Down Syndrome of Central Texas "Share the Passion" Gala

Once again, I volunteered for this great event this year and had so much fun. Every year the local Down Syndrome Association here (DSACT) puts together a yearly calendar to raise revenue for their cause. They always combine a local Down Syndrome child with a celebrity for each month on the calendar and then they have a huge kick off party which is this gala. The children that star in the calendar for the year get the ultimate treatment at the gala. They arrive in limos, the crowd is screaming for them, the paparazzi is there (that's me!)photographing them as well as KVUE News and then they have a loooooong, red carpet for them to walk into the party. It is just the cutest thing you have ever seen! Some of the kids are very receptive to the whooping and hollering while others are quite shy by all the attention. This year they even had Elvis there performing some of his dance moves. It really is a great cause and if anyone would be interested in purchasing a calendar please click on over to DSACT and get yourself one!

I want to be...

This year has really thrown me a lot of curve balls and it seems that they haven't stopped yet. It would be so easy to crawl under a rock and hide from the world but I just can't do it. I keep on pluggin' along and looking for joy and hope in all the small things from a ray of sunshine coming through the clouds to watching my son jam on his guitar (or "sweet axe" as he calls it). I received an email from my best friend today with this link and I wanted to share it with you all. It was exactly what I needed to hear and see. And, life will go on.

My First Senior Model Shoot-CHELSEA

So, I have recruited a few high school 2011 Seniors to be models for Brandi Nellis Photography but I would like a few more. If you know any really cute AND outgoing senior guys or girls please send them my way. Chelsea knew she wanted a "country" shoot so she found Old Settlers Park up in Round Rock and it was just a fabulous location to do her shoot. We worked our way around the old red barn, tractors and little cabins dodging wasps the entire way. Yikes. She was an awesome model and we had a great time during her shoot. Check out some of my favs of her and how about those eyes...

The Nutritionist

I photographed Dawn a few weeks ago. She is a local nutritionist who hired me to photograph her and some of her closest friends (Fruit and Veggie) for her website she's working on. We had a great time at Boggy Creek Farms even though there wasn't much to choose from we managed to put together a beautiful basket for her shoot. The only reason why there wasn't much is b/c of the time of the year. The poor plants are all withered from the blistering TX sun. They've got more crops blooming soon with the cooler weather. So, if anyone out there (like me) needs a nutritionist let me know and I'll pass Dawn's information along to you. She has a wonderful spirit about her and is a true kid at heart. :)

Riley's 13th Birthday Party

Every once in awhile I get to do a shoot that's completely different and out of my normal family and kids realm. My client's daughter turned 13 and she rented a "Rockin' Ride" which is a karaoke bus. The bus tools all over the city while you and your friends get to karaoke in the retro looking bus. The bus sort of looks like Austin Powers to me so all the crazy colors made it super groovy to photograph in. It was sort of a cowgirl themed party b/c the birthday girl loves country music so we met up at one of Austin's cute, rustic bars and I photographed a bunch of 13 year old girls outside of it! It was too cute. I shot most of the pics around the bar and then we had to do a few with and in the bus.

Headin' To The Beach!!!

Hey all, just a last minute thought that I had...my family is heading down to Port Aransas/North Padre Beach this weekend so if anyone is down there and would like family photos let me know. I'll have my camera gear with me! We've decided to do it "old school" and camp out (ohhhhh boy!). When LeRoy and I first met and we we're dirt poor we'd go down to the beach and camp out or just sleep in his parent's OLD van and it was hysterically fun. Since, our little family is needing some good laughs we decided to go "old school" again. This is either going to go really, really well or really, really bad...stay tuned! :)

Lots O' Love

I met the "B" family last week down at Zilker Park and we just had a great time wandering around Zilker and taking all sorts of great photos. Their little girl is friend's with my niece and I just love their little personalities at this age. They're so excited to be in the photos...well, their daughter was excited to be in the photos. My niece is never excited when I whip my camera out to start shooting. :) Little "Baby I" did so good in the heat and weathering his first shoot at 5 months. I couldn't be prouder of the shots that we got. Check them out!