Today is the day!

I get to share with everyone that one of Savannah’s images from the “Dreams of Fame” Styled Shoot has been published in CHIC Magazine’s “Dream” Issue!

Every time an image that I shot gets recognized, I am more than excited.  It may sound silly, but it really is an honor!  And this being the first time I have had an image in a physical, hold in your hands magazine truly is one of the best feelings and I’m so grateful!    Thank you to CHIC magazine and to everyone that participated in this shoot and helped contribute to this image (Laura, Casey, Savannah, Angela, Linda)!

For more from the original styled shoot, click to see PART 1,  PART 2, PART 3.

CHIC magazine has also given me the opportunity to giveaway one FREE digital copy of the “Dream” Issue!  How awesome is that?!    For your chance to win, use the widget below to enter.  Some actions are worth a point.  Some are even worth more points and that totally gives you a better chance to win!!   Tweeting about the giveaway can be done daily and that gives you extra points!!  You have until Sunday to enter, so don‘t miss out! :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If, by chance, you are not the lucky winner, don’t worrry!!  You can still purchase either the print or digital version!

To stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

No TRICKS here…this is definitely a TREAT!  Happy Halloween everyone and get ready for some BOOtiful images!!

ok, I know, I know, but I couldn’t resist!  

I’ll stop now and just get on with it and show you more from Class of 2013 – Grayson High School – Kelsey Burrell’s senior portraits…

If you saw Part 1, you already know that Kelsey has been dancing for 15 years!  Here’s just a peek at what Kelsey can do!

one of Kelsey’s favorites…

One of my favorites.  Now, let me tell you, Kelsey is one of those girls that can get her leg WAY up there.

I caught this one in mid action though, but what I love is the expression on her face and the colors, so I had to include it!

When I posted the one on the right, I heard a few remarks about a resemblance to Taylor Swift!  Anyone else agree?  

Seriously Kelsey?!?  Could this one be any more amazing?!  :)

and these!  LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!!

See what I mean – just stunning!!!

Thanks again to her mom Melisa for all of her help and of course Laura for her makeup skills!

This won’t be the last you see of Kelsey though!  I still have to show you some of the fabulous products from her order session soon!!  :)

Makeup:  Laura Briscoe

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

See you next time!  and be sure to keep all of your ghouls and goblins close!

It’s that time again, Chic Critique Forum‘s Chic Magazine Cover Contest!

I really had a difficult time selecting which image to submit this time.  I decided on an image of the lovely Savannah again.  This time though from the “Dreams of Fame” styled shoot.

Here is my submission for Chic Magazine:

A few weeks ago, the website Seniorologie announced they would be celebrating their one year birthday!  In addition to celebrating all month with birthday related giveaways and posts, they wanted to see any other photographers’ birthday concept shoots.    Early this week, I was soooo incredibly excited to see a birthday shoot that I put together featured on their website!   Click here for the Seniorologie post and read all about my inspiration for the shoot.    Then come back here and scroll down for more from this fun shoot!

Some of the fun details….cake topper, mini cameras, “Dots” rings!

Ribbons, and scrap paper confetti made with my shredder!

I don’t know about you guys, but I have a list for everything!  Sometimes 2 lists!  ;)  My doggie helper of the day!

When I decided to order 30 balloons, I didn’t even think about transporting them (which became a tangled mess)

and then where to keep them until the shoot!

I absolutely adore these little vintage looking cameras!

After all the prop preparation – it’s Makeup time!

And then finally….it all comes together!

I was trying not to duplicate images that were in the Seniorologie post, but I have to share this one again, because I literally have had this idea in my head for years!  I have always wanted to recreate different memorable movie scenes and this shoot was perfect to recreate the final scene from the movie “Sixteen Candles!”  Make a Wish!

Thanks to Leslie from Seniorologie for creating such an awesome resource for senior portrait photographers.  If it weren’t for your “birthday,” I probably wouldn’t have had a reason to pull this all together!

