willowdawn | Whidbey Island, Washington's Premier Photographer » willowdawn

I missed the sailboats.

willowdawn — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 04:18:49 +0000

Race Week just finished here on Whidbey Island and well, I missed all the boats in the cove and the photo ops that come along with them. First couple of days I was busy, yesterday I was held hostage by Comcast cable (and my internet STILL goes out… grrrr!) and today I was having such a nice time socializing that I got distracted and FORGOT to get down to the wharf in time. It’s not like it was an arduous journey, the wharf is only two blocks away! Oh well, I’ll have to be more diligent next year.

*paying respect where it’s due… I saw a similar shot on the Coupeville facebook page and HAD to go recreate it for myself. Theirs of course was filled with lovely sail boats racing and Mt. Baker is FULLY visible. I’m jealous and will have to make do with my partially visible Mt. Baker and the sailboats heading back to Oak Harbor.

I adore Poppies!

willowdawn — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 18:30:09 +0000

Well, OK, I love flowers. But Poppies definitely rank amongst my favorites. Just around the corner from our new home is a garden that was simply overflowing with the most amazing Poppies. Unfortunately for me, I was a bit distracted trying to get our new home established and so only recently had a chance to go grab a few shots of the flowers. The Poppies are definitely past their prime as many were gone, leaving seed pods in their stead, but there were plenty still to admire.

And who can ignore the lovely Queen Anne’s Lace. Though I’m betting most have not seen it so up close and personal before… I do love my macro lens!

A little collage of our trip.

willowdawn — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 02:06:48 +0000

So our very very busy first week of June started with the sale of our home (closing) on May 28th, our daughter’s graduation on May 29th and then she and I starting our journey west, across the US. Starting in Virginia and ending in Washington, here are just a few pics of our journey and what we’ve discovered on our new island home. As I type this, I realize that I’ve completely forgotten some important stops along the way – that I do in fact have photos of, so I will have to update this when I figure out where I’ve put those pics. We are currently between homes, living in a couple (yes plural) small apartments whilst we await our move in to the house we’ve rented for the two years we will be here. So until I get my act together, enjoy the first installment…

AJ’s grandmother let AJ and her friend drive to lunch in Grandma’s BMW convertible. I’m pretty sure there is a rumour that the car was a gift. No such luck for AJ. We hit a lot of “big sky” in Montana, discovered the darling town of Leavenworth, WA – and then proceeded onto our island home. Our first night, I found a heart shaped rock and a couple of days later I found a crab, holding a crab town council. That amazing poppy is growing in my new front yard. Yep, I’m a happy girl!!!

The sun DOES shine in this part of the world!

willowdawn — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 21:55:14 +0000

And I’ve got the sunburn on my shoulders to prove it! Seriously though, we’ve had some amazingly beautiful days and I’ve been taking full advantage of them to discover as many hidden gems on this island as I can. Yesterday, my youngest and I hit Fort Casey to check it out – and to enjoy the weather! WOW! Fields of flowers, concrete structures, a lighthouse and a beach. It’s a photographer’s one stop shop for locations! Though the fact that it closes at dusk does throw a bit of a damper on it. I still think my faithful readers should get used to seeing it!

Sweet Family of Seven!

willowdawn — Tue, 18 May 2010 12:02:30 +0000

The above is what happens when you tell five children to “pose themselves”. The real, relaxed and genuine “kid” comes out. These gorgeous children belong to another local photographer and friend – and if you read photography blogs at all, I’m sure you’ve heard about “Photographer’s Child Syndrome” or PCS for short. The children of photographer’s have become immune to having their portraits made… and can become shall we say, less than co-operative. Not bratty, or belligerent, just easily bored. The excitement is long gone for our children, and they know that another session is still in their future. And as a result, we often walk away from sessions with our own families without the beautiful portraits we create for our clients. Sometimes, having a photographer other than “mom”, is just what is needed to be sure that the “cobbler’s children will have shoes”. And as an added bonus, Mom gets to be in the photos too!

