Shana Cawley Photography Newborn Baby Child Family Wedding Milledgeville GA

I'm just downright embarrassed! {Middle Georgia Photographer}

2011-01-19T22:31:00.001-05:00

If you've followed my blog for any time, you may have seen this handsome young man before. This is one of my "Drews". This Drew was my very first newborn that I ever photographed that wasn't my own. He and his parents will always have a special place in my heart. He has the biggest most-bestest brown eyes ever! But, my favorite thing about Drew is his walk. I love it! He has such a boy walk. I say this because my hoss of a son runs everywhere he goes! We don't do much walking around here! So when I see Drew walking like he's on a mission he cracks me up!
You may be wondering why I'm embarrassed?? Well...I just realized I hadn't posted the images from this session...and I shot it back in...well...the month that starts with the letter "N". Jennifer, I am so sorry!! But, he's cute either way you look at it! These images were shot in my back yard with a few props and things to keep Drew entertained. It worked like a charm! He had fun and I was able to capture some fantastic images. Check this handsome little guy out! He is honestly just too cute for words!

The Diva got her first cover! {Middle Georgia Child Photographer}

2011-01-19T21:05:00.000-05:00

Ok...so that's a little over the top. But technically, she did! :) My sweet girl is on the cover of the latest edition of the Milledgeville Living Magazine. A month or so ago the magazine contacted me about using some of my images for a story they were doing on The Glass Slipper Ball at Aubri Lane's last February. They had a story all lined up, but lacked the images to make the story printable. I have worked with the magazine a few times before so I knew how it "worked" and sent them a handful of my personal images. Of course, because these were my personal images there weren't very many pictures of other little princesses enjoying the party.
A few days after that Jay called me to request one of the images in a little larger format. He said they were considering using it for the cover. Of course I got excited, but I wasn't going to get my hopes up until I saw it with my own two eyes. Yesterday I got a call from Nikki that Jay was in Milledgeville delivering magazines. In her message she told me I had the cover and Jay would love to meet up with me and let me see the magazine. YAY! I was glad she caught me because I only had about a 30 minute window before we were heading to Macon and I would have missed him entirely.
The magazine is beautiful. Yes, I am biased. I can't help it! That pretty little girl on the cover is my heart and I cried when I saw her little face on the cover. Here are a few images I wanted to share. The cover and then the Diva fully enjoying her moment in the spotlight!

Brayden is turning one! {Milledgeville GA Middle GA Child Photographer}

2011-01-19T15:36:00.001-05:00

Ok, today is the day I'm going to catch up on some of my blogging. Eva's big 5th birthday party has come to a conclusion so it's time to get back on the SCP wagon! Of course, being a work from home mama with 2 kiddos definitely changes my plans a good bit. But, it will get done!

This blog post is about once precious little boy named Brayden. I first met Brayden when he was just a cutie pie little newborn! Hard to believe how much he has grown in the last year! Hannah contacted me about shooting his one year session and we had to do some thinkin' on where to shoot these. It was really too cold to shoot him outside (I know, it's the southern blood!) and my in home studio is in a bit of disarray...to say the least! We decided to shoot the session at their home. I love shooting in my client's home. It personalizes each session and allows me to really capture the "real-ness" that comes from being comfortable and happy! And let me tell y'all...Brayden was definitely comfortable and absolutely happy!! I love this little boy's red hair!! To die for! And that sweet smile is just enough to make you want to just squish him. We were able to get in 2 outfits during our session before we moved on to the much anticipated cupcake smash. I love a cake smash! Brayden did not disappoint. He got all sorts of fussy when we were trying to get him out of his clothes to do the cake smash. Hannah had to put a little of the icing on his lip so he could get a taste of that cupcake to buy us enough time to get him out of his "good clothes"!

First I wanted to share one from Brayden's newborn session last year.

And this is what happens in just one year!

It's time to release some Collections (formerly known as packages)

2011-01-06T10:50:00.000-05:00

I am often asked if I offer a "package" in addition to my portrait session. Of course I have wedding packages, and I typically offer "packages" when I shoot special events. (Valentine's Day, Easter, Christmas, etc.) But, no, I haven't typically offered a package in addition to my regular portrait sessions. I think custom photographers tend to steer clear of packages because of the correlation with the "chain" photography studios. SO, from no on we will try to refer to them as Collections. Is it totally nuts that when I say that (the word "Collections") I immediately have a Little Mermaid moment and want to break out into song?? Yeah..it is...I know it and that's ok! :)

I set out on a mission to put together some collections. I've talked to other photographers across the country about packages they offer, what clients typically gravitate towards, etc. I looked at what my clients request. I asked my friends and family what they would like to see included in a Collection. I put my head together with April, my awesome friend/assistant. We came up with some really nice options to offer SCP clients.

Christy and Bravis got married....a few weeks ago! {Middle Georgia Wedding Photographer}

2010-12-29T22:42:00.000-05:00

Apparently I start alot of blogs with something detailing how far behind I am...and guess what, that doesn't seem to ever change! Balancing a job and being a mama is definitely hard work. Throw in Holiday Season and I'm pretty sure I got KO'd! But, I didn't go down without a fight! :) I'm going to catch up on my blogging in the next few weeks.
So, let me begin by introducing Mr. and Mrs. Runyon! Christy and Bravis got married in the beginning of December at Cuscowilla on Lake Oconee. Their ceremony took place out on a point on the lake and the reception was held in the Waterside Restaurant. This venue is GORGEOUS! And the staff was incredible! I was able to chat with their event coordinator, Jamie, for a while. She is fabulous! I wouldn't think twice about recommending Cuscowilla to any bride.
Because I've made Christy and Bravis wait so long, I will keep the "story" to a minimum. They are a super sweet couple and it was truly my honor to be a part of their wedding day. It was gorgeous! Christy looked divine in her gown and Bravis cleaned up pretty nice, too! I was very happy that they chose to do a first look prior to the ceremony. We were able to capture some very sweet images down by the lake and grab those family shots beforehand. That choice almost always makes the photographer grin from ear to ear. There are a couple of highlights from this wedding I have to share.
1. Christy worked super hard to put the blue crystals on the bottom of her gorgeous wedding shoes! She personalized them with their wedding date and initials. Love it! I love little details like that!
2. Bravis is pretty darn hysterical! But underneath all those jokes he is very "romantical"! Doesn't every girl wish their groom would serenade them at the altar!? Yup, he did that!
3. But, before he made Christy swoon with his singing skills, he demonstrated his incredible amount of patience. He kept a fairly straight face while Addison was steady pulling petals off of his boutineer and shoving them in his ear. Pretty much goes down as one of the funniest wedding out takes EVER! John Gavin waving at me from under their hands was pretty awesome, too!
4. Oh, and Christy looked absolutely stunning as she walked down the aisle to the man of her dreams! Pretty sure her bouquet weighed in at 5 million pounds! She might look tiny, but pretty sure she could hold her own after I held that bouquet for a minute!
5. I'll stop here....let's just say that Christy and Bravis are one of the most adorable, sweet, and genuine couples I've had the honor of meeting. Congratulations, y'all! I hope your first married Christmas was fabulous!
Enjoy this preview of your images!

Christmas Digital Image Sale!!! Prettier this time!

2010-11-29T15:19:00.000-05:00

This is the same special I announced last night....only prettier! :)

Santa Claus is comin' to town!!! Sale time!!

2010-11-29T00:35:00.000-05:00

Christmas time is almost here!
There are few things I enjoy more this time of year than opening a mailbox full of photo Christmas cards from all of the special people in my life. It somehow gives me a sense of an instant connection with them regardless of how much time or distance may be between us.

So...to show my thanks for you - my clients who allow me to share in their special days & everydays, I am offering a special end-of-year deal JUST FOR YOU. Now thru December 10th, select an image from any previous session shot this year, and I will release a full-res image as well as 2 5x7 prints of that image for only $99! That's a $290 value! You can use it to create your own Christmas card, gift tags or give prints as gifts. Add up to 3 additional digital images to your order for $49 each!

If you are interested in ordering your cards from SCP , you are also in luck! This year's custom 5x7 cards are available for viewing HERE (click on that link!). Place your order between now & December 10th, and get 25 cards using your favorite image for any 2010 session for only $69. Add additional images to the card for $5 each (up to 4). Rush shipping also available for an additional charge.

Hurry! This special limited-time holiday card offer expires at 11:59 p.m. on December 9th.
Check, Cash, or Paypal
Please contact me via email shana_cawley@yahoo.com

Lovely Livi and Charming Charley {Middle Georgia Photographer}

2010-11-28T12:40:00.000-05:00

Prepare to be stunned!! This young lady is absolutely beautiful!! And on top of that, we're going to add in one of the cutest puppies I've ever seen. Then what do you get!??! Some seriously gorgeous images!
Sometimes I forget that Milledgeville has some really neat little places to shoot if you just take the time to look. That is one of my favorite aspects of on location custom photography. You can shoot in the same areas and make each image look different. It's all about seeing what you can find that day....maybe a hidden wall you didn't see before, the light may be a little different, or even shooting from a different angle. I get all sorts of crazy happy when I hit that part of a session. The part where you just absolutely can't wait to get home and see what you've captured!

Now, let's talk about Livi and Charley. Livi's sweet mama, Alicia, contacted me on FB a few weeks ago about doing a session with Livi. We first had to wait for competition cheerleading to end to find a way to squeeze it into their super busy schedule. We met at Glow Salon downtown and walked around looking for little places to shoot. I had scoped a few earlier in the week when I'd done Christa's session, so I knew where I was heading! I was beyond excited about Livi's session. Livi is at that age where alot of us parents drop the ball when it comes to portrait photography. It gets hard as children reach that "tween" stage. I promise, there are a million of us out there that have these professional portraits up to about age 6 and then don't have another official portrait session until it's time for senior pictures. When you think about that, it's kinda sad. I guess it's kinda where kids reach the point where bribery no longer works and threats are pretty empty. ha ha! That's why I was extremely excited about Livi's session. It's so rewarding for me to see that smile spread across her face when I show her an image we just shot and she sees just how pretty she is! Even better when she says, "Hey mom, that one was really good!!". YAY!! I had a blast with Alicia, Livi, and Charley. Even after Charley got into something pretty smelly down at the Riverwalk! lol We definitely captured some awesome images. Livi is a beautiful girl and once we got her warmed up I'm pretty sure she had a good time, too! The last images we shot out at the airport. When I say we lost light in a hurry...I mean in a HURRY!! Some of these were pretty much shot in the dark! Talk about a challenge! :)
Enjoy this preview of Lovely Livi and her sweet puppy, Charming Charley! :)

Abi and Drew!! {Georgia Child Photographer}

2010-11-24T20:56:00.000-05:00

Another quick sneak peek before I head out of town tomorrow. These sessions are totally out of order!! But, this is a session I did with Abi and Drew at CSH. Yeah....you may laugh, but it ROCKED!! And, speaking of rockin', those kiddos are hysterical when they get to rockin' out!! We got a few good "formal-esque" shots...but the good ones are where they are dancing and being silly! I'm pretty sure Abi busted out the Cupid Shuffle and that's where it got good! Happy Thanksgiving Eve!

We're thinking about Christmas....yes, indeed!! But first, let's all say monkey poop! HUH!??! Yeah, that came straight from the mama's (April, that'd be you!) mouth!!

Now we're posing for a few shots, but really gettin' ready to break it down!! Check Drew out in that second image. I.LOVE.IT!!! In the last image I told him to give me his mean face....I could just squish that little mean face all day long!

And this face...this is the "Listen, Ms. Shana...I've had just about enough of your little photographer game. I love you and all, but this is OVER!". I'm choosing not to share Abi's final image...it's a keeper for sure! :)

A quick blog for Christa! {Georgia Family Photographer}

2010-11-23T23:07:00.000-05:00

Christa is my "hair girl"! Not only does she make may hair look awesome (when I fix it, that is....it is totally out of her control when I yank it up in a pony tail/knot thing!) she has done hair and makeup for several of my photo sessions. You should definitely call her! She owns Glow Salon in downtown Milledgeville. She is pretty much incredible! And, to top it off, she is beautiful!! I always think she's beautiful, but when we did her family session over the weekend I felt she looked exceptionally beautiful! There was an extra twinkle in her eye or something!! Who knows!?!? But...she looked fantastic! I wanted to get these 3 pics up for her to see real fast while I keep trying to un-bury myself!! :) I had fun with y'all, as usual!! Thanks Christa, Dreau, and Gabrielle!

Sweet Cousins {Middle Georgia Photographer}

2010-11-22T13:28:00.000-05:00

I first met these 4 sweet girls about this time last year. Every year they do a photo shoot to capture these pretty girls and how they have grown. I was fortunate enough to photograph them last year and again this year. My goodness they are growing up fast!! Not only are they beautiful children, they are hysterical! Ivey has a pose ready anytime you aim the camera her direction. Morgan is always thinking, you can just see those wheels turning. Payton is very attentive. She pays attention like no little girl I've ever met. And Emma...well, she's a mess. Reminds me very much of my diva!
I met them at their grandparents house to capture these images. We had a great time! We laughed, we made crazy faces, and had a few meltdowns. Considering how many of us were involved in this session (4 kiddos, a photographer, 2 moms and grandmom!) they were super stars!! I'm going to keep this blog entry short and sweet so I can get back to editing...enjoy these precious girls. They are just too cute!

