Weddings are big business for photographers, and I love my brides and my weddings.  But you know what?  I think portraits are equally awesome.

Having a nice portrait is such a confidence booster.  I think everyone should have a portrait session done regularly.  And I don’t mean a drop-in-sit-down-say-cheese-then-leave kind of portrait session.  I mean a real SESSION, where you work one-on-one with a photographer in a relaxed setting, with a couple different outfits if you want, taking as long as needed, so you can look your very best.  I know boutique portraiture is expensive compared to Walmart or Sears, but it’s the EXPERIENCE you’re paying for, in addition to the uniqueness and quality of the prints.  I want all my portrait clients to know they’re getting something that is special and very different from what anyone else has.

Anyway, END RANT.  Start PHOTOS.  Here are my favorite non-wedding portraits from 2010!  There are a LOT, so be warned.  I didn’t spend hours and hours whittling this down because I wanted to show several from each shoot.  If you have a slow internet connection, I’m sorry for the wait!

1.  Brandy

Brandy asked me to do some photos for her recital poster, and I wanted to try for something very dramatic.  If you follow my work you know I’m mostly a natural light photographer.  I don’t like messing with my flash if I can avoid it.  However, I began working with off-camera strobe lighting this year, and I’ve totally fallen in love.  All the shots above were done indoors, mostly in the dark, with one strobe light fired. I love them all.  (I’m so excited to get to work on another recital poster next weekend, this time for a vocalist.)

That last one is quirkier than most of my work.  It’s shot with a wide angle, which I don’t usually use for portraits.  I didn’t realize the chair was there in the background until I got home and looked.  Now, the chair is my favorite part.  It makes me think she’s on stage with a ghost or something.

2.  Erin

Erin has been a great model for me this year.  Anytime I need help with something, she’s ready to drive on over and start posing, and usually she brings food with her!  She is hilarious, too.  What more could I want in a model?   (You’ll probably see more of Erin in the future.)

3.  The Gardners

I knew Michelle from high school, so I was really excited to get to reconnect with her and photograph her family.  The day was a lot brighter than I had hoped, but we still got some nice shots.  I love her baby Jaylyn’s eyes in this one.

This is my other favorite, because it’s such a genuine, natural family moment.  Jaylyn reached out to smack her sister Anna on the cheek, and Anna had such a good sense of humor about it.  Everyone just laughed together at the baby’s antics.

4.  Whiskers and Tails

Not all my portraits in 2009 were of people.  My first assignment was actually for the Whiskers and Tails Mousery in Bluff City, TN.  Jenny, the breeder, shows many different types of mice and asked me if I could take some photos from her website.  I was scared, I admit.  I am not a mouse fan.  BUT these little guys won me over.

5.  Maebel

Maebel is so, so cute.  I did her parents’ wedding and asked her mom, Rhiannon, if I could do some portraits of Maebel last April in order to test out a new lens.  This first shot, of her little red Chucks, is one of my favorite photos of the year.

And who can resist a little girl in a field of daffodils?

6.  Maggie

Another beautiful little girl!  I love all these photos of Maggie, especially the ones of her in the flowers.  I don’t think there’s anything prettier than backlit hair, and when it’s on a little girl in a flower field, it’s just doubly sweet.

7.  Nikki

Nikki is another friend from college (like Erin) who graciously offered to model for me last summer while I was still building a portfolio.  I think she is gorgeous!   This first shot is my favorite, because of her sneaky glance to the side and her beautiful smile.  It’s very Nikki – she’s always giggling!

8.  Precious

I’m not sure Precious’ portraits ever officially made it to blogdom, so here they are!  Precious is my cousin Audrey’s beloved miniature dachshund.  She’s growing older and they wanted some photos of her to keep for posterity.  Dogs are really hard to photograph, but this was a fun shoot.

If you don’t understand the next photo, you’ve never tried to vacuum with a dachshund in the room.  Precious HATES the vacuum.

I don’t usually do sepia, but I think it lends this next shot a certain lovely warmth.  This was definitely my favorite of the shoot.

9.  The Price Twins

Caden and Carter are the cutest twins on the planet, and I’ve gotten to photograph them TWICE!  Here are my favorite shots from both of their sessions, the first in June and the second in November.

10.  Zachary

Zachary was another repeat customer.  We did his first portraits at a playground/park, and his second portraits at the old train station downtown.

11.  The Quakenbushes

The Quakenbushes brought their three boys down to the duck pond for pictures in October.  I know Jenny and Brian from music camp and from other band things, so it was fun getting to reconnect with them.  I know they used a bunch of these photos for Christmas presents.

12.  The Stultz Siblings

Now THIS was a unique session!  Stacy and her brother wanted some photos of themselves in uniform to give to their mom for Christmas.  It was such a treat to get to hang with police officers (and Jake, the K9!) for an evening and do these photos for them.

13.  Tony

Tony is the assistant director of the Marching Virginians and needed some new head shots this year.  He wanted something a little different than the usual corporate sit-in-front-of-a-background look, so we headed downtown for these shots and then did a few in the Tech recital salon.

14.  Rachel

Rachel is my little sister who lives all way in CALIFORNIA.  She just moved out there last winter, and I had to go a whole year without seeing her!  Fortunately, she came home for Christmas, and we did some portraits while she was in.  She hasn’t had a proper blog post yet, but I’ll get to it someday!

So, here it is, January 29, just before midnight, and I have finally finished my best of 2009 collections.  Last year was so much fun, and so educational.  I can’t wait to see what 2010 brings!