racheal . . . an update

I have been wracking my brain trying to decide what to blog this week. Since this is a holiday week and Elise Beall Photography is closed, this will be the only blog of the week and I wanted to make it good. I knew that I wanted to blog about being thankful . . . it is the season for giving thanks, after all. Then I had a brainstorm! My blog stats show me which posts people view the most. For the past nine months, two posts have remained at the top with the most views – and both are about Racheal. Since we have a lot to be thankful for with Racheal’s treatment, this seemed like a perfect idea. So, I called Racheal and we met Sunday afternoon to take a few pictures and have a nice talk. You see, there has been so much misinformation about Racheal, I wanted to make sure I got it right!

For those of you who have not read Racheal’s blog posts, I’ll catch you up. Racheal was diagnosed with liver cancer in February. When she went to Chapel Hill to begin treatment, a scan was done that found not only a very large tumor in her liver, but multiple tumors in one lung. The doctors in Chapel Hill did not think surgery was an option and they really didn’t give the family much hope. They just didn’t realize who they were dealing with! The Humphreys are full of hope and have a deep and abiding faith that Racheal will be healed. This family will not even listen to negativity. So they decided they needed to find a group of physicians who had a more positive outlook. They went to Duke and met an awesome team that decided to treat Racheal aggressively. After doing a wedge biopsy of her lung, the surgeons later removed the large tumor in her liver. After surgery, Racheal started taking an oral chemotherapeutic agent that sadly didn’t work for her. A scan in June showed that the cancer had spread. There were more lesions than found in the original scan with both lungs now affected. Also, the tumors found earlier had grown. Although this was not the news Racheal had hoped for, she didn’t let it get her down.

Since early summer, Racheal has been going to Duke every two weeks for a combination of chemotherapeutic drug infusions. At first, she was taking two drugs. The doctors decided to add a third drug to improve the action of the other two. These guys are not fooling around – they want to kick this cancer for good! Racheal has been extremely lucky. She told me that the 4^th day after therapy is the worst, but even then she isn’t as sick as most people who are having chemo. When she visits the oncology clinic for her treatments, she realizes just how blessed she is. And the best news of all . . . a scan in late August showed that Racheal has improved dramatically. Many of the small tumors have disappeared and the remaining tumors have decreased considerably in size. Racheal is winning this battle! The doctors are stunned that she has improved so much. Racheal knows exactly why. She said that having all of her friends and family praying for her has helped cure her. And though she is much improved, she still needs our prayers. Racheal continues to be amazed at the outpouring of support she and her family have received from our community. She is so thankful that she is surrounded by such love.

So, when you are giving thanks this week, give thanks for Racheal and for the team of doctors who decided she was worth the effort. If you believe in the power of prayer, as Racheal does, say a prayer for her. If not, just send positive thoughts her way. She deserves all that we can do for her.

And by the way, Racheal isn’t wearing a hat because she has lost or is losing her hair. She’s wearing it because she looks so darned cute in it – I had her put it on. I love hats – but they just don’t look the same on me that they do on Racheal. Hmmmm, I wonder why.

Oh, another thought. I got an e-mail from Racheal tonight and she signed it RacHEAL. How awesome is that?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Carli

Wow, it’s amazing how different the weather was from one shoot to another this week. All of a sudden, at my normal shooting time (about 4:00 pm) it’s COLD! Thankfully, this arctic blast hasn’t been too bad and it’s not scheduled to last too long. It’s really a shame I didn’t have my camera available when we had snow flurries Tuesday afternoon.

Carli and I met earlier this week for her senior session. It was nice to meet another senior who I have something in common with. No, Carli doesn’t want to go to Carolina – at least right away – but she would like to go to Dental School there after graduating from State. Since dentistry has been my life for the past 35 years, I was excited to talk to her about her career ambitions. I think one of the reasons I like photography so much is that it gives me the opportunity to meet new people and talk . . . one of the things I do best!

Carli liked my downtown pictures but really didn’t want to do the blue doors, so we went somewhere I hadn’t been for a little while. And of course, we finished up at the park. Carli is a smiler – she had a big smile on her face through the entire session. We did get a few non-smiling pictures, but somehow I think the smiling Carli is what her friends and family are used to seeing – and what they will prefer. Though I do love a few of the more serious poses. See what you think.

Carli is my last senior scheduled before Christmas. I still have a lot of editing left to do, proofs to get online, orders to fill, cards to design . . . and on and on. So, I’m taking a little break from shooting to catch up on my other work. But keep watching the blog. You’ll find some interesting things posted in the next couple of weeks.

sarah

Sarah came to me for her senior portraits yesterday and I’m so glad she did. Sarah is a very motivated student who is hoping to attend Carolina in the fall. So, we had lots in common even though I’m a few decades older than her. After getting to know Sarah, I can’t imagine Carolina not wanting her. In fact, they should be fighting to get her! And Sarah was just as sweet as she is smart. She was extremely easy to work with – and laughed often. I love it when my seniors have fun at our session and Sarah certainly seemed to have fun. Even her mother mentioned that she was having fun.

