Best of Jacksonville 2009: Photographer /// Scarlett Lillian Review

What a surprise! My friend Ginger sent me a text message yesterday saying "Congratulations for winning Jacksonville Bride magazine's #1 Best Photographer of 2009!"

My reaction was, "Huh? What are you taking about?"

Was there a contest? A poll? Picked by the editors? I didn't even know I was in the running for anything.

I'm in California right now, so through the wonderful world of iPhones, she sent me a picture of the page in Jacksonville Bride magazine. I couldn't believe it. Readers voted and chose me as #1. How did that happen?

So to all who voted, wow, thank you so much from the bottom of my heart! What an awesome surprise and it made my day! I've been a runner up many times in life, but never actually WON.

I was excited to see my stylish make up artist friend Paulina Perez also won Best Make Up Artist. Since I'm out of town right now, her hubby scanned over a copy for me. Thanks Skip! (Here's some cute lovey dovey photos of Skip and Paulina I took and some hot bridal shots I took of Paulina!)


Here's the Jacksonville Bride magazine cover.


I still can't believe I was named #1 wedding photographer in Jacksonville! I just want to pinch myself!

Blogging vs. Twitter vs. Facebook

I feel like, now that I have Twitter, I blog less. Do you feel that your blogging has decreased too with the arrival of Twitter?

Before, when something cool happened, or I got a random thought, I used to think, "Oh I can't wait to blog about this," but now, I don't blog about it because I just end up Twittering it as it's happening. So then I don't want to blog about it after it's old news. It's just hard to keep up!

I was telling Mark the other night, I hate that I write less on my blog now. I don't know if it's because I haven't felt inspired. Or I'm becoming bad at balancing my time trying to get so much work done. Or perhaps, being in a wonderful relationship with Mark, as much I want to blog all our cool adventures, I want to keep some part of my life private and just for us, you know? I actually had a bride tell me recently "I'm, um, happy that you found a great guy, but I'm not happy that you are traveling to see him so much because you don't blog as much anymore." ha! I guess it's true.

I think part of me too has been a little burned out, and some days I just feel like I'm going through the motions. Trying to move forward. Trying not to remember how my life changed in February losing a big part of my heart when my father passed. Yet trying to remember it so I won't forget. And Twittering seems like such a numbing outlet, while blogging seems like it has become overwhelming these days. At least my personal thoughts like I used to write about. I of course still love posting all the photoshoots I'm doing for clients! And I feel so blessed that I have work to keep me busy and distracted and moving forward, especially in this tough economy.

So I decided to get personal again and resurface an old Facebook favorite. I never participated in it back in the day, so here goes my take at it now:

25 Random Things About Me

1. I honestly hate talking about myself. I would much rather hear about you and ask you questions. So coming up with 25 things is going to be a challenge for me. Especially since I already put so much out there about me on the blog.
2. I do have other colors in my closet besides pink.

3. At 2 months old, my mom put me in a baby pageant and yes, I won Miss Baby Jacksonville.

4. I played with Barbies still LONG after I told everyone I stopped. I couldn't help it, I liked playing dress up with them.

5. I used to publish an international teen girl's Christian beauty magazine called Beautiful Girl that focused on beauty from the inside out.

6. I used to be big time into the drama club and school plays, but now I have the hugest stage fright. No, really! Anytime you see me put myself out there, it's because I'm forcing myself to walk through the fear.

7. I grew up thinking I was going to be an architect and would sit around as a child designing floor plans all day.

8. I didn't have an imaginary friend growing up, I had a whole big imaginary family with 10 brothers and sisters. I think the only child in me was bored.

9. I was obsessed with Debbie Gibson and had a Debbie Gibson birthday cake for my 4th grade birthday cake.

10. I've also been obsessed with Cher from Clueless, Elle from Legally Blonde, Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson and NSync. But I was like the one person that hated New Kids On The Block. I don't know why!

11. I originally was going to name my dog Butterscotch b/c of the color of his ears... but I didn't want to call him by saying "Hey Butt, come here Butt!" So I went with Rhett instead.

12. I have a weakness for hot dogs slathered in sauerkraut.

13. I have a weakness for brownies and chocolate chip cookies. And pretty much anything else chocolate. And most recently, cupcakes.

