Avery + Caroline

LOVE doing these urban sessions with tons of textures and bright colors. Even better with two precious girly-girls to set off the scenery!!!

Fall Information

I know it's sweltering outside, but we are scrambling over here to get ready for the upcoming portrait holiday season!!

Holiday Cards are being custom designed EXCLUSIVELY for Devine Photography by Socially Inked, and we will have a new high-end addressing and mailing service for all of your card needs this year! Imagine ordering your cards, sending us your mailing list, and being DONE!

More information:

HOLIDAY MINI SESSIONS
will be held Saturday, September 19th at the Dallas Arboretum
$150 sitting fee for up to 2 subjects. Additional subjects $25 each, maximum of 3 total.
9am-12pm
30 minute sessions with 10-15 images to choose from
(This year we WILL be adding an additional mini session date if Saturday the 19th fills up.)

DEADLINES:
The cutoff for all sessions needed in time for Holiday Delivery is Wednesday, November 4th. The cutoff for all orders needed in time for the holidays is Friday, November 20th. After this date, there will be a 50% rush fee for orders needed in time for holiday delivery. After December 1st, the rush fee is 100%.

Sessions, as usual, are already booking up for September, October, and November...so please call ASAP to reserve your date!

972-596-5500
deanna@devine-memories.com

Chloe

This was the last of our four Baby Plan sessions with Miss Chloe. That doesn't seem possible, she has grown up so fast!

Apologies

Just in case you are a client coming here to check in wondering where I am, and I haven't been able to get in touch w/ you yet...this has been a very, very dramatic week or so with my father, and he will be having more surgery on Friday. I am working to catch up in between 3 kids and hospitals but still working. Thank you so much for your patience.

You can read updates on my father here : www.caringbridge.org/visit/bobdevine/journal

Sneak Peek Round 4

I will admit that this special Mommy has already seen these. After all, she has been through enough in the past year, and anything I can do to make her smile is worth it.

Blog readers ask me about Denise all the time. She and Ethan are doing really, really well considering...she impresses me so much with her positivity and determination. Totally my idol!!

It was tough to live up to last year's awesome location...but with some careful research, I think we did it!

Sneak Peek Round 3

This family are old friends, big brother was a client for his first birthday, and now it was little brother's turn! He is an amazing story--was born at only 21 weeks of pregnancy and is doing GREAT!

Sneak Peek Round 2

This adorable little guy charmed my socks off; what a little sweetheart

Happy First Birthday

I am incredibly behind on sneak peeks (I am incredibly behind on everything-thank you Summer) so here is my version of playing catch up.

First of all, these babies are famous around here: the winners of Image of the Year 2008 are growing up before our eyes---happy first birthday babies!!

Spring Minis Sneak Peaks

The mini session promise: Give me 30 minutes or less with your child, and I'll give you about 10 amazing images of them. (wow that sounds like a commercial)





Next mini sessions will be later this summer-we do summer minis in the fountains! My favorites all year! Let us know if you're interested and we'll set a date!

Workshop Openings

I have a couple of spots open for the next workshop, which is Saturday, June 27th from 3-5:30pm in Plano.

The cost is $250 per person and is designed to help you, the parent, learn all about your digital SLR camera. We also touch on lighting and photoshop.

Click here to read the reviews from last month's workshop

Spots are limited so email us at deanna@devine-memories.com or call 214-577-4922 to reserve your place ASAP!

Alex & Taylor

This session with some very familiar faces produced one of my new favorite images:




Confession: If I win this contest, because it is from Nickelodeon, my 10 year old son will look at me with all new respect. He is VERY impressed by this, simply because of the Nickelodeon name. I don't have the heart to tell him that it's only a small local thing. But if I win, my kid who is embarrassed by me 99% of the time will think I'm cool, if only for a minute. This? Is my motivation.
PLEASE VOTE AGAIN TODAY :)

Reese & Collin

Some fun shots for some fun kids...have been photographing these two since they were itty bitty newborns and have loved EVERY session!

Am I Your Favorite??

Remember, you can vote once a day! We're in the lead but barely!!

No sign up required- just click and vote!

For Family Photographer
in Dallas

Baby Ellie

I first met this little angel at only a few days old, and now she is the sweetest little chunk of baby and just SO MUCH fun. Such an easy session.

Chase Your Dreams

5 years ago this week, I was sitting at a restaurant with my entire family, including my parents.

The topic of conversation was very heavy. I was MISERABLE. We were young and extremely poor, we had two children, I had a very secure job with free childcare for my baby Gabby, free tuition to one of the top private schools in the area for my preschooler Mikey, great benefits, unlimited access to my kids whenever I had a break, and was always just a short walk away from my Dad, who worked at the same place I did. Yet I had been taking pictures for years, studying and practicing, and in the winter had begun taking paid clients and received my tax and business licenses. The hours from doing the photography AND working full time at the church were too much, and I had to choose one.

Did I take the safe route, where I was unchallenged and just getting through the day? Or did I really take a chance and try and make a full time career of my passion?

I sat at the table with my parents weighing the pros and cons. Finally, I said "OK, I think I'm going to turn in my notice tomorrow. I'm going to do this." I promptly jumped up from the table, ran to the bathroom and was sick. This was absolutely the scariest thing I had EVER done.

I remember that my boss was not surprised. She saw it coming. She had watched as parent after parent would file into our office over the months, requesting photo shoots. She wasn't happy about my leaving, but she definetly understood.

2 weeks later I worked my last day, said tearful goodbyes to all the parents and friends I had made, and to my Dad who hated to not be able to see his daughter and grandchildren every single day, and walked out the door with the feeling that I had NEVER FELT SO ALIVE. Scared, yes, but it was like my eyes were open to the world for the first time, and the possibilities seemed endless.

What followed was definetly NOT a piece of cake. Guillaume Barre Syndrome hit me the week I left and I was incapacitated for months. Then learning to balance the Mom thing and the working thing, all at home. Then another baby, and then the difficult events of this past year. But the business has never suffered, it took off on it's own and it has thrived for years, and I truly believe it is because of the passion behind it.

When you love something so much, everything just falls into place. If you would have told me back then that in 5 years I'd be a single mom of three kids, living in a house I bought in Plano, supporting myself and the family....well, I might not have gotten so sick at the restaurant :)

I definetly have my moments of burnout, but only because when your passion becomes your way to pay the bills, it can sometimes feel less fun and more like a burden. But I have always found a way to make it exciting again.

And what is REALLY cool about this milestone is that my younger brother Tim just turned in his resignation to his miserable job today, and is going to chase his dreams full force as well. I know the rush of adrenaline and anxiety and fear and excitement that he feels right now all too well. I am SO proud of him and know from experience that he will succeed and be happy.

Life is too short not to love your life and to be stuck just paying bills and getting by. Chase your dreams, whatever they are!!!
(this is Gabby, who is now the middle child, at the time that I quit my job 5 yrs ago)

and here she is this weekend, before her dance recital. *sigh*
(PS-Don't forget to VOTE for us by clicking here! You can vote once a day, and ask all your Facebook and Twitter friends to vote too!)

Charlie

Love this baby boy SO MUCH. He is such a joy to take pictures of. As a matter of fact, if you haven't been to our website lately, you must check it out--Mr. Charlie is the blue eyed baby on the main page!



Notice a common theme to my pictures lately? The Arboretum seems to be the #1 choice this time of year, which I love because you just can't go wrong!!!