beautiful, emotional, fun and exciting all in one. As Lindsay and Braden walked out of the temple there were so many tears and emotions from everyone! I loved being able to capture all of the emotion and love that everyone had for these two. Lindsay and Braden are the sweetest most down to earth people and I am can see why it was such a tearful event. They had David Perry as their videographer and he was so awesome to work with. If anyone needs a videographer check him out. He had so many great ideas and was so much fun to work with! They had their reception at the Union Station and it was so beautifully decorated. I love shooting at the Union Station. There are so many places for awesome pictures and we had the most awesome window light coming in through the windows at the reception. It was amazing! Thanks Lindsay, Braden and families for letting me be a part of such an incredible day!

Ali and Andrew's Wedding

2008-04-10T00:22:00.010-06:00

I shot Ali and Andrew's wedding at the first of March (I know I am a little behind on blogging these). Their wedding was so phenomenal! We started at Ali's house in the morning for some getting ready pictures. Then the wedding was at the Salt Lake Temple. Afterwards they had a luncheon at The Lion House and that evening a reception at Heritage Gardens in Sandy. It was such a gorgeous wedding! Ali and Andrew were a referral from the wonderful Kellee with Moments by Kellee and I so appreciate the referral! Thanks Kel! Ali is so gorgeous and so sweet! And her dress was AMAZING! I have never seen anything like it! Ali and Andrew were so sweet together and so much in love. It showed in every picture how much they love each other. I am sure they are going to have an amazing life together and always make each other happy! Thanks so much to everyone for letting me be a part of such a wonderful day! Ali and Andrew, you guys are awesome and I wish you the best of luck! Now for some pictures! YAY! (Beware, there are a ton!) Enjoy...

Watching the slideshow at the luncheon...

Ali's gorgeous red shoes. LOVE THEM!!!!

And the AMAZING cake!!!

They had the cutest table of candy with little bags for each guest to fill up. I loved it! I swear if I could redo my wedding......

1st Dance
Dancing with Dad.

And finally, Dad wiping her tears. So sweet!

Changes....

2008-04-07T12:40:00.001-06:00

I know most people hate change but it is inevitable. Some times it is good and sometimes it is bad. In this case it is both. The worst part is that my prices have icreased, however I will honor my old prices until April 15th with a deposit. The good news is I have some awesome new albums on the way and my website has a new look. Check it out and let me know what you think! Check back tomorrow for some awesome shoots from this past month!

Let's go fly a kite....

2008-04-04T15:03:00.005-06:00

Last Saturday we took our kids to fly kites. It was sooo cold but we had a great time and I got some way cute pictures! It was so much fun to watch Jayde try and get her kite up and keep it up and Savana had fun for about 5 minutes until she spotted the playground and that was the end of that. Bu, they were so cute! I love to watch them be kids and try new things. They are so sweet and they mean so much to me. I just love to spend time with them and they always make me laugh! Anyways, Enjoy....

Lisa and Nathan Engagements

2008-04-01T09:16:00.007-06:00

I did Lisa and Nathan's engagement session before I left for Vegas. We started out at the old Post Office Building in Ogden. As I was pulling into the parking lot I saw this awesome old rundown building behind the post office building and just knew we had to go shoot there too. I was so excited! I love finding new locations! I love the way these pictures turned out and Lisa and Nathan were a great couple to work with! They fit the location perfectly! I had such a great time! Stay tuned for a couple more weddings and engagement sessions as well as some personal stuff! Enjoy....