By the way…if anyone can get me access to a school (legally, of course), I have lots of other memorable movie scenes that I would love to recreate!

*wink, wink, but seriously!*  

And lastly, you must go watch the video from this shoot!!  and don’t miss the Outtakes!  :)

Makeup  - Makeup by Laura Briscoe

Models – Maili Lutz & Blake Hamlin

Class of 2013, don’t forget to schedule your senior portraits soon.  There is only a select number of spots available.  Please contact me very soon if you would like to schedule yours!

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

It’s time for Nominations for Class of 2013 Senior Spokesmodels!

Email your nominations to triciatoker@gmail.com.  Be sure to include their name, school, cell and email address.

If you are a Class of 2013 Senior, then don’t worry about the nominating and go straight to filling out the application HERE.

You can nominate as many seniors as you would like, but don’t wait, or all the spots may be full!

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

Tiffany Waldrop is my second to last Class of 2012 senior (awww – that’s sad) and my first senior from Tucker High School.  I sure hope she won’t be my last, because I cannot tell you how much I love her images!  :)

One thing that I do want to point out, Tiffany did have her hair & makeup done for her session.  It doesn’t hurt that she has the best hair ever and works at a salon!  You can see how much it adds though.  *Hint, Hint*  Of course, I think all my seniors should do this, because who doesn’t want to be pampered!!   Besides, Tiffany looks amazing and look at these eyelashes!!

Seriously?!?!  I absolutely LOVE these next two!  

Congratulations Tiffany on graduation this weekend and good luck at West Georgia in the fall!!  :)   (Thanks to Bailey Ferguson for sending Tiffany my way!)

Interested in your own senior session and you know Tiffany personally?  Ask her about the special discount that she has to offer as a {Twelve}12 Senior Spokesmodel.

I’m still looking for Spokesmodels for Class of 2013.  You can also nominate a senior girl to become a Spokesmodel.  I am accepting nominations now for Class of 2013 and only have a select number of spots available.  Please contact me very soon if you would like to nominate a Class of 2013 Senior Girl or if you are a senior girl, click HERE to apply now.

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

Until next time – Toodles!

Grayson High School’s Casey Arnold is one of those girls who is truly just as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside.

We were first introduced to each other by Makeup Artist Laura Briscoe.  Casey is a very close friend of Laura’s sister Connor.  When we were looking for someone to do hair for the styled shoot, Laura mentioned that she had someone in mind that was awesome and could do just about anything when it comes to hair styling.

If you’ve seen any of the images from the styled shoot, you know that Casey did a tremendous job!  Her talents don’t end there though, because she will be graduating with honors in a few weeks!  :)

Before we get to Casey’s pics though, just a few words from the soon to be Class of 2012 graduate:

The close friendships I have made. Good thing a lot of my closest friends will be going to Kennesaw with me! oh, also my mom’s cooking! aha.

Casey – can’t say that I blame you on the 530a part!  ;)

Casey, I’m so happy that we met and I wish you all the best!  You’re going to love Kennesaw!

Makeup:  Laura Briscoe

Interested in your own senior session and you know Casey personally?  Ask her about the special discount that she has to offer as a {Twelve}12 Senior Spokesmodel.

I’m still looking for Spokesmodels for Class of 2013.  Please contact me very soon if you are interested or click HERE to apply now.

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

Until next time – Toodles!

Wow!  Where have I been?!?!  I took a little break to attend the Seniorologie tour at Serenbe Farms in Palmetto, Georgia and never posted the last part of the Styled Shoot!  Shame on me!  I’m back though, so here we go!!!

Part 3 is the dreamy, ethereal set for the “Dreams of Fame” Shoot.

Who doesn’t want to be girly and in a flowy dress sometimes?!?!  I know that I lean a little more towards the rocker chick of Part 2, but I can’t help but LOVE this too!  Again, Laura & Angela outdid themselves with makeup & wardrobe.   Throw in a little hair by Casey Arnold and we have the most beautiful girls that I could have ever imagined.

