Molly Jones Photography Blog

I take it back.

2010-02-11T17:09:00.001-05:00

I just didn't feel comfortable there.

So I came back.

I did want to change the email address it was connected to though, so I have a new blogger blog. I finally figured out how to simplify my template and have bigger photos! So I am very happy!

Here is the new link:

http://mollyalisa.blogspot.com/

New Blog

2010-02-06T18:16:00.001-05:00

I just couldn't get my new blogger blog to look like I imagined. I wanted bigger pictures and a cleaner layout, so I moved to typepad.

I will be sharing my thoughts here from now on: Molly Alisa Blog

When I have them. Ha!

2010-02-05T08:18:00.004-05:00

Okay, so maybe the daily thing isn't going so well. Ha!

I have been doing photos almost daily, but now I am trying to start a blog that matches my business name, that will be essentially the same as this one. It will not be a business blog. I wouldn't bother with it at all if I didn't love to write so much.

I feel a little swamped lately. Things aren't going as quickly as I expected but I am so okay with that.

We are working on contracts and release forms. We are also looking in to business insurance for our equipment and property.

The site is ready but not up because I am not ready for clients yet.

I wish my fairy godmother would magically do all of the business details perfectly for me and I could just hide behind my camera. Hehe.

I am anything but business-minded.

I continue to think of ways that I can give back with my business and it seems I have not had a specific one click yet. I have so many ideas, I wish I could do them all. But I think I need to find one to focus on, especially at the beginning. If anyone has any ideas, feel free to share them! Especially if you know a group or ministry that could benefit from photography somehow.

Alright... pictures.

Lifestyle

2010-01-28T11:55:00.004-05:00

I am thinking about beginning to blog daily w/ photos in an effort to push myself towards lifestyle photography.

It is at the core of the style I am working so hard to develope. I keep getting side tracked and I feel it may give me focus.

My site is mostly ready. I am still awaiting some critique on it. It will be up very soon.

For now...

Editing...

2010-01-12T06:56:00.001-05:00

I am editing all day to prepare photos for my site.

They are all over. I need to be more organized. But it should be up soon!

2010-01-11T14:52:00.003-05:00

Tonight I meet with Meghan to see the designs she came up with for my website.

We are planning to launch the business site by the end of this week.

I will be handing out coupons, so the people helping me ease in to business will not be doing so at full price. Feel free to e-mail me if you would like one.

More soon.

New Name

2010-01-03T22:28:00.011-05:00

I have decided that when I start my business, I will be doing so under my first and middle name. This was the name I sent in to publishing houses and I had always planned to use it for photography as well. Then it just kind of happened that I was using my first and last name on my watermark. But I wanted to change it now before any real business was underway.

I am still not sure when I will open a business...

I still feel I have so much to learn. But what photographer doesn't? A business is probably likely in the next few months.

Since I completely missed sharing any holiday photos.... a few from Christmas this year. Happy New Year.

My favorite photo to date.

2009-11-10T20:43:00.001-05:00

There are no words for how much I love these girls. Or this photo.

Changes.

2009-11-10T08:46:00.001-05:00

I am changing the name for my photography business.

Stay tuned...

You have good days and bad...

2009-11-09T14:04:00.003-05:00

Today... has been bad.

After several hours of raw emotion, crying, and yelling, I told the kids we were going to do photos of how they were feeling, and then things were going to get better.

It's almost nap time now... and things have been a little better... looking forward...

Happiness

2009-11-09T08:13:00.005-05:00

I do find my photos generally represent me. I am not a bright, happy person. I do have joy, though. And I do love humor.

I also believe that my mood shows in my photos. Especially my personal photos. It is a means I use to express.

I took these photos of the girls I used to nanny and my children while we were all together. Times like these bring me a very unique joy. And I think it shows.

I also see that they were filled with joy that day as well.

Perfect or not, I will cherish these photos forever. Photos like this remind me what a gift photography is for me. Because when I look at them, I feel what I was feeling that day. And I relive those moments I would have never been able to get back.

Our Trip to Michigan

2009-10-24T08:41:00.006-04:00

My mother and I packed up the kids this week and went to visit her sister in Michigan.

My aunt is a writer and while we were there, we tried to get some photos of her for the jacket of future books.

The lighting was awful. It rained the whole time. But we did get a few keepers.

To get her more comfortable, I had my mom jump in for awhile.

My Aunt and Uncle have been married 32 years and are still completely in love.

This shot it not posed. I grabbed it after he got home from work.

It is my favorite from the bunch. Actually, I think I'd go so far to say it's one of my favorites ever.

The Fall we dream about is finally here...

2009-10-20T09:05:00.006-04:00

There is nothing like Fall in the midwest. This is the time of year when you drive through the slight hills and fields that stretch on forever and you think, "Why would anyone live anywhere else?"

The colors are stunning. The air is crisp. The leaves are brilliant.

