Shannon Holden Photography

Elise is the beautiful daughter of some awesome friends of mine. We met nearly eighteen months ago, when we both joined a married couple’s Small Group at our church. Elise was born very soon after that, and I’ve had the privilege of creating her portraits a few times in her first year. She is now 15 months old, and growing more beautiful by the day. Elise has so many facets to her personality. She is quiet and curious, silly and playful, and always charming.

She was feeling just a tad bit shy on the day of our session, but she gave us some cute giggles when tickled. She’s walking now and she’s enjoying her mobility quite a lot. She loves her mommy and daddy so much, and likewise, they are quite smitten with her. I always enjoy seeing the bond within a family.

Josh and Trish, I am so thankful for our friendship, and thankful for the chance to be your photographer as well. We are blessed to have you in our lives.

Much love,
Shannon

P.S. Two more days of the blog contest! Thanks, Tiffany L, for being such a faithful reader, though I’m sorry you are having to work so many late night these days!! You’ve won another $50 portrait credit for catching my missed post yesterday. Truth be told, I was recovering from having 17 boys in my house for a pajama party for my son’s 9th birthday. I knew I hadn’t done the day’s blog post yet, but at 9:30, exhaustion took over and I was asleep!

This baby girl was so precious! I recently met her and her parents for the first time, through her aunt who was a sorority sister of mine in college. This session was so much fun for me. It was a very rainy day when we met, and as a natural light photographer, rainy days can make my job very challenging. No worries for this session, though, as their house was full of large windows and beautiful light. I wish I had this kind of light in my own home!

Eva is a Daddy’s Girl. She had such sweet, adorable smiles for her daddy’s playful tricks. And she was full of curiosity for her canine sister, who was very patient and gentle as we invited her to join in for a few poses. I bet those two will be great friends in the years to come.

Bob and Ericka, thank you for the chance to meet your beautiful daughter. She is a treasure indeed!

Much love,
Shannon

It’s 11:15, and I’m wrapping up an absolutely wonderful day with my family. In addition to celebrating our country today, my family is also celebrating my son’s 6th birthday. We have made it a tradition for the last few years to gather at my dad’s house in Marietta for a family cookout. His backyard is high on a mountainside overlooking Marietta Square and Kennesaw Mountain. It is a perfect vantage point for watching the fireworks launch from several spots. I haven’t made photographs of the fireworks in a few years, so I broke out the camera & tripod tonight. Here are a few quick edits.

Now I’m going to catch up on some sleep. Hope everyone had a happy, safe, and patriotic weekend!

Technical details for the photographers interested: Shot with the Canon 5D Mark II, 135L, 200iso, f/10, 4 second exposure. A couple were at f/18 with a 6 second exposure.

Last week, in fact. But I’ve hardly had any time to play with it since then! Just tonight, I finally had about an hour to spare, so I threw my daughter’s ultra chic red coat on her and carted her outside.

What’s the new camera? The Canon 5D Mark II. Without a doubt, the most amazing camera I have ever held in my hands. I am blown away by what this cookie can do. For the photographers who know what the heck I am talking about …. it will shoot clean and beautifully at 6400 iso! It will even go as high as 25,600 iso! Can you stand it?! The tones, color and detail from this camera are just stunning.

I will be doing lots of playing and learning in the next couple of weeks, as I start shooting full time with this baby beginning with my January sessions (or sooner, if I feel comfortable enough with it). So you might see a few more personal shots on the blog!