Senior Shadow Day & Off to South Carolina!

Today we were honored to be shadowed by two awesome seniors for Senior Shadow Day! This is where a senior (hence the name) shadows someone in a profession they are interested in. We were approached by two students from Independence High School asking us if they could shadow us and we jumped at the chance! We had Kevin, who we have known from helping out with the youth group, as well as another great, creative person, Sarah!

Lucky for them we had some exciting studio stuff on the agenda for the day, so after grabbing coffee at our favorite hangout and talking business, we took them to the studio and put them to work! Ok, ok... just kidding... well, kind of.... :)











Unfortunately there were no shots taken of Sarah and I messing with the lights... though we are official accomplished Light People now... (not sure exactly what that is, but it's really important I promise you... :). After working on the studio, we had lunch at S.A.T.C.O. and that wrapped up the day!

Always remember, regardless of how busy your life seems, to make sure to take some time to serve and invest in other people, not just yourself! It can be one of the most rewarding things and who knows the impact you can have on other people and change lives!

By the way, these are the only sneak peaks you'll get of our studio before we have our Studio Warming Party so enjoy them while you have the chance!

On another note, we leave early tomorrow morning to head to South Carolina to shoot the wedding of Paul & Laura Bliss!!! We cannot WAIT to see them again, and even cooler - we are meeting up with a past bride and groom of ours who now live in the Columbia, SC area!! Fun times ahead this weekend...

Laura Bliss - The Bride To Be!

Our New Studio!

So officially as of Monday October 8th we, Zach and Jody Gray of Gray Photography, are proud leasers of a new studio!



Maybe we'll affectionately call the place Studio Gray :) We have been busy this week transporting our photography stuff to this location and we are pumped! Stay tuned for a "Studio Warming" that we will be having for people to stop in and see the place .

We couldn't decide what photo to put up so here are 2 more :)

Lovey dovey picture...


My Husband is a Stud picture...

Workshop Completed!

Yesterday in conjunction with Evan Baines we hosted the Bridal Portraiture workshop and it was absolutely fantastic! We had such a great time teaching, sharing, as well as getting to know the photographers who came out. Thanks to our awesome models, Dustin, Lindsey, and Kathy, as well as our pro makeup artist, Sherita Leslie. And of course a big thanks to Mel of The Velvet Trunk and Krystal Mann of Mint and Sage who lent us the use of their great studio at The Factory for the morning sessions and the afterward critiques.

Evan and Zach at their finest...





After the morning tutorials, the afternoon consisted of 6 hours of instruction/shoot time. Everyone was split into 2 groups, half going with Evan, the rest with Zach, and then after 3 hours the groups swapped. Below we will show behind-the-scenes photos as well as an image or two from the setup that Zach demonstrated and shot.

























This, my friends, is the lovely Amanda Baines, who is the wife of Evan Baines. Random note... For any of you bacon lovers out there, I suggest you visit this original creation of Amanda's...





...and the group!





Our models did a great job, and the feedback we received from this workshop was extremely positive. Sorry for those who were unable to make it, but stay tuned for the dates of the next one coming up! We are planning on Spring and are looking to incorporate more advanced techniques as well as even more shoot time and hands on with set up.

Thanks to everyone who came out!! We cannot wait to see more of the great stuff you guys did!

Second shooting can be fun!

These last few days have been a whirlwind! Not only have we been busily preparing for our Bridal Portraiture Workshop tomorrow, but on Thursday we drove all the way to Chattanooga, TN to hear a photographer speak, and then yesterday (Friday) we were busy organizing our office (yours truly) and also shooting (Zach)!

We had the privilege of helping out some good friends of ours over at Dove Wedding Photography. The dynamic duo is Peter and Whitney Carlson and they have become friends through a once-a-month photo geek meeting that we have called PUGs (Pictage User Groups). We get together, talk shop, then go out to dinner and comment on how nerdy we all are with photo stuff!

Their client's wedding took place in Franklin at the Factory, which is also where we are hosting our photography workshop tomorrow. Here are some of the images that Zach took from the day! Enjoy!







Here is Whitney in Spy Mode...


Peter getting his photo on...

Ben & Amy!

This past weekend we had the honor of shooting Ben & Amy's wedding. Talk about a great couple! Amy especially amazed me - she was so calm and caring about everyone but herself :) The ceremony was great, and thanks to the amazing planning of Helen Morisette, their reception at the Parthenon was absolutely beautiful!

Enjoy a few photos!















This photo makes me laugh! I look so intense!!


The "walking bridge" holds special meaning for Ben & Amy and it was really important to them to get shots together on the bridge! They didn't want to see each other beforehand, so they allotted an extra 45 or so minutes for us to drive over to the bridge, take some photos and then move on to the reception. We love working with couples who realize the importance of bride and groom photos and are willing to build it into the schedule of the day. This is soooo important we can't stress it enough!!!

















Congrats you guys!!!!! Enjoy your time relaxing on your honeymoon!!