Children 
Engaged
Families 
Weddings
Posted on February 28, 2013
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Amber and Casey are awesome.
Amber is a dental school student at MUSC, and Casey is an airline pilot.
They take their careers very seriously, but they also know how to have fun. I’m a big fan of “work hard, play hard” type people, so I was right at home getting to know them. Their wedding reception definitely reflected the fun side of their relationship!
These are from their engagement session
Getting ready on the big day
Time for the Old Exchange Building reception!
Every once in a while, at a wedding, I realize I’m the only person in the room with no idea what’s going on. I love it when that happens. I just go with it, and enjoy learning something new. Did you know that Hang on Sloopy is the official rock song of the state of Ohio and Ohio State University?
I do now! Here’s the crowd, paying homage.
Chelsye at Intrigue Design and Events planned this fabulous day. And thanks to Dana Cubbage for assistant shooting!
Posted on January 22, 2013
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Last year was a good year.
I laughed, I cried, it was better than Cats!
At a 2012 wedding, I was walking past a groom who was waiting in an alcove for his wedding ceremony to start, in mere minutes. He was a little verklempt, and I raised my camera, then paused, looked at him, and said,
“Is this OK? Or would you prefer privacy?”
And he said, “No, stay. I want the truth. Well… I want the truth, maybe just a little bit more beautiful.”
Yep. That’s why I do this.
The truth, maybe just a little bit more beautiful.
With that philosophy in mind, here’s a look back at some of the sessions and weddings I shot over the year– a good mixture of both candid and posed and/or planned shots.
My goal for 2013 is to shoot candid moments with more intention and purpose, so that I produce single images that can stand alone and tell stories.
Here’s what we did in 2012:
Hung 0ut in the good light
Kissed a little
Got up offa that thang
Held hands
Primped
Showcased the Lowcountry
Walked around
Modelled for Mom
Goofed off
And called it a wrap!
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Posted on June 29, 2012
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You can’t plan for everything.
For evening sessions, I bring flashes in case there are delays. I track the weather all day, and look for sheltered nooks in case it rains we decide to go ahead with the shoot anyway. I carry bug spray and baby wipes. I watch the sun and position my clients accordingly. I try to make them comfortable and keep them laughing and laid back.
And all that preparation (plus, of course, the most important component: awesome clients) generally makes for adorable shots like this. Philip had just popped the question the night before, so he and Alana had that wonderful newly-engaged glow.
But we had no contigency plan for Drunk Guy with an Elvis Statuette.
At first I was so absorbed in my clients and the sunlight that I was only vaguely aware of the thing bobbing in the background of the photo. Even after I realized the person was photobombing deliberately, I didn’t know what it was. It was only after we started walking again that I realized it was Elvis, 2 or 3 feet tall, in a tux.
One brief time is funny, haha, but the guy didn’t want to quit. Maybe another time we’d have stopped and gotten a photo with Elvis. But we were racing the light and didn’t really have another minute to spare for anyone, even The King.
Viva La Myrtle.
Posted on May 8, 2012
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Jennifer is a vintage/chabby chic/romantic fusion design wizard. She fashioned the awesome picnic she and Mike shared during their engagement session.
(I mean, seriously-that burlap pillow? LOVE it.)
I love seeing her wedding vision develop via Pinterest boards. I’m super-excited to shoot their wedding in October.
And great dress!
Posted on March 5, 2012
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Happy Monday!
I am cross-posting today, so I just put a new set of images (my middle child posing for me) onto my Facebook page. Check it out!
http://www.facebook.com/sallywattsphoto
I am so pleased with how my work schedule is coming along for 2012.
I have some wonderful weddings lined up and room for only a few more on the calendar.
Totally looking forward to the Charleston beach portrait season.
Definitely want to shoot more film.
I’ve taken a workshop and watched a few free three-day online classes and I am so excited to implement all that I’ve learned.
And even after all that good news, I still want more.
So why not just put it out there?
1) I want a family to hire me to do a completely candid lifestyle session. A fly on the wall, on a random Tuesday. I want dogs whining to come in and dinner coming out of the oven (or out of a pizza box-it’s all good!), and a meltdown because we can’t find the blue sippie cup and clean little freshly bathed toes and bedtime stories and night lights.
All of it.