Jennifer and John got married!! YAHOO!!! {Georgia wedding photographer}

2010-11-16T09:38:00.001-05:00

I am so excited to share this wedding preview!! This wedding was beautiful. Every wedding is beautiful, really. But this one...this one I knew would be REALLY gorgeous. Why? Because Jennifer is one of my bestest friends and I know she has incredible taste! I mean geez!? We wouldn't be friends otherwise, right?! ha ha I've photographed Jennifer before so most of my blog followers should remember the really fun engagement session I did of Jennifer and John at the Cherokee County Fair in Canton in October (I think.). Honestly, I love that session! I want to do a family session with my kids at a Fair! I've been inspired, once again!
So, for anyone new that's reading my blog (Welcome!), Jennifer is one of my awesome ZTA sorority sisters. She and I met at Valdosta State University way back when. I'd definitely say our friendship is one of a kind. She and I have always been honest with each other. We've had our moments...believe me! Two hard headed women are bound to butt heads once in a while! lol But, there is always a level of respect and it's always out of love. We might have needed a few days to cool off here and there, but in the end, she's my friend. If I need her to listen, she will. If she needs me, I'm here. :) Which was why I was especially excited I was able to save her some crazy wedding day stress. J & J got married on a Sunday. It worked out perfectly for me in theory. The 2 weeks prior to their wedding were crazy! I shot a wedding, did sessions in Milledgeville and Atlanta, went to Savannah for a little girl time (Sugarland concert was awesome! But it had been planned MONTHS ahead of time...if I'd known that week was gonna be off the chain, I probably would have passed. But...it was paid for and you know how that goes!), came back to Milledgeville to shoot a wedding on Saturday and was heading to Barnsley Gardens in North Georgia on Sunday to watch as my girl married the love of her life. Very busy, but each event was awesome and well worth it! Saturday morning Jennifer called me. And it was early. She's pretty aware that I'm a night owl and mornings aren't always my best time! haha I don't remember if I answered or called her back, but when I got her on the phone I could hear the panic in her voice. Her photographer had broken her foot. She didn't know what to do. Well...I KNOW WHAT TO DO!! TA DA! Your best friend is a wedding photographer. She is coming to your wedding. She is now going to be your wedding photographer. Easy peasy. No question. She was worried about me not enjoying myself and didn't want me to be "working". Well, I'm pretty sure most wedding photographers feel the way I do....when you go to a wedding without your camera you feel totally lost. I had every intention of shooting parts of the wedding anyway, so really...my plan wasn't changing all that much. What was happening is that I was given the opportunity to give something awesome to one of the people in my life that has meant the most to me. Jennifer has been a true friend to me. She probably knows too much...no, she definitely knows too much! Now I was going to be able to put my creativity and talent into something for her and John to have forever! I was thrilled. I was honored. I was excited. All of those things plus more! :) God had blessed me with a fantastic friendship and I couldn't wait to use the talent God has given me to do something for my friends.
So...I will now shut up. If I keep gushing over how excited I was to be able to do this for Jennifer and John I will just get all emotional. This little redhead ain't got time for tears right now!! So...enjoy this preview of their gorgeous, beautiful, perfect day! The only thing that would have made this a little better would have been if I could have fit myself in their suitcases and gone with them to photograph their Honeymoon trip to Ireland! I mean, it'd been a heck of a sacrifice, but I've had done it for my girl! ;)

Love y'all!!

Karen and Shawn {Married} Milledgeville Georgia Wedding photographer

2010-11-11T17:38:00.000-05:00

I am behind. Way behind. So first off, thank you Karen and Shawn for being patient while I work on getting caught up.
Karen and Shawn got married a few weeks ago at the Specht Farm here in Milledgeville. Their wedding was at the tail end of my super crazy week that I call my tour of Ga! I drove wayy too many miles that week! But, it was all for good reasons and awesome images. Karen and Shawn's wedding was absolutely one of the most beautiful weddings I've ever seen. I mean, seriously, the attention to details was amazing! Karen worked herself silly hand painting these sweet signs and deciding where the little touches would go. And Shawn, he might fuss a little (or alot! lol), but he went right along with her and made all of her dreams come true. As a matter of a fact, on my way to the wedding he pulled in front of me on 441. He had to go get gas to power the boom truck (I think that's what they said they were!) to finish hanging things in the trees. There were mason jars with flickering candles hanging from the trees. Old barnwood was used as signs with sweet love saying hand painted on them. Two barnwood walls formed a beautiful corner backdrop for the wedding and grooms cake. The floral arrangements were STUNNING!!
The ceremony was super sweet. Remember, this couple has been together for 10 years!! So there was alot of emotion involved. And obviously the two families had known each other just as long so everyone was comfortable and you could totally feel the love surrounding this sweet couple. Usually, the bride gets all teary eyed during her vows and the groom keeps up the macho face. Not this time. Shawn really let his emotions show and it was priceless. He loves her!! :) So much!! Who could blame him!? She's pretty fantastic! :)
So, without further ado....here is your sneak peek from your wedding! Thank you so much for inviting Roseann and I to be a part of your special day. I really enjoyed myself and loved getting to know you! You and Shawn are such a special couple and I look forward to keeping up with you over the years! :)

Never to late! Christmas Specials for 2010!

2010-11-07T22:26:00.003-05:00

Amy & Nate are married!!! {Georgia Wedding Photographer}

2010-10-21T15:50:00.002-04:00

It's been about 2 weeks since Amy and Nate tied the knot! It was a GORGEOUS day for a wedding! It was a little warmer than anticipated, but truthfully we couldn't have asked for a nicer day. I think I've said this before, but just to catch everyone up to speed, Amy is April's sister. If you follow my blog at all, you have seen April and her 2 cutie pie kids a time or 2. :) As soon as Amy told her family she and Nate were engaged, I had a text from April telling me to block that day off! And I do mean as soon as...lol If you know April, you know how serious that statement is! lol
I was thrilled to capture this day for Amy and Nate! I had been introduced to this family at various birthday parties but hadn't had the chance to really spend one on one time with any of them, so I was excited to get to know them all. I mean, I love April so how could her family not rock!? Guess what? They do! Amy and Nate came to Saint Simons for their engagement session. If you haven't seen those images, you should. They are breathtaking!! Knowing what awesome images we captured at that session, I knew their wedding would be the same. It was a small ceremony and reception held at Amy's home. She has the most beautiful home! I was mega envious!! Nate's dad conducted the ceremony. It was so sweet and personal! Most of the family hadn't met before this so he made a point to explain each person as they performed their part in the ceremony. Might be overkill to some, but I thought it was perfect! Nate's dad also gave them the sweetest wedding gift I've ever seen. It was so awesome, in fact, that both April and Ashleigh (sisters!!lol) had gotten to me to make sure I knew the significance of it. :) He gave them a Bible. A Bible that had been his for forever! He had written all sorts of special events, notes, thoughts, etc in this Bible. Pretty much a journal of his life was contained in this Bible. Precious can't even explain this gift. Definitely a one of a kind gift from the heart....so sweet!
Amy and Nate, your special day was perfect!! Amy was calm and beautiful. Nate was happy and handsome. The families were so sweet and kind and really had a great time getting to know each other as they shared this day with Amy and Nate....so, without further ramblings from the photographer, enjoy this sneak peek into their day!
Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Church!

Part 2 of Elizabeth's TTD!! Saint Simons! {Georgia Wedding Photographer}

2010-10-19T22:47:00.001-04:00

Elizabeth also wanted to do some of her Trash the Dress session at Saint Simons Island. I love shooting at the beach so of course I'd never say no! :) We'd already done some of them here in Milledgeville, so we rounded the session out at SSI! Love these!! And as usual, Jake was there! He's such an awesome husband...Not every husband would go along with all of these hair-brained ideas she and I have! :) Thanks, Jake!

Brooke is BEAUTIFUL! {Middle Georgia Savannah Atlanta Teen photographer}

2010-10-19T22:29:00.001-04:00

I am stupid behind on my blogging...and my editing!! It has just been one thing after another lately! Being a work from home mom has been giving me a run for my money lately, that's for sure! I am so happy to be busy doing a "job" that I love and be able to spend the time with my sweet babies at the same time. BUT, sometimes, I don't do as well in the balance department as I should. The home life has been winning lately because of sick babies, but the pendulum will swing again and hopefully soon I can keep it in the middle! :) We'll see!!

So, back to the blog at hand....Brooke!! Beautiful Brooke! Brooke is one of Jon's gazillion cousins! I should set up a category for just his relatives! ha ha He is so lucky to come from such a large wonderful family! Anyhow...Brooke is the daughter of his cousin, Beth. I don't know logistically what number cousin that makes her, but in my "world" it doesn't matter. So, Beth said she'd like to do some pictures of Brooke. Brooke is young, tall, and beautiful...um, yes, please! I'd love to do a session with her! We set it up and off we went! I picked her up that afternoon and we started our trek through Milledgeville. We started out in my favorite "field" by my house, then ran by Walter B., and ended up at their family farm. I really could shoot at that farm all day every day! It was so awesome from a photographers standpoint! I loved it...well, except for the chicken feathers on the ground!!! But, I sucked it up and got the shot anyway! :) I'll zip my lip now and share some of these images! I have so many more to work on right now that my jibber jabber needs to be reigned in for once...enjoy these images of Beautiful Brooke! :)

Time for one of my BFF's to get hitched!! {Georgia Engagement Photographer}

2010-10-05T21:40:00.002-04:00

As usual, I'm behind on my blog posts....I know! Suprise! (Ah-prise as Anderson would say!) Anyhow, this blog update is all about Jennifer and John. :) I am very lucky to have really awesome friends. I mean really awesome friends! Jennifer is one of them! :) Jennifer and I may be a strange pair of friends to some people. We've been known to have an argument or two. But we know to give each other a little space, and all will be back to normal. We're good like that! Jennifer and I are ZTA sorority sisters. Somehow she kinda adopted me as her big sis. She and I have been through alot together. We have laughed...we have cried...and we have gotten ourselves bamboozled a few times! :)
So, a few weeks ago I drove up to her home in Canton to meet the boy. Yup, the boy!! The boy she's gonna marry in just a few weeks. GEEZ...more like 2 weeks now! I was so excited to do some engagement pics for them and get a chance to hang out with Pressley (which is how she's better known!) and John. John is a great guy, I'm happy to report! :) He's very laid back, which my girl needs! He rolls with the punches. They are sweet to watch together. Not the sappy sweet sweet, but sweet none the less. They are subtle with their affection for each other, but it's very obvious. Which makes me a super happy BFF! Jennifer has a really great sense of style and a good eye for photography. She and I have talked "shop" alot. She's always finding me neat little photography ideas and sending them my way. Love it! We'd originally planned to do this engagement shoot at Piedmont Park in Atlanta. I still want to shoot there, but....the fair fit much better! I'm pretty sure she and I had talked about shooting a session at a fair before. She saw there was one coming (duh, Fall=fair time!) and called me up to see if I was game. OF COURSE!! As a matter of a fact, I want to do more fair sessions!! The Perry Fair is comin' up, ya'll!! What an awesome time for some portrait sessions!!!
So, we shot these at the Canton fair in Cherokee. Very interesting place, I tell ya! :) But first we did some more formal shots at this little place I passed on the way to her house. I love finding little random places to shoot. Just ask any of my clients that have ended up in my rockin' mini van while we ride around during a session! Jennifer, John, and I drove up there...parked in some parking lot and walked down the side of a fairly busy windy road to get to this little spot. :) Yup, I'll do just about anything for an image once I have the idea planted in my head! I'm glad to report all 3 of us made it to the spot and back completely unharmed! yahoo!
Enjoy these shots from our session! I can't wait to watch y'all exchange your vows...really! I'll probably end up crying. ha ha! :) Love you, girl!

Karen & Shawn are gonna get married!!!! {engagement photographer Milledgeville Savannah Georgia}

2010-09-24T21:14:00.001-04:00

Ya know how it is when you meet a couple that just makes sense? Well, that's exactly how I felt from the very first time I met Karen and Shawn. First of all, I was super impressed that Shawn actually accompanied Karen to our first meeting at Starbucks. I've been really blessed with awesome bridal couples, but I do think that Shawn was the first one to come with his bride to meet me. I won't lie and say he was hoping for a long visit over coffee, but he was there. And he chimed in a little. So, one point for Shawn! :)
Karen and Shawn are getting married here in Milledgeville in a few weeks. Karen has shown me alot of her decor inspiration pictures and I absolutely can NOT wait to shoot this wedding! She has thought of so many thoughtful details. I have no doubt it is going to go down as one of my most favorite weddings ever. :)
Karen and Shawn have been together...oh....I think she said....like..maybe....10 years!?!!? Yes, you read that right! And, just because they don't like to rush things, they've been engaged for the last 3 years!!! Ok..yes, I was a little surprised when they told me the mathematical side of this relationship. But really, I think I get it. They are so comfortable together. They just fit perfectly. They get each other. What's the big hurry? Right? :)
Wanna hear the real kicker?!? Shawn is the one that decided the wedding location and told Karen when the big event was gonna go down. Make that two points for Shawn. He got the basics taken care of and Karen is working hard to make this wedding her vision of perfection. Precious hand painted signs and all! I really am so excited about all of the little details. I've even already seen her beautiful dress and I'm pretty sure there will be a dog in a bowtie! Seriously!?! How could I not be excited about this!?
For their engagement session, we broke it into 2 days. Karen had two locations she wanted to shoot but we knew there wouldn't be enough light to do them on the same night. So we started at the Specht Farm and got some incredible images there. This past Monday we went up to a dairy farm in Eatonton. Let me say, this was a hysterical experience. Karen had inspiration pictures she pulled off the internet of a couple in a haybarn. Super cute and I was thrilled to recreate these for her and Shawn. But the best part of this trip to the farm was the dairy cows! I've attracted an audience before while doing photo shoots. No big deal, just part of most people's natural curiosity. But this was the first time EVER I've attracted an audience of this type...those cows were WAYYY interested in our photo shoot. And these cows had some major personality! I couldn't help but snap a few pics of them, too! So, here are some of the images from Karen and Shawn's engagement sessions. :) I am so excited about your upcoming wedding!!!!! :)

That is what I call a beautiful happy bride!

He ♥'s her!!!

Sweet love...in a field full of bugs that couldn't help but bite sweet Karen. Both Shawn and myself came out relatively unscathed.

This is the pup that delivered the engagement ring! :) Yup....Shawn scores another point. 3?!

We shot a few at their home in the kitchen. I'm pretty sure Shawn was done with the whole photo session at that point, but we tried. There are a couple of cute ones from their kitchen. :) BUT, I want to make sure you don't miss the picture in the middle of the 3rd column. :)

BAHAHAHA!! This is my most favorite cow EVER!! Karen and I were trippin' out on #312!! Paranoid much!?

How's that for an audience!? :)

Did you know cows were this funny!? I didn't!?!!

