Flash's First Trip to the Beach

So this past weekend, we took a trip to the beach and camping (and back to the beach!) for Amy's birthday, which was so fun, and me and Billy brought Flash along. He's never been in the water before (besides bathtime, which he hates), so we weren't sure how it was going to go. But I think he had a lot of fun, and we have some helpful ideas for next time.


It's really hard to take pictures at the beach, you know it? This may come as a shock to you, but the beach is so SANDY. I didn't want it getting into my camera, and I didn't want the camera bumping into my swimsuit and getting all wet. I didn't even bring it down to the beach until the second day we were there, because I just didn't want to mess with it, but then I realized it was Flashy's first beach trip and must be documented.

Y'all, we wore this dog OUT. The look you see here on his face is a much milder version of the "I hate you people and hope you die" look that he gave us all night Sunday. He did a LOT of walking in the sand and up the dunes, and we made him swim too, which he did pick right up but isn't naturally built for. The terriers aren't so much swimmers. But it was VERY hot out, and he liked laying right there in the surf where he could cool off his belly.

Flash later made friends with a little beagle/basset hound mix puppy who didn't want to get in the water. Her tie-out was close enough that she could, but she just wasn't into it. So Flash laid right down in the surf (we think to show off), and she started howling. He turned around to her, all Mr. Cool Guy, like, "What? I thought everyone did this. It's no big deal."

Here's the baby swimming and looking miserable. He was so cute though, and fast! And he got better and better at swimming, even though he always turned straight around and headed for the shore. Next time we bring him, we're going to make it a one day trip so he doesn't get so worn out, and we're going to get him a doggie life jacket. We think that'll make swimming easier and less scary/stressful for him.

That's a little bit of Amy that you see there holding his leash. Flashy LOVES Amy, and with totally good reason. She's like the best doggie aunt he could ever want, because she totally spoils him and takes him outside whenever we have sleepovers, and she plans activities for him in the city, and while we were on the beach, she rigged him a little tent out of a blanket, some bags, a kite (!), and some shoes so that he could get in the shade. She pointed out to him that he could dig in the sand, so he jumped right in and helped her out by digging himself a cool trench in the sand. It was all too cute for words.

And speaking of Flash, and digging, and sand ... You know, I told Flash before we left that this was going to be a fun weekend and he could get as dirty as he wanted, and he took me all the way up on it. This is my sandy puppy, and this is how he got that way:

Oh yeah, really get it worked in there, don't leave one inch of fur uncrusted! (Semi-related, we took Uncrustables with us in the cooler to the beach, and I have to say, they were the perfect beach food. No chance of anything spoiling and making you sick, and you can have PB&J without getting sand in it. There's my hot top of the day.)

And then there was this. Oh yes, that's my little terrier. I think we have some pictures of Flashy doing this exact thing in the snow, too. I believe it was Amy that called him a dog for all seasons, which made me chuckle. He seriously wanted to roll around in as much sand as possible, and he succeeded pretty admirably. He did this EVERY SINGLE TIME he got out of the water. And then he went and laid on our towels. Because that's just the kind of guy he is.

I don't know what it is, but I really like those red tone pictures. I know I might be alone on this, but different strokes, ya know, and it's totally my blog! Get your own! (Seriously, do, and then tell me about it so I can add it to my Google Reader.)

But this one was my "Hello, lover!" pic. You guys, I love the beach. And Lake Michigan isn't an ocean, but for living in the midwest, it's a really close, really good substitute. The water is a little cold, but the sand is pretty soft and the sun shines and it's nice. We couldn't go to one of the busier beaches because we had Flash and dogs aren't allowed there, but they do have areas where you can bring your dog and this is one of them. We actually discovered this little beach last year and it was truly a treasure of a find, completely free with parking and a bathroom, and almost deserted. It was busier this time around, but the weather has been so atrocious that I think we've all had cabin fever and everyone hit the beach at once.

And this is the view from the other side. I loved the foggy day and how it got misty as you got further away on either side, but I also sort of LOVE the smokestacks here. I think it adds a certain something, don't you?



I'm in love with summer. It's major.

Faux Vintage

You have never met a person more excited for the weekend than this girl, and this is an extra awesome weekend coming up because it's Amy's birthday and to celebrate the occasion, we're going camping at Indiana Dunes State Park! It's supposed to be really nice on Saturday and Sunday, and I can't wait to take pictures. We can't go to the main beach because Flash will be with us, but we did find a really outstanding quieter beach just a few miles away last year that we'll be returning to. I'm thinking about sneaking off to the main beach for a few crowd snapshots, but we'll see how motivated I actually feel after playing in the water and baking in the sun for a couple hours.

