I had never done an engagement session out at Camp Tahkodah until this one with Weston and Peyton. Now that I think about it, that's sort of odd because Camp is such a special place for me. It's where I went for a two-week summer camp session right after I got my first point-and-shoot camera, after all.
Read MoreThe Ozarks
I think a lot of people assume they know everything about Arkansas based on the one hundred mile span of rice fields between Memphis and the central region of the state. I myself have even been guilty of calling it "flyover country" and ugly. But though it may not be the most interesting of terrain, I do think it has a certain beauty within it. There is beauty in everything, after all. But I'm not writing about rice patties, let's save that for a rainy day.
Last weekend I took a trip up to the northwest corner of Arkansas to visit some friends (and get out of Searcy). We decided to drive to Whitaker Point inside the Hawkbill Crag. I've always wanted to go, it's the most photographed location in the state. After driving up practically a sheer cliff and hiking for forty minutes, we finally made it.
It was exactly what I was expecting while at the same time being completely opposite. I knew what it was going to look like because of the countless pictures I've seen of it but I was still surprised. Most bluffs and cliffs have vantage points that can see for miles and miles. Whitaker Point was different. The cliff jutted its rocky arm out from the mountain so far into the valley it's as if you could reach out and touch the other side. Standing at the edge, I was completely surrounded by mountains, suspended within a bowl blanketed with green. The Buffalo River rushed through the valley below.
Standing on that cliff looking over the valley, I was in the middle what makes Arkansas so amazing. Rugged nature unmoved by man is at the heart of The Natural State. And it's what makes Arkansas so unique.
I recently started reading Travels with Charley In Search of America by John Steinbeck. In it, Steinbeck sets out of a grand journey across the entire contiguous United States from Maine to Southern California. He begins this journey to rediscover the country he spent his entire life writing about. He wanted to relearn the heart of America.
In the same way I think this trip out into the woodlands of Arkansas is my own mini version of what Steinbeck did. Though I didn't cross an entire continent, I did rediscover the place I call home.
Here are a few pictures from our little adventure.
“We find after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us.”
Ciao for now,
Trey and Kaleigh
It was no surprise when Trey and Kaleigh asked me to take their engagement pictures. I mean, Trey has been telling me I would for I think as long as I've known him. Since freshman year of college these two have been a constant source of encouragement and love to not only myself but to so many others. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever met two more joyful people.
Regardless of what sort of day they've had personally, it is always their mission to make yours better. Trey is not satisfied with your current state unless you're laughing and Kaleigh has an ability to sense when something is truly troubling you then does not rest until it is remedied. Both have a genuine heart filled with so much love they can't help but share it.
I am thankful every day that they are a part of my story and it is a true honor to be a part of theirs.
Below are few of my favorites from our time spent together.
Ciao for now,
Lake Nights
The other night I was able to enjoy the sunset with some friends on the lake. It wasn't what I would call radiant or dramatic by any means. It was more like a peaceful closure. A simple and gradual decrescendo to yet another beautiful day.
I was afraid we had already missed it as we walked down to the water's edge. My friends (who are much more experienced in lake sunsets than I) reassured me that we had in fact not missed it but were right on time.
The pale, late-evening sky slowly shifted to darker shades of blue and purple. The sun sank closer to the horizon from which it came and in doing so lit the edge of the world ablaze with gentle tongues of yellow and orange flame.
After the day's finale of light had ended, wisps of smoky clouds were left suspended against the pink and purple sky as a last remnant of the closing day.
I guess not everything is meant to go out with a bang or end in a spectacular fashion. Leonardo da Vinci did say "Simplicity is the greatest sophistication," after all.
The world we live in seamlessly and beautifully shifts from one day to another without knowing what the next will hold. But one thing that is for certain: every hard day ends with a beautiful sunset.
Ciao for now,
Austin and Lynley
I have a little experience with marriage proposals at this point. Not because I've proposed to a bunch of people (ha!) but because I have photographed so many of them. Most of the guys have been planning it for a few months and call me about two weeks out to set something up. Austin was a little different.
I would argue that he has been planning his proposal for several years. I know I've been planning it for him in my head for at least that long. Though he didn't have all the intricate details figured out in advance (or the day of, for that matter), he knew a long time ago that he had found the love of his life. After six years of dating, all of their friends knew it was going to happen. And now after so much waiting and anticipation, they are finally engaged!
Austin and Lynley have been two of my very best friends since high school and I couldn't be more excited to have had the opportunity to be a part of their day and their lives. They have been a constant support to me and my dreams and I couldn't be happier to capture their love for each other. But the greatest thing about Austin and Lynley is that their love doesn't stop at one another, it overflows into every single person they meet and it is evident by the way they live.
Below are just a few of my favorites from their special day.
Ciao for now,
Austin and Lynley's favorite restaurant is South on Main in Little Rock. He gathered all of their family and close friends in the back room to wait for the big moment.
Austin wrote a song about their relationship and performed it for Lynley as a surprise.
At the end, he got down on one knee and asked her the question it took six years to ask.
