the week started out amazing. easter! we went to copper for their last day and they had probably 8 inches of fresh snow with several inches the few days before. it was glorious. and we discovered an area that we hadn’t ridden before that was just bliss for tree runs. those trees right there behind aaron’s head. the best!

gorgeous day, we rocked the snow, and then…reel big fish! yeah! like the band we all loved in the 8th and 9th grade was totally performing for free! it was fun to pretend to skank with all the other older kids there who knew it looked dumb even back in the day.

so pretty amazing easter, i’d say. until we realize aaron’s board is gone. not misplaced, totally ganked. everyone we told couldn’t believe us. things don’t happen like that around here. people leave keys in unlocked cars! wallets on unoccupied tables! it was super weak sauce.

thankfully, aaron had packed his other board (which at the time i thought was silly since we were trying to pack as little as possible, but i fully admit i was wrong and thank goodness he jammed it into the snowboard bag), but the brand new bindings he just bought in december…what a shame. now he has some new (to him) ones that look like they were made out of legos. but they work well enough.

the rest of this week has been kind of a blur. had to work a ton early in the week which was actually really fun because the boss bought me a wacom tablet to use with our new videos. i’m really pumped about this new project and i think it is going to be really useful to a lot of people. we i am trying to get some fancy Ph.D people on board to look it over and lend us some of their reputation.

so we are chillin’ finally got firewood delivered, so the crackling sounds of burning wood keep us warm. also, some fun pictures of our condo. these people apparently like bears.

the master bedroom.

the bear pillows. love. them.

the compulsory antler chandelier. also very much love this. i want to know how you end up making these as your job.

also this week: mark of leahandmark.com posted an interview of me! we did it right before i left atlanta and it was definitely a revealing experience for someone to record everything you say.

up next week: brewery tour with matt and tracey!!! asa’s birthday/thesis party! mama and daddy rv it out west! should be an amazing/busy week which will be cool after this chillin’ at home week. until then…video of week 4 of awesomeness (see if you can spy my beautifully developing goggle tan):

really good times this week. can’t believe it’s true kind of amazing snow at copper mountain. i got a 3 day pass and we used it well. first, of course, aaron made me hike up to the top of the tallest mountain in the park. he carried my board for me. he really is a sweet guy. but geez. i didn’t do it again no matter how amazing the 2 foot powder was coming down that bowl. pretty good day until aaron saw the T-Bar lift was open and said we HAD to go up it. he got up his first try. the total “dude” running the thing noticed i clearly had no idea what to do, babied me along with 12 people waiting behind me. every time i messed it up, which was many, he kept making me try again. it was a mix between this and this just about. but i’m pretty sure ours was faster. by the 8th time or so when i fell down trying to get on it, people actually started laughing out loud. it was horrible. i think i was crying inside my goggles from embarrassment when i finally got it and lurched up the mountain. only to realize i didn’t have the arm strength to make it the whole way up and fell off again. “dude” kindly came by a few minutes later to tell me not to sit in the middle of the lift path and to hop down to try again. no thanks. i spent the next hour on one tree run down to the base alternatively feeling awesome for making quick turns and feeling like crying for falling in 4 feet of powder and having to dig myself out. seriously, when was the last time someone actually laughed AT you? a total stranger. it was horrible.  i think this sign just about says it for the runs we did at copper:

aside from ridiculous snowboarding good/bad times, we took a mini road trip down to leadville and buena vista (which locals apparently call “byoony” a shortened version of the mispronunciation of its spanish name). we are were considering leadville as a possible future homesite. affordable, in the rockies, decent sized community, film festival every year, and rich history:

but i think as you can see even under the sign here, that’s about what everything looks like in leadville. trailers, reaaaaaallly old tiny houses that look really crummy. and there were so many of them! there were maybe 10 really gorgeous houses with beautiful details in the woodwork and stuff, and all the tiny houses were clearly supposed to be miniatures with the same idea, but bleh, they were not well taken care of. it’s not like i was expecting morningside, atlanta quality, but come on…(funnier if you say it in gob bluth’s voice).

