It was a casual invitation by Cara’s best guy friend to come along and participate in a kickball league game.  Little did she expect that she’d meet her future husband, Chad, who was on the team.  After a friend request through Facebook, Chad asked messaged her, “So, when are we going to hang out?” and hanging out soon turned into a year and a half of dating, and a sweet proposal at the top of Phoenix’s premiere and most difficult hiking trail, Camelback Mountain.

Hiking on the way to the top, Chad worried if Cara was going to make it or if he’d have to change his plans and stop along side of the trail to propose – he was ready to do that as well.  He kept encouraging her to push through to reach the summit – 2,704 feet overlooking the Phoenix Valley.  Alas, they reached the top and Chad suggested they take a photo and handed his phone to a fellow hiker, and whispered, “It’s on video!”  Confused, the hiker quickly caught on and documented Chad getting down on bended knee.

I am honored and thrilled to be a part of a long time friend’s event, having met Chad during my time at UofA and kept in touch all these years.  ”Is it that pretty redhead?” I asked Chad, having seen her face on his Instagram feed.  There’s something super wonderful about  seeing an old friend find  his  soulmate and knowing that he will be well taken care of and have a lifetime of laughter and adventure with a gal who can keep up.  Chad is one of the kindest souls, so I knew even before meeting Cara that she had to have an equally kind and warm personality, and it was all confirmed during our first meeting.  Cara and Chad, my heart is overflowing with happiness for you both, you are absolutely made for each other.  I cannot wait to see you this fall and have a wonderful time with you both!

Diana Elizabeth wants you to know that Mr. Wonderful drove her to Prescott and even helped carry her lenses.  He thought it was super fun and on the way home asked if she wanted him to get into photography to help her.  She kindly responded, no, he definitely doesn’t have to, but his willingness to carry her equipment and drive her around is more than enough.

Portraits

Some people fear change. Some prefer to never change and some even fight it even when it should happen.

As a creative, change is my lifestyle. I’m constantly changing my surroundings to change what inspires me, to change the direction of my life, and I’m very much open to change when my heart and mind tells me it’s time.  Time to learn new things, time to evolve – as a person and creative.  Managing a business as an entrepreneur is challenging. If I want to continue loving what I do, I’ve begun to realize that change needs to occur – a few things I need to stop, so I can focus elsewhere.  Can you imagine what you’d miss out on had you not decided to change or go in another direction?

Some people don’t get it.  They think people like us are either unfocused, overly ambitious, or never content.  I can’t really answer that because really, no answer will ever make them fully understand.  I think it’s outgrowing the things that have already made you into the person you are, and wanting to try more things in order to stretch your creativity, curiosity, or it can be as simple as growing up and heading into a new chapter.  Don’t be hard on yourself fellow like-minded creative friends, you’re not living to please anyone else.

I absolutely love photography, but I found that a part of my life continually kept creeping into my blog posts.  It was the every day ordinary life of what I do on a daily basis.  Since marrying Mr. Wonderful, I have been encouraged to try new things.  I’m becoming bolder about cooking, gardening, and home design.  I’m asking questions so I can learn, and through it all, I’m finding my most joyful moments are when I’m fixing up our little old home or out pulling weeds in the yard.  No doubt about it when I look at my career that my talents I’ve collected along the way have always been brought into the next endeavor.  I didn’t know my passion for writing would lead me to major in journalism, start a career in it and that the design hobby since high school of building websites and playing with photoshop would make me open up a small graphic design boutique, which then would lead me to a corporate marketing job which would then teach me how to market my own photography business and design my collateral pieces.  And little would I know writing would be weaving itself throughout all of my creative positions, and now photography will compliment the basis of my creativity, my writing, as I yearn to share more.  You never fully quit doing what you love, but you can pull back a little and concentrate on something else you’ve fallen madly in love with.

I hope to take this site to be more of a lifestyle blog with an emphasis in photography.  I’ll be using photography as a means to show you my life as a wife who is on the road to the domestic life (and nothing has been mastered if anything ever will).  I will always, always be a photographer no matter what I do, just like I will always be a writer no matter what I do – it just seems as though I’m returning to my first love.

If you’re a creative who is wondering if you should or can change to another creative career, I’m reminding you that you can.  My thought is this – no matter how my career evolves, I still have my degree and experience I can always return to.  I’m loosing nothing by evolving, changing and focusing my time. In fact, I gain more time and freedom.  I have more time to see my friends, build up my dreams, serve my husband and craft!

