. christina watkins photography

I almost forgot to post this gorgeous alternative to discs!  If the idea of a compact disc with all of your images frightens you, try one of these personalized USBs.  I love this.  It comes in a personalized photo box with whatever photo you choose and inside you can have your USB engraved with your name on it!  The greatest part about this item is that you can reuse it over and over!  Just transfer the images onto your desktop or laptop….don’t forget to back them up….and voila!  You can order these from me at any time or gift one to a friend or loved one!

I was trying to figure out if I should name this post Reflection or Stuck in the mud.  However, the more I thought about it, everything on here is a mere reflection of who I am and my life as a photographer.  Since my dog decided to try to dig her way out of her new Alabama backyard, this fit wayyyyy better.  Bad Dog!  Lately I have been kind of digging (no pun intended)  for where I see my photography heading and which direction I am leaning to and the amazing thing about moving IS that I get to start over.  It’s rewarding to me that I am able to gain clients despite the obstacle of having to move because most photographers get to build their business in one area with connections and an audience that they specifically market to.  Being a military wife, my audience changes along with my environment.  The one thing that I am so appreciative of is that my military audience is always supportive!  So as I have been unpacking, I have also been doing some soul searching.  I started to think back.  Wayyy back.  When did I start photography?  Why did I start photography?  What do I love shooting?   I bought a camera in 2008 so that I could document my son’s first years.  It was a Nikon D80.   I wanted the images to be amazing so he could look back and see how much joy he brought me and how much I enjoyed capturing every moment.  I had no knowledge of digital cameras and I honestly didn’t own a film camera.  I had it set on Automatic and I was shooting like I was a pro.  At least when you don’t know the rules, you can’t really break any.  Right?  I started a blog to post the images and I thought they were good.  Real good.  It wasn’t until I spoke to a photographer that pointed out everything that I was doing was wrong.  :)  All wrong.  I spoke on the phone with her for maybe 15 minutes and she asked if she could critique my blog photos.  I thought I was going to die but I was so excited at the same time.  Needless to say, I realized I had a lot to learn.  Of course I realized I needed to get off of Automatic settings and start learning photography and that was the beginning of my self taught experience.

I have shot weddings, I have shot newborns, bellies, and more.  I love all of it.  However, what I really love is the reason I began this journey:      The love for childhood memories and to capture love.  

As I look back on my photos last year I absolutely loved that they told a story.  I didn’t just point and shoot.  I wanted to evoke the emotion out of your children and represent love in your family.  I want to capture you like I would capture my own.  My good friend thought I was crazy to narrow down my specialty but I really do believe you have to follow your heart.  Therefore I am no longer taking weddings and limited newborns.  It was a huge decision but I do believe that this is the right thing to do, for now.  I still love capturing engagements and the love between two people but I will not shoot weddings unless there’s a ton of begging involved.  :)  I feel confident that my photography is going to be even better this year.  I can’t wait to deliver.

While I hate the fact that my dog can’t stand to be in the backyard w/o me for more than 2 minutes and has to try to dig her way out … I am so thankful that she made me realize that I too was stuck in the mud myself.  I should probably thank her for making me realize that I needed to make the decision to move forward.  But I think I will give her a bath instead…..

Here’s to less talky and more images in 2013.

This adorable and patient family drove to see me from Medford and behind the scenes we were working with two horrible situations.  1. The brightest day EVER in 2012 stuck out in an open field with nothing to hide under & 2. The coldest day of the year.  The kids definitely deserved whatever mom promised them after these photos because they truly hung in the best they could.    I still give them major props for making it look like a warm spring day and for absolutely sticking with me to get these images despite the challenges.  I love when my clients bring outfits to change into and even more when they are showing off their amazing style from Anthropologie, Mini-Boden, and more.  When the images came in from being professionally printed, I was so happy that now they have something to show on their walls for everything it took to get these photos.  Every time they look at their walls, they will be reminded of not only the day of that shoot but the life they have together.  I love that you can see how proud they are of the family they created, the love he has for her, and the glow of two small happy children.  It’s a beautiful life.