14. My favorite memories with my dad are when we used to go fishing on the lake we lived on.

15. My favorite memories with my mom were Wednesday night dinner dates at Olive Garden in high school when my dad would go golfing each week.

16. I've been obsessed with make up and fashion as long as I can remember, always wanting to be like my diva mom. I'll never forget when I was like 5 and broke into my mom's make up box to have her come home and catch me with lipstick all over my face. Or the time I snuck in her closet and tried on her gold stilettos and broke the heel. Eek!

17. The past year, my skin broke out soooo horribly like a teenager all over again, I mean, it has been BAD! Seriously, what IS the deal with this adult acne? Anyone know a good cure????

18. I watch way more TV now with DVR than I ever did before. I haven't decided if that's a good or bad thing yet.

19. I hate the phone and pretty much let everything go to voicemail with a message saying to email me instead.

20. I hate to run, but I love to run, all at the same time.

21. I hate drama and honestly feel sorry for those who feel the need to create it in their lives. It's so sad that some mean girls and bullies still exist in your adult years. But as God instructs, I pray for my enemies to find His loving peace.

22. In the winter time, I never really shaved a lot. One benefit of being single. Until Mark had to come along.

23. I have a 2001 silver Toyota Celica.

24. Though it comes with many headaches and long hours, I love being an entrepreneur!

25. I'm obsessed with Paris, France and want to go so bad, but I refuse to go without some fabulous reason for my 1st trip.

Now enough about me, tell me some random things about YOU!

Los Angeles fashion workshop photos!

On a wedding day, the bride looks her most beautiful, and I love giving her permission to BE beautiful and totally work it for my camera during her bridal session before walking down the aisle.

When I shoot weddings, the night before, I love flipping through fashion magazines and getting inspired to turn my bride into a supermodel the next day. Forget the wedding magazines, it's the fashion magazines I love to devour to get ideas for posing and lighting and out of the box things to do with a couple. I love capturing a cool ad or editorial spread on my iPhone and referencing it during the day if I'm stuck for ideas. I've found my brides love looking at the iPhone too to get what I'm talking about when I tell them to do some weird pose! ha

A few weeks ago I was in Los Angeles to attend the FashionPhotographyBlog.com workshop put on by the talented Melissa Rodwell. I've been wanting to branch out from weddings and also start doing more fashion photography (no, I'm NOT giving up weddings, keyword: branch out), so it was fun to go and learn more about that side of the industry.

I discovered that my new favorite light is the Beauty Dish which we shot for the photos with the hat. Then we used a softbox and rim light in the back for the other photos. And it was cool, we shot at Siren Studios on Sunset Blvd., where a lot of celebrities had been shot at, like Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Kim Kardashian, Jenny McCarthy (ha, hey, I've shot her too!), etc.

Our model Joni was only 16 years old, so I posted her photos on my high school Senior blog for some new Sweet 16 photos! If you know a 16 year old or 2010 Senior who wants her own fashion shoot, send her my way to scarlett@scarlettlillian.com!

Here's a sneak peek at the pics, but check out the rest at http://scarlettlillianseniors.blogspot.com! And yeah, apparently this bronzy gold is the new "it" color for Fall Fashion 2009.

The hidden pleasure of cupcakes.

When in Los Angeles a few weeks ago (pictures still to come from that!), there was nothing I wanted more than a Sprinkles cupcake that I kept hearing so much about. After dinner with Mark at The Ivy on Friday night (we didn't see any celebs there, but we saw Matthew Perry at my hotel), I was bummed to call and hear Sprinkles was closed for dessert.

On Saturday morning, the fashion workshop I was attending was starting and I had to say goodbye to my wonderful Mark who drove 5 hours down from Monterey to take to me the workshop. Friday night after dinner, we had one of those long talks where you realize how hard relationships really are as you both start to learn to compromise and grow patient with each other's needs as the infatuation phase fades and you really start to get into the nitty gritty of what makes a relationship work.

Monday morning, as he dropped me off, it felt like having to leave a conversation that wasn't finished, but we said our goodbyes anyway. Then, as it got close to lunch, he sent me a text asking if he left his camera in my purse. Turns out he didn't, but he said he had something else he wanted to bring me. I thought he was already heading back home, but I guess not.

