Patience is a Virtue

I know, I know. I'm the worst blogger in the entire universe! But I have good excuses. I've been so busy getting ready behind the scenes for a new, fresh look to go with my gorgeous new logo designed by the ever talented Jamie of JamieH Designs. Instead of gradually switching this and changing the color of that, I thought it would be best (and the most fun) to get everything ready behind the scenes in a test blog and then unveil it all at once! Although the new logo will be displayed in the watermark of any more recent photographs.

Also in the works, Boudoir by Amy Beth! The site should be rolling out by early July, but be on the look out for special offers here and at my Facebook page.

Chicago Fashion Photography Session :: Manda

Manda was kind enough to brave a very cold morning with me last month. We both had visions of shooting in the garden next to the Art Institute - until we realized it wasn't quite open yet. We made the best of the situation, though, and Manda was a rockstar! Thanks again, Manda, for braving the cold for me and working so hard!

Atlanta, GA Area Portrait Session :: Lindsay

On Saturday, I had the pleasure of photographing Lindsay, an aspiring model looking to update her portfolio. After just a few frames, I knew there was nothing aspiring about her - Lindsay is already a pro! She radiates beauty from within, and she definitely knows how to work the camera. Take a peek at a few of my favorites from her session.

I offer special packages for Atlanta area shoots, and I waive all my regular travel fees. In the interest of full disclosure, I'll let you in on a little secret: my boyfriend lives in the Atlanta area, and I live in Chicagoland. So any time I have an extra excuse to head down there, especially if it's business related, I will take full advantage of it! Contact me about my special Atlanta area rates if you're in the area!

Lincoln Park, Part III

I can't think of a better way to celebrate Friday than with some more furry friends!

This chimp seemed lost in thought

You might not be able to tell from the photograph, but fortunately, this guy was behind plenty of glass



I was smitten with this pretty little bird



A rather stately giraffe

Lincoln Park, Part II - A Bit Squirrely

I got to the zoo a bit early. Some of the animals were out, but when I made my way over to the gorilla/chimp house, I still had about 15 minutes left before it opened. Fortunately, there was a gentleman feeding the numerous squirrels nearby. I took full advantage of the friendliness of the little critters.

Lincoln Park, Part I

I took advantage of the temporary heat wave (we made it above freezing for two consecutive days!) and made a trip to the Lincoln Park Zoo for some quality time with the animals. As always, I was not disappointed. I have so many favorites from my morning at the zoo and the nature center, that this will spill over into two or three more posts later this week.

The Post in Which I Apologize for Not Posting

My apologies for the sporatic posting thus far in 2009! I had a bit of medical craziness that popped up in December and took a good month to resolve. Nothing serious or photography impacting - just a crazy giant renal cyst. Mostly harmless (except for the pain that accompanied it), but it needed to be my first priority for a while.

Fortunately, it was kind enough to strike during the cold winter, when not many folks feel like venturing outside for a photo session.

Now that I'm finally back on track (I expect to get a clean bill of health at tomorrow's follow up appointment), it's catch up time. I have many images to share, including another fabulous shoot with Females in Focus.

Reindog Parade

This is probably my final post for 2008. Between some minor medical procedures and holiday preparations, I think it's time to declare it winter break (even though winter hasn't officially arrived!). To get you in the mood, how about a few friendly pups from the Chicago Botanic Garden's 2008 Reindog Parade? The Reindog Parade is the only day of the year when dogs are allowed inside the gardens. While the cold and snow made for difficult travels (and some shivering pooches!), it certainly set the mood for the day!

Pardon My Dust and More

First of all, I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday! I have been blessed with so many things this past year, I hardly know where to begin. I'm so grateful for my friends, family, jobs, opportunities and everything else with which I've been blessed.