Check out the rings I previewed from Part 1!  Just can’t help but love them!  

Ohhhhh!!!  I’m sad now, because this is the last post from the shoot.  :(   I told you all before how much I loved this shoot and everyone that made it happen.   Thank you so, so much Laura, Angela, Casey, Savannah, Gretchen, & Candace.   I couldn’t have done this without you all!  Thanks for making my little vision come to life!

While I was editing the next day, I remembered some shots that I didn’t have time to capture.  I called Laura and asked her if she wanted to do another styled shoot using a theme solely based on those “missing” shots.   She reminded me that the night before, after being so pooped, I said that I wouldn’t do another styled shoot for a little while.  After laughing about how it took me less than a day to plan another one,  she happily agreed!  :)   That shoot will take place next month, but ya gotta wait for that one!

Makeup:  Laura Briscoe

Wardrobe / Accessories:  Angela Jackson

Hair:  Casey Arnold

Models:  Gretchen Fortin, Savannah Roach, Candace O’Neal

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

See you next time!

I can’t believe how many of you stopped by yesterday to see Part 1 of the Styled Shoot!   Yesterday, had the most visitors since I started this website last year!  Thank you everyone!

Let’s get on with Part 2, shall we?!

Just a little on the theme of the styled shoot – Dreams of Fame.   When I first met with Angela, I told her I wanted the shoot to have more of a storytelling element to it.  We talked about several different ideas, but then Angela thought of “Field of Dreams” since one scene was in a field.  Those “Dreams” could be of fame, love, freedom, etc.  I really liked the “Dreams of Fame” the best though.

Everyone has a different idea of fame or in our own minds, a completely different idea on how that looks.  Whether it be pretty, romantic…..or rockstar and dramatic!  We really didn’t end up doing the storytelling part of it so much, but the two looks are so unmistakably different.  I think they are each gorgeous in their own way and I LOVE them both.  I think my inner rock chick can relate to the first look a little more though, but like I said, we are all different!  ;)

When it came to makeup, I really wanted Laura to have the freedom to put together any look that she wanted to showcase.  Between the clothes and the makeup, I couldn’t have asked for a better end result than what Angela and Laura put together.

First up – Candace.  This shot was in the hallway just outside of the suite.  I loved everything about this place and I knew we had to snap a few shots here first before heading out.

I cannot get over how gorgeous Candace’s eyes are.  I think the makeup Laura did really make them jump out at you.

Not to mention, this ridiculous (in a good way) outfit Angela put together!

Love the Marilyn Monroe tee and fur vest and the jewelry by LG Marchezie.  (thank you Linda!)

I adore these next few of Savannah.  Catching her laughing was such a treat!  A little behind the scenes scoop.  I wanted a bit of a wind blown look, so I asked Angela to fan Savannah with my reflector.

hmmm…that was a good idea in theory, but really, all it did was make us laugh.

Note to self, invest in a portable, battery powered fan.  ;)

ahhh, Gretchen with those arms and legs.  I am so jealous!!  Can I please have them?

and I thought you were sending me your arm workout?  still waiting.  ;)

AND the infamous yellow chair.  It might as well be like a “Where’s Waldo” joke…”Where’s the yellow chair?”   LOL!

You just wait.  I’m going to throw all of you off and paint it one day!

will you check out those gloves?!?!  Is there anything hotter?  doubt it.

That’s a wrap on part 2, but we’re not done!  Be sure to come back for Part 3…

If you missed Part 1, or want to check it out again, Click HERE.

Makeup:  Laura Briscoe

Wardrobe / Accessories:  Angela Jackson

Jewelry:  LG Marchezie

Models:  Gretchen Fortin, Savannah Roach, Candace O’Neal

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

See you next time!

If you have ever been thinking of putting together a styled shoot, be prepared to work.  Not a little bit of work either – a lot, BUT if you have a wonderful group of talented people to work with, like I did, you won’t just be happy with the outcome.  You will be elated, like I was!

