o the joys of toys...

the Christmas Village Toy Store was an amazing experience. i got to meet so many different people and have a lot of amazing conversation. the people shopping were so grateful and the volunteers were exuding joy. really put me in the christmas spirit!! i took a couple pictures before the store opened up and then i spent the rest of my morning "exit-greeting" and handing out cake mix so they could make birthday cakes for jesus with their kids: so great. god is good.

Putting the Christmas Sprit in a Toy Store

Christmas Village Toy Store is the christmas spirit wrapped up in a church turned toy store. Warehouse 242 partners with other local churches to run the Christmas Village Toy Store. presents are donated to the toy store and priced at discounted prices. they are then shelved and ready to buy. families in the area can then come and buy the presents for their kids. the parents keep their dignity because they're still allowed to buy the presents but they're at a discounted price so the kids still get their presents. its fantastic, and i loved being involved and the toy store hasn't even opened yet!! i am going to volunteer friday to exit greet and then take some pictures so keep updated and you'll see some more!

Oh! The Places You'll Go!!!!

I began a series recently based on Dr.Suess's "Oh! The Places You'll Go!" i decided to do some interpretive pictures depicting what the book is actually saying; then i took portraits of people that have actually gone somewhere they've wanted to go. this series serves as an optimistic reminder that you can go anywhere and do anything if you put your mind to it.

Shoebox Layout

for class and for fun i decided to make a fun layout of all the pictures and information for Operation Christmas Child. i even interview my friend Laura Train about her experience with OCC and what it means to her. i wrote the story and took all the pictures and designed the layout. it was a lot of fun.

The Faces Behind the Shoeboxes...

i had the honor of going behind the scenes at Operation Christmas Child and packing shoeboxes with my small group from Warehouse 242. as we arrived, we went through training. as soon as we finished learning how to pack a box, the volunteers were taking a prayer break and a staff member told a story of a shoebox child and some scripture. every single volunteer and staff member stopped working and listened to the story of thanks and prayed over shoeboxes together. Operation Christmas Child is not only about sending christmas presents to children around the globe but it's a reminder that this is done in the name of Christ and all for a fabulous cause. i loved getting up close and personal with all the boxes that came across my table and seeing what different people packed. and of course working with my small group is always fun. i've adopted the nickname of 'the little one'. lovely :)

Operation Christmas Child - Shoeboxes for Joy

ever since i was little, i had heard talk of the amazing warehouse that Samaritan's Purse has set up in charlotte to pack their holiday Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes for children. i was always too young or too busy to travel to charlotte to volunteer at the warehouse. but now...since i live in charlotte i am so excited to be a part of it. i traveled there recently to take some pictures of the overall atmosphere and i'm going back this evening with my small group from church to participate and actually help pack shoeboxes. while i was given the grande tour on tuesday by a jolly volunteer he told me about all the people that come out to volunteer at the warehouse. people take holiday vacation time from work and travel down to the warehouse to give back to their communities, their international communities. he informed me there was people from as far away as Ohio! he said they come down and spend a few days and volunteer all day throughout their stays here. that is amazing and reminds us all what the christmas spirit is all about!!! this place is an amazing organization and just the size is enough to overwhelm anyone! here are some over-all shots i took tuesday and i'll post more soon from my trip tonight where we'll get up close and personal with some volunteers :)

Padfoot needs a home

for those of you who don't know, i'm a HUGE harry potter fan. i recently found out that Padfoot (the dog that played Sirius' animagus) is up for adoption. i cant believe such a star cant find a home. he needs our help to get him adopted. i would buy him myself in a heartbeat but he lives over in europe and he's 10 years old so i doubt they could send him and i don't have the money to fly him over here to live with me. we need to get the word out that he needs a good home, please re-post this. he deserves a good home. after all he is one of the good guys. here's the website for the adoption: http://www.germanshepherdrescue.co.uk/padfoot-harry-potter.html

and here's some pictures.

"Hands On" Graphics

about a year ago, i photographed a group of volunteers working for Hands on Charlotte at the Carolina Raptor Center. Hands on Charlotte is unique in the fact that the main aspect of their non-profit is to provide volunteers for other non-profits and organizations that are looking for volunteers. volunteers can do anything from tutoring to building playgrounds and landscaping. most non-profits choose a specific topic or area to focus their attention on, Hands on Charlotte does a little bit of everything and has volunteers across the city working on multiple projects at the same time.

i wanted to not only take pictures and present a photo story from the photo shoot but also build a layout that could go in a magazine or newspaper. with all my photo shoots and stories i try to build some sort of layout or advertisement to keep my layout skills fresh so i can offer graphics to my clients as well. it's a great way to stay competitive in the business as well as keeping it simple for clients - they can come to me for any creative project they have and i can take the pictures and make the layout. the next thing i hope to work on to offer is video...

Some Layouts...

while i am first and foremost a photographer, i also love to design layouts and design advertisements for different organizations. i have recently been designing more layouts and honing my graphic design skills. i love this aspect and hope to offer graphic skills in my business in the future. these are all about social media and different forms of media.

Humanitarian Art

Rrecently i've been thinking about how my photography skills can help the world and help bring about support for the non-profits i want to work with. i kept thinking that most people want medical or teaching skills and art was not something that would benefit a non-profit. however, then i met with a church group that was sending off 3 of their own to Swaziland in Africa for 11 months. i began asking how their organization, Africa Revolution, could use my photography and graphic skills to help the orphans, widows and go-go's (grandmothers) that they work with. they immediately relieved my anxiety and spoke of art therapy and how everyone wants their story told and many non-profits would benefit greatly from having more art in their organization. i am now more excited than ever to continue building my humanitarian photography business and working with non-profits using my photography skills. Nathan Clendenin is a fellow humanitarian photographer located in chapel hill and has the same love for Africa as i do. his work is amazing and i now have multiple role models for my photography and my business. here is an example of his amazing work in africa.

Animal Compassion Networks Your Pets

Animals have always had a special place in my heart, since my first job was working at a dog day care/boarding facility i have always loved any place that helps place animals in good homes and helps them live a happy life. Animal Compassion Network is a non-profit located in Asheville, NC that runs a pet store and adopts out pets to the community. by just walking in there and speaking to some of the volunteers and the owner, you can tell they all love the animals and care that they live a happy life with their new families. my big sister introduced me to ACN because they recently adopted their dog, Brogan, through ACN and they love him. when i asked if they remembered Brogan, they immediately said yes and started raving about how great he was. these animals are not just another adoption number to them, they care about their futures and help them find the best home possible.

Watching the Pro at work...

Kate Weaver is a local portrait photographer who is all about the "experience". we got to experience the "experience" today on a shoot with my photo club at school. Kate is all about interacting with the clients and letting them have a good time and not just buying photos, you (as the client) are buying the experience and the memories. Kate came to our school and we found a family for her to photograph. it was great to see a professional during a shoot and how they work and get the clients excited.

While i do not want to shoot portrait photography as my career, interaction with clients is very important in every field of photography. and i think we can all learn things from photographers with how to shoot or how to get your clients excited. it's all about making everyone feel comfortable and happy on the shoot. as soon as you meet Kate, you feel at ease and excited to do the shoot, and that's what every photographer should strive for.

Angels and Sparrows

I visited a soup kitchen, Angels and Sparrows, this morning and it was amazing. I went to take pictures for my portfolio but i am definitely going back to take some more pictures and hang out with the volunteers and people they serve. everyone was welcoming and most everyone knew each other. Sandy, the executive director of Angels and Sparrows is an awesome lady who wants to help the community and feed the people. it was an amazing experience.