Meanwhile, I guess this is just a pretty major week for posting, but I had a couple fun shots laying around and I thought I'd share. Plus, it's Friday, no one wants to work and maybe you're here on my blog killing time, so we'll also have a little story time too. Eh?

I actually took this picture while I was shooting Kylie, because it really jumped out and grabbed me. I realized the other day when I was hanging out with Amy that it reminded me of something, and that is the infamous duck shirt.

When I was in college, I lived down the hall in the dorms from some girls who were super fun but also got into some shenanigans here and there. One night, they got a little on the drunk side (and by that I mean totally hammered) and stole this shirt off of someone's clothesline. It was one of those old school looking nature shirts with a couple of ducks in a marsh, sleeveless, and it looked like someone had modified it to make it more form fitting. While I didn't (and don't) approve of stealing clothing off someone's clothesline, there was no denying its awesomeness. The girls couldn't remember where they were when they took it, so there was also no giving it back. Just to be clear on that point.

So one day, I took my trash down to the trash room and there on top of the pile was the duck shirt. There was no way, NO WAY, I was letting this thing become garbage. I salvaged it and gave it a good home where it could be properly loved and worn.

Fast forward a couple years and I'm living in Indy and Amy is undoubtedly at my house looking for something fun to wear, most likely during Best Summer Ever, since we had all kinds of fun things to get dressed for that year, and she pulled out the duck shirt. It looked magnificent on her and I hadn't worn it in a couple years, so I told her to keep it. Because honestly, that seems to me at this point like the spirit of the duck shirt. Its happiness is meant to be shared.

So anyway, she came out wearing it again last weekend and I was so excited, and then I remembered this picture. Is there a point to this story? Not really. But it happened, and that's probably as valid a reason as any for sharing it with you. :)

I am more than a little in love with this picture, and at first glance you'd think it reminded me of my friends Lynn and Andy, which it does, but mostly, I just think this picture looks like friendship. And I didn't notice when I first wrote that last sentence, but the orange one even says "Buddy" on it, so that even more illustrates my point.

And this last one is a picture I took last weekend at RibFest up near Amy's house in Wrigleyville/Lakeview. I realized at this point that all my favorite pictures of things I take just out and about lately have a sweet vintagey feel. And who doesn't love vintage, by the way? I'm a very "more is more" kind of girl, and I like kitsch and retro and "charming". I always ooooh and aaaah at the appropriate places for modern design, clean lines, and minimalism, but in my heart, I'd always rather have a giant hot dog wrapped in an American flag and squirting itself with condiments sitting in my living room. Which may actually tell you all you need to know about me.

The other thing I really like about this picture is that it reminds me of the drive-in, which as we all know, I am in love with. Every drive-in I've ever been to has that old snack bar video with the hot dog doing flips and then jumping into the bun and I LOVE it. And if you need a reference point, it's playing behind Danny Zuko in Grease when he's singing that Oh Sandy song. I even have it as a piece of flair on my Facebook, so you know it's serious.

Alright, that does it for Photo Fun Day Friday! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Future Horror Movie Superstar Michael!

Alright, you guys, you're gonna love this. I think it's pretty well-established how much I love, and I mean LOOOOOVE the horror movies. It's serious.

Michael here needed some headshots, so we planned a time to get together and that's when I started asking him what kind of acting he was wanting to do and he told me he wanted to get into HORROR MOVIES! How unbelievably cool is that? I am so for it, and you know I'll be all huddled up in my seat, breaking Billy's hand with one hand and pointing at the screen with the other, yelling, "I KNOW THAT GUY!" I'm so excited for that day.

I don't know if anyone believes in signs, but let me just tell you a couple things that may be interesting coincidences, or may be omens of success. First of all, his name is MICHAEL MYERS. Michael Myers, people! For those not into the whole horror movie thing, that's the scary dude in the Halloween movies.

Secondly, we did the first part of the shoot at a forest preserve, and we had the weirdest moment with this little blackbird hovering in the air and squawking at us. I've never seen anything like it in my life. I gave Billy an account of the story later, and as you know from the babies, when I do voiceovers, everyone gets a little ghetto, so it pretty much turned into a turf war between us and the bird. But I TOTALLY digress. The point is, it was all very Hitchcockian. More horror royalty! Good signs, I'm telling you people!

I got so wrapped up in horror nerding after that last pic that I didn't say much about it, but I think that it probably speaks for itself. This is obviously a variation of the same shot.