Mia's Senior Session...a little late, but still beautiful!! {Georgia Senior Photographer Milledgeville Savannah}

2010-09-21T11:12:00.001-04:00

It's time for another Senior Session update! I'm pretty sure most schools have hit their deadline for Senior Pictures. This is kind of bittersweet for me. I did a handful of seniors this year, but they were seriously some of my most favorite sessions EVER! It's amazing to see these "kids" turn into young adults right before my eyes. I love taking the time to tailor each session to fit the client and their personality. It's exciting to see the creative process move forward and take shape as I shoot. Senior sessions have proven to be an excellent canvas for this for me. :) I love doing these sessions...I think they should be done all year long!!
So, this blog update is about Mia. Another JM girl! :) I LOOOOVE JM... which is now the Distinguished Young Women of America program. Whichever way you want to call it, I have fallen in love with it. I don't remember there being a local program when I was in high school, which is odd since I grew up in Gwinnett county. Who knew...something we didn't have!!? However, I am thankful to have been introduced to this program through my dear friend, April. I have certainly met some of the most incredible young women in my short time working with the local program here in Baldwin County. These girls are beautiful, but most importantly very intelligent.
Mia was one of the contestants in this years program. She is such a beautiful girl inside and out. She has a smile that could light up the entire state of Georgia!! I mean it...check it out! :) And that girl has some serious legs!! Legs that make this 5'2 girl extremely envious. What I wouldn't give for legs like that! So, without further ado, here are some images from my shoot with Mia. I had forgotten how quickly the sun goes down now, so we ran out of light before I had anticipated. It was good though! It forced me to break out my flash and do some off camera flash techniques that I don't use often enough. I'm pretty happy with those images. :) I hope you enjoy them as well!

I also wish I could pull off wearing this dress! Don't think it'd look the same on me, though... :( boo hoo!

My most awesomely patient clients EVER!! Jamilyn & Corey {Savannah GA photographer}

2010-09-19T19:46:00.001-04:00

Ok...so it's been WAYY too long. Completing this particular session has been quite a feat! ha ha Jamilyn and Corey were the winners of my cutest couple contest...oh, back in....FEBRUARY!! Yeah...that was a long long time ago! We had intended to do this shoot much earlier. But, as it always does, schedules change, the rain falls, and sometimes the photographer stays up until 5 am working and doesn't have enough brain power left to actually do the session. Yes sir..that happened to me! :)
Jamilyn & Corey are the parents of one of Eva's best little friends. Eva and Courtney are quite a pair when they are together. Really hysterical and dramatic...that might even be an understatement! And Eva LOVES going to their house. I mean, she asks me if I'll just drop her off there after school. She tells me that Mrs. Jamilyn and Mr. Corey won't mind one bit! lol So, Jamilyn...you might find curly headed little blonde headed girl on your door step one day. :)
So, back to the story. We've tried to do this session quite a few times. One day Jamilyn and I were chatting at school waiting to pick up the boys and she mentioned that she and Corey were going to have a little weekend getaway. Couldn't decide between Savannah or the mountains. The lightbulb went off...on my side! lol I was going to be in Savannah that weekend shooting Emily's senior session....sooo, if they came to Savannah I could do it there! YAY!! She said she'd run it by Corey and let me know. I was way excited when she told me he was good with it! I went to Savannah that Thursday afternoon so I could spend Friday scouting locations. When it was time to do their session on Saturday, I had ideas coming out of my head at mega speed!! We shot for a few hours in quite a few locations. I loved every second of it!! Corey and Jamilyn are absolutely one of the sweetest couples I've ever met. They share a connection that you don't see all the time. They really get each other. I think you can totally see that in these images.
We started at Bonaventure Cemetery. Yes...I know that sounds odd. But it is really beautiful out there! Then we went to Jones Street and dealt with a little coastal GA rain shower. A quick wardrobe and a few shots at Johnnie Ganem's...then back to Jones Street...then to Forsyth Park....then another wardrobe change and finished off at River Street. I love these images so much! I had such a hard time picking my faves...I wouldn't even say these are my absolute faves. Just the ones that called out to me initially. So enjoy these! :) Enjoy the total cuteness of this couple and the love that they share!! :)

Amber's Amazing Senior Session!! Seriously! {Georgia High School Senior Photography}

2010-09-14T11:22:00.001-04:00

We are totally down to the wire for high school seniors. Baldwin High needs theirs turned in on Friday...so let's just say that SCP will be cuttin' it super close! Close is ok though when you have such incredibly beautiful clients like my seniors! I mean...seriously.....they have all been gorgeous. But this blog is all about Amber!! Amber wanted her senior session to be different. Yay! That's my favorite thing to hear! That means I get to try something new and my client is ok with my "thinking outside of the box". Amber is another one of my JM girls. When I tell you this girl can light up a stage, I am dead serious. You can not help but watch her. She's a dancer, also. I guess I could also refer to most of my JM girls as my Studio One girls, too!! Eva dances there and she loves loves LOVES to watch these girls dance.
Amber had her hair appointment in Macon the day we shot, so her sweet mama, Regina, and I agreed to do the session in Macon. I was a little nervous because I don't really know Macon very well, but also super excited to explore and create some really awesome images. Regina is from Macon so she was an excellent tour guide. :)
We started out at Coleman Hill. I have shot there before so I thought it would be smart to start somewhere that I was confident we would get some great shots. And we did. We SO did! The picture of Amber on pointe with the sky behind her was the shot of the session for me. I knew as soon as I shot it that it would be incredible. It was in my brain the whole rest of the session and I absolutely couldn't wait to get home so I could process it! As I suspected, it turned out to be STUNNING!! I'm gonna have to print one for myself, too!
After Coleman Hill we went to Washington Memorial Park. Super cute!! Loved it! Definitely want to go back and shoot there, too. I'm pretty sure by the time we got to this location Amber had realized what a total nut I am and had loosened up. :) I think I've said this before, but I forget that these girls don't know what I'm really like until they've gotten through about 5 minutes of a session with me. Then they realize that we're just there to have fun and make some incredible images. :) I want to become "Shana" and not "Mrs. Cawley" to them. It's that kind of interaction with my clients that gets everyone comfortable. And that's what makes me comfortable and then we can all be happy! (insert the choir of angelic voices here) After the park we hit up downtown in search of an alley. We found one...it was perfect for what we wanted despite the peanut gallery across the street that wanted to give advice. Finished up the session at Central City Park with my last minute plan with the desk and the apples. :) I'm tellin y'all...my brain works in crazy ways! And most of the time I'm so thankful it does. I grabbed that bag of apples and that desk out of the garage on the way out the door. PERFECT!!
So, I will now zip it and let you see some of these incredible images! :)

Bethanne & Jake...haven't seen them in a while!! {GA Georgia Wedding photographer}

2010-09-08T14:56:00.001-04:00

You might remember Elizabeth (aka Bethanne) and Jake from their wedding last November. Wow, it's really almost been a year! So very hard to believe! Elizabeth and I had been trying to find a good time to do her Trash the Dress session for months. We wanted spring, but then...we missed it. Then, it was wayyy hot and the summer was crazy busy. So, we decided on August. Still hot, but it would work. Our first day we booked looked like rain. We postponed (and of course it didn't rain!). Then we rescheduled and decided we were shooting no matter what! No rain that day! YAY! It was a wild one though!
We started at Andalusia. I reallly love shooting there! So many looks in one area. :) We waited til we got there to get her into her wedding dress. See, she really has the biggest wedding dress I've ever been around. Maybe not the heaviest, but most definitely the biggest!! So, once we got her in the dress she kept that bad boy on the rest of the day! Thank goodness I'm rockin' the mini van, because that dress would have never in a million years fit in a regular car. We were able to get her, her dress, Jake and all my other stuff in the van. We might have looked a little clown car-ish, but we did it! :)
When we finished up at Andalusia, we shot a little at GC&SU. Love that green lawn and found some really neat angles in the trees. And of course, stopped traffic and caused a bit of a stir on campus. I guess brides don't exactly parade around a college campus very often. Who knew!?
For our next trick we had quite a bit of excitement. We rode down some country road to this little pond-y place that had been screaming "photograph me" for years! I'd tell you the name of the road, but then I'd have to kill ya! No, actually, I'd tell you the name of the road if I had a clue what it is.....remember, directions and I are not bff! Where ever we were, all was good until a neighbor let their dogs out to see what the commotion was about. My worst fears flashed through my head when I heard the barks...but I was very relieved to see a chihuahua and mutt come 'round the corner. Ya just never know what's going to happen next! But, what I do know is that we got some really fantastic images. :) Enjoy these!!

Everybody loves Emily, especially ME!! {Savannah GA Photographer}

2010-09-03T21:05:00.001-04:00

Savannah is my most favorite place. If you follow my blog or have ever met me, I'd bet you probably already figured that little tidbit out. I can't really explain how much! Atlanta will always be my home, but I can definitely see Savannah as a place I could spend some time. ;) So, when Emily asked about doing her Senior session there I almost jumped for joy! YES!!! Yes, Emily, we CAN do them in Savannah! You tell me when and I'll be there. We worked over a few little hurdles and had the date set. We met last Sunday to do our own little walking/driving tour of Savannah and finished up out on Tybee (another one of my most favorite places!).
Emily is another one of my JM girls. She is currently Baldwin's Junior Miss. Needless to say, I've photographed this young lady quite a few times. Each time I am reminded about how wonderful she is! (All of my JM girls are. :) ) She is a senior at Baldwin High School and is truly a remarkable dancer and one of the sweetest and most kind young women I've ever met. I always enjoy watching her dance and Eva loves to watch Miss Emily, too! She did this crazy head stand thing at the Ga Junior Miss program that still has me baffled!
Emily and her mom, Cindy, met Marianne and myself down at Johnnie Ganem's so we could load them into my car and we could get started. I told Emily to bring a bunch of clothes so we could make sure we put together the perfect outfits. (Marianne is my awesome stylist/bff. :) I have truly been blessed with some super awesome friends!) Emily exceeded (is that a word!?) my expectations! I should have taken a picture of all the clothes that were in the back of my van! We had dresses, pants, shoes, and jewelry galore. Seriously, a dream come true! So, if I ever tell you to bring alot of wardrobe choices to your shoot, do it!! Before we actually got in the car, we grabbed a few shots right there around the shop. This is one of my favorite things about shooting in Savannah. You can pretty much stand in once place, turn around in a circle and find several little locations to shoot that look totally different. I have a hard time controlling my shooting though...and Savannah compounds that problem. ha ha I just can't stop myself when we're on roll!
So, here are some of my fave images from Emily's session. As you can see, I had a very hard time picking a "few". We hit up all around Ganem's, City Market, Forsyth Park, the Bohemian Hotel, and out to Tybee. I was a bit delirious by the time we were leaving Tybee so Emily and her Mom got to see the totally nutty side of Shana. :) Of course, they also saw me get totally soaked in the ocean to get shots of Emily. I hope they still love me! lol But most importantly, I hope they love these images as much as I do! Enjoy these! :)

Lynsey is lovely {Georgia Senior Photographer Savannah Milledgeville}

2010-08-31T19:13:00.001-04:00

Time for another senior share! This beautiful young lady is Lynsey. She is a senior at JMA. I met her during this years Junior Miss program. Of course, the first thing I noticed about her was her absolutely stunning eyes. I mean, those eyes could stop someone dead in their tracks! Probably have! :) But, the best part about Lynsey is her awesome personality. Her talent for JM was one of the most hysterical monologues ever. The audience, myself included, loved it! After seeing that, I knew I'd love this girl. Humor is good stuff! And humor is what we've had to have a lot of trying to complete her senior pictures. Our first attempt involved rain. And I mean...a LOT of rain! But, we played along and got some really cute shots. Thankfully, our second attempt went much better! So much better that we were able to shoot in quite a few awesome locations.
Enjoy this preview and I'll have your proofs ready here in a little bit, Lynsey. But wait....if I finish these will that mean you won't text me anymore!?!?!? Now that, my friends, would be sad! ;)

And special thanks to Roseann Roberts for letting me borrow her "stuff" to shoot this formal shot. :)

Lane is one handsome young man {Georgia Senior Photography}

2010-08-31T11:51:00.002-04:00

Ok, so obviously I'm pretty far behind in my blogging! I've had so much going on that I haven't stayed on top of everything. Which is sad!!! Especially when I have so many awesome images that need sharing! I've been on the road a good bit of August. Just got back from Savannah yesterday. I still need to share with y'all my incredible experience with Dawn McCarthy in Jacksonville. But, this post is about Lane. :)
My girl, April, and Lane are cousins. Lane was in town for Drewby's big 2nd Birthday Bash a few weeks ago so we decided we were going to shoot his senior pictures that evening. That morning it rained before the party, but it cleared up for the kids to have a blast. Once we all recovered, I met up with Lane, his beautiful mom Melinda, April, and Ashleigh. So, when you look at these images remember that this poor fella had not 1...not 2...but 4 women behind the camera giving him direction!!! Can you imagine!?!? You know what, though? He took it all in stride!! No complaints, no grumpy face. Incredible!! We came out with some absolutely incredible images. I had an extremely hard time deciding which ones were my favorites. I actually wouldn't even say these are all my most favorites, I just don't have the ability to whittle it down at this point. There are too many good ones....see for yourself!
We started at the Train Depot at GCSU. As it turns out, Lane's grandfather was a Mason and he helped build this building. It's so cool to be able to not only have a really awesome image, but to have the image hold more meaning to it. Lane is lookin' pretty handsome here...Deda would be proud!

After a quick change, we ran across the street and grabbed a few shots. I really can't believe I'd never shot down here before. Very nice. :)

So not only did he have 4 women to deal with, he also had to deal with my craziness! :) He was a good sport and I am thankful he climbed right up in this little spot. One of my faves!

We hit up the basketball court....yeah, he's tough!

Ok, all I can envision here is April demonstrating this pose....bhahahahaha

Love these....a little James Dean-esque!

This and the next one are faves. Lane can do basketball player or rocker..hard call here!

Talk about a lucky find!!! Not sure if the current "senior" group gets the Blues Brothers thang...but I loved it!
I fully intend to print this on a canvas to keep forevah!!

This is a perfect example of opportunity knocks! We were gettin' ready to pack up and this old Jeep pulled right in. The owner went in some back door...I looked around and then told Lane to run over there real fast and let me snap him with it. :) Love it!

Drew is gonna be 2!!! {Georgia Child Family Photographer}

2010-08-19T10:20:00.001-04:00

If you follow my blog at all, you know this little boy. Drew is the son of one of my besties, April. Drew is one of my most favorite little boys of all time!!! He is truly just too much cuteness wrapped up in one teeny tiny little package. And when he says my name, I melt...into a big ol' puddle!! I'm used to lugging around big ol' Anderson, so when I get a chance to scoop up Drew and give him some lovin' I have to remind myself to hang on tight! Drew might be a little thing, but he most definitely does NOT have a little personality. Not that one would expect him to coming from such awesome and talented parents!!
Drew is turning 2 and his big birthday bash is this weekend. When I say bash...I mean BASH!! April has been planning this part-ay forever. I should go back through my emails and find the date of when she actually sent out her "inspiration board" for this party. April is a one of a kind, that's for sure! :) This party has so many special details. I can't wait to see how she puts it all together. Admittedly, party planning is not my strong suit. I'm good with ideas, but sometimes just can't get the execution right. Which is why I have friends and family like April! :)
For Drew's invitations we went out to the farm to shoot a few images. Uncle Ernie got out the big ol' John Deere Tractor for us. We talked to the donkeys (Bill, Loretta, & Amos). Pretty sure I laid in some fire ants that day, too. Ya see, that day poor Drew had been to the Dr to find out he had major ear infections. But, we had to get the job done. April danced around. I made crazy faces and sounds. We worked hard!!! And, it payed off! Check these images out!! He is PRECIOUS!!!!!!!

