AMZ Photography & Art

New year, new baby, new beginnings

2012-01-17T08:07:00.004-06:00

My brother & sister-in-law welcomed their first child just 8 days into the new year. Little Piper is such a joy & is so adorable. She's a good baby. Rarely fussy and is rather alert for being so young. I had the pleasure of photographing her newborn portraits a week after her birth. We are all very excited to have this new member of the family!

And then they said "I do!"

2012-01-11T19:31:00.003-06:00

I got to ring in the new year by photographing a wedding of a sweet couple who's engagement photos I'd just done 2 weeks before. The groom is in the military and is stationed in California. He was home for the holidays and to get married to his beautiful bride. It was a traditional wedding service but the party after was very modern. Congrats Ashley & Cullin as you embark on a new life together.

Holiday Wishes

2011-12-24T19:55:00.002-06:00

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year! =)

First comes love, then comes....

2011-12-24T09:40:00.002-06:00

...marriage! Exactly one week from today I will be photographing the wedding of this adorable couple. The groom-to-be is in the military and is home on leave for a couple of weeks. So we had to cram in an engagement session right before the wedding. They are quite the photogenic couple don't you think. Congratulations Ashley & Cullin!

new beginnings

2011-12-16T13:30:00.004-06:00

When my SIL asked me to do a maternity shoot with her, the answer was obvious! It's always exciting when a new member of the family is about to make an appearance. This shoot was super fun & super easy. They were naturals! We can't wait to meet little Piper. Stay tuned...pretty soon you'll see photos of the newest baby girl of the family! =)

Diva times 2

2011-12-12T11:00:00.003-06:00

Little Miss Audrey was quite the little diva! She was full of personality the day we did her 2 y/o portrait shoot. She wasn't too sure about having her photo taken right at first but eventually warmed up to me and really let us see her true colors! She's already so photogenic...what a little heart-breaker she's going to be!

Family Portrait TIme...

2011-12-04T20:19:00.002-06:00

I had the pleasure of photographing my brother & sister-in-law & their children this past weekend. They were super easy, extremely photogenic and got quite a few shots in a short amount of time. I love it when shoots come together like this!

A family first

2011-11-20T10:59:00.003-06:00

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of photographing a family who'd never done a "professional" photoshoot before. In the past they've just gone to places like Sears portrait studios for family photos. So it was fun sharing this new experience with them & getting to know them. They were very friendly, if not a little shy. I was happy to be do this for them! See more of their photos here.

Cover Girl

2011-10-06T15:06:00.004-05:00

Recently I was asked to shoot the cover photo for a local Real Estate Magazine. I was honored. And while real estate photography is pretty straight forward, I thought the image they picked turned out well. Check out the magazine online!

House of Payne

2011-09-08T08:53:00.002-05:00

A little over a month ago, some friends asked if I could take the "6 month old" pics of their baby & an updated family portrait. I don't have studio space & the temps outside were reaching 110 everyday. So we had to come up with a "cooler" solution than taking photos outside. Because we have access to a building used as party venue, we decided on using it. It was perfect. The lighting up there was FANTASTIC.

And altho the shoot got off to a rocky start, I think we ended up with some really great images.

So I give you The Paynes.....

Stay tuned over the coming months...AMZ Photography will be getting an updated website...and possibly a name change. =)

Happily Ever After

2011-08-09T15:17:00.004-05:00

When my best friend from high school called me up this past spring & announced her engagement, I was THRILLED for her. And when she asked me if I would photograph the wedding for her, I was honored.

I remember when we were young & talked about our weddings & what they'd be like. I'm pretty sure Elizabeth pulled off the wedding of her dreams.

A big CONGRATULATIONS to Elizabeth & Galen. May they have long & blessed life together!! =)

new blessings...

2011-06-23T07:25:00.004-05:00

Babies are a wonderful thing. They are so adorable & sweet & cuddly! Our dear friends Jack & Heather welcomed baby boy Gerard last week. He's a cute little bundle, if not already stubborn & willful. I had the pleasure of photographing him on the day of his birth and then again a week later. He was completely uncooperative at his photoshoot, already hating being in front of a camera. LOL! We did manage to get a couple nice shots before he decided enough was enough.

CONGRATS Jack & Heather...the journey might have gotten a little harder, but also a little sweeter! :)

A little Storm is brewing...

2011-05-20T08:52:00.003-05:00

It makes my job infinitely easier when the subjects I shoot are as gorgeous as the following mother-to-be & baby daddy! I couldn't have asked for a more photogenic couple. And it's always fun to work with a couple who has their own ideas and isn't afraid to try something to get a great shot.

I give you Caitlin & Justin and little baby Storm on the way! =)

this shot reminds me of the old hollywood glam portraits. beautiful!

thought we'd simulate rain, since the baby's name is Storm.

my favorite shot of the whole shoot!!

catching up

2011-04-27T09:38:00.004-05:00

I realized I hadn't blogged any of my P52 photos since week 5. So I give you week's 6-15. (Week 16 was one of the HDR images from the previous posts.) You can find the set here.

addictive

2011-04-27T09:29:00.003-05:00

See I told you this would become addicting! =)

High Dynamic Range

2011-04-25T10:20:00.005-05:00

I'm pitiful when it comes to regularly blogging. Six years ago I would blog every day, sometimes multiple time in a day. Now I'm lucky if I blog once a month. =)

This year, 2011, for me has been about getting back some of the creativity I felt I lost last year. I'm more interested in trying out new things and learning techniques I've never tried before.

Lately I've been seeing a lot of HDR images on the web and of course the reason I became interested in the first place was because of a contact I have on Flickr.

So I did some reading up on the topic, gleaned a few tips & tricks and set out with my camera and tripod to shoot a series of photos.

I shot a series of 3 images using auto exposure bracketing at -1, 0, +1 and complied them in Photomatix tonemapping. I didn't do any other post processing. Mostly I wanted to see what the images looked like without extra work. Considering this is my first try I'm pretty pleased with the results. I can see this new technique becoming a serious addiction! =)

Want to give it a try? Read more on Auto Exposure Bracketing and HDR photography and check out some HDR software.