I’m breaking the rules about photography blogs (you know, the idea that a photographer simply showcases their work and not their life).  The truth of the matter is, I’m not shooting weddings every weekend or portraits every week – and I’ve strategically made it that way.  This blog will show more of me, more of my everyday life which is why I renamed it to “Portraits of Everyday Joy”.  I want this blog to be a gathering place for ideas and inspiration, and share my gardening, our home, a lifestyle, my fashion, some modeling, and the randomness of experiences all which are the joy that’s in my little life here on Earth, as well as showcase the work that I love doing, which is photographing and teaching you.

I certainly hope you’ll enjoy this journey and new change with me.

Diana Elizabeth has had many talks with creatives changing direction.  She especially loved she heard the phrase, “I’m going to pull a Diana,” which meant, a new direction, a new ambition a new path!  Don’t feel pegged to stay as one thing your entire life – a lifetime is too long to keep doing the same old thing!

Personal, Photography

My best friend Meagan is amazing, and she has a wonderful family.  I love attending all of her functions, her birthday party, the kid’s birthday parties, showers, you name it because it means I get to see her siblings and parents who I have been able to love and spend time with over the years.  Many of the sessions you see take place on their farm land in Buckeye (they are also dairy farmers) which changes from barley, alfalfa and cotton to name a few.  They have always been so generous and supportive of my photography that I joke because of them, they allow me to take images that attract amazing clients and landscaping images that are hard to come by in the city!

Sine told me she and Bill will be celebrating their 33rd anniversary at the end of this month, so this was perfect timing to document a wonderful occasion.

After our time together I had a lot of time to think as I drove home, and began to think about my girlfriend’s who live here and how much I love being around their families and feeling close to them. It means so much to me since my parents are back in Nor Cal and Mr. Wonderful’s parents are in Illinois.  We feel so blessed to have such close friendships and are able to enjoy being welcomed into our friend’s families since Phoenix is our home away from home.

Congratulations Sine and Bill on 33 years of marriage, four kids, three grand babies (and more to go!) and a beautiful relationship that continually glorifies the Lord.

Here they are posing with their two of their three grandkids – these little dudes belong to Meagan and were patient while we shot around the farm.

Diana Elizabeth says the drive to Buckeye is worth it for the amazing fields and the exclusivity.  She was also thinking that she sure does love farm land and could see the perks of living on one!

Portraits

When I told Angela Saban to design the wedding of her dreams, she immediately said, southern.  This is why Angela and I love collaborating, we love the sweet south, the romance, simplicity, and the timelessness of it all!

This concept shoot was created for my 2-on-1 wedding workshop where I mentored two sweet and talented photographers exclusively all day who want to dive into the wedding industry and learn how to market themselves, shoot better, and develop their style.  It was a long day with lots of information, portfolio review, and shooting a beautiful set up.

Angela and I are trying to start a movement.  Although we’re in Phoenix and Arizona is the Southwest, we’d like to drop the “west” and be considered south so we can catch on with the Southern inspired weddings that we love.  Make sure you scroll all the way to the end to see the workshop in action, thanks to Love Story Films for capturing the day!

A bourbon and biscuits dessert bar – with homemade grapefruit curd made by Angela Saban herself – she’s also a pastry chef!

I had a blast with these two, Poly and Alan:

Watch the behind the scenes captured by Love Story Films who were wonderful, hire them for your next event!

Event designer: Angela Saban / Wedding gown and pearl belt: Enzoani courtesy of Uptown Bridal & Boutique / Florals: The Garage by Ivy / Stationery: Celebrations in Paper / Hair: Vonn Wynn / Makeup: Brenna Heater / Veils: Bel Aire courtesy of Uptown Bridal & Boutique / Earrings: The Audrey Earring, by Meg courtesy of Uptown Bridal & Boutique /  Tea length blush gown: Destinations by Mon Cheri courtesy of Uptown Bridal & Boutique / Pearl clutch: Uptown Bridal & Boutique / Necklace: Everything Angelic / Gluten Free Cake: Angel Cakes Bakery / Magnolia napkins: SMP Living / Models: Brenna and Nate Heater / Cinematography: Love Story Films

Diana Elizabeth missed Alan and Poly as soon as she dropped them off.  What a fun time and she hopes their paths cross again soon!

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Is this me, or what?

I discovered Miss Inslee from Lauren Snow, a Phoenix makeup artist (she worked on my recent bride Emmy).  Lauren’s illustration looked so much like her that I had to know what I would look like too! And with a little shift for this blog and a few changes on the way, I figured this was the perfect opportunity to commission her to draw me.

Here’s what’s pretty awesome:

• I’m showing my good side.
• My hair part is like dead on with my widows-peak cowlick that goes in that direction.
• My eyebrows are like exactly the way I do them – seriously look to my little circle thumbnail to the right!
• The camera I’m holding is my dad’s old Olympus OM-1 film camera I use - a DSLR just isn’t as pretty.
• Citrus trees in the background, hello story of my life.

