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... ;-)

Preview: Martin & Micah Noel | Engagement

I can't can't wait to share these! Until then, here's just a peek into Martin and Micah Noel's beautiful + fun engagement session!

Colorado Skies | Personal

A little later than planned (don't we all love "technical issues"! =), but here's the starry skies I promised in the post about our trip! I haven't experimented with...



A little later than planned (don't we all love "technical issues"! =), but here's the starry skies I promised in the post about our trip! I haven't experimented with night-sky photography much, so when we went to Colorado (and the mountains made for some breathtaking scenery... in case you didn't know ;-) I knew it was the prefect place for me to try it out!  I was SO amazed at how beautiful the skies were every. single. time. the 30-second exposure stopped and a new image appeared onto my LCD screen. Even though the long exposure reeled in more light for the resulting images than you could see with the human eye, it looked just as amazing. I only wish there was a way to capture it all exactly the way it was in person! The open sky so vast and twinkling with starry clusters rolled out above you as far as the eye can see; the low, thin clouds that hovered slowly beneath them; and! to top it all off - the silhouette of mountaintops on the horizon. The perfect backdrop for some experimentation. =)

Being there and experiencing the beauty of Colorado, and even now looking back at these pictures on my computer screen - I am reminded of what an absolutely amazing God I serve. Isn't it enough that He created such wonders for our eyes to behold? That He knows each star by name? But He is so so much more than that. He doesn't change like the clouds do as they move across the sky; He is never-changing, always-constant. He can't be contained like the stars in a galaxy, or be created like His hand created the universe; He has always been, always will be. He isn't subject to the boundaries of nature, night and day, any season; He is omnipresent, able to do anything He wills in any way He wills. And yet... He stoops down low enough to love us. With that love that is indescribable. 

It's kind of like the way you feel when you stand beneath the stars at night out in a wide and open country field here at home in Missouri... or looking out from a window in a cabin atop a mountain in Colorado.

You're speechless.

That big yellow star? Saturn! One of the reasons I made up my mind to get the tripod out and take these. ;-)

This here below is a compilation of 15 photos taken 30 seconds apart. Isn't it crazy to think that the earth is rotating that much in just 7.5 minutes!?

Family Trip 2013 | Personal

"Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. 

Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, 

from everlasting to everlasting  you are God."

~ Psalms 90:1,2

We haven't been on a family vacation in a long time (long being 13 years or so ;-). Colorado has been our planned destination for the last few years, and this summer we finally...

Spring's Blooming: random snapshots of life | Personal

Olivia | Portraits

(post one of Olivia’s clients’ wedding + late night gyros to celebrate 🎉 )

She lives life with enthusiasm, and her laughter is infectious. (However, as you will soon see - she can pull a serious face pretty well too!) She has a fun, ardent...

A Welcoming to the New Year | 2013

Wow. Is it really 2013? When I think over the past year and look into the next, the first thing that comes to mind is the Lord's great faithfulness. Seasons come and go; we begin to make plans and set goals for the new year, and all the while—year after year—He remains the same. Isn't it amazing that we can serve a God like that? May we each learn to love Him more deeply as we step into this new year—and amidst all of the lists of goals, desire to make knowing Him more our first priority.

Thank you so much to each of you have allowed me the privilege of taking your pictures, as well as those of you who have left comments, written notes, and encouraged me on! 

May God bless each of you with a wonderful 2013.

Rebekah | Senior

"What we are is God's gift to us. What we become is our gift to God."

                                        ~Eleanor Powell

Meet Rebekah. If you ask her, she would probably tell you she...

Preview...

The rest of them are going to be up on Friday, so check back soon. ;-)

The M Children | Portraits

Altogether, I came away from this shoot (including the family portraits) with over 700 images. Yes, I know-I went a...

The Beauty of a Thorn | Personal

The many locust trees on our acreage don't usually make for a very pretty view. ;-) The long, sharp thorns growing along the locust's trunk and branches seem...

A Celebrated Life | Personal

So... we went to a beautiful funeral last week. Seems rather odd to call it beautiful, as a funeral is a sober event, yes? But we were celebrating the life of a beautiful person. She wasn't even yet 30, yet in the time we would say wasn't enough to even leave a legacy--she behind left one that testified such a wonderful picture to many of Christ and His work in her life. 

This brought me to wonder... 

What will those who know me remember about my life when the Lord takes me home? A life full of joyful service, a witness to God's abundant grace and love, or a life that's full of me?

Will I be a life celebrated?

It was indeed a beautiful funeral. 

What a more perfect way to go about celebrating another follower entering heaven to see Jesus face-to-face then to worship the Lord in song praising Him for His goodness!

Mally | Newborn

It was an absolute joy to spend time photographing this new (only four-day-old!) little one! And whaaaaat a cutie. ;-) Take a look for...

Preview: Mally | Newborn

Gracie girl turns One | Portraits

                                

 

Welcome to the Blog! | Personal

Thanks for stopping by! I hope to every once in a while share a bit of what I'm seeing behind the camera... so stay tuned! ;-)

I'm Anna - welcome to my little home on the web.

Obviously since you're here... well, you've probably realized I have a little niche for snapping pictures, right?

The truth is, I can't help but love the ability to look back over years of my life through an old photo album

(or, yes... even a modern-day virtual gallery).

What comes to your mind when flipping through a collection of pictures?  For me, one of the first is that life is short -
truly a "mist",  a "fleeting shadow", a "passing breeze".

Yet I am also reminded of something else - we were given SO much more than just lungs with which to breathe.  We were given a glorious world to enjoy, unique journeys to travel, and fellow souls to walk through it with!

When looking through our picture books and photo galleries, I hope you and I see more than just how short each of our moments are.
I hope we become inspired to enjoy and find meaning in the one we're living right now, seeing how important it is to soak up and make the most of the time, relationships, and love that we share with others today.


That is what I hope to give as a photographer -
images that serve as a reminder that your life is a wonderful, beautiful, God-given gift.
Our lives are imperfect and days often undone, but I think each and every part of them should be noticed and appreciated for the treasures they are.

Oh, and me?
Well... I'm a perfectionist and a detail-oriented high school student.
Warm, glowy sunshine in every season makes my heart happy, as well as laughter caught on camera, the sound of a thunderstorm at night, and singing with my sisters of all ages... even during those times we just can't keep a tune.

Though my life will always be far, far from picture-perfect, I am blessed to be able to TRULY live because of the love, joy and purpose I find in knowing our Creator not only as my Maker - but as my Savior and my friend.

What about you?  I'd love to hear... !

"For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen."

{Romans 11:36}

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