k. holly photography :: the blog » Nature

Peonies

Kristen — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 17:40:11 +0000

I thought I’d start this week with some prettiness :) This perfect bouquet of Chilean Peonies was made by Jenn Ederer and the fabulous designers over at Modern Day Floral. After Jill’s wedding this fall, I was gushing to Jamie over her amazing bouquet and mentioned that if he needed an idea for my birthday, this would pretty much make me pass out with joy and happiness. Lo and behold, the morning of my birthday there was a knock at my door, and this gorgeous, lush, fragrant ball of amazingness ended up on my table. Throughout the day, I’d take it and move it around the house with me so wherever I was, it was too. In.LOVE.

On a related note, I’m promising myself to plant peonies in my yard this year. I would love some planting and growing tips if you have some. Please share in the comments! Thank you! :)

Alright lovelies, enjoy the prettiness and have a great week!

Michigan Snow

Kristen — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 18:23:06 +0000

Yesterday morning, Michigan woke up to a snow-covered wonderland. We’ve had a lot of snowstorms lately, and last nights was perfect – a little rain first, and then snow, making it all stick to the branches and trees. Not great for driving, and definitely heavy to shovel, but it was goooorgeous! My morning meeting cancelled because of the slippery road conditions, so I took advantage of the free hour. I pulled on my snowpants and boots, grabbed one camera and only one lens (the Canon 5D Mark III and Canon 24-105 f/4L if you’re curious) and headed out into the deep snow.

It felt amazing – the air was a warm 35 degrees, snow was still gently falling, and it was oh-so quiet back in the woods. I walked (trudged) about 3 miles and came home feeling energized and alive. Fresh air, a good cardio workout, and stunning visual beauty will do that to ya ;)

Enjoy the pictures!

Spring!

Kristen — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 19:58:01 +0000

Happy, happy heart. Spring is here! Weddings start this Saturday with the lovely Lexi and Scottie, and we could not be happier! I’m already visualizing locations, light, composition, romance,… :: le swoon! :: I positively adore being a wedding photographer.

In the meantime, a little loveliness for the blog :)

{ Spring Snow }

Kristen — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 11:45:58 +0000

Yes, snow… on April 18th. To me, this is no big deal. Being a northern Minnesota girl, we typically expect one more good snowstorm in April before spring really comes later in May. Easter to me has never meant frolicking in a pink dress through tall green grass looking for eggs in the bright sunshine. It usually meant bundling up in our winter coats and muddy boots to fly kites in Grandma’s backyard. That is, as long as it wasn’t pouring rain or snowing ;)

West Michigan, however, must not be used to this… my facebook feed was a flood of lamenting over the unexpected snow. No complaints from me, it gave me a chance to try out my new macro lens. And to breathe that fresh crisp air that only a snowfall can bring. :)

Try to enjoy these last little goodbye kisses from winter :) Full spring will be here soon enough!

{ winter }

Kristen — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 15:10:20 +0000

Winter is the time of promise because there is so little to do -

or because you can now and then permit yourself the luxury of thinking so. ~Stanley Crawford

Have a lovely week ~ :)k

{ bambi }

Kristen — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 15:53:50 +0000

I interrupt this wedding photography blog for some sweet adorableness! We’ll be back to regular scheduled programming tomorrow. As I was backing up yesterday’s wedding, I saw this little fawn outside my window. He arrived trotting behind a fork horn buck. The buck kept going, but he stopped to feast on the monster-sized acorns that have been falling from our oak trees. I watched him for a long time, and finally convinced my day-after sore hands and wrists to pick up that heavy beast of a camera. I never want to even look at my camera the day after a wedding, but I couldn’t help but take a few portraits of this handsome guy. Just a few though, I didn’t want to scare him, and he could hear the click of my shutter through the window…

Happy weekend! :)Kristen

{ Baby Birdies! }

Kristen — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 12:20:35 +0000

Guess who’s made a little home under our deck! Lexi found them, from the top of the deck. She kept sniffing at one spot incessantly, so we had to go investigate. And there they were – a nest with four baby birds! We’ve seen mama fly in and out, but she won’t come close if I’m there. So no pictures of her. The babies are so cute – at any noise they wake up and stick their mouths up in the air and chirp away. SO cute!

{ Chicago :: Spring 2010 }

Kristen — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 20:51:28 +0000

I love being spontaneous, I love to travel, and I love that my husband does too. Our lives get crazy and things change quickly, but we know we always have each other and that’s truly all that matters. He’s my favorite person in the whole world. The other weekend, he and I jumped on a train headed for Chicago. We hadn’t anticipated going, so we didn’t make any real plans. Or reservations. We decided the night before to go. We set the alarm for the crack of dawn, quickly threw some clothes in a little suitcase and jumped on the train. That wonderfully slow, swaying train. It was amazing. It was just the two of us, wandering around the city in hoodies, sneaks, and windblown hair. I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect weekend, or more perfect company.

{ Love you Jamie }

It was so fun to have no itinerary. We were free to wander and take our time doing anything and nothing, which meant I was free to see and play and create. I need to shoot for me more often ;)

I do not know who this dude is, but I adore this image of him

It’s us! At the Bean!

Holy monkeys, the sensor on my backup/travel camera is filthy. Don’t hate. I’ll clean it before weddings start, I promise ;)

Wheee! :)

{ Vegas from the Sky }

Kristen — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 14:53:13 +0000

I have more of the charity shoot to post, but for today, just some Monday morning natural beauty. I was in awe at the terrain we were flying over on our way from Vegas back home. Just ask Jamie – I kept poking him and making him look, haha ;-) We flew over the desert, rivers, canyons, and mountains with a gorgeous sunset finale. My camera was securely packed in the overhead, so I took all of these with my iphone. I actually really love the gritty quality – they remind me of old printed postcards I used to collect as a kid when we would drive out west every summer. Enjoy the view and have a beautiful Monday!