Welcoming Baby Cohen

2011-03-08T10:30:00.004-06:00

Our friends welcomed their first son the day after Valentine's Day. What a wonderful gift! We got a few photos when he was just 5 days old. Newborn babies are just so sweet. Congrats to Mike & Liz on the birth of baby Cohen!

a new project for a new year

2011-02-10T12:06:00.001-06:00

For 2011 I decided to pursue a much less intensive photo essay project than the P365, called Project 52 where you take a photo every week, for the entire year. Last year's P365 was intense and difficult to accomplish, but I did and I'm glad. This year I wanted to be creative and take my time with it and P52 is allowing me to do that. The following photos are from Weeks 1 - 5. You can follow my gallery HERE.

And with week 6 almost at an end, I'll have 6 weeks under my belt. Each week there is a prompt or a theme to help the creativity along. I encourage anyone interested in photography to give something like this a try. It's good for the creative soul! =)

a finished project

2011-02-10T11:57:00.002-06:00

I'm a bit behind on blogging these days, I realize, and therefore a bit late in posting this. However I consider it a huge accomplishment and can't let it slip by unannounced. During the course of 2010, I participated in a photographic essay project called Project 365. It's an intensive creative photography project where you take a a photo (or series of photos) every day for an entire year. With a few exceptions I managed to get a photo almost every day in 2010. This is my completed P365 gallery! If you like scrapbooking you can view the scrapbooked pages HERE. I'm so glad to have made it the whole year, but I don't think I'll be doing it again anytime soon. Instead I've decided to do a less intensive version called Project 52, with weekly photos rather than daily. These projects help develop creativity and perspective and teach me things I didn't know before, which is something every artist could use! =)

Wedding Celebration Tour

2010-12-09T11:36:00.004-06:00

On November 6th 2010 my two dear friends Kristy & Calen were married atop a mountain in Colorado in a private ceremony attended by the bride, the groom, the minister & a witness. They decided to share their joy & happiness with friends & family back in Texas by throwing a reception where everyone could view the wedding ceremony video. It was lovely and romantic. They partied with friends and family after and enjoyed a nice homecoming from everyone.

They asked me to photograph their reception. But first we had to get a few shots of the bride & groom together along with their families before hand. So we chose a beautiful location that was the epitome of autumn. Calen & Kristy are naturals when it comes to taking photos. No posing, no instruction really....just them naturally. After pictures began the fabulous reception where guests watched the wedding video and then welcomed Calen & Kristy onstage to talk about their intimate ceremony. The traditions were observed with the cutting of the cakes and the toasts, followed by dancing, dancing and more dancing.

Calen & Kristy are such a fun couple and their reception was a joy & privilege for me to photograph. I was very happy to be part of their 2nd big day! =) You can view the entire wedding album HERE.

sisters, mother & son, mother & daughter...

2010-11-09T10:56:00.002-06:00

On Halloween I had the pleasure of shooting a very fun & energetic bunch. First we had sisters...twins to be exact. Then each sister wanted some photos with their respective children. Ruth & Rachel you've seen before. Rachel is a senior at SFA. Ruth's twin sister Katherine was in town and wanted some photos with her son Zack who's a senior in high school. We took photos all over the SFA campus and then moved down to the South Street bridge that provides an amazing natural backdrop and fantastic lighting. You can view more of their session HERE.

a family in fall....

2010-10-29T11:25:00.006-05:00

One of my good friends and fellow photographers needed family photos done of her family. I also needed family photos of MY family. So we decided to trade family photo sessions for each other! It was a great idea because we each got exactly the kind of photos we were looking for and were long over due for. They are a beautiful family and so photogenic that the session was a complete breeze. I give you the Phillips! =)

a new baby on the way...

2010-10-27T14:27:00.002-05:00

One of my husband's co-workers said she needed maternity photos of herself and family photos with her family. So we planned for a few weeks on when & where. This past weekend I had the pleasure of taking their photographs. I give you Meagan, Brian, Luke and baby-on-the-way.

Baby Ian

2010-10-26T12:11:00.004-05:00

A dear friend of mine gave birth to her first child at the end of September. As a "baby gift" to her I told her I wanted to do Ian's newborn photo session. He was adorable and oh so small even at almost 4 wks old. He was a sweetie!

modeling Kaitlin

2010-10-24T15:07:00.002-05:00

Testing out my new "mini sessions", I used my friend Kaitlin as a guinea pig to see how quickly I could do a quality photo shoot. We shot her session in 20 minutes and got several great photos. Thanks Kaitlin.

Jessica & Devin say "I do"

2010-10-23T19:53:00.003-05:00

What better day to get married then on 10/10/10? It was a beautiful afternoon/evening wedding in October. Not too hot, not too cold, a beautiful blue sky and a fabulous sunset. It was a lovely wedding at the bride's parent's home and I was very honored to share in it. You can view a few more photos HERE.

Brittany & Carlos tie the knot...

2010-10-22T14:08:00.004-05:00

A few weeks ago one of my photographer friends Kristi P. of Natural Charisma Photography asked me to be her second shooter for a wedding that was taking place downtown. I happily agreed.

Here are just a few shots from Brittany & Carlos' wedding day.

like mother, like daughter

2010-10-21T21:52:00.003-05:00

I'm so wretchedly behind on my blogging, if I don't start posting soon I'm gonna be backlogged quite a bit.

About a month ago I had the pleasure of shooting some portraits of my friend and some "mother/daughter" photos of her & her mother. They are two extremely beautiful ladies and oh so fun to work with. I give you Rachel & Ruth....(oh and Gizmo too).

