As I sat on the plane last night to come home, I started thinking about this past year, and everything that has happened. I started thinking about all the things I did right, that I’m proud of, and all the things I want to work on, that I could have done better. One of the things I’m constantly trying to do is better myself as a photographer, and hone in on my style, my brand. So I decided to take a look back at all the pictures I’ve taken this past year, and pick my 25 favorites, and my 25 least favorites. (No, I’m not going to show the 25 least favorites. Those will be in a secret folder on my computer titled DON’T DO THIS AGAIN. Ha.)

But I decided to share my 25 favorites for two reasons. The first is that I hope it will showcase my style, who I am as a photographer, and continue to help me shape my business. And secondly, when I do a review again next year, I’ll see how far I’ve come :)

It wasn’t easy narrowing it down… I had to go through them twice to get it down to 25. (Being indecisive is really a pain sometimes.) But here they are, in no particular order.

From Kellie and Zach’s Wedding:

From Jamie’s Senior Pictures:

From the Kimble’s Family Session:

From Summer and Carl’s Engagement Session:

From Sarah and Jacob’s Anytime Session:

From Alyssa’s Anytime Session:

From the Deeken’s Family Session:

From Natalie and Brenden’s Engagement Session:

From Kara and Zach’s Wedding:

From Erika’s Maternity Session:

From Emily’s Anytime Session:

From the Rodeheaver’s Family Session:

From Suzi and Ryan’s Anytime Session:

From Jessica and Joe’s Wedding:

From the Keen’s Family Session:

From Brittney’s Anytime Session:

From Krystal and Adam’s Engagement Session:

From Lauren and Joey’s Family Session:

From Bree and Jordan’s Engagement Session:

It was a good year. And I can’t wait for what next year holds :)

I’ve been sitting here for a while, trying to figure out what to write. How to introduce this session. I’m struggling.

It’s not because I don’t have anything to say. The problem is that I have so MUCH to say. This is by far one of the most beautiful and intimate sessions I’ve ever had the honor of photographing. The bond between a mother and a child is something so powerful, so true. It makes me excited to experience it. When the time comes. (Don’t get too excited, Mom…)

So I’ll try to keep this short because, hopefully, the pictures will speak for themselves.

I just want to say thank you, Erika, for allowing me into this special part of your life. You are stunning. And thank you for letting me share these photos. It was truly an honor to photograph you.

I saved this one for last, because it’s my favorite.

I have to give a quick thank you to Justin Hackworth, for lending us his studio! These photos would not have been possible without his generosity.

I realize that I’ve announced how cold it was during pretty much every mini session before this (and it was). I also hate to be repetitive (because that’s boring). But I have to give props where props are due. This family wins the prize for the COLDEST SESSION EVER. Hands down. SOOOO COLD. It actually wouldn’t have been that bad if it hadn’t been for the wind. But there was wind. Thus it was fuhreezing. That being said, even through the biting wind and nipping snow, the Rodeheavers were champs! Mark and Chi-Mai were all smiles, and their son Jack could not have been cuter! He was such a good sport :) I’m so glad the last mini session of the season ended with such a charming family!

One thing I quickly learned about Jack… He smiles so big his eyes close! Haha.

But dad brings out the best smiles :)

I love everything about this picture:

And then we found a random bathtub.

For the last couple shots we headed up to the Miner’s Hospital.

I’ll end with this one, because I think the happiness in their faces is contagious :)

I got to spend a brisk November afternoon with this beautiful family, and what a treat that was! Tom and Lisa are such a wonderful couple. They recently celebrated their 25th anniversary :) And Sarah and Jessie are the sweetest girls ever. Jessie was home from college for Thanksgiving, so they decided to have a little family photo shoot. Lucky me :) We headed out to the White Barn for their session…

See what I mean? Beautiful family.

Sarah and Jessie showing sisterly love.

I love these next ones. I hope Jake and I look this happy after 25 years :)

Girls, in case you didn’t know, you’re both gorrrrgeous.

Thanks for such a fun session you guys!!! And for putting up with the cold ;)

Happy Tuesday!

Not long ago, I had the pleasure of photographing something a little different than I normally do. Heidi Eseke, an amazing woman who I am honored to know, has recently started a business that creates hair ties and headbands for girls and women alike, completely hand-made. They are all dyed by Heidi, and then measured, cut, and tied by hand. Dye Ties, rightly named, are quickly growing in popularity. And for a good reason! They are SO cute. (I have some, and I lurrve them. Just check out the profile picture on my fanpage. Yeah, I rock the Dye Tie!)  They come in so many beautiful and unique colors that it’s hard to choose. But it’s also hard to go wrong! Heidi will be launching a website for Dye Ties soon, and she needed some photos for the site. I was happy to oblige :)

I shot some of just the Dye Ties, but I also shot some of Heidi’s daughter (and my wonderful friend), Tori, modeling them. And you, dear blog readers, get a sneak peek! Enjoy :)

Yes, that’s Tori. And yes, I know. She’s gorgeous.

Work that giggle on command Tori!! Haha.

Even if they’re just on your wrist, they still look super cute :)

I personally think Tori belongs in Vogue…

I’ll end on my two favorites :)

Heidi, thank you for allowing me to be a part of your business! And Tori, thanks for making my job easy!! Love you both :)

P.S. If you’re interested in buying Dye Ties, email me at dulcephoto@gmail.com, and I’ll get you in touch with Heidi! With Christmas around the corner, they make perrrfect stocking stuffers. Or if you just want some for yourself, that’s fine too ;) After all, everyone deserves to treat themselves once in a while!