The Diva has gone back to school....YAHOO!!!

2010-08-16T16:44:00.000-04:00

Today was Eva's first day back at school. She actually was in this class last year, but because of her January birthday she isn't old enough for Kindergarten yet. It was just last week that she finally realized that her friends from last year weren't going to be in her class this time. This was probably the first time I've EVER seen her nervous about a social situation. I mean really...the Diva LIVES for the spotlight! She maintains her nickname for a reason, I promise you that! We had a few deep and hilarious conversations last week about school. One went something like this:
Eva: Mom, I have 2 choices to make about school.
Me: Really? Like what?
Eva: (waving her hands in the air like she's weighing her options) I can either go to school with my new friends (dramatic pause) OR I can stay home with you. And I choose to stay home with you!
Mom: Well, Eva. I don't think that's going to work. You will love your new friends.
Eva: Well Mom, those are my choices and that's my decision. End of story. (insert giant hand gesture)
Mom: (trying to contain laughter) Eva, you will love your new friends! You have to go to school. You will be fine, I promise.
Eva: Ok then, I have another choice to make.
Me: Ok, what is it?
Eva: (once again waving her hands like she's weighing her options) I can either wear my clothes to school...
Me: (totally can NOT contain the laughter at this point)
Eva: Mom, this isn't funny!! Stop laughing! I can either wear my clothes to school ORRRRRRR I can wear mud.
Me: (HYSTERICAL LAUGHTER)
Eva: Mom, I said it's not funny! Stop laughing! I'm serious!!
Me: Ok then.....well, which do you choose? (face is about to bust trying to maintain my composure.)
Eva: My clothes, of course!!! Duh, Mom!!

Yes....and that is a small example of a little exchange with Eva Diva. That girl is hilarious! So here are a few pics to share. The first 2 are a comparison shot. One from the first day last year, and one from this year. :) My girl is getting so big! As you can see, she didn't wear mud to school. And we're (I'm) still not exactly proficient with the whole braiding thing. I'll be happy when her hair grows back out and we are no longer dealing with the self induced mullet.

I love my girl!! It was steamy out so my lens was all foggy. lol

Tomorrow will be another big day....Anderson will start school!! I want to cry already and he's only going to be there 2 mornings a week!

Mamas love thier babies no matter how big they get! {Georgia Family military photographer}

2010-08-15T13:08:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was great! I met the Johnson and Faulkner families at Andalusia for a family session. I'd never been out there before and let me say it met and exceeded my expectations! I can't wait to go back and shoot some more.
I met Hannah and her mother, Karol, when we did Brayden's newborn shoot. He was so tiny!! And a perfect model actually. :) I also got to meet the beautiful Payton that day. She is such a cute little girl. Full of spunk and I love that! The images of these two precious kids are some of my favorites in my portfolio. I've kept up with Hannah and Karol on Facebook ever since. Hannah was in Brooke & Steven's wedding so I got to visit with them there and meet her husband, Dustin. Karol came up to me at the wedding and said that she wanted to do some family pictures when her son, Alex, was home. Alex is a Marine. He will be deploying soon so it was extremely important we get these images when he came home to visit. As soon as Karol found out when he'd be home she contacted me. And when I say as soon as, I mean as soon as....I believe she sent me a chat message on Facebook at midnight when she found out! As I told her, you tell me when and I'll be available!! We set it up for yesterday morning and we had a really good time shooting these images! It was crazy and fun! Just like every family session. Kids run around, the "boys" aren't necessarily into the whole thing so I take it upon myself to pick on them until they realize they are having fun, and the heat is just part of the game in GA in the summer. The dynamic in this family is truly hysterical and they all love each other so much. I truly left that session with a smile on my face!
So, thank you Karol, Papa (I don't think I could call him anything else at this point! lol), Hannah, Dustin, Payton, Brayden, AJ, and Alex for a really great session yesterday. I hope these images will help ease the anxiety while Alex is deployed and we'll shoot new ones when he's back again! :) And a big thank you to Alex. Thank you for protecting our families. I appreciate your service. God bless you and your loved ones.

MVP of the game: Drew W!! {Georgia child photographer}

2010-08-10T11:25:00.001-04:00

This is another session that almost didn't happen. And I am SO thankful that it did!! Jennifer told me a few months ago that her mom (if I remember correctly) had made a baseball uniform for Drew. His dad, Jeff, coaches at Jones County High School so it was made to match. So cute! We'd talked about shooting on the baseball field but hadn't set anything up. Then she decided to wait and shoot his 2 year pics in October. Then, she changed her mind. YAY! I was thrilled! I love photographing this lil man and was excited about this whole baseball theme. We scheduled the session last Thursday early. I don't do early real well, but I'm committed to trying! :) I was all set to go and be on time (shocking I'm sure to many! lol) and we had an Eva meltdown. She wanted braids in her hair. Many of you may not know that she cut her hair while I was in Savannah a few weeks ago. When I say cut, she hacked off a good bit of her beautiful long blonde hair. We are trying to braid parts of her hair until it grows back out. The hair is very very very short!! I don't braid well on my best days, but add chaos to the situation and I really can't braid. I offered piggy tails, she screamed. So, after many tears and braid attempts I looked at the clock. I was supposed to be in Gray in 3 minutes. Obviously, I was going to be late. I threw Eva's hair into some kind of half piggy tails and said a prayer. I sent Jennifer a quick text that said "Cawley Meltdown". She called me and explained that she wasn't happy with the way the field looked and she was worried the pics wouldn't turn out. I assured her to just let me come out there and I'm sure we can make it work. And guess what...we did! Oh we did! These are probably some of my most favorite little boy images to date.
Drew is such a boy! He has the most adorable walk. Drew has a very distinct flat footed walk that I just thought was precious. He walks with such confidence! He can throw that ball pretty good, too! He loves being on the baseball field. It was fun to chase after him and capture him as he played. These are my favorite images! And don't miss the last two. Drew is most definitely a Zeta Prince!

NOW...it's Ann's turn! {Georgia Savannah Tybee Beach Portrait Photography}

2010-08-05T22:26:00.003-04:00

This girl is so pretty!! Not like I have to tell you once you take a look at this girl! She and her Mom took a girls trip down to Savannah and Tybee to do these beach portraits. We'd talked on and off for a while about getting some portraits done and the timing worked out perfectly for my beach sessions. So,without further ado...and because I've got a million things to do before I leave town tomorrow for Jax..here ya go! Check out this pretty lady! And yes....she agreed to get in the ocean! I love her!

Hey Pretty Lady! Ann is patiently waiting....{Middle Georgia Savannah Portrait Photographer}

2010-08-05T00:09:00.002-04:00

Ok...so here's a quick shot for Ann!! Isn't she gorgeous?!!? I wish I could explain to all of you what fun we had shooting this session. ha ha ha ha :) I'm working on these furiously! It's midnight...I'm going to put this one up...get myself in the bed and start all over again in a few hours!

The official Polk Family Tybee Beach Session Preview! {Georgia Family Beach photography}

2010-08-04T18:38:00.001-04:00

Ok...so I'm still getting these sessions from Tybee edited and ready for clients. I'm heading out of town this weekend to do that awesome workshop with Dawn McCarthy, but I'm hoping to have all of them done before I leave Friday. I still have one more beach session, some wedding pics, this morning's session and a bride to meet with tomorrow. Oh..and a few more older shots to weed through! :)
So, I'll try to keep this entry short, sweet, and to the point. I was super excited to meet the Polk family. Kristi is a good friend of one of my besties, April. :) I love me some April! So, knowing that I knew I'd love Kristi before I even met her! And...as I suspected...I did! She and her family were fantastic! That particular weekend was super eventful for them so I know they were a little overwhelmed when it was picture time. Most parents are, but the session went just as planned. The kids were great! She might tell you different...but they were! The kids that sit still and say cheese are few and far between...heck, I'd even almost say they don't exist! lol Pouty faces and meltdowns are to be expected. :) To get the best expressions from kids you have to play with them and let them do their thing. Let them explore and tell you what they like. So, we did. Oh, and I'm pretty sure they were bribed! lol All good...I'm not above bribery! :) Enjoy this little peek into my Beach Session with the Polk family. I hope to see them again someday soon! :)

One little share for the Polk family! {Georgia Tybee Island Beach Photography}

2010-08-03T23:46:00.001-04:00

Ok...one quick shot for the Polk family! I didn't get done what I'd planned today...see previous blog entry...
But, I wanted to share this real fast! This family is precious! And this shot may very well go down as one of my all time faves! More to come tomorrow! :)

I'm ready!! Love Story time!! {Central Coastal Georgia Love Story photography}

2010-08-03T21:07:00.001-04:00

Ok..now it's time for the official share for Melissa and James! I had intended to finish these up way earlier today and get a few more sessions completed. BUT, the weather changed those plans. A nasty storm arrived so I had to shut down my computer for a while. Can't risk my computer kickin' the bucket! Not to mention staying up til 4 am working on other sessions last night has definitely caught up with me! I certainly can't hang like I used to on such little sleep.
Anyhow...here is a share for this unbelievably cute couple!! I will admit, when planning a Love Story session for a NOT engaged couple my brain turned into a bit of a muddled mess. I thought long and hard about how I could capture the fun and sweetness of this couple with out the overly kissy kissy pictures of most couples/engagement sessions. Thankfully, Melissa is an amateur photographer and she's up for just about anything! She's found herself quite a guy too. He rolled right along with it! He was so awesome that I'll even forgive him for deciding to attend Ga Tech (GO DAWGS). The Pier on Tybee definitely lends itself to this fun breezy Love Story session. They danced and met some super interesting new people! ha ha ha
I hope y'all (and your family and friends) enjoy these images. I know next year will be a hard one being at two different schools, but these images will bring back good memories! :) The road from Valdosta to Atlanta isn't that bad. It's been a while since I graduated from VSU (we won't go there! lol)...but I remember! :) I know that trip well! It can be done in 3hrs (give or take). Just watch out for the speed traps! lol
Enjoy! :)

Not totally ready share, but I L.O.V.E. this image! {Georgia love story photographer}

2010-08-03T01:45:00.001-04:00

This quick shot is of Melissa and James (I'm gonna use his proper name today!) near the shops at the Pier on Tybee Island. I'm still going through their session, but I just had to post this image!! I loved it when I shot it and I love it even more now!
And just so no rumors get started...this is NOT an engagement session. I repeat...this is NOT an engagement session. These two young lovebirds are super sweet and it was awesome to spend this time with them to document their love story! :) They will be at different colleges this fall, but they will have some incredible images to make their times apart a little more bearable. :) They are really too cute! :)

Neely Kate and Matthew SGI 2010 {Georgia Beach Photographer}

2010-08-03T00:29:00.001-04:00

Ok..so this impromptu session almost got lost at the bottom of the barrel! What a terrible shame that would have been! I love these two kiddos! They are some of the funniest and sweetest kids I've ever met! And I love their mama, Karen. :) She rocks. She is married to Jon's cousin, Brad. Karen and the kids (and a whole bunch of other "Cawleys") came along on the annual summer Beach Trip. I didn't have any official sessions booked that week. It was supposed to be a week for me to "catch up" while at the beach. But since I still live in the stone age and do not have a lap top (yes, I can hear your collective gasp from here) I had to pack up my desktop and lug it to SGI with us. Despite my mad packing skills, I forgot a very important cable that I needed in order to use my computer. So, no editing for me. I'd have had to drive 2 hours from SGI just to buy another cable and that just didn't seem right...anyway...I digress... During the trip I didn't edit and shot a few pics of my kiddos. When Karen said she was going to take her kids down to the beach and do a few shots I couldn't resist going too! This is what happens to photographers when we are "off". We can't NOT shoot. I mean, if I'm a guest at a wedding, I'm probably going to have my camera. I can't help it...it's in my blood! I take my camera on preschool field trips. I know other parents think I'm nuts. I am. I'm ok with it. lol But I know my kids will have pictures from almost every single milestone in their life!! :)
So, these shots aren't from an official session, but they are too cute not to share! Matthew loves his little sister. Neely Kate loves her big brother. Don't get me wrong, they can fight it out like all brothers and sisters...but when it comes down to it, they love each other big time! They are so cute goofing off together! And the commentary between them and their mama is hysterical! I know she spends a good bit of her day laughing because these kids are just too much! I'll just say that centerpieces now have a whole new meaning to me! :)

What really goes on behind the scenes at a SCP session! ha ha ha

Finally, a Tybee 2010 Preview!! The Waddell Family! {Ga Tybee Beach photographer}

2010-08-02T15:46:00.001-04:00

Look at me! I'm catching up...sorta! Here is the Waddell family! I love photographing this family. Mostly I only get to work with the girls, but this time I was lucky enough to get the whole family! :) It was a wild time at Tybee that night since we got our signals crossed on where to meet. I was thinking lighthouse, but I must have told Beverly to meet me at the Pier. I'm sure it was my fault. I was a bit discombobulated (I have no idea if I spelled that right or not!?!) that afternoon...this was the same afternoon I'd gotten the call from Jon that Eva had decided to give herself a hair cut! I'm tellin' ya, that's enough to send this mama into a tailspin!! So, despite my being late we still got some sweet shots of this beautiful family. It was especially nice to get some great shots of Keith with his girls. :) AND I even got a chance to photograph the newest addition to the family! Isn't Kevin just too cute?! He's such a sweetie pie! Enjoy this little preview as I work on more Tybee Beach 2010 sessions...and a few others that need to be finished!

I love this girl!! Brittany's Senior Session {Central Georgia Senior Photography}

2010-08-01T18:32:00.001-04:00

Last night was the first fully completed Senior Session for the Class of 2011! Let me say this...I love Brittany!! I pretty much love all my clients (really I do!) BUT this young lady has definitely secured a special place in the heart of all the Cawley's. Brittany has been our go-to babysitter this summer! Going outside of the family for a babysitter has been a big milestone for me!! I met Brittany through this year's Junior Miss class. I think she volunteered to babysit one time via FB and I took her up on it. I am so glad I did! My kiddos love her and thankfully she loves them!! Eva easily wins people over. Anderson is precious, but I will say...it takes a special person to learn to "handle" him. Like right this very second, he is covered in blue marker. He's one of those kids that has been "kicked out" of the church nursery. lol He's just very strong willed and hard headed! Brittany loves him anyway! YAY! And he loves her!
Last night I had the pleasure of meeting her mom and the 3 of us ran all over town shooting. We had so much fun! We started here at my house, then to the 42nd Floor to shoot a few indoor shots, River Walk, and ended up in a field before the skies opened up.

