Beauty In Everyday Life

Sometimes I get so bogged down in work that I forget to revisit files of photos that I have taken for personal pleasure or projects. This semester, I have been working on a project with the Metcalfe Museum in Durham, Oklahoma. The museum pays tribute to Augusta Metcalfe, a pioneer woman who cared for a farm and a family as a single mother and still managed to find time and energy to teach herself fine arts such as painting. She became well-known for her art, being inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame and the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame and even being featured in an issue of Life Magazine. Her paintings depict scenes of everyday life for the pioneers of western Oklahoma: feeding cattle, hunting, landscapes, etc. Our society has placed a heavy emphasis on the unusual in life (celebrity and such). It seems like we get so caught up in the unusual that we forget to see the beauty in everyday life around us.

So, without further ado, here is a little piece of MY everyday life. A simple windmill (probably a working windmill used to water cattle) and a big, blue, open sky that stretches for miles in the prairies of Oklahoma.

And, for the record, there have been almost no adjustments to this image in Photoshop. This is my world in real life!

Senior Memory Albums

So, if you haven't heard about the latest craze in senior photography, listen up! These coffee table style books are so fun and a wonderful way to preserve your memories from your senior year. Senior books from Four Seasons are designed by a professional graphic designer and are bound in a black leather cover. The book includes all the pictures from your senior photo session (that's a lot!). It even has space for friends to leave personalized notes in the back and has a "FAQ" page with all kinds of info on you. It's like an super cool, personalized, way-more-awesome-than-a-yearbook book!

Check out Natalie's book:

These books are included with our "Pomp & Circumstance" package but are also available for purchase a la carte!

Megan Franks of Four Seasons Photography specializes in on-location photography for seniors in western Oklahoma including Elk City, Clinton, Weatherford, Woodward and all areas in-between!

How Did I Not Blog These Beautiful Gals?

Remember how I said that I would be digging out photos to share. Well, I found some!

I can't believe I never got around to posting all of these. Here's more Texas bridal sessions from wa-a-a-a-y back in May (see the June archives for the first previews)!

The Last Session of 2007

Did you ever think I was going to get back to blogging? Man, life has been super busy between school, work, kids, holidays...you name it and I bet we've done it in November!

Just wanted to share some pics from my last scheduled session of the year. Yep, I don't do any sessions in December (or at least I'm not this year) because of all the many activities and events we are involved in. Besides, it's hard to squeeze in any December sessions because of the tight holiday production schedules at the lab & shipping issues.

Anyway....all that to say that even though this was my last session, I will still have plenty of photos to share on the blog! I plan on using some of my semester break time to go through my hard drive and see what pictures have been overlooked. I know there's a lot!

In the meantime, enjoy the pictures of the Ward kids...talented, funny and super-cute! And check out the sky in these--it was beautiful that night!

Megan Franks of Four Seasons Photography specializes in on-location portraiture in western Oklahoma.

Scott + Elizabeth's E-Session

I can't wait to photograph Scott & Elizabeth's wedding next spring. Elizabeth will be a stunning bride and Scott is sure to keep us all laughing!

Having a little fun with sunflare...

The sky was so incredibly blue that evening...and it also got incredibly cold (notice how they are huddling together for warmth?)!

Another blue sky example. This was a tough shot--the sun set very quickly and we ended up working in the dark for a few. I do like the architecture, though....and I added a little texture just for fun.

Scott & Elizabeth's entire e-session slideshow can be viewed here.

{By the way, an e-session is an engagement session in case you are wondering!}

Natalie

The answer is: "Yes."

The question is: "Is she as sweet as she looks?"

I've known Natalie since she was a third grader. (Oh-my-gosh...that makes me feel old!). She was the quiet, shy kid always wearing a grin but not having too much to say.

Then she became a teenager! LOL!

I'm so proud of Natalie because I've watched her grow into a beautiful young lady, both physically and spiritually.

Not only is she an excellent student, she also is super talented! She's creative, she plays three

instruments and the girl can sing!!!


But even if she couldn't do any of those things, I would still count it a great honor to know her. She has a heart as big as the state she lives in (Texas) and she follows God with all her heart.

Here's just a few of my favorites. Honestly, there were so many, it was hard to just pick a few!

Urban photography is so much fun. You can find lots of different backdrops in just a two block radius. It's awesome!

Meet "Barney" the purple guitar. Seriously--that's its name! Natalie special ordered this little beauty because purple is her favorite color. For the record, the other two instruments that she brought along for our shoot were a clarinet and a saxophone. Cool!


M.I.A.--Mom In Action

Moms: Think you'll get to sit back and enjoy the senior photography experience? Think again! We put you to work!! When Mom wasn't toting Natalie's stuff, she was holding a reflector for me! :) Thanks, Mom!

Autumn is officially my favorite season & I think it should be everyone else's, too!


Beau. ti. ful.


As I've mentioned, Natalie is a Christian. We took some shots with a Bible. In this picture, she is outlining her current favorite scripture verse between her fingers. In case you can't make it out, it's Matthew 6:34: "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." So true!!



Trying a different angle...



The senior tee. Lucky for us, there happened to be a green wall in the exact shade of her school color: Hawk Green!


To see Nat's senior shoot in its entirety, check out her senior slideshow here!

The Welty Family

Meet the Welty's, photographed on their very own "home on the range."

2 + 2 = 4

This week, I had the opportunity to photograph the S family; they had the most adorable identical twin boys! It's hard for me to imagine becoming an instant family of four and the challenges of keeping up with little boys x 2, but this family seems to have it under control.


Thanks for allowing me to photograph your beautiful family! Here's a little sneak peek...

Vici Cuties

I think there must be a dominant cute gene in the DNA of western Oklahomans because I keep finding so many cute kids in our area!