Still Life Perspectives

This weekend as the last of my Valentine flowers were about to fade I wanted to capture thier beauty.  I love both of these perspectives for very different reasons. I am really drawn to the sparseness and use of negative space in both shots. And I really liked the ornate and rustic pattern of the surface I used. A found piece of metal waiting to be thrown out by its former owner.  The softness of the flowers mixed with the industrial surface is what I really love about these shots.

This series of still life shots really got me thinking about new ways to create photographs that are interesting to look at, simplistic in technique and using only natural window lighting. I hope to shoot more in the near future.

Pastry Crochet Patterns

Crocheting has always been a fun hobby for me. Until recently I've turned this creative hobby into something that I carve time out to do almost everyday. It's so fun to see things come to life and be able to get creative with color combinations. And thank goodness for the web (for tons of free crochet patterns) and YouTube (for all the very helpful video crochet tutorials). Here are the links to two of my most recent favorite pastry patterns: Frosted Donuts and the Short Cake.

Have fun experimenting with all different kinds of frosting and cake combos, and see if you can only make one...I bet you can't!  It's quickly become my newest form of therapy and creative outlet. Have fun!!

Weekend Recap

Do you ever notice that when you make plans on a Friday night that your weekends just feel longer?
While the home body in me begs to stay on the couch and avoid having to deal with another cold Chicago night there is nothing like live music at a small local venue to get me bundled up and out the door.

Joe and I headed out to the Empty Bottle in Chicago's Ukrainian Village neighborhood for some tasty brews and to stand front and center to listen to one of our recent favorite bands perform- Crow Moses. I love their laid back vibe along with mix of acoustic and electric guitars. Check them out on Spotify if you're looking to add to your playlist.

I've been reserving Sundays for whatever moves my soul. Sometimes this means staying in my robe all day and crafting in bed, catching up on Netflicks, or catching up on magazine reading. I did all of these this past weekend and it was much needed! How was your weekend? Do you ever take a day to yourself to do whatever moves you?!

Good Cheer + Happy New Year!

  Happy New Year to everyone! How can January already be over with and the new year already in full swing?! I took the month of January off from social media to reconnect and refresh my mind and quiet my thoughts. I feel like I have found a jolt of inspiration and energy that I have been missing for quite sometime. One of those things being that I miss connecting with people here on my blog.
  I miss sharing things/ ideas/ people that inspire me and keep me excited to connect with a creative community. So, while I don't think I will be keeping to a regular blogging schedule, I will be checking in and sharing my thoughts and posting creative projects along the way.

I hope you can join me along the way too, cheers friends!!

xo,

Liz

Thankful & Updates

  I'm so thankful for the new year and for all the good things that have seemed to be happening lately.  Sharing my dreams and visions with the universe (and anyone who is willing to listen), while abit scary is also what needs to be felt in order to move forward and not only grow but flourish into building the best life you could only have imagined in the past.  I've been carrying this quote on a post-it in my ipad case as a daily inspirational nudge to myself.

Blessings to all who have shared and continued to visit me here in this small space I am happy to call home.  

Some updates that I am happy to share is that I am growing the business into 2 different avenues. One being product photography for small business' while also continuing to grow my other love of wedding photography.  Thank you for your continued support for a helping me do what my heart has called me to do :)

Guest Posting Today...

Hi friends!  Just popping in to let you know that I am guest posting today over for a dear Chicago blogger friend of mine Jillian @ Cornflake Dreams.  She is currently enjoying her newly married life by celebrating in Paris!  So happy to be a part of her guest post lineup this week while she is away with her love. Drop by and check it out as well as other fun blogger guests.

Coach House Pictures

New Blogsite Launched!

Hi folks!  I've been focusing and putting my energy towards my passion, Coach House Pictures for the past 2 weeks.  And my goal was to merge the 2 platforms (blog + website) together to help create a more cohesive brand.  I also wanted one place to direct clients, bloggers, and friends to come and connect as well.  So after much thought I finally found a blogsite platform that seamlessly has everything I was looking for!  I was a bit scared and hesitant at first because it runs on Wordpress (I'm still feeling my way around) but the more and more I use it I find it to be as equally user friendly as blogger is. Joe and I are passionate about getting our photo business to flourish and re branding our site is just one of the steps we feel will help us take that next step in the right direction.  

With a heavy heart I have decided to step away from posting on this blog (for now) so I can focus my energy and time to blogging over at the Coach House Pictures blog.  On the new blog I  will still be posting about inspirations but with more of a focus on the business of photography and of course our photography as well. 