I love everything about this shoot.  The makeup, the clothes, the hair, the models, the locations…EVERYTHING.  I’m not kidding, I really do.  So much so, that I am going to try to top it in a few months, but you’ll just have to wait for more on that later.  ;)

Back in December, I emailed a friend of mine who happens to be a stylist / personal shopper and has the best wardrobe I have ever seen.  This girl’s shoes alone are to die for, no joke!!  I’m serious.  I wouldn’t kid about shoes.  ;)  I asked Angela if she would be interested in working with me on an idea that I had.  Yay!  She happily agreed!

Next stop, makeup.  At the end of last year, I had been looking for a makeup artist to work with on my senior shoots.  I found Laura on Facebook, emailed her and we met in January.  I knew it would be a stretch for her to do the styled shoot.  We just met and here I am asking her to do a bunch of work and not get paid.  I asked anyway and Yay!  She happily agreed!  Of course, how could she have turned me down?  I mean really, it’s like we were separated at birth.  We are so eerily similar, but in a good way though!  :)

Fast forward to March, location decided on, models chosen, props made, many emails / meetings later – shoot day finally arrives.  Seeing all of your hard work come together, for all us, was such a great feeling.   Part of me was nervous because I knew that at the end of the day, it was up to me to make everyone else’s hard work look good and come to life in these pictures, but at the same time, I was strangely calm and not at all worried.

We met at the Wayfarer Hotel for hair and makeup.  This little hotel was so incredibly cool!  If you ever find yourself in Monroe, Ga, you must stay in their suite!  Oh come on, you know you have been dying to check out Monroe!

So this is where I leave you today, with us all getting ready for the shoot and the behind the scenes.

Savannah & Candace getting their makeup done.

Gretchen’s turn in the makeup chair!

The suite at the Wayfarer.  “We have to go back!!”

On the right, the rings that I HAD to purchase.

I saw these on Etsy and immediately had to scoop them up for the shoot.  Love these little guys!

Shout out to Teri – Thanks for the mirror!  ;)

Lastly, my “dream” team.

L to R:  Angela Jackson (stylist), Gretchen Fortin (model), Laura Briscoe (makeup), Candace O’Neal (model), little ol’ me, Savannah Roach (model) and Casey Arnold (hair).

Ok, so there is your peek behind the curtains.  Now, you have to come back to see all the magic happen!

hmmm - suddenly this sounds like an MTV “Cribs” episode.  Odd.

Loganville High School’s Jordan Draughon is back on the blog!

What’s the number one question that I get asked before any session??

“What should I wear?!?”

My usual response, “bring EVERYTHING you want and lots of it!”   I love, love, love to have options and so will you!  I pick lots of spots to shoot in one session and I love to have that same amount of variety in wardrobe selection.

Jordan and her mom did such a good job with bringing lots of super cute clothes and accessories!

Check this out -

Absolutely gorgeous, Jordan!!!

Do you remember that last time I told you about one of my favorites pics – EVER?!?!

Well, the one on the left (below) is the one!  I absolutely LOVE this!  

This is another favorite of mine!

We arrived at the lake just as the sun was setting, so we had to move quickly.

Oh my goodness, so worth it to have captured this!

Jordan, thanks to you and your mother for spending that afternoon with me!  I hope you enjoy this last month of school and wish you the best in the fall at University of North Carolina at Greensboro!!

Until next time – Toodles!

Interested in your own senior session and you know Jordan personally?  Ask her about the special discount that she has to offer as a {Twelve}12 Senior Spokesmodel.

If you missed Jordan’s first time on the blog – Click HERE.

I’m still looking for Spokesmodels for Class of 2013.  Please contact me very soon if you are interested or click HERE to apply now.

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

Ready to meet Loganville High School’s Jordan Draughon?  How about future University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s Jordan Draughon?

Ok, Ok, same girl, but wait – did everyone enjoy their spring break?!?

