Archive for July, 2009

Shhh… Can you keep a secret?

Friday, July 31st, 2009

Can you keep a secret?

Remember the game “dream date” I heard it’s coming back out again, well, my “dream date” would be Johnny Depp.

I’ve been secretly (besides all of you) in love with JD for a long long time. I’ve seen every movie and loved them all.
You know it’s love when you can love a guy that wears more mascara then you do.

I thought I had was one of the biggest secret admirers out there…until last week.

There she was, doing the hair of my latest bride, her name is Mackenzie and she’s colorful. She tells me later that she loves color. If you look at Mackenzie you’d probably judge her by her outsides, but I had the best time talking to her and can tell you, she’s a wonderful person, inside and out!

I get my camera ready for the prep shots and I look down at Mackenzies leg. At first I thought, is this a joke? I look around as if there would be cameras peeking out from the doorways. I look down again and I question my own thoughts.

WHAT? NO WAY! No, Serious. I turn to LeeAnn and comment, is that Johnny Depp on her leg? LeeAnn smiles and replies “yes it is”. OH MY GOSH. She has JD on her leg. Embedded, in ink, forever on her leg. I feel so out done!

I have to ask Mackenzie… and yes, it’s JD. So of course I take a shot or two. I feel slighted in my love for him. I mean, I love JD, but I’m sure not going to put him in ink on me!

Mackenzie is a cute girl, she’s tattooed, pierced and gauged. She is colorful and when we got the chance to talk she was so open and honest about who she was and what she wanted in life. I LOVE to talk to people and observe and even though she feels when she hits 40 (Ummm HELLO??) Her Gaugings and piercings won’t matter to her anymore (I so beg to differ, they will matter more) I still liked her! Her personality is so fun!

She let me do a small shoot with her. So here are a couple images from that shoot.

Mackenzie let me know about the contest. If JD does not win, I’ll be so surprised!!!

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James of JLS Studios

Friday, July 31st, 2009

As you all know by now, I shot a wedding with James and his wife LeeAnn of JLS Studios

So part of my “fun” in shooting with other photographers is taking some, okay A LOT of pictures of them in action. It’s a lot of fun. I’m sure there is retribution for this but…hey, it’s fun!

We had a blast and we ROCKED the wedding.

I traveled to Rolla, Missouri and enjoyed the 2.5 hour ride, because being new in an area there is a lot to see and do. I found Six Flags, Meramac Caves and Cuba, Missouri (well, I stopped there to get gas)!

Rolla is a fun college town but lacking one of two things. Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts. Nada, none, nothing…So I was a bit sad, but I always come prepared, I brought my own :-)

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And this young lady was a lot of fun to watch, I think she took more pics then me! She had a lot of fun and even took a picture of us. So, wedding togs..look out, she’s coming!!!
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Neal and Cindy.. patience and love

Wednesday, July 29th, 2009

It was a few months ago that my good friend James asked me to 2nd shoot a wedding with him, I’ve not done a ton of 2nd shooting but for me I looked at it like a great opportunity and of course, helping out with an awesome photographer friend is Soooo COOL!

As I listened and watched I learned of the wonderful story of patience and love between Neal and Cindy. Cindy was asked by her neice what all her rings were on her finger..and as I stood there she began to explain “this is Neals ring, and this is the ring Neal gave to me when he asked me to marry him and this is my purity ring….it means, I’ll only be with Neal.” This really touched me, in the era we live in, THAT is quite a statement and feat! Cindy was not a teenager, and her waiting for her “Neal” to come had to take some patience and love.

Neals eyes lit up the room when he saw Cindy walk down the aisle, if you were not looking at his eyes, you would have seen no other response to his admiration for her. His eyes spoke volumes! As she got closer to him, you could feel the excitement and joy and LOVE these two had for each other.

Cindy and Neal had an amazing day and I was so very honored to be such a small part of it.

Thanks again James and LeeAnn for letting me shoot and share my part in their awesome day!

Check out their video here!

For now here are just a few images of their special day!!!
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A Different Kind of Love…

Thursday, July 23rd, 2009

My passion is all about love, covering the love of two people committing their lives together, forever or as long as time gives them. I love EVERY aspect of their wedding day! It’s emotional and it can be very draining, as well as encouraging and exciting!

It’s what I do. It’s what moves me!

When my son asked me to come watch him play tennis, my answer was quick, sure! Then I thought, I’ve never shot tennis before, it will be a new challenge, sure.

So I packed up my camera and made my way to the courts. Tennis is one sport I could never dominate, shoot, I had no control and I could NEVER make that ball stay within the boundaries of a square. My balls are the ones you see the neighbor kids picking up waaaaaay on the other side of the fence. Yep, that’s where mine go!

I enjoyed watching these two play a couple of matches.

