Like this old oak tree, Kortney and Robert’s love has strong roots and will no doubt grow larger and larger.
It was wonderful getting to know this lovely couple. I met Kortney for coffee a few weeks before her wedding and ironed out the details. I could tell right away that she would be easy and fun to work with.

The wedding day started with the girls getting ready in the hotel room. In New Orleans style, we had a spontaneous live music show outside the hotel window while the girls got ready.

  

It was an intimate setting with a small bridal party and her mom, who could not stop crying tears of joy.

Next I spent some time with the guys for a bit before the ceremony. Kortney had written Robert a letter and watching him read it was very touching.

 The ceremony was held under the peristyle in City Park. It was a beautiful evening. The groom teared up as the bride walked down the aisle and there was not just one, but many kisses at the end.

   I loved shooting portraits of this couple, their loved ones and their party. The people were so sweet and clearly cared about each other and the setting was so beautiful, that it was almost too easy. I love New Orleans weddings.

   

 

In true New Orleans fashion, the reception involved lots of dancing, good food (including a fancy king cake for the groom’s cake), a cake pull and a creative “guest book” that asked guests to sign jenga game pieces. I’m sure Kortney and Robert will have fun playing jenga on their anniversary for years to come.

I wish Kortney and Robert the best of luck and many years of happiness. Thank you for including me in your special day!

Our Earth is a beautiful and magnificent place. In honor of Earth Day, I wanted to post some of my recent nature photos. I wanted to go out and take some photos today, as photographers all over the world are doing, but I worked last night and work tonight, so I don’t have the time, unfortunately.

I will celebrate two states that hold a special place in my heart.

First, a photo I took in my last visit to Colorado in February on the way in the Boulder one morning. I miss those snow capped mountains.

This one was taken in Louisiana in March. I will always be in love with the trees down here.

The rest are from my latest swamp tour. One of my best friends in the world, Sara “Minx”, came to visit from Japan and I took her on a swamp tour. The alligators were hibernating, so we only saw one, but we did see my favorite wild water boar family. I saw “Oreo” (the black and white one) as a baby and here she is all grown up. I am still in awe of the beautiful and unique landscape down here.

Happy Earth Day everyone. Get out there and enjoy the wonders of our world!

I have been through a lot in the past few months and coming back to blogging has been hard for me to do. I lost my mother suddenly the day before Thanksgiving and then lost my Granny a couple months later. An entire piece of my life is now missing. My mom was the most avid reader of my blog. She always supported my photography and she read every entry. I wanted my first blog post after my hiatus to be a tribute to her, my grandmother and my family.

 

One small comfort to me as I grieve has been memories and the photos I have help me recall those moments and remember the good times. While cleaning out my Granny’s house, we came across many old family photos. I scanned them in to preserve them and share them with everyone in the family. I recommend this to everyone, because these old photos will not last forever. I adore old photos and this entire collection has reminded me of the importance of what I do. As photographers, I think we often worry about capturing the important moments with the correct exposure and an eye catching composition, but sometimes forget the significance these photos may hold for people someday. These frozen moments in time capture glimpses into our lives for generations to come.

I’ll start first with some really old ones. This first one was actually originally showed to Evan and I in Ireland at my grandmother’s cousin’s house. It is a photo of my great great grandparents, Thomas and Mary McLynskey and one of their daughters. We think the girl is Katheryn. The next photo is Katheryn McLynskey.

This one is my grandmother’s father, John McLinskey, and following it we have Thomas Jr., Thomas Sr., Katheryn (in lap), Mary and John James. These would be my grandmother’s grandparents and some of their children.

Here is Ed Coley, my grandfather’s father, with some big blues, followed by my grandfather, John Coley, Sr. as a boy.

This is a photo of my great grandmother, Julia McLinskey, working in her garden in The Bronx, New York, dated June 6, 1915. Look at all the land they had in NYC then. She immigrated from Ireland, where Evan and I visited this past summer. Below, Evan and I standing in front of land she grew up on in Ireland. All that is left of the original house is now used as a cow shed.

This is John Coley Sr. (Jack), my grandfather, as a boy; three brothers, the middle one being my grandmother’s father; Jack (on right) in front of an old grocery store; Rose (my grandfather’s mother) with Jack; Bob Coley, my grandfather’s brother; and Rose.

The following are photos of my grandmother when she was young. The first few are her with her sister, Gene, who tragically died in a car accident when she was 16. My granny, Mae Coley, was very close to Gene.

Here is a photo my granny treasured of Gene and her boyfriend, followed by a photo of granny looking at another picture of them and reminiscing a couple years ago.

Here is granny as a young teenager with her sister Gene (on the bottom).

And here she is with her other sister, Evelyn.

My grandmother was such a classic beauty.

And this is my handsome grandfather.