Museum of East Texas

2010-09-12T10:38:00.004-05:00

I'm very pleased to announce that the following 3 photographs will be on exhibit at the Museum of East Texas starting October 2010. As you can see, the theme for this exhibit was wildflowers. I took these photos all over east & central Texas this past spring. This exhibit will run from October 2010 until April 2011. Come check it out! =)

Field of Coreopsis & Crimson Clover

Sea of Yellow (Black-Eyed Susans)

Bluebonnets in Macro

a family of four

2010-08-17T12:54:00.003-05:00

My brother & sister-in-law came to Texas in July for my other brother-in-law's wedding. While they were here I did a photoshoot with them as a belated birthday & baby gift.

For being a throw together last minute thing in my in-laws back yard I think they turned out fantastically well! =)

Biker Badass

2010-08-17T12:44:00.002-05:00

I'm woefully behind in my blogging these days. I've been rather busy with real life, but really it just comes down to laziness. =)

In July, I had a mini photo session with a friend named Rick and his amazing motorcycle. Rick use to be in the military and his Yamaha VMAX reflects that mimicking a P-40 War Hawk. We shot at the Armory here in town just to add to the atmosphere.

Here are a few of Rick's photos...

730 days of life

2010-06-16T10:30:00.003-05:00

My youngest daughter turned 2 last week. And to memorialize the day we had a few photoshoots to capture the cuteness that is 2 years old. I borrowed the tutu & giant basket from a friend, went to the party store and got some balloons and that was that. I liked the bright colors and the energy it created. It's fun and bit bitter sweet to watch your babies grow. You can see the entire birthday set HERE.

two pretty college girls

2010-06-16T10:24:00.003-05:00

I totally forgot to blog these photos from early May. My sister-in-law and her best friend were finishing up there time at the local community college and come this fall would be going there separate ways to separate universities. They wanted some photos to commemorate their friendship before hundreds of miles and a few states separated them! =) You can view the whole set HERE.

all dressed in white...

2010-05-30T09:34:00.004-05:00

A dear friend of mine asked me to do her bridal portraits back in April. She finally got engaged to her childhood sweetheart, a journey that began 14 years ago. She was so radiant and excited and in love, she was just a pleasure to photograph. We had 2 great sessions, one that was more traditional and one that was more urban and modern. My faves are from the more modern shoot, especially the one of her on the stairs. Yesterday Nancy & Joe said "I do"....Congratulations!! =) for more photos visit HERE!

trading "I do"

2010-05-29T10:59:00.002-05:00

I had the opportunity to shoot a wedding at the start of May. Rachel & Adam exchanged vows in typical East Texas weather....stormy one minute and bright sunny & humid the next. It was a colorful wedding in many ways. I was glad to be able to share in this day with them.

The Sophomore Recital

2010-04-30T11:14:00.004-05:00

My sister-in-law is a music major. And last week she had her sophomore recital. She wanted to do a photoshoot with her hair & makeup all done and in the dress she was going to wear for the performance. So we headed downtown and had about 30 minutes in which to get a few shots. These are a sampling!

rough rider? easy rider? nope sexy rider(s)...

2010-04-26T10:46:00.005-05:00

After the shoot with the brothers on their motorcycles I decided that my husband & I needed a few shots of us together on his motorcycle. So I set the camera on a tripod, set the self timer and ran (in 5" heels) back to the motorcycle and hopped on with a second to spare before the camera clicked! These were my favorites.

guys & motorcycles

2010-04-26T10:39:00.003-05:00

I'm so behind on my photo blog. I've had like 4 photoshoots that I haven't blogged about. *sigh* So here are 4 brothers on their motorcycles. They wanted to get a few shots of them together, riding, looking badass and just for the overall cool factor. For a couple of shots I rode on the back of one of the motorcycles. 4 down, 1 to go and the 5 oldest brothers in the H family will all be motorcyclists. I believe a motorcycle club is about to form! LOL!

fresh start.

2010-04-11T22:32:00.002-05:00

An old friend from high school who's mother I use to scrapbook with recently had her first child. They asked me to do some "newborn" photos of little Whitley. It's been since the birth of my youngest daughter that I've had the opportunity to do newborn photos. It was fun to see how many creative shots you can come up with of a sweet little baby sleeping!

"with this ring..."

2010-04-06T10:25:00.002-05:00

If you'll notice the post below this one...last month I did a photoshoot with my BIL & future SIL that turned out fabulous. We ran out of time that day to do some shots of the engagement ring. So yesterday Delaney brought it over and we got a few shots of the ring. this one turned out to be my favorite!

For those curious about where my BIL got the ring...it's from Tiffany & Co. and not an actual engagement ring. It's definitely different from what you usually see.

about to say "I do"...

2010-03-10T08:24:00.002-06:00

Another brother-in-law is about to get married. And they asked if I'd take their engagement photos. How could I say no? LOL! Not all the photos poses are original ideas, some we copied from other photographers we admired. But I think they turned out really well and display the couples unique personality. You can see more photos from their shoot HERE.

Artistic Flair & Creative Mojo

2010-01-10T14:25:00.003-06:00

I told myself I'd do another Project 365 for 2010. P365 means that you take a photo for every day of the year. It can represent your daily life, be something creative/artistic, or whatever happens to catch your interest that day.

I really wanted the goal of my P365 this year to be more creative, artistic & fun. So I've been trying to take photos of non-ordinary things...things that have a bit of artistic flair to them. I also downloaded a few new actions that I've been putting to use and enjoying.

I've been rather pleased with how they're turning out. (for my entire P365 set click HERE)

2010-01-05T19:03:00.003-06:00

My first photoshoot of the year was of an adorable "almost" 3 year old little girl. Of course it would be FREEZING cold the day of the shoot, ruining plans to go to a park. So what did we do? We did the photoshoot in the warmth and deliciousness that is Starbucks.

They turned out cuter than I could've imagined. Wanna see more from her photoshoot? Follow this LINK.

The Last Photoshoot of the Year...