I know it sounds silly to think, Hey, it looks like me!  When that’s what I wanted, but I wasn’t quite sure if I’d look overly glamorous or who knows.  Mr. Wonderful said, “It’s so beautiful honey!!! Is it weird if I kiss and hug my phone?!”  Thanks again Inslee!

Diana Elizabeth loves her outfit too, she should buy one just like it.

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Hey look at this sweet spot in my house for lighting.  The shutters angled up and bounced the light off the ceiling and onto my awesome burlap Target stools.

What a perfect spot to show off my Alt for Everyone Goodie Box.  My online blogging courses starts today.  It’s the online version of ALT SLC and all the other cool cities.  I find it more convenient with my schedule as I don’t have to fly anywhere, find a hotel or go to social parties because right now I’m an old lady and I want to be in PJ’s by 7 pm.

A sweet box came yesterday and I wanted to share what was inside because these small businesses spent a lot of time and materials to give to us bloggers and I appreciate it.

Handmade bee and soy wax crayon block letters by Childhoodlist.com. They are super soft and good for the environment!

A camera bag full of other goodies by BlueQ!  You’ve probably seen a ton of their products in little boutiques.

Sweet notecards by Pixel Impress.  Love calligraphy details and sending snail mail!

I’m super excited to wear this adorable necklace by Zelma Rose.

Handmade cupcake flags by Lingering Daydreams and yummy candy from Bing.

Alright, off I go to learn the fun stuff and legal stuff about blogging and all that jazz.  I hope you’ll see a difference in my blogging!

Equipment used:  5D Mark III / 50mm/1.2 lens

Diana Elizabeth is thankful for businesses who sponsor items in gift bags because she understands the time and talent it takes to donate their services.  Yes publicity is the tradeoff, but it’s still a risk.  Thanks to all the businesses included in the Alt for Everyone Goodie Box.

Personal

Last week my girlfriend Jennifer welcomed her second little girl to the world.  Meet Miss Allyson Sky.

Last week it was my third time witnessing a delivery with camera in hand, and after a quick post on Facebook, I was surprised by the response and knew I had to write about capturing birth stories. After all, does anyone else feel like everyone around them is having a baby?  Last winter I had 15 pregnant friends!

I’ll be writing a much more in depth article to appear on PhotoTuts+ where you will begin seeing super in depth how-to’s by me (as in, 1500 word articles).  But for now I’ll keep it simple and give a few tips whether you’re professional or hobbyist to help you document the day as well as you can.

Tips on capturing a birth story:

• Turn off your flash.  No no flashy flash.
• Pick an ISO that’s high enough, works well, and stick to it.  With everything going on, you won’t have time to change it. You’ll be indoors the entire time anyway.
• Your light will change – some rooms will be darker than others, lights will turn on, some areas will be better lit. You can manage proper exposure by quickly adjusting with your F-stop. I choose to shoot at F2.0 and stay around that range to let enough light in, but still get sharp images. Again, ensure your shutterspeed is fast enough to get a sharp image as you toggle from say F1.4 to F3.2.
• Know you aren’t constricted to sitting on the chair, but ask what you are not allowed to touch (you really shouldn’t touch anything).
• Document what’s going on, emotions, capture the clock, who is visiting, the contraction charts.
• You are not there to stage, ask to repeat, or do anything.  This is not portrait time during a wedding. You must shoot fast, know your focal point, correct settings, and shoot.  There are no re-do’s when the baby comes out (you can’t put it back), when they clean, weigh, measure, or footprint be there and document quickly.
• Be aware of baby privates, mommy privates, and strategically crop or capture when either isn’t exposed.  You can do so by your positioning or waiting for a better moment.
• As you edit, typically B&W images cut away distractions and allow you to focus on the feelings.  I prefer all birth story photos in B&W.

From different past captured birth story moments (different babies in all pics):

Here is a slideshow of a birth story I captured a few years ago, I’d say this accurately depicts a successful documentation.  If you have 5 minutes, watch this – it’s a very special mom in my life, I have known her since she was 10 and I was in college.   You will see a few shots of me in there.

Good luck capturing your birth stories, don’t be afraid to move around and be creative!

Diana Elizabeth doesn’t regularly shoot birth stories but she has been there as support if she’s super close to the mom’s who need her in the room. She just so happens to decide to bring her camera with her too – with permission of course.

Photography, Portraits

I’ve been posting so much but not really telling you what I’ve been up to lately.  I thought about telling you everything but then I figured by doing so I might stress you out.  But somehow, through it all, I have not complained, had a freak out, but just triumphed through with a smile.  But, there’s so much I want to tell you that’s been going on so I’ll just highlight a few wonderful things that I’ll be elaborating on soon.

