It would be nice to meet in person, and hopefully we will get to. There is only so much you can learn about someone on an 'About Me' page. I'd much prefer to have a chat over a vanilla latte and a Top Pot Donut. Most of all, I'd love to get to to know you!
I believe that we have all been given a story to live. There is One who has written the story of love and of joy; of pain and hurt; of reconciliation and restoration. LOVE becomes even more beautiful when it is in the midst of a story of triumphant and unconditional love.
Live your story. Love your story.
As for me... here's my story thus far (well, the abbreviated version)...
I was born in southern California (and oh, I miss SoCal all the time) in the pink naval hospital. I didn't live there long though, and went to four different elementary schools. My family ended up back in the Seattle area (where they were from before they moved to Cali when I was born), and there I stayed from Junior High on.
… fast forward through stories of choir, colorguard, marching band, hula dancing, sailing, mud wrestling, AP classes, running start, church youth group, camp counseling, etc. …
Steve and I met at the end of my junior year in high school, and we dated throughout my senior year. We went to college together. On a Friday, we finished our finals for spring quarter of our junior year, the Whatcom Creek gas pipeline blew up in Bellingham, and we drove south. On Sunday, we got married. We went on a quick honeymoon, and a week later, we started summer quarter of our senior year.
We got married young and planned to wait a while to have kids. But oh my goodness, that “wait a while” turned out to be so much harder for me than I had planned. I worked in marketing for an international relief and development non-profit (and got to travel to a few pretty cool places) while I waited for the time to come when I would finally get to be a mama.
In my years of marriage, we've gone through some hard times. (I think that comes a bit with getting married at 20, right?) Those hard times are part of my story. But, so is forgiveness, grace, understanding, compassion, and a lot of laughter. Love conquers and triumphs, and that is part of my story too.
So, in those years of learning to grow up and be married, we waited for children. We planned. I feared. I hoped. And finally... finally... I labored. I grasped. I held. I embraced. I snuggled. I clung to those sweet moments. Pregnancy ended, motherhood started, and the baby blur began. Those sweet moments passed so quickly, and the details of them remained foggy. I felt like I was missing it... the sweet way she would stretch her whole body after she nursed, or the way her face scrunched up when she cried, or the amazing twinkle in her eye when she would smile. I was missing my story.
No matter how tired I was, or how busy life felt, I needed to capture my fleeting moments so that I would remember them forever. And so, my journey as a photographer began.
There is such great beauty in a child's smile, in the eyes of a laughing dad, a hug between a toddler and her mom, and in the kiss between a man and his bride. I love real emotions... the smiles and the laughter, and yes, even the flower-girl's tantrum. It's real. It's beautiful. It is your story.
About five years ago, I started working on the side as a wedding coordinator. I LOVED it. It was wonderful to be able to serve a bride and her family on her big day. To be able to plan the perfect schedule, foresee and avoid potential problems, and sit back and watch while a husband and wife become one, well that has been a great privilege of mine. It's such a pivotal moment in their life story, and I love being a part of it. And now, I am thrilled to help tell their story in photographs and beautiful albums.
I love getting to know a family and really capture them...their personality, expressions, relationships, interactions – just as they are in that moment. It is my privilege and joy to give them an album that fully communicates THEM at that moment, so that they can remember it forever.
That is my story, and I love it.
It would be an honor and pleasure to get to know you and your story.
Happy days to you,
kellie
PS - Want more? You can read my blog, or see pictures of my family here.
HOW MUCH?
Wedding packages start at $1790. All of my packages include full-day coverage so I can really tell your story in its entirety. Contact me for details. I'd love to get to know you and hear about your beautiful plans!
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING...
“OMG OMG OMG! THESE ARE INCREDIBLE!”
– Carolyn, after seeing her gallery proofs for the first time.
“I may want you to come over and just document our lives...I feel that if you were photographing my everyday family life, I would come out looking like the Kennedys circa 1960.”
“I think you should advertise yourself as a maternity photographer, too. I cannot believe you made my tired pregnant in-need-of-a-haircut self look that good. Amazing.”
– Carolyn, still excited
“Flipping through them love love love them!”
“OMG love love love them can't wait to send out Christmas cards and hear about how gorgeous the kids look and how REMARKABLY well-rested, wrinkle-free, and glowing [my husband] and I look! I would like for you to come over and airbrush me a bit in real life, too. Thank you so much!"
– Carolyn, after seeing her gallery proofs for her 2nd photoshoot.
“Wonderful! Thank you, Kellie. I can’t wait until I have time to go through these thoroughly after the kids go to bed. They look great."
– Sheley
“Perfect! Thank you!!!!”
– Gina
“Those photos are worthy of sending to ex-boyfriends. THAT'S how happy I am with them - we ALL look really good.”
– Anonymous
“The photos are beautiful! My whole family is really impressed with the photos. We’re trying to figure out which ones to enlarge since all of them are 8x10 worthy.”
– Edith
“We got the photos yesterday -- that was fast! Thanks for the extra pic-- so precious! And you are right - the quality is so much better than regular photo lab.”