Oh! And I’m traveling again ~ I’ll be in Chicago for a couple days. I’ll be answering emails and blogging more of the charity shoot when I return!

{ Good Morning Sunshine }

Kristen — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:56:56 +0000

If you live in Michigan, you know how depressing the winter can be. We go for days and days without seeing the sunshine, just long bleak stretches of gray. At that point, even seeing more snow fall makes us happy, just to see something other than the plain gray sky. So when the sun makes an appearance, you can actually feel it. I woke up this morning with golden sunshine filling my bedroom, and it instantly put me in a good mood. I smiled as I sat up, stretched my arms to the sky, gave Lexi a little snuggle, and grabbed my camera. These are the days that make winter bearable, and days most beautiful.

Even inside, everything is happy :)

Edit: Went out to get the mail, fell in love with the blue sky! BLUE!! Just a couple more… Good AFTERNOON sunshine!!

Have a beautiful day!

{ Icy Minnesota Sunrise }

Kristen — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 19:26:07 +0000

I’m back from Minnesota! Lots to catch up on, lots of blog posts coming up! But for now, a little winter loveliness ~

{ Our Little Leelanau Getaway }

Kristen — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:05:33 +0000

{ in 100 squares }

Jamie, Lexi and I hopped in the car a couple weekends ago for a quick little getaway. We left Saturday morning and were back home Sunday evening. It felt great to just pack an overnight bag, grab the pup and disappear for awhile. Everyone needs a little sabbatical every now and then. Good for the soul, good for the ol’ marriage, good for happiness. Monday morning I was refreshed and ready to take on another week!

I hope you enjoy this weekend – it’s another rainy one here in west Michigan, but it’s beautiful. The little yellow leaves outside my window are fluttering about and falling to the ground, shimmering and dancing with the rain and wind. Ahh ~ So anyway, yes, enjoy this weekend. Take the kiddos out trick-or-treating, go walk and kicking in the leaves, or snuggle up by the fire. Or go wine tasting & tromping around in the orchards up in Leelanau Peninsula… whatever makes you smile ;)

{ a pause }

Kristen — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:33:33 +0000

In the middle of this busy day of shooting, meeting, and editing, I stumbled across this little mini-collection in my image folder. I took a small pause to flip through them, admiring their simplicity. Just nature, simple green grasses glowing with beauty, form, and light. I felt calmed right away. Just pausing to appreciate it. I pet my sleeping pup on my lap and immediately started writing this post.

Take time to pause today. Hug your spouse, look into their eyes and tell them how much they mean to you. Run your hands through your children’s hair and hug them tight. Let them stay up 10 minutes past bedtime to just be together. Just you, being a family. Letting the love glow.

We all rush through life from one task to the next. Every finished job just brings us to another waiting to be done. It can all wait a few minutes, you have a life to attend to. A real life, with friends and family and happiness and love. Pause today in the middle of your busy schedule to appreciate all that you have, and remember what it is that is most important to you. I pray that you find peace today in all you love and all you do.

To my wonderfully patient clients, thank you. I’m working as quickly as I can to get your finished images to you. We recently experienced an extremely painful loss in the K. Holly Photography family, and we’ve had many days of tears. As you might expect, it’s slowing things down a bit. We appreciate you so very much, and we definitely don’t want to rush through your images just to get them done. It’s an art, a process, and it’s well worth the wait.

Prayers for Danielle, my good friend and Editor. We’re thinking of you :)

Much love and many blessings, Kristen

{ monday morning pretties }

Kristen — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:57:09 +0000

I looked out into our backyard this morning with my cup of coffee to greet the rising sun like I always do, but this morning something new caught my eye. We frequently see deer walking through the trees, often enough that I’ve stopped taking pictures of them. I prefer to simply stand and watch, and breathe in their beauty and grace. We seldom see them lying down, so it’s always nice to see when they feel safe enough in our yard to stay awhile. This morning I watched a lovely deer walk through the trees, find the perfect spot, and then carefully nestle down. I thought she looked so pretty lying there with the morning sunlight peeking through the trees, so I put my coffee down, and went and grabbed my camera. I took a picture through the window first, just in case I scare her when I open the door. Then I slowly slid the door open, tiptoed out, and focused on her alert ears as she had her watchful eyes on the meadow.

Usually if we see one deer, we see a few, so I looked around near her, and as I walked forward, I saw these two fawns appear past the trees. Mama didn’t see me yet, but they sure did. They weren’t afraid, but they were very curious. We watched each other for a little bit, and I raised my camera and took a couple clicks.

Then mama saw me. I didn’t want them to leave, so sent her a warm little namaste* and slowly & quietly retreated back in the house and slid the door closed. I want them to continue to feel safe and happy back there :)

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you find some beauty in the everyday today :)

::update!:: I just peeked out again, they were standing up and stretching. So cute!! :)

*namaste: “The light within me honors the light within you”

{ Lilies and Spidies! }

Kristen — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:22:39 +0000

If spiders eek you out, you may want to avert thine eyes…

I’m not a fan of the eight-legged creepy critters, at all… but I thought this was a really beautiful sight to wake up to. Although I DID keep a safe distance in case she jumped. So I was just minding my own business, photographing my pretty blooming lilies…

There she is!

What’s that? You want to see her closer? But of course:

I’m sorry, was that too much? Okay, back to the pretty lilies:

Happy Wednesday! And Happy Summer! :)