#1 One of my bests had a baby and I was there to see the C-section

You probably saw the quick image I posted on Facebook.  Tomorrow I’ll post about how to capture a birth-story for those who expressed interest.  Three years ago I saw Jen’s first baby delivery which was an unexpected C-section and very unexpected because I’d have no idea I’d be in the room with her as that was going on – her husband gets a little woosie.  So since this C-section was scheduled, I was prepared!

#2 I hosted a 2-on-1 Wedding Workshop at my house

I had thought about hosting a live workshop, but never really got around to it.  Sometimes, you put on these things, e-courses included just praying that one or two people will enroll so you don’t feel like a total loser.  It’s hard to put yourself out there repeatedly and not be sure if it’ll be well received and this was one of those things.  Alan and Poly have taken several e-courses of mine (and had met in one of my courses and became like best photog friends) and they wanted to learn more about being professional wedding photographers to make a good, stable living off it and so out they flew all the way from Florida!  We spent all day going through a structured day of presentations on marketing, everything I knew, relationship building, portfolio review, and even had a styled session by Angela Saban waiting for us with live models!  That post goes up this Friday with a video by Love Story Films.  I’m happy to now offer 2-on-1 mentoring so you can grab a buddy and come out to get all the mentoring you need with exclusive attention.  I don’t know if I could go any larger because I really do care about that teacher, student ratio.

#3 Our yard has been under major surgery this past week

We just installed a sprinkler system. We have irrigation (flooding of the yard) in our neighborhood since that’s how we do it in Phoenix, at least in the older home areas.  In the spring and summer we have irrigation twice a month but come winter time, it’s once a month and we have to do winter rye because well, everything just dies here in the summer so we have to replant life.  So sad, I know.   Anyway, it looked like a gopher attacked our front and backyard. The sprinklers will be great when we plant the winter grass instead of pulling out hoses and sprinklers which was such a pain to move continually.  We have also had another delivery from Whitfill Nursery, a new lime and a pink lemon tree (see the little fruit that looks like a watermelon).  The apriums are ready (mini apricots) and I finally tried my Cuisinart Stainless-Steel ice cream maker and did a sorbet which Mr. Wonderful said tasted “earthy” and then decided he liked it.  The birds who I’ve been inviting into our yard are suddenly pests to me as they nibble on my strawberries and apriums that I have to get bird netting and hoops to keep them out.  I’ll show you what it’ll look like when the box arrives.  This urban-farming thing in Phoenix is huge and it’s been fun to just try new things, if it doesn’t work, you can always get a new one.  I find the magic is really just watering.

In other news, this blog will get a wee bit of a face-lift change by Ribbons of Red hopefully by the end of this week and following that, a few upcoming announcements on my end on what I’m doing with my career and life.  More writing, more thoughts, and as always, more sharing.

Diana Elizabeth is looking forward to summer slowing things down.  Time to take new photos of the home to show you what’s been going on!

Personal

Before I became a Christian, I had just met Jennifer.  Immediately, I took a liking to her.  She is as friendly and joyful as she looks, a true testimony of Christ.  She was one of the first and most influential on my life when I was a new Christian – we had in depth talks over lunches, she was patient and a huge encouragement as my mind was renewed, and she always delivered God’s word to me in a way that I could understand, and yearn to grow.  Her sweet spirit is what drew me in, and seeing her genuine heart is why I confided in her as I tried to find my footing in my early stages of my new life.

It’s been years since I met her, and when I think of our genuine friendship, it reminds me that a friend like her are the ones that are hard to come by.  I think of all the times she was there for me when life got hard – like really, really hard.  Through it all, her presence alone comforted me and she always gave me the gift of her prayers.

I’m excited to document baby boy number three who will probably be given an equally awesome and strong name as his older brothers Owen and Eli.  Congratulations JM, you are like a real sister to me.  I feel so fortunate that the Lord placed you in my life at every moment I needed you.  I love you so much and you bless me with your friendship that makes God feel all that more present in my life.  I admire you more than you know, and you have shaped me so very much into who I am today.  I cannot wait to love on your next little one!

She’s also a signed with talent agency Dani’s Agency, not surprising!

Diana Elizabeth is going to share a random fact with you – she got baptized in JMar’s pool many years ago.

Portraits

Hoping you have a wonderful Mother’s Day this weekend.  If you ask me, you can never over give to your mom.

If you enjoyed the infographic about Mother’s Day created by FTD.com, please feel free to share it!

Diana Elizabeth thinks her mommy friends are amazing.  By watching what they do, she realizes how much her own mother did for her.

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