Happy Halloween!

Halloween is one of my favorite times of the year. I absolutely adore everything about it. Travis and I started the month with a scary movie marathon. There are actually some surprisingly good scary movies out there. One of the movies we watched was The Nightmare Before Christmas. I am not sure what we were thinking, but we decided to make our own Halloween stop-motion. It totally consumed our free time.

We tried working with clay first....I was embarrassingly bad at working with clay. Travis took to it really fast, but instead of sculpting the characters we talked about, he made a mean looking nun and an old elf. Not exactly what I had in mind.

Anyhow, we opted for yarn characters and we had so much fun making the set. Here is the video:

I also carved a pumpkin at the beginning of the month that was stolen right off the porch! Well, they didn't steal everything, they just stole the poor little pumpkin. They probably just couldn't stand to see the little pumpkin getting eaten.

Wilhelmina Denver Models - Fashion Photography

I recently had the opportunity to photograph models from Wilhelmina Denver. I was really excited to dive into the world of fashion photography. I believe that my photography already had a bit of a fashion flair to it, but working with these Wilhelmina Denver models was loads of fun, and I am extremely happy with everything that came of it. When I scheduled the shoots with the booker Katie at Wilhelmina, the sun seemed to be setting a bit earlier. So we planned to shoot between 5-7pm. The sun actually ended up setting around 6:30-6:45, so I got to play around with low-lighting, and I feel like it's one of those happy accidents that needed to happen. My favorite images from the shoots are actually the ones we took in the dark.

The first shoot I had was with Dana Egleston. We started the shoot off next to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver. The textured walls in the area were perfect, we then literally ran up to the Denver Millenium Bridge to catch the setting sun. I didn't know what to expect with Dana, I am used to giving tons of direction and it's actually something I enjoy doing, but Dana barely needed any. There was a lot of, "Yes...keep doing that, perfect, awesome, you look great!" I absolutely loved working with Dana and I have no doubt that she will go far.

Here is one of my favorite pictures from her shoot, this one was taken at the Denver Millenium Bridge after the sun set.

Here is another image of Dana, and Jordan Casey. It was ridiculously windy when I did Dana's shoot, but I love working in the wind. The images are often more dramatic than they would have been otherwise. I just love the way Dana's hair is blowing in this picture.

Jordan Casey was a pleasure to work with. She is absolutely gorgeous! She has the most amazingly beautiful eyes. We randomly found this tiny patch of grass near a railroad. I wanted to make it look like she was out in the middle of no where. This was also after the sun went down. Nature compliments Jordan very well.

You can really see how stunning Jordan's eyes are in the picture below. The other model in the picture below is Tessa Collard. Tessa is hardcore. It was so cold and windy outside when we shot her pictures, and she didn't complain at all. She not only made it seem bearable (I was wearing both a sweater and a jacket, the Texan in me can't deal with the cold), she looked beautiful while enduring it.

Ok, so I generally don't take pictures of people laying down. It's not always the most flattering position for pictures. I asked Tessa to do it because I loved the the colors with her outfit. She looks so pretty next to the green grass. Thanks again Tessa for complying with my whims. Lynsey Knapp is the model in the picture below on the left. We had so much fun at her shoot just finding little places to shoot. We got off to a late start, but again I had fun working with the sun going down.

This set of pictures is another example of why I am now slightly obsessed with night photography. Girls, you are fantastically beautiful and I wish you the best.

I also want to thank all of the parents that so willingly helped out on these shoots. You are awesome.

My Yellowstone/Teton Vacation

Travis took a wilderness EMT training course in Wyoming for a month this year. Once he finished we decided we would check out Yellowstone as a sort of celebration. Unfortunately we were both strapped for cash, I made the argument that we should just wait until we had more money. He made the argument that I would be on my deathbed someday wishing that I had gone to Yellowstone when I had the chance. Goodness. I am such a sucker. So we went. I planned the trip in a couple days. The goal was to see EVERYTHING which if you have been there, you know that's quite a feat. It was so much bigger, and so much more beautiful than I ever would have guessed. Anyhow, here are the pictures and the video I made while we were there. I suggest that if you can make this trip, that you do.

I'll show you the video first because it's so much fun.

