My new blog is live!

Hey everyone! Happy Monday!

You can now visit my new blog, Sarah DeShaw Blog.

I will only be posting new updates there, so please update your bookmarks and RSS Feeds to be current!

Thanks, see you over at:

sarahdeshawblog.com

Getting away with you...

This post is for Brent.

Brent, thank you for taking me to Saint Augustine over the weekend. I love getting away with you. Here are a few moments from this weekend I won't soon forget...

-In conversation with you I accidentally called your grandma "grandma" like I was talking about my own. And it made me feel like we are family.

-How warm your eyes were at me, the way you smiled your "aw shucks" smile, and the way you squeezed my hand when I told you the song playing in the car reminded me of what you are to me. I almost didn't tell you, but I am glad I did.

-I was trying to be funny when I whispered to you, "That's a great beard" about a nearby santa-ish bicycler and you, thinking I had just told you "I love you," looked at me sweetly and whispered back, "I love you too." I got to laughing so hard I could hardly tell you what I had said to you in the first place.

-The way the leaves smelled and the sun felt warm on my closed eyes. The air was the perfect temperature for breathing. You sat on the grass in the park and I laid perfectly comfortable with my head on your lap. I had been wanting to lay in the grass for weeks and without the bugs and with the perfect weather, this was the golden opportunity.

-We got the perfect seat in that little cafe to people watch. We sat next to each other and looked out. Before we left you decided I should people watch you, so you casually walked back and fourth outside of the cafe in front of the window while I was left giggling out loud in the cafe.

Happy Monday!

Xo,

Sarah DeShaw

Saint Simons Island Lighthouse Wedding Photographer: Jimmy and Krisy

Happy Friday everyone!

I am sharing a wedding from 2011 today! This wedding was at the Saint Simons Lighthouse, which is oceanfront and very charming. We had a super fun day after session with this couple as well! Here are a selection of my favs:

The view from the ceremony. So, so pretty!

I love these two candid moments from the ceremony:

And now for some day after session favorites! Jimmy and Krisy had an incredible location picked out, including a rope swing where they had a fun date! So dreamy!

We played around with some in-motion photos!

And now for my top secret location... I just love a couple who is willing to be daring!

I'm off to get out of town with my sweet hubby! Time for some fun and relaxation!

Have a great weekend, see ya next week!

Xo,

Sarah DeShaw

Personal Photos: Photographed by Mike Larson

Getting on the other side of the lens was a very, very healthy thing for me to do as a photographer. And I am not talking about having Brent photograph me, that is different. I am talking about creating a parallel for myself as to what my clients are experiencing when they are photographed by me...being photographed by someone that I may have only met once or twice. It is a good reminder to experience how uneasy I feel going into a photo shoot, even though I want the resulting images. It is also fun to know personally what makes me feel at ease and allows me to trust a photographer from a client's standpoint. We were honored to be photographed by Mike Larson, an amazing photographer from California during his workshop in Jacksonville. Mike did a great job setting the tone for the shoot and allowing us to lower our guards. His blog is worth following, check it out! Also, a big thank you is in order to our friends Scarlett and Stephen who blessed us by setting up this opportunity, also good photogs to follow!

Having this experience reminded me what is important while I am photographing others. Past the fashion and the trends my goal is to pick up on who someone is on the inside and give it back to them in an external form they can keep forever. A visual record of the heart.

Mike allowed me to open up and feel like myself and captured who I feel like on the inside, which I am grateful for and will cherish forever. Thank you, Mike!

Below is a selection of my favorites:

I don't know quite why, but I am always standing like this (below). I didn't realize he was photographing our feet, but it is fun to have one of my quirks in a photo:)

Y'all know how I feel about scrunchie-nosed smiles...and now I have one of my very own!

Lots of love to you on this Tuesday!

Xo,

Sarah

That time of year...

It is that time of year again. Time for new beginnings, freshness genies (I know I have at least 3 people who will laugh at that. :) You know who you are!), goal setting and a fresh outlook for the new year. These past several months Brent and I have been so inspired to think big. We have put our heads together through December and the first part of January and have come up with pages and pages of personal and professional goals. (Okay, so I write big.... )

But, the important part is that we are searching out our hearts, admitting heart desires out loud, and getting things down on paper.

If you haven’t ever done goal setting for the year I hope you’ll try it this year. Search out your heart, write down your desires, and stare those goals in the eyes until you OWN them.

Next year when you pull out your list it will be a good way to track progress, remember where you came from, and remember where you want to go. Plus, it's ever-so-satisfying to put a line through last years goals.

Honestly, the hardest part is getting them on paper.

So, are you going to do this or what?

Are you?

Come on, folks! Make 2012 your lady-friend!

Above is a photo of Brent and I while pursuing one of my goals for 2011 in the Cayman Islands.

That was a fun one to put a line through. :)

Thanks for stopping by the blog!

Xo,

Sarah

What we've been up to lately...

Time for a little update of our holiday adventures via Instagram photos! (all photos taken on my iPhone.)

-We have been juicing up a storm lately! Mmm!

-I have still been house warming like crazy, of course!

-We have been out traveling a lot for business and for holiday time with family. We went to Iowa for Christmas, then I continued on to Chicago to get some extended time with my sister and her family. We are now back at our home base and gearing up for 2012.

More on the blog this week!

Xo,

Sarah

Jekyll Island, Georgia Engagement Photographer

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you had a great weekend!

Today I wanted to share a recent engagement session.

I met Kerry and Mike at the Jekyll Island Historic Distric for their engagement session. We met at eleven and worked through high noon, which was a fun lighting challenge.

Mike and Kerry were so sweet giggling and flirting through the whole session. Perfection. I have told you before that I am a big fan of scrunchie-nosed smiles and Kerry has an adorable one!

During an engagement session I try to make it a point to get individual shots, so each person can have a little something for their work desk....wait, what? I need to get a photo of Brent for my desk! :) (how does that saying go...the shoemakers children have no shoes?)

Aren't they a beautiful couple?
While I was getting to know Kerry through email she sent me the sweetest photo of Mike giving Kerry a piggy back ride. I decided it would be a fun moment to recreate!

Thanks Mike and Kerry for trying all of my ideas and trusting me to pick out the locations that had the best light. I am so looking forward to your wedding!