so we didn’t even stop in leadville. we just drove around and kept going to “byoony”. while far away from, well, everything, buena vista is pretty amazing. it’s in the “banana belt” which means it’s a bit warmer than surrounding areas. so that’s nice. and, it is at the base of the collegiate peaks: mount harvard, mount princeton, mount columbia, and mount yale which are breathtakingly beautiful. it also has hot springs! which we serious were kicking ourselves for not bringing swimsuits. but we will be back.

had some lunch at a local brewery, eddyline, thanks to a recommendation from yelp. and it is located in this strange new part of town where all the houses are 3 feet from each other and are brand new but built in the old style. i thought it was pretty creepy, but lack of food was making me crazy. so eddyline…scrumptious food, okay beer. also okay service. when i asked for a beer list, the waiter said “we have an ipa, a pale ale, a lager, an amber, a porter, a stout, and a honey wheat.” well, okay…i don’t know that much about beer, but i know more than most people. i’d even like to know what hops are in what or malts or…something! we settled for our waiter’s two favorites: the porter and the ipa. they were okay. nothing terrible, but if we go back, we’d buy more. especially since if you mention yelp, you get the pints for $2.50.

but the pizza with lavender on it was out of this world. chicken, mozz, red onions, feta, and lavender…i want more right now. but after lunch, we wandered over to the arkansas river where albus immediately dived in. and then got washed down the white water rapids. it was funny. for about 20 seconds, and then it seemed like the poor pup could only think to swim straight back towards us, which just resulted in him flowing farther down stream. aaron had to run down the trail and call him to the bank. silly doodle.

and we got some sweet pics in around this living room set made out of tile next to the river. (title photo!) and you can see some of the collegiate peaks behind aaron. not sure which ones they are though.

then we definitely went to the local coffee roaster in town…only to be disappointed again. people don’t really care about coffee here it seems. everything is very sub par for us coffee snobs.

visited a goat cheese farm on the way back. they no joke had about 30 different flavors of goat cheese. we bought 3 and 2 pucks of goat’s milk soap which turned out to be terrible. not the cheese, the cheese is amazing and i want to eat it with a spoon. the soap was brown with ugly “confetti” pieces and some chunks of cinnamon which really scratch my skin. not a fan.

that’s about it for week 3. nothing short of amazing and really looking forward to week 4! easter, possible soaper friends, and…more snow!!!

video 3 of awesomeness:

this morning, aaron was on a conference call which was kind of distracting, so i took albus in the back yard while i finally took out the good camera and tried to capture some of the gorgeous everything that surrounds us here. i also got around to finally photographing the soaps i made right before leaving atlanta. yey! soaps! so i turns out, snow is quite a beautiful backdrop for product photos.

you get your camera and start walking around in 3 feet of snow to capture those little moments of a drop falling off an icicle, or a pillow of snow precariously balanced on a tiny branch of pine needles, or the mallard standing on the one rock in the middle of the stream oblivious to the pile of snow on his back. and i got a few of those. but albus found a tennis ball from who knows where and quickly frightened away all the ducks and destroyed the pristine snow by the rushing stream. so i took pictures of him too. he’s just so photogenic, i couldn’t help it. i think the lesson learned is that while you may set out to be all artsy and try to get that one artistic shot of snowflakes on a rock in a stream, your best photos are what you really care about. and i care about a fluffy, snow loving goldendoodle named albus. and i think it shows in the photographs.

the pretty surroundings:

the pensive, adorable, albus who so patiently poses beautifully for head shots:

and the real dog albus that loves to fetch and is slightly freaked out by the ducks in the stream:

happiness is a face in the snow looking for your dearest toy.

this is from last week, but there was no way to fit its awesomeness into the weekly mash up video.

albus is seriously the coolest dog i know. not because he is mine, or looks a lot like a wizard for whom i named him, or that he listens to what i’m saying with human eyes, but because he actually does really useful things for me and he is so happy to do them!

albus, if you ever learn to use the internet and read, which i assume you will some day, i can’t wait to hear your comments on this exact situation. because i assume if you can use the internet and read, you can clearly talk to me. i await the day.

you’re the best! around!

i know, i know. the pictures is not from colorado. it’s from piedmont park in the atl. he just looks to majestic not to share.

week two still feels like vacation. maybe because i am smiling so much my jaw hurts. maybe because aaron is home every day, working 25 feet away and looking out at the same snow covered mountains i see. maybe life just feels like vacation when you find where you are supposed to be, who you are supposed to be with, and what you are supposed to do.

