Today’s shoot is a very special shoot… because Sabrina & Ken flew all the way from Switzerland! Thanks again for hanging out with me guys! (Ken’s words when he first met me today: “Dude, you live in the middle of nowhere!!”)

Now on to these gorgeous pictures!

Without further ado… the McKelveys!

Um…. are these two ADORABLE or what???

Ed, Leah, Elise, Timmy, and Noelle. Thank you for being such a blessing to our family. We love you!

Aimee and Rob has been in a relationship for many, many years ever since their freshman year in college, and it shows. The comfort level that they have with each other is amazing, and it certainly made my job that much easier. To my surprise, this was Aimee’s first time visiting Longwood Gardens ever, so we also took some time to enjoy the garden as we strolled around and shoot! Thanks again for hanging out with me today guys! Can’t wait for the wedding!

First, go to this page to get an idea about what’s going on: https://www.facebook.com/CaringForTinton

Tinton is my cousin. He was involved in a fire accident a month ago and suffered a severe burn injury. He’s currently dealing with multiple complications on his lungs, liver, and kidney, and has undergone multiple surgeries on his skin. He’s being treated in Singapore General Hospital. Aside from all the medical issue he’s going through, the hospital bill is astronomical as there is no health insurance. The current estimated cost is at $350,000 USD, and it looks like it could easily go beyond that at this point. A group of his friends all around the world are currently organizing a world-wide fundraising to help cover his medical cost.

All I ask in exchange for your photoshoot is that you make a free-will donation to support Tinton’s recovery, and be considerate in the amount you choose to donate. That’s it! What better way to make a difference in someone’s life who desperately needs our help right now, and get some awesome pictures at the same time! 100% of the proceeds will go to help pay Tinton’s medical cost.

So book me NOW for your FREE photo session. It can be an engagement shoot, family, seniors, maternity, or even a personal shoot with your dog! Get a bunch of friends together and have a fun shoot together! Most importantly, help me SPREAD THE WORD!

Since they are going to be married at the awesome historic Sotterley Plantation, I thought it was only fitting to do their session in a plantation nearby… so off we went to the Lancaster County Park. The day was chilly, definitely colder than the 70 degree weather they have been enjoying down in Maryland this week, but they braved it out and made it so easy for me! Katherine and Matt, thanks again for coming all the way to Lancaster and hanging out with me today!

And now, here are some of my favorites from the day!

We started at a lake near my home and ended the session at an abandoned (and semi-demolished) house a couple of miles down the road. Having never done a session in the snow before, I didn’t know how physically tough it was going to be. By the end of the session I think I had sprained my ankle, pulled my hamstring, and had lots of bruises, but it was so worth it! Terica & Dan, thanks so much for being so flexible and awesome! Can’t wait for the wedding!

At the beginning of the year my wife and 18-month-old son traveled out of the country for a couple of months. This gave me my only opportunity to do house projects this year so I took on painting our home and remodeling the kitchen a little. In January I flew out (in the middle of a snowstorm that involved me getting to JFK only to see the terminal shut down and I had to sleep on the floor by the parking garage!) in January and spent a few weeks with my family in Indonesia as well.

Early in the summer we received the news that Winny is expecting our second child! We are thrilled, the pregnancy is doing very well, and the baby is due this March. This is such a fun time as several of our good friends are all also expecting, thus we often had gatherings in our home where all the ladies present were pregnant!

In November I attended a workshop that changed my career. I was re-energized, challenged, taught, and encouraged. I met many, many amazing photographers whom I can proudly call friends and mentors. If you are a photographer and are looking for that next step to improve your skill, I highly recommend it. Their next workshop is in March and it will be even better than ever!

As soon as we got back from our overseas trip, our photography business started picking up again, culminating in a whirlwind 2-month period during October/November where we did about 20 shoots in a 2 month period. This forced us to became even more efficient in our editing, as we strove to deliver images consistently and quickly. One of the instructors at Genesis, Tony Hoffer, taught that we photographers should always examine our own work and strive to improve on it instead of always looking for inspirations from others. So at the end of the year, after 15,000 images have been delivered to clients, I thought it would be fun to create a ‘Best of 2011′ slideshow as we celebrate the beginning of what should be our best year yet! If you have a high speed connection, don’t forget to watch it in HD!

We really owe all of you family, friends, and clients a huge debt of gratitude for the amazing year that we had. Thank you for all your support, kind words, and most importantly for trusting us in capturing your most important day of your lives. 2012 looks to be an even better year, and we hope you will continue to walk on this journey with us! Cheers!

A few weeks ago we scheduled our shoot and the day finally came. As I was packing my gear I heard the phone ringing, and I was told that we had to cancel the shoot because Tim was suffering from kidney stone! I was kinda bummed not only for Tim but also because that evening we had the most gorgeous sunset we could have ever asked for! But thankfully he pulled through and we were able to reschedule the shoot a few weeks later.

I didn’t know much about the location they choose other than it is very meaningful to them.  So I was really pleased when I saw how awesome it was – it’s been a while since I got to shoot at such a rustic location. Not to mention Laura and Tim was SOOOO easy to work with.. I’m so looking forward to their wedding next year!!! Here are some of my favorites: