Blustery, beautiful, fall Monday. I love fall! Most people seem to come alive in spring, when things are bright green and new, but fall has always been my favorite time. Gorgeous blue skies and cool temperatures rev up my creativity, and the smell of crisp fall air brings a smile to my heart.

We are coming up on four months of living in Nashville, and I am still loving every moment of living in this beautiful town. We have been blessed with so many amazing opportunities and met some of the most encouraging and fabulous people I’ve ever had the opportunity to know. They are definitely changing the direction of our lives for the better! From photographers to musicians…old friends and new, we are having the time of our lives.

Some of the people influencing me personally recently are the people involved with Songs for the Cure. This is not the first time I’ve talked about Songs for the Cure on here, and probably won’t be the last A huge shout out to Lindsey Brown and Tonja Rose for getting me involved, and to Nile “Big Daddy” Peaytt who heads up the organization. I’ve met so many wonderful kids…kids who always have Hope, no matter what the circumstances. Tay, Alex, Ireland, Savannah…and tons more. Although I enjoy every minute of the time I’ve spent photographing shows and benefits for Songs for the Cure, I’ve always felt a little tug, as if I’m not quite sure what I’m doing is actually doing anything to help the kids. But I’ve come to realize that although I don’t have much money or time to give…I can give photos. And more than that, I can use those photos to spread the word about these beautiful kiddos and childhood cancer. If even one person reads this blog and sends up a prayer…I know that that prayer will be felt. So that is my hope

So…I have some photos to share from two different 30 Days of Hope events! First, some images from the benefit hosted by World Cup of Tea in Franklin to raise money for Ireland Lane:

And next…some images from the fabulous Songs for the Cure show at The Red Rooster, to raise money for Tay and Alex. I absolutely LOVED this show. If you aren’t familiar with Nashville…you can almost always find writer’s round shows going on around town. Various song writers will get together, and take turns playing songs that they wrote that may or may not have been cut by artists who put them on the radio. In our short time in Nashville, we’ve heard the writers who have written hits for artists like Rascal Flatts, Gary Allan, The Beach Boys, Garth Brooks, and tons more. I have to say that I prefer hearing the original writers over the big names any day There’s just something about hearing the song as it was originally intended…with the thoughts and feelings that accompanied the original writing. Who cares if it’s not the pretty, marketable face? This is what’s REAL. And I love it!

So…a few more favorites! These writers are so amazing, and many of them were there because cancer has touched them or their families. So wonderful for them to be supporting such a wonderful cause!

Some of the Titans cheerleaders came out to support Tay and Alex too!

Love it when everyone jumps in on a song during a writer’s round…so fun!

The wonderful Jo Dee Messina was also there!

So fun!

If you have a minute, please send up a prayer and/or good thoughts for anyone affected today by childhood cancer. I know I have the best, most caring readers in the world You all are fabulous! To see more photos from the various shows and events, be our friend on Facebook!

If you missed it, don’t forget to see Amanda and Jim’s sneak peek from their beautiful fall Kentucky wedding posted late last night! Also, we still have some space available for our fall mini-sessions October 23 and 24th! Contact us for more information

Have a great week everyone, and be blessed!

Just a few favorites…

This one’s a little different processing wise than what my style normally is…but I thought it just fit this shot so well! Fun!

Thanks for taking the time to check these out! Many thanks to the lovely Tonja Rose who came long to help with styling, and songwriter Aaron Barker for letting us shoot on his beautiful farm!

Have a great evening, everyone!

As I mentioned the other day, Songs for the Cure is something I’ve just recently learned about, but man, I am definitely getting sucked in by these kids, and the enthusiasm of the Songs for the Cure team! Lindsey and Tonja were (I believe) the main organizers of last night’s event, which specifically benefited 3 year old Ansley. She couldn’t be there last night due to chemo treatments, but there were videos projected all night of Ansley doing her favorite thing in the world….dancing. So adorable!

Chris and I were so happy to be able to help out and volunteer last night! An amazing group of artists and songwriters including (hopefully I’ll remember them all…) AJ Masters, Rob Harris, Deanna Harper, Sherrie Austin, Matt Warren, Tonja Rose, Adam Wheeler, Greg Johnson, Noah Gordan, and Rand Bishop came out to perform and support Ansley, and it was really an INCREDIBLE show! So much talent.

Here’s a few favorites!

And this is lovely Ms. Ireland. Ireland is another Songs for the Cure kid who came out last night and painted fingernails to raise money for Ansley. So sweet! September 26 at World Cup of Tea in Franklin is a fundraiser for Ireland by Songs for the Cure…contact me for more information!

I hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend! Say a prayer for all these kids and their families, and remember, there’s always HOPE!

Love,

Dr. Kelly is part of the vocal faculty at WKU, and is just an amazingly talented mezzo soprano. She has been a featured performer all over the country, and is currently developing a cabaret series of performances in Bowling Green, Ky, for this summer! (Her husband, who made an emergency lipstick delivery during the session, is also an incredible vocalist!) Just in case you couldn’t tell from the photos, Dr. Kelly is inspired by Audrey Hepburn, and many things (musical and fashion!) from the 1930s-1950s.