I worked, but how about the rest of you??  :)

Seriously though, I did take a blog break because I didn’t want anyone to miss reading while celebrating on the beach!    I know the blog posts are super fascinating, but somehow I doubt they compare to sandy beaches!  ;)

You may have already seen the sneak peek of Jordan on Facebook, but you’ll see more pics from her session here.  I really had a hard time picking my favorites, because there are sooo many…

We have only just started, so come back and see more from Jordan’s session.  You won’t want to miss it, because one of her images, is probably one of my favorites EVER!

Until next time…have a great weekend!

Toodles!

Interested in your own senior session and you know Jordan personally?  Ask her about the special discount that she has to offer as a {Twelve}12 Senior Spokesmodel.

I’m still looking for Spokesmodels for both Class of 2012 and Class of 2013.  Please contact me very soon if you are interested or click HERE to apply now.

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

So here we are – Bailey Ferguson’s final appearance on the blog.  You may know her for playing defense on the Grayson High School Girls Varsity Lacrosse team, but I like to call her “goat whisperer.”  Ok, ok, that may sound a little dramatic, but it’s really true!

Let me back up a bit.  When I first started looking for locations for Bailey’s session, I remembered some pictures she had posted to Facebook.  They had some old buildings in the background and I asked her where the location was.  Lucky for me, it was the property of one her friends.  Bailey got us permission to photograph there and we met a few weeks later so I could check out the place.

The owner told me that we could jump the fence to get to the older buildings.  When Bailey and I got there, we had a choice, jump the fence or stand on the other side and not get to explore.  If you know me, I don’t jump fences and I have never been on the same side of a fence as any farm animals. Without hesitation, over the fence Bailey went.  A gaggle of goats headed her way and I held my breath, because I wasn’t sure what was about to happen.  Some of the larger goats approached Bailey first, and they simply walked up to her and let her pet them.  It was so cool!  At this point, I realized how lame I was on the other side of the fence and I took my little girly self and over the fence I went too.  I gotta say, goats are cute, really darn cute!  Who knew!

Fast forward to the day of our session and we find ourselves with the goats again.  This time though, there were 3-4 baby goats.  Oh My Goodness!  All of them loved Bailey…especially, one little girl goat. Everywhere Bailey went, the goat followed, saying “baaa” the whole way.

Now, baby goats are cute, but watch out, because what I didn’t know, they like to nibble things (like Bailey’s toes) and they eat things when they are unsupervised.  I had set down a notebook with 4 sheets of paper sticking out of it.  We couldn’t have been away from the notebook more than 5 minutes, I’m not kidding!  When we got back to the notebook – all of the sheets of paper were gone!  They literally ate the papers!  Lesson learned, watch your paper products around goats.  ;)

The Mahaffey Goats:

Let’s get back to Bailey now…

I love this one.  Bailey, you are simply stunning!!

And this one – Wow!

awww…back to our little goat friend.  I have to admit, this is a bit deceiving.  The little girl goat was so rambunctious, so catching her still was quite a task.  Bailey withstood a lot of nibbling to get these shots, but I love them, so I’m happy that she didn’t mind.

With graduation approaching, what will Bailey miss most?

“The thing that I’ll miss most is probably going to be being so close with the people that are my friends now…I’ll miss just being able to hang out with them whenever I want & I know that our friendships will change when we all separate for college which makes me sad. Also, FOOTBALL GAMES! They were so much fun and painting up with everyone to cheer on my friends every Friday is definitely something I’ll miss.”

Bailey, it really has been great getting to know you over the past few months.   I know you feel indecisive now, but don’t worry.  When you go off to Georgia Southern in a few months, I’m sure you will excel.  You have such a great, positive attitude and that will get you far!

Thanks to the Mahaffey’s for allowing us to shoot on their property!  We had such a blast!

If you have missed Bailey on the blog, you can check out Part one HERE and Part two HERE.  Come back soon, because Bailey will be the featured video on the home page!

