Kutz Family Christmas Surprise!

A few weeks ago I got to spend some time with the Kutz family. There are a lot of kiddos in this family and the shoot was a special shoot for a Christmas surprise for dad. I think they all kept it secret too, which I think is amazing! Nobody has seen the photos until today so the images themselves were are a surprise for everyone!

Let me introduce the family. Ladies first.

The youngest Emma. So darn cute.

The beautiful Erin

The oldest Nathan

Next up is Ian, love his Lego's.

Owen and their pooch Toby

Last but certainly not least Evan, who finally warmed up to me. He was a bit shy at first.

The whole happy family, well minus parents.

I had a fantastic time and I hope that you all have a very Merry Christmas.

Enjoy your slideshow!

Holiday Giveaway Winner!

Well this was a tough decision to make! My family and Don's family discussed all the entries and everyone kept coming back to one so our decision was made!

The winning family is Dave and Grace Stanley. They were nominated by Stephanie Spence. Dave goes to the same church and Steph thought they were greatly in need and deserving of this gift.

Dave and Grace have 16 children. Ten of them are adopted. Five have passed away and six are grown and out to the house, five still at home. Four of the children still at home have special needs. Two of them are twins, they are 12 years old one with cerebral palsy and the other is hyper with autism. The other children are older, in school and holding jobs despite their special needs.

I called Dave this evening to chat with him and give him the good news. His answering machine picked up first and the message was that they couldn't get to the phone due to the caring of the children. You have to know they are a deserving family if they don't normally have a chance to answer the phone because of the children. As I was leaving a message they picked up and I think Dave was a bit overwhelmed. He described his children as home grown and hand picked. He is retired and he described his wife Grace as a domestic engineer, they have been married for 42 years. She stays at home and keeps it all together while caring for the children. He has a great sense of humor and I could tell that he was excited to have this gift to share with his family on Christmas. He said there will be over 18 people sleeping at his house tonight!

Dave I am very excited to present you a gift certificate for 1,500.00! Stephanie is also receiving a 500.00 gift certificate for nominating you. We will schedule your shoot sometime in the new year. It will be very exciting to help you decorate your house with images of your family.

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday!

Wishing for Christmas miracles.

I will be posting about my giveaway later tonight, so stay tuned. A lot of you already know that our little pooch Alma is not doing so hot.

She has been trying to stand on her own this morning which is a good sign. It was a rough night for me as I stayed up with her, anytime I wasn't touching her she would start crying. If you read about it you will see that a lot of dogs do come out of it, we hope we are that lucky.

She was hospitalized for a few days after suffering a bad bout with vestibular disease. We have
her home now and are taking care of her, but she's in rough shape. She can't move and can only lay on her left side. We have to hand feed and give water.

All of this after a fun romp in the yard on Sunday morning, she got very excited when she came in, then her legs went out on her and here we are.

Here are a few links if you want to read more about vestibular disease. We didn't know anything about it before this happened. The doctors have basically ruled out ear infection or thyroid problems as the cause and think that it's central (neurological). The best we can do is wait a few more days to see if there's improvement, but the poor girl is laying in her box and continually crying. Not the Christmas plans we set out. We are trying to stay positive. She is such a major part of our lives like any of you with pets probably know.

Wish her luck.

-don & joy

A photo from a couple Christmases ago, we didn't get around to getting a holiday card together this year.

http://www.petplace.com/dogs/vestibular-disease-in-dogs/page1.aspx

http://www.canine-epilepsy.com/vestibular.html

http://marvistavet.com/html/body_vestibular_disease.html

Our Tree

Wow where does the time go? We are trying to get in the Christmas spirit, Mom is here, Don's parents will arrive tomorrow. There has a been a ton of preparation to get the house ready for visitors and we are still doing work. I have been hard at work to get all the holiday orders out the door and luckily that is done. Just a few more "work" things to do but I am enjoying that my mom is here visiting and getting to spend some time with her. We got the tree up a few days ago, we thought about getting a real tree but figured since we had this tree that we love why spend the extra money? Isn't it a beauty? Don made the awesome platform for the train to travel on too.
Now we just need our pooch Alma to get better, we had to take her to the emergency vet this morning. She is experiencing vertigo and we are hoping that its only an ear infection. She is spending the night at the vet and we are not sure when she will be coming home, we hope tomorrow. Its not the same without her in the house. So think some happy thoughts for her.

I am taking a few days "off" to enjoy the family. Don't forget to check back for the winner of my awesome giveaway. There is still plenty of time to get your nominations in! My favorite make-up artist Beke Beau is donating her services to the winning family. Isn't that awesome?!

I hope every one has a very merry Christmas and a happy holiday!

Giving IS Awesome

Tis the season to be Joyful! What better way to bring Joy, hehe yeah that's me, into your home this year! My wonderful friends Justin and Mary Marantz inspired me to join this awesome growing number of photographers around the county and the world to donate my services to someone who is truly in need and could never afford in a million years to hire a professional photographer.