– Sarah
“I love the pictures! … When Luke saw them, he thought they looked great. It is so wonderful to have professionally (and you can tell) done photographs. THANK YOU!!!”
– Karen
I believe that we have all been given a story to live. There is One who has written the story of love and of joy; of pain and hurt; of reconciliation and restoration. LOVE becomes even more beautiful when it is in the midst of a story of triumphant and unconditional love.
Live your story. Love your story.
As for me... here's my story thus far (well, the abbreviated version)...
I was born in southern California (and oh, I miss SoCal all the time) in the pink naval hospital. I didn't live there long though, and went to four different elementary schools. My family ended up back in the Seattle area (where they were from before they moved to Cali when I was born), and there I stayed from Junior High on.
… fast forward through stories of choir, colorguard, marching band, hula dancing, sailing, mud wrestling, AP classes, running start, church youth group, camp counseling, etc. …
Steve and I met at the end of my junior year in high school, and we dated throughout my senior year. We went to college together. On a Friday, we finished our finals for spring quarter of our junior year, the Whatcom Creek gas pipeline blew up in Bellingham, and we drove south. On Sunday, we got married. We went on a quick honeymoon, and a week later, we started summer quarter of our senior year.
We got married young and planned to wait a while to have kids. But oh my goodness, that “wait a while” turned out to be so much harder for me than I had planned. I worked in marketing for an international relief and development non-profit (and got to travel to a few pretty cool places) while I waited for the time to come when I would finally get to be a mama.
In my years of marriage, we've gone through some hard times. (I think that comes a bit with getting married at 20, right?) Those hard times are part of my story. But, so is forgiveness, grace, understanding, compassion, and a lot of laughter. Love conquers and triumphs, and that is part of my story too.
So, in those years of learning to grow up and be married, we waited for children. We planned. I feared. I hoped. And finally... finally... I labored. I grasped. I held. I embraced. I snuggled. I clung to those sweet moments. Pregnancy ended, motherhood started, and the baby blur began. Those sweet moments passed so quickly, and the details of them remained foggy. I felt like I was missing it... the sweet way she would stretch her whole body after she nursed, or the way her face scrunched up when she cried, or the amazing twinkle in her eye when she would smile. I was missing my story.
No matter how tired I was, or how busy life felt, I needed to capture my fleeting moments so that I would remember them forever. And so, my journey as a photographer began.
There is such great beauty in a child's smile, in the eyes of a laughing dad, a hug between a toddler and her mom, and in the kiss between a man and his bride. I love real emotions... the smiles and the laughter, and yes, even the flower-girl's tantrum. It's real. It's beautiful. It is your story.
About five years ago, I started working on the side as a wedding coordinator. I LOVED it. It was wonderful to be able to serve a bride and her family on her big day. To be able to plan the perfect schedule, foresee and avoid potential problems, and sit back and watch while a husband and wife become one, well that has been a great privilege of mine. It's such a pivotal moment in their life story, and I love being a part of it. And now, I am thrilled to help tell their story in photographs and beautiful albums.
I love getting to know a family and really capture them...their personality, expressions, relationships, interactions – just as they are in that moment. It is my privilege and joy to give them an album that fully communicates THEM at that moment, so that they can remember it forever.
That is my story, and I love it.
It would be an honor and pleasure to get to know you and your story.
Happy days to you,
kellie
PS - Want more? You can read my blog, or see pictures of my family here.
HOW MUCH?
Wedding packages start at $1790. All of my packages include full-day coverage so I can really tell your story in its entirety. Contact me for details. I'd love to get to know you and hear about your beautiful plans!
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING...
“OMG OMG OMG! THESE ARE INCREDIBLE!”
– Carolyn, after seeing her gallery proofs for the first time.
“I may want you to come over and just document our lives...I feel that if you were photographing my everyday family life, I would come out looking like the Kennedys circa 1960.”
“I think you should advertise yourself as a maternity photographer, too. I cannot believe you made my tired pregnant in-need-of-a-haircut self look that good. Amazing.”
– Carolyn, still excited
“Flipping through them love love love them!”
“OMG love love love them can't wait to send out Christmas cards and hear about how gorgeous the kids look and how REMARKABLY well-rested, wrinkle-free, and glowing [my husband] and I look! I would like for you to come over and airbrush me a bit in real life, too. Thank you so much!"
– Carolyn, after seeing her gallery proofs for her 2nd photoshoot.
“Wonderful! Thank you, Kellie. I can’t wait until I have time to go through these thoroughly after the kids go to bed. They look great."
– Sheley
“Perfect! Thank you!!!!”
– Gina
“Those photos are worthy of sending to ex-boyfriends. THAT'S how happy I am with them - we ALL look really good.”
– Anonymous
“The photos are beautiful! My whole family is really impressed with the photos. We’re trying to figure out which ones to enlarge since all of them are 8x10 worthy.”
– Edith
“We got the photos yesterday -- that was fast! Thanks for the extra pic-- so precious! And you are right - the quality is so much better than regular photo lab.”
– Sarah
“I love the pictures! … When Luke saw them, he thought they looked great. It is so wonderful to have professionally (and you can tell) done photographs. THANK YOU!!!”
– Karen
© Kellie O'Brien Photography