Promotional portraits – CrossfitSpotsy.com

willowdawn — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 12:59:56 +0000

A very very dear friend of mine owns and operates CrossFitSpotsy in Fredericksburg, Virginia. She is an amazing athlete and was looking for some photos to use on the gym’s website, highlighting some of the classic CrossFit exercises. If you are not familiar with CrossFit – is a core strength and conditioning program. Used to train emergency workers, military and police forces around the country, but totally applicable to all people of all fitness levels. If you are looking to start working out, to get back in shape or even if you think you are in shape – but want to take your fitness to the next level – give Lisa a call at CrossFitSpotsy – 540-207-6841.

And now for a little motivation for you… Lisa is the mother of three, grown children. If she wasn’t such an incredible human being, we’d all hate her!

Sunrise engagement session.

willowdawn — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 18:39:03 +0000

In spite of the absolutely gorgeous weather we’ve been having, it is still COLD when the sun comes up! It was a balmy 38 degrees F when we set out yesterday morning, hoping and praying for a lovely spring sunrise. But the early rising and braving the cold paid off as we got some gorgeous images for W & T as we celebrate their pending nuptials. You may recognize Miss T from my website as she is the very first person I ever photographed, other than my own family. And it because of her that I started willowdawn photography. So of course it was my absolute pleasure to shoot some engagement photos for this amazing young couple.

Enjoy your sneak peek… and I’ll have the rest of your photos finished soon!

Oh, and a HUGE thank you to Miss T for having a first aid kit in her car and using her knowledge to fix up my finger! *Note to self, go buy first aid kits for cars…

Let it snow!

willowdawn — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 22:15:40 +0000

I’ve got milk, toilet paper, bread, eggs, coffee and pancake mix. I can survive! So bring it on. It will give me more time to file my taxes (blech!), clean my house (double blech!) read a book, watch a movie or work on my Etsy shoppe! I might even go out shooting. If the roads seem passable and it’s not a bajillion below zero with wind chill factors – keep an eye out here. Maybe we can go out and play! I love shooting in the snow. I tortured my poor children last year, the winds were HOWLING and it was COLD COLD COLD… but it was worth it! Don’t my children look happy with me?

So here’s hoping for more pleasant snow days to shoot on this year. If you are interested in a snow session, holler!

And a shameless plug for my Etsy shoppe – I uploaded 10 new images… and yes, a couple of beachy ones! Check them out!

Well, colour me flattered!

willowdawn — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:17:32 +0000

It’s been an exciting week for my little corner of the Etsy world. I hope you’ve gone over and checked out all of the amazing and wonderful handmade (or vintage!) things on Etsy.com and have seen the wonderful items featured on the front page. Those collections are called “treasuries” and are made by other members of Etsy. There are hundreds of treasuries at any one time and this week, two lovely Etsy members created treasuries, and included one of my images in them!

This first treasury features my Eilean Donan Castle print. Movie buffs may recognize this castle as it used in many motion pictures, most recently in Made of Honor and was also used for the filming of Highlander.

CLICK HERE to view this treasury on the web and to leave a comment.

BTW – Allerleirauh is a Brother’s Grimm fairy tale.

This wonderful treasury was also featured in a blog entry featuring the “Elite Eight” where Sarah and Olivia select their eight favorite treasuries! You can check out their blog here – some truly beautiful treasuries are featured!

Then today I awoke to learn that another image of mine was included in yet another stunning treasury! This one featuring all things lovely in shades of cream, white, grey and beige. But good beige, lol!

You can CLICK HERE to view this treasury and leave a comment.

So a big THANK YOU to both SimplySaren and Natalya1905 for including my images in your treasuries. If you enjoyed their treasuries, take a moment to let them know! I’ve only managed to put together one treasury – it’s a lot of work. Fun work, but work none the less!

And the winner is….

willowdawn — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 13:33:02 +0000

Amiee! Congratulations… you may choose any 5×7 print from my Etsy.com Shoppe. BUT you may wish to wait just a couple of more days. I have more beautiful images to add, but with the snow, their delivery has been delayed and well, I honestly don’t remember what exactly I ordered in exactly which size. ”Old Timers” kicking in… sigh.

Remember that you may enter as many times as you wish – all that is needed is a relative comment on any of my blogs. Each comment = one entry. A new month and a new drawing begins – today!

I don’t remember ALL the images I’ve ordered prints of, but I do know that this image is one of the new ones, and with all the wintery bluster, thought a bit of bright cheery happiness would be welcomed by all.