Brittany is going to be a Senior at GMC. She doesn't come across as the Military type of girl, that's for sure. :) She's a Varsity Cheerleader and hopes to either attend Ga Southern or Valdosta and major in Nursing. (I'm pushing for VSU but we'll see how much pull I have next spring! lol) In the little questionaire I sent her, Brittany says she is looking forward to being on "homely court" this year. Apparently she gets to dress up like a boy. Huh?!? I'm pretty sure a girl this stunning will not make a very successful transition into a boy!! Crazy girl! :) Enjoy your sneak peek!

SCP photography Seniors!! Check out this exclusive Tshirt!!{Central GA Senior Photographer}

2010-08-01T18:09:00.001-04:00

Ok High School Seniors, it's TIME!! Time to shoot your senior session! SCP is going to be releasing several pricing options for you to choose from. The options will cover just your Senior Portrait session or your entire Senior Year!! Each session will be personalized to fit you! Your session will not be a carbon copy (do y'all even know what that means anymore!?) of your friend's session!! Each senior will fill out a brief get to know you survey from me via email/FB so I can come up with ideas just for you. And feel free to share your ideas! :) I'm excited about these sessions!!
Here's a little something special from SCP! I'm giving my Seniors their own Class of 2011 Tshirt from Shana Cawley Photography! Love this shirt! Lindsey from The 42nd Floor Custom Apparel and Design in Downtown Milledgeville designed and printed these for me! So easy and so perfect! This design is obviously for the girls, but don't worry...a guy's version is coming asap!

Wow...I'm behind!! So much excitement coming up for Shana Cawley Photography!

2010-07-30T12:16:00.001-04:00

So, it has occurred to me that I have been neglecting my blog!! It's not that I'm not shooting...it's that I hardly have time to turn around!! So, I'm going to get better and get some stuff on this blog! I have alot of great things in the works. It's time to do Senior Portraits and I am working up some fantastic ideas and a few fun things to set Shana Cawley Seniors apart from the rest! :) Don't miss out!
And, in a few weeks I will be traveling to Jacksonville, FL to work with the incredibly talented, Dawn McCarthy! Excited doesn't even begin to explain how I feel about this trip! I fell in love with her colorful and fun images first and then was hooked when I heard her talk! I knew I wanted to work with her and learn from her. I am so excited to do her one on one {Walk the Shot} workshop. And I really can't wait to share what I learn with my clients, especially my future brides!! Y'all will really benefit from this workshop! She has a write up on her blog about me! Check it out and leave her some blog love. We all appreciate blog love! :)

Here's a quick shot from last night! Love me some Drew!

Another spin on the Feather Session!! {Middle Georgia Family Photographer}

2010-06-28T16:15:00.001-04:00

I've had to wait to share this blog preview until everyone was back in town! Neela and family headed to the beach and I just got back from America's Junior Miss (now called Distinguished Young Women) in Mobile. So, without waiting any longer...here is a little preview of Kaiten and Anjali. Now everyone can see how beautiful these images turn out even when they aren't of preschoolers in pettiskirts. Kaiten looks very handsome and I think we were able to get these shots without them looking girl-y at all. And Anjali looks beautiful in her white outfit on the white bed. Very clean and classic with a bit of fun thrown in! Her daddy brought that teddy bear back for her from England just a few days before we shot these. Neela, thank you so much for bringing the kids over for this session. I love these images! I hope you will as well! Especially the ones of the kids together! They really do like each other! :)

Oh Gabrielle, you are too cute! {Milledgeville GA Middle GA Family Photographer}

2010-06-20T22:47:00.001-04:00

I love photographing Gabrielle! Yes, she takes a beautiful picture. But, my favorite part of anytime spent with her is her laugh! This little girl has the cutest little laugh. She doesn't say much (To me, I'm sure her mama has another story to tell!) but she laughs. I love it! Christa (my awesome hair stylist from Glow) is one of my favorite people! She kinda sees my vision. Thank goodness! :) I was so afraid we wouldn't get Gabrielle in on these sessions. That would have been a terrible shame! But, all the stars aligned and here we are! I have GOT to get busy on some Junior Miss stuff that MUST be done by tomorrow, so I'm going to keep this short(ish) and sweet. Love Gabrielle! Love her Mama! Her daddy is growin' on me (JUST KIDDING!!!! I like Dreau, too!) Really, anytime you want me to take her picture, call me! Here is your preview you've been waiting for all day! I'll upload to Facebook as soon as it will cooperate!

Miss Kaylee, you're next! {Milledgeville GA Middle Georgia Family Child Photographer}

2010-06-20T21:56:00.001-04:00

Oh this little girl is somethin'!! :) As her mama said to me "You have a diva and I have a princess!". :) But I'd say Miss Kaylee is a mixture of both! She sure is cute and has one sassy pants attitude to boot! Truthfully, I found her hilarious!! She tried so hard to be pouty and grumpy, but ya know what..she just couldn't pull it off. Especially with her awesome mama right there to love on her and crack her up! What a pair those two are! Kaylee made us work for these images, but check out her precious expressions!! This little girl is full of life! It just screams out when you look at these pictures. Check her out! :) She is a cutie!! Michelle, thanks for bringing her over yesterday! I enjoyed it! Maybe another time we can get her in that other tutu! It sure was cute!

Tenleigh is just about the cutest thing EVER! {Milledgeville GA family photographer}

2010-06-20T21:21:00.001-04:00

Tenleigh was up next for yesterday's Feather Bed sessions. My friend Kyle does pictures of this little angel, so I'd seen how cute she was even before I got to meet her. She and her sweet parents were even better than I'd imagined. Super sweet family! Tenleigh is a doll and you can totally tell how much her parents adore her. As they should! Tenleigh was a little confused by being encouraged to play on the bed and the feathers were not her most favorite thing. I think she even got one up her nose when we were playing, but I don't think she really noticed. I also was super impressed by how hard both Mom and Dad worked to get her to smile and have fun. They were jumping and laughing like crazy, but Miss Tenleigh was very focused on her poker face! My favorite images of her are from when she was dancing. Dad put some music on for her and she put one hand up in the air and started bobbing. PRECIOUS!! I love to see children dance. They just move how they like and aren't worried about looking silly! Such joy!! Check out this little sweetie!

Kayla and Kelly again! I ♥ them! {Milledgeville Ga Family Photographer}

2010-06-20T19:01:00.001-04:00

Here are some of my favorite sisters!! I've done several sessions with them (here is their bunny session) and each time we are able to get some fantastic shots. Kayla is always awesome for me and Kelly is finally starting to get used to me! :) We shot early Saturday so Kayla wouldn't be late for her 8th birthday party!! She had a skating party...oh does that EVER bring back memories! What child of the 70's/80's doesn't love a good skating party!?!? Too bad I never mastered the art of stopping on those things. I'd probably be the only 30ish year old that would have to slam herself into a wall to stop. But, enough about me and my gracefulness! ha ha I'm pretty sure that Dad didn't know we were up to this either. That always makes it a little more fun! I almost slipped up and said something when I saw him during my late night run to Walmart with April. Thankfully, I kept my mouth shut!!
The girls had so much fun. Once again, the light was stunning. I'm really thinking I need to start shooting early in the morning more often. Enjoy this preview of two super sweet sisters. Thanks, Beverly, for bringing them! I always look forward to a session with y'all!

3 of the CUTEST kids ever!! {Milledgeville Middle GA Family photographer}

2010-06-20T17:22:00.002-04:00

Yesterday started early!! Anyone who knows me well is aware that I don't really hit my stride for the day until atleast 11 am. I can be up and moving before then, but in order for my brain to be fully functional it needs some time to warm up. :) So when I decided to book Saturday's first Feather Bed session at 8am I was met with some choice comments. I knew it was best to do it early because of the heat and the light. And I'd had a few weeks to psych myself up for it. The alarm went off and up I went. Jon helped me set up (ok so he did all the heavy lifting!) and I was ready to go when Bridget got here with her kiddos. Let me say...these kids are GORGEOUS!! I now know that Bridget is extremely good with her camera (she uses it alot and takes some incredible pictures! Click here to check out her blog) which means that her kids are well trained for photos. LOVE that! Especially for my not quite awake at 8am brain! These kids were a breeze to photograph. The camera loves them. So, enjoy this little preview of these monkeys! These pictures alone are enough to make me rethink my lack of morning-ness! The light was beautiful!! Thank you, Bridget, for bringing them over! I enjoyed meeting you and working with those cutie pie kids!

Happy Father's Day!! {Middle Georgia Milledgeville Family photographer}

2010-06-20T12:11:00.001-04:00

Here is a preview I really couldn't share until today!! We shot these pics of my friend April and her two sweet babies last week. Talk about major rush on a job! lol I shot them on Tuesday, edited the pics, ordered the book and had it shipped for Saturday delivery. Had to meet her at Walmart at 11pm last night for the handoff!! So yes, rush jobs can be done, but it will cost ya, that's for sure! But, it was definitely worth it. I know that Terry was happily surprised when he opened his Father's Day gift this year. Abi and Drew always make beautiful pictures, but they were especially on their game that day. And, as usual, April looked beautiful. :) Duh. So, here is a small glimpse into our sweet Father's Day Special session last week. We can do these kinds of sessions anytime, so don't think you have to wait for a holiday to do these! There is nothing sweeter than some lifestyle images to capture the relationships in a family. The scrunched up noses, goofy smiles, and pure joy are priceless!

We put together a 4x6 spiral bound book for Terry's gift. April trusted me on this. :) It's durable but nice. And still casual enough to tuck in a purse, desk drawer, briefcase. Here are some snaps of the book. The wording at the bottom is not blurry at all. I promise!

Cousins are fun!! {Middle Georgia Milledgeville Family lifestyle photographer}

2010-06-18T19:16:00.001-04:00

I love fun sessions!! I really do. Photo sessions that let kids just be themselves provide the best smiles and expressions. If you don't believe me, let this session preview prove it to you! I met Morris at Laura and Travis' wedding a few weeks ago. He was responsible for the incredible decor. Make sure you check out the pictures! He contacted me on Facebook about doing a fun session with his grandkids to put on the walls in his newly renovated gameroom. What a fabulous idea! I love decorating with pictures! (Visit my main site for a gallery of wall displays for your home.) So, I went over to his house yesterday to capture some images of the kids playing in the backyard. Guess what I took with me to their house?! A thunderstorm!! Yup, it rained in middle GA...imagine that! Morris and I joked that rain must be what happens when we work together. Thankfully, this rain was nothing like the downpour we had at the wedding and it let up and we were able to shoot. It was wild, fun, crazy and muddy! Enjoy these sweet preview pics from our session yesterday! Thank you so much for inviting me to spend a little time with your precious family. Those kids are just too cute! You definitely have a reason to be proud grandparents!

Tee is totally adorable!!! {Middle Georgia Child Photographer}

2010-06-15T18:20:00.001-04:00

Yesterday I FINALLY got to do a session with Tee! Tee is the son of Jon's cousin, Amy. Each time I've seen this precious little boy I have wanted to get my camera on him. He is just way too cute. I was so excited when Amy called and asked if she could bring Tee by for a quick session on Monday. YAY!! This cutie most certainly didn't disappoint! A photographers dream! He smiled, he played, he said cheese on cue! I even got a few cute pics of Tee with his sweet mama. How awesome it is to capture that bond between a mother and her son. Enjoy this little preview from yesterday while I continue to try to catch up on everything else!!

Meet Matty! Littlest Heroes Project {Georgia Family Photographer}

2010-06-15T11:42:00.003-04:00

A few weeks ago my family went with me to do a very special session at Stone Mountain. God definitely puts you in the right situation at the right time. I recently joined The Littlest Heroes Project. I was thrilled to be accepted into this program. Anderson's nevus (click here and her e for blog entries about Anderson) was nothing even remotely like Matty's, I still know what it is like to have a child that others see as different. It makes them uncomfortable so they avoid eye contact or look at you with the most pitiful eyes you've ever seen. They mean well, but they just don't know what to say or do. I've always tried to have compassion and caring for people no matter what is going on. Maybe I always felt like God would put me in a situation that would put that part of my personality to good use. :) My mom always tells the story of when she was trying to explain to me that we shouldn't talk to strangers. My answer to her was "But a stranger is just someone I haven't met before!". And so developed that part of me that will talk to just about anyone, anywhere, anytime. I try to look for the good through the bad. To me, that's what The Littlest Heroes Project does. They take an otherwise uncomfortable situation (professional custom photography) for these parents and match them with a photographer that understands and can't wait to work with them. I only hope that God will let me work with more of these families.

So, back to Matty! :) Matty is the son of a friend from high school. She and I were 2 out of the gazillion graduates from Brookwood High School's class of 1994. (Yup, we are OLD!! Not that Kathy has aged one bit!) Thanks to the wonders of Facebook I have been able to reconnect with so many friends from the past. I heart Facebook! :) Kathy and I have chatted about our sons on Facebook before and I have prayed for him and their precious family. Matty was diagnosed with Medulloblastoma and has been battling this form of brain cancer. I don't remember when he was diagnosed, but I remember Kathy telling me about how they found out. I can't imagine the shock. But when I tell you that Matty has two of the most awesome parents ever, I am so serious! Kathy and Matt are the most wonderful kind-hearted people you'll ever meet. They are strong. I'm sure they have their moments of sadness and frustration, but as she and I have talked about, this is all part of being a parent. You just do what needs to be done. You take care of your babies with everything you have. You love them with every ounce of your being and do the best you can for them. Children are the truest example of unconditional love here on Earth. Matty has been blessed with awesome parents! Lucky kid! And, to top it off, they are HILARIOUS! :) We had so much fun with them. BUT, let me not forget to tell you about Kaylee. She is Matty's sister. She might be a little diva-ish (which I love because I have quite the Diva here at my house!), but she is such a special little girl. She's had to deal with so much in her young life, too. It really hit home with me when Eva asked why Matty wasn't feeling well and Kaylee looked at her and said, "He has cancer.". In true Eva form, she just kept going. She asked a question, she got an answer and all was good. :) Despite the reality of the situation, our families had a great time that Saturday! We decided to meet at Stone Mountain because Matty loves trains. The PR dept was very generous and allowed us to shoot on location, waived the fee for me, and gave us all complimentary passes. Matty was a little off that day due to some new meds and having just started a new round of chemo. The train rocked him right to sleep!! We did a few more pics before we hit the highlight of Matty's day....the funnel cake!! That boy can EAT some funnel cake!! Kathy said he'd recently come off of a feeding tube and he was enjoying being able to eat food again. Matty got tired again so we cut our session a little short. But we have made plans to reshoot in July. I'm going to go visit them either at their home or closeby to finish up our session. :) I can't wait!! So, until then, here are a few from our trip to Stone Mountain!

edited to add these 2 pics of the kiddos....too funny not to share!
2 Divas!

