OUTER BANKS . . .

(Grab a cup of coffee... It's another virtual vacation!)

We have found an amazing vacation spot!! Here's James Taylor's take on it:

"In my mind I'm going to Carolina. Can't you see the sunshine, can't you just feel the moon shine?
Ain't it just like a friend of mine to hit me from behind? Yes, I'm going to Carolina in my mind."

(NO, we didn't have anyone hit us from behind (the rental car is fine...)

But we could feel the sunshine and could see the moon shine from our hotel on the beach (it was amazing!) One of the beaches, Ocracoke, was rated #1 in America! But before those of you in good ol' Michigan start feeling too bad, we are happy to say that we were amazed by how much it looked and felt like we were walking along Lake Michigan (minus the salt smell, sea turtle signs, and yucky crabs!)

We flew into Raleigh airport and after touring, we found the most beautiful mall, Southpoint, with a Cheesecake Factory - nothing says vacation like cheesecake! After the perfect start, we set out on our 3-hour driving expedition to the coast. I can become a little cranky being trapped in the car, but once we arrived at the visitor's center, it was all worth it! Here's some pictures of the highlights:

WANCHESE - We had dinner and ate the best crab legs ever at a real fisherman's wharf!





MANTEO - Check out these munchkins learning to sail. We watched them for over an hour while they played "bumper boats" and the rescue boat yelled commands at them through a bull horn. You can't pay for that kind of entertainment!



HATTERAS - NC offers a free (yes FREE) car ferry to Ocracoke Island. It took about 40 minutes and was so much fun!





CAROLINA BEACH - On our anniversary (26 YEARS!!!!!) we stayed at the Marriott Courtyard. The pool was amazing, the view was amazing, and the free strawberries were amazing. I gave it 3 thumbs up!





WILMINGTON - Hands down, our favorite city in NC is Wilmington! We ate at Elijah's on the boardwalk and toured the fantastic architecture-the scenery is a photographer's dream!



CHICK-FIL-A - I realize the average person would not consider this restaurant a "destination", but I am not the average person... We visited this southern classic twice, yes, twice in one day (did I mention Jerry is a saint?) My only question is, WHEN WILL MICHIGAN GET WITH THE PROGRAM?!?

IVY LEAGUE . . .

Steps, ivy, fountains . . . we were going for the "collegiate" look. With her winning smile, Noelle pulled it off perfectly! But SOME of us also wanted the edgy "children's museum" look (lol), too... In the end, we managed to compromise nicely, capturing a few shots of everything!

Noelle is a very special young lady with a big heart. We had the best time getting to know her and her mom over chips/cheese and cokes. She plans to pursue a teaching career - and we know she'll be fabulous!

Here's some of our picks:

FORE . . .

Isn't it amazing how talented some people are? Joey can golf, play hockey, and model (who knew?)

Joey met up with Jerry at Thousand Oaks Golf Course. Between the golfers, they managed to catch a few great pictures of Joey on the course. Then they headed downtown...

Joey is such a good sport--he was even willing to try some "James Dean" shots (white tee and jeans). They turned out so good, they made the cover of his proof book! Here's a small sample of Joey's pics:

CUTTING EDGE . . .

Shelby is a risk taker. Anyone who would sit by a dumpster to get her pictures taken knowing there is a snake within 2 feet deserves a medal for bravery! She climbed on ledges, crawled in weeds, and sat on old railroad ties all to capture the most unique pictures we have ever taken.

These pictures are truly cutting edge... Shelby gave us creative license to apply artistic affects, and they turned out amazing! Her pictures are like advertisements found in magazines from New York and LA. She's so much fun and so adventurous!!

Check this out:

LIFTING 101 . . .

Take a 9th grader, add 3 years, mix in a large dose of dedicated weightlifting and - you'll get Ryan! We've been fortunate to know him throughout high school and have watched him develop into an outstanding young man. And, to top it all off, he's even an amazing soccer player!

Ryan's pictures were a race against time... As we drove to his location, the storm clouds gathered in the west. We jumped out and started shooting right away. Each time we ran to our next spot, the winds picked up, and it started to rain more. This didn't even faze Ryan, who just kept right on smiling! My only guess is that he thought this is what we meant by "Vividimage experience!" Thankfully, we avoided the downpours and even finished at Starbucks, which is a good ending to any event!

Here's some shots we loved:

CLASS OF 2009 . . .

You'd never know it, but Amanda endured the windstorm of 2008 during her senior pictures! She moved her hair out of her eyes a million times and waited patiently for the clouds more than once! She is such a sweety, and we absolutely LOVED taking her pictures!! We were glad she had time to go out for ice cream after (even though the wind had us wearing some!)

Here's some of our favorite shots from her collection:

SURPRISE . . .

It's finally here! The best surprise EVER (in the photography world that is...) After months of waiting in anticipation, the July issue of SAILING Magazine arrived with an illustrated article that Jerry submitted - there are 12 pictures!

It came special delivery just like the stork - well, instead of pink, the delivery man wore brown (UPS) and instead of a basket, he delivered it in an envelope... OK, so it was nothing like the stork - but it was still too fun!

We sent 25 pictures - we didn't know which they would choose, what the layout would look like, or how much of the story they would print, so we couldn't wait to check it out! Instead of posting everything here, I'll just show you the issue, and you can read it for yourself - it's amazing!