In with Lightroom...

I've been waiting to upgrade to Lightroom for a while now, and finally made the decision to go for it this winter!  I wasn't sure how much I'd like the change, but I'm loving it!  It's been such a time-saver (not to mention it's so much more flexible with different lighting situations than PS), and makes me realize how editing in Photoshop was taking more time than I thought.

For all you "Lightroom-users" out there... what's your favorite thing about Lightroom?

"The Lord is risen, indeed!" | Personal

"Our religion is little because our God is little.  Our religion is weak because our God is weak.  Our religion is ignoble because the God we serve is ignoble.  We do not see God as He is.

The Psalmist said, "O magnify the Lord with me" (34:3).  "Magnify" may mean one of two things: "make it look bigger than it is", or "see it as big as it is."  The latter is what "magnify" means as the Psalmist used it.

If you want to examine a very small amount of matter, you put it under a microscope and magnify it to make it look bigger than it is.  But it is impossible to make God look bigger than He is.  When we say "magnify the Lord", we mean try to see God somewhere near as big as He is.

This is what I want to do.  This is what, by His help, I have dedicated myself to." (A.W. Tozer)

I read this in a book a week or two ago, and it came back to me tonight as I was thinking about what we're celebrating this weekend.  Thinking about the many wonderful things that were a result of what took place - the opportunity we each have to experience a second chance and a new life, to walk through each day's trials with a Helper and Friend in our hearts, and the hope of a place in Heaven where we'll be with Him forever.  

To accomplish all that, our God couldn't be a little God.   He couldn't be a weak God.  He couldn't be an ignoble God.  He is all-powerful... powerful enough to become a man in the world His own hands created, powerful enough to bring to life what was dead, and powerful enough to give sinners like me a way out of our darkness and destruction.  He is a powerful and mighty God!  And the GOOD NEWS?  The God who raised the crucified Jesus and defeated death forevermore is the same God who continues to work in our world today and resides in the hearts of those who believe in Him.

This Easter, let's worship our all-powerful and almighty God. Let's take the time to ponder what a great King we serve, and let's try to "see God somewhere as big as He really is"!

"You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being." (Revelations 4:11)

Jim & Jeannie | Wedding

Life has been hard for Jim and Jeannie these past few years, as they have equally suffered through the death of a previous spouse as well as the recent and sudden death of Jim's oldest son.  Their wedding was ...

A Taste of Spring

When it's winter, and the ground is not covered in snow... well, there's not much for a photographer to photograph.  However, when you have ...

When it's winter, and the ground is not covered in snow... well, there's not much for a photographer to photograph.  However, when you have a sister who bakes yummy desserts and likes to decorate them all pretty-like?  You have a solution to the "no photographic subject" problem for a day. ;-)  Emily has been busy in the kitchen with many lovely cakes lately, but this one in particular that she whipped up for Mama's birthday was just so simple and beautiful - roses, pastel colors and all!

Blog Update

Photographs... why do they really matter?

Photographs serve for me as a reminder of what a miraculous, beautiful gift our lives are, often telling a paragraph or two of stories we're still reading as God writes. Whether it be an evening sunset or an emotion on a loved one's face?  it all bears the fingerprint and testifies of an incredible, loving Lord.  

One Who has given us a glorious world to enjoy, 
unique journeys to travel, 
and those near us to walk through it with!

When I photograph, I consider a job well done having documented love in its many ways of expression... a family at home, a mother or father with their child, two people committing to love forever.
Aren’t these His most wondrous graces of all?!

I have gotten behind on blogging these past few (and full!) months, so there's lots to share! ;-)  Anxious to post some images from a wedding I had the opportunity to help shoot this winter!

I am ALSO needing to share some new things around here;

My blog's URL has recently changed (the website and blog are now separate), thus the feed has changed too!  Soooo, if you were previously following this blog and are still interested in tagging along on my photography ventures (i.e. would like to continue to receive my posts in your dashboard), please add 'blog.annalizphoto.com' to your Blogger reading list.  Sorry for the confusion!  

Martin & Micah Noel | Engagement

I'm about to share with you some pictures of two very special people. Though I've known Micah Noel for the past seven years or so, I met Martin just a year ago when he ...

I'm about to share with you some pictures of two very special people. Though I've known Micah Noel for the past seven years or so, I met Martin just a year ago when he was visiting from Austria (yes, Austria ;-) to meet Micah Noel's family. The two of them met while studying at a Christian institution in England a few years back, and since then it's been so neat to watch their relationship grow and mature into what it is now! From the time we met her and her family, Micah Noel's life has always radiated with a certain beauty that can only grace the face of a woman who has entrusted her everything into the hands of the Lord. Even amid all the many sudden health conflicts she's had to endure this past year, Micah Noel's heart continues to just ooze with a special kind of joy and peace that she finds in Christ. Her example of gentleness, character, and femininity has made a such an impact on the lives of many!

One thing that makes Micah Noel and Martin's relationship so beautiful is the way they so patiently and contentedly lived their lives before they met. They knew God had the perfect person in mind for the other and that He would bring that person along at the perfect time (in this particular case, their "perfect person" was in a more unexpected place than usual ;-). So they waited in expectation for what God had for them - marriage or not - and still lived their lives with purpose and service to their King, knowing that doing so is a goal that lasts a lifetime no matter what season of life you're in or what your relationship status is. And because of their decision? Now that they've met each other, HE continues to be the center of their lives and their relationship together.

To sum it all up: I love these two. =) I had SO much fun getting to know them better as a couple and watching them interact with each other during the shoot, and I'm so glad I was able to have them be a part of my first engagement session! His 'just-for-her' looks, her excited laughter... It was all so sweet and I felt so privileged to be there to capture it. Martin and Micah Noel, thank you once again for spending that hour with me in front of my camera!

See? I said we had fun... ;-)