Michael has very pretty eyes, as I think you'll get a better view of in some of the coming pictures, and I loved the outdoorsy look. Not very scary, of course, but you have to have a wide range so that you can fool the heroine into thinking that you're a nice guy so that it's SUPER shocking when you turn on her with a chainsaw or whatever.

Also, fun common interest sidenote, Michael is the only person I know besides myself and Billy (who I basically forced) who watched Scream Queens on VH1. Man, I loved that show. I think it's time for the Scream Kings version, and I nominate Michael Myers.



Michael's super cute, super fun girlfriend Kim came along and kind of acted as my impromptu assistant--she ran after my bag when I forgot it, and she stood behind me entertaining Michael and making him feel good about himself.

And aren't they CUTE together? He is majorly giving her The Look. I can only hope that this doesn't end up in scary rubber masks and blood and guts! (I really hope I'm not taking this all too far and coming off like a complete weirdo who's making people uncomfortable. I just REALLY love horror movies and get REALLY excited about them, and I'm happy that someone else loves them too and I get to talk about it. So hopefully everyone is just enjoying it with me and not thinking I'm a sociopath.)



This picture is really interesting to me, actually. I shot Michael from a lower angle because he's thin enough to get away with it (usually shooting from below is unflattering, almost universally, in my opinion--you have to have a very strong jawline for it to work, at least in my experience). And even as I was taking it, I LOVED it, and I knew it was incredible. I joyously announced that it was The Hot, and Kim agreed, and I never chimped it, I was so sure. (Chimping, for those not in the nerdy photographer know, is looking at the picture on the back of your camera--monkey see, monkey do, if you will.) I totally should have, because they were really blown out. I played around with them and decided they MAY be salvageable in black and white, so I told Michael that and it ended up being one that he chose. I consider it a very beautiful photograph although with a bit of an experimental look, but I love how his eyes really jump off the page at you.



Speaking of, Michael did choose all of these photos from our shoot to use. I loved this lens flare pic, but I was a little surprised he chose it, and I don't even know why. I mean, who doesn't love some lens flare? I guess I thought maybe it was something that photographers like more than clients, but I am proven wrong! But anyway, his choice is my gift to anyone curious about how I got some lens flare (and it was my gift from the internet, so, you know, very rare, valuable, sentimental, etc.). Apparently, the trick is a smaller aperture. Awesome, right? And so easy. I tend to shoot with a pretty wide aperture, so this fact didn't really present itself to me, and I had to read it. Maybe someone out there is the same way, and now you know the secret to crazy lens flare. Woo!

I've been wooing an awful lot lately.

Thanks again, Michael, for choosing me to do your headshots, and to the beautiful Kim for all of her help! I hope to work with you again, and wish you a bright future of blood, guts, gore, monsters, ghosts, vampires, hopefully some 3-D, but no mummies, because those are lame. Break a leg!

Kylie

Oh man, you all are in for it today! I've been telling everyone that I don't want to blog these pictures because then it'll be over, and I love this shoot so much that I don't want to let it go! It's kind of like when you buy some cute new clothes and don't wear them right away, because then you have something new and cute to look forward to. I CAN'T be the only one who does that, right?


Anyway, Kylie is my cousin and she's the middle child in her family, and she's the only one I haven't taken pictures of yet. Her older sister, Chelsea, helped me in one of my student projects as a scary person who appeared in the mirror behind me (which was very fun and actually pretty cool, and she was AWESOME at being terrifying), and I took pictures of Izzy when she turned one. Kylie is super cute, and I was going to be back in Indy (to shoot the puppies from the previous post!), and I wanted to do some portfolio work so I called her up (actually, Facebooked her up) to model for me.

And oh, she worked it.

We found this weird little back road that ended up leading to a train yard, which I was beyond thrilled about, because everyone knows how much I love trains. We didn't actually go very far back there but I'm totally going to go back ... there is some serious untapped potential there.

ANYWAY. We started out the shoot and I loved this picture of Kylie biting her lip, because I think she was still a little nervous with the start of the session, but it looked so model-riffic that I was in love.

And here's the same basic picture with a different facial expression that I also LOVED. You know, I didn't think that Kylie was looking much like Chelsea, but in some of these pictures (like this one), you can really see it. Also, this picture convinced me to try to let my hair go au natural, since we have about the same amount of wavy. The difference, of course, is that Kylie's falls all beautifully and perfectly and mine is kind of ... uncooperative, but I'm hoping that one day it will learn. Now, if I have the patience to make it that far is a whole other story (read: unlikely).

