It never ceases to amaze me how two people, so distinctly different, can come from the same womb. My sister and I, while the best of friends, are intensely and powerfully different individuals. I envy all that my sister is. She possesses skills, outlooks, creativity, generosity, and of course an unmatched ability to derive laughter from even the hardest of hearts that I wish I was blessed with. She is intensely gorgeous, fiendishly loyal, impulsively giving, uninhibitedly humorous, the list goes on….

Despite the fact that it is 2010, I am lucky enough to have a sister who will take the time to make and send handmade letters just because. Growing up, if I was having a bad day, TraciLyn would intentionally fall in public (to the degree of maiming herself), or pretend to be an intense germ-a-phobe and try to pay for items pulling out cash with Kleenex. She always gives the Starbucks barista an interesting name with the upmost sincerity- yesterday she was Poco. She has a pet rat named Ru Paul and an obese (sorry, but I had to say it) weiner dog named Lady Godiva who is the best of friends with my Buster Bluth. TL and I will search the Craigslist personals (back before they got jank nasty) and read them to one another convincingly until we cried with laughter.

One family dinner TraciLyn decided it would be hilarious to dress up as a 70 year old woman named “Kitty M. Tat” and just walk behind the counter at the restaurant and start working. When we saw “BiCentennial Man” she decided to cover herself in aluminum foil. If I see someone I know that she doesn’t, she’ll ask a few facts about the person and then approach them, hug them while saying their name, and convince them that they know her, to which they become (understandably) confused (she did this to Blaine the first time they met- it’s a miracle he stuck around!). She enjoys going to the “Fantasy Photo” studio to take pictures with her pets to use as her Christmas card- or just because. My sister is so marvelous that she has a Facebook album titled, “It’s fun being friends with Traci Arnett”… and you WANT to be in that album. I only wish that I was cool enough to be in it more frequently.

She loves goats. Her license plate frame says, “Neil Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend”. There are few people as marvelous, hilarious, or wonderful as she is. She is the only person on the planet that I allow to call me Shannon (My cousin Jessie gets to only when I am in select moods). It’s not even my legal name anymore, but I let her because I love her that much.

She wears costumes many days it isn’t Halloween. When we saw Patrick Dempsey in public, all of us clammed up and of course TL shouts, “You’re the reason I went to nursing school Dr. McDreamy!!!”. His wife was less than thrilled.

I fully envy my sister. Despite the fact that I just wrote this post, she’ll probably only read it because I tagged her in it on Facebook and will likely roll her eyes with the banality of it. You see, God gave my sister the power to invest and believe in what is important, and everything else is just fluff. She is an oncology nurse and deals with people at their lowest of lows, but I can guarantee that every single patient is utterly blessed with having her laughter and jesting in their lives at their darkest hour. She loves intensely, but can move forward in a way I do not possess. I am so intensely proud of her in a way that really only my parents should be allowed to be.

I am so deeply blessed by my SheShe and I am so thrilled that she was born (on today of all days!!!!). I feel lucky enough to that she was born my sister for so many reasons, one of which is because I am fairly confident if we weren’t related by blood she would get so bored of me I wouldn’t be lucky enough to get any of her time. She has always been one of my photography guinea pigs and I am lucky to have such a gorgeous guinea pig at that! I am sure many of you reading this have been blessed by her as well so feel free to leave a funny TL story or moment.

Sisters are amazing, and I encourage all of you tell your siblings that… you don’t have to be as crafty as TL and send a handmade card to express that!

I love you, SheShe!

xoxo,
Shannon (I will only do that once and just for you).

P.S. Yes, in that first photo I am fully blowing out her candles. Again, I do not possess all those marvelous selflessness genetics that she does.

P.S.S. I took every other photo in this post- the rest were taken by my momma who inspired me to get into photography. I love you, Mo! (with the exception of the Fantasy Photo Studio photo of course!!!).

For those of you not located in the fabulous state of California or the selectively blessed cities in the neighboring states, you may not know what In-N-Out is. While I would prefer to succinctly describe it as “glory”, my eight grade English teacher might be upset that I put her lessons in creative writing to shame.

