Can’t Wait!

September 13, 2010
by Victoria J

If you let the right people tell it, the odds do not look very promising for women of certain races as it relates to marriage, and things look even worst for women in the church… But you can’t believe everything you hear! All around me, I see a different story. From Atlanta to Delaware to DC to St. Marteen to Texas to New Jersey, I see images of people of all colors getting engaged, married, and bringing beautiful children into this world. I see men that are proud of their women, and women that are proud of their men. I see men loving their wives in a sacrificial way, and women loving their husbands in a way that brings honor. I see couples respecting each other and walking together towards their future. I see couples that can’t wait to share their love for each other with others… and my camera and I just can’t wait to share with you these moments!

In a world that labels violence and celebrity gossip as news, it is good to be able to sift through the haze and find instances of what’s real and true from time to time. Though there may be marriages that did not work out or even couples that have no intention of making it down to the alter, there are still couples that are moving towards marriage and are making that life-long commitment! I want to share some of these images with you… and I can’t wait for the others that will follow in the days, weeks, months, and years to come!

Below are images from a recent engagement portrait session at Longwood Park in Kennett Square, PA. View Slideshow of images here.

By the way, if you see something you like, feel free to leave a comment!

View Slideshow for more images here.

Not Just a Man’s Best Friend…

September 13, 2010
by Victoria J

So often, we hear dogs referred to as “man’s best friend”… yet most men that I know don’t even own a dog. Even looking at my own neighborhood, the majority of people that I see walking dogs are women. This leads me to the only logical conclusion: Dogs are not only man’s best friend! And upon further rumination, I have come up with a list of reasons why dogs are also one of females’ best friends (we know that the diamond is definitely one of the other besties):

Dogs are loyal; they simply enjoy your company.
Dogs are willing to go to the places that you want to go!
Dogs are great listeners.
If you pick the right one, dogs can be low maintenance (plants require even less maintenance, but they don’t interact with you the same way a dog will).
Dogs will always prefer your cooking over store-bought food any day!
Dogs don’t mind watching a chick-flick with you!
Dogs will just let you be you! They won’t complain if you are wearing sweats or haven’t combed your hair all day; they don’t care because they couldn’t tell you the last time they combed theirs either!

These are the words of someone that has not had a dog since she was in high school back in Texas… but I think they are still applicable!

I have included images below of a recent portrait session I did with a woman and her canine “bestie.”

By the way, if you see something you like, feel free to leave a comment!

You Saved Me…

September 10, 2010September 10, 2010
by Victoria J

I titled this post “You Saved Me” as I was inspired by a song by Marcell & The Truth with the same title. When I first heard the song, I just knew that it was about a woman saving a man from himself and saving him from his foolish decisions. As I listened to other songs by this group, I felt even more certain of the song’s meaning. Well, a few weeks ago, I saw a music video for this song, and I realized that this song was not necessarily speaking of being saved by a romantic interest; rather, the song was speaking about being saved by divine intervention.

I was thinking about this divine intervention, and sometimes, it is when you were on the highway about to hit a car, and some how God opened a path in the next lane for you to swerve onto. But sometimes I think that divine intervention is in the simple things, like what was said from the beginning, “It’s not good that man should be alone. I will create a helper for him.” Sometimes, divine intervention is as simple as recognizing who your helper is… Sometimes, divine intervention is simply being willing to help… Sometimes, divine intervention is simply when He answers your prayer! Sometimes, divine intervention is when you hear whispered in your ear, “I love you!”

Below I have included images from a recent engagement portrait session! Click here to view Slideshow of images.

By the way, if you see something you like, please leave a comment! I love the feedback!

Click here to view slideshow of these images and more…

Preview of things to come…

September 2, 2010October 24, 2010
by Victoria J

This past weekend, I saw a lot of the sun, the road, and my clients! With 2 engagement portrait sessions, 1 wedding, and 1 pet portrait session scheduled, my weekend was full of work! But it was the kind of work that you enjoy so much that you really don’t view it as work. I have yet to meet 2 couples that are the same, so the dynamics between the individuals lend themselves to some poses naturally, so the excitement for me is to find what else is going to work well! The pet session was a first for me, and the only challenge was keeping the dog engaged in the portraits as she had a will of her own. All this to say, I have quite a few images to sift through and “optimize,” so I won’t be able to do my normal post on here this week, but I did want to provide a preview of the photographs that will come from these sessions! See images below, but more importantly, STAY TUNED!

Oh yeah and for the record, if you see something you like, please feel free to leave a comment or even pass along a link!

Thanks for checking this post out!
Victoria J.

First comes love…

Then comes marriage….

Then comes a… DOG!

(Children to come later! I could not do it all in 1 weekend)

Taking it Easy in South Carolina

August 26, 2010October 24, 2010
by Victoria J

We recently reconnected with some old friends of the family that moved to England when I was around 6 or 7 years old. Their children changed a little in this time, but the mom and dad look the exact same! Growing up with parents in the military, I quickly got accustomed to my friends leaving after a few years. Even though we were military, my dad managed to stay in the same city for many years, so I did not do as much traveling as most of my friends did. Regardless, I think the short assignments made us all bond quickly, love deeply, and then try to stay in touch. Well, my mom was much better at staying in touch with this particular family than the rest of us (perhaps age was a big contributor to my not keeping in touch), but when we reconnected earlier this summer, it was as if we never really skipped a beat! I truly thank God for friends and church family like these! The love, hospitality, and support that they have for us is truly noteworthy. I love you guys!

Below are several photos from the easy, not-too-breezy moments that we shared in South Carolina (once I pulled my camera out).

Write the Vision…

August 26, 2010
by Victoria J

I recently had the opportunity to photograph headshots of a young, up and coming writer. Though she has not yet published her first book, she has been getting all of her pieces in place to make this dream a reality. In listening to her plans and passions, I was inspired to keep moving forward, setting goals, and to continue believing. She was also inspired by my business and drive.

Most of us have heard the old verse, “Faith without works is dead” – spoken in and out of context – nonetheless, this is a true saying. I believe that you write the vision (or your goals) and make them plain and clear. Then, it is very important that you take real steps and do some preparation towards your goals! Do research, start writing, start meeting people that are doing what you want to do, make some investments in equipment or classes or other materials. Then, you have the process of continuing to believe in yourself. I know when we see people that are doing what we want to do, and have been doing it for years, we have a tendency to get intimidated by their skill. But we cannot despise the day of small beginnings. We all have to start somewhere. We cannot simply expect to try something out for one day and be a master at the craft. It can happen, but it’s the exception, and not the rule. Again, believe in yourself! Seek God’s guidance in your pursuits! No matter what, KEEP MOVING FORWARD!

I have included images from the headshots session below.

Reunited, and It Feels So Good…

August 16, 2010
by Victoria J

A couple of years ago, I had the pleasure of photographing a mother and her daughter at Brandywine Park in Wilmington, DE. So a few weeks ago, this same woman’s mother wanted to schedule a portrait session with the three generations, and we decided to use the same venue. So my mission became clear: use this background, but use it in such a way so that it does not look like the same photo session from 2 years ago. Well the season difference definitely worked in my favor (the first session was in the fall, this session was in the summer). So in the end, we worked in different areas of this very large park, but, to be a little nostalgic, we used a couple of the same scenes from the first session. I have truly been blessed with some great, and photogenic clients; they make my job easy!

I have included the new images as well as a couple of throw back images from this family portrait session.