Going to the toy bowl, baby!
Just got home from the football game and we kicked some tail….overtime. Get excited! More tomorrow.
Photo Family
Whoever shot our silly session is being super-slow about posting the images….but I found these two on Facebook (btw, are we friends?). The first is a pet photo. Leila Loo wore her little Ho, ho, ho! t-shirt. The next is a photo with Jake - many of you have met him helping me shoot weddings. More coming soon..promise. And more Bear’s photos, all of you Bears football fans.
Ahhhh…fall
The sweet sunset last night at the bears game. More on this to come later!
Silly time
Thought I should post something for you all - I am working hard on my bears story and wrapping up my sports portfolio. In the meantime here is a funny picture from a few weeks ago. Tonight, the PJ’S (photojournalism students) will all gather in the studio after our evening of shooting ballgames and take ‘family portraits.’ It really involves some super ugly Christmas sweaters, lots of tinsel and a person dressed as a present. Anywho - albums that are overdue should be heading your direction soon - all images have been posted to the cart and the 15% off holiday sale is going strong. Hope you are well!
Allie for Queen
Jenny
A couple of my favorites from Jenny’s senior session a bit ago.
Don’t forget holiday orders (any order in before our holiday deadline) receive 15% off automatically…
Isn’t she beautiful?
Hoffman Family
Super-sweet Susan and her husband Todd sent me an email early this fall about family portraits. I explained to her how slammed I was, and the whole bit about finishing school and life being wild, but I did promise that I would squeeze her family portraits into my schedule somehow.
The Hoffman’s found me through an organization called Celebrating Adoption. Here is a little blurb about them:
“Celebrating Adoption is an organization of photographers dedicated to promoting adoption. Our participating photographers are very different: some shoot with natural light while others use studio light; some prefer posing the subject while others prefer the spontaneity of lifestyle photography; but we all have one thing in common, the desire to celebrate your adoption with you!”
At Lizzie Loo, families who have adopted in the last year receive a family session with a print credit. My business has been blessed by so many giving, adopting families and I think this is the perfect way to give back…so spread the word :-)
Enjoy these photos of their sweet son from Guatemala, Mateo. I’m so glad we got in touch - they are such a sweet little family.
Bears Update
Interlaced with these images is a column I wrote for class this week. You’ll see what it’s all about :-) Hope all is well where you are. I’m learning just another lesson on how fulfilling hard work is. And how rewarding naps become. Enjoy!
5 o’clock is my new most favorite time of day. Most of the rest of my city and state are joyous for the opportunity to escape the daily grind. The traditional work force is ready to roll their mini-vans to the day care and pick up their snotty noses, others are excited to open the door and take their wet nosed best friends out for an evening stroll.
On the counter, I am ready to bundle up in all the layers my closet has to offer and venture off to a baseball field full of red noses and ashy calves on Bowling Green’s West side of town.
24 young men, none taller than my arm pits, and all full of more dreams than a collegiate graduation, await the minute they can yell “How YOU doin’ Miss Liz?” This comment offered up by any other male, I would take offense to, but these Bears, a youth football team, have earned the right to heckle me and comment on my kinky hair or my lack of a backside.
I yell back my usual, How was school today boys? and they giggle amongst themselves. Sometimes one offers up another’s poor grade on a test or someone’s new girlfriend. Often they just grin.
All but four of the players are African American. All but five have no fathers in their lives. Three of the five coaches have no need to come, no son that plays, no children at all, but they, too, are here each week.
As I step foot on to the parched green grass and clay diamond that is their makeshift football practice field, I think about why I am here for over two hours. Three times a week I watch. An additional four on gamedays I will see through the viewfinder of my camera.
We all come for potential. Head Coach Danny Corothers has been coming for 15 years, all in an effort to reform his community. “Most of these boys live in the projects of Bowling Green. I did too. But I want these boys to know they can be good men and sports is how we can get to them”
He brings school supplies to the boys, introduces them to leaders in their community and checks their grades each week. None of this he has to do; all of it he wants to do.
Corothers fills their heads with phrases: Do what you gotta do, so you can do what you wanna do. Originally I frequented practice in search of a coach story to photograph, I now come because it fills my soul to attend.
They want my support, they want my name on their t-shirt and they want my help with their homework. All of this, along with my images I am glad to offer up in exchange for growth. Growth in this community, growth in my own life and growth in theirs.
Soccer Chats
For class we have a sports portfolio due in a few weeks and let me tell you…sports isn’t my most favorite. Anywho, I headed out to the local fields as my second stop Saturday morning. On a whim, I called my best friend, Carissa, who goes to UK for a little heart-to-heart. We’ve been playing the most endless game of phone tag and who-da-thunk-it; she answered! Needless to say, I was no longer interested in soccer…and we talked for 45 minutes…until I had to leave to get to the Bear’s football game. I shot while we talked, but was never really cognizant.
It was super swell to talk with my BFF, but even better when I was going through my take tonight and saw this. It certainly isn’t life changing, but it will work in a pickle.
When it rains, it pours
Doesn’t it always seem that those nearest you have opposite schedules. When I am swamped and sooo busy, all of my friends have light weeks and those closest to me want to see me. Then when I have an ounce of time, they’re all crazy busy. Who knows - it’s still working in my advantage, because I am getting a little catch up work done…which is AMAZING!!
Here is another image from practice when it was raining. I just love these bears.
Allie does take a good picture! Love that dimple.