Interested in your own senior session and you know Bailey personally?  Ask her about the special discount that she has to offer as a {Twelve}12 Senior Spokesmodel.

I’m still looking for Spokesmodels for both Class of 2012 and Class of 2013.  Please contact me very soon if you are interested or click HERE to apply now.

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

You wouldn’t know it was still a winter day in Georgia when I photographed Grayson High School’s Bailey Ferguson for her senior portraits.  Luckily, winter didn’t stick around long this year, so it was perfect weather for some cowboy boots and a little black dress!  

You, also, probably wouldn’t have guessed that cows and goats were only a few feet away from all this model behavior.  Sorry, but I am going to have to pull a Ryan Seacrest and make you wait…until next time for the goats.  ;)

Until next time…Toodles!

If you missed Bailey’s first appearance on the blog, you can check it out HERE.

Interested in your own senior session and you know Bailey personally?  Ask her about the special discount that she has to offer as a {Twelve}12 Senior Spokesmodel.

I’m still looking for Spokesmodels for both Class of 2012 and Class of 2013.  Please contact me very soon if you are interested or click HERE to apply now.

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

Meet Bailey Ferguson –  Grayson High School Lacrosse player, Luke Bryan fan and overall energetic, fun, and fearless girl!!  If you follow my page on Facebook, you have probably seen a preview of this beautiful high school senior already, but her images really don’t tell the whole story.  I have photographed lots of people willing to do anything to get the picture, but when Bailey and I had to climb a fence (with permission of course) to a pasture full of goats, I knew we were going to have fun together!  More of that later…let’s take a look at some fierceness first!

Oh, and let me say, Bailey totally tricked me.  She may have said she wasn’t sure if she could do the serious face…OMGoodness, are you kidding me…check this out!

I love me some serious looks, but Bailey looks just as fabulous with a smile!  Add the perfect amount of wind to the hair and she seriously looks like she could be on the cover of a magazine.  

Absolutely gorgeous, don’t you agree?!?!  :)That’s not all from Bailey…make sure you come back for more.  Besides, you don’t want to miss the goat story!  ;)

Until next time…have a great weekend!

Toodles!

Interested in your own senior session and you know Bailey personally?  Ask her about the special discount that she has to offer as a {Twelve}12 Senior Spokesmodel.

I’m still looking for Spokesmodels for both Class of 2012 and Class of 2013.  Please contact me very soon if you are interested or click HERE to apply now.

If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions, click HERE and “LIKE.”

Class of 2012 is about half way through their final year.  Grayson High School’s Amy Thurber has had a pretty exciting year so far – cheering for the Grayson Rams, homecoming court.  In a few short months, what seemed like it took forever, will finally be here – graduation day.  

So we already know Amy’s plans after high school, but for most seniors, these last few months are a time for reflection and excitement about what the future holds.

Amy – “What I will miss most about High School is cheering for football games, and being so close to all of my friends.
What I’m looking forward to most is getting my own apartment, making new friends and possibly joining a sorority.”

I don’t know about you all, but so many important moments in my life are highlighted by a song.  If I think back about high school graduation, my wedding, anything – usually, if I hear that song, it takes me back.

The soundtrack of your life.

I won’t age myself by telling you the songs that bring me back to high school, but I did ask Amy which song she can relate to most right now.   I’m a bit of a sap.  I never heard this song before and it almost made me tear up a bit.  What a perfect song!  (if you haven’t heard it either, you totally need to look it up and listen)

“My Wish”

Rascal Flatts

I hope that the days come easy and the moments pass slow,

And each road leads you where you want to go,

And if you’re faced with a choice, and you have to choose,

I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.

And if one door opens to another door closed, 

I hope you keep on walkin’ till you find the window,

If it’s cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile,

But more than anything, more than anything,

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,

Your dreams stay big, and your worries stay small,

You never need to carry more than you can hold,

And while you’re out there getting where you’re getting to,

I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,

Yeah, this, is my wish.