It began to rain, Joe is heading to Canada and I’m glad I was able to photograph a bit of their match.

You know, I’m not even sure who won?

**** Side note! I have an amazing friend named Bob and you’ve heard me rave about him before but seriously what kind of a friend will walk you through making a photoshop action when he has to explain everything in baby steps and do it smiling? Bob does! So what you see here is the new Lisa Nikole watermark, Courtesy of Bob aka Bobster! Thanks Bob! I appreciate you and remember dinner is on me when you get here!

I promised Bob these would be up today…so I stayed up late to get them done, because I promised!

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A question asked that had me thinking all week!

Friday, July 17th, 2009

I opened the door and peeked in, and there it was, a question that really sent me deep into thought and reflection! I went back a few years, then a few more. I thought about every picture I took. I thought about the people, places and things. I thought about my life and how privilaged and blessed I am to travel, do the things I get to do and meet the people I get to meet! I live an abundant life!

I was humbled as I looked back on my life, because parts of my life are not particularly happy ones, but as I looked back, I’m not even sure how I can compare the bad seconds to the hours upon hours of amazing things I’ve been allowed to experience.

So, what question set my soul on fire?

It comes from Jason and he asked me:
“In all your years of shooting…what photo are you most proud …of and why?

Jason, you really got me thinking and to be honest, your question really helped me put into perspective a lot in my life. so, Thank You!

So, what picture am I most proud of? Like a lot in my life I don’t have just a simple answer, If I had to pick one, well, I’d probably have to list more!

As I looked back, I started to think of certain pictures and I realized that those pictures that I thought of first were more because of the amazing people I was honored to meet and photograph! What made the picture an honor was the people, not so much my talent or ability, but the “life story” and people behind the picture.

I thought of all my brides and grooms and they all know they are special to me but, i wanted to dig deeper and this is what I found!

Erika: A beautiful woman who cried at her trash the dress session because her dress had already been worn and her marriage had ended, what was difficult turned into laughter and joy. I’ll be shooting Erika’s wedding in a couple of weeks! It’s been a joy to know her and watch her grow through these years!
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Sam: I met Sam at my hotel in Westchester, NY. We just started to talk and when Sam wanted to tell me “his story” I felt such a strong connection to him and the wife he loved so much and lost a few years ago to cervical cancer. Sam caused me to blog and encourage women everywhere to pay the costs and get checked, had his wife done so, it would have been her hand he was holding that day, not mine!
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Bert Randolph Sugar: On a train ride home from NYC to my hotel I sat across from a man with amazing stories. I thought no one could have done these things, met these people. For over an hour we talked and shared and laughed. He promised me at the end of the ride he would tell me who he was. Do you believe I had to google it? Stay in touch Bert! I miss our chats!
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Eretz Yisrael: Israel, while I have many many pictures of Israel this one stood out, I just snapped it, I thought about this young man serving his country and who he may have been talking to. The smile on his face, the weapon in his hand. Ths photo also haunts me, because I tried to find him, I wanted a release to be able to use this picture. To this day, he remains a mystery!
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Rev. Stanley W. Scott: I was asked to follow the end of Rev. Scotts life. This was particularly difficult because, he was a constant help in my life for 23 years. He baptized me, married me and prayed over my life and my families. He was a constant strong point in my life. I was honored to cover his life and his death. I chose this picture of him, because it’s how I remember him most! I hope to share more images of him with you in a month or so.
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Ami Jerimiah Cohen: I covered the birth of Ami and when his birth became an urgent factor, I did the only thing I knew to do, I grabbed my camera and I stayed composed, and in a matter of seconds I heard his cries from the operating room! Ami is my grandson! He’s beyond amazing and special. A part of my heart beats in his!
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I’ve lived a wonderful life and it’s far from over! It’s been amazing and i can only look forward to the next person I meet and get to here “your life story” I’ve been privilaged to travel to different nations and states, to cover life from the beginning to the end!

Thank you everyone for allowing me the opportunity to share your Life Story, photographing you and allowing me to be special enough to be entrusted with it. Thank you! I am deeply humbled by this chance to look back!
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Diamonds and Disses…..

Wednesday, July 15th, 2009

I was walking through my house the other day and I thought about you, yes I did, dear blog fans!

I thought about all your support and emails and blog questions.

You guys sure like facebook a lot! :-) I know there is Twitter but it seems a lot of my support comes from Facebook! So Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

I don’t have many dislikes, I just don’t. Most of them are pretty defined and deep.

My son woke up the other day with a very bad tooth ache so I think today I’ll list dentistry as a Diss of mine. I know it all stems back to when I was a kid, but I get treated like I am 4 when I go to the dentist, I get so scared, my blood pressure goes all crazy and I honestly think, they think they are going to lose me on the next filling. I know dentists do amazing things and keep our teeth are perfect for us, but, it smells, it has that “dentistry” smell when you walk in, then the masks and then that drill, so sorry Mr. Dentist, you make my Diss List this week!

