Two years at this time I was in Jamaica. One morning before the sun rose, I went out and waded in the shallow water in awe of the horizon as it changed colors and the full moon faded into the ocean and the sun began to rise. The colors are something you can’t describe. And honestly, photographs just don’t do it justice. It has to be seen with the human eye. During this time, this heron was catching his morning breakfast and I was able to capture this image as the sun was just peeking up so it was still dark but it illuminated his feathers.

I fired off four or five shots as he took flight. I wasn’t sure what I got and although I’ve looked at them several times over the last two years, I never had a sense of what I wanted to do with it. Then it came to me that I wanted to collage the images together with what I saw that morning. This image was born. Hope you enjoy it.

I love poppies. I do get requests for fine art photography of poppies so I’m not the only one who enjoys them!

I don’t get a chance to photograph poppies every year because they’re early birds, bloom in mass, and then are done until next year! No second bloom, no blooming over a period of time, just here and gone in a week’s time. Sometimes, I stand in my mud boots with Rod holding an umbrella over me as I photograph the delicate blossoms with their dark, frilly centers  covered with raindrops.

The wind is their enemy because they’re so top heavy and tall. I don’t think I got a single photograph of them last year. A hard storm knocked them all down.  This year, their greenery is growing like weeds and although they probably won’t bloom until late May, they are coming in strong.

 I love the sun as it sets behind them and sit outside and watch the sun set behind them as much as I can. Their brilliant orange huges dazzle in the last gold rays of sunlight. The backlit fuzzy buds are beautiful as well. I’ve sold several of these prints and have greeting cards of some of these images as well. When I search for a particular subject, I always come upon something I missed when I first photographed them, and I see the subject as if for the first time with new eyes. On rare occasion, I find a gem like the closeup featured here. It’s a beauty.

 I remember being out photographing the poppies one day and I tripped and the blurred image looked cool. So I deliberately did it and created this piece of art. I hope you enjoy these artful renditions of nature’s perfection.

J. Love Photography had the honor of being part of Jeff & Katie’s wedding day this past weekend. The groom is a paratrooper with the Army. He came back from Afghanistan long enough to marry his longtime girlfriend who just graduated from college. They were surrounded by family and friends from all over the country to share in their special day.

The wedding was held at Zion Lutheran Church and the reception was at Barton Hills Country Club. We also made a quick trip to the beautiful University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center to capture images of the bride and groom in the three-story, lush atrium there.

Dorian Deaver was the D.J. for the evening. His selections of music and great effects kept the crowd very happy! Enchanted Florist in Ypsilanti did the gorgeous floral arrangements in burgundy, plum, purple, red, and moss.

 Congratulations, Jeff & Katie! May you have a long and happy life together.

When I added photo jewelry to J. Love Photography’s offerings, I hoped people would find creative and wonderful ways to use treasured photos in portrait jewelry. I’m not sure anyone has enjoyed the jewelry more than me, as I collect old family photos and have them displayed everywhere.

Recently, I was presented with the opportunity of scaling down and creating matching photo lockets for these sisters for a surprise Christmas gift.  This family of two brothers and three sisters lost their parents when they were all very young. There are few photographs of their parents. But their sister-in-law dug up a photo of their mother and one of their parents together and sent them to me via snail mail to create photo charms for them for Christmas gifts.  I burned them on CD for her for safekeeping and sharing with all of the kids as well as returning her original photos. All of the images were printed on canvas and soldered with pewter and glass to create this charm. Jewel Kade is the company I use to create these charms.

Teri promised to send me a photo of the three sisters together at Christmas. When I just got it, I wanted to share it with you. So here it is.  They all show a strong resemblence to their parents; attractive, dark hair, nice smiles, dark eyes… Their parents would be very proud, I’m sure. Here are the two photos I used to create their identical lockets. A one-of-a-kind gift from a one-of-a-kind sister-in-law!

Folded Card Front

J. Love Photography has created everything from wedding invitations, bar mitzvah invitations, and save-the-date cards to graduation announcements and Christmas cards. I love graphic design. Maybe you do too.  It seems like everywhere I go, you can plug your images into a machine and order custom photo products from coffee mugs to blankets to greeting cards! They’re very popular today.

2-Sided Card Back

I’ve been sending photo greeting cards for as long as I can remember. Love ‘em! I’m not telling you not to go get holiday cards at Costco with a great snapshot you took this summer of your family! That’s great. People LOVE getting photos of family and friends at the holidays. I’m all for it. Costco, in particular, does a great job and has a friendly staff. And the quality is in line with the price.

In the event you aren’t artistic, don’t have time, or you want a professional, one-of-a-kind product, here are a few of my holiday cards I did this year for clients. What great fun! I love taking the photos, but I love creating the cards too! This is a great way to share memorable, important events of the past year with family and friends. My brother doesn’t like them, but I also love getting a newsletter from people giving me a brief overview of the year. I feel more in touch with people this way. It’s a thought for next year if you’ve already done something else this year! I’m just sayin…