Now that the weather is cooler, I’m not shooting at the beach. Sarah liked the idea of shooting in my standard locations downtown and in a local park. She was so funny . . . when we would arrive at a new location, she would exclaim, “There are the blue doors!” Or something similar. Sarah has spent some time on my blog so she was familiar with my work and my locations. I do try to do some different things – even though I often use the same spots. And we were able to get plenty of good shots of Sarah.

I haven’t looked at Sarah’s entire gallery yet – but here are a few of my early favorites.

Check out the jacket in these pictures. We did Sarah’s senior session on her birthday and this was one of her gifts. I bet North Face would love to have these shots!

We did some poses downtown without the jacket, as well. I like the simple shirt in the urban setting. Sarah and I both loved her necklace – but her mom wasn’t crazy about it. In this case, the majority ruled.

When we went to the blue doors, Sarah changed and added a really cool, LONG scarf. I loved the colors.

Then we went to the park. I absolutely love the park – especially now that the leaves have mostly fallen.

We packed a lot into the time we had together. When I returned home, Rusty and I were discussing how much I enjoy taking pictures. I feel so blessed that I am able to have a business that I love and that I have the opportunity to meet such wonderful clients. It just doesn’t get better than this.

November special

As you may know, I have decided to run a special one week each month. It’s time for the November special!

Here are the rules:

1. In order to purchase portraits at the special price, you must have had a portrait session within 12 months

2. You must have placed a minimum order from your online gallery

3. The order must be placed and the payment received by the date specified

That’s all! It’s easy-peasy.

OK, now for the November special. Just in time for your holiday cards – all wallet sized portraits are 25% off. So, instead of paying $16 for a sheet of 8 wallets, it will be $12. My wallet portraits are printed on professional paper and are die cut to provide a rounded border.  Very professional!  If you would like to order wallet portraits, just drop me an e-mail and I’ll reactivate your gallery for 24 hours. I’ll also reply to your e-mail giving you specific instructions for ordering. Please use this e-mail address: ebeall@ec.rr.com

Act quickly. The November special is for one week only. Your order must be placed by midnight on Sunday, November 23rd. And, I must have your payment in hand by 5:00 on Tuesday, November 25th.

jessica

Earlier this week Jessica and I finally had the opportunity to meet for her senior portrait session. This was our third try; the first two scheduled sessions were rained out. We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful fall day than we had. It was so pretty, I shot for longer than usual. In fact, I think I might have worn Jessica out. She didn’t expect me to take so many pictures. When I shoot for so long, it makes it difficult to choose the best of the best. I have been through Jessica’s gallery quite a few times and hope she’ll be pleased with what we were able to capture.

Jessica is a very motivated and busy young lady. She travels to Raleigh twice each week to play soccer and works three days a week.  And, she’ll graduate a semester early so that she can start her college career in January. I think UNC-Charlotte is going to be very lucky to get Jessica. After spending just a little while with her, I was very impressed.

When Jessica first pulled up I noticed her sunglasses, so I asked her to keep them on – but pull them down a little. I think she thought I had lost my mind, but I really like this image. I like it a LOT!

We did part of the session downtown and the rest in a local park. Here are my other favorites.

You’ll notice that a lot of my favorites are close-ups. I love eyes. So even though I shoot a variety of poses from full-length to close-up, I tend to prefer the close-ups. And close-ups work so much better for wallet photographs.

It has been a very busy week and the blog has been updated often. I’m taking a break for the rest of the night. But check back in Sunday for more sessions and some late breaking news!

christine and victor

Whew, it has been a BUSY week!

Christine and Victor were married on a rainy, dreary Saturday – October 18th. But their wedding was anything but dreary! To view the photographs from their wedding, go to www.elisebeall.instaproofs.com. Just click on their name and sit back and view the pictures. Christine and Victor had two photographers and an assistant for quite a long time, so they have a LOT of pictures.

Try viewing each gallery using the slideshow option. I always set the speed to the fastest possible and zip through the gallery. You can press “add to favorites” to make a list you can view later. To stop the music, press the music notes on the upper right.

As always, all pictures will be on sale for the first 30 days! Enjoy.

tee, erin and lily

I love it when I have the opportunity to photograph families that I have worked with before.  Tee and Erin came to me for their engagement session.  I shot Erin’s bridal portraits, their wedding, and this is the third year I’ve done family pictures for them.  And this year was the most fun ever!

We went to the farm several miles from town for their portrait session.  It was a beautiful place to make portraits and Lily loved being there.  Lily is a riot.  She is the most verbal two-year old I’ve ever met.  She doesn’t just babble; she speaks in complete sentences with a vocabulary that is amazing for a child her age.  At one point Lily was telling me something about her shoulder blade.  Now tell me, what two-year old talks about shoulder blades?  Another thing about Lily . . . she has the best manners I have ever seen.  She could teach my daughter a thing or two!  If I asked Lily to do something that she didn’t want to do, she would look at me and say, “No, thank you.”  I’m sure it didn’t help that I would crack up.  At the beginning of the session I despaired that we would get any decent shots.  But, I was SO wrong.  I ended up with a lot of really great images.  Here are a few.