To say this family is full of happiness would be an understatement. We met for the first time the day of the shoot, but I could tell from her emails that Catherine was full of energy and loved life. And I wasn’t proven wrong! I can honestly say that Catherine and Todd are some of the kindest and most genuine people I’ve ever met. And Bodie is a little ball of joy :) I had such a great time with this family! Even though it was bitterly cold, their smiles were contagious and I wouldn’t have changed a thing… Meet the Deekens!

Look at Bodie’s little face… I predict he’ll be a heartbreaker when he’s older ;)

Even though it was freezing, the light was lovely…

I love something about this one.

Such a happy family!

Peek-a-boo :)

And this one, something about this picture gets to me, too.

This one seems appropriate to end on!

They piled out of the car, an adorable little family that could have stepped off the pages of a magazine. Macy admitted she was unsure of their wardrobe, but I have to keep it real… I wouldn’t have changed a thing. It was perfect. Picture perfect, if you will. With the risk of sounding like a weirdo, I wanted to gobble up baby Quincy. He was THAT CUTE in his onesie outfit. And Moses? Even though he wasn’t thrilled about sitting still and smiling for the camera, his little attitude and innocent curiosity definitely captured my heart. Eric and Macy weren’t bad to hang out with either ;)  I had so much fun spending time with this family! Meet the Keens :)

They just moved to Park City a couple months ago, and I was honored that they chose me to document their family!

This is Quincy. You want to eat him too, don’t you?!

And here is Moses. He was more interested in the leaves than my camera :) Haha.

Some brotherly love.

These ones crack me up.

I lurrve these next sets…

I’ll finish up with this :)

You may remember Joe and Jessica from their wedding this past summer. Let me just say, I love these guys! I have known Joe since I was like, oh I don’t know, five. And I couldn’t be more happy that these two have found such pure love in each other! But it’s also a bonus for me, because that means I get to document their family :) You see, Jess has two kids, so Joe jumped into an instant family. I think it’s safe to say, though, that he jumped in head first, and hasn’t looked back! After all, if two is better than one, that means four is better than two ;) This session lasted all of 25 minutes, because it was FREEZING! But the kids were great sports, and it doesn’t take long to get beautiful shots of such a beautiful family…

The kiddos, Cadence and Braxton! Braxton’s forced smile is quite funny :)

But they sure did love running around!

A little kiss. And the reaction?

“EWWWW!” Hahaha.

Joe and Jess, you guys are fabulous together.

Ready, set…

GO! Like I said, they looooved running :)

I’ll end on my favorite shot from the session :)

]]> http://dulce-photography.com/blog/2010/11/12/park-city-mini-session-the-nicholls/feed/ 2 http://dulce-photography.com/blog/2010/11/09/east-canyon-mini-session-the-judkins/ http://dulce-photography.com/blog/2010/11/09/east-canyon-mini-session-the-judkins/#comments Tue, 09 Nov 2010 15:31:03 +0000 Carissa http://dulce-photography.com/blog/?p=849

I’m not superstitious, but I do believe that the 3rd time’s the charm! At least, in this case it was :) Lauren emailed me almost two months ago about doing a family session for Christmas. We set the date, the time, and the place. Everything was looking great, until they day before, when the forecast said lots of rain and gray skies coming. So we decided to reschedule. And it turned out to be a gorgeous day. FIGURES. The second time, we waited until the last minute, and then called it off because it was pouring so hard I couldn’t see straight standing it in. But finally, the third time. Oh the third time, that was the jackpot. A nice, November evening, not too hot, not too cold, and overcast just enough that the light was soft and diffused. In other words, DELICIOUS. So without further ado…

Meet Lauren and Joey! They just celebrated their one year anniversary in October :)

They’re high school sweethearts, AND from Park City High School. Lurrve it.

And this is Willow.

She completes their family, for now :)

UH-dorable.

And fierce. All at the same time.

Willow was having a grand old time herself :)

Let’s be honest. Lauren, you’re gorgeous!!

I looove the way they look at each other…

Willow finally decided to make an appearance. Haha.

And another family photo! Willow was being such a good sport.

I’ll end with this one, because as we were finishing up, Lauren saw this rock…

High School Musical anyone? ;)

Technically, Alyssa is my cousin. Non-technically, she’s my sister. She’s a year older than me, and we grew up in different states, but we ended up going to college together (which is code for she convinced me to go to Indiana for four years). It’s a good thing she was there, though. She definitely helped me make it through. That is, until she ditched me when she graduated and moved to Park City. Into my house. And into my bedroom, no less. I still find it hilarious. You know, the way life works out. Now we are both here, living five minutes away and trying to figure out this whole being-an-adult thing together. (Which usually consists of us making funfetti cake and laughing hysterically.) And I wouldn’t have it any other way. Two is always better than one :)

Lyss, you know I love you. Thanks for always being there. After all, we are related ;)

xoxo, Riss.

Yep, she’s a beauty.

She was really excited about the yellow leaves. Haha.

Gorgggggeous.

Love. This.

Outfit change…

I lurrve these next three!

Work it out, Lyss. Work it out.

This one. I adore something about this one…

And this? Yeah, this too.

She might hate me for this, but it’s too great not to post :)

Fabulous? I think yes.

And finally, I saved the best for last. So if you looked through this whole post, good for you ;) I feel like this one belongs in an Ann Taylor Loft ad… anyone?

Hope everyone is having a great Monday!!