I'm going to be taking advantage of the holiday season to spend some time reorganizing my website and blog. Because of that, some links may break here and there. I'll be working hard to get blog entries updated when I move photographs around, but I just wanted to apologize in advance if you stop by while I'm under construction. Everything will be back to normal as soon as possible. Actually, even better than normal! I'll be taking the day off tomorrow to stuff myself with pie enjoy some family time, but plan to start in on the updates on Friday or Saturday.

Until then, enjoy your holiday and be well! I'll leave you with one of my recent favorites from the Chicago Botanic Garden. I just happened to peek through some hedges in time to catch this little bird.

Robyn's Family

I met Robyn through the very addictive world of bath and body products. She's the evil genius behind Beaded Hemp (her bath butter is quite possibly pure addictive crack, especially in Pink Carnation - evil, she's evil, I tell you!). She was kind enough to respond to a casting call for a family lifestyle session.

When we scheduled the session for last weekend, I don't think we realized how cold it was going to be, but thankfully, they were all such troopers! I had such a blast getting to know them, and it didn't hurt that they're so stinking cute!

Weekend Recap

The beautiful weather we've been enjoying hung around for the weekend. Between that and the extra hour to play with today, I made the most of all the outdoors have to offer, before it starts behaving more November-in-Chicagoish.

First, a Halloween teaser - my niece, the vampire:

A trip to a local nature preserve led me to spot this guy:



I spent about 20 minutes photographing him or her before it started giving me the evil eye. Session over!

I couldn't pass up another trip to the forest preserve. (No photoshop trickery on this one, I swear!) The trees are very yellow this year. Which is quite pretty, but I do miss the deep reds and oranges.



I have many more to share in the upcoming week. I hope everyone had a great weekend, and that your November is off to a wonderful start!

If a Leaf Falls in a Forest

And no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? I know, it's a silly cliche pun for a cliche autumn photograph, but I couldn't help myself.

I can't believe it's almost Friday, and almost November, too! The time changes this weekend, which, of course, means I'll have confused kitties who are hungry an hour before I need to feed them, because their little kitty brains and big kitty bellies don't understand daylight savings time. Which also means they will bite my toes. As if that will get me to feed them early. Note to self: wear shoes all day on Sunday.

A very happy and spooky Halloween to everyone! I can't wait to share photos of my niece. I think she's going to be a vampire this year. I am going to go as a super cool aunt. What can I say? The costume was cheap! :-)

Forget Bama, Meet Ally

Or Allie. I'm not quite sure of the spelling yet. I was informed today that li'l Miss Bama's name has been changed, because Bama sounded too much like bad dog. We don't want that sweet little puppy thinking she's bad, I suppose. So Ally, it is! Of course, her name is derived from Alabama, the home state of a really great guy named Roy, who was kindhearted enough to take her in when she needed a home. Roy is one of my boyfriend's good friends, and now mine, as well. He's been a bit under the weather, and has been poked and prodded and under the knife far too often these days. So perhaps some more puppy love from Miss Ally will bring him a bit of cheer. Enjoy, and send some good thoughts Roy's way, if you're so inclined!

Autumnal Splendor

Saturday was a good day. I got up early and headed to the forest preserve, just after it stopped raining. I knew we had some blustery weather predicted for today (as I type, I can hear the 50mph gusts howling outside the window), which meant any future attempts at capturing the autumn colors this year would likely be slim to none. Some of my favorites are below:

Afterwards, I headed over to the Chicago Botanic Gardens for a stroll. I started feeling a bit under the weather, so I cut the trip short, but I did get a few that I felt captured the season nicely:







I was supposed to go to a lighting workshop (I was really looking forward to it, too!) today, but the migraine that started yesterday had me floored today, too. I guess the good news is that sitting in a dark, quiet room all day was good for catching up on editing. Which is especially good, since my new personal goal is to post a photograph from the past few months each week during the "off" season.

Number 6,400

I was voter number 6,400 (in 9 days) at my local early voting location. So not only did I get my awesome "I voted" sticker, but they also gave me that sweet little paper American flag! (feed subscribers, click through for image) I rock all corners of the universe!

