little english

today was simply a fantastic day. i had the opportunity to work with shannon latham and her super classy company to photograph shots for the upcoming line of little english clothing... and oh what fun it was! my expertise in all things feminine (see prior blogs for the united attack against me by the women in my life)hopefully made me a good candidate for this job! can't wait to go through the pictures and melanie can't wait to drain my wallet on these absolutely adorable dresses and outfits... all kidding aside, i am stunned by the direction that shannon has for her company... her vision of beautiful childrens clothing that capture the heart of what we love so much about this state and community in which we are so fortunate to live. her farm in woodford county was beyond picturesque and her willingness to let -not just me- but a dozen kiddos run crazy through her house right before a dinner party is endearing beyond words. thank you so much shannon for this rare opportunity and i look forward to working with you on many more warm sunny days with happy children and fabulous clothes! i will post a couple of pictures soon...in the meantime, check her website out at www.littleenglish.com
jg.

lee hill, capturing autumn

we photographed lee hill this past autumn sunday underneath a bare ginkgo tree who graciously dropped her leaves leaving a yellow blanket of soft fan-shaped origami, perfect as our backdrop. a windy saturday left the prettiest trees barren and crumbled to brown the maple pinks and poplar golds. gone were the graceful willows with their feathery leaves of yellowy red. left behind on most of our favorite spots were prickly skeletons of a once beautiful tree. and yet, amidst the falling beauty we found the ginkgo tree with lee- and he, like i, found it quite the spot for picture-taking. he buried pinecones, and tossed leaves, ran with dad- and even found a quiet moment alone with mom.

i love the beauty of nature- the changing seasons, the new excitement each landscape offers for her three month billboard of the year. i love how the camera captures those colors and makes them sharper and more brilliant than the human eye does. i admire my professional counterparts who shoot nature in her quieted form- and yet, for me, what makes it beautiful is the happiness that is put it in with moving life. for me, the falling leaves are grander if they are being thrown by a child. the cornflower blue sky is more vibrant when it creates the background for happy faces.

i have sometimes questioned whether i have a good direction in life. and now, watching lee hill and the many others i have been fortunate enough to capture on camera, i am pretty sure i know my direction and i have found my destination.

i have the many happy faces of some fantastic families and their children to thank for that- oh, and a couple of very vibrant ginkgo trees.

jg.

carter and the changing seasons

carter wasn't discontented by the chill in the air. he didn't mind that we were dragging him to and fro, plopping him down on cold rocks, damp earth and chilly benches. he was happy. intrigued. and thoroughly enjoying the leaves. i must briefly thank mother nature for this- the golden, red, hot pink and orange hues of autumn- it's probably the prettiest time of year in my opinion. i think carter thinks so too. he thought the leaves were not only good for crunching- but also munching. organic living at its finest i suppose. not much more than a month ago, i believe i saw summer leaving. she was walking down richmond road wearing a paisley hat, shaking her head at the chill in the air. but if she had just stayed a little bit longer she could have caught randall cobb play almost every position on the field on a crisp night in commonwealth and she could have seen carter zaluski enjoy autumn at its finest.

autumn is not just a great time to take pictures, it's a great time to reflect. i wax on and on here on this insignificant little blog and send my thoughts out there to the great unknown to get one very important point across. i take pictures, not for the sake of taking them, but because they are important to me and i have to assume that they must be important to you too- or you wouldn't have paused to read this blog.

they are important, just as the seasons, to capture how we change, how we interact, how we grow and what makes us tick. that's why i don't use the backdrops, or the umbrellas. i prefer the leaves in the mouth. the blanket on the ground. the ball that's been bounced a thousand times. the hand holding. the laughing. the pictures you get when you least expect them. the pictures that show the change, the growth, the love, and the happiness of our short time here on earth.

take a cue from this happy little boy in the picture above. drink it in. examine the leaves. in a blink, those leaves will be replaced by holly berries and evergreens. earthy green will hibernate until summer returns donning her flip flops and shorts. don't miss any of the in between. i know carter won't!

jg.

happy birthday madison!

fun, quadrupled. madison lambert had her 4th birthday party this past sunday...and what a party it was. no mistake where madison lives- we just turned on the street with the enormous inflatable birthday cake and took our cues from there.

this sweet birthday princess was the tangible happiness of the age of four. the bouncy, energetic, carefree persona that represents our own youth. she was everywhere! running, jumping, sliding. she had no idea that it was a chilly 58 degrees because she was fluid motion.

here are just a few of the "still" pictures of madison. so many pictures left to edit- friends, mom, cake, spongebob and a few other characters. once i finish my piece of birthday cake, i'll be sure to post some more.

jg.

a brief recess from pictures and a moment for reflection

september 10, 1996 will be forever etched into the synapses of my brain and scars in my soul. the day my father--the greatest man to ever walk the earth--departed this life for the great thereafter. r.i.p, dad. i miss you.

death isn't one of those things that we are without. we are conditioned at a young age to expect the unexpected and to prepare for a passing of a loved one. why must we prepare? my guess is that we must prepare so that we don't miss out on the little things in life (i.e.--a hug, a handshake, a story, a family meal, a lesson learned, a laugh).

i often do soul searching to find out what kind of person i am. i can honestly say that i would not be half of what i am today without the guidance, the wisdom, the patience that my father had. i learned from the best.

rest in peace, dear dad. and as the legendary cawood ledford said at your funeral, "may the lord hold you in the hollow of his hand."

jg.

too much... is a good thing

more persons, on the whole, are humbugged by believing nothing, than by believing too much

-p.t. barnum

and isn't it true? we get caught up in who we are too often... or maybe, it is better to say that we get caught up in who we are supposed to be too often. afraid to be naive. afraid to not be what others expectations require. and so we wake in the morning and bathe ourselves in apathy-the indifference of adulthood that gives us the facade we need to protect ourselves from the humbugged world.

sometimes too much is a good thing. too much joy. too much innocence. too much child-like wonder. too much lollipop on the one sunday of the year when the circus came to town. today we reveled in the too much. we caught it on our way downtown and it followed us all the way to section 32, row L, seats 1, 2 and 3...and for three hours three people ages 3 to 34 believed equally, wondered communally, laughed heartily and loved enormously. we grabbed too much by the tail with our trunk and successfully created a memory that we have now promised with our pinkies that we will each year enjoy together.

p.t. barnum wasn't wrong. and today we treasured the greatest show on earth and were humbugged by nothing.

jg.

the first of everything..Karson Little

how do you describe the first moments of life? breath one, hour one, day one? indescribable moments of joy via the tiniest of features. Karson Little provided a canvas of firsts. first breath, first day, first cuddle with big sister Kaitlyn.

hospital moments are usually not photographed. when hospitals are involved, the occasion is typically grim. save one. the happy birth of baby brings joy unimagined. the hospital, sterile and cold, is somehow transformed into the shelter for a mini family reunion.

these pictures were so much fun- standing on the fringe of a happy family and capturing their joy together.

Thank you Ben and Tara, Kaitlyn and of course Karson- and by the way, Happy Birthday!

jg.