Valentine's Day mini-sessions

I'm a little late blogging about this, but I have some mini-sessions planned on Valentine's Day (that's on a Sunday) at Callaway Gardens (weather permitting). I only have two more openings available! Sessions will last 40 minutes, and I'm trying something a little different here - the cost of the session will be $150 and will include a CD of at least 20 high-resolution images with the copyright release. I can't think of a better V-Day gift than preserving your love on film (er, CD?) for years to come. ;) And this is a bargain because my current price for just a CD is $200. Oh, and don't forget, admission to Callaway is free this month and next! Despite the lack of things blooming, there's still plenty of pretty scenery there. Let me know if you're interested! I have 1:30 and 2:15 appointments available.

Chris & Meredith's beach wedding

Whew. I finally finished all the pictures from C+M's wedding in November. Let me tell you, going through 1000s of photos to choose the best ones and then editing all those is a lot of work! Then there are other design elements and an album to think about. BUT I loved it all, from start to finish. I hope I'm lucky enough to do more weddings in the future, and I thank Chris and Meredith for giving me a start. Their wedding day was beautiful, and I hope the pictures do it justice.















Here's the full story of their day.

Chris & Meredith's wedding from julie cottrell on Vimeo.

Canon in L Major

dear new canon lens
24-70 is the range you cover
100 is the percentage that i love you
9 is the months i saved up to buy you
forever is the amount of time i will own you
thank you for being you
for taking pictures so crisp and clear
for blurring the background just the right amount
for having that beautiful red stripe
and that great big hood
i promise to do right by you
to keep you safe and warm
to keep your lens cap on when not in use
i love you
i love you
i love you

Happy New Year!

I tried to bribe Hannah with chocolate to put this New Year's hat on. Yes, that's what it's come down to - she is the hardest child ever to photograph. In the past she has REFUSED to look at my lens and give me anything resembling a smile. I don't want to get ahead of myself, but there MIGHT be a light at the end of that tunnel. She's given me some pretty good smiles the past couple weeks, usually as a result of me doing something completely stupid. And in case you were wondering, the bribe totally worked. She kept wanting to put the hat on alll day in hopes she'd get more candy. Stupid thing wouldn't stay on her head, though, so I didn't get a good picture.







Oh, how I love that face. I LIVE for that smile. I melt in those eyes. One of my New Year's resolutions is to take more pictures of her, so you'll probably be seeing more of her around these parts. Everyone always says, "You must have so many pictures of your little girl." And I do take lots of pictures, but for every picture I take, there is one that I miss - because of the aforementioned difficulty I have photographing her. But this year, watch out, no moments will be missed!

I also can't wait to see what 2010 brings for Julie Cottrell Photography. I have a lot of goals set for myself on that front - I want to continue to grow and improve and learn. Last year was SO GREAT. I learned so much and met so many cool people. I've completed building my portfolio, so there will be some changes to session/print prices. Stay tuned for news on all that.

I am looking forward to spring already! If you think you want to get some spring pictures, email me soon. I'm almost completely booked for the month of March.