Which way do we go??

Brooke and Steven {Married!!} (Milledgeville Sandersville Georgia Wedding Photographer)

2010-06-13T22:41:00.000-04:00

Last night I had the pleasure of shooting the wedding of Brooke Brown and Steven Smith with my good friend Kyle Hitchcock. It was a bit of surprise for me since Kyle and I got our dates mixed up, but it all worked out perfectly. And I'm so thankful it did!! This was an absolutely beautiful wedding! I love shooting weddings! The excitement is contagious. And I love the challenge of walking into a location and coming up with ideas to capture the love between a couple on their wedding day. This wedding was definitely not a disappointment! Brooke and Steven were the perfect bridal couple for any wedding photographer. She looked flawless in her gown. Not only was her groom handsome, he was also a very good sport despite the absurd heat!! This wedding definitely had the largest wedding party I've ever seen. Certainly made for a very entertaining day! :) Despite how stupid hot it was, we were able to get some really awesome images. I probably could have kept shooting, but that whole time schedule thing cut me short again! lol When I get excited, I just can't put the camera down! Any how, I've spent today combing through my images so I could share my favorites today. It was hard...very hard!! Here they are! Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Brooke and Steven Smith!

I tried out some textures today when I was processing these images.
Before

After

Pretty Ladies

When I turned around and saw this gorgeous light I really got giddy!! I totally had this image in my head and was thrilled to see the opportunity to capture it!

Seriously...could they be any more gorgeous!?

This is another one of those shots I've been WAITING to capture!!

FD Suprise Session #3!! {Middle Georgia Family Photographer}

2010-06-11T16:04:00.002-04:00

It's been a busy day, but here is the preview from yesterday's 3rd session!! Top secret, remember!

FD Surprise Session #2! {Middle Georgia Family Photographer}

2010-06-10T22:03:00.001-04:00

This is today's 2nd session at Coleman Hill! :) Once again...if you know this family, keep those lips sealed! :)

FD Surprise Session #1! {Middle Georgia Family Photographer}

2010-06-10T20:05:00.001-04:00

Today I had 3 sessions at Coleman Hill in Macon. I LOVED shooting there! I can't go into much detail because I wanted to share but still keep these images a surprise for Dad. So, if you know this sweet family, keep your lips zipped for now! :) I'll share more after Father's Day!
This is from my first session! So pretty!

One pic real quick!! Georgia's Junior Miss {Middle Georgia Senior photography}

2010-06-09T22:20:00.001-04:00

I'm going to bed early tonight. I have to or I'm going to be no good here soon! But, I had to share this one shot from tonight's session with Natali Gavanarova. Natali is currently Georgia's Junior Miss and will soon be heading to compete in the America's Junior Miss Program in Mobile. We went out to shoot some images for the State program book in downtown Milledgeville because we're running out of time to get the cover done. I love them!! Natali is so photogenic it's not even funny! :) So, here is one quick shot of one extraordinary young lady! I'll share the rest soon!

2010 Beach Sessions at Tybee!!! July 23-25 {Georgia Beach photographer}

2010-06-09T12:59:00.001-04:00

It's time!! Book your appointments as soon as you can!! Tybee Island is gorgeous!! I just shot there 2 weeks ago! Click here to see the Abbott family's session at the Pier!

Laura and Travis (aka Woody!) {Married!!!} Middle Georgia Wedding Photographer

2010-06-08T20:54:00.002-04:00

Saturday was the big day for Travis and Laura. I have been so excited for this wedding since I first met Laura and her mom, Kelli, right after the first of the year. I knew this was going to be a beautiful wedding! Laura and Travis got married at her parent's house in Sandersville...or maybe it was Sun Hill? I'm not really sure! See, where I come from we didn't exactly have dirt roads. I grew up in the suburbs of Atlanta, so Milledgeville has definitely been a learning curve for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying anything bad about it...I'm just saying, I'm not used to it! God made sure to land me in a place that was relatively easy to navigate via street signs when I was growing up. Why? Because he knew good and well he wasn't going to give me much of a sense of direction!!! Directions have never been my "thing". It's always better that I drive, not navigate. I can even get lost with 2 GPS devices!! Yes, sad...I know! With that being said, I truly have no idea where I technically was on Saturday! :)
Anyway...back to the story of Laura and Travis' wedding! I traveled to Sandersville on Saturday for this wedding. Thank goodness my sister, Melisa, was with me. She has just started her new videography business called Chick with a Camera and this was her first wedding. Yay! :) Melisa is accustomed to my lack of direction and thankfully God gave her whatever sense of direction he didn't give me! So, long story short, we made it! The house was GORGEOUS!! The decor was some of the most beautiful I've ever seen. The centerpieces were fantastic. Beautiful hydrangeas, green apples, iron pieces, candles...truly breathtaking! I was so excited! Melisa and I went to find Laura to start with pics of her getting ready. Dress....gorgeous! Bride....gorgeous!! Bridesmaids...gorgeous!! Everything....gorgeous!! And Laura was so happy and laid back....THANK HEAVENS!! As you see this preview of their wedding images I hope you don't pick up that it was a gazillion degrees outside for some of our pictures. Girls that never sweat were sweating, me included! And I hope you can't tell that right after the wedding ceremony concluded the bottom FELL OUT!! When I say rain...I mean R.A.I.N! Some guests were under the tent with the food, others were in the garage, on the front porch, and a lot of us were in the house. We kept on going and did pics inside after the ceremony. Definitely a new experience, but you know what? This is what happened on their wedding day. It rained. And everyone made the best of it and had an incredible time. Most importantly....the love between Laura and Travis was so obvious. The way they look at each other is what girls dream about! No matter what kind of monsoon hit Saturday night, nothing stopped them from starting their lives together. So, although it was one of the most intense weddings I've shot, it was fantastic!! Congratulations to Laura and Travis! I hope you are enjoying your Honeymooon! And I was and am totally serious about doing some more pics when y'all get back! Just give me a call!

Father's Day Countdown! Gift Idea! {Middle Georgia Family photographer}

2010-06-07T11:11:00.000-04:00

Ok, so it's close!! June 20!!! Yes, that's right! You have just under 2 weeks to come up with the perfect gift for the Fathers in your life. You could buy him another tie. Or in our case another UGA shirt. Something to perfect his golf game. Tickets to a concert. You could buy any of these things.....OR, I have a better idea!! So, we all know as Mama's that we are hardly ever in any pictures with our kids. Usually, we're the ones taking the pictures. (I am so guilty of this!!) Pretty much the only pictures that exist of us and our kids are the hold the camera out at arms length shot OR we hand the camera off to someone else and end up out of focus or missing a head!!! We really need to fix this! Here is my suggestion.....a short photo session to capture some beautiful moments with you and your children to present to the Best Dad in the World on Father's Day! What a fantastic idea, right!!? And, not only will he have these great images to share and brag about how beautiful his family is....YOU will have them too. There will be photographic evidence that you DO exist!

Here are the details:

Father's Day Special $65

30 minute lifestyle session. No "official" posing, just precious true moments captured with your children of all ages.

(No worries about cooperation from the little ones! They get to play and have fun)

5-10 fully edited images posted in an online gallery

Location will be determined based on the time and date you need to schedule your session.

Very flexible times available but you must book your session before June 15 to ensure delivery

You receive (2) 4x6 prints and (1) 5x7 print of your choice included in the cost

The prints will be packaged and ready for gifting!!

A little time with my girl {Middle Georgia child photographer}

2010-06-04T23:18:00.002-04:00

I'm getting ready for a beautiful wedding tomorrow. That means it's time to get my "stuff" together. For this wedding I got my hands on a new lens and wanted to try it out today. As usual, when I wanna shoot, Eva is my go to girl! Most of the time, she's fine with it! But today...well, I was pushing my luck. She wouldn't even come downstairs until I agreed that it would only be "one photoshooot". As all photographers know, it's so easy to say "just a few more shots" and keep going if you're in a groove. I've done that to her....alot. :) But, she did come outside with me today and let me grab a few shots. Just had to share because I think she's super cute and I love her to the moon and back!

I asked her to smile and she wouldn't look at me. So, I said ok...no smiles...and THIS is what that monkey gave me!!!

Eva thought this mushroom was really cool. Sadly...I will show my age here, BUT I just can't help but look at a mushroom outside and think about little blue Smurfs!! I checked though...no Smurfs here!

One of summer's greatest treasures...Gardenias. Love that smell!! Brings back wonderful memories. :) My Grandmother had them at her house and my mama and daddy always pick them and bring them inside. You just can't beat that scent!

SCP discount on the disc from your session!!

2010-06-02T22:53:00.001-04:00

OK, it's special time!! All current clients, you can get your session (sorry does not include wedding images) disc for $200 (reg. $300) with a print release. If you have more than one session, you can add additional sessions for $100 up to 3 sessions total. Hurry! This special ends Friday, June 4 at midnight. To qualify, send me a message on FB or email me at shana_cawley@yahoo.com

Meet the "D" family!!! {GA family photographer}

2010-06-02T17:09:00.003-04:00

Monday was spent with this precious little girl! Baby S is 8 weeks old and is such a beauty! And her mama definitely picked out the cutest clothes for her. I even made a trade for that super sweet lavender pettiskirt! Check this sweet little girl out...She's a doll!

It's officially SUMMERTIME!! {Middle GA Tybee Ga photographer}

2010-06-01T12:53:00.001-04:00

Summer time is my most favorite time of year! There are so many things that make me happy when summer gets here! Love the flip flops! Love the sundresses! Letting the kiddos play in the pool in the backyard! So many fun things to do...but my most favorite place to be is the BEACH!!! Now I'm not a laying out in the sun kind of girl (fair skin and freckles make this a bad idea!) but nothing compares to that laid back atmosphere that can only be found at the beach. So...to kick off Summer 2010 I met up with Christa, Dreau, and Gabrielle at Tybee Island on Saturday morning. We got there early to avoid most of the Memorial Day crowd. Christa (she owns Glow Salon check out their page!) and I have been trying to work out family pictures for them for EVER! We've been rained on, gotten sick, and who knows what else! So this time it kinda just all fell into place. They were headed for a much deserved family vacation to Hilton Head and planned to stop in Savannah on Friday night. I was heading to Savannah on Friday to do those super sweet pics of baby Brady. Well, if I'm there....and you're there....let's do some beach pics!!! YAY!! They are one of the sweetest families ever! Not to mention they are gorgeous and are all super crazy photogenic. I hope you enjoy this little preview and I hope to share some of the ideas Christa and I have been coming up with!

I'd like you to meet....Brady!! {Savannah Baby Photographer}

2010-05-30T21:03:00.001-04:00

I'd planned for a long time to do birth pictures of this little guy. Marianne and I had joked and planned this out. We had certain weekends that would work out better than others for his birth. But, as we have quickly learned, Brady Thomas does things his OWN way!! Brady came early. As in a week early from his planned EARLY scheduled Csection date! I sent Marianne a text the morning he was born asking her to call me when she was up and moving...no response. Hmm, that's odd! Yes, she's hard to get ahold of once the day goes on but first thing in the morning I can usually catch her. So then I called her....voicemail. That's TOTALLY normal. Sometimes I'm better friends with her voicemail! (just kidding!!!) While I was leaving her a message, I received an incoming call from her number. But, it wasn't her! It was her husband, Rob...he wanted to let me know they were at the hospital having a BABY!! I couldn't believe it!! There was no way I could be there! So, I was bummed for .05 seconds...but got over it because I was so excited to know the baby would be here soon!
I just got a chance to travel to Savannah this weekend. It was a quick trip, but lots to do while I was there. I was so exited to see Marianne and her family and get my hands on that precious baby boy. And he was totally all I'd been waiting for! Such a cutie pie! Here is a sneak peek to our session with Brady Thomas. I could just squish him all day long! He's that cute!! And his mama, she's beautiful...but that goes without saying! :) Oh, and stay tuned....this lil man has one handsome big brother!! Lawson and I did a super fun session before I left yesterday. I'll be sharing that one soon!

A sweet gift for Father's Day {Milledgeville GA family photographer}

2010-05-25T10:36:00.001-04:00

This update is way past due!! Last week we shot these pictures for a Father's Day surprise...well, halfway through the shoot Dad came home. SURPRISE! But, even though the actual surprise didn't go as planned, I'm sure he's still going to be a very happy Dad with these pictures. These four boys are quite a bunch! Never a dull moment, that's for sure. ALL boy! Mischief abounds, but you can definitely tell that they are sweet boys. I enjoyed hanging out with them at their house and capturing these images. Enjoy this little preview and I'll get the rest ready for you today! Thanks so much, Mandy, for scheduling this session. This session is probably going to inspire me to do a Father's Day special.

Jessica and Jason got married! {Georgia wedding photographer}

2010-05-25T00:17:00.001-04:00

This past Saturday, I helped my friend Kyle shoot a beautiful wedding! We headed over to Haddock to shoot the wedding of Jessica and Jason. After a little "off roading" with Kyle, I was more than surprised when we arrived at such a pretty church!! An ideal location for a wedding, that's for sure! The ceremony was super sweet and the couple was honestly one of the most precious couples I've met so far. And let's not forget the bridal party...they were pretty incredible!! Hysterical might even be a better description! Here's a little bit of what I captured from my perspective on Saturday. You can find more on my Facebook Fan page (click here!) Congratulations, Jessica and Jason! I hope you are enjoying your Honeymoon!

The beautiful dress

The smiling bride...isn't she gorgeous!?!

I absolutely love the color of these bridesmaid dresses!

Don't you just love these flowers!?

Funny story...I'm pretty sure this is the shot where we all realized where the good looks came from on the groom's side. :) Stirred up a bit of entertainment, that's for sure!

The boys. They were very good sports! I couldn't begin to name them though...I'm sure their names started with the letter "J".