Just being makes you feel alive.

And it's just beginning.

Welcome, Fall!

My Mom

2009-10-17T19:59:00.005-04:00

My mom is a beautiful woman; but for some reason, she has trouble seeing it.

I have waited a long time to do photos of her. I knew it would be a challenge to create art that even she would love.

These photos were emotional for me, because I wanted this for her so badly--for her to see what we all see.

I believe there is power in exposing people in photos... instead of trying to cover them up with fancy clothes, hair, or make up. It is a theory I grow more passionate about all the time.

I also believe that age and all of the learning and growth that comes with it makes every person more beautiful as they journey through life.

For these reasons, I do very little doctoring to my photos. Especially to skin.

My mom was a little bit nervous when I told her we would do these photos so simply; but my mother is a character. And I just couldn't see the sense in having anything distract from who she really is.

I can't speak for her, but I love these.

Happy Fall

2009-10-15T18:00:00.004-04:00

It's freezing here.

And dark. All day long.

I took my son out to play in the puddles but it was just too cold for him.

So we're settling down inside with a fire. Hopefully there will be more interesting light and activities soon.

For now... just wanted to wish everyone a happy Fall.

My Super Son

2009-10-07T22:41:00.006-04:00

My son is three. But he thinks he's 40.

He tries very hard to be grown up. He is my big helper--watching out for his sister and feeding the cat each morning.

I don't ask him to do either.

My mother recently bought him Superman pajamas.

He wears them everywhere. People stop us and say, "Hi, Superman!" He gives them this look, out of the corner of his eyes, and says, "I'm just a kid."

I don't know why he can't just allow himself to make believe something completely, and I so wish he could. But I love the innocence his response shows. In his mind, these people really believe he is Superman, and he needs to clear it up for them.

Or maybe he's tricking them and just doesn't want them to know his true identity.

I'll let you know if he disappears in to any phone booths.

Whatever the case... he couldn't be any more super to me.

Sneaky little Twinkle Toes

2009-10-06T14:16:00.002-04:00

A Beautiful Friend

2009-09-26T17:27:00.005-04:00

My friend Kelsey is so special to my heart.

She is 7 years younger than I am, so to say we were raised together may not be accurate; but our mothers are like sisters. We go way back.

Over the past couple of years, I have been so blessed to see the adult she has become. I also feel I have found a kindred spirit. I never feel the need to hide anything from her because I feel she understands the core of me.

She is strong. And brave. And genuine.

And she makes me laugh.

She's also a great model.

Meet Kels.

No words tonight.

2009-09-23T21:02:00.004-04:00

I should know better by now...

2009-09-20T12:29:00.007-04:00

I didn't bring my camera with me today, because we were just going for breakfast with my dad.

I should know by now that one thing always turns in to another, and whether I want my camera for the initial plans or not, I will eventually.

Sometimes I tell myself, "I have enough pictures. It won't hurt to miss one day."

But I think what it really comes down to is that I love to do it, and I feel better when I do it. It's not about having more photos to slip in to the pages of the album or to hang on the wall... it's about doing something I love.

And I feel like something is missing when we're all out and the camera is left at home.

It might sound weird, but it's become a member of the family.

My husband would tell you with a sly grin on his face that I even sleep with it at night. I would have to add that it is not in bed with me, but it is usually next to the bed.

Not just in case, but just because... because I love it that much.

My Children

2009-09-16T12:18:00.005-04:00

For the first time, I asked my children to sit still for photographs.

I never thought they would do it. I thought it would take all day. But they both cooperated. At 18 months and 3 years. For the record, I did not pose them. Just asked them to look in to the camera.

I am still planning to do a similar photo of Matt. Then have them printed for our living room wall.

I'm excited to finally have something I'm proud of on my wall.

More Self Portraits

2009-09-15T22:21:00.004-04:00

I wanted a new profile picture so I decided to try something new.

No make up. Hair back. Eyebrows overgrown. You can see my crooked nose and lazy eye. But it's me. And I don't think I would have said so ten years ago, but today I can say: I love it.

The Lines have Launched

2009-09-14T14:33:00.003-04:00

My photos are now up on Kristine Bercot's web page.

Here is the link: Art & Soul Boutique

And here a couple of recent photos... sometimes it takes me a few days to digest them and weigh my feelings on them. I am not sure how I feel about the first yet but the second has grown on me very much.

Meryl Streep

2009-09-13T22:09:00.012-04:00

Meryl Streep and Al Pacino say that it is good to establish early on that you are not worried about vanity--to just "send it packing."

Meryl Streep said, in an interview a few years ago, "People so want to set you in a box... It's reductive of my humanity and my engine. I have much more to give than that."

Of course she (or they, rather) were talking about acting.

I adore Meryl Streep.

In her, I see someone that loves what they do and does it fearlessly; in turn, changing the way it is done.

She inspires me.