I am only going to post a few of my favorites from the trip. I seriously took about 4000 pictures!

I love these signs! I don't know who designed them, but they are so darn cute to me. I am sure cute isn't what they were going for.

This is a little private marina we found in the Tetons. I jumped out of the car to take pictures. Can you imagine living somewhere like this? How could you ever be upset about anything with a view like this?

This is Jackson Lake. This is about the time that we decided that we had to rent a canoe.

These geysers were outstanding!

You can't go to Yellowstone and come back without a picture of Old Faithful. Everyone knows this.

Ok. So I am not the best at taking self portraits, but we just had to. Our out-takes were hilarious! I really love the way this shot turned out though. This is a few steps away from our first camp site at Madison Campground.

This first picture was where I heard the bear. I wanted to stay so I could get some pictures from a distance, but Travis thought it was best for us to get out of there in a hurry. In retrospect, I can see how silly I was being.

At first I thought these were just clouds, then I realized there was a raging forest fire up ahead. We ended up driving though the smoke on the way home for about an hour. Crazy stuff. We talked to a couple of rangers and they said it was a measly fire compared to some of the ones they'd seen. They don't even try to put them out. They just let them burn themselves out unless it threatens something important.

I'm so happy I went, I hope you get to see it for yourself.

The Great Sand Dunes

I have been in search for cool locations for my photography. Travis and my cousin Gavin suggested that we try out the Sand Dunes. They really just wanted an excuse to go hiking i'm sure.

I had no idea how difficult it would be to climb to the top. Even driving up to the dunes and seeing them next to the mountains didn't put things into perspective for me. The groups of people returning from their hike, panting, and covered in sand didn't really clue me in. It was the two hours of sliding backwards with every step that did it. Yep, I am out of shape. Travis and Gavin just bounded up to the top leaving me to my shamefully slow ascent.

All in all though, I am extremely happy with the pictures we got. The view from the very top was well worth the effort it took (even if I thought my lungs would explode).

This is my cousin Gavin. He got out there and surprised me by strutting around in front of my camera like he'd been modeling for ages. I couldn't believe it!

This one is my favorite. This is Emily. She graciously agreed to let me take her pictures, and hiked all the way up the sand dunes in this dress. The wind really started picking up when we were wrapping up her part of the shoot. It stung our legs and nearly blew away some of my equipment. I am happy it did though. The blowing sand and wind caught dress make this picture in my opinion.





Here's another one of Emily. Isn't she lovely?




Last but not least, the darling and handsome Travis. He reminds me of Indiana Jones! He actually offered to carry me down the sand dunes on his back. What a nice boy.

Moving to Denver

Here is a little video I threw together using a bunch of clips I took before and right after moving to Colorado. It's full of friends and family that I love and miss already. Love you guys!

Denver Colorado

My darling family gave me a wonderful going away dinner party, all planned by my devious sister Jaime of course. It was the first surprise party that I've been to that was actually a surprise. Katherine did a great job of keeping me in the dark for hours while my family and friends all met up at Uncle Julio's. I was standing right next to a table filled with people I have known my whole life, and I didn't recognize anyone. It wasn't until they all shouted at me that I finally saw them! I still had to do a double take. I can't expressed how happy I was to see everyone there. I already miss them.

Here is a picture of Katherine that I took right before we went to the restaurant. She's so beautiful.

I am so thrilled to be in Denver all the same. I absolutely love the mountains in the distance. It shocks me every time I catch a glimpse. I don't really want to get used to them though. I want to be overwhelmed by their size and beauty every time I look to the west. I just feel so lucky to have the opportunity to live here.

I took a little road trip to Bishop's Castle. I'm pretty proud of myself for being able to climb to the very top. This castle was built by one man. It is truly astounding. Jim Bishop started building it when he was 18 he is now 67. Here is a picture of his work.

My Beautiful Nieces

I have the most beautiful nieces in the world! I'm sorry to break it too all you aunt's out there...well, with the exception of MY aunts. My niece Camryn just turned two. She had her Minnie Mouse party at Chuckie Cheese. It was actually my first time to ever go. She is so young, I'm not sure she really understood what the commotion was all about. She did sing the happy birthday song to me a couple days later though. She has such a sweet voice and a sweet Texas twang. I really have no idea where she picked it up! Yesterday was my niece Luanna's 6 month birthday, she get's extra celebrations for being so darn cute. My sister Sarah and I took her to the Used Book Store in Dallas. Here are a couple of pictures of the two of them. Be jealous. They really are cute.

