It’s a small world out there, but I never stop getting a kick out of meeting people from southwestern PA. Julie and Matt are from a small town a little south of Johnstown, where I spent a semester at UPJ. They went to colleges in the area that I’m familiar with, and we all were able to equally lament about scraping the ice from our cars in the morning (which, cruelly enough, Geoff and I had to do this morning in North Carolina before we went to the gym). Matt was also an education major (southwestern PA produces a lot of stellar teachers) and he likewise moved south to teach down here. Julie and Matt, in addition to having this eerily similar background to me, also have two cats and enjoy staying at home (SAME). Their cats’ names are Binx and Drogo and there was a lot of debate at the shoot as to who is the better behaved cat. They’ve been living down in NC for 4 years and are getting married up in PA next summer. And this PA girl is very happy for these fellow PA folks, and so glad I got to inject a little bit of “yinz” into their engagement session in Durham. ;)
Last time I photographed this family, Patrick was a tiny goofball with short hair and Ellie was an itsy bitsy baby with short hair. Now Patrick (not that much shorter than me at this point) and Ellie both have long hair and a younger brother named Jackson. And soon they’ll all have an even younger sister! And I cannot wait to meet her because I LOVE these people. The parents, Dottie and Jon, are quite near and dear to our hearts. They’re one of the first weddings we shot and the way they supported us and recommended us to get our career off the ground was incredible, and they continue to support me to this day. Both sides of their family are also huge supporters and continue to remain in touch which is so awesome and means so much to me.
Dottie and Jon are the fantastic, intelligent couple who manage to successfully run this incredible household and be adorable while they’re at it. They’re funny and I love them. Now for extensive psychological profiles on their children: Patrick is still a goofball, but now he’s a responsible, kind, REALLY GOOD KID (all caps). He’s helpful and sweet and is careful of where and how he strikes his mom with a lightsaber because she’s pregnant (even though she was showing him no mercy). He is close with his dog Weaver, who enjoys when Patrick rides her around the yard like a small horse. Patrick is stellar. And while the entire family has a killer sense of humor, Ellie is definitely the current comic relief. She’s super silly, makes a lot of faces, has a sharp wit, and can entertain and occupy herself, as well as hold her own with two brothers. Her parents tell me she’s also insanely responsible and schedule-oriented, and easily holds the family together. And then there’s Jackson, who currently plays the role of mischievous, too-smart-for-his-own-good, completely unpredictable yet SO CUTE small child. He enjoyed the pastime of pointing a (suction cup) bow and arrow set at my face repeatedly throughout the shoot (he was respectful enough not to fire… thank you, Jackson), eating chocolate and then getting upset when the chocolate was taken away, and climbing on top of the roof of his plastic car in the two seconds we were all looking in the other direction. He’s a whirling dervish.
All three have strong (and quite funny) personalities, and I cannot wait to see what baby #4 adds to the mix. I am so delighted to have photographed these folks again and be a part of their historical documentation (especially since Dottie is a history buff). Thank you for everything always and forever, D+J.
We photographed Sara and Jackson back in 2016 when they were freshly engaged and before I knew that Sara had a household full of plants. SARA HAS A HOUSEHOLD FULL OF PLANTS. They’re all wonderful. She’s a very good plant lady. The plants like her. She keeps alive plants I’ve killed many times. Likewise, her husband Jackson and dog Pippa are also still alive (I’m clearly running out of good transitions) and thriving alongside Sara. Jackson is still a paleontologist (YAY!) but is still not Ross from Friends (booooo) and still doesn’t spend his weekends in tan khaki shorts, wool socks, hiking books, and a safari hat digging up bones with little brushes in the desert (double booooooooo). It’s really disappointing but I still like him. Sara is currently completing her masters and just finished a complicated thesis! She was thankfully not hunched over a computer typing during the shoot but instead had that satisfying look on her face of “I’ve turned in a large paper and now there’s nothing left to do.” A wonderful feeling. Together, they live with Pippa, a VERY GOOD GIRL who does tricks and is exceedingly friendly but looks like we’re constantly embarrassing her (probably because we are). So they put her in a Christmas sweater and made guacamole and I photographed it.
