tammy and peter were married on a beautiful, if not a bit chilly, december day. they had an intimate gathering of family and close friends at their ceremony and reception at carrol’s creek in downtown annapolis. the wedding was actually officiated by the friend who had suggested they meet in the first place which I thought was so great and they were the best of sports and thinking warm thoughts as we headed out onto the docks for photos. I had such a wonderful time with the whole crew!

congratulations tammy and peter!!

meet the brous family! this was such a fun FUN group to work with. as soon as I met up with them in ocean city I knew it was going to be a great session – they were all relaxed and open to any suggestion that I made. then dad joel had one of the coolest suggestions ever. they own and operate the flamingo motel and wanted to incorporate it in a few of the photos…. suddenly joel said ‘well we could go on the roof’ to which I replied ‘ummm… YES!!’ I loved it! from a few dune burrs to cartwheels it was a fabulous afternoon

thank you all for such a great day – I had a blast!

usually I would post a maternity and newborn session separately, but because of the holidays and then 2 weeks of our ‘best of 2011′ posts overtaking the blog - by the time I was going to post jen’s maternity session the baby was here! so I thought it would only be appropriate to combine them now the photos from jen and brad’s beach and baltimore e-sessions and wedding are among some of my personal favorites, so when I found out that they were expecting a baby, I couldn’t wait to work with them again! jen and I set up a date for her maternity session but for a little bit it looked like baby brandon was going to make an early appearance. jen was ordered off work and we crossed our fingers as the session approached. fortunately all went well but brandon didn’t waste much time after that so it was wasn’t long until I was back at their home. jen and brad were cute before together, but with the addition of their first child they were both beaming.. and a little tired

as I was saying my good-byes and getting ready to walk out the door, jen’s grandmother came over… you just know I had to snap a quick one!

I am so SO happy for all of you and I can’t wait to see the little guy again soo! xo

meet maggie! this sweet and beautful girl belongs to my friends/former bride and groom laura & carl. laura’s mom jena was at our santa paws event with her son’s dogs and mentioned how much she would like it if I could take maggie’s photos when laura and carl came home for the holidays. absolutely!! as most of you know, one of my favorite things is working with dogs and maggie was so much fun!

I met John a year and a half ago at the gym- we seemed to always be there at the same time.  Between jumping ropes and weight sets we struck up a conversation and I found out that he was in the Coast Guard.  He was stationed here after living in Florida for awhile.  John recently shared with me that he had gotten a new best friend, a pit bull named Bella.  If you follow the blog, you know that we worked with a lot of dogs last year but never a pit bull and I was excited for the opportunity.  Because John is in the Coast Guard, I decided an ideal location would be by the water and asked him to bring his uniform and fatigues to the shoot.  The moment I saw Bella I was in love!  She is so beautiful and friendly.  When John finally let her out of the truck she bounded out and raced around her new playground.  I could instantly sense the bond between John and Bella and knew that this was a true example of man’s best friend. 

I think Bella was telling us she was ready to head home   I had a great time with you two and can’t wait til next time!

we’re starting out our new posts for 2012 with one of the nicest families I have ever worked with – the weaver family! mom bri is the sister of our groom james and he and katie got the her and husband drew a session for christmas last year. we lucked out with a gorgeous december afternoon as we shot around the grounds of saint mary’s college. daughter kendra and son jansen were constantly laughing and were adorable together which is always great and I think bri and drew had as much fun as the kids did!

thank you all for such a great afternoon – you were all so wonderful to work with!!

it’s finally here! the grand finale and last post of the best of what was the big and beautiful year of 2011! gillette portrait arts started with a handful of couples who trusted me enough to photograph one of the biggest days of their lives and in the almost 9 years since, our client list has grown to include some of the best and kindest people I have ever met. YOU are what gets us excited and inspired as we turn on computers in the early hours at the studio – it is YOU who make us beyond grateful to have a job that we love so much and it is YOU who pushes us to keep growing both as a studio and as people, expand our creative boundaries and offer you our absolute best every day. without YOU, there wouldn’t be an ‘us’ and we thank and love each and every one of you! 

during our off-season last year we were able to work with some amazing stylists, makeup artists and bridal salons for several editorial shoots. working with multiple and off the beaten track locations, we had so much fun collaborating with such talented people! our plans for 2012 are already in motion and our creative wheels are spinning as we brainstorm on concepts, locations and fashion ideas. and because I forgot them in the family ‘best of’, there are some photos of some of my favorite girls playing in the snow during an impromptu snow day session!

apart from the time we spend with the bride and groom, bridal party photos are easily one of our favorite times of the day. we worked with some really big parties this year as well as some intimate groups. it’s always so apparent how much all of these people care about each other and are excited to share in the joy of the couple. this year, we had quite a few former couples as members of several bridal parties and it’s always great to see old friends.. even at work