Jason, Cassie, and little Liam

Gosh, I love working with Jason and Cassie. They are always so much fun! They definitely make it look easy. This is my first time to work with sweet little Liam. He was so adorable. He seemed a little sleepy during the first part of our shoot. My favorite shot of him is the one right after he is guided down the slide. I love the enthusiasm!

He looks uncannily like Jason. Like if Jason or Cassie were mad scientists, I would probably have to fight the urge to look further into it. Lucky Man. I'm pretty sure I got all the recessive genes my parents had to offer. I'm not sure which parts of me would carry on. Probably my smile. Everyone in the Holder family has a really big happy smile.

Speaking of smiles, watching family videos online has been making me so happy lately. It's just amazing to have the opportunity to be allowed a glimpse into someone else's life. I hope that you understand what I mean when you watch this video. My little sister Sarah helped me with the video and actually took all the pictures with the exception of the very last heart one.

My Florida Family Vacation

Words cannot express how much fun I had with my family at our family reunion in Florida. I love getting to know them more and more each time I see them. I made a video slideshow from our trip, a lot of the pictures in the slide show were actually taken by my little sister Sarah. She is becoming quite talented. It's always fun to have a little competition. It's also nice to see things from her point of view.

Without further ado, my gorgeous family....

Commercial Work

Chelsea and I have been extra busy these past weeks. We have updated our packages to include a dvd of all edited images, we started painting our studio, and we have gotten to meet so many engaged couples. I cannot wait to post a picture of our finished studio. We have big pretty plans for it. We were even thinking about having photo parties this year! I will post pictures and an explanation of the photo party in my next post.

In this post I wanted to thank all of my incredibly creative friends for allowing me the pleasure of photographing for them.

This first picture is a promotional piece for the upcoming movie "The Playroom." We were contacted by Julia Dyer and were thrilled to be chosen to depict her vision. This shot, set in 1975, shows the young girl Maggie leaving her home at dawn with her boyfriend heading for the hard streets of the city.

We were very pleased with everyone involved in this shoot. Special thanks to Post Asylum for their studio space, and the wonderful make up artist Kristen Coleneri http://www.kcolaneri.com.



Here are a couple more of my favorites:

This is a concept by Shelby Blair. I thought it was beyond spectacular.

Here is an advertisement for the Winspear Opera House in Dallas. Designed and Directed by Michael Garrett and Walt Murillo.

This last one is my favorite one by designer and art director Emily Schwarting advertising for Equinox, an extremely high-end fitness center.

Cozumel

Chelsea and I recently went with several of the girls in our families to Cozumel. It was definitely an experience. It was the first time I had ever been on a boat. I did not know what to expect. The cruise ship was enormous! There were clubs, casinos, restaurants, and even a Karaoke bar. Needless to say, we had a blast. Here is a picture I took of the girls right after we got off the boat.

Here is another picture of us after formal night. My little sister told me I looked like Bam-Bam in my leopard print dress.

Glen Rose Bridal Show

We had way too much fun at our very first bridal show in Glen Rose, Texas. So many beautiful brides and amazing vendors. We are definitely looking forward to doing it again next year.

I am extremely excited about hearing from all the brides! Here is a picture of our booth. I am so proud of it. If I did not like Chelsea's photography so much, I might recommend that she get into interior design. She just has an eye for it.

We wanted to give a special thanks to Dedra Shahan of Cowboy Way Travel. She was the first vendor to approach us, she had a such a warm smile! She definitely made the best of her day especially considering that she came straight from camping with her family that morning. We really appreciate all the advice she had to offer. It's always great to network with someone with such a vibrant personality. Check her out at www.cowboywaytravel.com. Take your sweetie somewhere exotic.

We also wanted to thank Tom Harmon a DJ from Sunkiss Entertainment. He helped us pack up our booth, which by the end of the day was such a blessing.

For the brides that had their pictures taken at our booth you can check yourself out at our online gallery. They should be posted by the end of the week.