Change4Children at the Ole' Farmhouse Diner

My friend Kevin Easley. the owner of the Ole Farmhouse Diner in Millersville, TN did a wonderful thing this year for the children of Millersville, TN. He put together a Christmas party for deserving children who needed a little extra help for Christmas this year. It was wonderful - Kevin fed all the parents, kiddos and volunteers ham, sides, fruit, cookies and then treated them to a wonderful time with a local church volunteer puppet show (black light effects included).

To top it off, Santa arrived at the Old Farmhouse with sirens wailing as he was dropped of in style in a Millersville police car. The kids were so excited - you can see it in the slideshow photos if you watch the photos of the kids when Santa arrived. Kevin passed out gifts to all the children - many of them were so thrilled to sit in Santa's lap and then receive their gift. Some of the older ones humored me and let me shoot a few with Santa despite their embarrasment. Even I got a shot with Santa - he looked like the genuine article to me.

At the end of the evening, there was a special drawing for his and hers bicycles. I was so glad to see the generousity poured out on these children and I hope they all have a very wonderful and Christmas this year knowing that somebody cares and that Santa is always looking out for them.

Thanks Kevin for putting on such an awesome event. I hope everyone who reads this will come and visit the Ole Farmhouse restaurant which is off the Louisville Hwy. exit just north of Long Hollow Pike on I-65. Take a right onto Louisville Hwy. and then drive just 2.2 miles - the Ole' Farmhouse Diner is on your left - roosters on the wall, country cookin' goodness and all. Tell them Danielle sent you and make sure and tell Kevin "Hi" for me.

Ole' Farmhouse Diner
1260 Louisville Hwy.
Millersville, Tennessee 37072
(615) 851-3009

(By the way, in 2000 Kevin was kind enough to cater my wedding and did an incredible job as we had more guests show up than were invited. Of course, Kevin kept everything running smoothly and yummily despite the major change in numbers. Thanks again for that Kevin!)

View the slideshow at this link:
Change4Children Slideshow

By the way - for all parents viewing - I will upload your photos shortly online for you to order at cost as my Christmas present to your family. Please wait for the link as that is the next step in my editing process.

Merry Christmas and may you experience the real joy of the season in Jesus.

Enjoy,

Danielle

Hahaha or should I say Hohoho?

This is a link to a fun and crazy little elf dance our family did! You might want to check it out at ElfYourself
I hope you and your family (or soon-to-be family) have a warm and wonderful Christmas.

Enjoy,

Danielle

The colorful and baby-full Kreszwick family

The colorful and baby-full Kreszwick family

I got to shoot a great family session the day after Thanksgiving with Mickie Kreszwick; some of you may know or remember her from our fall TrashBash session as a talented stylist for our wonderful models.

I drove the beautiful, hilly, winding roads out to Thompson's Station for a big family session. Each family had their own color-coordination scheme which made it neat in the big photo, since a person could clearly see which family goes together.

There were so many sweet babies and toddlers there and it was fun being surrounded by so many kids. If you don't know, I have a cute little toddler of my own named Caleb, so I just adore kids. At the end, I got a few shots of them playing together and just having a good time.

Thanks Mickie for being so sweet and welcoming. I enjoyed working with your family though I know the day was hectic for everyone with all the little ones. I am posting the slideshow and uploading everything ASAP since Christmas is coming up fast. Feel free to forward this slideshow to your family members and friends who might enjoy it and just have those who are interested sign up on the Pictage website to preregister so they'll know when the event is released as well.

Here is the slideshow link for you
www.adefiningimage.com/Kreswickfamily2007/


Enjoy,

Danielle

Babies and Toddlers

So, I've decided the whole idea of "posing" babies and toddlers is slightly unrealistic for most kids. I enjoy "catching" them in their cute and natural expressions. The Montini family brother and sister certainly kept me on my toes, though the little baby girl was soooo sweet. She has this growly cry whenever her brother leaves the room; I found out she really likes to have her older brother around.

The older brother loves sports, including baseball...there were baseballs, gloves and other sports gear here and there in the house. Of course, we shot a few baseball shots in the cold outside. The shoot worked even with wiggly and energetic kiddos. (What do you know - they are just like my little boy!)

