N + K Engagements: D.C. Wedding Photographer, Northern Virginia Wedding Photographer, Loudoun Wedding Photographer

This sweet couple have been together since high school. Truly this is a case of meeting and marrying your high school sweetheart. I love fairytales like this, partly because mine wasn't a fairytale (grew up and married my best friend story) and I am a romantic at heart.

Nicki is in graduate school and her fiance, Kevin is also going to graduate school. They are hardworking and dedicated. I look forward to capturing their wedding next summer. Did I mention I love my job?

WWW.SIMPLYBOWS.COM: Northern Virginia Photographer

It seems like forever since I last posted. It's not for lack of things to post about, but because of an over abundance. My first priority is to my clients and getting them their photos and this blog is my last priority. I have so many things to share with you and hopefully I can squeeze in some posts.

So most of you know me as a event and portrait photographer, but sometimes life calls for a little diversion and that brings me to www.simplybows.com. The owner of Simply Bows, Julie, is updating her web site and needed some product shots. Julie hand ties every hair bow with care and quality. She offers a wide array of products for children and my favorite next to the pretty bows are the custom birthday party hats. They are a keepsake your child will cherish forever. I can't say enough about her great products. And you can't believe her prices! Click on the link above and see her offerings. She even offers cute beach hats for your little man.

Spring Style Guide: Loudoun County Photographer, Northern Virginia Photographer

Can you hear it outside? The birds are happily chirping and people are outside running and enjoying the sunshine. Spring has come to Virginia and it has been a great spring at that. To help you prepare for your photo session with me, I thought I would share a little spring style guide. I love the colors and textures. Clothing can really make your photos standout, so be thoughtful about it and don't be afraid of color.

Featured on Capitol Romance: D.C. Wedding Photographer

It's so fun to see your work featured on another blog. Bree, from Capitol Romance, wanted to highlight my wall displays for my clients. Wall displays are great to help you visualize what your photography look like as art. Check out Capitol Romance, a great blog for the D.C. wedding crowd.

Check out the feature HERE

All American: Loudoun County Photographer, Sterling Virginia Photographer

This family epitomizes the all American family. They are fun, sensible, and sweet. The boys are a reflection of their wonderful parents. We had a fun time hanging out in their backyard and the location was so great, they might see me hanging out in their backyard in the near future :) "D" family, it was so nice to spend time with you.

Mother's Day: Loudoun County Photographer

I love being a Loudoun County Photographer. Now that everything is blooming and leaves are on the trees, the immense beauty that exists in Loudoun is on parade. I can't get enough of it. Now is a great time to schedule your senior portraits and family portraits. I have some great locations just for you that I try to keep on the down low because I know you want your photos to be as unique as you are.

Now on to the real topic of this post. Mother's Day is around the corner and if you need a last minute gift, these accordion mini books are sure to please and won't break your wallet. Most mom's love personalized gifts and these are small enough, she can fit it in her purse. This is the one that I am sending out this year, but I have so many options to choose from. Shoot me a note if you're interested!

First Holy Communion: Loudoun County Photographer, Virginia Photographer, D.C. Photographer

I have known this sweet girl and family for the last five years. I can't believe how much she has grown. She used to be such a shy little girl, and now she is outgoing, talkative, and oh so sweet! I am glad that I was able to create these images to celebrate her First Holy Communion. As she continues to grow, I hope these images will be a reminder of her childhood innocence and beauty. If you have significant events in your life you would like documented, call me today!

FAQ Post - Shooting in harsh sunlight: Loudoun County Photographer, Northern Virginia Photographer, D.C. Photographer

I thought it would be fun to share some shooting tips for those out there that may be starting out or just want to learn some basic photography skills.

This one is on shooting in harsh sunlight. It's normal to shy away from shooting in harsh light. If you are used to shooting in automatic mode on your DSLR, you notice that often when you shoot in harsh sunlight, your subject turns out to be dark. That's because your camera has a built in light meter (it reads the light levels coming into the camera sensor). It looks at the light from corner to corner and tells it over-all how to set the shutter speed and aperture.

If you really want to have success photographing in harsh light, learn how to shoot in manual mode. This allows you to set the shutter speed and aperture yourself. A book I highly recommend is Bryan Peterson's "Understanding Exposure."

Assuming you have that mastered let's move on to some examples. In the first example photo, I faced my subject with the sun almost directly behind her. Usually in this instance I would want a light modifier like a reflector or the flash to bounce light back onto the subject. In this instance, the subject was standing on white concrete which served as my natural reflector. Using the spot meter function in my camera, I took a light reading from the subject's face and adjusted my shutter speed and aperture till the camera read a correct exposure. Voila! Time of day 3 p.m. ISO 100 f 2.8 S/S 1/500 sec.




In this next example, I used my speedlight mounted on my camera. The example on the left shows the properly exposed shot and the one on the right shows the shot without fill light. Whenever I use my speedlight for fill, I stop down my shutter speed by 2/3, otherwise I find that the shot is over exposed. Lots of trial and error. This was taken at 11:30 a.m. in very harsh sunlight. ISO 100 f 9.0 S/S 1/160 sec.



In the last example the sun was coming from the right at 4:30 p.m. I placed a large reflector to her left, and my speedlight added fill flash from the front. Sometimes two light modifiers are required to achieve the desired results. Again with the flash, I stopped my shutter speed down by 2/3. Shot at ISO 100 f 2.8 S/S 1/100 sec.