We have many photos of my grandmother and grandfather when they were young. It is fascinating getting a glimpse of their lives when they were my age and younger. It looks like they had a lot of fun. Between the stories my grandmother told us over the years (including an interview Evan and I did with her), the details my mom and uncle have filled in for us, their eclectic record collection, old letters and all these photos, we have been able to paint a picture of their younger days.

They were both pretty sharp shooters.

This is their wedding day.

They traveled to Jamaica and Niagara Falls (with aunt Evelyn). I guess I know where I get my love of travel and adventure from. Jamaica was pretty exotic in those days.

First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes…

Here is my uncle John and my mom with Granny on the right.

My uncle loved his stuffed horse, Brownie.

Here is my grandfather with his mom, Rose, and my uncle John.

My mom had some pretty adorable outfits. From all the photos, it seems like she was a happy kid. Following is a sample of my mom and John growing up with some of their friends, other neighborhood kids, their cousins and my grandparents,

  

I remember the house they grew up in very well from my childhood. The house on Sydenham Road. I loved that house, especially the little bar and sitting room area. I have a few pieces of their furniture (including a chest that my grandfather made) and some horse head lamps now that I will cherish always. Here, they are pictured in the bar area with Granny and with friends (family friends who are still close to us today).

  

This is my mother’s senior photo from the yearbook. She was beautiful.

And here is John’s military photo. They wrote letters back and forth to each other when he was in Vietnam, My mother kept them all and they provide a unique insight into their sibling relationship and their personalities at that age.

Here are a few more from their teenage and young adult years.

After my grandfather retired, they spent a lot of time in the Florida Keys with their friends. Today, John and my aunt Pam do the same thing.

Granny always did like a good Manhattan.

My mom and her childhood best friend, Joyce.

My mom met and then married my father, Neil, who had two kids already, my brother Kurt and sister Kimberly (shown in the third photo), and John married my aunt, Pam, who already had Jessica.

My cousins and I were soon to follow, bringing us to photos from my lifetime. Below I am on my grandmother’s lap with my mom and great aunt Evelyn.

Here John and Pam sit on their porch with Jessica and baby Laura.

Soon, Kelly followed and then Sara.

Here is a sampling of me with my parents and with granny and grandpa.

Here I am with my earliest friends, Zach and Alison and with my mom’s friend Joyce’s son, Nathan. The last one is a birthday party. Some of the guests are still friends of mine today.

Here is my dad on his sailing trip to Tahiti.

My cousins and I grew up as sisters–we have always been very close. From going to the beach, to putting on plays to lemonade stands, we were never bored.

We used to bring my grandfather to the beach in a special wheelchair.

As I got older, I remained close to my parents. My sister had a son, Patrick, and I became and aunt. I lost my brother Kurt when I was in high school and then my father when I was in college. These events brought my sister and I close together and my mom and I remained a support for each other.I’m so glad I have my sister through all this to lean on.

I love this one of my mom in Venice. I studied abroad in Rome and traveled afterwards with my mom and sister. It was a very memorable trip.

My cousins and I have remained close. In many ways, not much has changed.

I met the love of my life, Evan, in college. I am so happy that I have him to lean on through all of this. My family also grew that day, and it is comforting to know I have my in-laws to look to as parental figures and additional siblings in Evan’s sisters. My friends, my chosen family, have been a wonderful support to me as well. Zach, my mom’s friend Gail’s son, is like my brother and I grew up with my friend Sara as a sister. I love them all. I am happy my mom was there for my wedding and my granny was also around for wedding festivities like the engagement party. My uncle walked me down the aisle and danced with me. These are memories I will cherish always.

Since my father and brother passed away before my wedding, I put photos of them in lockets that I attached to my bouquet and my mother and sister’s bouquets. Another example of how photos can provide comfort.

And here is a random assortment of more modern photos from before and after our wedding, including a Mother’s Day, the beach, the session of Evan and I recording granny, holidays, my mom visiting in New Orleans, London with Jessica and Harry, Ireland with Sara and Mick and granny’s 95th birthday.

  

Over the summer, as you can see from previous blog posts, Evan and I were in London and traveled around Europe. See the Ireland post for all the details, but here is a small sample of photos from the family we met in Ireland for my Granny’s cousin Julia and her husband Michael’s wedding anniversary. The first two pictures are photos of them they sent to granny years ago. It was such a magical experience meeting so many family members and I am so glad now that I made that connection. They have all been very supportive during this time too.

So that is a quick overview of my family and the memories we have captured over the years. They have provided me with some comfort during this time and it has reminded me of the importance of capturing these moments for other people, whether it is a wedding, a new baby, a baby who isn’t going to make it, a graduation or a family. These are all precious moments in life and I am happy I am able to help others preserve their memories for not only themselves, but future generations. Thank you to all the photographers, amateur and professional, who have helped us capture our memories over the years,

I lost my mother suddenly, but these photos are a reminder of the good times. My granny was a bit more expected, and I showed her old photos often, which I think helped her reach some closure toward the end of her life. I will love and miss them always, but they live on in all of us through these memories.