Camille Grace

I met the Svoboda family while volunteering with a pit bull rescue group. They are such an amazing couple! They own a local dog daycare, volunteer, own and foster dogs, and still found time to squeeze in the cutest, most content baby I've ever seen! Camille Grace. She just turned a whopping 3 wks. young, she's already had her studio debut, but now it was time to break out into the world with an outdoor session.

CooLHeadS First Official Photo Shoot

I had the pleasure of being introduced to CooLHeadS awhile back when I was asked to photograph their runway debut. Since then they have come quite far and are now working on their website, that's where I came in. Being a Michigan based company they wanted to shoot in locations that represented Michigan. It was a two day photo extravaganza, traveling to Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti and ending in Detroit today. Everyone was incredible to work with and I couldn't have asked for more beautiful weather!! CooLHeadS are sure to be the next big fashion craze with their dual purpose of looking CooL and keeping CooL at the same time.

Rescue is the Best Breed

Meet Niko. I adopted him from the Michigan Humane Society in Detroit in April 2006. He was a stray and around 3mo. old. I first seen him on petfinder.com and he was SO incredibly cute I couldn't resist. I had been looking for a dog and Niko was just what I wanted, so here he is now, four years later living the high life of a spoiled dog with his own personal photographer =)

What Photographers Do On Their Off Days

Take photos of their own children...duh! Piglet and I decided to go on a little photo adventure downtown Jackson this afternoon. Any time I want to get pictures of one of the dogs we usually head over to the park where it's nice and open, but this time I wanted to go urban to test both Piglet's obedience and myself working in a new environment. We went to a location I had been wanting to photograph for sometime and then took a stroll through the back alley's where there are some very beautiful walls and textures.

When Life Gives You an Engagement, You Make Coconut Lime Cake.

Cat is very classy lady and her bridal shower was a very classy affair. The wedding colors are lime, black and white so what better than a coconut lime cake?! All the food was homemade by my good friend Slava, mostly vegan recipes and incredibly delicious!

Relay for Life - Ann Arbor

Once in high school I had participated in Relay for Life, it was a blast, but in the years after that it just didn't fit in my schedule to devote the time needed to the event. That was until this year. The Ann Arbor Relay Committee asked me if I'd volunteer to photograph their event. I agreed and spent last Saturday and Sunday watching the day's events unfold.

It always amazes me how so many people from different walks of life can come together and fight a common cause. They put aside all differences they might have had and walked side-by-side. To say the least it's an incredibly moving experience. And if you have never been to a Relay for Life, I strongly encourage you to check out one. I had a hard time fighting back tears during the Survivor ceremony and the Luminaria ceremony. Trust me, crying makes taking photos pretty difficult. But all the emotions are totally worth knowing that I am helping a cancer fighter somewhere celebrate their life and live to see many more birthdays.

My grandfather had passed away from cancer and both of my parents are in remission, so cancer has had a played a big role in my life. I want to give back, so while I was at Relay Ann Arbor I pledged to myself that I would make a difference...thus the forming of team Natty J Photography. I found out that Jackson has not held their Relay yet and I was thrilled that I could start a team and help contribute monetarily to the ASC (American Cancer Society)!! Come say hello to the Natty J Photography team on August 6th-7th (6p-6p) and see what an incredible community can do when we all work together. You won't be disappointed. Promise.

Keep checking back as I will be announcing fundraisers to help my team reach their goal of $1000. If you'd like to donate and can't make it to any fundraiser please visit the Natty J Photography team page.

2011 Senior Model Representative: Nia!

This girl is mind-blowingly beautiful and incredibly sweet. Taryn (owner of ToughLove MPD), Nia and I got together today to do a senior session like southern Michigan has never seen before! I believe we succeeded to say the least. We trekked through the woods, hopped on a motorcycle and checked out an auto museum all to get that "perfect" shot.

Keep checking back, the male representative will be announced soon...