2009-12-29T13:57:00.003-06:00

My last photoshoot of the year was of 2 sisters, who coincidentally I did a photoshoot with a year ago almost to the day...except 4 other sisters were involved. Maggie & Catherine come from a big family, 10 children in all. Catherine was in need of some "senior portraits" and Maggie never had any taken ... so it was a belated senior shoot for her. They're a couple of beautiful ladies. And despite their misgivings on how self conscious they looked, I think their photos turned out lovely and natural looking. Especially since it was FREEZING that day...it's no wonder chattering teeth didn't show up in the photos! =) Go HERE to see more photos of these lovely ladies!

Just in time for Christmas...

2009-12-28T12:03:00.003-06:00

I got to do a family photoshoot just a few days before Christmas with this friendly family. It was bright & sunny and pretty cold. But they were such good sports and we got several fun photos of the siblings!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

2009-12-23T11:09:00.002-06:00

AMZ Photography would like to wish everyone a:

Welcome to the newest member of the team...

2009-12-05T09:24:00.004-06:00

After my big photoshoot(s) in Austin, I noticed a decreased photo quality with the photos from the old XT. Of course it is 3 1/2 yrs old and has had almost 40,000 clicks with it's shutter. And as I'm getting a lot more photography work it only made sense to get a new camera.

But as with a lot of us these days, money is tight. So I couldn't shell out $1500-$1800 on a new & fancy camera body. It was suggested to me to buy refurbished and after doing some research I decided that the Canon EOS 40D was for me. I ordered it the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and it showed up a week later. I was excited. It's been a little bit of a learning curve and getting adjusted to the new design, but so far I'm really liking it.

I wrangled the kids and did some test shots with the 40d & my 50mm lens. These were straight off the camera (except the ones that are b/w) and I'm amazed by the quality. I always had to do some sort of exposure fix, color correction or balancing with photos from the XT. So here's to a new chapter in AMZ Photography....

Long distance relationship

2009-12-04T08:04:00.003-06:00

Last weekend (Thanksgiving weekend) my brother-in-law came to town for the holiday. He currently lives in San Marcos and his girlfriend lives here in Lufkin. They get to see each other about every other weekend. And while Phil was here they asked me to snap a few photos of them together before he had to head back home.

This "photoshoot" literally lasted 5 minutes. It was cold, and it was about to rain. So we very hastily threw this together. The poses are pretty generic and I told them we'd have to do this "right" at a later date! But in the meantime...

The beginning, middle & end...

2009-11-30T21:01:00.006-06:00

I get asked all the time "What does AMZ, in AMZ Photography stand for?" Well, let me tell you! =)

A=Ava (my youngest daugher). M=Megan (my oldest daughter). Z=Zander (my son). So we have a child with the 1st letter of the alphabet, a child with the last letter of the alphabet and a child with the exact middle letter of the alpha. I thought it was poetic and somewhat symbolic: the beginning, middle, end. So in other words, you could call it Beginning, Middle, End Photography but AMZ photography just sounds better! =)

Plus I liked the idea of incorporating my children somehow into the name, because they were what really inspired it all! =)

In other news...

This past weekend I did a photoshoot for my brothers-in-law. I was going for a "Sons of Anarchy" kind of feel. I was told I succeeded! =P

Last but not least...

2009-11-25T15:03:00.002-06:00

My last photoshoot from the Austin weekend. These guys were a quiet bunch but very willing to walk all over creation and back to get a few family photos. You can see more of their photos HERE!

I'm finally done editing all the photos from that weekend. 10 days later...pheewww! That was a project. But that weekend enabled me to purchase a refurbished Canon EOS 40D from Adorama Cameras. I was in desperate need of a new camera body as my old XT is about to bite the dust. And with all the money I saved buying refurbished I can buy the 24-70mm 2.8L lens!! =)

Laughter makes the world go round...

2009-11-24T12:47:00.004-06:00

Another family...a small one. Just mom, dad, son & grandmother. They were a photogenic bunch and seemed to have a good time hamming it up for the camera. You can view more sample photos from their shoot HERE!

the above image is an 11x14 storyboard (white background)

A Family Affair

2009-11-23T15:15:00.003-06:00

Yet another family photoshoot! But this one was a bit different. It involved 3 different families. The in-laws, the parents, siblings, grandparents and even the family dog. This family was full of energy. You can check out the sample photos HERE.

Family Photos at the State Capitol

2009-11-20T12:12:00.004-06:00

Another photoshoot from last weekend in Austin. This family wanted their photos taken at the Texas Capitol Building. I think it made for a dramatic backdrop. You can view all of their sample photos HERE.

A mother & daughter

2009-11-19T22:13:00.004-06:00

This past weekend I had several family photoshoots in Austin. I had the pleasure of working with a lovely mother/daughter duo. Aren't they beautiful? It was a very casual, informal photoshoot and I think it yielded several really fabulous shots. I hope we have the chance to work together again in the future! (you can catch the rest of their sample photos HERE!)

Easy Rider

2009-11-09T19:14:00.003-06:00

My friend Judah asked if we could trade photoshoots with each other. He wanted some cool black & white photos with his motorcycle and I've been wanting some new & fun photos of just me & Ben. So last week during one of the nicer weather days (it rained practically the entire month of October) we headed out to get a few awesome shots. I used some texture overlays in a few. I thought they really pulled off the bad@$$ look we were going for! James Dean watch out there's a new cool guy on the block!

a commercial endeavor?

2009-09-20T20:35:00.002-05:00

Recently I've started working with Uncommon Media and Lufkin Connects doing some freelance commercial photography. It's been a challenge at times, fun at others and just plain work for some. I'm enjoying the steady income and the opportunity to photograph all types of events and venues.

Here's a sampling:

Stonegate

Lufkin vs. Longview

Texas State Forest Festival

And remember until October 15th, book a Senior portrait session and receive a 25% discount!!

Senior Portraits - 25% discount

2009-09-14T16:03:00.005-05:00

It's the start of a new school year. The senior class of 2010 begins their last year of high school. Exciting times!! Get your senior portraits today!

