Brian Shakley Photography

lauren and dave: the wedding, round 1

Brian — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 08:57:26 +0000

As the title implies, this is only the first set of photos from Lauren and Dave’s wedding in Columbus, IN, on January 13. It wouldn’t be right if I limited the entire wedding to one little blog post. I was fortunate to be Dave’s roommate in college, so photographing his wedding was not only a great opportunity to help a friend out, but also a great chance to see friends. We’ll call it a double positive.

What’s not a double positive is the fact that Dave asked Lauren out on a date and was denied. Twice. Maybe three times. I’m not really sure what the final tally was, but who cares, right? They’re married now. :) While the weather was cold, as you’d expect in Indiana in January, it didn’t take away from a beautiful wedding for an amazing couple.

I’ll keep this short – I’m going to have to save some words for the next blog post. Congratulations, Lauren and Dave! I can honestly say I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to photograph your wedding day, and be sure to check back later for some more photos…

samantha & don: maternity session

Brian — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:43:03 +0000

Now, I realize the title of this blog entry is slightly misleading. It’s entirely (as opposed to partially…) impossible for Don to get pregnant. We all know that. But his wife, Sam, IS pregnant, and due in just over two months. April 6 will be here before they know it, and what better way to pass the time than to have some photos made to remember their first experience as expectant parents? Outside of reading parenting books, painting walls in a brand new nursery and buying a glider off of Craigslist, there really isn’t a better way. My wife, Sissy, and Sam are great friends from high school, so we spent the afternoon in Knoxville yesterday making photos and memories. (See what I did there?) And I must say, it’s always great having Sissy along for these sessions. I’ve promoted her to Art Director of BSP, and she proved herself during this session. She’s great at posing people, and quite a few of these are thanks to her!

Sam and Don have a blast together, as you may be able to see in these photos. Don is random and hilarious – a perfect combination, in my opinion – and keeps Sam laughing a majority of the time. (If you ever want to make Sam smile, just ask her to be serious. It works every time.) Their little man – Brody – will build upon their family that already consists of two hyper boxers, Roxy and Apollo. As I’ve already said, Sam and Don have fun together, and I hope I’ve been able to capture that in these photos. And in the end, an outdoor maternity session is really just an engagement session with a bump. And Sam’s got one. :)

Due Date: April 6, 2012

Newborn photos to come shortly after. :)

Congratulations, Sam and Don!

heather and christian: a few weeks later

Brian — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 01:01:29 +0000

Let’s be honest – while the bride and groom spend lots of time and energy planning the wedding, they typically spend even more energy trying to remember the wedding. The day flies by, they wonder if they said “hi” to everyone who attended, and when the day’s over, they think to themselves, “Did we even get pictures of just the two of us?” Of course, that’s the photographer’s job. But as the bride and groom, what if the schedule simply doesn’t give you the best chance to get many photos together? That tends to happen. With guests to consider and family photos to take, sometimes there’s just not enough time.

Enter the After Session. (Still trying to think of something clever to name this one. “Bride and Groom Session” is the best I’ve come up with. So original.)

So, I had the chance to photograph Heather and Christian a few weeks after their wedding. While there was a surprise (to us, at least…) wedding at their original venue on the same day of our session, we found a great location for their pictures. An old silo made of stone, a barn we probably could’ve pushed over, and shade. Gotta love shade.

So here they are again – dressed in their wedding day apparel, smiling as if it was their wedding day again, with the perfect set of pictures that they didn’t have to worry about on the actual day. We were able to take our time, not worried about guests getting antsy or first dances to be had.

Thanks again to Heather and Christian. It truly was a pleasure working with you both!

jamie and daniel

Brian — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 03:07:20 +0000

Meet Jamie and Daniel, a fun-loving couple from up North. I say “up North” because that’s also where I’m from. We’ve each found our way to Chattanooga for one reason or another, but their’s is love, and mine also happens to be love. (Awww…) So that’s really just one reason but it’s a darn good one. There was literally frost on the ground the morning we decided to do this engagement session at The Tennessee River Place, a beautiful location for weddings and photo shoots. Granted, it was cold and early, but you gotta do what you gotta do. We had a grand idea of lighting the lanterns and floating them on the river, but we made it halfway to the bank and the ground was more marsh than anything else. Not a good idea with three hours of shooting ahead of us. We opted for a little pond, but you wouldn’t have known the difference had I not said anything. At one point my boots looked like I had been walking through snow and my hands were sticking to the camera (slight exaggeration), but thankfully Daniel had about 107 hand warmers in the back of his car (not an exaggeration). In the end, we managed to forget about the weather and came away with some great photos! I can’t thank these two enough for agreeing to meet me so early in the morning.

I think my favorite is the tree photo. Although, the picture of Jamie brushing Daniel off after I made them sit in dust is a close second. :) Congratulations on your engagement, Jamie and Daniel, and thank you for letting me be a part of it!

the jackson five

Brian — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 02:13:40 +0000

The Jackson Five. We’ve all heard that before. But you haven’t met THIS Jackson Five. They’re way cooler, and if you gave the boys the choice, they’d probably rather play football than sing. As you’ll see in the pictures, Bo, Luke & Nathan brought their favorite football team shirt. Unfortunately for me, we didn’t have a Colts fan. (!!) That’s alright though. The Colts aren’t much to cheer about this year. In any event, the Jackson’s joined me on another frigid morning, and I made them walk through fields and get their shoes wet. And by “wet,” I mean soaking wet. The boys got smart and put their socks under the blow dryer in the bathrooms. If only I could’ve done the same thing. We had fun though, and in the end, that’s what matters.