When we last left off with Grayson Ram Cheerleader Amy Thurber, she was celebrating with the rest of Grayson High School over their State Championship Win!  So what next?  What happens when the lights go out and the stadium empties?  For this Class of 2012 girl – graduation, of course, then off to college.

When I asked Amy, “what’s next for you after graduation?”  She started to answer, and then her mom said, “tell her what you really want to be!”  With a mischievous smile, Amy responded, “a trophy wife!”  With that, all three of us were laughing!  Hey, can’t say that I blame her!

All trophy wife dreams and silliness aside, Amy hopes to attend Georgia Southern after graduation to become a dental hygienist.  Amy, the only words of wisdom I can give…be kind to your future patients, those pointy instruments hurt!  ;) 

We’re still not done…Amy will be back on the blog, so be sure to come back soon.

If you missed Part 1, you can check it out by clicking here.

Interested in your own senior session and you know Amy personally?  Ask her about the special discount that she has to offer as a {Twelve}12 Senior Spokesmodel.

Don’t forget, I’m still looking for Spokesmodels for both Class of 2012 and Class of 2013.

Until next time…toodles!

While the ladies of Sarasota’s Three Kitcheneers are truly gorgeous on the outside, they are every bit as beautiful on the inside. An afternoon with these ladies is filled with laughter and fun. With beauty and feistiness, watch out Rachel Ray & Gordon Ramsey, these girls are super cute AND they can definitely speak their minds! What’s so great about these ladies and why will you love them?  Where do I begin…

They came onto the video blogging scene only four months ago, but their passion & love for food and all things related began long before that.  Assunta, Charlotte, and Megan are collectively working very hard to make the Three Kitcheneers successful, so you would think they probably have time for little else.  Not true though.  They do all this and they have families too.  Assunta is married with two children.  Charlotte has a husband & a baby boy. Megan has a boyfriend and says, “I am the proud pet parent of Coco the Pomeranian and Jasmine the Siamese cat.  They are the little loves of my life.”  Awww, don’t you just love her!  I, seriously, wanted to pack the three of them in my suitcase and bring them home with me!   Not kidding, they could be comedians on the side too!  They had me cracking up, from beginning to end!  I wonder, are they this funny separately or is it their combined effort that makes them at their best?  Either way, you can’t help but love them and I think that’s exactly what will catapult them to stardom.

Oh yeah, you probably want to see more pictures of them, don’t you!?!?!

Assunta is charismatic, full of energy and has a smile that lights up a room.  Best of all, she makes anyone feel like a best friend within minutes.   Charlotte, reserved in the beginning…she is calm and quiet.   You soon realize though that once she warms up, she is every bit as feisty and can she knock out some poses!  As RuPaul would say…Work it!!

Megan is the free spirit, laid back one.  She often hears that she resembles Kim Kardashian, but after being with her a short while, she is ALL Megan.  And let me tell you, Megan has a pair of legs that I think I am asking Santa for on my Christmas list!  Yes, I would rather slap on a pair of new ones than do the work she must have done to get those, but that’s a story for another day. 

I love these of Megan.  We snuck back into the house for a few quick pics.  Kim K. has nothing on Megan G.! While talking to Megan, something she said really stuck with me.  She said that of course, they would love for the Three Kitcheneers to take off and be a success.  However,  if this is as good as it gets and all it ever becomes, that she is truly happy with who she is and with her life.  I love that!  So few people can say that.  Yet another reason why you can’t help but love these ladies!

At the end of the day, we said our goodbyes, packed the cars and we said goodbye to Charlie (the dog).  I flew home the next day and thought about the shoot and the new friends I had made.  Oh yeah…what inspired me??  Really, the whole day did, but I think it was mostly our talk with Megan.  I came away from this opportunity knowing that I am still going to try really, really hard to be successful but at the end of the day, I better be happy with who I am…and truly, I am.