In-N-Out is the most divine fast food burger establishment on Planet Earth. They boast a bitty baby menu (burger, cheeseburger, fries, soda, milkshakes) and impeccable customer service. Do I think that In-N-Out could sell the most delicious chicken sandwich? Possibly. However, In-N-Out has an amazing business model that I strive to achieve: simplicity. They choose to set themselves apart from their competition by focusing on making their strengths even stronger. (Literally- have you ever met a pouty or unhappy In-N-Out employee?!?). They do not franchise their brand because they want complete control over their brand and the In-N-Out experience.

I think one of the issues many photographers (or really any business owner for that matter) face is spending a ridiculous amount of time making their weaknesses mediocre, rather than making their strengths even more exemplary. With all of the attention being poured into their weaknesses, even their strengths begin to take a nosedive. There are so many factors and “jobs” to be done as a photographer: editing, album design, finance, client meetings, accounting, customer service, zumba classes to be able to participate in dance offs at weddings, and, oh yeah- shooting photos. I believe that one of my strengths is shooting photos and so by golly that’s what I plan on focusing making even more delicious.

Enter my segway into albums. I think that wedding albums are an invaluable investment that every couple should very seriously consider. Sure, you have the digital rights and can look at your photos any time on your (most likely not color calibrated) computer. But there is something so incredibly magical and tangible about holding the photos in your hands, turning the pages to relive the day and let the story unfold. I did not get a wedding album made for a long time (I am totally guilty of it too!) and I cannot tell you how much more often I look at my photos in the album rather than when I just had them on my computer. (And it takes forever to thumb through 500+ photos rather than the selected treasured photos from the day!).

So, in order to continue to make my photography even more delicious, I have also decided to outsource my album design to an amazing graphic designer. Can I design albums? Sure. Am I the best graphic designer on the planet? Hardly. I plan on continuing to take amazing photographs and developing and maintaining friendships with clients, and I’ll leave the design to a true design professional. I believe in the end it will make my clients even happier because instead of spending countless hours doing decent album design work, they are getting the designs of a brilliant graphic artist and the photos from a more satisfied photographer. You wouldn’t want my graphic artist shooting your wedding, and for the same reason you more than likely don’t want a photographer designing your albums (unless of course it is one of their strengths and they have WAYYYY more free time than I do!). I am certain there are photographers out there who do killer designs (sorry, I’ve been watching too much Dexter lately!), but for now I want to focus on being a photographer:) (and a good one at that!!!)

xoxo,
SAW

One my favorite couples had the sweetest little baby boy. (I put in a photo to stir your memory for those of you faithful blog followers!)

10 fingers.
10 toes.

Just about perfect.

xoxo,
SAW

All is right in the world.

There are celebrations that make you feel just that- undeniable peace, love, and comfort. That all is as it should be. When Blaine and I were driving home from Chris and Jen’s wedding, we looked at each other and said, “Now THAT is how a wedding should be!” Overwhelming giggles, unending kisses, supportive friends, ecstatic family, a killer dance party, crazy screaming to Journey……. the whole shabang. I feel so immensely blessed to be involved in such monumental events that solidify love in the most powerful way. And we are so lucky to make amazing friends like Chris and Jen along the way!

Chris and Jen got married at the Stone Tree Golf Club in Novato. The day was beautifully executed by Michelle of Dream a Little Dream Events, the sun was shining, the wine was flowing, the love was unending. Jen did such an impeccable job choosing the bridal party attire (ummm, hello, could her headpiece or those bridesmaids dresses be ANY cuter!?!?). It was such a bliss filled day and I must say we got some amazing photos to prove that!

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me know what you think!

xoxo,
SAW

The fabulous vendors:
Venue: Stone Tree Golf Club
Planner: Michelle of Dream a Little Dream Events
DJ: Perfect Day Music
Makeup: Sherrie Long
Flowers: Julie Stevens Design
Cake: Laurie Lucov Wedding Cakes
Dress and Hairpiece: Priscilla of Boston
Bridesmaids Dresses: Siri Inc.

I make myself happy with delicious. This wedding rocked my world…. so much glory to come.

xoxo,
SAW