If I’m not mistaken, Kenzie was my very first newborn shoot after going digital. I remember crowding up in the apartment behind our house with a muslin backdrop and the cheapest set of lights you’ve ever seen. Amazing what kind of blessings God can bring about in three years time. Today, though… we were all about little Joshua… Kenzie’s newly one year old brother. No nap, bad weather and way too many acorns to catch his eye… but we still came out on top today. Jeff and I love this family so much… it’s going to be REALLY hard to see them leave next year (Don’s military), but I’ll be holding my breath for them to return when that “tour” is over. They HAVE to come back, who else would take their family portraits?!?!

We’ve been taking pictures for our church directory the last two weeks, and here’s the one we grabbed today before hitting the outside stuff. Seriously, three clicks for this. How photogenic can one family be? It would be sickening if I didn’t now how amazing they were INSIDE.

And since we were waiting for one more family to arrive before heading out, I was able to get THIS gem!

Few people can kick it with my sarcasm and stay tit-for-tat with me. But Stacey is one of them… that’s the mom… not the toddler. We always love having she and Mike come in for their shoots because they’re so much fun. This was the first time Lesley was really INTO the shoot… meaning, she KNEW she was getting her portraits done and she wanted final approval of each shot. She also wanted to potty every three minutes… which was hysterical. I think she just liked my bathroom. But it was okay with me because I got a BIG hug at the end… from Lesley… not Mike and Stacey.

My favorite of the day…

Back in March, Elizabeth caught the bouquet at her sister Meghan’s wedding. Ross? He caught the garter. Let that be a warning to the rest of you single people who think it’s all fun and games when the DJ calls out for you to gather on the dance floor. That can be a pretty expensive catch! I’m just sayin’.

So today, we headed out to downtown, historic New Bern, where their engagement began… an adorable B&B named Aerie. We had so much fun, though it was hot as heck out there! Elizabeth brought an “emergency kit” of bottled water and frozen bath cloths. Hysterical! But no one was laughing when they got thirsty! I love couples who just relax and enjoy the day… Elizabeth and Ross did exactly that!

E- thanks so much for being so wonderful this weekend! I wish I could show off your bridals, too!

Below is the balcony where Ross proposed!

I wish to GOODNESS that I could take on more senior work! But the ones who are calling to book now are looking for Fall ‘08 or Spring ‘09 spots and we don’t have ‘em! I absolutely LOVE doing these. I love giving them something different… and doing something that really reflects the client, not just a generic pose or location that everyone goes to. This is SO important to me. No other age tries harder to get themselves understood… and I love being able to showcase that in photographs.

Meet Katie. I think she was 12 or 13 when I first met her family… she’s so sweet and SO photogenic! As you can tell, she’s also very specifically stylized. This gave me a GREAT opportunity to shoot in places that I’d never gone to before… or to take a place we’ve used and find a different angle… because Katie could take it. We also tossed in her boyfriend for a few… such a great couple. They’ve been together for almost two years (well, a year, ten months and one day… if you really wanna know).

Thank you, Katie, Ms. Debbie (and Jesse!) for letting me have fun and be creative today!

Lots of changes happening at the studio! Many for the better, but one is bitter sweet. Lots of you have gotten to know my client rep, Sarah, over the past year. She’s done an amazing job whipping our appointments into shape and trying her best to work on your behalf so that your time with us would be happy and fruitful! But now, Sarah is refocusing on her family and all of the great things they have going on in Seattle! We’re so going to miss her around here! Luckily, she’s also one of my best friends, so I’m still gonna remain connected. She can’t get rid of me THAT easily!

This brings us to a new member of the Portraiture by Melanie family…

Say hello to Courtney Johnson!

Courtney and her husband, Brian, live here in Kinston with their newborn baby, Becton. We met them about a year ago when they started attending Grace and joined our home group. We love them to death and are so happy to have Courtney cross over into photography land! She will now be our studio manager and will not only being doing the job that Sarah had previously tackled, but will also be handling some of the business end of things for us, so that Jeff and I can focus on the art. Doesn’t that sound lovely?!

So if you’ve gotten a phone call or e-mail in the last week, and you’re wondering what in the world happened to Sarah, now you know! Courtney is excited to help out any way she can… try not to work her too much as she learns her way around here.