AMZ Photography is offering a 25% discount on it's standard session fee for senior portraits from now until October 15, 2009. So book your session today!

What does this discount mean and what does it entail?

My normal portrait session is $100. For this limited time senior portrait sessions will be $75. This cost includes:

2 hour portrait session
up to 3 wardrobe changes
shooting on location(s) of your choice
20-30 images on a CD which you can have reproduced wherever and however often as you want
2 photo collages (poster size)
images will be fine-tuned in photoshop (airbrushing, sharpening, enhancing)
upload of photos to online gallery for viewing for family & friends.

Call me or email me to book your session now! 936.414.3076 or sarah_harbuck@yahoo.com

Sunset Reflected

2009-09-02T21:40:00.003-05:00

Sometimes boredom leads to spontaneity which leads to creativity. Who knew a last minute decision to go to the lake to shoot the sunset would turn out so well. It was a race against the setting sun, I wasn't sure I'd make it in time. But I did, which about 10 minutes to spare.

And then I caught the moon as I was coming home. =)

The Bond of Sisterhood

2009-08-15T10:13:00.004-05:00

Last week I had a photoshoot with two gorgeous sisters. One was moving away and they wanted to get a few photos of the two of them together, plus a few individual shots.

They were so much fun to photograph. And the fact that they are model gorgeous makes for extremely photogenic subjects.

I give you Caitlin & Delaney!

a flock of birds...

2009-08-11T21:15:00.004-05:00

I am a member of the Angelina Photography Association. Twice a year we submit photos of a certain theme and 1 or 2 of our submitted photos gets chosen to be on exhibit at the Museum of East Texas.

For this fall, the theme was birds. Below are my 5 submitted photos. The first one (with the cardinal) was chosen to hang on exhibit at the Museum starting in September.

It's always exciting to see your work hanging somewhere, where it can be admired. And it's fun shooting the necessary photos for each theme. I had to rely on birds at the zoo, to suplement my enteries because everytime I tried shooting birds in the wild, it never worked out too well (with the exception of the photo below).

In other news, I have a photoshoot with two gorgeous sisters tomorrow evening which will be super fun. And it looks like I'm just about booked solid for the 2nd weekend in November in Austin with family photoshoots. Live in the Austin area and wanna book a session (possibly for xmas card pics) that weekend, let me know. =)

a little art in the everyday...

2009-07-28T17:09:00.004-05:00

I've had a couple of photoshoots cancel on me lately which is extremely discouraging. Damn this horrid economy! So I haven't had a whole lot to work on lately in terms of photoshoots.

The Peppermint Creative photo challenges are getting very positive response and participation. That has been exciting. I'm enjoying coming up with weekly themes for participants to venture out and shoot. It's been a lot of fun!

Next week I have a big photoshoot at the museum of the kids summer art camp program. One of my pattern photos is featured on the "current exhibits" page. Check it out! Currently I'm working on the photos I plan to submit for the fall/winter exhibit entitled "Birds". That exhibit goes on display the first of September. I'll post the photos I submit in a future blog.

A random sampling of some of my Project 365 photos from the last few weeks.

Resident Photography Guru

2009-06-26T08:53:00.005-05:00

Recently I was asked by the owner & creator of Peppermint Creative Digital & Hybrid Scrapbooking to host & organize weekly photo challenges. These challenge serve to teach & help perfect aspiring photographers skills. So if you love scrapbooking & you love photography head on over to Peppermint Creative & join us! :)

Brown Eyed Girl

2009-06-15T13:05:00.003-05:00

I recycled my location shoot from the engagement photos i did about a month ago, because it's just so dang cool. I wanted to try "model/fashion" photography as it is something I've never done before. The lovely & gorgeous Delaney Rose kindly agreed to be my model! =) You can see more photos of this beautiful woman HERE. And she'd appreciate it if you went and voted for her to be the fall 2009 face of KJP HERE.

revising, renewing, rebuilding

2009-05-21T13:44:00.003-05:00

so i've been in the process over the last few days, of thinking of ideas for a photography webpage. i told myself i'd never do the "portrait photographer" thing. seems like photographers are a dime a dozen out there. the market is so saturated, how could i possibly get any business doing that?

but then i noticed that i've been hired to do a shoot almost once a month for the last 6 months. the frequency in which i'm asked to do a shoot has doubled. now granted i don't "put myself out there" or advertise myself as a photographer. mostly i get work by word of mouth which is free and practically effortless. but these are lean times, and if i can make some money doing something i love rather than doing the minimum wage retail thing, i'm happy.

i'd like to think that in the sea of photographers out there i can set myself apart by offering or doing something different. (at least from others in my area). i offer collages with my photo sessions. i do some designing in photoshop and create poster sized collages as a type of artistic wall hanging. so far, they've been a big hit.

so i'm gonna take the plunge & start promoting myself & see what happens. =D

my latest photoshoot was an engagement shoot right in the heart of downtown Nacogdoches.

who i am, who i'm not & who i wanna be

2009-04-02T09:49:00.003-05:00

so lately we've been in heavy discussions about buying land and buying our house. for the last month it's been the main topic of conversation. i think the issues with our landlord just re-emphasized that maybe it's time we move on. so for the last month we've been looking for land. most people want way more than market value for the property. they must think it's really special or something. but really around here you're getting ripped off if you're paying more than $5000 an acre.

we've looked at several properties. but each one had issues that were non-negotiables for us. too far from town, low lying/flood prone, too expensive...being the main one. and then yesterday we went an looked at a property that was not only very pretty but reasonably priced. the only thing is it's not officially on the market but we know the people who own it. it has an old old house on it with several outbuildings that would have to be torn down, but i could see us living there. it's 7 acres, so it would be a family property where all the brothers would have a place to build if they wanted to. we're not sure what's going to happen but the timing for it all is interesting and i'm anxious to see what God has in store.