We had the BEST time shooting this week…it’s not often that shooting for myself and my artistic needs perfectly matches up with what a client also has in mind for a shoot (Sidenote for photographers: I shot this session entirely with our new 50mm f/1.4. Oh my gosh! I am in love with that lens…it takes a lot for me to put up my 24-105, but this lens definitely did it!) I also absolutely adored her vintage hats and dresses, LOVE! So, without further ado, here are a few favorites!

Starting things off with a modern headshot

Ummmmm….speechless. Still.

LOOOOOOOOOOVE!

Thank you so much, Dr. Kelly, for letting me play and have so much fun with this session! You are amazing!

Just wanted to let you all know about a fabulous concert this weekend if you are looking for some fun weekend plans! Saturday, May 1 at 7:30 the RedShirts and Treblemakers (or Treblemakers and RedShirts, depending who you are talking to ) will be presenting their spring concert! It will be at First Christian Church in Bowling Green, Ky, free admission, and will be fantastic and fun.

It will also be my wonderful husband’s last college concert….and he’s really pretty much amazing if I do say so myself Not that I’m biased or anything.

Hope to see you there!

So, it became my goal to document activities through the music department so they would have some updated photos to use for recruiting and promotion (instead of pictures of people who graduated before I even started at WKU haha). I had so much fun, and highly encourage you to check out some performances, and support the arts. Arts education is SO SO important…I could talk about it forever. But I won’t here haha.

Presenting some of my favorites…featuring (in no particular order) the Big Red Marching Band (directed by Dr. Jeff Bright), the WKU Symphonic Band (directed by Dr. Gary Schallert and featuring Lee Blakeman), the WKU Chorale (directed by Dr. Paul Hondorp, and featuring Dr. Wayne Pope and Dr. Liza Kelly), the WKU Jazz Band (directed by Dr. Marshall Scott, and featuring Vince DiMartino and Dr. Wayne Pope), the Bowling Green-Western Chamber Singers, Chorale, and Chamber Orchestra (directed by Dr. Paul Hondorp and Dr. Bill Scott), the lovely ladies of the Treblemakers, and the handsome men (including my husband!) of the Redshirts!  Whew! Enjoy (Click thumbnails to see images larger)

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We have one more wedding this year, with Katie and Aaron in Georgetown, Ky, and then we get to kick off 2010 with Michelle and Pedro in New Albany, IN on January 1! We can’t to see all the wonderful people we get to work with in the coming year Thank you all for your support and encouragement this year, you all are the best!

In June, I did a shoot for up and coming country singer/songwriter Tonja Rose. I cannot even tell you what a huge blessing this whole project has been! First, Tonja and her manager Lindsey and their team at Identical Entertainment are just beyond awesome. I could not ask for a sweeter, more genuine group of people to work with! Second, Tonja is just so incredibly talented. Her cd, The Heart of Me, is being released this Thursday, and I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy!

This whole project has been a long time in the making, with loads of prayer, love, and time poured into it, and I am so thrilled to have been able to be a part of it! Tonja, we are all behind you all the way!

I also want to give a huge shout out to Lyndsay Hubbart, who did Tonja’s hair for the shoot, and Kelly Henderson who did Tonja’s makeup. These two are so fabulous, and helped me out so much!

I hope you enjoyed the images, and everyone should head over to Tonja’s website or Myspace and check out her incredible music! I am sure we will definitely be hearing more from her in the future!

So fun! I love all these guys (especially that super tall one second from the left in all the group photos, haha!), and it was great to spend the afternoon with them!

Victory Brass is one of Kentucky’s premier brass ensembles, and every so often performs concerts featuring their Friends in the music world. (Wow…can I be any more articulate with that? Ha! I need to start blogging earlier in the evenings) Sunday’s concert featured many incredible musicians that it was just such an honor to see perform. I especially enjoyed seeing my husband enjoy the concert and become re-inspired by some of the best trumpet players around. Between that and a pretty much perfect performance of Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man, it was a good evening for me (Fun fact-we “played” that last year or the year before at WKU….and as much as I love our trumpet and horn players, I definitely preferred their version haha).

Anyway, just wanted to share a few favorite photos! If you are in the Lexington area next time these guys put on a concert–go! You won’t regret it!

Scott Heersche and Fred Williams

Chris Bettler-fabulous tuba player, and also happens to be my brother’s trombone instructor! (Sorry about your luck on that, Chris! Just kidding )

Brad Kerns (I believe) and Ryan Lehr, who is a graduate of WKU

The inspiring Vince DiMartino

Mark Clodfelter

Tom Hooten-Incredible!

Vince DiMartino and GySgt Doug Burian

So that’s it for tonight! I wish I had a wide shot of everyone playing together, but I was playing lazy photographer and only brought in one lens. Oops. Don’t tell anyone I hope you all had a happy Monday and have a wonderful week!