I also wandered around a forest preserve for a few hours this morning, and snuck in a trip to the Chicago Botanic Gardens, as well. Those images will follow later in the week. But, since I promised you that I'd introduce you to Bama, the adorable puppy who stole my heart in Atlanta, she's at the bottom of the post. How could I resist those eyes? Defenseless. I was completely defenseless against the puppy power.

Sweet Home

I just got home this evening from four wonderful days in Atlanta. The image above (you'll have to click through if you're on a feed reader) was taken a few minutes after the "turn off your electrical devices" announcement. What can I say? I live life on the edge! I had just enough time to grab the camera, but not really change any settings from an early morning shoot. I love the end result, though. You can't beat those airplane windows for some cool natural vignetting!

I have many images to share (wait until you get to meet 'Bama, the unbelievably cute pup I fell in love with this weekend) and a new look on the way. Once I catch up on sleep. There's just something about snuggling up in your own bed.

Casting Call!

CASTING CALL!!!!!

I’m looking for models for some senior sessions. If you are, or you know of, a young woman ages 18-22 (younger models permitted with signed parental consent) in the Chicago area and you’d like to participate in a fun senior portrait-styled session, please let me know!

On the weekends of September 20-21 and 27-28, I’ll be available for shooting near the Arlington Heights Metra station. We’ll start in a park and move to some fun commercial areas with brightly colored walls and cool architectural details.

For her time, the model will receive 5 fully edited digital files sized appropriately for display on websites (facebook, myspace, etc.) or for prints up to 8x10s. Models will be required to sign a release form to receive the files.

I’m looking for women of all sizes, shapes and personalities! If you or someone you know is interested, please send an email to amybethphoto at gmail dot com.

This session not right for you, but it sounds like fun? Watch for casting calls for family, newborn, couples/engagement sessions and more!

Trust

After receiving not one, but two emails today which exposed my email address to a large mailing list, I wanted to take a moment and express how important it is to me to always protect your privacy.

I will never sell or share your email address or any other information with any third parties, unless I get your permission (if I need to do so to complete an order, etc.). I promise you that if I have a newsletter, there will always be an "opt out" option, which will be honored as quickly as possible, and that I will always, always, always utilize a blind carbon copy or other method to protect your email address.

I'm a consumer myself, and I know the frustration of entrusting your personal information to someone, only to have it exposed because of a very preventable slip up, and it's important to me that you know that your privacy will always be a priority for me.

To Make a Prairie

"To make a prairie it takes a clover and one bee,
One clover, and a bee,
And revery.
The revery alone will do,
If bees are few."

~Emily Dickinson

On Sunday morning, I made a beeline (ha ha ha, get it?) for the Chicago Botanic Garden. My plan was to hit the evaluation gardens, an area I haven't visited much this summer. I didn't make this decision, however, until I was well into the gardens, so the fastest route was to cut through the prairie area. I visit the prairie area when I'm at the gardens without my camera (which is rare these days), and just visiting to walk and clear my head. It's usually not the most photogenic area of the gardens, and I really can't remember the last time I strolled through that particular section. I tend to gravitate towards macros and not sweeping landscapes, and I can find prairie plants just about anywhere, so I tend to spend my time in the various flower gardens.

I was glad I took the "shortcut" through the prairie area, though, when I came across this view:

Apple River Canyon

Sunday morning, I woke up early to make the two hour drive to Apple River Canyon State Park in Apple River, IL. En route, I actually wished I had gotten up a bit earlier so that I could have stopped and photographed some of the barns and farms in the gorgeous early morning light and still ensured I would meet the photography group on time. Ah well, I learned for next time!

A few of the trails were pretty demanding, and huffing and puffing did not lend itself to low light, hand held photography. I did manage to capture a few images that made the trip well worth it.

The canyon wall

"Forever"


Queen Anne's Lace


Wild flower