I’m a simple girl and why….

I’m not sure how this will read, it was written from my heart, not as an advertisment for me, seriously I’m busy and very happy, but as a heartfelt plea to value your portraits of your children and find a photographer who will create lifelong memories for you.    I would spend so much money today to have the pictures of my babies then.   Here is the story why. And….I have many photographer friends no matter where you live, if you need help finding someone, talk to me, I will help!

I am working on pictures for my own walls.  With all my heart I would love to have the images of my children when they were babies in the mix.  I can’t.  They don’t match, they don’t ‘fit’ my house and they just look terrible.  If I knew now what I knew when my babies were little I would do things very differently.

First, I bought a copywrite release from Olan Mills so I could use pics of Bret and me in with our boys.   Here I am, lazy eye and all.  I wish it weren’t that way but I can see and with those eyes I get a ‘job’ that has changed my life.   

amy

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If you think my bangs are beautiful, don’t blame me, blame her.  Her with the most amazing hands I’ve ever seen.  Her with the biggest heart I’ve ever seen.  Her who I love just as much today as when she died of cancer on March 10, 1988.   My grandma Bernice Minnie Orend, she cut my bangs ; )

grandma

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And jeepers, look at her big feet.   Had my great-grandma Ella covered up those precious feet I would have no way of knowing what they looked like.   Grandma wore a size 10 and you can tell by her feet then that they would be big.  And seriously, I’d give my eye teeth for Grandma’s dress and hat.  I would use it today for sure.   The light in her eyes is AMAZING.  The things that are important to me today were important to my great-grandma in 1920 and she didn’t even know it!  

Here is my Great Uncle Lester, oh how he used to tease me.  Like my grandma, with his wife Libby, their Christmas gifts were usually hand made and the ones that still matter most to me.   

This is funny too, I have a backdrop that looks just like this.   I used it today and thankfully it was spared of baby explosion ; )

lester

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These pictures will go in my own collage walls that I am working on.  I really want to mix the old and the new.  Even though they were taken over 115 years, I would like them to ‘match’ today.  I have many images of my older boys that will fit perfectly but NO baby pictures.  None.  Why, becuase when my boys were babies I didn’t get it.  Well I didn’t get what might be important to me later.

I can’t show you the pics, I don’t own the copywrite but I can tell you when I had my babies photographed I was stupid.  I cared about the outfits but almost to a point where I was photographing the outfit and not the child.  Who cares about shoes or stupid red socks covering new little toes or Mickey Mouse on the front because it was cute or the crazy G*P outfits that were adorable then but would look terrible on my wall today………   Once I had their pictures, I would just cover up ‘last year’s stupid outfit picture’ with the new picture.  I didn’t think for one minute that I might treasure yesterday so much more when it was today.  Uggggg.

Sometimes I get crazy but most times I think I am a very simple photographer.  I love expression, I LOVE LIGHT, I love eyes, I love toes, and most importantly I love images that will stay in your heart and your walls for much longer than I would have dreamed when I was a new mom.   

When I hear all the time that I am creative, maybe in some things but honestly, I want to be like the photographer of 1920.  If my pictures last as long as Grandma and Lester’s, I’m doing the right thing for me and most importantly for my clients.  

I’ll probably change and add to this and I’m sure my grammar isn’t perfect.    My tagline is Still Photography ~ Moving Images.   It doesn’t say clothing catalog.  

So that lazy eye goes along with my great big heart and goofy spirit and together I hope they make images that I love but that my people will love forever too.  Maybe one day, your granddaughter or greatgrandaughter will be blogging (or whatever the new technology is) about how important your images are to them.  I hope so.  

With a few tears in my eyes….   Love, Amy

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Beth Garvin - You know, Maybe subjects seen through lazy eyes are the ones that “catch the moment/feeling”. I had Lazy eyes too, and I enjoy photography and think “some” of my photos are passable. Ron Johnson told me that ‘the eyes tell the story.’ I’ve tried to remember that when taking pictures at church. and he’s right.

and thanks for all that you’ve taught me, just in conversation. Thanks Amy.

Justine Peebles - Amy, you are so wonderful. I love working with you and I can’t even tell you how many times I told Justin “I really, really like her” on our way back to Des Moines. I can’t to see our pics. Please photoshop me some skinny arms, a nice booty and tan skin. Haha :) I can’t wait til Madison arrives so you can help us capture her “babyhood.” I’m so glad that I was referred to you.

Stacy - Love you love you love you. Without you I wouldn’t have amazing photos of my girls. Thank you for everything you do!!!

Jeanne - Amy, you are so right! If I still had little ones I wouldn’t be able to keep them away from you. I will never regret a single picture I have had taken(OK maybe a few Oshkosh outfits that don’t show toes) I will only regret that I didn’t have more pictures taken! You’re the best!

Athena - Oh Amy, you are so right! I have used your photos all over my house as ART. They will never age or look dated because of the wonderful *tips* you share and the way you focus on the eyes, the light, the child! We love our time with you and the final amazing product that we will have forever!

Tereasa - Amy you are so awesome! Such words of wisdom and truth. You are so talented and such a beautiful person and inside and you capture the beauty in all of us, sometimes with some nip and tucks with photoshop ;) , but you have given me the gift of beautiful pictures of my boys that I will always treasure.

Chrissy - as always you are on the money, I have always thought your work is priceless and I have always known I would never regret a single moment of our time with you. Thank you for making us feel like the special ones, you have touched our lives in more ways that you can put on canvas….we LOVE YOU AMY!

Stephanie C. - Amy, such wonderful advice! My son is only 2, and I am already having “photgraph regrets” of my son’s first year of life. I didn’t “GET IT” either. THANK GOODNESS we found you after he turned 1, the pictures you took of him are so beautiful. You captured each little detail of expression on his face I will have forever on my walls. I wish I could rewind time and have you photograph him as a newborn:( You are so talented, your work is truly art and stands out amongst others so much!

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