So picture me toasting all of you (Naomi, Assunta, Charlotte and Megan) with my imaginary champagne glass, to all of our futures and what’s sure to be some fabulous adventures ahead!  :)

Three Kitcheneers

Naomi Chokr

Jewelry: Amir Chokr from Diamond Vault

Dresses: Liz Murray from INfluence

Hair & Make-up: Ana Molinari Salon & Spa (Palm Ave.)

Location: Ana Molinari, Molinari Residence

If you haven’t heard of Sarasota’s Three Kitcheneers, don’t worry, I’m sure you will soon enough.  If Food Network doesn’t come a calling soon, I will be shocked.  Mix a love of all things food, add in some humor and a ridiculous amount of beauty and you have a recipe for these lovely ladies.  

Inspired – that’s how I felt after an afternoon with Assunta, Charlotte & Megan, but let me back up a bit though.  I’m getting ahead of myself.  :)

When the call came asking if I wanted to take part in a photo shoot in Sarasota, I knew I couldn’t pass on the opportunity.  I really didn’t care what I was helping with or shooting – sign me up!  I’ve told you about my spunky friend Naomi before, but what I haven’t mentioned is how we are always talking about how if we lived closer we could shoot together.  Well, I’m not moving and much to my husband’s dismay, I haven’t won the lottery yet, BUT Naomi and I finally got to shoot together!

After weeks of Naomi planning, the day came and I arrived in sunny Sarasota.  1st stop, the Molinari residence.  The estate is spectacular.  It was built in the 1920′s and has ties to the famous Ringling family.   As we approached the door, a reddish brown dog with gray over each eye and around his nose greeted us…Charlie was clearly in charge of this house.  :) After we got a tour of the house and the grounds, Naomi and I got to work and began setting up.

The scene was to be a lovely outdoor picnic.  The pillows and sweet treats and all the other handpicked details (by Naomi) transformed the backyard into a magical garden.  I could have curled up with a good book and gotten lost for hours.  

Once the ladies arrived, the fun began.  When you meet them, you can’t help but feel like you have known them forever.  It was like five friends hanging out, gossiping, enjoying the day, well…except three of them looked like they stepped off the cover of a magazine!  You want to be envious of their beauty, but you can’t be because they treat you like a best friend!

Let’s take a look at the Three Kitcheneers -

Come back soon…I still have to tell you how the Three Kitcheneers came to be, why you’ll love them and how I left feeling so inspired to make a difference in my own life.

See you then!

Be sure to check out Naomi’s Blog too for all of her images from the day.   While I shot all of the above images…this photo shoot was her baby…I was just along for the ride.  :) 

Naomi also had help from the following Sarasota businesses:

Jewelry: Amir Chokr from Diamond Vault

Dresses: Liz Murray from INfluence

Hair & Make-up: Ana Molinari Salon & Spa (Palm Ave.)

Location: Ana Molinari, Molinari Residence

This year has been different for me than last year as far as my photography is concerned.

Last year was about starting the business and taking pictures of anything and everything. Now, it is more about finding myself as a photographer and deciding what really excites me and what direction to take my business.  Along with that, I decided I needed to meet other photographers in my area.

While my friends like that I started my business, none of them care about an aperture or shutter speed and I don’t blame them for that at all.   I do want to get out there though and find some new friends that share in my passion for photography.  Earlier this year,  I started looking for local photography groups.  I found a few really cool ones that meet regularly and attended my first one last month.   Aside from meeting a bunch of really cool and talented people, I got to shoot in a fabulous studio, Photoplex Studios in Alpharetta.  Now, I can’t take credit for the awesome lighting setup (thanks to Trent, Evan, and the rest of the team) or the posing.  The models rocked it big time!  I did come away with some new friends and some awesome shots.   Aimee, Claudia, Kayla – hope to see you at the next one!

Shawna Leigh Grasty:

Ashley Rivera:

more Shawna:

Olivia Vranjes on Left / Ashley on Right:

Ariel Betancourt:

Alan Garner:

more Ariel: