The Good Stuff | Tampa Bay Lifestyle Photography

I just delivered prints to this family, and then I realized that I hadn't shared them here on the blog. :)

I absolutely LOVE this type of session... in a client's home, relaxed, with plenty of time for snacks and snuggles. Cuddled up in bed with blankies for soothing, thumbs for sucking, and goldfish for nibbling. A newborn baby in Mama's arms, and toddler tickles and funny faces with Daddy.  These are the days, aren't they?

I hope these two darling brothers will always know how much they are adored. 

Big Sea, Little Fish

Do you ever feel like a really small fish in an enormous pond? Goodness, I do. Motherhood, life, managing a household, running a one-woman-show creative business, and just being a citizen of this world often feels so overwhelming that it's hard to see past what is happening this very moment. 

But you know what? If you throw a stone into a pond... even a tiny pebble... ripples form at the surface and below. And eventually, the rest of the pond feels that little wave you created. Even the still water all the way on the other end. 

As Richie Norton says, "Intentional living is the art of making our own choices before others' choices make us."

Today, I'm inspired to make HUGE ripples in my pond. 

How about you?

(And let me just say... isn't her sweet little fish face the cutest thing ever? We were playing around with a fisheye lens last week. I just love her.)

Good morning!

Or not.

Make it a good one, friends. 

Love to you.  xx

Mine | January 2015

So in 2014, my "main camera" for my own family was my iPhone. Don't get me wrong, I'm thankful for it and I'm super glad to have had it. I firmly believe that the best camera is the one you have with you. But in trying to create my own family's photo books for the past couple of years, I was sad to realize that I don't have very many "good" high-quality photographs taken of my own children. Let's face it, you can only blow up an iPhone snap so large. 

But.... Hello, 2015. You are a year of fresh starts in so many ways. One of them happens to be portraits of my children.

So in 2015, I vow to create portraits of each of my three children (at least) once per month. I'll try to feature them here on the blog to keep myself accountable. It might be quick shots of everyday life, we might be out and about, or it might be a quiet moment at home or an orchestrated full-on photo shoot. I'm leaving creative freedom open to do whatever I want. I just want them DOCUMENTED. Tantrums and all. It's why I became a photographer in the first place, years ago.

So this is Installment No. 1. January 2015. My babies, the way only I can see them.

And maybe a few extra. ;)

This is for them, just as much as it's for me. Because they need to know.

Love to you.  xx

Beautiful Monday

Hello Monday. I'm determined that you're going to be a beautiful one. Coffee in hand, babies at school, music on, running shoes laced, orders placed, some fun 2015 plans mapped out, and sweet-smelling cleaning supplies in hand. 

How do you start your week? I (kind of) like to scrub and tidy up on Mondays, just to help recover from the weekend's messes and to serve as a "reset" for the coming week.

I hope you take a little time for yourself today, just to stop and see the beauty in something or to appreciate something in your surroundings. And if you can't, well then I hope you make your surroundings lovely so that you can. I see this little starfish charm from my kitchen table, and it always makes me smile. Even over the messy table. :)

Love to you. xx

Rescuing Ace

If you follow me on social media, then you already know.... we got a dog. :) But not just any dog. We rescued a sweet boy from the Pinellas County Animal Shelter on Friday morning. He'd been there for a little over a month, and I know in my heart that he was just waiting for us to come get him and take him home. We visited him Thursday morning and Thursday evening, and the kids cried when we had to leave him there. So I went back first thing Friday morning and stood outside the doors for 30 minutes until the shelter opened. 

And I brought Ace home. 

He is our Clearance Puppy. He was $12 on sale during a promotion the Pinellas County Animal Shelter is having all month long. Twelve dollars... that is all it took to change his life. I've bought candles that cost more than that.

And he couldn't be more perfect for our family. He's about four years old, and seems to be a Labradane, a cross between a Labrador Retriever and a Great Dane. He's massive, but he is a love. He wants to ride everywhere with us, and he lets the kids hug him a thousand times a day. Lila fell asleep in the floor with him, his first night home. He woke up but refused to move because he'd have to disturb Lila. He sleeps quietly by Parker's bed at night, knows basic manners and commands, and he walks really well on a leash. It amazes me that anyone ever let him go. 

But we are glad they did.

Prepare for an influx of dog photos here on the blog, and on Instagram and Facebook. And maybe even a hashtag. ;)

The Diaz Family's Beach Session on Honeymoon Island

This moment, this day at this beach, with this sweet family. The way he's looking at his wife. The way mom is leaned in close to her little girl. Those little toes curled in excitement to be in her daddy's arms, safely above the waves, her arms wrapped around his neck.

It seems like every day, our lives change like these tides. Our happiness ebbs and flows with our circumstances. Phases end and different ones begin.  Goals are reached and fresh ones are set. Struggles that weighed on us last week are lifted, and we are free for a while, until the tides go out and bring us something new.

But these days, these moments. It sounds utterly cliche, I realize this. But that doesn't matter to me. At every session, my goal is to see a spark of magic. Sometimes it's obvious and sometimes I have to look closely to recognize it. But still, I watch for a moment that jumps out at me. A moment that, if captured on film, might one day serve as a visual reminder of the things that truly last.

After everything fades away, love is always there.  When she heads off to college, when she has a family of her own, she will still have this photograph and will always know how much they completely adored her. 

Holiday Mini Sessions 2014

Procrastinators rejoice! Friends, I have ONE last-minute spot open tomorrow evening 10/11 at 5:30pm if time passed you by and you forgot to sign up for holiday mini-sessions. I also have a sunset time slot that just opened up for next Saturday 10/18 if you'd like to jump on it!

We'll be at Honeymoon Island for these special sessions, and I'm so excited I can barely stand it. Hope to see you there!!  

xoxo,
Stacey

So Much to Miss

Oh how we cried the day you left us. We gathered 'round your grave to grieve. I wish I could see the angels' faces when they hear your sweet voice sing. Go rest high on that mountain. Your work on earth is done. Go to Heaven a shoutin', love for the Father and the Son. -Vince Gill

Two of my cousins posted that song in tribute to our Momaw on the day she passed away. And since Monday, I cannot get it out of my head, no matter how I try. I wake up singing it. I go to sleep humming it. I work and it runs in constant loops in my mind. 

My Momaw was 78. Everyone called her Bertie, but that wasn't her real name. When I was about 6 or 7 years old, I brought her mail in to her and actually asked my mom who "Roberta" was. :) I'd had no idea up until that moment! She never had a middle name. She was one of 8 children herself, was the mother of 7, grandmother to 20 and great-grandmother to 24. She left behind quite a lineage. 

Momaw Bertie was blessed and she was a blessing. She had the softest cheeks you'd ever kiss. It's funny the things that you remember through the years, isn't it? For instance, I remember that she always had the tallest beds and the puffiest pillows, and there were china dolls in just about every room. She could sew and embroider beautifully, and she always had a dedicated sewing room or craft room that I used to look at in amazement. Her bathroom always had a crocheted toilet-paper-roll-disguise with a plastic doll inside (I think that was a 70s trend), and little soaps, in various shapes, that we weren't supposed to actually use. ;) Her home smelled slightly of Pledge, baby powder, sawdust and black coffee. An odd mix, maybe, but these were signs that life was busy and always-improving there, and it was so comforting to my heart.

She had all of our pictures framed on the walls, propped up on tables, sitting on the piano (but not the pump organ that was burned in the house fire... that's another story). My uncles' Army portraits, my mom's cross-stitch pieces... they were all on display. She collected dishes and teacups, and I'll remember her little white coffee cups with green flowers for the rest of my life. When I left home in 1996, my mom sent me off with small glass salt and pepper shakers that used to belong to Momaw and Popaw. Momaw said she'd gotten them out of a box of oats years ago! We still use them on our table to this day. 

She loved a good purse, a comfy pair of walking shoes, and soft pink nail polish. And of all the cars she and Popaw had owned over the years, she would always go back to driving a Lincoln again eventually. "I do like a Lincoln," she told me this summer.

Her biscuits were the stuff of legend in the Watts family. She made them from scratch (of course) and always flipped the dough with two fingers because that's how her mom, who had a broken finger, taught her to do it when she was just a girl. She said that lifting those "broken" fingers out of the way was her secret to making them taste so good. I love that story.  She never rolled the dough out; instead she pinched a little piece off with her thumb and index finger, shaped it and then placed it in the pan. She always worked fast, too. My sister Trish said this week, "I asked her how she made her biscuits a few years ago. I'd watched her do it for years but never had a recipe. She replied in all seriousness with no mention of measurements, 'Ahhhh, mix it till it looks good and bake it till it's done.'" :) I don't think she ever measured an ingredient at all. And that's probably why those biscuits were so legendary and wonderful and mysterious to all of us.

She helped my Popaw remodel their (many) homes over the years, and she could do just about anything he could do: hang doors, put up sheetrock, knock down walls. She was strong and capable and she was Popaw's right hand. They always had a vision for their homes, and they spent their lives improving them... making them more spacious, more inviting, comfortable, and always welcoming. Christmases and Thanksgivings were a big deal and I loved the times when our whole family could get together. Popaw would play his fiddle, mom (and later Tony) would play the piano, one of my uncles and my dad would grab guitars and they'd all sing Christmas carols and church hymns in harmony. She loved those old hymns.

The last time I saw her was this summer. My kids played in their backyard, picked blackberries, chased each other in circles on their back porch. I held Momaw's hand, and was encouraged by her strength, even though she tired so easily that we couldn't stay long. I took her picture with Popaw. They were smiling real smiles, his arm was around her and her hand was on his cheek. She giggled as she watched my kids run in the grass, and as my mom lifted Charlotte up to ring the windchimes. Popaw showed me their flowers and plants and asked Momaw what a few of them were. She loved working in those flowers and of course she knew the names of all of them.

When we were leaving, I kept stammering, "Bye, Momaw" over and over on the front porch, tears in my eyes and a lump in my throat that would not move or let any more words out. I was trying to get it to sink in, to myself and to her too, that this was it. The last time I'd kiss her sweet face this side of Heaven. She didn't seem to understand, and just asked me when I'd be back. Like it was normal and she wasn't dying. I remember saying, "I can't come back, Momaw." She looked a little sad but hopeful. And I cried the whole way back to my mom's house.

She had amazing determination and strength for all the years I knew her, and she fought this uphill battle against cancer for over seven years. Finally, this past June, she found out that her cancer had come back.

And this time, she'd finally had enough. She knew that further treatments would only prolong her life instead of curing her.

She said she was ready to go. And so she lived life to the full in the time she had left.

Monday morning, with her family surrounding her, my sweet Momaw Bertie bravely and quietly slipped away to be with Jesus. She went home. She'd lived her whole life just waiting to go there, after all.

My heart breaks for my mom, who has just lost her own mom. For my Popaw, who has lost his partner in life for over 60 years. For her sister. For my aunts and uncles, her daughters and sons who are hurting. My heart breaks for my cousins whom I wish I could hug in person and grieve with tonight and tomorrow during her services. Grieving alone is so hard. And I will miss Momaw like no other. I'll miss hearing her voice on the phone saying "Hi Stace. How's those youngins?" I'll miss her biscuits and her sweet-smelling linens and her laugh that wheezed a little when she got really tickled. The laugh that I loved and sometimes hear coming out of my own mouth. Part of my heritage is missing now. Part of my heart. She left so much for us to miss.

But then again, she left so much for us to miss. I'm so grateful for her legacy, her example, her faith in God and the hope of Heaven that will never, ever leave me. I'm grateful that she gave me such a wonderful mommy: her middle daughter. I'm grateful that she was courageous and strong and capable and hardworking and willing and able and committed and always there.

And that she left me so very much to miss.

I love you Momaw, to the ends of the earth and back. 

---

"Surely, two of the most satisfying experiences in life must be those of being a grandchild or a grandparent." -Donald A. Norberg

"And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am." - Jesus, from John 14:3

"Hurting with hope still hurts." - Levi Lusko

Photography Mentoring

Over the past several years in business, I've taught photography classes, held online workshops and have written numerous tutorials for photographers. I've critiqued budding photographers' work and encouraged them to perfect their craft and find their shooting style. I've answered FAQs and done interviews, and I've loved every single opportunity that has come my way!

I've also had many, many inquiries for mentoring programs, which I hadn't made available for several reasons.

Well, I've finally decided to make mentoring available to you. Hooray!

If you'd like to learn from me, I'd be both humbled and delighted to teach you what I've learned over the past eight years.

After careful consideration and planning, I've decided that there is a way for me to respect your time and money by devoting enough attention and time to answer all the questions you have.... while still giving a superior level of care to my own family and photography clients. So these will be very limited in availability, especially during the busy season.

You'll have two options from which to choose (and maybe a third, in the future).

OPTION ONE: Let's Skype!   $150 for one hour, $300 for two hours

Let's chat over coffee, even if there is a computer screen between us. With this option, you get my time and my heart, as face-to-face as we can possibly get over the distance between us (thank you, modern technology). I'll be an open book for you to ask questions about photography, using different forms of lighting, doing lifestyle work, my favorite post-processing methods, connecting with your clients, branding consistency, finding the right locations, choosing products, shooting for you, etc.  

You'll receive a questionnaire before our chat, so that you can give me an idea of what you'd most like to know. You may also submit your site and/or portfolio to me for critique, if you like. 

These online mentoring sessions are scheduled for Mondays and Fridays only, according to my availability and the shooting season. 

OPTION TWO: Let's meet up!   $500+

Come on down! This way, you get two to three hours of my time and my heart, face-to-face over coffee, sweet tea and lunch in the Clearwater/Tampa Bay area. Again, I'll be an open book for you to ask all of the above. You can add on additional hours if you'd like to chat longer. This in-person option also includes a headshot image taken by me for your business use.

You'll receive a questionnaire before our chat, so that you can give me an idea of what you'd most like to know. You may also submit your site and/or portfolio to me for critique, if you like.

These in-person mentoring sessions are available on Mondays and Fridays only, and are extremely limited in availability, depending on my current schedule.

*Mentoring is not made available to local professional photographers or local aspiring professional photographers in Tampa Bay, for obvious purposes of protecting my own business. :) Thanks for understanding. 

*Camera classes are in the works, local Tampa Bay moms and dads! I plan to have that option live just before the holidays. So go ahead, ask Santa for that DSLR for Christmas!

If you're interested in either mentoring option -- or something else completely -- then you may inquire below. Let's chat! Tell me exactly what you're looking to learn, and I'll do my very best to help you. I can't wait!

I look so forward to meeting you and encouraging you on your photography journey!

xoxo,
Stacey