Nothing like a Newborn

New dad.

New baby.

New love.

Baby Hali photographed at 10 days old.

Nikkormat EL with a Zeiss 50mm f/1.4 lens at 1.4 on Ilford 400 speed bw color negative film.

Did you just have a baby? Are you expecting? Let's talk birth stories and newborn portraits. alli@allismiles.com

Getting Ready

One of my favorite parts of wedding coverage is when the bride is prepping for her special day. It's the one part of the experience where I get to stand back and let the magic unfold with no directing or styling.

Let's capture every moment of the day you never want to forget.

For special 2012 wedding pricing, contact me at alli(at)allismiles(dot)com or (801)232-7572.

{Shot on a Nikon F100 with a 50mm 1.4 lens at f/1.4 on Ilford 400 and a Contax 645 at f/2.0 with Portra 800 desaturated.}

Schooled.

This little business of mine is about to get schooled.

I mean it.

Overhaul.

All in or all out. Details forthcoming.

Did you get engaged over the holidays? Let's create a wedding package that will blow your mind. alli(at)allismiles(dot)com.

My Memories | Review & GIVEAWAY!

Happy 2012! What better way to start off the new year than with a giveaway?! And one that I bet makes many people's resolution lists: doing something with all the photos from the last year.

My Memories sent me their digital scrapbook software to review and share! I'm not one for regular scrapbooking. I tire of the glue, mess, and constantly trying to come up with something creative for every page. Being a photographer, I want my photo albums to be image-focused. That being said, my baby just turned one, and I have yet to actually design and print his birth story, let alone his one-year album. Something about gathering all the supplies, narrowing down which photos to use, and actually sitting down and making myself do it is daunting.

Enter My Memories Suite. This software is simple, easy to use, and actually quite fun. And totally affordable to boot! The menus are user friendly, and they have lots of fun templates if you aren't feeling particularly creative or just need somewhere to start. They even have options for picking a template and letting it auto-fill all the spaces with your selected images--it will do all the work for you. For those extra-busy moms, this would be a great option. For others who desire more creative control, you can either start with a template and completely customize it (changing/adding photos, text, embellishments, etc.) till your heart's content. Then, just export and print, and your book is done.

Here are a few pages I made (in literally a few minutes' time) using the "funky" template.

You can start a project, and if you don't have time to finish it, you simply click 'save' and open it up later. No table full of paper, glue, photos, and glitter to clean up. If you want to add a few more pages, you don't have to run to the store to get more supplies. The basic software package comes with more backgrounds and embellishments than I could ever use, but for the scrapbook extraordinaire, there are additional design packages available for purchase.

My Memories is not limited to just digital scrapbooks. You can also use the software to make photobooks, cards, calendars, and other gifts without Photoshop or InDesign. It's taken me years to really learn how to use those programs, so for someone not in the business, My Memories is a fantastic alternative!

Now for the best part, My Memories Suite is offering one lucky reader a free copy of the software! To enter, visit www.mymemories.com and leave a comment with your favorite digital paper pack. For extra entries...

1. Like All Smiles Photography on facebook (and leave a comment saying you did)
2. Follow All Smiles Photography on twitter (and leave a comment saying you did)
3. Subscribe to All Smiles Photography (and leave a comment saying you did)
4. Share the link to this giveaway on facebook (and leave a comment saying you did)
5. Share the link to this giveaway on twitter (and leave a comment saying you did)
6. Share the link to this giveaway on your blog (and leave a comment saying you did)

This giveaway ends Monday, January 9th at 12:00 A.M. MST. If you don't win, not to worry! My Memories is offering $10 off the My Memories Suite v3 AND $10 to the MyMemories.com store (total $20 value) to all my readers! Just use coupon code STMMMS75953.

Good luck and Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

This year's holiday festivities were our busiest ever, as far as family celebrations go. While it was only the second year without finals (hurrah!), it was the first with a mobile baby. And with that mobile baby we were all systems go. For weeks.

Little man was graciously accommodating, finally finding the pack-n-play as an acceptable naptime destination, and maintaining good nighttime sleep despite being transported between said pack-n-play to carseat to crib so husby and I could enjoy the holiday cheer. As wonderful as the last couple months have been, baby boy and I are ready to settle back into our daily routine as husby gears up for another busy season as a CPA.

You may start to see a few more images of baby boy on this blog, though we're still keeping him off facebook. I can't wait to share my personal 2011 project with you--it centered around this sweet guy.