Shannon {portrait photography}

I am in love with this session... Absolutely IN LOVE!!!  It has been so hard for me to narrow down the images that I wanted to edit because as you can see this girl cannot take a bad photo.  Shannon is the granddaughter of the Pedersons that gave away all of those amazing scholarships to the East High students.  Apparently the apple doesn't fall to far from the tree because in the short time that I got to know Shannon it was obvious that she is gorgeous inside and out.  She was so nice and extremely easy to work with... Totally up for anything.  When I first met up with Shannon she said that she wanted to have some  photos like the scholarship finalists.  So, this first photo is kind of a continuation from that series.  Thanks for doing this session with me Shannon, in between the scattered rain showers and slightly hyper Oakley I think we got some truly amazing photos!

Here is one of Shannon's very best friends, Oakley.  She was a little high strung and scared of any tiny dog that came our way, but she still worked it out in front of the camera.

We worked really hard to get a photo with the American flag waving in the background.  This one should be for your sister who was so helpful throughout the shoot... She carried all the outfit changes, took care of Oakley, and she made sure we knew when the flag was waving.

Taimani Family {family photography}

Finally, after a few reschedules due to this crazy annoying Utah weather, I was able to meet up with the Taimani family. My good friend Nia set up this session and I am so glad that she did.  This was my third shoot with this lovely girl and I always have so much fun with her.  I first met her working at East High where I had the privileged of seeing her nearly everyday and I was able to taking her senior portraits which of course turned out beautifully.  Now, since she's a college girl at Weber, I really miss seeing and hearing her.  For real, she is probably one of the loudest people you will ever meet but that's one of the reasons why I love her so much.  Thanks for letting me photograph your beautiful family!

Shannon {sneak peak}

Here is a sneak peak at the lovely Shannon.  It's 1:13 A.M. and as I am editing this amazing shoot it is necessary to share a photo that I have fallen absolutely in love with.  Oh there will be more to come... 

David Barton Pedersen Scholarship

I have had the amazing opportunity to work on a project for the David Barton Pedersen Scholarship with Leigh VandenAkker at East High.  This is the second year that I have been asked to photograph the seniors that are up for the scholarship and I absolutely love it.  The students have some truly inspiring stories and are so deserving of the scholarship.  This year, there were 17 students that applied with essays that explained how they use the skills they have learned in Mrs. VandenAkker's class to stay drug free and overcome trials in their lives.  Mrs. V's class, Techniques for Tough Times, is hard to summarize because it incorporates so many different skill sets.  Among many other things, her class helps students understand how to be assertive, to communicate more meaningfully with others, to set goals, to resist peer pressure, and to have a voice.  The Pedersen Family lost their son to a drug overdose six years ago and this scholarship was created to honor their son and help other students understand why it is important to be drug free.  The Pedersens are always so positive and really portray the true meaning of charity.  Instead of focusing on their tragedy, the Pedersens focus on how they can make a difference in other peoples lives.

I was asked to photograph the scholarship finalists and create poster size photos to be displayed at the presentation.  For an even greater personal touch Mrs. V gave me a list of qualities that each of the students possessed to also be incorporated in the photographs.  The scholarship presentation this year did not fail to exceed my expectations and it was extremely uplifting.  After reading the students' essays and having a personal interview with each of them, the Pedersen Family could not choose only a few students to receive the scholarship.  So, every student was rewarded a $1,000 scholarship.

I am touched every year by the Pedersen Family's generosity and positive outlook on life.   Thank you for letting me take part in such an incredible experience.  Here are the scholarship finalists' photos and some images from the event.

I love seeing all of the students' photos displayed together. 

Tyler, McKenzei & Tylee {family photography}

Tyler and McKenzei are getting married in May and I could not be more excited!  Tyler is my husbands brother and we have just been waiting for this marriage to finally happen.  We have all loved McKenzei since she started hanging around the family, especially Tyler's little girl Tylee.  They make the cutest family ever which makes for some amazing photos.  I am usually able to pick out my favorite images from a session but somehow I am in love with all of these photos.  Congratulations again Tyler and Kenzei; good luck picking out your favorites... I think you'll need it!