Senior: NIKKI

Gorgeous! Is what I have to say about Nikki.  She was so easy going and laid back.  She made my job easy.  It's always fun but sometimes not so easy.  She has a great smile and bright blue eyes.  And....was game for anything!

I met Nikki at the park for her Senior portraits.  Not the best park...actually known for it's drugs, but it was green and the flowers were in full bloom.

 Nikki brought her dad's piston.  He passed away and she wanted to include it in a few pictures in honor and memory of him.  Such a sweet gesture and tells a lot about how sweet and caring she is.

Graduation is right around the corner.  She looked stunning in her cap and gown.  You wanna know a secret?..........This beautiful spot is 4 feet from the bathroom.  We got to hear people flushing toilets while we shot :-)

Stunning...................

Senior: AMANDA

Amanda's portrait session was full of personality.

She has beautiful blue eyes and the perfect skin tone for the green surroundings.

Easter Moments

I love spontaneous portrait sessions.....the ones where no one is expecting them but the moment's right.  Easter Sunday we were enjoying ourselves and I noticed a field of yellow mustard weed in the back pasture and the gorgeous thunder clouds.  I asked cousin Kelly if I could photograph her kids with their Easter baskets out back.

Tristan and Pressley

They are really photogenic kids but Pressley was getting a little anxious.

She held up her Easter bucket and declared to us all "I am done!"  So I told Tristan to stay put and I'd take his picture.

He would have posed for me all day.  He's such a handsome kid.  I told Kelly we should shoot a couple family shots and to go find her fiancee.  She did the next best thing....texted him to come to the field.

When the kids got bored I decided to shoot a few couples shots.

They got married the next day.............Not saying my pictures had anything to do with that...but how cool!

A few more shots from the day.............

Senior: JASON

What an dynamic guy Jason is.  We spent quite a bit of time horsing around before getting to the serious shots.  He's quite the character.  He's one of the most put together Senior's I have met.  Not only is he trying to start a 501(c) non-profit but he carries a 4.0 grade point average AND is very athletic.  

He has a darling little smirk.  (I'm sure he would be mortified by me saying "darling)

I had so much fun shooting Jason and I can't wait to see where he goes in life.  Where ever it is it will be BIG!

Flooding December 2, 2012

The wind and rain has been relentless.  I was up early this morning because of the howling wind through the slightly cracked bedroom window.  Brian has a cold so slept through everything.  I headed downstairs to brew some coffee and go through pictures from yesterday's Paws & Claus Christmas event to benefit the Calaveras Humane Society.  With a huge cup of coffee in hand I turned on the computer and watched the sun come up over our rapidly rising creek.  Soon Brian was downstairs making a huge plate of waffles.  Then the downpour started.  It rained really hard....blinding conditions for about three hours.   Brian went in the dining room and the floor was soaked.  The wind was blowing the water against and under the door.  I started finding puddles around the house.  Several of the door window panes couldn't handle that amount of water and wind. While checking the windows I noticed the lake that was forming in the backyard under the dining room window.

Taken through the dining room window

As it started to die down...a little... I decided to put on my raincoat and boots and take a walk.  I grabbed my little point and shoot and out the door I went.............

One of the seasonal streams

I guess the doggies won't have a pasture to play in for a while.

The fence is almost gone.

The fence between the neighbor and us.  It's almost completely gone.  We'll need to get out there and repair everything before "Ricky & Lucy" are delivered on the 14th.

The neighbor's property

Property next door

I headed down the road to see how our little bridge was handling the water.............It wasn't!

View from our driveway to the end of the road.

The bridge is down by the entrance to the neighbor's property

Tree on my neighbor's property.  They are stuck in their house.  You can see their driveway to the right. It's completely flooded.