in 2 wks we're having our big 10th anniversary party. we're looking forward to hanging out with friends & family and celebrating 10 yrs of marriage. we're really excited.

scrapbook layout of our bluebonnet pics...(layouts are on white bkgrd)

my Project 365 is still going but i'm kinda stuck when it comes to creative ideas. most days the photos i take are just an after thought. blah! although lately i've had so many other things on my mind photography has taken a back seat. (as have a lot of my other creative endeavors). i did buy a "new" lens...and by new i mean used.. i bought it to replace the one i broke a couple months ago. it's more of a wide angle lens which i'm enjoying.

tuesday i went in and got my hair highlighted and cut. and i've been tanning over the last month so now i look like a blonde beach bunny. i'm not all too sure that's a good thing. but i was tired of looking so pasty white & my hair was in desperate need of some color. i tell ya, having Ava wreaked havoc on my hormones, everything from my skin to my hair just seemed lifeless and dull. and here she is almost 10 months old and my body is still recovering. i'm getting to old i suppose. LOL!

well the little one needs a nap and the older two need to start school! so happy Thursday to all!

new stuff!

2009-03-11T15:25:00.005-05:00

well the biggest occupier of my time lately has been finishing up a few new "art/photo" pieces, photographing the finished product & listing things on etsy. man that's all very time consuming. but here's a sneak peak:

you can view any of the others at AMZ Studios! i've gotta get my act together cuz i wanna do a contest to give away a free piece of art...i just haven't worked out all the details yet. when i do you guys will be the first to know!

now that Ava is pretty much walking all the time, everywhere, that's keeping me busier than i'd have first imagined. but that child is in to everything! and she wants constant 24/7 attention. she does not like to play by herself, and why should she if she's got her mom, and older bro & sis to do so? it does get annoying every now & then. but she's too cute to stay irritated for too long.

meg & i went shopping this past saturday for spring/summer clothes for herself & the other kiddos. she has a very specific fashion sense. we enjoyed ourselves and the bit of girl time that we had together.

the kid has too much energy. if only i could bottle it up i'd make a fortune!

so we got our income tax return. but apparently i made a boo-boo and we got $1000 less than i'd figured. which is weird cuz i did it several times and had others go over it with me. *sigh* oh well. it was kinda a bummer to get less but i can't complain too much as the $$$ came at a very crucial time when we needed it most. (but then again it always does).

recent events have led us to believe that soon our living situation will change, whether out of necessity or by intentional design. our landlord is becoming less ... friendly and more demanding. apparently he hasn't heard that these are difficult financial times and wants to raise our rent. HA! he's crazy. we can barely afford what we pay now. so we're looking into options that will lower our monthly output in terms of housing & utilities. this has been the most prevalant thing in my/our thoughts lately. something's gotta change and i'm finally to a point where i'm willing to make some sacrifices to see that change happen. unfortunately this is all coming up at a time when the housing market sucks & banks aren't very willing to give out loans. we're always a day late & a dollar short when it comes to this kind of stuff.

up until today we've been enjoying some amazing spring weather. temps in the high 70s, low 80s, nice breezes, sunny....today it's nasty...and COLD...again! *sigh* and it's suppose to be that way all the rest of the week and part of next. boo!

the time change has had a weird affect on me this year. i love that it gets dark later. but i hate that it throws off my sleeping pattern. but now that Ava sleeps thru the night (last night it was for 13hrs straight) i guess it's not as big a deal as it once was.

i'm looking forward to this saturday. ben & i are gonna go to houston and go shopping at IKEA! he's never been and i'm excited to go again. woohoo! i take pleasure in the small things!

well it appears break-time's over as the little princess is demanding my attention! happy wednesday!

sports fanatic

2009-02-25T08:45:00.004-06:00

so for 3 wks i've worked on nothing else but these 4 custom commissioned sports mosaics. i'm rather glad to be finished with them and move onto something else. but they turned out pretty well. you can view larger versions HERE! the guy that ordered them is a huge sports fanatic and likes unique art. well he'll definitely be the only one with these for sure! :)

and on a completely random note...ever since the Twilight movie soundtrack came out last year i've been completely in love with the song "Flightless Bird, American Mouth" by Iron & Wine. i could listen to it all day. and i haven't felt that way about a song in a very long time. do you have a song like that? or am i the only freak out there! =P

well motherhood is calling. cherrio!

Decluttered

2009-02-21T18:07:00.004-06:00

i didn't realize it had been so long since i last blogged. lately blogging just doesn't seem like a priority. i have a limited amount of time that i have free to get on the net and sitting down & blogging just takes too much time. besides, i'm sure my life is pretty boring to most people anyway!

but in case there are some of you curious, well here's a short recap...

about a week & a half ago Ben caught whatever nasty stomach bug that's been going. he was so violently ill that it really scared me. in our 10 yrs of marriage he's only been that sick one other time and he had a terrible case of the flu then. so we (or i should say he) made it through the night (why do these things always happen in the dead of night?) and the next morning i promptly shipped him off to the doctor's office. we paid a much need $150 for them to say that it wasn't the flu & basically they couldn't do anything for him, he just had to let it "run it's course". AHHHHH!! it's so infuriating to have to shell out money we desperately need for others things on a wasted diagnosis. hell i could charge half that and tell people the same thing. easy money. but then i think the whole medical profession is a big steaming pile of BS!

luckily within about 2 days Ben was feeling mostly back to normal just in time for Zander to take sick with it, promptly followed by Ava. *sigh* fortunately Meg & I dodged the bullet and as yet have not come down with any symptoms or illness. HALLELUJIAH!