Here are a couple Diamonds for you!

My Crockpot!! OOO how I love my crockpot! I have given up on stove cooking, I can do it all in my crockpot and I have two of them *smiles*

Licorice, not just any licorice. If you like something you can’t just be likin’ that normal old over the counter stuff, you’ve got to be unique and special about it. Sooo.. in Canada (lookie amanda) up from the Falls Casino is a 711, I believe the street is Cherry or Canal. Inside that store is a bulk licorice section that ROCKS! It has the best licorice I’ve ever had (so far) and if any of you are feeling the love, just let me know and I’ll shoot you my address so I can score some amazing licorice!

Here’s a fun story about my Licorice desires. When we lived in Ohio, my husband was buying some business equipment up near NY, so he decides to surprise me with some of my special Licorice. His car is loaded down with equipment and he of course gets into Canada

It’s always easy to get INTO Canada!

He goes up to 7-11 and I think he dropped a hundred on me for my licorice (awwwwww). He goes to leave Canada and he is stopped by the Officers. They questions him:

Why are you in Canada?
To get my wife licorice, sir!
You came all the way to Canada to get your wife licorice?
Yes sir.
She must be pretty special.
She is!
What’s all the stuff in the back?
I’m a Contractor and I just purchased these outside NY.
And you came to Canada to get your wife licorice?
Yes sir!
Okay, have a great day
Thank you!

How many men would do that for their wives? Of course he never made that trip again. We have gone together and now we are a longer drive from Canada and I do try to make do with Red Vines, no not Twizzlers! But you know, I feel a Canada trip coming, maybe my next trip to NY!

So this now concludes this session of D&D
and for your viewing pleasure…..
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I’ve got time for more of your questions….

Tuesday, July 14th, 2009

Okay I’ve been seeing these questions pile up and I need to answer some of them before you all start to throw things at me.  :-)  Please don’t stop asking, I’m enjoying them all.

Who makes your business cards?
ME ME ME!!!  :-)  Okay yes I design them and I’m a bit proud of that fact, but honestly it’s not that hard of a deal.  I also have to thank Tommy Prater for hooking me up with Overnight Prints.  AWESOME company!  Use them!!!

Do you use an online photo gallery?
Yep!  it’s right here:  www.viewpicshere.com  It’s set up through Photocart another amazing company that has done good by me since the beginning!

What was your most spectacular wedding?
All of them!  Honestly!  Every couple is unique and special and everyone has a story to tell.  I love meeting couples and hearing about how they met and the story of their lives!

Any wedding horror stories?
Ugh!  I won’t say horror, but in anything, things can go wrong and I tell all my brides two things.  Stop where ever you want and take a moment to enjoy the day and I try to make them at least slow down enough to do it once!  The other thing is, something will go wrong, most people won’t even notice it.  Just keep going.  It’s so true!

Do you and your partner ever argue.
LOL, no we don’t.  We both realize our strong points and weak points and once you are with us, you’ll hear us discuss them.  Raquel and I can read each other across the room.  We know what shots we want and we know how to get them.  We have a blast shooting together and we know, the combination of us, gets our couples the shots they love!

Do you mentor?
I’ve helped a few people find their “passion”  that’s what it is all about!  I’d be happy to sit down with anyone and throw out any ideas that I can do to help.  My buddy Bobby Earle takes a free lunch for his one on ones, I may as well adapt that, Bobby is an awesome role model!

What do you do in your down time?
Hmmm.. I cook and clean, I spend a lot of time online, probably too much. I blog and work on pictures I’ve taken of my family or when I go to the forest (a favorite thing to do). I work on my brides orders and I just relax!

You seem to love people…truth or fiction?
OOO definitely a truth! While a lot of the internet world is shaded in fantasy, I am very real. I care about people and I get attached, often to my heartbreak. But, I also have some amazing friends out there, some I may never meet, but I hope to! I’d do anything for my friends! I’m a romantic, deep and my heart knows no limits. Guess I’d make a good wedding photographer! I cry at sappy romantic movies and ER made me cry every Thursday night till it ended!

You love “24″ what other shows do you watch?
OOO my winter lineup is pretty sick. I’m an x police officer so I don’t watch CSI :-) ! Here is my fall/winter line up. Jack Bauer!!! 24!!!, Office, Lie to me, Bones, House and mentalist (he’s a cutie). Lie to me is becoming a new favorite having learned a few of those fun facts in my training. I liked Earl till someone told me I should not watch it! UGH!