See the slideshow at www.adefiningimage.com/MontiniChristmas2007/

Enjoy,

Danielle Adams

All over town with Bryan and Rachel

So it was really great shooting an engagement session in Murfreesboro for Bryan and Rachel who are getting married next year. We started with lunch at Demo's, (where they got engaged!), and ended up at the city park downtown shooting at night in more formal dress. You'll see from the slideshow that we had fun along the way too.

Congrats to Bryan and Rachel - I hope this Christmas is fun for you both as you get prepared for a wonderful soon-to-be marriage. Thanks for being so sweet and friendly to work with too.

Your slideshow is at
www.adefiningimage.com/BryanandRachel/
Feel free to forward the link to whomever you like.

Enjoy,

Danielle

Alex and Mommy at Walden pumpkin farm

Alex turned two just recently and his Mommy wanted to have a special photo session for him. So we hopped out to Walden Pumpkin farm in Smyrna, TN for a great location shoot. Even though the farm was packed out with kids petting animals, eating fall treats and picking out the perfect pumpkin, we had lots of great spots to shoot.

Alex was adorable; I just love the way he snuggled up with his Mommy. He also just loved riding the tractors around the hay bales the people at Walden had set up. What a great spot for younger kids. I put a little slide show together of some of my favorites from the session at www.adefiningimage.com/CristineandAlex/.

The other images will post soon at www.pictage.com/394480. You will need to get the event key directly from Cristine in order to see the images.

Enjoy,

Danielle

Trash the Dress AKA "Trash Bash" slideshow is up!

Whew!

I just organized a big Trash the Dress shoot with 10 photographers, bride models, hair stylists and make-up artists for downtown Nashville. We had a really great time meeting and going out to eat with all of our volunteers. (Did I mention they were volunteers?) We had a big turnout and it was really fun - I'm sure the water felt great to those who were brave enough to get in!

Thanks to everyone who particpated - I think we'll do it again soon. A special thanks to Harry the park ranger at Bicentennial who let the models "take over" his office while getting ready as well as the Hooters girls for coming outside for a fun shot.

Here's the slideshow link:
www.adefiningimage.com/trashthedress/

Enjoy,

Danielle

Trash the Dress session AKA Trash Bash coming up!

I'm very excited about a Trash the Dress group session coming up next week that I'm coordinating for my local Pictage User Group. (See www trashthedress.com for more info.) We are getting bridal couples together for a fun and artistic session that will include running through the fountains at Bicentennial mall for some and shots at the footbridge at 1st Ave. for others. It's going to be awesome shooting and if any last-minute couples with a dress want to call me today or tomorrow to be included, please do.

There will be a story about the Trash Bash in the winter edition of Enchanted Brides magazine with a credit for each photographer involved. (Thanks to Gipsy Williams for this!) We're also looking for hair stylists who want photos to use for promotional purposes.

Look here for cool/artsy photos coming soon...

Danielle
P.615.893.4496

Me in Chicago

Hi everybody,

I had a great time last week in Chicago while meeting some other photographers and polishing my business skills. It was my first time away from my sweet toddler Caleb, but as soon as I got involved meeting people and learning new info. I was OK. It was fun being roomies with my new photographer friends Wendie and Camille as well as meeting other folks from the Pictage community. If you want to know what I saw in Chicago, I have put together a little slideshow for you. (Yes - I am in one of the jumping shots! See if you can find me.) Enjoy.

www.adefiningimage.com/chicago07

Danielle

Jamie and Angie's wedding - What a party!

I just am looking over the photos from Jamie and Angie's wedding last Sat. What a party they had! We had so much fun shooting even though by the reception I think Angie was ready to lose the veil and just enjoy herself with the crowd.

You know - I had heard at least 3 people say at the wedding something like it was, "about time", Jamie and Angie got married. I think the guests were just happy and relieved they finally got together. From what I hear, this marriage was years in the making. That's always a good way to start; my main squeeze Jason and I can relate. We dated 7 years before we married, so we're very comfortable with and used to each other.

Joy and Todd Griffin were a part of the big day (see baby Noah's photos) as well as my great friends Lori and Dan Zimmerle. It was so great working with Jamie and Angie; I think you'll love the variety of images we shot. I had major trouble just picking out what I wanted to use for the slideshow. That's always a good sign. Yes - there were fireworks after they walked out the door courtesy of their venue, Cedarvine Manor. I kind of did a little number on the fireworks and made a composite shot just for fun. Enjoy their slideshow and congrats to Jamie and Angie.