I stepped outside the studio to see him waiting by his truck with his hands behind his back. I confess, as I walked toward him, it kind of felt like I was in a chick flick sitting in the audience of the movie theater wondering what he was hiding behind his back. I went up to him and gave him a hug, and he asked me what I had for lunch. When I told him, he asked if I had eaten dessert yet, and I said, "No, why?" Next thing I know, he pulls out from behind him a box of Sprinkles cupcakes!!!! I squealed!! Literally.

In that moment, everything was ok again. Just like he became my hero holding my hand through my dad's funeral, he became my hero all over again by surprising me with cupcakes that day. That's one of the many reasons I love him!

As I became domesticated and baked my own cupcakes this weekend, I realized, that's exactly why cupcakes have become so popular again. Yeah they taste great, and as my friend Beth and I discussed on the phone, they are like a treat you don't have to feel guilty about because you are just having one cupcake, not a whole cake. But beyond that, I realized, the reason why I have a new obsession with them is because of what they symbolize.... eating a cupcake means everything is ok in the world for that moment in time.

I can't remember ever making cupcakes with my mom, but when I when I think of eating cupcakes, I think of being a child.

Before worries.
Before fat grams and calories mattered.
Before money stress and bills to pay.
Before losing loved ones.
Before mean girls.
Before heartbreaks.
Before complications.

Eating a cupcake, everything is simple all over again and it reminds me of that childlike wonder and faith that Jesus tells us to build our own faith around.

I hope you have a cupcake kind of day!

Heather spent the day with me!

I hope that when I'm a wife and mom, that I will be as cool as Heather. From the moment she walked in my door, she was so cheery and bubbly and full of smiles and energy. She is so excited to be taking her love of photography and turning it into a career, with the next step, getting a blog and website up!

For our photoshoot together, we captured the flirt between fashion student Ashley and her boyfriend Paul around the Jacksonville Omni Hotel and down Jacksonville. Ashley went to school with my wonderful bride Danielle, and she dreams of working for a fashion magazine like Elle when she graduates from FSU (woo hoo, Goooo Seminoles!)

Here's my fave shots of Heather and Ashley and Paul and their full slideshow at the end!



































And the slideshow....

Dancing down the aisle.

My friend sent me this video and all I could say was WOW.

Now this is what I call a GRAND entrance.

I can only imagine.

The day after my dad's 5 month anniversary of being gone, I was driving home from a shoot and saw this gorgeous sunset God painted for me over the St. Johns River. I just had to pull over and capture it. Looking at it, it almost feels like the old days when daddy used to call me up with his usual "Hi Sunshine!" to which I always replied "Hi Clouds!"

Ok, cry, tears. It's crazy how you never forget the sound of someone's voice.

Anyways, I can't help but think, wow, this picture is just a glimpse of the beauty my dad is seeing now in Heaven. Like Mercy Me said, I can only imagine.

Rachel & Andrew are married! Marianna Wedding at Citizen's Lodge.

Looking at Rachel's bridal portraits, it's crazy how much I see our grandmother's face in hers, or Memaw as I always called her. Rachel is my cousin who I hadn't seen in many many years, but right before my dad's passing, he and his brother, Rachel's dad, reunited. Soon after, I found out Rachel was getting married, and it was great to reunite too with my cousin through her wedding, and shoot the wedding in honor of our fathers.

Mom joined me for a road trip to the panhandle of Florida, and we had a great time seeing more of my dad's side of the family. It was crazy how even in the small town of Marianna, at the wedding, I ran into a girl who followed my blog who had no idea I was the photographer (Hey sweetie! It was so great to meet you!). I also ran into another girl who was the client of another photographer I recently shot in Jacksonville. And at the home of Rachel's It truly is a small world after all!

Here's my favorite photos of the day at Citizen's Lodge and their slideshow below!




I thought this was funny how she was putting her fake eyelashes on in the bathtub!








Rachel has the prettiest blue eyes!






















My momma pinning the boutonniere on my dad's brother Randy.


I love this sweet shot of Rachel and her dad.


My dad's sister Patsy, my mom, and dad's brother Randy.


Was this ring bearer the cutest or what?


Rachel chose to have her brother Josh walk her down the aisle. I love the timing of the light in this shot!


















I love how my mom became the annoying family member right in your shot taking a photo with her iPhone. ;-) Love you mom!




My cousin and I!


And the slideshow....