I have been a huge fan of Lexi Vornberg and when she launched Lemonade and Lenses, I loved her even more.  L&L is a great site for photographers not only to get inspired & share ideas, but to learn how to grow as a photographer.  I puffy heart everything on this site because the work on L&L is always beautiful, soft, romantic, and it just completely woos my heart!  I obsess over photography unlike the average person because it’s my passion and my favorite thing about L&L is that every artist featured uses their photography to tell a story.  Their images capture not only a family or a person or a bride, it tells a story.  That is what I try to achieve in my sessions.  I don’t just try to get the perfect image of kids smiling or everyone looking at the same time, but I strive to capture the beauty that you absorb, the movement that makes us enjoy life, and I want to give my clients photos that remind them of the blessings they receive.  I am so looking forward to 2013 because I think my photography grows each and every year!  I am so blessed to have others enjoy my photography as much as I do and when I was featured on Lemonade and Lenses the day before my birthday this year, I wanted to PASS OUT.   If you asked me two years ago if I would be featured on blogs and have my work get published, I would laugh.  I am so honored to be doing what I am doing and I am so grateful for those who see my passion, who support these goals of mine, and I will continue to challenge myself !!!  My awesome and beautiful clients Aimee & Derek were featured on Lemonade & Lenses.  You can check out the full article HERE 

I met Aimee for the first time at a Christmas cookie drive for soldiers overseas.  We cleaned the tins, sorted cookies, and stuffed the tins with all different kinds of cookies.  It wasn’t until the end of the event that I realized she actually lived right across the street from me.   I had just moved to New Jersey and it was right before everyone went into hibernation for the winter.  Yes, that kind of happens.  It’s been over the last two years that I have learned that she’s super creative and can knit gorgeous sweaters, scarves, socks, hats, ect. like nobody’s business!   The best I’ve ever seen!  Aimee asked if I would take some photos of her & her husband.  I knew she had great style not to mention she’s beautiful so I was super excited to photograph some photos for her and Derek….and their dog Winston!  How cute is he?   I took them to my favorite empty field where I knew the colors of Fall would help pop their Fall attire.  Don’t they look awesome?  Her cute polka dotted dress is from Anthropologie.  Well, the latest news is that these three are moving to Seattle and I am so excited for them!   I hope they have many great adventures to come but I am thankful to have captured an end to a great New Jersey adventure.  Often people tell me thank you for giving them pictures but sometimes I should probably say :  Thank You Aimee & Derek for making my images beautiful.  xoxoxo

I was thrilled when Kelly asked me to be her photographer for her bridal shower at Braddocks Tavern in Medford, New Jersey!  It was a beautiful shower filled with beautiful people and the subtle touches of details were brilliantly done! Below are all of the gorgeous elements and equally gorgeous bridesmaids!

Kelly and her stunning mom ….

A fabulous shower for a fabulous girl….. so excited for her!  She is almost ready to be Mrs. Kelly Minor!

 I’ve heard these names throughout living here in New Jersey for their awesomeness and I finally met the terrific duo!  You might have heard of him yourself!  Kyle from the ever so infamous/famous site www.keelandflo.com asked me last spring to get pictures of him and his gorgeous wife Sharon!  I couldn’t wait to meet them and get them in front of my camera.  I also owed Kyle a huge thank you for introducing my husband Josh to his “doo doo brown” custom velour sweatsedo from sweatsedo.com.  Yes, he owns it, loves it, and threatens to wear it to formal functions.   I guess I forgot to thank him for that at our session.    Kyle and Sharon mentioned that they had never had engagements so I was excited to be able to give them some great photographs for their home & keepsakes.  I love that this was a JUST BECAUSE kind of session.  I hope to do that for Josh and I as well someday soon!   I had so many good ones to choose from this session that I didn’t even know how to narrow it down for this post.  These two are gorgeous and I could see the amount of love between them instantly.  I wanted to portray that in their photographs as well.   See for yourselves!