on monday of this past week Ben & I decided that a much needed spring cleaning was in order. and not just to disinfect from sickness but to seriously purge the house of all the crap that we've accumulated that's just sitting in closets or on shelves that's taking up space and creating a dust magnet. so i gave the kids a week off school & i systematically went room by room over the last week and clean and threw away and put stuff in boxes for a garage sale. when all was said and told we threw away about 6-7 bags of garbage and our entire front porch is covered with stuff i'm getting rid of. i couldn't be happier. i can't even begin to tell you what a relief it is and it's like a weight has been lifted. it's funny how we buy & accumulate stuff to make us happy and in the end it ends up making us feel ... bad. i'm a minimalist at heart. the less clutter the better i feel. so we've instituted a new rule. for every new thing we bring into the house, 1 old thing must go. i'd like to keep my house this clutter-free and organized.

in the middle of all that chaos i finished up those 4 custom sports mosiacs that the guy ordered like 3 wks ago. OMG! was that the longest project ever!!! i'm so glad to be done. next time i get a custom order of that magnitude i'm charging a heck of a lot more. but now i can move on to other projects, more creative projects and get some new items up in the store. i'm hoping to do some smaller pieces that are cheaper and maybe entice buyers who don't wanna pay as much for the bigger pieces. you can check out my store at AMZ Studios! in other random news i'm sure you'll find it hilarious that me, the perpetual reader, the woman who'd rather read than do anything else has read...wait for it...3 books since Jan 1st. LOL! that is so pathetic by my standards. this time last year i'd already read like 10. but i am a lot busier these days and i've put it on the back burner. i've been going to bed so early and then when i get up in the mornings i hit the ground running with household/kid/chore stuff that i just haven't made the time. in actuality i've given myself the year off from reading and will only read what i want, which means i'm probably gonna go back and leisurely re-read books i really enjoyed.

let's see what else? Ava's completely weaned. she nursed longer than either of my other two and i have to say i'm quite happy to be finished with all of that. she's also starting to reject eating baby food and almost demands "grown up" food. she's also standing up by herself more and more and today she took her 2nd step. and then promptly fell down. LOL! Meg was walking by 9 months...i'm sure Ava's not that far behind. she's also cut 2 more teeth on the top. i can't believe that she's 8 1/2 months old! where does the time go?

so i've joined the Angelina Photography Club. i decided to meet with real life people (and not just talk to Flickr pals online). they meet once a month and there are projects you work on and you get critiqued and critque others and twice a year they have a photography exhibit at the museum where a photo or two of my work will be exhibited. i'm the youngest person in the group. mostly it's 60+ y/os but they were all super friendly at my first meeting which was on thursday. i think it'll be fun and something to do and will keep me on my toes photographically...well that's the idea anyway.

well i think that's about it...i'll close with a few pieces of eye candy!

some recent scrapbook pages of the kids. you can see enlarged versions here!

some of my 365 photos! you can see the series HERE!

not sure what Z was doing here but it resembled the "Peter Pan" pose! =)

it strikes again...

2009-02-13T06:48:00.003-06:00

well the unthinkable has happened. my husband very suddenly was struck ill with this nasty flu/virus that's going around. he literally was fine one minute and then ill the next. i hope this doesn't mean that the rest of us are next. what a nightmare that will be! i really don't want my 8 mo old to catch it. aahhhh!

it's been a busy week. i finished up a black & white monochrome piece (picture at bottom) as well as began working on two custom orders. one that's all about sports and another that's color scheme reminded me of valentines day! =P in addition i spent a couple days editing photos from a family photoshoot i shot on sunday. i have been a busy little beaver.

the following are a few of my 365 photos.

straight off the camera...yeah i was impressed too! =)

just a small part of my BIL motorcycle.

a chain link fence with urban acid wash action.

my son, "Mary Poppins"! =D

a bit of selective color on this pic of M holding a silk Gerber daisy.

Ava enjoying the outdoors and also chewing on the wood of the fort! we've been enjoying very mild if not warm weather here in Texas. bring on spring!!! =)

the black & white monochrome piece...i like the foil accents, really makes it pop!
well it appears that my valentine's day will be spent tending to my sick hubby, if not sick myself. now that's love right there! =) i hope everyone has a spectacular weekend. don't forget to say "I LOVE YOU!" to those you care about!

so much to do, where to start?

2009-02-06T09:15:00.005-06:00

so earlier this week i got 3 custom orders totaling 7 pieces to work on. i'm stunned and excited and overwhelmed! LOL! i'm really happy with how this whole etsy store thing has taken off and with so very little promotion. and i'm doing something i enjoy while making money & keeping busy. that's always good.

finished up this piece Wednesday. it's like Lemons & Limes. or a sunrise over a green meadow...or whatever you want to see it as i suppose. i guess that's the whole point of abstract art. LOL! i will be listing this as well as a few other small pieces hopefully later this weekend.

my most recent 365 photo. there's something so photogenic about Converse shoes don't you agree?

the weather was amazing here yesterday. and for someone (me & my family) who's wishing for spring to hurry up and get here, we got a taste yesterday. and today is suppose to be just as amazing with highs in the mid 70s and pure sunshine all day. yesterday we took advantage of the weather and got outside. the kids enjoyed scribbling with sidewalk chalk and the littlest munchkin enjoyed taking a stroll in her stroller!

well housework & motherhood is calling my name. hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!

productive weekend

2009-02-01T14:25:00.004-06:00

i spent the better part of yesterday working on a new abstract mosaic piece. i recruited my husband's help to fish through stacks of magazines looking for colors of orange & blue to make up my newest creation which i call "Sunset over Ocean Waters".

i also finished up a couple hats i'd been working on. of course i found out the other day that they're discontinuing carrying several of my favorite yarns. *Sigh* so i guess this means i need to find a new favorite.

the eratic weather here in Texas goes from 35 degrees as the high one day and 75 degrees for the high the next. Saturday was a beautiful day, so pretty that we took a break from our tedious work and took the kids to the park.

and now that i've gotten new items listed on etsy, photos uploaded to flickr & a new blog post written, i now need to go tackle folding the laundry and making sub sandwhiches for our Super Bowl party that starts in about 2 1/2 hrs. just call me wonderwoman! =D =P

In the works

2009-01-28T07:11:00.004-06:00

Working my fingers to the nub. Ok not really. But they've been furiously working to make more adult beanie hats.

