[sunset]

The setting sun last night cast a wonderful orange glow on the hill to the east. I called Levi in from outside, and he said, "But I want to see the blueorange!" "The blueorange?" "Yeah, over the sun!" so I let him stay out and see it, haha.

A little late.. but here's my christmas bokeh :)

The beautiful sunset of tonight with the moon hanging in the upper corner.

B&W version?

Different white balance settings can give you a significant change in color.

[christmas]

When you have lipstick on, it's a must to kiss some innocent cheek :)

 Friday: Went out and cut a tree and named him Alan.
Saturday: Opened gifts. Took pictures. Had a jolly holiday.
Sunday: Church. Staying up late with Uncle John.
Today: I got a pair of skinny jeans. I can't decide if I look cool or retarded. There's a fine line between the two. ;) 
My family is amazing.

This cat. Has the most amazing eyes. In this photo they are untouched.

As well as in this one.

They are enhanced in this one :)

[christmas eve!]

This ice storm happened a few days ago, actually. It was so tremendously beautiful.

Uncle Johnny brought his puppy, Charlie along. And his santa suit, haha.

John got a hat to match mine and Samanta's for christmas. So we had to take pictures.

This one is supposed to be portraying each of our personalities.
Sam: " :D"
John: "I'm pretty sure Hannibal didn't have a hat like this."
Shaina: "Happy happy joy joy."

Another personalities photo.
Shaina:"Hi."
John: "...."
Sam: "Look, it's my horse!"

Silliness, haha.

Gosh my siblings are adorable. Just... wow.

And I love this one, haha :)

Serious:)

Another one of Sami and Charlie.
Merry Christmas to you all!! Thank you for reading my blog and following my photography journey. I love you!

[new discovery]

I found Lindsey Stirling on youtube. And I was like, "Dude." She plays the violin. No, she owns the violin. And she dances. I love her awesome, generally modest sense of style, and her dance is also generally just cool without being sensual IMO, although I would not recommend 'on the floor take three' because it crosses the line a bit in my opinion.
This one is fun.
And this one is just absolutely gorgeous.
Check her out :)

[what i've been reading/watching]

                                             Reading:

-Taking Flight by Elisabeth Elliot. Got it from our home church host in a box of books. Read the first entry and decided to add it to my daily devotions. Read the second and decided to write a blog post about it. It's comprised of short words of wisdom from Mrs. Elliot, put together for graduates. I've only read the first two entries but it's very good so far.  
-The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny. A fantasy series. My dad read them when he was my age and then my brother recently started reading them. I started the first book and really enjoyed it. It's very much un-cliched, though many of the fantasy books can be. 
-The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I figured I should find out what all the fuss was about. I liked it ok, but I'm not caught up in the rage over it. I will say that it was very suspenseful, haha and hard to put down. I'll probably read the next ones if I have nothing else on my list. And I might watch the movie after it comes out on dvd. We shall see :) 


                                           Watching:
-North and South. Grandma snagged this and watched it with Papa John. While working on the project, I watched it and she rewatched it, haha. It was quite good, not a favorite of mine but I did enjoy it. I think I'd probably enjoy watching it a second time, as I know the characters better now. It starts out a little slow, but Mr. Thornton's accent is wonderful. :) Oh yes, and Esther from Bleak House has a small part in it! I love her so much, her character (and her portrayal of that character)  in Bleak House is one of my favorites ever.
-Horatio Hornblower. I must confess, I'm a huge fan of the British Miniseries. And this one particularly. Rewatching this (also while working on the project.... YES there will be a post about it soon) I noticed how young Horatio was when he started out! Also Horatio is brilliant, but like many of them, would be terrible to be married to. He was married to his ship. He is still a tremendously loveable character, not to mention Archie, Mr. Bush, and many others. I really really love this series, and I highly recommend it. Though definitely not  a chick flick, I still enjoy it immensely. Normally I don't like war movies, but this one has more to do with the people than the fighting, so I really enjoyed it.
-Sherlock. Also rewatched this series recently... It's great. The cinematography is wonderful, and the writers did a tremendous job with it. I normally am quite a purist, but they definitely made the modern day setting work. I can't wait for the next season of it! Also, the actor that plays Watson is playing Bilbo in The Hobbit, and that gives me great hope for the movie. I think he'll be perfect for it. 




                                     Also on my list:
-The Bourne Identity. Snagged this one from our host as well. I've watched the movies, and enjoyed it but am not a huge fan. But I hear that the books are very very different? Maybe I'll enjoy it. Dad said the first book is the only one worth reading. 
-Til We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis. I've read this before. But it was before GB and I have a feeling it will mean more to me now. It's definitely intriguing. 
-The New Jane Eyre movie :) Sam and I are gonna watch it tonight. I love the actor that plays St. John, so I'm excited. Well, and I love the story. But from the trailer I've seen it almost looks like a carbon copy of the 2006 version (my favorite so far)

[ben+cassie-preview!!]

Getting ready!

They had this awesome pavilion thingy that she walked under as she walked down the isle, and then later they danced under it during the reception.

Couple portraits :) This couple is a bundle of fun to shoot, lemme tell ya!

 

The other second shooter. Both he and Abby were amazing to work with!

The bouquets were absolutely gorgeous!

The long awaited kiss!

During their first dance, Cassie's niece came and danced with them! How cute :)

<3

Leaving! Cassie looks radiant.