2009 was a great year for me – I was able to photograph the most amazing families! Here is a slideshow of images from this year’s sessions; you will see a blank screen for a few minutes while it loads, but be patient – it is worth it!

Anderson and Clemson Sc natural light photographer, photographing children and  families in Washington PA and southwestern PA, good reasons to choose a custom photographer

Judy called me hoping against hope that I was available for an extended family session over Thanksgiving weekend; seems that her family was getting together all in one place, at the same time, on Thanksgiving (which hadn’t happened since her children were in college). Now they are married with families of their own, and her grandchildren are growing up fast! I was able to change my schedule a little and am I ever glad I did – this family was so fun and so photogenic and SO APPRECIATIVE of the preciousness of their time together. Lots of hugs and joy and laughter = lots of great images.

I have lots of shots of each family member with grandparents Judy & Brett, but I really liked this one of Judy & daughter Shelly. We all need to do this with our mothers, whatever age!

( photography in Anderson SC and Clemson SC of children and families; senior portrait photographer in Anderson; casual professional family portraits)

So if you are one of the few who hasn’t seen this yet, prepare to be delighted…  Shorecrest High School’s video.    Produced by the school’s video class in the form of a massively multi-performer, lip-sync video done in a single, unedited take, what’s known on the InterWebs as a “lip dub.”, this is some amazing work that serves as a much-needed palate cleanser to the “sexting” and cyberbullying rhetoric we usually hear about tech-savvy teens.

ONE take – crazy!

..especially a college student’s apartment!

Buy here

I always knew that I would be busy with extended family photography sessions here on Lake Keowee, but now that I live here myself I see that it is no small feat to get all of your family here AT THE SAME TIME.  If you think that deciding what to wear for your portrait session is  hard to figure out, try coordinating that across several families who already have to pack and travel! And then try to find a time between meals and events and arrival/departure times when everyone can be ready to go at the same time and you can see that it is quite an undertaking. BUT – when you see the results of all of that – the beauty of all of your loved ones, together, captured forever – well, it is more than worthwhile. Just take a look at the Juras family at Thanksgiving (and how lucky to have great-grandma included!):

Can I say how much I love this one of the grandkids?

And now I want Jim to build ME a waterfall like this – how gorgeous!

on location family photographer in Anderson and Clemson SC, vacation portraits in the upstate SC area, and  Clemson University photography

Most children in developing countries grow up barefoot. Whether at play, doing chores or just getting around, these children are at risk.

Walking is often the primary mode of transportation in developing countries. Children can walk for miles to get food, water, shelter and medical help. Wearing shoes literally enables them to walk distances that aren’t possible barefoot.

Wearing shoes prevents feet from getting cuts and sores on unsafe roads and from contaminated soil. Not only are these injuries painful, they also are dangerous when wounds become infected. The leading cause of disease in developing countries is soil-transmitted parasites which penetrate the skin through open sores. Wearing shoes can prevent this and the risk of amputation.

Many times children can’t attend school barefoot because shoes are a required part of their uniform. If they don’t have shoes, they don’t go to school. If they don’t receive an education, they don’t have the opportunity to realize their potential.

There is one simple solution…SHOES.  TOMS donates one pair for every pair purchased!

Choosing shoes is a statement against the same old presents and demands our gifts work harder. Choosing TOMS shoes isn’t just the practical and affordable choice, it is the choice that captures the holiday spirit. It is the gift that gives, and gives again to brighten the holidays for others as well. And isn’t that what the holidays are about after all? Perfect for gifts college students, and also babies/toddlers who really don’t need toys  (just ordered a cute pair for Eislen!).

Check it out: TOMS

“Project 365″  is a global term for any project that involves faithfully doing something daily for 365 consecutive days  – a poem a day, a letter a day, a blog entry a day, a drawing a day – and commonly, a photograph a day! Sounds easy, but it takes less time than you think to lose creativity and commitment to such an undertaking. I have thought about trying this many times, but I know that I would struggle keeping to it despite the fact that I am a photographer and always have a camera at my fingertips. However, THIS may just be the ticket to getting me to do it – the ShutterCal Shoebox!

What a fantastic keepsake and documentation of your life! Read more about it here

Grandma was really wishing for some fun pictures of her grandsons for Christmas, so when these guys visited Lake Keowee over Thanksgiving with their mom we took advantage of the opportunity! Photographing small children can be a challenge, especially active little boys, but luckily it goes much smoother when you can do it outside where they can explore and just be themselves. There is nothing that bring out the color of blue eyes like the sky!

I love it when moms get in the picture -

childrens photographer in Anderson, SC and family portrait photography on Lake Keowee, SC; natural light on location photography

I’m used to seeing my clients’  children yearly, and marveling at how much they’ve grown. But this year I was amazed at how much Cameron has grown and changed. What a huge difference between three and four! Not only did he get a lot  taller, but his face has lost much of that baby look – he is firmly out of toddlerhood and is an active little boy.

Here is one from just last year:

And just look at him this year!

I LOVE the mud on his jeans in this shot – so typical of little boys!

(children and family photography in the Anderson SC and Clemson SC area, featuring on location and natural light portraiture of babies, children, families, and high school seniors in the upstate are of SC)

I’m planning on having a couple of these ready by the fire and the Christmas tree when Jim gets home from work tonight – it’s from a recipe found in the newspaper, supposedly TGIFriday’s beverage. Looks yummy!