Over the past five years I have been honored and blessed to have worked with some pretty amazing people.  Many say that to truly know a person's heart, witness them in a personal crisis. Well, a couple months ago Anna Grace's closet fell on top of her and I (crazy, I know!) and knocked one of my front teeth out and cut my upper lip pretty bad. I was in complete shock and totally freaked out!

So much to share, so little time to get it all ready! Lots and Lots of shoots lately, my busiest season to date!  Meet Will, Rebecca, William and Thomas Shappley! Super sweet family that was totally game for fun and lots and lots of giggles!

As a professional photographer, I am always on the lookout for cool, sweet-mama-fly spots, backdrops, locations with different textures, all areas where my clients can kick back, relax and just have some good ol' fun! Well, this past weekend, I hit the jackpot! My husband's Aunt and Uncle live in the mountains of Oklahoma (yes, Oklahoma has mountains and in fact they are older than the Rockies.) Whenever I think of needing a place to go to relax, unwind, get awesome sleep and just have a good ti...

Coming home from a shoot, there is always an adrenaline rush- let me just stop here and say, "I simple ADORE my job!" Whether I am meeting a new client or hooking back up with an existing one, I am like a kid in a candy shop. The hard work is done- shopping, coordinating, planning, getting everyone to the shoot in one piece, Now it's time to just kick back and have some fun! Gosh, I have had some sensational shoots this Fall season- bunches and bunches of new families to meet, get to know, becom...

Capturing the Greaves Family this Fall was a total blast and bittersweet all at the same time. The two brothers are exactly the same age difference as my two boys and the entire shoot I kept feeling my throat tighten as I kept imagining what William and Brockton would be like at their age. Would they still love their mama like these boys do?

Meet Brian Lawrie. Some would say he looks like a young Tom Cruise. Brian is one of those all American guys who really doesn't like to be the center of attention , isn't loud or boisterous, at least when he is not on the basketball court I hear!

This past week, Mallory Grace Yoakem entered this world of ours. I had the pleasure of capturing her sweet family prior to her arrival- you can read and see about that, here. Well, this sweet thing knows how to put on a show!

In May of 2009, Dane Sanders taught his very first session of Fast Track Photography right here in Houston. It was hosted by the amazing photographer, Christine Tremoulet in her studio in the Heights. A couple days before the event, an email popped up in my inbox from Donna Ahrendt, owner of PaperDollsPhotography.Wanna carpool?

Ever met someone who you just instantly connected with? Well...this one time at (no! I am not going to say Band Camp!) a Coles Crossing Crocs swim meet, I met Ashley Yoakem, an amazing women who was not only in the midst of her first swim meet experience but was in charge of the whole eight and under boys ready tent!

So many phone calls from mama's lately asking about getting their son's Senior Pictures! Most start off asking how it is I work with so many boys, since most of them don't like to have their picture taken anyway! I LOVE boys!

When in doubt, grab your camera and capture your own children! Anytime is good, however especially this time of year with so many new things going on. School's back, milestones have been reached over the summer- or, it's really just another excuse to love 'em, squeeze 'em and oh and ah over how amazing the Lord has blessed you!

Local. Going, Buying and Consuming products and services locally is a truly a belief of mine. When I first started my business, the local community of Cypress and Coles Crossing embraced me.

I love Seniors! I love them in that they are in such a unique time of their lives and I get just a small glimpse into it, capturing it and most of all celebrating it with them. Being a photographer, there are these moments where my heart is so full of admiration, gratitude as I realize the great honor my clients bestow on me.

Ever have an event or day that you've worked so hard to plan, prepare to have it all go awry? Or better yet, a way that you could never imagine? I certainly have.

Amazing Family- Amazing Shoot. I did not have the honor of meeting Tod and Rebecca before the day of the shoot. We communicated very briefly about logistics and the date was set!

It was one of the moments when you find yourself stumbling to say "yes," way too soon. I couldn't seem to let her know fast enough that I completely, 100% in some instant way understood what she was envisioning for her wedding day. "This isn't going to be huge, blown out wedding." There are only going to be @ 25 people there...that includes Federico and I.

Meet the Webre Family. Some of you may know them through Cypress TaeKwon-Do. They are the owners and Mr.

Meet Owen. Third out of three boys with one rockin' mama! This little dude was so sweet, so easy to work with and loved his mama even at 14 days old!

To be asked to capture a day in someone's life; a day that they will want to remember every detail; is not only an honor for the photographer but priceless to the person asking. This was my very FIRST wedding contract that I booked all on my own last year. I've shoot many weddings before and after this one, which I will be posting (all week) I've been a second shooter many times, even  helped other photographers out for completely FREE- but this was my first contract, all on my own.

Needless to say no matter how I add it up, somehow my sweet baby boy turned seven last week, on September 3rd. Okay, I think that was the week before last. Yikes, I really am losing track of time.

One of my favorite subjects to capture are newborns. Just love them. The smell, their soft smooth new skin, their expressions.

Probably one of the most significant people in my life has been my father, Bill Sharpless. Every person should have a person like my dad, somewhere in their journey. These past years he has become one of my best friends as well as an incredible influence in my two boys lives.

What a blast Carolee Crawford and Rick Wilson were to hang out with and capture this very special time in their lives! Having spent some time in San Fran, Rick was quite the wine connoisseur! So in planning for the shoot, I always like to put the couples in an environment that they can relax, be comfortable in...I always say the most delicious images are captured when someone can kick off their shoes, let down their hair and just be their authentic selves.

Had the honor of capturing an amazing bride to be, Carolee Crawford this past weekend at Mercer Arboretum & Botanic Gardens. The day started off with hair done by Marta Dean who owns and operates, "Magic in Motion," and makeup done by my sweet friend Stacy Okonski.  Both do amazing work and were the perfect match for Carolee! Her parents were so helpful and both worked almost as hard as I did through the shoot!

Tara is an amazing single mother whom I've grown to love and respect dearly! These are some highlights from their photo shoot lovin'! Enjoy!

just finished my very first session with the, "Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep," organization. swfobject.embedSWF("/flash/maddux_slideshow.swf", "flashcontent2", "561", "254", "7.0.0", "/flash/expressInstall.swf",null,{bgcolor:"ffffff",wmode:"transparent"}) // --> taken from NILMDTS website: [The Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation (NILMDTS) administers a network of almost 7,000 volunteer photographers in the United States and twenty-five countries. At a family's request, a NILMDTS Affiliated Photo...

a Part of being an artist; yes, being a photographer is an art form; is that you can't just turn it on and off. It's always with you. Like when you see old chairs in somebody's trash and your husband digs them out and brings them home for  you.

William @ 6 1/2 years old. Total Natural at the whole thing. Kid is nothing short of amazing, once again!