Urban Session- Part One

No, I did not hire models to travel with me to downtown Hartford.


...This is my sweet little sister Kara and her spiffy husband, Matt.







I have another shot like this that's all perfect, both looking at the camera and smiling. But I like this one better. See the way he's looking at her...? Awww...

And she knows it.


You know how everyone has a story?

Well, here's part of my sister's story: Wherever Kara is, there are shoes. Spiffy shoes. Shiny shoes. Snakeskin shoes. Spiky shoes. Styling shoes. Just plain shoes. (Okay, I'll stop before I start to sound like Theodore Geisel.-- Which begs this trivia question: Who can tell me who Theodore Geisel is, without googling him? The descriptions I used above are a hint :)



Know what? I like Hartford.


So, now I just have one more little story to tell.

Back in the spring of '08, Kara called and told me her and Matthew were getting married in September that year. And being the older sister, I had to give her some important advice. It went like this: "Kara, whatever you spend money on, make sure you spend it on a great photographer. Please. You'll never regret it." (Yeah, sage marriage advice, ha? :) Well, there was a little silent pause on the phone line, and Kara said, "Um, actually, I was gonna' ask you to be our photographer." "WHAT?!! No way, I won't do it. You gotta' get a good person to take your pictures!" She went on to say that she liked some of my candid shots that I'd taken over the years of our family, kids, etc. and that she trusted me. Uh oh.

But you know what? I acquiesced, and was her wedding 'photographer.' And I loved it. We got home that night, and I said to Paul, (add dramatic tone here) "Honey, this is what I was meant to do!" (Paul just smiled that cute, lazy smile of his.)

So her pictures were developed, and people saw them, and started asking me to take their pictures. And I researched, and read, and practiced, and bought books, and spent a lot of time at the library, and emailed a photographer whose work I admired, and whose presentation I respected. (Thanks, Erica!) And I took pictures every day, and went to workshops and made mistakes and learned some more. And then, a couple months after Kara's wedding, I got a call to shoot another wedding. By then, I had learned to shoot completely in manual mode, and had a new DSLR camera and lens of my own. I came home that night after the wedding and said to Paul, (omit dramatic tone, because I was so serious)- "Honey, this is what I was meant to do." (Paul just smiled that cute, lazy smile of his and said, "Then do it.")

You know what? If it weren't for my husband, and my family's and friends' support and encouragement and trust in me, I wouldn't be typing this right now. But most of all, if it weren't for Kara, there'd be a number of people who I never would have met, or portraits I never would have taken, and friends I never would have made. All because she believed that I could do it. So, anybody whose pictures I've taken since September of '08, or people who are scheduled to have their photos done soon, feel free to leave a comment and thank Kara. ;)

'Love you, Kee. And thank you.