The blog is closing...

I've decided after a few weeks of really thinking about it, that I'm going to close down the blog. I've had a really hard time keeping up with the postings and can't seem to stay on track. The last session I blogged was from October...of last year! :(
I've got a back log of dozens of sessions that I just never got around to posting, well at least not here at any rate. And really the internet world doesn't seem to be too taken with this blog anyways so I don't think it will be missed anyways. Since I started the only time I've ever had any comments was during the Best of 2011 Contest.
So if you're interested in staying up on all the latest, I invite you to follow our Facebook page. It's always up to date with the latest and greatest from Fairytree.
I'm going to leave the blog open for now, but there won't be anymore posts.
Thanks whoever was reading,
Cindal

Lovestruck

October was a very busy month for us. We had this adorable couple out at the Manchester City Park. The day was very special for the two of them because it was one of the few days the pair got to spend time away from their two cute little cuddlebugs. Their wedding is gonna to be centered around the phrase 'Lovestruck' and so I also took the very special phrase and integrated into a few of their images. The phrase has special meaning to them because it was the word Toby's mother used to describe their relationship. She has since passed on and its a perfect way to honor her.

Wedding at the Demonbreun House

In October we went to the Demonbreun House in Nashville for a beautiful chic wedding. The Timothy Demonbreun House is a bed and breakfast located just outside of downtown Nashville. It's a beautiful home with soaring columns on the outside, a state of the art kitchen, and a beautiful pool in the backyard. The amazing couple at the center of this grand affair were so friendly and so in love. It was truly a privelege to be a part of their celebration.

The kissing ball was put together by the bride's mother and sister. It hung in a place of honor, marking the official entrance to the ceremony area.

The father of the bride walking her up the steps to her awaiting groom.

The bride's dress backlit by sunshine.

One of my favorite images of all time. This is their first kiss as man and wife and I was able to snag their wedding cake in the background through the open doorway. Almost as if to say come on in, this is the start of the rest of your life.

A fun image of the bridal party. Wow those girls could jump!

Best of 2011

First off I want to admit that I've been very remiss in updating the blog. There are several sessions that I just haven't gotten around to sharing with you and I have to apologise. Hopefully February and March will see that problem taken care of and we'll be back on track!
Those of you who visited my Facebook page during the month of January know that I hosted a Best of 2011 contest. I asked my fans to pick their favorite images of the year from each category and then held a drawing for a prize out of everyone who voted. The winner of our prize is Heather Eckles. Heather is a wife, mother of two adorable children, and the owner of her own small business, Briar Patch Boutique. Briar Patch Boutique offers great handmade crochet goods from hats to scarfs, baby booties to photo props. Heather chose half off any one regular session as her prize and I'm very excited to photograph her.
Now on to the winners of the Best of 2011, fan voted!

Best  of Maternity was a two way tie!

Best of Newborn

Best of Kids was also a two way tie!

Best of Family was a three way tie, the fans just couldn't choose between all this love!
 

Best of Teens!
 

There was a tie in weddings as well!

And last but not least The best of Boudoir!The fans of this picture were very outspoken.

As always I was very surprised to see which pictures my fans chose for their favorites. The images that I absolutely adored that had always stricken me as very evocative or beautiful or inspirational just weren't your cup of tea. This was our first year doing a Best of and I hope that next year will be even better. Thank you for helping me grow and sticking with us through 2011 even though it was a hard year for most, you and your smiling faces made it better.

Introducing a new program...

This is a new program specially designed for all those new mothers out there. It's called From Sprouts to Blooms. The program is perfect for expectant mothers and we're even offering it in gift certificate form. The program offers the client the option to choose as many life stages as they want out of maternity, newborn, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 1 1/2 years, and lastly 2 years of age.  For each stage they add to their package the next one becomes cheaper. For instance if you were to choose all the stages the price breakdown would go like this...

• maternity- or first choice - $50.00
• newborn - or second choice- $45.00
• 3 months -or third choice- $40.00
• 6 months - or fourth choice- $35.00
• 1 year or smash the cake session- or fifth choice - $30.00
• 1 1/2 years - or sixth choice- $30.00
• 2 years - $30.00 and a free disc of your 10 favorite images from the entire package

All the above would cost you $400.00 if bought seperately, but by using our From Sprouts to Blooms program it would only cost you $260.00. Thats a whopping savings of $140.00! Not to mention you'd be guaranteed an appointment and the prices can't increase, which means you could possibly save even more. You'd pay for your package selection up front at either the time of the booking or at the end of your first session. In addition you'd be eligible for 10% discount off all print products. Isn't that great! The first year of your little darling's life can be quite hectic between doctor's appointments and the day to day changes but this program takes a little bit of the load off. Can you imagine the joy a package like this would bring to an expectant mother at the baby shower. You'd be giving the gift of precious memories!

January - Self-Portrait

It's January and the start of the new year. It's a time for reflections and resolutions. I'm really excited for what 2012 may bring me either with my photography, my writing, or on the personal front. I'm not giving up and I'm going to meet the challenges of each new day head-on with excitement, confidence, and hope. I'm ready to try new things and stretch my neck out a little. Like for instance I cut 17 inches of my hair off and dyed it just a few days after the new year. And to prove to myself that 2012 is going to be a good year, I donated it to Beautiful Lengths. A little good karma never hurts. Another new thing I wanted to try was Self-portraits and not my usual headshots that do absolutely nothing but sit on my facebook wall for a day or two but something with personality and umph, something I'd be proud to show off as a representation of me. That's what the picture is about. That's me, or at least the person I want to be this year. Excited, hopeful, confident. To make it happen I'm entering a self portrait contest over at Rock the Shot, www.rocktheshotforum.com

Now for a little of the Technical stuff for the other photog's out there.
I shot this with my Rebel T3 with the 18-55mm lens and a hotshoe flash on portrait setting
I used a remote trigger
In post-processing, I used a warm brown low opacity layered over black and white. And then I burned the edges just a little to draw the focus in.
Smoothed the skin just a little and brought out the highlights in my eyes with dodge. That's it. 
Enjoy! and I hope you can make your new year into the one you want it to be too. :)