Here is the deal:
You know someone. You know someone who’s experienced a tragedy, is struggling to stay afloat, is raising kids while holding down more than one job, or is volunteering selflessly despite extenuating personal circumstances. You know someone who can’t afford custom photography, but who would cherish it this holiday season. You know someone who deserves a year-round reminder of their family’s spirit, love, and beauty.

You know someone. I guarantee it.

I want to know who they are, and I want to give them the chance to experience complimentary custom photography session– $1500 worth, to be exact. Whether it’s canvas or albums, or prints for Grandma…it’s in your power to give them the artwork they deserve this holiday season.

Oh, and guess what else? The person who nominates the winner receives a $500 credit for my photographic services. What better reason to show some love could there possibly be?

The rules:

You cannot nominate yourself, and the person nominated must sincerely be incapable of purchasing my services. (Being unable to make mortgage payments for a two-million-dollar-vacation-home in the Italy does not qualify as sincere financial need.)

The nominee must reside in Philadelphia or the surrounding suburbs. Please email me and tell me who you know, what they’re experiencing, and why they deserve my artwork. Please include a way to contact both your nominee and yourself . Photographs are always welcome but not required.



I will announce my winner on Christmas Eve, so start writing those emails and lets brighten someones holiday this year.

And all my fellow photographer friends, yeah you know who you are, feel free to follow my lead! How many families can we help this holiday season? Lets bring up those numbers for PA!


***If you plan on getting involved, please hit up the registration page so that your involvement is counted toward the goal!!

Why do wedding photos take so long?

One of the photographers that I look up to and whose blog I check on a regular basis, thank you google reader, made such a fantastic point that I am sending you to her blog to check it out. Anne Ruthman is an amazing photographer and business woman and one hell of a writer which is why you must go check out this post. I think a lot of us photographers are in this boat at the moment, I know I certainly am, but I never thought to educate my clients in such a manner. Thank you Anne for creating this post and letting me know I am not the only one out there.

Why do wedding photos take so long?

She had this on her blog too, but I feel the need to post something else other than just type. Enjoy!

Photographer day out

Last week a few of us got together for a little fresh air and some good ole fashion fun. You might think as photographers we have all this free time but realistically we are always working. We love it, don't get me wrong, but the luxury of working for yourself is that you can take a day off during the week and hang out with your friends. We get people all the time that are surprised when they find out we are all friends, we are in the same industry we should be competition right? Well it used to be that way but that's not how we see it. We are friends, we hang out, we work with each other, learn from each other you name it. So last week Pete Malone filmed the antics as Ryan Estes, Jennifer Childress, Sofia Negron and I wandered around old city. That video is going to be super funny and I can't wait to see it. Anyway here are a few images you can also check out everyone's blogs for more.

Jen all cool hanging out in the doorway

Pete likes to make things interesting. He got permission to jump into these construction worker hole but neglected to tell them he planned to strip down to his boxers. I love this guys reaction, he wants to get outta there.

hahahahahahahahaha!

This guy knows how to spice things up. Freaking hilarious.

So funny, this one reminds me of Lily Tomlin as Edith Ann no Sesame Street

The innocent school portrait pose

Pete takes a pretty nice normal photograph too.

Ryan putting his serious face on.

Jen has dreamy eyes, that match this wall!

Face? What?

So there ya go. We are silly.

Melanie & Joe Engagement Shoot

Melanie and Joe are on the ball with their wedding planning! She has everything except a few minor details taken care of and they can cross their engagement session off their list as well. They are getting married next September and I can hardly wait to see them again. We set out on the last weekend of full rich Autumn color in the area. Melanie's mom joined us for the beginning so she could wisk away little Shelby Lynn after her appearance in the shoot. Shelby is their dog in case you wondering. She is very much a part of their family and in fact they got her the day that Joe proposed so she had to be part of the shoot.

Aren't they adorable?

I love getting shots like these! I have so many favorites from this shoot.

It was a brisk day in New Hope, but it was gorgeous! The colors were amazing all day and Melanie and Joe were mighty photogenic themselves.

Just a little fun with framing and the bridge

There they go again, being all adorable.

We found a lot of cool little spots just by wandering around a bit.

This one is pretty high on the list for favorite of the day.

Love this one too.

It was so much fun hanging out with you guys! I can't wait to see you guys again and to see how much little Shelby grows. Say hi to your mom and thanks for tagging along to dogsit.
Enjoy your slideshow!

Baby Ekash

Little Ekash, on my gosh, is so adorable. He is so tall and skinny for a six month old and oh those eyes could melt your heart. He was such a pleasant and happy baby for the whole session! We had so much fun.

Love this one with his Mom

Such a big room for a little boy, will be fun to watch him grow in this room.

What did I tell ya about those eyes? He is sucking on his favorite giraffe.

The window light was just amazing.

Some family fun

Hang time with Dad.

Sweet tender kisses from Mom.

His room is decorated really fun, I love the sweater, pictures and cards pinned up on string.

Cute overload. Love the specs of dust in the air, gives the image an added magical feeling.

I think babies look good with a little flare.

Such a fun morning hanging out with you all. Ekash is so adorable.

enjoy your Slideshow