Monthly Archives: April 2014

Getting in front of the camera… it’s something I rarely ever get to do, let alone feel comfortable doing!  I’m amazed at my clients and friends who love doing it!

Recently my girlfriend Elizabeth and I have been planning a little mommy and me session.  We’ve been planning for quite some time but it’s just been so hard.  Linc has been at the wonderful stage of explore explore explore (which is nice for saying not so cooperative).

Plus let me just be honest… these first few months since January have been rough for me and this adjustment period has been a weird one!

Elizabeth finally sat me down and said look girlfriend, I need some new updated work to showcase my skills right now for my new blog and upcoming website… please please just come with me this weekend and sit for like 10 minutes even!  It would really help me out!

In hindsight, what I think she was really saying was “Brooke, please get out of the house, get out of your rut and I’m doing this to help you see… visually see what you have right in front of you!  Help you to see who you are and who you used to be rather than this shell that you think you’ve turned into!”

At least… that’s what I gathered from our walk back to the car that night (and that’s without even seeing one single image yet).

This is why I love photography so very much.  It can take you to places and reveal to you things about yourself that you need to see but refuse to believe about yourself.  Things and character traits that other people see every day and just associate with you as soon as your name pops into their head but because we are our own worst critics… we just are blind to them!

I am a planner person.  I realized after having a baby that I love my schedules and I sometimes rigidly stick by them!  I am in a season of my life right now where I am realizing I don’t want to be this type of person and I most definitely don’t want to always be this type of mom.  Schedules are important don’t get me wrong and consistency is important for little ones;  but there is also a time for letting go and going with the flow!

I loved that Elizabeth helped me break into that type of mommy-hood!

On a whim, that saturday I packed Linc and Elizabeth in the car and we went for a picnic dinner date!  I didn’t worry about whether he would eat his dinner (which he didn’t… my kid is weird he wont’ do kid food so no pb and j for him, he prefers thai food or something that has peanut sauce on it or hummus!)  I didn’t worry about his bed time that night or his crazy allergies right now!

We just played and we played HARD!  We played well into the sunset hours and in doing so, I found my way back to this person that I was when I first met my husband:  playful and goofy and carefree… relaxed!  I found the person I have been fighting my way to get back to for so long now!

And you know what… this new mommy attitude has continued since that session and it’s just creating even more of special bond between me and my little Linc!

So please… the next time you are wondering if you should book that photo session that does cost quite a bit of money… I do understand that!  Or whether you should save it or spend it on something else… please remember MY story!

Remember how even though I capture these moments every day for people, I had an amazing AHA moment myself!  Remember that when I did get these images back and looked at them on the computer, I cried because I got to see the type of relationship I have with my son and how playful it is when sometimes I feel like all I do is say NO NO NO!  Remember how I when I saw these images I felt beautiful and graceful which is amazing because I am clumsy and goofy!

Just remember that I will have these memories… and remember how I feel right now for the rest of my life but the nail polish will chip… the dinner you might go to on a date night will only last a few hours and the movie will always make it to DVD.

These feelings are irreplaceable!  And they will always be here for me to look back and reflect on for as long as I am living.  What’s even more beautiful is that they will be here for Linc to look back and reflect on, leaving behind my legacy and also providing him with beautiful memories from his childhood!

What could be more priceless than that?!

And for the REAL mommy’s out there… the real LOVE snotty kisses are the BEST kisses!

Thank you so much Elizabeth for capturing these AMAZING photos for me!  I can not even express into words what they mean!

Love you much!

all photos courtesy of ElizabethFriskePhotography

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One question I get asked a lot from other photographers just starting out is where they can find good resources to learn some solid technical information!

There are TONS of great resources out there… and a million places to find them depending on where you want to look and how you learn.  That’s probably the most important thing to know… how you learn.  There are videos on the web if you are a visual learner, there are blogs if you are a blog reader!  

I am a book reader!  An OLD SCHOOL book reader; and by that I mean I read my books with my high lighter in hand, notebook by the bed, pen in my teeth and glasses usually pushed so far into the bridge of my nose it leaves a bruise!

Here are some of my favorite and still to this day go to resources!

  • Scott Kelby’s Digital Photography Set:  These are by far not fun reading.  There are really technical and while he is funny.. it’s a manual!  My pages are bent and dog eared.  They have writing all over the sides of the pages and are pretty much colored in different highlighter (there is maybe two words on each page that aren’t colored over).  I believe in ALL of his stuff and A LOT of his manuals and books.  This set is an easier to read set of 4 books and are great if you are just starting out.
  • EXPOSED:  This is Jasmine Star’s magazine/book that she put out.  When I first started I religiously read her blog every morning!  She is so inspiring and open and honest!  In her Exposed she shares so many helpful and empowering tips that I feel every photographer can benefit from.  She is a wedding photographer so it is primarily focused on weddings and couples but I find it helpful for my children and families as well!  As a new photographer, reading this helped me build confidence.  Now, I find myself reading this when I’m facing a situation where I need some inspiration, or a little boost, or a little kick in the pants!
  • Digital Camera Magazine:  This is a magazine my dad subscribes to and he always saves the issues for me when he is finished!  This has everything from camera tips and information, lighting, editing tips, and even top gear ratings!  I love to go through and see all the images and what’s going on with the photography world!  I find lots of inspiration and new perspectives on things just by flipping through this.  This magazine also helps to remind me that my photography is MY ART!  I have the ability to create and be free without fitting into a mold or someone else’s idea of what my images should look like!  There is beauty in what I see and my clients choose me based on how I view the world!
  • Chase Jarvis Blog:  He’s amazing.. enough said.  Just go there!
  • Katelyn James Blog: Since we are talking blogs… Katelyn James blog is extremely helpful for photographers.  She writes about everything from editing to work flow and organization!  Plus she’s kind of awesome!

These are just a few of the resources out there!  Go searching and you can find whatever it is that you are looking for!  This is such a fun and exciting world!  There are endless ways to show who you are and what you see… but the best way to do that is to learn how to work the camera the best technical way you can!  So start reading or watching or catching up on your blogs!

Happy searching!

 

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I’ll take all the rain and april showers… as long as we keep having beautiful sunny days in between!  No more snow… no more chilly days!  Let me break out the flip flops and the spring clothes and I’m a happy momma!

Let us play outside until way past bedtime and wake up to breakfast on the deck… with beautiful Piccaso-esq additions! 😉

AND… without further ado.

List Randomizer

There were 9 items in your list. Here they are in random order:

  1. Cara
  2. Damien
  3. Brandi
  4. Meg
  5. Melissa
  6. Meredith
  7. Laura
  8. Amie
  9. Kimberly

The WINNER of the stylized family session that I posted about last Weds… is CARA!!!! Congratulations Cara!  I will be contacting you today to talk all about the details!!! I’m so excited to work with you and your family!

Hope everyone has a great start to this new week!

xo

B

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