A Jelly Donut and a Swan

You're probably scratching your head over the title of this post. I'll explain. You see, this is how Astin has been spending most of his day:



Jay and I call that his "jelly donut" pose. Don't ask me how he breathes or how it can possibly smell good...but he loves curling up like that.

Another favorite of his is the "swan" position.


I guess his rump makes as good of a pillow as any...

"I am so not amused."


As you can see, he's had a rough day.


Pathetic, really.

Erin and Zach | Pittsburgh Engagement Pictures

After some rain delays last week, I was finally able to meet up with Erin and Zach at Hartwood Acres on Friday for their engagement photos. This is a wonderful location for engagement photos in the Pittsburgh area...and I'm always amazed at how each session I do here has its own unique look.

I know I've mentioned this before, but one of my favorite things about engagement sessions is the chance to get to know my clients a bit better. I loved hearing about how Erin and Zach met--at the lovely Penn State campus--and seeing how much they are completely in love with each other. I'm definitely looking forward to their wedding next June.

Mmm...check out the cute bows on Erin's shoes.






I love the way Zach makes Erin laugh...






I'm totally jealous of Erin's skirt. Such a flattering style!










Erin has the most gorgeous eyes...










Yay for an old barn!






I'll see you two in June!

I ♥ Faces Contest Entry | Blue

I ♥ Faces" is a cool blog devoted to showcasing faces...and they hold weekly contests and challenges. Although I've lurked around the blog for a while, this is my first time to enter one of the contests.

This week's heme is "blue," I thought this photo fit the theme well...

Pittsburgh Trash the Dress Session | Workshop Recap

I have to start this post by saying that Amanda and Tim are awesome! They were wonderful models last night for the workshop at Frick Park (and oh so very brave!). And, I discovered how much I LOVE Frick Park...it would be an awesome spot for engagement photos...hint, hint.

Despite a bit of a rain scare to begin with, I think everyone had a blast getting to practice shooting in manual mode and taking control of their settings. It was a mix of Canon and Nikon users, and I have to give a big thanks to the more seasoned Nikon shooter who was in attendance--Nick. He definitely helped figure out how to change camera settings for the newer Nikon shooters.

Throughout it all, I felt like jumping up and down because it was so much fun getting to do a Trash the Dress session. I would love to do more of these--so, any past brides up for the challenge?? It is a TON of fun, trust me! If you don't mind getting your dress dirty (when are you going to where it again, anyway?), you should definitely consider it.

Now I did make one goof--I completely forgot to take a picture of the group! Duh! I guess I was in "follow the white dress" mode and totally focused my lens on Amanda and Tim (who were awesome--did I mention that?). Ah well, we'll have to do it again sometime!

Things started off easy enough in a fun field.




Ah, there's some shooters...




Then things got more interesting...






I just LOVE Tim's suit...so cool.




And then things got really interesting...yes they did! They went in the creek!


LOVE this.






Aw yeah!








See? I wasn't the only out there. I'd love to see her shot, too...














Thank you, thank you, thank you, Amanda and Tim for being such great sports!