We tried doing some poses on a bale of hay.  In this one, Lily was getting ready to show me what a roly poly does.

Lily didn’t care much for the hay, but I did get a cute picture of her parents there.

My favorites of Lily were down by the pond where she enjoyed fishing.  She found a cane pole so her father put some line and a bobber on it.  There was no hook and no bait, but Lily still enjoyed fishing.  She even told me one time that she caught a fish.  She got particularly excited when Tee fed the fish and you could see them come to eat.

We went for a walk in a field and Lily showed me deer tracks.  Again, how many two-year olds do you know who can recognize deer tracks?  I am quite sure Lily is a genius.

My very favorite pictures of Lily alone were taken by the pond after our walk.  She wanted to feed the fish herself and was ecstatic that the fish came close to the shore to eat.  I was nervous that she was going to end up IN the pond, but she is very sure footed and never came too close.

Just before we left the farm, Tee found a tiny lizard on the porch.  Lily wasn’t the least bit afraid.  She even reached out to hold it – but changed her mind at the last minute

It was a beautiful afternoon at the farm and I totally enjoyed my time with Tee, Erin and Lily.   I wonder what they’ll come up with for us to do next year?

ashley & scott’s gallery

Ashley and Scott’s wedding gallery is now ready for viewing and ordering.  I can’t wait for you to see these pictures.  The colors are absolutely stunning.

To visit the gallery, go to www.elisebeall.instaproofs.com and click on their name.  The easiest way to view images is to click on the slideshow for each category.  You can regulate the speed the pictures will stay on your screen using the slider.  If the music drives you crazy, just click on the music notes on the upper right.

The gallery will be active for 60 days, but the earlier you buy, the more money you save!

Enjoy.

mallory + chaz

As I posted yesterday, Mallory and Chaz are married. And what a glorious day it was! Though rain threatened a time or two, when it was time to prepare for the wedding it was a gorgeous fall day which was perfect for the theme of Mallory and Chaz’s wedding. They chose to decorate using a fall theme with beautiful, rich fall colors. There was an abundance of leaves, flowers and candles everywhere you looked. I truly don’t believe I have ever seen a church and fellowship hall decorated so well.

We started by taking pictures of a few of the details. Since I love rings, Karen and I started by taking a few ring shots while Lisa took Chaz and his best man (his father) outside for a few portraits.

Then it was time to take a few pictures of Mallory getting ready. Most people don’t realize it, but getting into a wedding gown isn’t one of the easiest tasks around. Trying to get the gown over Mallory’s head without messing up her hair or make-up was a major ordeal – but her sister, Emily, and her mom were up for the job. I love taking pictures of the girls because I love the primping. While I concentrated on the bride and bridesmaids, Karen was taking pictures of Owen, Mallory’s nephew (who lovingly calls Chaz Knucklehead).

There are several things I really like about weddings. One is seeing couples who I have worked with before, like Amber and Matt who were married last year. Another is seeing the emotion on the men’s faces. I wasn’t sure how Perry would handle giving away his last daughter – but just before he walked down the aisle he was all smiles. Probably my very favorite thing is seeing the expression on the groom’s face when he sees his bride walking down the aisle toward him. Chaz’s expression says it all. I also love watching the bride and groom recess down the aisle – when the ceremony is over and they can relax and enjoy the rest of the day.

After the wedding, we did a few posed portraits, then it was on to the reception. After a delicious dinner, Chaz and Mallory cut their wedding cake. At first, I thought it would be nice, civilized cake cutting. But it didn’t take long for things to get out of hand. I think Mallory may have started it – but Chaz held his own. Then, it was time for the garter and bouquet tosses. One of the groomsmen was excited to catch the garter – but I’m afraid he didn’t have much competition. The same can NOT be said for the bouquet. One piece of advice . . . never, ever get between a single woman and a bouquet. It can be quite dangerous!

Mallory and Chaz had a wonderful wedding – a beautiful beginning for their life together. I am so glad that I was able to be a part of it.

mallory

Mallory got married today – and I’m so excited! Now I finally get to show a few of Mallory’s bridal portraits. I never show bridal portraits until after the wedding and sometimes it’s SO hard to wait. That was certainly true with Mallory’s bridal portraits. We shot them a few weeks ago and it has been driving me crazy not to blog about them.

I am used to seeing Mallory in jeans, so the first time I saw her in her gown and veil she literally took my breath away. Mallory is one of those people who is beautiful inside and out regardless of what she’s wearing. But dressed in her wedding finery, she was absolutely stunning. And what made her even more beautiful was the fact that she didn’t even realize it. She was still the sweet, loving Mallory I’ve known for over a year. I’m so glad she chose me to take her portraits and photograph her wedding. My job is special all the time, but when I’m working with someone I care about – it’s even better.

I’m going to blog about Chaz and the wedding tomorrow, but tonight it’s all about Mallory. Here she is!

That’s all for tonight. But check back tomorrow (or possibly Monday) for more on the wedding. There is lots to show and tell!