(I keep talking about wanting to capture real life, but, duh, I’d still shoot in the most attractive direction and make sure I don’t capture clutter in the background of the images.) :)
2) I want to do a John Hughes movies themed couple or engagement session. Sitting on a table, kissing over a cake, or slouching outside a high school gym, cavorting in a library or walking across a football field with raised fist. Fedora and a clarinet. Sunglasses in the back of a cab. Laying around in the front seat of a convertible Rolls. (Yea, I’m sure I’ll have no problem finding one of those.) Not an absolute re-creation, because Lord, couldn’t that end up cheesy? But inspired by, let’s say.
3) I want a back yard wedding. Your parents’ back yard, yours, a friend’s…wherever. I want to shoot a wedding with a truly homemade feel, not necessarily only in terms of the details (although homemade decor is great too!), but with regards to the space and vibe.
4) I want to shoot someone in the water. I love those dreamy, lovely, atmospheric shots where a compelling woman in a flowy dress wades around in a lake or ocean. (I’m thinking it would have to be a woman. Dude hair is not nearly as pretty/floaty.)
5) I’d love to do some more boudoir. I don’t advertise it on my site, but I do shoot it from time to time, and I do it in a really nice, tasteful, flattering way, if I do say so myself. If you are interested in a boudoir shoot, email me and I’ll send along some (pre-approved by past clients, of course) samples of my work.
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So there you have it.
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Posted on February 14, 2012
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Posted on November 15, 2011
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Anthony contacted me about booking an engagement session earlier this fall. When he told me over the course of email conversation that he didn’t have a date in mind for the session since he hadn’t even proposed yet, and was planning to do so that weekend in Charleston, I had to ask if he wanted me to try to capture the engagement itself.
He agreed, and I was so excited for such an opportunity.
It was a stealth op, with me arriving early to wait for them to arrive in their horse-drawn carriage, hiding behind bushes and trees and pushing my camera and long lens settings to their limits to shoot in complete darkness without using a flash. (That’s why wedding photographers buy the expensive gear. It’s not just about higher quality files. We also need to have sensors that can capture clear images in dark churches and through the occasional shrub!)
Anthony did such a fabulous job. He put together a whole behind-the-scenes crew to help him pull off this fairytale proposal. He drafted friends to unroll a red carpet and scatter rose petals. Friends took turns reading declarations of love from Anthony to Katie. He even flew a friend in from Tennessee to lightly strum the guitar while he proposed. That’s right, guys. Read it and weep. Who can top that for romantic gestures?
Almost showtime!
Katie was so cute. I felt really honored to be there.
Presenting: two completely giddy people!
Posted on October 11, 2011
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Jared and Crystal are big Charleston fans, and drove in from Tennessee for a whirlwind weekend that included our engagement session. We started at St Philips Church, meandered through the market, the French Quarter, and ended up at the Waterfront Park.
Jared and Crystal are aquarists at Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies.
How cool is that? My little girl was tres impressed when I showed her a photo of Crystal and told her that she takes care of penguins for a living.
My clients lately have had the most fascinating careers and interests.
They’re big Tarvis fans, so we wandered into the store on Market
I showed them one of the carriage tour barns. Jared hunted chickens.
Posted on September 30, 2011
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I was scheduled to meet Patty and Grant for their engagement session at the pier on the beach at 7 pm.
Both parties arrived at 7, but in what must have looked, sped up, like a Benny Hill episode, I was under the pier and they were on it. I hunted and they hunted, and we somehow comedically managed to keep missing each other. We didn’t find each other until 7:25 pm, when the remaining slivers of the day’s light were fading very fast. However, it turned out to be a good thing. We were able to shoot on the beach like we wanted to, and then I used the near-darkness as an opportunity to find interesting ways to light them with whatever light sources we came across, plus a little bit of flash when needed. It resulted in a bit of a dramatic-looking, out-of-the-box (for me) set of images for the second half of the engagement session, and ultimately I loved having to regroup and think on the fly.
This couple is awesome. Like my wonderful previous engagement clients Elizabeth and JD, Grant is an Air Force pilot. Patty actually spotted them on my blog and turns out they know each other. Small world!
Posted on September 22, 2011
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I met up with Ainsley and Trey last month for their downtown engagement session. Ainsley is at College of Charleston, and Trey graduated from The Citadel in May.
After their wedding in December, they will be moving to the state of Washington, where Trey is stationed. I love that! It’s a story you don’t hear a whole lot anymore; a young couple, just starting life, vowing to make a go of it together right from the very beginning and kicking off their married life across the country. Very romantic, don’t you think?