The last picture is definitely one of my favorites, as you see Nathan climbing up on the train at the “Imagination Station” in Collegedale. That’s really what it is, as you can tell it becomes a place for children to dream the second step foot on it. With all that being said, enjoy these photos of the Jackson Family portraits, and a big thank you to the Jacksons for a great photo session!

the buttram family portraits

Brian — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 01:49:55 +0000

Meet the Buttram Family! A big, loving, laughing, happy family. They were so much fun to photograph, even if it was below freezing for half the morning. One interesting fact that I learned about them is that they happen to be split among the Vols and the Tide. I have a feeling I’ll run into that a lot living in Chattanooga. They were all nice enough to meet me on game day, and by “game day,” I really mean “scrimmage day,” because that’s what it turned into for Alabama. Not a pretty game if you’re a Tennessee fan. But college football aside, I knew it was going to be a great morning when they showed up with Dunkin Donuts. :) Again, they really are a happy family. Siblings from every generation, cousins everywhere, and mostly smiles. Mostly. That might have changed by the end of the day, but we had a blast, and I think the pictures show it.

Thanks to the Buttram Family for a great session! I hope you all have a great Holiday Season!

the cooke family portraits

Brian — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 01:16:43 +0000

Now that the leaves have officially fallen from the trees and the rain continues to pour down on Chattanooga, I figure it’s as good a time as any to finally get back to the blog. What better way to celebrate Cyber Monday. While I can’t offer a great deal today, I can offer you the Cooke Family. A wonderful family I’ve had the chance to photograph a few times now. They are the nicest people you’ll ever meet. Their little daughter Eva has a bigger smile every time I see her. From what I hear, she LOVES to smile, and that’s evident in these photos. She and Walker will make a pretty cute couple someday!

We spent the afternoon at the park, and I managed to find a great purple chair at a liquidation sale just before the shoot. I think I’m going to have to figure out a way to reupholster the thing, as I’m not sure it’s the most versatile color for photos. Nonetheless, it worked great for this session. While we couldn’t get Eva to sit in it on her own, we’ll get there eventually, and I imagine her senior photos in 17 years, in that exact location, sitting in that exact chair. (Sorry, Kelly!)

As I mentioned, Eva just turned one, and her mom and dad were nice enough to ask me to take pictures of the party. So much fun! We couldn’t manage to get her to smash her face in the cake, but maybe that’s a good thing. She remained lady-like and kept her manners. :) So here you go! The first several photos are from the family session, with the slideshow at the end from the party. Happy (belated) Birthday, Eva!

And now, for the birthday bash!

Eva’s First Birthday Party from Brian Shakley on Vimeo.

*Taylor Swift – Never Grow Up

walker turns one

Brian — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 02:24:51 +0000

In a few words… HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WALKER! This post is just a couple months late, so it’s more accurate to say…. HAPPY 14 MONTHS (ISH), WALKER! But that’s okay. He’s darn cute, so if you’re like me, you’ll love seeing pictures of him no matter how old he is. As you can see, we did this session before Halloween, but pumpkins are still in. It’s not even Thanksgiving yet. It was Sissy’s idea to do the O-N-E shot, and I love it. It was my idea not to put a shirt on him underneath those overalls, and I love that. Annika and Jon make an appearance in these, too. Just one little happy family! And he finally got his very own wagon. I heard it took forever to put together. Those things are supposed to come pre-made, right?! Oh well. It was worth it. He loved it. And I think you’ll love these photos. (At least I hope!)

samantha + jim

Brian — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 01:59:43 +0000

Samantha and Jim have been all over the country, chasing after each other’s heart. No, seriously. She’s a St. Louis girl (Go Cardinals!) who has followed (traveled alongside?) Jim from Orlando to Chattanooga. When you know, you know, right? That’s certainly the case with this couple, and it’s evident. The simply love to be together. Whether it’s road trips to visit family or playing tennis a few nights a week, they have fun together. I’ve had the chance to get to know them over the past few months, and I’m looking forward to the next few months as they prepare for their wedding next April. Here’s a preview of their engagement session from earlier this month. It’s evident in the way they laugh, love, kiss and smile together, that they are very, very much in love. Thanks to Samantha and Jim for the chance to be a part of this exciting time in your lives.

anna & candyce

Brian — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 00:27:58 +0000

Meet Anna! The cutest little girl with the biggest smile I’ve ever seen. I joined her and her mom, Candyce, on a cold, early October day, as we braved the frigid morning air to take some pictures at their family farm. Definitely worth it! Anna loves to cheer on her older brothers, Zachary and Jared, and sister, Olivia, in whatever sport they might be playing for that particular season, and I can imagine she’s a great cheerleader. From the hour or so that I had to spend with them, I could tell right away that she’s an encourager, which is such an impressive trait in someone so young. Candyce and her husband, Mickey, adopted Anna from China almost two years ago, and they haven’t looked back since. I can imagine the joy she brings to the house, how fun it must be to watch her grow and learn and experience life with her older brothers and sister, and I can’t thank their family enough for the chance to meet her. By the end of the session, Anna was ready to put on her sweatshirt and hop in the heated car, but not before we got some great photos!