I’m still working on shaking things up! A new studio. A new year. What else can I come up with?

For starters, I’m going to start keeping studio hours. Yay! I’ll be in the studio from 9am – 3pm on Thursdays and Fridays. Perfect for those who want to come in to meet me, see the studio, pick up orders, etc. Oh yeah, and photo sessions. I know these are pretty limited hours, so I’m still going to be available outside those hours, just by appointment only as in the past. It’s my plan in the future to expand those hours, but this is definitely a step in the right direction for me!

Also, you can now schedule your portrait sessions online! The website is: http://joyfulheartphoto.bookmonline.com/  It’s a new service I’m trying out, and I hope it works out well! You can even choose to pre-pay your session fee right from the scheduler, so that is one less thing to try to remember for the day of the session!

Keep checking back to see what else I have going on this year!!!

I’m sitting here, looking back at this year and thinking… wow. What a RIDE! I’ve seen a lot of wonderful things this year. Being asked to photograph the Gala For Girls father / daughter dance this last Feb, and being asked to return next year. Being given the opportunity to be involved in more weddings in this one year than in all the previous years combined. Getting to cuddle and love on all the squishy newborns that have been in my studio. Meeting so many new people and making friends with all of my clients. Being blessed with all of my repeat clients. Being able to give back to our armed forces with my involvement with Operation: Love ReUnited, and give their families some wonderful memories.  And my biggest change… moving to a new studio location at the end of this year. This year has more than met all of my expectations, and then some! I’m not going to say it was all good. Dealing with a broken lens and camera half way through the year, with the stress and expense of having to arrange for repairs and rentals during two (yes TWO!) of the busiest months of my year, were NOT high on my list of fun things. But it’s okay. That’s what being a professional is about. Being able to have backup equipment and dealing with things like this in such a way that your work with your clients is never affected.

I’m so seriously excited about the things I have planned for this coming year! My new studio space is HUGE and I have the ability for even more awesome stuff. As anyone who has been in my studio the last two months know, I have some BIG plans for the space and I can’t wait to share them with you when it’s all said and done. I’m adding some new products to my offerings, including jewelry and digital files. I will be running some specials throughout the year, including mini-sessions. (For those who aren’t sure… mini sessions are themed sessions. Generally a limited-edition session – something not available at any other time – and are shorter in length. The mini-session fee includes the session itself and a package with prints, digital files, or special product.)

Here is the second half of my favorites from last year. This isn’t all of my shoots, but a small handful of some of my favorite images. Here’s to an exciting 2012!!! Happy New Year everyone!!!

I hope everyone has some fantastic plans for the big holiday weekend.  One neat addition our family is making to our regular plans is the addition of a webcam. Yes, we’re going to open gifts together with my family, half way across the country, via Skype. It’s been hard on my family to have us so far away, especially during the holidays, but hopefully this year will be easier for everyone.

And on that positive note, I would like to post the first half of my year highlights. These are just some of my favorite sessions from the year. I hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I do. I am officially on my holiday break right now, so this is the last “photo related” thing I’m going to do until next Tuesday.

I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Christmas weekend!