We took a couple shots out at the park in Avon, but mostly I just wasn't really feeling it (although I did get a sweet picture of some ducks that I'll post up later this week), but this picture was cute and I think it's how I mostly picture Kylie in my head.

Anyway, like I said, we weren't really feeling it at the park, so we went to downtown Danville to take some pictures around their square, and I LOVED how great this wall turned out to be as a background. I liked the hood up, and her eyes (well, eye) looked so pretty. I thought about cropping this to be more centered, but I liked the slightly off-center thing so I kept it.

This one is for my mom, who liked it because Kylie's eyes look pretty and you can see her dimple. And, you know, gotta keep the moms happy. I was talking to my mom about how Kylie and her sisters are pretty much my mom's grandchildren, since my grandma isn't as mobile anymore as she was when I was a kid, and my mom takes them out shopping and hangs out on their birthdays and they do fun stuff. She agreed, and Kylie did too. Plus, according to my mom, Kylie is sweet and smart and perfect and good at everything and beautiful and talented. If that doesn't sound like a grandma, I don't even know what does.

This is kind of a classic senior picture shot, and it's weird to think about how much different she'll look when it's time for ACTUAL senior pictures. (She's going to be a freshman this year, which I don't think I mentioned earlier.) I mean, I know that at the ripe old age of 28, with one foot in the grave, I'm getting worse at judging ages and all the young whippersnappers look the same to me, but I totally think these shots can serve as examples of the bad ass senior pictures I take. Woo!

(I don't know why I just wooed. It seemed appropriate.)

Loved this B&W. Isn't it amazing how even when you're smiling, you can have so many different expressions?

OMG, one of my absolute favorites. I love everything about this.

And here's what I had her perched on. I thought this one was so cute and youthful, and I am IN LOVE with her shoes. I swear, every time I see cute shoes that I am in love with, they are made by Rocketdog. These, naturally, are no exception. Some people have Jimmy Choo's, I have Rocketdog. What can I say?

You know, sometimes I think I'm over brick, because it's everywhere, but it does occasionally make really nice backgrounds and I love how rich it looks here.

Essentially a different shot of the same basic set up, but I couldn't pick so you get both. Trust me, I did a lot of narrowing down for this post given how in love with it all I was, but I am not a miracle worker, people, and I only have so much willpower!

Alright, now this marks sort of a turning point in our story. I ended up with this picture, I think, because it reminds me a lot of stuff I see on my friend Erin's design website (http://www.designformankind.com, total plug, go check it out, it's AWESOME). But Kylie and I were driving around kind of aimlessly and we were about ready to throw in the towel. I told her, you're an awesome model and I have great pictures of you, but I'm just feeling kind of uninspired by what's around, so what do you say we get some drinks and go home? And also, when I say drinks, I mean of the variety appropriate for a 14-year-old and a person driving a car, so no one freak out on me.

Anyway, as I was trying to get all turned around and going the right direction, we spotted this building, and it was empty and for sale, so I drove through a minefield of potholes in a gravel lot so we could trespass on it. And that's cool, what self-respecting Hoosier doesn't like a little mud on the tires, but I didn't want to push the car too hard so I thought I'd take an actual road out of there. But when I tried, all I kept ending up on were dead ends.

AND THEN.

Oh. Oh oh oh. We ended up on a dead end with a junk yard, and sitting right out in the middle of the road like a gift from God Almighty Himself, at the perfect time of day with gorgeous sunlight, was the most majestic, rusty old tow truck you have ever seen. I squealed my car to a stop and actually clapped my hands like a little kid. This was the find that made the entire trip out of control perfect for me. And here are those shots.

Every single one of these shots is magic for me, so much so that I didn't even offer commentary. I am in LOVE. LOVE LOVE LOVE. I know, I'm in love all the time (also, I have a song on my iPod called "I'm Always in Love" by Wilco, and I totally recommend it), but this love is SERIOUS. It is MAYJAH. It is ... so, so perfect.

Asha & Kate

Are you guys ready for some cute dogs? I know I am! My friend Sarah from high school contacted me via Facebook to have some pictures taken of her parents' dogs, Kate and Asha, as a Mother's Day gift from her and her sister, since the dogs are kind of the children now. (We all know how that goes!) It was such a great idea, so we worked it out and I headed back to the hometown last weekend to meet the puppies!