This is right as Jason saw Jessica coming down the aisle...is that precious or what!?

Exchanging their vows. I love those stained glass windows!

Mr.and Mrs. Jason Briley

love love love love love

Pretty rings

A little smooch with a vintage flair!

The pretty wedding cake...must have been super yummy too because it disappeared crazy fast!

And finally, the getaway!! Let's just say the bridal party did a heck of a job decorating Jason's truck! Even put it up on a jack to make it even a little more difficult to drive off! But nothing stopped the happy couple from smiling! They were truly too happy to care! :)

Feather Bed Session with Kaela and Jenna {Middle GA child photographer}

2010-05-16T23:07:00.001-04:00

When I met Jessie and her two beautiful girls I knew I would LOVE to photograph them someday! I mean, how could you not!? These sisters are gorgeous and so hilarious!! I haven't had the chance to meet Dad yet, but I'd say they get their sense of humor from their Mama! :) And probably their sense of style, too! I've seen Jenna wear some pretty awesome outfits to school. I was thrilled to do a Feather Bed session with them. Definitely a good fit for these two. Although, I'm pretty sure it'd be hard to take a bad picture of either of them. Enjoy this preview! :)

Feather Bed Session with Abbie Kate! {Middle GA child photography}

2010-05-16T22:44:00.001-04:00

My next session was with my sweet little Abbie Kate! :) Many of you know that her mama is also a photographer (Kyle Hitchcock) and she is also a very good friend/family of mine. :) So, when she said she wanted to bring Abbie Kate for a feather bed session I was thrilled! Enjoy this preview, it's a good one! :) She had so much fun and it shows in that cutie pie smile of hers. I did learn something about Abbie Kate during our session that I hadn't noticed before...she has the CUTEST freckles on her nose! :) Thanks for bringing her, Kyle. :) Give AK a hug and kiss from her Aunt Shana! :)

Feather Bed Session with Abi and Drew {Central GA child photography}

2010-05-16T22:14:00.001-04:00

Saturday was so much fun!!! Danielle and I both shot our feather bed sessions. And, just as we'd imagined, these pictures are precious!! I hope we can do these again sometime soon for those of you that missed out! Enjoy this preview from my session with Abi and Drew. I love love LOVE these babies!! They really are super sweet!

Giggles and Gumdrops {Middle GA child photographer}

2010-05-02T16:38:00.002-04:00

Last Thursday I had the opportunity to do a shoot for Giggles and Gumdrops. G&G has some of the cutest custom clothing, hair bows, and flipflops I've ever seen! Angie wanted to do a shoot of their spring/summer line so she can launch her website soon. Let me say, this was one of the most fun shoots ever! And I loved every second of this shoot! Beautiful children dressed in super cute clothes that WANT to pose and have their pictures done...a photographers dream! :)
Enjoy this little preview! There are more on FB and when the Giggles & Gumdrops website launches I will be sure to post the info here on my blog!

Bryan and Teagan got married!! {Georgia wedding photographer}

2010-04-28T11:10:00.001-04:00

Last weekend was another beautiful wedding! I traveled to South Ga (Camilla to be exact) to photograph the wedding of Bryan and Teagan. If you follow my blog you will remember their engagement pics from early March. (Click here to see them!) It was a gorgeous wedding in one of the most beautiful churches I've ever seen! Believe me, when you enter a church with wedding pictures in mind it can be a bit daunting. You just never know what kind of decor/lighting/set up you will find. I was pleasantly surprised when we got there! Teagan had mentioned the beautiful stained glass windows and was she ever right! The windows were breathtaking.

The happy couple is honeymooning right now, but I keep seeing her pop up on Facebook so I wanted to get this preview up for them today. I hope ya'll are having a wonderful trip celebrating your first days as husband and wife. I truly enjoyed meeting y'all and sharing in your special day. Congratulations! :)

There's a lot of love for this princess! {Milledgeville Family photographer}

2010-04-22T12:28:00.001-04:00

Recently I have donated several silent auction packages to help support local schools. I sent two to John Milledge Academy and one to John Hancock Academy. Angela was the first winner to get in touch with me. She won the session at JHA's auction. Thank you, Angela! Now here's a little story about our session yesterday at the Greenway. :)

Angela has 3 absolutely gorgeous kids! Two boys, Timothy and Caden (of course, now I realize I don't know if that's spelled right! Please correct me if I'm wrong, Angela!), and a sweet new princess, Josie. Josie is just now 4 months old. She is beautiful!! She absolutely has the cutest little dimple that I've ever seen. When Angela called she said she wanted some images of sweet Josie and her two handsome big brothers. Let me say this....Josie is the most loved little sister on the planet! Her two big brothers adore her. They were wild, crazy, fun little boys but when it came to their little sister they couldn't have been any sweeter. I hope y'all enjoy this little preview of our session. I had a wonderful time!

Here are two outtakes I couldn't resist!! You never knew when a brother would have to come love on his little sister! So sweet! :)

Feather Bed Sessions {Milledgeville Middle GA Feather Bed Photography Session}

2010-04-21T00:12:00.002-04:00

We have been waiting on this announcement for what seems like FOREVER!!! :)

Shana Cawley Photography, along with Danielle Fields Photography, is pleased to announce a super fun and funky new session.....Feather Beds!!

Each session will include a one hour shoot on location with a custom 3x3 Accordion Album, one 5x7 and two 4x6's of your choice for $135. We have the pettiskirts shown below available or feel free to bring your own pettiskirt or tutu. Maybe even a special stuffed animal. The session will start with some playful photos of your child sitting, laying and jumping on the bed and at the end of the session they will get to throw a pile of feathers around for some truly unique and amazingly beautiful and fun photos that you will treasure forever! Book soon...these will max out quickly!!!

The session date is May 15, 2010 (I can't believe I forgot to put that in here!)

To book your session contact me soon!!
Email me at shana_cawley@yahoo.com
Find me on Facebook <---click there to go to the Shana Cawley Photography Fan Page
Call me 478-387-8708

Kaytlin LOVES me!! FINALLY!! {Georgia child photographer}

2010-04-18T23:15:00.002-04:00

Today was an AWESOME day!! Some old friends of ours from Atlanta brought their daughter, Kaytlin, down to Milledgeville for us to do her 3 year photos. This was my 3rd official session with Kaytlin and she was the flower girl in Elizabeth and Jake's wedding in November. So I've worked with this pretty girl for a while. :) Typically Kaytlin gives me "a run for my money". Cute as a button, but she makes me work hard for her smiles. Today, we had a major breakthrough!! She let me hold her hand, give her a hug and play with her. YAY!!! I can't tell you how exciting this is!! Don't get me wrong, she still had me running after her like a crazy woman. But, it was so worth it. :) Here are a few images from today. I especially love the last one. She truly rocks the Yo Gabba Gabba DJ Lance Rock hat! My kids got it a few months ago and wouldn't dare let it touch their heads. But Kaytlin wore that thing forever. We let her take it home with her and last I saw her she was rockin' it hardcore! :)
Troy and Jenica, thanks so much for coming to hang out with us today. Eva loved having a picnic with Kaytlin. :) Come back soon!

Mr. and Mrs. Cross....gorgeous...{GA Georgia Wedding photographer}

2010-04-12T23:27:00.001-04:00

This weekend was quite an adventure!! It was Milledgeville Baldwin's Junior Miss weekend AND the wedding of Patrick and Allison. It's not unheard of to book 2 things in one weekend. It was the 3 hr travel time between Milledgeville and Albany that proved I was a little bit crazy. :) Crazy is good, I say! :)

Anyhow...I traveled to the town of Newton (look it up...) to shoot the wedding of Patrick and Allison. Thankfully I had my brother, Tyler, with me! Those that know me well know that I am directionally challenged. EXTREMELY challenged!! Even with a GPS I will get lost. So, thinking I have this thing covered with my TomTom and my iPhone Navigator what could possibly worry me about getting to the wedding at our agreed upon time, right??? WRONG!!! When TomTom said turn left, iPhone said turn right. One said turn around, the other said go straight. If Tyler hadn't been there with me, who knows where I might have ended up. OH, and let's not forget to mention that in most parts of that area I have little to no service on said iPhone. Not only was I lost, I couldn't get ahold of anyone on the phone. BUT, we did get there! 30 minutes late...booo! I was pleasantly surprised to find that Allison was the most laid back happy bride. She was ready to roll with it and we did...and I must say that I love these images!! Happy bride + happy groom + beautiful location + awesome families= GORGEOUS images!! I just couldn't stop shooting!! My flash overheated during the reception and that has never happened before!! I have been working on this preview on and off all day long. I just couldn't limit my favorites...so here are some I immediately LOVED!!
Thank you, Allison and Patrick for allowing me to be a part of your special day. Ya'll are truly an incredible couple. Your love for each other is more than obvious. And thank you to your families for being so wonderful, as well! I really enjoyed being there!! Enjoy these and I will put these plus a few more on my Shana Cawley Photography Facebook Fan page.

The beautiful Bride

She and Patrick chose to see each other before the ceremony. I love when couples do this! Look at the excitement on her face. She was truly like this all day long! And this beautiful location is her parent's home...yeah, I thought about staying. :)

So sweet!

They adore each other so much.

Back inside for some finishing touches

Sharing one of many hysterical moments with her brother, Collier. :)

Right before she walked down the aisle to her groom.

Escorted by her parents

Really...can you GET cuter than this!?!?

Such an ideal spot to get married....truly a vision of God's beauty!

A stolen kiss from her new husband....

Meet the Cross family...aren't they a good lookin' bunch!?

The mother sister bond is so awesome! I love how this turned out! I asked them to
kiss Allison on the cheek. (totally cheesy, but I knew it would get what I wanted!)

Dancing the night away at their beautiful reception

Congratulations, Allison and Patrick!!!

Milledgeville Baldwin Junior Miss Cover Shoot JM ROCKS {Milledgeville senior photography}

2010-04-01T14:06:00.001-04:00

This is my first year as the official photographer of the Milledgeville Baldwin Junior Miss Program. It has truly been so much fun! It's great to be a part of a program that is centered on encouraging young women to be the best they can be. The girls will do an opening number, a fitness routine, self expression routine, and perform their chosen talent. It's a pretty intense competition. There is some serious scholarship money to be awarded! This year there are 25 girls competing for the 2 slots as Milledgeville's Junior Miss and Baldwin's Junior Miss. That's alot....and I mean ALOT of teenage girls!! :) I always feel pretty young until I hang out with them for a few hours!!! Then I remember how "old" I am. ha ha
Natali and Precious are this year's Junior Miss winners. Talk about some AWESOME girls!!! We met up Tuesday afternoon to do their pictures for the program cover. We met at Glow Salon. Christa Abbott did their hair and makeup. AWESOME! Love her!! She totally got the vision of how we (April and I) wanted the girls to look Christa is an awesome stylist, but she totally outdid herself for this shoot. You should definitely check her out. :)
So, we don't want to share the actual cover shot for the program, so I'm going to show a few outtakes of our Rockin' photo shoot!!! Thanks girls for being so awesome! April....you are the best lighting tech EVER!!

Kayla and Kelly sorta with the bunny!! {Middle Ga Child photographer}

2010-03-30T09:57:00.001-04:00

Saturday was also bunny session make up day for Kayla and Kelly. Kayla was so excited to spend a little time with Thumper, but Kelly wasn't having it. In fact, she told the bunny "no", waved bye bye and blew her a kiss so the bunny understood she wasn't interested! It was so cute and so funny! Kayla had fun hanging out with Thumper. As usual, Thumper proved to be as sweet and adorable as ever! She is an awesome bunny, that's for sure!! Enjoy these few images from our quick session on Saturday. These will probably be the last time we see these sweet girls without their sweet baby brother!! Very soon they will be welcoming their new addition! Kayla is already an incredible big sister! Kelly will be ready to teach him some serious tricks!! lol Keith and Beverly are in for some serious fun at their house. God is good! :)

Abi, Drew and the bunny!! {Middle Ga Children Photographer}

2010-03-28T12:49:00.001-04:00

Yesterday I played catch up with a couple of bunny sessions. My first session was with Abi and Drew. Their mama has turned into one of my best friends here in Milledgeville. April and I crack each other up! We have a good time together, to say the least. She brought her little chickens (as she calls them! Which I think is so cute!) to hang out with me and the bunny yesterday morning. It was a little cool, but not too bad. Although, Abi said she was freezing to death. She wasn't in to being outside too long, but for the time she was willing we got some pretty great shots. Drew was awesome! That little man is just too cute! Between the 2 of them, it's hard not to laugh at some point. Enjoy this little preview from yesterday. :)

3 super cute kiddos!! {Middle Ga Family Child photographer}

2010-03-23T11:04:00.001-04:00

Sunday was the last session of the weekend. And it was a perfect way to end the weekend! Another friend and roommate from college came to visit me with her family. LeAnne and Jay brought their three beautiful kids all the way from Eastman to Milledgeville for a session with the bunny. Quite a trip with three kids in tow, but I'm so glad they did. It's always so cool to spend time with old friends and realize how much things have changed. I'm sure that when LeAnne and I were roommates we never really thought about this stage in our lives. :) Mason was an awesome little model for me and the perfect bunny handler. Thumper loved her! Maddie is just too cute with her devilish little smile. And Cole, well, that little chunk is just too cute for words. Once again, I shot so many images that I am having a hard time deciding on my faves. So, here are a few for the blog and more to see on my Facebook fan page.
Thanks LeAnne and Jay for making the trip to Milledgeville. I hope we can get together again soon. The diva loved playing with the girls!!

Brylee will be here soon! {Georgia maternity photographer}

2010-03-22T22:46:00.001-04:00

In my last maternity post (here) I mentioned that 3 of my best friends are all pregnant. Yup...3!! Krissy was first, now Michelle, and I still have to fit myself into Marianne's crazy social calendar!

Several months ago Michelle and I decided on this past weekend as the date for her maternity shoot. When I say we've been planning and scheming....I mean we've been planning and scheming! I was very excited to do this shoot for many reasons. Number one, this is her first baby. My Michelle is going to have a baby!! WHAT?!!? And, to top it off right, God saw fit to bless her with a sweet baby girl. :) If you know Michelle, then I'm sure you will find the same humor in that as I do. Michelle can be girly, but whatever girly she has in her has been taught. I spent quite a few years teaching her some girly tricks! :) She tried to acclimate me to dirt...didn't work. Number two is that I knew she would be game for anything. And, I was right!
But, the most important part about this session to me was the fact that just recently her husband, Brian, was in a nasty motorcycle accident. I'm telling you, the fact that he is here today is an absolute miracle. This session celebrates the new baby to come and the fact that Daddy is making an incredible recovery and will be there to spoil sweet little Brylee rotten!! It goes without saying that he'll continue to spoil Michelle, too!
I always get emotionally tied to my clients, but of course, when it's such a close friend the tie is even stronger. It was so difficult for me to narrow down my favorites for a sneak peek. I chose alot!! Some will be here on the blog, and more will be added to Facebook. Be sure to check them out!