To view Jamie and Angie's slideshow:
www.adefiningimage.com/jamieandangiewedding/

By the way - there's a new cool feature on the slideshow at the bottom. You can purchase the slideshow if you'd like on DVD. Just hit the DVD button. There's also the ability to go directly to their photos online once the link is up and they've given you their event key. Thanks.

Danielle

Moving boxes, little David Michael and Scooter, the cat

Wow - what a fun session I had with Mommy Heather and her little 6 week old David Michael. It was wild since the day of the session was also moving day for the Armstrong family. There were ladies packing boxes of belongings up while we shot this session. Little David Michael was so sweet and cute; I know Heather and Bryan are bursting-button proud of him.

While I was shooting, their cat Scooter posed, so I had to take the shot. Yes everyone, I will take photos of your pets, but only if they're nice and you have treats!

Bryan, Heather and David Michael have now moved to Kansas City, MO. Don't get blown away there guys! We don't want any Wizard of Oz scenes in your yard OK? We will miss you all and hope you find a great new place to land very soon. Take care Bryan, Heather and little David.

Here's David's slideshow link:
www.adefiningimage.com/babydavidmichael/

Oh - great new feature - you can now order slideshow DVDs if you want them at the bottom of the slideshow window. Your initial DVD order will cost $99; duplicates are less. MP3 orders are also available if that's a better option. Enjoy.

Danielle

Miracle Baby Elliot

Here are some of my favorite photos from a studio shoot of 6 month old baby Elliot. What a happy, content little baby boy and what a miracle his life is.

I'll see if his Mom would be willing to share more, but Elliot was born with a birth defect in which some parts that should have been inside his abdomen were not. Doctors at Vanderbilt slowly corrected the problem over a period of months and now Elliot is perfectly wonderful! If he had been born 15 years ago, it is very likely he would not have survived. What a sweet-natured little guy.

It seems proud parents Mick and Amber had so much fun with his shoot, so did I. We blew bubbles and took all sorts of photos of Elliot. We're going to put together a "baby parts" photo announcement as well. Thanks Mick and Amber for sharing your little guy with me. He is adorable!

Here's the link to baby Elliot's slideshow:
www.adefiningimage.com/babyelliot/

Enjoy,

Danielle

Dining with Lesley

I went out with Lesley Cannon to give her proof books and to have dinner. Her husband Justin was in the Philippines on a mission trip with their church so we talked an extra long time. Lesley went the year before on the trip with Justin which I think was really great. They grew closer while serving. He was there working with children; what a sacrifice to let him go being so newly married.

OK you two - I want to see photos from the trip sometime soon.

We had a waiter at the restaurant take this photo of us in front of the fireplace - this is an example of why you want to hire a professional for your photo shoot! Anyway, thanks Lesley for being such a sweet bride; it's great working with you.

Engagement photo shoot plus construction workers

Here are some pictures of Jamie and Angie who are getting married in April. We had a lot of fun, but it was a cold Feb. engagement shoot around the square in Murfreesboro. It's obvious you two love each other a bunch, but I think we were all trying to get out of the wind as soon as the shooting was over.

Here is the link to their slideshow:
www.adefiningimage.com/jamieandangie/

In the middle of our shoot we were shooting next to the big piece of metal where some construction was being done on the sidewalk. I asked the two construction workers if they'd get in on a shot. When they started "posing" for the shot we were all laughing. One of them asked me to shoot him working on the gas line under the street. (It's in the slideshow.) You never know what's going to happen on a shoot; they're all adventures!

I ended up taking Jamie and Angie over to Marina's on the square to thaw out and enjoy some Italian food. (See their website at http://marinasitalian.com) We ended up talking about their wedding and good ole' Southern chocolate biscuits! If you haven't had chocolate biscuits, you should. See the recipe below. You will be glad tried them if you like milk chocolate at all.

Southern chocolate biscuits

1 cup sugar
1/4 cup white flour
dash of salt
1/4 cup cocoa
1 and 1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons margarine or butter

Mix sugar, flour, salt and cocoa well. Add milk. Stir until well blended. Cook in a saucepan over low heat stirring continuously until thick. Add margarine and stir it in well. (I think this will serve about 4 people if you eat these like my husband!) Cook up some buttermilk biscuits and drizzle or pour the chocolate gravy on them. Yum, yum! Enjoy. (Thanks to Pat Render for the recipe.)