• Hey, there! I'm Melissa McCrotty......a wedding and senior portrait photographer based in Russellville, Arkansas. I'm also a wife to Wes, and mommy to our two little gals, all three of whom you will probably see on this blog, if you hang around long enough!

    This blog follows my most recent shoots, as well as bits and pieces of my life and other random-ness! Thank you so much for stopping by! Now, pull up a chair and hang out for a bit......

11.17.09

Things I am Thankful For…..Session Give Away!

Wes. My girls.  Prayer and a God who hears them.  Family.  Books.  Anthropologie Catalogs.  Daylight Savings Time.  Diet Coke.  Libby (the best dog EVER).  Down comforters and high thread count sheets.  Living in America.  Grey’s Anatomy (which I recently became addicted to)  Netflix (especially instant streaming!).  Space heaters and hair dryers (I am chronically cold).  Weddings.  Love.  Life. 

Living my dreams, however small and insignificant they may seem to the outsider.  They are MY dreams, and I LOVE them.  And I LOVE living them.

These are the things I am thankful for, today.

Next week is Thanksgiving, and I am feeling thankful a little early this year.   And a little reflective.  2009 has exceeded my expectations in so many, many ways.  And, a lot of that is because of the amazing friends and clients I have who have been so awesome to visit and comment on this little piece of the Internet. 

So, leave me a comment, and tell me one thing YOU are thankful for right now.  On Saturday, I will take every comment I recieve, and randomly (out of a hat) select ONE to recieve a FREE one hour portrait session, including the CD of hi-res images, during 2010. (Yes, because 2009 is COMPLETELY booked up!) :)

Fine print (because there is always fine print):  limit of 5 people per session, session must take place in the Russellville area.

Again, I am SO incredibly thankful to everyone who takes the time to visit and comment here on this little blog.  I am thrilled beyond measure to be allowed to share bits of your life in the photographs I take.

Thank you.  

Contest ends at 11:59 p.m . Friday night, November 20th.  Winner will be announced on Saturday, November 21st. 

And because I can’t stand a blog post without pictures, here is one more from Dana and John’s wedding (full post coming tommorrow!)

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11.15.09

There’s more than one Russellville…

Funny Story….

About a year ago, when my wedding photography business was just beginning to take shape, I had a phone call from a prospective bride. It was going really well, and I felt like we were “clicking”. At some point in the conversation, I got the strange feeling the bride was not from around here. (Maybe it was that northern accent…sorry Jess, you have the accent, not me!) Suddenly, I realized this was a wedding in Missouri. We were both a little confused, but after straightening out the facts, it turns out, Jess had been referred to me by another photographer in Columbia, Missouri, who was already booked for her day.

This other photographer, (holla Mallory!), in her quest to find Jess another photographer, had scoured the Internet for photographers in cities surround Columbia. One of those surrounding cities is Russellville, Missouri. Still, with a new business, and the paralyzing fear that if I turned a wedding down, I might never book another, I readily agreed to make the 6 hour trip to Columbia for Jess’s wedding. Fast forward a few bookings and a few months down the road, and I recieve another call, from one of Jess’s friends and co-workers, Dana. Dana needed a wedding photographer, for her wedding….in Columbia, Missouri!

This weekend, Wes and I made the 6 hour trip, once again, to Columbia to shoot Dana’s wedding. And while I am now staying pretty busy shooting local weddings and likely won’t make any more trips to Columbia, I will forever be grateful to these two girls, for booking me so far in advance, and taking a chance on a newbie photographer. I have mountains of photos from this weekend to wade through, but until I can post more, here’s a teaser from Dana and John’s gorgeous Columbia wedding…

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11.12.09

Working it out

Inevitably, there comes a time at every wedding, when there is not much going on. Usually, during the reception, when everyone is eating, and giving us dirty looks, because, let’s face it, no one wants their picture taken while they’re eating. So, usually this is when we sit down for about 2 minutes (ok, it’s probably closer to 15, but it feels like 2) and refuel. Then, we wander around the reception hall, and look for great candid moments. At some point, we usually end up turning the camera on each other.

And, I always groan when I come to these shots later on, but sometimes, I save a few….for posterity, I suppose. So, here are a few of us, working it out…..

Why you can’t shoot at 180 degree angles of each other during the first look…. oops (we quickly re-aligned!)

One job Wes always ends up with….because he is so much taller than me….official dress hanger-upper

Showing Amy how to pose….it looks way cuter when she does it…trust me.

Gotta show off that something blue…

Besides the fact that it is soo convenient, what I love the most about my Shootsac. — it covers my big butt in shots like this!

What kind of angle are you shooting there, babe?

Wes is getting a little bit creative on the sneaky shots….

I’ve tried to convice him he really doesn’t need the LiveStrong bracelet while shooting weddings…..to no avail. I’ve learned to pick my battles.

Happy Thursday!

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11.11.09

Living under a rock…

Because apparently, I have been. Living. Under. A. Rock. I just discovered Pandora Internet Radio. Why is this a big deal to me? Because I spend way too much time on my computer, editing pictures, and even though there are millions of online playlist sites, I can never think of what I want to hear, when I want to hear it. So, I end up putting something like 10 songs on a playlist, and then listening to them over and over and over, until I no longer even like the song.

I am so in love with Pandora. You simply type in a song or artist you like, and create your very own “station”. Pandora will find similar artists, and if you get a song you don’t like…give it a thumbs down. Pandora will apologize and promise to NEVER play that song again on your radio station! HOW COOL! If only I could train the kids with a simple thumbs down. Conversely, give the song a thumbs up, and Pandora will look for more, similar music.

And, because posts are B-O-R-I-N-G without pictures, here is a sneak peak at Marika’s bridals. Unfortunately, this is all I can show you until the December wedding, as Marika doesn’t trust Ken not to cheat and look. And, because I know how gorgeous Marika looked today, I can’t really blame him:)

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11.10.09

Conway Engagement Session: Kevin + Tyler

When I asked about how they met, they looked at each other and laughed. It’s more like they can’t remember a time when they before they knew each other. Seventh grade, maybe? Same school, same neighborhood, same friends. Then, eventually, high school sweethearts. After high school, they enrolled, together, at The University of Central Arkansas, and spent their college years….together.

Near the end of their college careers, Tyler starts to ponder the question everyone kept asking her….When? When are you guys going to make this official….when is the big day….when is Kevin going to put a ring on that finger? And, as we girls tend to, Tyler got a little tired of waiting. A little tired of the question she didn’t know the answer to.

But Kevin knew the answer…… all along. More than anything, he simply wanted to surprise her. To pop the questions when she least expected it. So he waited, too long some may say, he waited for the perfect moment, when Tyler, who is impossible to surprise, would be suprised.

During a trip home for a family birthday party, Kevin arranged for the entire family, both sides, to be in on his suprise. Surrounded by love and their families, Kevin finally asked the question. And, of course, she said yes. And, she was suprised.

I am thrilled we get to shoot Tyler and Kevin’s wedding in Greenwood this May. When Tyler described it as vintage-goth, I swooned. It is going to be fabulous. Just like the engagement session! Check out a few of my favorites their Conway session…..

More from the session in the slideshow:

Thanks, Tyler and Kevin! Can’t wait for the wedding:)

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