Okay done for now, keep them coming, I’ll answer just about anything…send your questions to me at: Lisa@LisaNikole.com

Okay and because any blog without a picture is a waste:
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In the end…

Monday, July 13th, 2009

It was a beautiful night, as always in Missouri a beautiful breeze swept through the park. I love to close my eyes, face the wind and dream of being someplace special. Though there is no ocean in site and Missouri pretty much sits right in the middle of this nation, there seems to always be an amazing breeze.

The breeze is amazing, it reminds me of the ocean, it reminds me of my first steps off the plane sitting on the tarmac at Ben Gurion airport in Israel, It reminds me to stop and take a moment and just breath. Missouri is an amazing place with beautiful sunsets, sunrises and amazing storms.

So here I was at the Rex Plex in St. Peters. This happens to be where my Missouri all started. I came to visit my son and husband who had already been living here for a few months, as Luke and I walked around we kept seeing the lights a mile or so away. We always wondered what they were, so one day we drove down to see. We stood amazed as we saw a breathtaking park with ball fields (every ball field in Missouri has lights) From that night on, we went to watch the games, Luke was dying to play ball.. In August they moved into our home and we did not get back to the Rex Plex

Until last night….

Last night we returned to the Rex Plex. It’s a beautiful park, well kept and the summer night was stunning. Probably around 83 degrees with an amazing breeze, it was beautiful!

Last night I watched my sons team fight a battle to win their 4th district game in a row..it was not going to happen, they lost and walked away thinking, if this, if that..

We can wonder all we want, but what they need to look at is a team that came together with only 3 practices and made it this far in districts.

A team that in the end gelled together!

A team that got to experience many things, on may different levels during their summer season together.

Troy, you played an amazing season, a shocking season! I agree with your coach, “hold your heads high”

I’m proud of you!

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Passing on a Nugget

Thursday, July 9th, 2009

I get a weekly email from John Mason. I enjoy these and John’s way of thinking.

I particularly enjoyed this one because as the world went crazy judging dead men and woman and talking and mourning them as if they knew them, John, brought it all back together for me.

I have personal experience with this having had a friend and pastor die and having done years and years and years of great and good things, watching a newspaper, a city and even people that knew him discuss an area he may have gone array in.

I’m not the judge of any of these people and for many of them, they filled my life with enjoyment and laughter and emotion. I’m thankful for that.

Here’s how John brought me back together…
This has been an interesting and sad last week, hasn’t it? The passing of many notable people can really make you think and reevaluate your own life. Life is too short to just dream of great accomplishments. You’ve got to stay awake and DO them. A man of words and not of deeds is like a flower bed full of weeds. Don’t let weeds grow around your dreams. To only dream of the person you would like to be is to waste the person you are.

The average person’s life consists of 20 years of having parents ask where he or she is going, 40 years of having a spouse ask the same question and at the end, the mourners wondering the same. Abandon yourself to destiny. . .

Do more than exist, live.
Do more than hear, listen.
Do more than agree, cooperate.
Do more than talk, communicate.
Do more than grow, bloom.
Do more than spend, invest.
Do more than think, create.
Do more than work, excel.
Do more than share, give.
Do more than decide, discern.
Do more than consider, commit.
Do more than forgive, forget.
Do more than help, serve.
Do more than coexist, reconcile.
Do more than think, plan.
Do more than dream, do.
Do more than see, perceive.
Do more than read, apply.
Do more than receive, reciprocate.
Do more than choose, focus.
Do more than wish, believe.
Do more than advise, help.
Do more than speak, impart.
Do more than encourage, inspire.
Do more than add, multiply.
Do more than change, improve.
Do more than reach, stretch.
Do more than just live, live for Jesus!

-John Mason, from the book Know Your Limits Then Ignore Them

Are you kiddin’ me?

Thursday, July 9th, 2009

Tonight I went to watch my son’s game, they are in districts and have won the first three games. Tonight we played in a town about a half hours drive. It’s a bit of a fun journey on route 79 and the towns are very Mayberry RFD like, with no internet service…How do they live?

We were in a town called Elsberry and the lights were on, the team was doing great, when I noticed off in center field, a very distinct, brown cloud. I thought for sure it was a dust cloud.

The ump motioned to me and said “make sure you get that” I thought.. Uhhh sure, and ignored his request…but after a few moments the dust cloud did not go away but got bigger and bigger and it moved, in amazing shapes and patterns.

I started to click and then asked…WHAT is that? the Ump responded “mosquitos” Are you kidding me? and he said, if we don’t finish this game soon, they will move from light to light and be upon us before we know it.

He was not kidding, I ran out to get some closer shots and thanked God I had my 70-200 on, but was wishing for the 400! Tomorrow I’ll post up some shots of the game, these shots are unedited, I wanted to get them up because I teased everyone that I had some amazing shots…

Now you all see why I had to take a shower first…

Oh and the last picture, my son said and I agree “That’s niche marketing at it’s best”
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