we’ve certainly gotten our jobs done. moving to a place where both our bosses know we are tempted to snowboard every day has actually made us work harder. there is more motivation to produce more and of higher quality so that they know they can trust us to work remotely. colorado is just a test. sure, i want to snowboard and play in the snow, but not every day. what about if we move to costa rica? or chile? or the italian riviera? will it be as easy to work when there is a beach outside? we shall see…

but since we got all our work done this last week AND we got a foot of snow, we couldn’t help but enjoy the snow a bit. and a beer or two after a long day. since snowboarding burns between 2,000-3,000 calories a day, a hefty IPA or two isn’t such a bad idea. oh, and a-basin is just too cool. all their disposable cups are 100% compostable. too cool!

life is good…no, awesome. maybe when life is awesome, you don’t need vacations…

here’s a little video of our past week of awesomeness:

so it’s been a week, but it feels like we got here yesterday. we got to our condo at 4am, chilled out for a quick second, slept for about 4 hours, then headed to the basin to meet up with sam and camilo! snow tires are the jam, by the way. feels like we are in a four wheel drive snow mobile.

bluebird days followed by beautiful snowy days. romping around with albus, discovering the best beer shops, and curling up on the couch to watch a movie. which was postponed! the xbox died! the red ring of death. probably my fault for watching all three law and order shows from first to last season for a year. now we have a new xbox and it’s so cute! kind of telling about us that the second the xbox died, we bought a new one on amazon with 2 day shipping.

i worked all weekend to catch up on work. i’ve figured out which couch i like best and aaron has set up his post in the dining room. it’s really awesome to look up from work and smile or make kissy faces at each other. we take turns making lunch for each other, although aaron has made more and better lunches than me by far. it’s great having a lunch buddy again. i was so used to eating by myself that i would just make something quick and eat while i kept working. having a break in the day to talk about work, afternoon plans, and just life in general is really relaxing.

albus also enjoys the many short trips to the backyard aaron provides as small breaks throughout the day. he was made for the snow. he just buries his face in it any chance he gets. he’s adjusting really well to only having one toy: dolphin and one chew: elk antler. he has ignored the ducks so far, but went crazy when a fox ran through the back yard. can’t wait to take him to the basin to run around with the other pups after the lifts close.

getting to and living in colorado for the first week has been nothing short of amazing. kind of feels like vacation!

we made it! a little earlier than we thought too!

we have just embarked on the coolest thing we could think of: working remotely from around the world for however long we want to. frisco, colorado is up first! end of the snow season, awesome friends in denver, and a life of adventure.

after an insane two weeks of packing, yard sale, threats from the police, and sweet/sad goodbyes with friends, we had an easy first leg of about 5 hours from atlanta to nashville with some really cool fog in the tennessee appalachian mountains. we could barely see 20 yards in front of us.

were welcomed by an amazingly delicious hot meal with matt and tracey. albus got to play his little heart out with saul in preparation for the next many many hours in the car. matt showed and shared his beautiful beer collection with us as he told us all about the very fast approaching east nashville beer fest. after moving to nashville, matt had the awesome insight to put this festival together featuring local foods, craft beer, local bands, and 50% of profits to the Ride for Reading charity. unfortunately, it was the first weekend we’d be in colorado and after all that driving to get to CO, it’d be tough to do it again for the festival. but next year, i’m first in line!

day 2 of our trip: we made great time after some tasty espresso thanks to tracey! we got to st. louis just in time for a late lunch at pappy’s with bbq, ribs, deep fried corn, green beans i suspect were sauteed in bacon grease, sweet potato fries dusted in sugar, and potato salad with bacon in it. sooooooo amazing.

we went on a very interesting detour through the Old North area of St. Louis. the number of abandoned buildings was amazing. boarded up homes, stores, and even beautiful churches lined the streets. you could definitely film a post apocalyptic/zombie movie there and have no need for extra sets. definitely want to explore that area a little more on our way back to the south sometime.

i took over the wheel and conquered missouri in just under four hours. stopped at a great mediterranean place in kansas city, zaina.  we mentioned we had found them on yelp and they got really excited and recommended their favorite dishes for us for dinner. he said the tabouleh was better than his grandmother’s and boy, was he right.