And guess what else?  She’s expecting!!!  YES, she’s pregnant with their first baby!!!!  It’s not really fair that she can look this good pregnant!   Give a huge Congrats to this sweet sweet couple by “LIKING” this post!

First off, I’m really excited that her last name is going to be Crews.  I don’t know if that’s because my favorite store is J.Crew or if it’s because I keep thinking of how many cool ways she’ll be able to sign her name!  Meet Krystal.  This girl has fabulous hair and it might have something to do with the fact that she is a hair stylist in Virginia Beach, VA. at Hair 360.   Krystal has been dreaming about her wedding day since she was a little girl.  She is THAT girl.  She loves LOVE and she loves BIG.   I couldn’t be more excited for her!

Krystal met Barney {yes, like the purple dinosaur but who cares, he has an awesome last name & I gave her enough grief about it} when she cut his hair.  She was totally intrigued by him and felt completely comfortable to be herself around him.

Barney just gets her and she loves that.

I am so excited for these two!  We finally nailed down a good weekend to get some pictures before their September 2012 wedding.  Being in New Jersey won’t hold me back from driving the distance for a great couple!  I couldn’t wait to start her session!  She was so nervous and so scared!  I kept telling her that it’s going to be a blast and she shouldn’t be worried at all !  Being from Virginia Beach, I was excited to get pictures for her in my hometown and I totally expected her to say, let’s do the pictures at the beach!  I mean, it is Virginia BEACH.  But she was like No, I’m not a beach person and I get it.  I mean, I totally get it.  My own wedding wasn’t at the beach because I wanted something different.  It’s important that your photos represent you as a person and I wanted to give that to her.  We found an empty field and a field of flowers in the middle of nowhere.    It wasn’t about the backdrop but more about them.  It was perfect.  I am so excited to go back for their wedding!  Here’s a few pictures from her session:

Special thanks :  Make-up done by Veronica Ruiz from Hair 360.

I first met Stephanie and Brad when I was 19 years old in Winter Park, Florida.  Stephanie is actually my husbands cousin.   Stephanie in my mind has always been a friend to me because I was just dating my husband when we first met and ever since then we’ve remained friends through social media, phone calls or constant texting.  If I’m having a bad day or if I’m overly excited because I just bought a bright orange sweater that nobody else will probably appreciate, I will usually go to her for a quick mood boost!  She is the ying to my yang.   She is witty, gorgeous, and beautiful inside and out!!  Brad & Stephanie got married in Winter Park ten years ago and it was perfect timing for photos.  As soon as they arrived, I wasted no time getting some shots in before the sun went completely down and then we ate at an awesome restaurant (eek, I forgot the name) right in the heart of the park.  The light was awesome that day and I’m convinced that Orlando is just an amazing place to photograph in general all year long!  I could have spent two days with them just shooting and shooting.  Unfortunately, I went back to New Jersey that very next day and of course I put my winter boots back on.    Here’s some cute captures from our evening together……

I just got back from Orlando, Florida to attend Images for a Cure Workshop (IFAC) .   It was a great couple days learning and listening to how I can be a better photographer!  As if my arm had to be twisted to leave the colder days of New Jersey to head to the sunshine state, I was honored that I received sponsorship from one of my favorite east coast photographers, Kristen Weaver!  As soon as I found out that I was picked, I was determined to book my ticket right away!!!  IFAC is an Orlando based charity that has raised over $28,000 to benefit The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.  It was awesome to finally meet the creators behind this great charity! To find out more about how you can help through Images for a Cure, check out more here or contact me at itsjustchristina@gmail.com !

Check out photos from the candy bar set up at the workshop!  Yum!  I think I have ten more pounds to lose from the workshop alone!  I also loved the decor at The Mezz, which is in downtown Orlando and it’s an awesome location to have a conference!  I highly recommend the workshop for all levels of photography!  I walked away with new friends and a great new appreciation for those in the industry helping others to succeed!

(Image Courtesy of Images for a Cure)

Left to Right:  Innovative Memories Wendy Dixon, Laken E-Photography, Britanie Wagner Photography, Christina Watkins Photography