© 2009 Dena Shipley Photography all rights reserved

I’m longing for fall desperately…the cooler temps, the smell of the crisp air on the morning and again in the late afternoons, the change in color of the sky, the sunsets, and foliage, the afternoon naps curled up in a soft blanket, and the chance to play golf again is all just around the corner. I love fall, it has to be my favorite season along with spring. There is something so great about that time of year; you see it everywhere around, and especially in the people everywhere. Everyone seems more giving, thankful and thoughtful…which leads me to my post.

You know someone. You know someone who’s experienced a tragedy, is struggling to stay afloat, is raising kids while holding down more than one job, or is volunteering selflessly despite extenuating personal circumstances. You know someone who can’t afford custom photography, but who would cherish it this holiday season. You know someone who deserves a year-round reminder of their family’s spirit, love, and beauty.

You know someone. Everyone does. I guarantee it.

We want to know who they are, and we want to give them the chance to experience complimentary custom photography session. Whether it’s canvas or albums, prints for Grandma, or a slideshow to watch over and over, it’s in your power to give them the artwork they deserve this holiday season.

Oh, and the best part? The person who nominates the winner receives a $150 print credit*. What better reason to show some love could there possibly be?

The nitty gritty:

* You cannot nominate yourself, and the person nominated must sincerely be incapable of purchasing our services. (Being unable to make mortgage payments for a two-million-dollar-vacation-home in Paris does not qualify as sincere financial need.)

* The nominee must reside in Huntsville, Texas or surrounding cities. Tell us who you know, what they’re experiencing, and why they deserve our artwork. Please include a way to contact both your nominee and yourself as well.

* You must e-mail us the full story : giving@denashipley.com

*Nominators print credit is only good for prints from your nominees portrait session.

The winner will be announced on Thanksgiving Day — get nominating! We can’t wait to read all of your entries!

Open your heart to someone this holiday season — and thanks for giving us the opportunity to open ours.

Much love and appreciation
~D & K

Posts are always better with a photo so here are a few from one of my favorite locations (that I hope we get to visit again very, very soon) of Texas; the Hill Country. These were taken almost a year ago when Kenny & I eloped to Leakey, TX during my favorite season of the year :)

© 2009 Dena Shipley Photography all rights reserved

I have been adding to my list of desires or goals for a few months now, and thought I would share them, maybe spark some of you to create your own list…also I thought if I blogged about them it would help keep me focused on acquiring my desires and reaching my goals.

We all know and have heard that having goals brings inspiration, gives you a feeling of accomplishment & fulfillment, and keeps you focused on getting from point “A” to point “B”. Some of my goals or more so desires I have, than goals and are just because I want to be a better person, in life and my work, some of them are actual goals that are very attainable for me, and some are more superficial and more wants than “goals”.

I have given myself the next 3 years to cross everything off of my list, and hopefully I will surprise myself and actually cross EVERYTHING off, some things I have already done that are on here since writing this Blog post so I guess I’m off to a good start!

In no particular order here is my list of my goals, hopes, & desires

1 – Travel to Europe, Italy, Alaska & NY with Kenny

2 – Shoot at least 3 destination weddings

3 – Have a wedding published in print

4 – Get my office completely organized & refine my workflow

5 – Take more day trips

6 – Win a photography award

7 – Attend the WPPI Convention in 2010

8 – Travel to Nova Scotia with our friends Andrea and Derek

9 – Stick with my daily fitness schedule, and not get discouraged or off track

10 – Build our first home together

11 – Invest in some property in another state for us to spend time at during the heat of Texas

12 – Purchase 2 Canon 5D bodies, and some new glass (lenses for you non-photogs ;)

13 – Modify and refine my logo The new logo!

14 – Go on a shopping spree at Anthropologie…love this store, LOVE it!

15 – Hit the ski slopes in CO & Jackson Hole, WY

16 – Rent a safe deposit box for back up DVD files

17 – Get a new iphone! Thank you to my love for this! Although we may seem to have an unhealthy attachment to our iPhones ;)

18 – Use the SMS service offered from PPA

19 – Furnish our home with IKEA furnishings, another favorite store!

20 – Find the tempo in my golf swing, and stay consistent with it

21 – Record a promo video for our website

22 – Take Kenny back to my home stomping grounds for a hike in the Redwoods

23 – Update photo’s and artwork in our home

24 – Share in an awesome photo session with one of my peer photographers that I admire

25 – Get a Beagle puppy Connor, see photo below!

26 – Play more golf with Kenny and go on a golf trip with him

27 – Play golf with my Dad in CA on father’s day

28 – Go on a trip with my sister to someplace she has never been

29 – Create referral cards for vendors from every wedding we shoot using detail shots of venue, flowers, & cake

30 – Clean out our closets from clothes we no longer wear and give them away to local shelter

31 – Become a member of a non-profit organization and give back to our community with my photography read about wht we’re doing in my post “You Know Someone” and visit www.givingisawesome.com

32 – Blog more and find time to enjoy a good book

33 – Bring my cookbooks to life again

Adeus for now!
~D

Posts are always better with a photo so here is one of our new beagle – Connor! You’ll be seeing a lot of him so I’m giving everyone fair warning now ;)

© 2009 Dena Shipley Photography all rights reserved

Early yesterday morning, while it was still cool enough and there were still some broken fog clouds hanging around, I took my daughter out for a short and sweet session to get some updated photos of her.
The mercury was already on the rise by the time we arrived at our location; she was a real trooper handling the heat…here are some of our favorites from her sweet session!

Adeus for now!
~D & K