I feel like I am leaving my first baby, because I've worked hard and passionately for the past few years  to build and grow this blog to where is it today.  But at the same time I am over the moon excited to focus my energy on what I love to do and share and connect with a great supportive online community!  I love what I have built here and I am not deleting this blog, I am simply stepping away for a while to dedicate more of my time to CHP.  I'd love to stay connected with you!  To help me do this as well I've already added a friends list on my sidebar so we can continue to exchange ideas, thoughts, and inspirations.  You can also connect with me through twitter, facebook, and Instagram @coachhousepictures.  

I want to give a BIG thanks to Theresa, Leah, Tori, and Lauren for inspiring me to focus and follow my heart! You ladies are inspirational and I am so glad you are in my life! 

xo,

~Liz 

2011 Highlights

Home for the Holidays: Photo Session

 

Over the weekend Joe and I spent Saturday afternoon capturing my friend Jill and her family in their beautiful home.  Jill works as a photo stylist, so I was even more excited to see how she had decorated this year for the holidays.  We had so much fun photographing her and the family decorating the tree, drinking lots of coffee and just spending the afternoon together.  The hard part for me was picking out my favorites to share with you today.  Happy Holidays!

Save the Date Engagement Session

Joe and I finished editing our last engagement session last night.  We followed the soon to be newlyweds Zain and Jim around the Old Town and Lincoln Park neighborhoods in Chicago to capture their fun and over the moon (for each other) spirit.  The couple wanted to use their engagement session as their save the dates, so we helped them to spell it out for there guests in a fun and creative way.  I can't wait to see how the bride to be puts all these together into a slide show for family and friends.  The toughest part will be for sure picking out the best ones :)  Congrats to Zain and Jim and thanks for letting Joe and I capture these love awesome moments!

Coach House Pictures

Photo Booth Pics

Hello!  Just popping in real quick to share with you a few of my favorite photo booth snapshots the guests at our last wedding captured!  I worked with the bride Renee to create a fun backdrop using her pretty fall wedding colors of orange, chocolate brown and cream.  We created a few chalkboard frames for guests to write or draw messages for the newlyweds.  We had a blast going through all the many images. Our first photo booth was a hit!!  I can't wait for the next one we get to put together!
I'm off to finish editing an engagement session Joe and I shot in Chicago last weekend....more of that to come soon :)

Busy like a Bee...

Hi dear friends!  Remember me? I wanted to show you what I've been up to this last week. Joe and I launched Coach House Pictures the website (yippee)! We are still working on adding more samples to the gallery pages, like of the wedding we shot for Renee and Chris last weekend!  We had a blast capturing their special day. Head on over and check out our new site!  I'd love to hear your rants & raves about it!  Oh and while you're there Facebook friend our fan page too :)  Your the best friends a photo gal could ever ask for!

Engagement Session- Annie & Steve

I finished my editing late last night and couldn't wait to share my favorites with you this morning!  Yippee! Here they are!  Joe and I had so much fun running around the Old Town neighborhood to capture these shots.  Love and Fall were both in the air, mixed in with some great light!  What more could we have asked for? Thanks Annie & Steve for a great afternoon!

Photography: Coach House Pictures

Flowers: A New Leaf

Weekend Stretch!

Good Saturday morning to you in blog land!  With my morning coffee in hand I'm spending a beautiful fall morning editing an engagement shoot Joe and I worked on last Sunday with this lovely couple!  Annie and Steve made our night, with there sweet looks and gestures.  We followed them around in there Old Town Chicago neighborhood.  Fall was in the air and love was following closely behind :)
After our session we ended up going out for Thai food, my fav!  And talking about there wedding coming up in January.  Thanks Annie and Steve for letting us capture such sweet moments!

Photography: Coach House Pictures
Flowers: A New Leaf

The Barnes Family

Just a quick sneak peek at what Coach House Pictures has been up to!  As I announced a few weeks ago, this is our new photography adventure that Joe and I have been growing.  We had so much fun photographing the Barnes family!  There boys are so energetic and lively!  We loved following them around there Bucktown neighborhood (which just happens to be ours too) and capturing them in the moment. Here are a few of my favorite shots.  Check out our blog to see the full posting of this photo session. Happy Monday and a great start to your week!

Photography: Coach House Pictures

Introducing: Coach House Pictures

Happy holiday to you today on this beautiful (fallish feeling) Chicago day!  I have exciting news that I can finally share with you.  Joe and I are taking on a new creative adventure together known as Coach House Pictures.  I just wrapped editing photos from our first couples photo shoot last weekend.  Below are a few of my favorite photos from the shoot, to view the complete session and to learn more about our business stop by our blog :)  We are open for business and would love to capture your story.