i had the energy, so i kept driving! very unlike me. i *hate* driving. but we were thinking if i could drive as far as possible, aaron could maybe finish the rest of the drive all the way! i made it just past salina kansas and pulled into a gas station on fumes. next time you drive through kansas, get gas at every gas station because you never know when the next one will be. it was pretty nerve racking having the gas light come on in the middle of kansas darkness.

aaron, with the help of five hour energy and a giant bag of reese’s pieces, took the wheel and i passed out. i’m not a very good road trip buddy at night. my parents used to drive me around in the car to make me sleepy as a baby, so i think it stuck. i woke up in denver and dozed in and out for the next hour to frisco despite Girl Talk at top volume. we made it!

can *not* believe we get to live here for two months.

It has certainly been far too long between updates, but I have to tell you. I’ve been working hard on the photography front. So let’s start with my favorite project of the last few months, the wedding of Meredith and Justin. I’m just not sure a cooler bride and groom exist on this planet. They were both so cool and calm and laughing and smiling and perfectly awesome the whole day!

Getting ready was photography heaven as both the “getting ready” suite and the reception were at the beautiful Van Horne Manor in Monroe, GA. Beautiful old southern decor. We had quite a lot of fun with the chaise lounge in the women’s suite. Well, we had fun the whole day! From the beautifully decorated church all ready for Christmas, to the antique getaway car, the super delicious food, and the amazing DJ and dance party, I don’t think I put my camera down for more than 30 seconds at a time.

Enjoy.

Meredith and Justin, you two are truly awesome. You never stopped smiling or laughing or staring at each other with that look that makes everyone else in the room smile too. Thank you so much for having me at your wedding. It was truly an honor.

I can’t say enough about how awesome Andrew & Katie are. I walked away from our initial meeting months ago just inspired by how much love they had for each other and their newborn daughter Ella. They just couldn’t stop staring at each other and then at Ella, then kissing each other, then kissing Ella. It was beautiful. And every wedding picture just has love all over it.

I just love being a photographer. I get invited to people’s most important days and I get not only to participate, but to help them remember the special moments forever. Every time I take a picture, I take a deep breath and hope that I can capture the moment just how they remember it.

And this wedding made me feel like I wish I had 4 assistants! Every moment was a picture moment. Ella was absolutely precious, Katie couldn’t have looked more beautiful, and Andrew was the proudest, most handsome father and groom I have ever seen. I was really grateful to have one of my favorite photographer pals, Jason Spruill, as my assistant that day. We definitely filled up every memory card we brought.

One of my favorite parts of the whole day was Ella. I mean…what. a. beautiful. baby. I couldn’t stop taking pictures of her. And people just couldn’t stop holding her.

Andrew & Katie had the wedding and reception at the family lake house in Hiawassee, GA. It was GOREGOUS!!! White fences, a red barn, the Blue Ridge Mountains, and a lake in the background of every picture? Awesome!

And Katie’s mother decorated every square inch of the property with beautiful Autumn flowers, leaves, corn stalks, pumpkins, and more. When she told me it hadn’t been professionally decorated, I am sure my mouth dropped open in shock. Everything was perfect the colors came out beautifully in the photographs.

Definitely one of the most beautiful weddings I’ve been to. Congratulations to Katie and Andrew! And Ella! You have a gorgeous family and I wish you all the love and luck in the world!

I love photobooths. They are kind of like vacations as far as photography goes. They are a pain to set up, you get all stressed out about everything being just right, wondering if it will all go as planned, then you get 3-4 hours of just relaxing shooting. I mean, people get creative in photobooths! Give them a mustache and a picture frame and they do most of the work for you!

I was so proud to be asked to set up a photobooth for LeahAndMark at Gay Pride night at the High. Being a Midtown resident, I had already participated in several of the week’s celebrations and was super pumped to get to go to a swanky celebrity themed party at the High Museum of Art.

I love Pride week. It’s such a beautiful thing for everyone to be so celebratory of their love. No one should have to hide their love and I am thankful to live in a neighborhood and city (for the most part) in the South where men and women can be open with who they love. And a week to celebrate it, just awesome.

We had a bit of trouble with the flashes since my flash trigger wouldn’t work with Robby and Christy Bennett’s flashes. So that was a bummer. But I think it worked out pretty well. We got some fabulous pictures.