Drew and the bunny! {Middle GA child photographer}

2010-03-22T17:16:00.001-04:00

The last bunny session of the day was precious little Drew. He had on the cutest little Easter outfit!! Dad was a little worried it was too girlie, but I think it was cute! Drew was great with Thumper. Such cute little faces as he checked everything out. I love photographing this sweet boy! It's always such a great session with him. He was my very first newborn shoot...wow that seems like yesterday! Time sure flies!! Now he's so big, but still so cute I could just squish him! :)

Holton, Camille, and the bunny!! {Middle GA child photographer}

2010-03-22T15:54:00.001-04:00

Here are a few pics of Holton, Camille and the bunny. This was probably the most entertaining bunny session. Camille and Thumper became fast friends. But her big brother, Holton, wasn't exactly sure he wanted to spend alot of time with Thumper. Trust me, it was pretty funny! Despite his lack of love for the bunny, he made for some very handsome pictures. And Camille, well she's just the cutest thing!!! And so sweet...I could take pictures of her all day long! She has the best hair ever and the prettiest eyes! Check these pictures out. Heather, thanks for working us into your crazy Saturday. You have gorgeous kiddos!

John Wallace and the bunny!! {Middle GA child photographer}

2010-03-22T13:16:00.001-04:00

Next on the bunny trail, was John Wallace. I love me some John Wallace!!! He happens to be one of Eva's best friends and his mama is one of my besties, too! A session with John Wallace is always fun. His most favorite things in the world are animals. So we knew he'd love spending a little time with the bunny. And, as usual, he was too darn cute as he played with the bunny. See for yourself!

Allison and the bunny! So sweet! {Middle Ga child photographer}

2010-03-21T22:26:00.001-04:00

This was another crazy weekend for me!! I had a few bunny sessions with sweet Thumper and a maternity session with another one of my best friends!! So, for my first share from the weekend, here is sweet Allison! I first met Allison (and her mama of course!) during my Christmas Sessions. That session was cold! So Saturday was a nice change from our last session. Allison was so cute with the bunny. So inquisitive and precious! I hope you enjoy this little snippet from our time together on Saturday.

Krissy is having a sweet baby boy! {GA maternity child photographer}

2010-03-14T12:08:00.002-04:00

Last weekend was crazy and it was followed up by an even crazier week!! More crazy than I could even begin to explain, but I'm ready to play catch up! So, in the process of catching up, I need to share this maternity session that I did last Saturday. Right now, all most all of my best friends are pregnant. Krissy, Michelle, and Marianne are all having babies!! I'm so excited because that means maternity and baby shoots for me! Not to mention I have 3 more little babies to love on. :) Krissy is up first! :) She, her daughter Avery, and her sweet sister Laurie, met me in Dawson last weekend. We'd been trying to do this shoot for weeks! Every time we had a weekend planned it would snow or someone would be sick. Tis the season for sick kiddos! This time, there was no stopping us! Krissy and I met on our very first day of college (which was a long long time ago!). BFF ever since! When I tell you that we have been through alot together, I mean it! She knows more about me than most people, that's for sure. I love her with my whole heart!!!! I don't think I saw her pregnant with Avery, so it was incredible to see her just before she has this sweet baby boy! Ethan (I sure hope I spelled that right, Krissy!) should be here in the next few weeks!!! YAY!! I had so much fun shooting these with her. I used my BFF status to do things a little differently. :) She loves me too much to say no! lol
Oh, and don't forget to check Facebook! There are more images there!

Teagan and Bryan...a beautiful couple on a gorgeous day! {Georgia Wedding Photographer}

2010-03-08T11:01:00.001-05:00

This weekend was full! And that is putting it mildly! I traveled to South Georgia to do an engagement session for one of my upcoming weddings and a maternity session for my best friend. And, to make it even better, I took Eva along and we stayed with my parents in the booming metropolis of Dawson, Ga. Dawson is very cute...small and cute! :)
This sneak peek is of Teagan and Bryan. Their wedding day is approaching quickly.I can't wait! :) We met up at her house to do their engagement session. Oh, did I mention that she lives on a plantation? Yes! She does. And it is gorgeous!! I believe her dad is the overseer so she has had the privilege of living on this stunning property. Can I just tell ya'll how excited I was to see some green grass!?!?!? Seriously stunning trees...it was amazing! Eva loved it! She and my mom came along to be my assistants. It was definitely an experience, but despite Eva's antics Teagan and Bryan helped me create some beautiful portraits! I hope you enjoy this little preview!

Bunny Mini Sessions are on the books!!! {Middle Ga Child Photographer}

2010-03-03T19:04:00.001-05:00

I will be shooting Bunny Mini Sessions on Sunday March 14 and the 21. I have a fabulous bunny named, Thumper. She is precious!!! I shot a few with Eva today. Thumper hopped right up into Eva's lap. Eva is in looove with this bunny. She's already working on getting her own bunny soon.

If you'd like to book a Bunny Mini Session please contact me at shana_cawley@yahoo.com or 478-387-8708. If you can not make one of my Sunday sessions, please contact me and we can try to work out another time.
The cost is $75. For that you get a 20-30 minute session, (3) 5x7 prints and a set of (8) wallets.

I plan to shoot these at the Riverwalk in Milledgeville. If weather does not permit, we will shoot these in studio.
Enjoy this little preview of Thumper and Eva from today's quick Mini Session!

These are some wayyy cute kiddos!! {Middle Ga Photographer Child Baby}

2010-02-26T19:49:00.001-05:00

Today was one of those days that makes me just love love LOVE this job! It was a newborn/child session all rolled into one. And let me say that sweet baby Brayden could NOT have been more wonderful. He cooperated like a dream. His big sister, Payton was just too cute, too! Thank you so much for coming to see me today and letting me spend my afternoon capturing these sweet babies on "film".
Enjoy this little preview! There are more to see on Facebook...so check it out!

Sweet Baby Boy Part II {Georgia Baby Photographer}

2010-02-21T22:40:00.001-05:00

Here are a few more images from my session with baby Thomas last week. We had to postpone this session because of snow (ick!!) so I was thrilled to get to Atlanta last Wednesday. This little boy is just so cute!! I am always surprised by how small a newborn really is when you hold them. Even after 2 babies of my own, I still am in complete awe! Sweet baby Thomas is of no exception. He is so perfect and tiny!! Enjoy all this sweet newborn goodness! :)

Here's a quick peek at a super cute baby! {Georgia Newborn Photographer}

2010-02-18T18:11:00.001-05:00

I only have one real quick share! Enjoy baby Tom...I will post more later, but I didn't want his mama and daddy to wait one more second for a little peek!!

And our winner is....

2010-02-05T21:26:00.001-05:00

Jamilyn and Corey!!
Stay tuned for their couple session!

Contest Time!! Vote for a couple to win a free Photo Session! :)

2010-02-02T10:30:00.003-05:00

Here are the contestants!! :) Each lady wrote a little blurb about why they would like to win this special couples photo session. Check them out and vote for one of the 4! I know I said I'd only have 3 contestants..but I changed my mind. Imagine that! :) And I've changed the time a little. You have until Friday, February 5 at 9pm to vote for your pick! To vote, click on your pick at the top of this page! Good luck, couples! :)

Okay - so here is why I want some pictures!

Thomas and I will celebrate 9 years together (4 of those married) this May. The only pictures we have together are very few pictures from when we were dating, our engagement pictures (attached) in 2005, our wedding pictures in 2006 and pictures as a family in 2008 - when our daughter was 17 months old. Okay - so maybe we have a couple of "forced" pictures here and there but none worthy of framing and showing off.

Lately my daughter who is now 2.5 years old loves to look at pictures of "Mommy and Daddy" but other than our wedding pictures - I don't have any pictures of just T. and I that I can frame and give to her. I really want to give her a picture that she can put in her room. I would really love to have some updated pictures of me and Thomas - because neither of us like to be in front of the camera - so pictures of the two of us and family pictures don't happen very often.

So, we're one of those last pictures taken was at our wedding. I couldn't even find any candid pics of us together in all my pictures from the last year or so. One of us is always behind the camera. We've been married nine years in May, but started dating sixteen years ago in May. Two kids late and we couldn't be happier. I would love to get some pictures taken of us for one reason so my kids can have something to look back on and remember that their parents could be in the same picture!

Ok, Shana ~ Chris & I should win this this contest b/c we haven't had a true professional shot of just the two of us since our wedding, Since this summer is our 10 year anniversary, the timing is perfect! And we rarely have pictures of us without the kids ~ so we need this!

Hmm, why should Corey and I win the chance to have our pictures made together??? The first thing that comes to mind of course is, the kids. As parents we get so busy taking care of them that many times we forget to stop and appreciate the other person that is in this partnership with us. That is probably why most photoshoots of couples end with the maternity shoot. From then on out there are children (literally) in the picture and we forget to make the effort to have some taken of just mommy and daddy. For some reason it is even hard to get a snapshot of the two of us at normal life events. Corey and I will have been married for 7 years next month and I think that a photoshoot would be a good way to commemorate our version of the "7 year itch" as well as serve as a constant visual reminder to our kids of how much we love each other and how solid the core of our family is.

Yay for some sunshine!! {Milledgeville Children Photographer}

2010-01-26T17:21:00.001-05:00

ince today is sunny (cold and windy, but sunny!!!) I decided Eva and I should take advantage of it! I bought this little outfit for her 4 year pictures because I thought it was so cute! Of course, when she first saw it she cried...literally cried her eyes out. It was super fun! not. She didn't want anything to do with it! But today, she happily put it on and went outside with me to do a few shots. WOW! What fun when a 4 yr old actually cooperates!!! :) Enjoy my precious 4 yr old little girl. I love her more than words could ever express.

It's Contest Time! {Milledgeville Middle GA Photographer}

2010-01-25T15:41:00.001-05:00

Valentine's Day is around the corner and I want to do a sweet romantic session with a special couple!! Would you like to be that couple? Do you know someone who would? You don't have to be newly weds, all you have to be is in **love**. Just engaged, newlyweds, silver anniversary, golden anniversary....so long as you loove each other we're good! :)

So, this is what I'm gonna do! If you'd like to win a FREE photo session, email me a picture of you and your honey and a brief paragraph telling me why you'd like to win this session. I will pick a top 3 and my blog readers will help me pick the winner! Once the winner is picked, we'll set up your special session right away so be ready to shoot asap! :) Don't worry, I'll help suggest clothing and locations!

Start emailing me now! The deadline for applications is Saturday January 30, 2010. I will have the top 3 picked and ready for voting on February 3, 2010. Email to shana_cawley@yahoo.com

Meet Baby Powell! {Middle Georgia Family Baby Photographer}

2010-01-10T22:34:00.001-05:00

This is one of the CUTEST little boys I've ever seen!! So tiny and perfect! Today was another one of those sessions that make me love love LOVE this job. I have been able to catch up with so many old friends and make some precious memories for them in the process. I drove to Conyers today to do a session with Holly, Bob, and Powell. Holly is another one of my ZTA sisters. Her friend (and ZTA sister!) Cristina, organized a heck of a baby gift for Holly. One of my digital packages!! I'd been waiting and waiting for Holly to let me know she was ready for her session. As you will see, this is one stunning family. I hope you enjoy this preview! Check my Facebook Fan Page for more!

All we need is love..... {Milledgeville photographer GA}

2010-01-06T15:35:00.001-05:00

And with this little cupid I've got about all the love I can take!! Yes, we mama's do crazy things to our kiddos. And I really think photographers might take it a little further than the rest...but oh well. These pictures are too cute to me!! What better way to announce my Valentine's Day Mini sessions than with my own cupid! :) This little boy most certainly has my heart.

Book your session ASAP!! I will only be doing these sessions until February 4, 2010.

The Powell Kids! {Milledgeville Family Photographer}

2009-12-16T20:43:00.001-05:00

Today I met Melissa and Andrew at Lockerly. Mom wanted some pictures of her kids (and who could blame her?) so Melissa set up the session. Melissa is a shutterbug so she had the posing down to a science! Andrew was such a good sport! He did awesome, too. Here is a quick preview from today...I'll have the rest done as soon as possible! :) I have mucho Holiday Baking to finish up!

Bo and Ellen...what a wedding! :) {Milledgeville Wedding Photographer}

2009-12-13T22:16:00.001-05:00

Last night I shot a wedding with Kyle. Funny thing, I was already going to be there since Jon's cousin, Bo, was the groom! Why not shoot it if I'm going to be there anyhow!? I'm so glad I did because Ellen and Bo are an amazingly photogenic couple. Makes for some stunning photography! Not only do they make gorgeous pictures, they are just as wonderful in person. They are so sweet together. Here is a little preview of some of the images I shot last night. I had a hard time picking my faves, so I'll put a few on here and a few in an album on Facebook.

Chase Community Giving- Vote for Nevus Outreach

2009-12-03T09:47:00.001-05:00

Please go to this site and vote for Nevus Outreach. This organization is one of the few that help support those people and families dealing with Nevi. My son, Anderson, was born with a congenital nevus on his scalp. A year ago, we began the process of having his removed. His was fairly easy to remove, but it was still a very difficult time for us. We are happy to report that Anderson is perfect in every way and has healed beautifully!! We are very thankful for Nevus Outreach and CHOA and his incredible surgeon, Dr. Joseph Williams.

Here is a collage of Anderson during his Nevus Removal.

And here is my precious boy now!! Thank you, God, for taking such great care of my little man!

We certainly felt a bit Christmasy today! {Milledgeville Photography}

2009-11-27T14:59:00.002-05:00

This morning I did a session with this sweet little girl! Mary Beth brought Allison over from Macon. Let me tell you, it was COLD this morning!! Certainly on the road to Christmas here. We tried some shots outside, but she just wasn't having it. So, I brought them to my home to shoot in my "studio". I use the term very loosely as it's not a designated studio space (try dining room minus the table!), but it works! Very nicely if I do say so myself. These pictures turned out so cute! Thank you for being so easy going, Mary Beth. I hope you enjoy this little preview! And I hope Allison enjoys her candy canes! :)