I was so surprised that almost all the hats i had and listed sold within 24 hrs. I expected the kid & baby hats to sell cuz they look so cute, but so far there's been little interest. It's funny what you think will sell and what actually does.

I've also listed the wall art photo collage as 4 smaller collage pieces of three. For those on a tighter budget the groupings of 3 are more affordable and you don't have to have as much wall space to hang them.

I hope to start on some more wall art pieces soon...maybe try to do a mosaic in a monochrome color scheme. And i've thought about mixing the stripes and the mosaic on a canvas and seeing how that will turn out. So I have lots to experiment with.

It's COLD here...like 35 degrees for the high, which is cold for Texas. Thankfully it turned out sunny today which almost makes the cold bearable....almost! :) I can't wait for spring.

Anyone else out there doing a Project 365? I'm on day 26 and I'm starting to run out of ideas. oops! I've gotta get the creative gears a-turning. If you're interested in my 365 photos click here! One from today that just made me laugh:

She is so fond of making faces. :)

And on that note I think I'll go make me a cup of hot chocolate to warm up on this cold day....brrrrrr!

Happy Wednesday to you!

new listings

2009-01-26T21:12:00.006-06:00

Are you an art fan? Like things that are different and unique. Check out my newest listings on etsy....

Made using a 1/2" x 6" x 24" pine board, painted and then the images (recycled from magazines, etc) were decoupaged on with several coats of Mod Podge, and then 3 coats of polyurethane to seal it all. These were my babies this week as it took about 5 days to paint, decoupage and seal all three pieces. I almost like them too much to sell them! =)

The idea came to me after my mother-in-law gave me a stack of magazines that i knew i'd never read but the covers had such vibrant pretty colors i couldn't just throw them away. And then the idea hit me...make a piece of art with them....so i did. =)

I hope to have more adult sized hats & matching scarves listed later this week! Leave me comments and give me your feedback! =)

I opened an etsy store!

2009-01-26T09:50:00.005-06:00

Well I did it. After much encouragement from family and friends I decided to open an etsy store where I'll sell my crafty creations.

Photography & Photographic Prints

Artwork

Crocheted hats & scarves

Jewelry

So come by and visit us: AMZ Studios

Here's a sampling at what we have for sale....

Photo Editing & Photoshop Services

2009-01-04T13:01:00.004-06:00

A new service that I've added to my repertoire is photo editing or PhotoShop work. There are many out there who don't have the know-how or the time to edit their own photos. I provide a service that can do that for you. Need a poster or an image with text? I can do that too.

Photo Editing includes:

cropping
airbrushing (cloning out blemishes, wrinkles, imperfections)
enhancements (lightening or darkening a photo, enhancing the eyes)
converting to a black & white image, or sepia or vintage or whatever your needs may be
repairing damaged photos
photo manipulation (adding or subtracting subjects from photo)
adding text, texture, or other elements to the photo

Photo Editing prices are as follows:

$3.50 charge per photo. If you only have a handful of photos (minimum 10) to be edited this is the route to go. Say you need a headshot airbrushed and tweaked for graduation or invitations or for some print out, this would be ideal.
$50/hr for bulk photo lots. If you have a large number of photos say 25 or more then an hourly rate is the way to go. Your project will be time logged and charged accordingly.

My Contact Info

2009-01-03T09:00:00.002-06:00

Phone: 936.414.3076

Email: sarah_harbuck@yahoo.com

Website: www.amzphoto.com

Gallery: www.flickr.com/shutterspeed 25

Etsy: www.etsy.com/AMZstudio

Pricing & Other Info

2009-01-02T08:39:00.006-06:00

A photographic portrait session costs $150. This price includes:

1 - 1 1/2 hours of shoot time
up to 2 wardrobe changes
shooting on location(s) of your choice
25-35 images on a CD which you can have reproduced anywhere and as many times as you want
2 photo collages that can be reproduced in poster size (upon request)
images will be fine-tuned in photoshop (airbrushing out blemishes/imperfections, sharpening the eyes, etc)
upload photos for viewing in online gallery for friends & family

How to set up an appointment:

You can call or email me for a consult and to schedule a time & place for the photoshoot. I'm flexible & can work around any schedule. I can travel to any location you desire, however anything outside a 30 mile radius of Lufkin Texas incurs a travel charge of $1 per mile. Also, for groups larger than 8, a charge of $20 per person will be incurred.

My phone #: 936-414-3076

My email: sarah_harbuck@yahoo.com

I encourage all potential clients to take a look at my work via my online gallery to familiarize themselves with my photographic style and what my talents can offer you.

Weddings

Wedding packages start at $750 and go up from there. Contact me for a specific consult for your wedding.

Artwork

My photography & related artwork is available for sale at my etsy store or you can contact me directly for any custom orders.

My Experience & Background

2009-01-01T09:12:00.016-06:00

I've had a camera in hand since I was 7 years old and my father got me a 110 camera for Christmas that year. Growing up, I was the designated picture taker and throughout junior high & high school I took photos for the yearbook & school newspaper. I decided to pursue a degree in photojournalism at Stephen F. Austin State University.

Over the last 10 years Iv'e not only photographed my own children, but many other families as well as couples, graduating seniors and several weddings. I'm well versed in Adobe Photoshop and have had countless hours logged in the darkroom developing film & photos. I've shot with a 35mm film camera like my old Canon AE-1 Program & Canon Rebel 2000, as well as a digital SLR like my Canon Rebel XT and Canon EOS 40d.

A little about me...

I'm a 32 year old stay-at-home mom to 3 crazy kiddos & married to my soulmate for over 12 years now. When I'm not out shooting photos & chasing after kids, I'm usually playing around in photoshop, doing some digital scrapbooking, or I'm curled up with whatever book I happen to be reading at the time. I enjoy movies, music, books, bonfires, good conversation, playing games & hanging out with friends.

October 2011

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July 2010

March 2009