Seriously, you guys, how am I going to do this? I have SO many good pictures of Kate and Asha, and I want to show them all to you, but if I do that we'll be here forever. I'm going to have to pick and choose some favorites, which will be the challenge (and torture) of my day. And, as promised (if you're my Facebook friend), they are so cute you might actually die. But it'll be a good way to go. Ready?

Okay, this gorgeous girl is Asha, and she is a stunningly beautiful dog. Very soft ears and much, much better at catching a frisbee than me. (Which is to say, I don't. I don't like what is essentially a plastic plate whizzing at my head, especially when I can't catch to save my life.)

And this is Kate, who decided to be my BFF when she realized I would rub her tummy!

So we started the day outside and it was really hot, but we thought it might be fun to get some pictures of Asha retrieving, since she's so incredibly good at it. Witness:

I'm nearly positive she caught that in her mouth, which I'm so impressed by, because I can't catch anything with two hands and opposable thumbs. I know I already said this, but truly, it cannot be stressed enough. I am a KLUTZ. Asha? Not even kind of.

And she's so proud of herself for catching it!

Meanwhile, Kate's not actually THAT into the ball, except that she knows Asha gets attention when she has it, so ...

... in a very little sisterly way, Kate makes a game of stealing the ball and trying to eat it. But she's SO cute, so you can't really hold it against her.

It was pretty hot (for the dogs AND the people), so we took it inside, and I loved this picture of Kate with the shoes in the shot. The people didn't want to be in the pictures, but I did sneak in their feet. I'm so BAD! :)

While Kate lounged at her master's feet, Asha cuddled up with Joanna (hopefully I came close on the spelling there) on the floor, and hammed it up for me just a little! Asha was definitely the more timid dog, but she came around a little once we got her into some air conditioning. Trust me girl, I know the feeling!

Here's another shot of Asha in the same basic position that I thought was so adorable that I couldn't resist posting. She's a very photogenic girl!

And speaking of, OMG, you have got to be kidding! This is Kate after she started really loving me and throwing herself in front of me for scratches. I saw this picture while I was editing and it made me so happy all over again--she is SO CUTE.

Next, the puppies had treats (Greenies), which apparently they get on Sundays. They had already had one, but they got another since I was there, so I like to think that they got something out of the deal. Kate scarfed hers down so fast that all I could get was a picture of her licking the floor.

Asha was much daintier with her Greenie. :)

And then everyone just sat around being cute for awhile! (Me included.)

The family had this great little room that we were in--it was a split level that led out to the backyard, and it was lined all the way around with built-in bookshelves that went halfway up, which had been built by Sarah's dad. Fun fact, my first job ever was at the Plainfield Public Library, where Sarah's mom worked and continues to work! Sarah is now a librarian in Florida and Joanna works at the Plainfield Public Library also, so naturally, this is a family that loooooves books. My kind of people! I keep hauling around boxes and boxes (and boxes) of books every time I move because someday I want built-in bookshelves and I think books are just the greatest decor item in the history of ever. Oh, and reading them isn't so bad either. :)

And Asha took a little nap with her tennis ball! I wonder if this is the doggie equivalent of a teddy bear?

And one more beautiful shot of Asha before we head outside again!

Okay, this one I love because their tails are just so perfect for the composition of the shot. I was really happy that we managed to eventually get some of the two dogs together (accomplished by showing them a new frisbee).

But this one, you have to see because Kate's face looks SO CUTE, AGAIN! She is such a doll--of course, I have a shaggy terrier myself, so I may be a little bit biased. :)

A little play time! Asha likes to chase the frisbee, and Kate likes to chase Asha. I told you she was the little sister!

And finally, to end our narrative, a sweet action shot! That poor frisbee, it maybe lasted five tosses, but it was very well loved while it was with us. :)

I had SO MUCH FUN doing this shoot. Honestly, I would run around and play with dogs and take pictures of them all day every day. Dogs are awesome.

The family and I got into a great discussion about adopting dogs from shelters and just about how many dogs there are out there that really need good homes. We all have dogs that came from shelters and I felt like it was something that was important to all of us talking, and I just really wanted to take a minute to encourage anyone who might be thinking about adopting a dog to consider going that route. I know it's not always possible, but it's a really good thing to do. Some of these dogs have really sad stories and you could be the person to turn it all around and give them a happy ending! And I think that's what we all really want in life, and it's so special to be a part of that for someone else. Shelter animals are really near to my heart, since I have a couple, and they're full of love for you too! (Well, except my cat. She's kind of coming around, but she still sits around plotting my demise. But she's a cat, you know? You know what you're getting into.) So I'm just saying, think about it. :)