I recently watched the movie One True Thing. It is not the first time I have been left speechless by one of Meryl Streep's performances, but it was the most recent.

I am a bit of a busy-body and I rarely sit through an entire movie. At the very least, I am up several times for bathroom breaks and snacks.

When One True Thing ended, Matt said, "You didn't move through that entire movie." I was fixated.

The character Meryl played in it very much reminded me of my mother. So from the beginning, I felt connected to this woman. Her decline was so real, so honest. At times, her skin so pale she looked like death with little hair or scarves tied around her head. Her face was colorless. There was nothing glamorous. She was hard to look at.

She played that role, and many other roles, bravely.

I very much love photography. It has been life-changing for me. But I do have to admit that I don't just love it as a whole. I don't love to read the magazines. I don't love to read the blogs of other photographers. Amazing angles and art done in Photoshop do little for me.

I love photographs that move me. That change the way I see the world, or that make me appreciate parts of it that I had been overlooking.

I look at photography and I feel disappointed a lot. I have a constant longing for it to be more. For it to show more. For it to grasp more. For it to move me... for it to express me.

I was thinking after watching One True Thing... I was thinking about the way it changed the entire way I was looking at the world... even the way I looked at my mother and I was thinking... I want to do that with my photography.

I don't want to be set in a box with photography. I don't want people to know what to expect from me. And I don't want to worry about my vanity.

Not every photo has to look perfect. If it makes a person laugh or cry, it did it's job. If it makes someone think, or grabs them, or helps them appreciate, or remember...

I know how to take a perfect photo. And I will. But it's not my goal, and it's not even that important.

A lot of people can do that, and I believe any fully functioning person can learn to do that.

I just... believe that I have much more to give than that too.

Self Portrait

2009-09-09T18:56:00.003-04:00

Recently I was faced with the challenge of doing a self portrait. I thought on it a long time and decided, in the end, not to do it.

But my brave friend Michelle decided she would. What she posted moved and inspired me. So I gave it a shot.

At the risk of feeling very naked on my blog... here it is.

"My Mommy, My Mommy."

2009-09-08T09:21:00.002-04:00

Ellis is 17 months old.

Today she was fussing--reaching for me to pick her up.

When I finally did she squeezed me hard around the neck and said, "My Mommy, My Mommy."

Why can't I take a picture of that?

A few snap shots.

2009-09-02T13:00:00.010-04:00

Well...

My photo shoot with Kristine is tomorrow.

I am so nervous. It's going to be mid-day with lighting I don't normally choose to work with. But I'm excited to see what she has created and how gorgeous all of the little models will look in it.

I will be doing photo shoots of her daughter and Ellis on Friday I believe.

On Monday we spent the day delivering discs of photos to friends. The kids got restless so we stopped at Hardees for drinks. I took a few snap shots of the kids playing at the table. I've been trying to do more snap shots for the sake of memories. And not worry so much about every shot being perfect. It's good for me.

And here are some of Asa and our cat today. He just loves Otto. They're buds and Otto even stays in his room at night until he falls asleep.

And I also wanted to add some photos of Chrystal's little boy Evan. He's such a sweet baby boy. Some day we'll do a "real" photo shoot with him--when it's not nap time! Maybe he'll like my camera better if he's not begging for his bed. Hehe.

I was bored and playing with a new watermark. Just ignore that. lol

Some Thoughts

2009-08-29T22:25:00.013-04:00

I've been thinking lately. About photography--and what it means to me.

In the beginning, all I knew was that I wanted to learn it. That something in me felt drawn to it.

Then I had kids. And time started to bother me more than usual. As though it hadn't bothered me enough in the first place, right?

So I started practicing more.

And I was blessed by two people that saw how hard I was working to learn with my point and shoot digital camera... and they placed a digital SLR in my hands. Something we never could have afforded for me at that point--practically still newly weds with a 7 month old baby.

I LOVED that camera. And what a gift they gave me--so much more than just something to take pictures with. It was a learning tool. It was saving the moments I was so scared to let go of. It was finding the artist in me again when I no longer had time to write.

I felt I was good at photography and I was proud of the work I was doing... until I fell in to a group of photographers on my diapering forum. One in particular took me under her wing and mentored me. And I learned not only how to master my camera--but what makes a "perfect picture," and that sometimes the perfect picture isn't so perfect by those rules anyway.

But most importantly, I learned that photography can express who I am. It can represent me.

And it can speak to people.

I realized that with my camera, and with my eye, I can show people things. And I can capture things that mean something to other people too.

Recently photography has been overwhelming me.

There are things in life that only happen once. And if you can catch those--then you have done something unique. You have done something amazing.

In the years before I met my husband, I was a nanny for two little girls. I think I will always look back on those years as some of the best of my life. The entire family was a blessing to me, and I loved those little girls more than I'd ever loved anyone.

My last week of working for them was two weeks before my wedding. We knew after my wedding, we would be seeing eachother much less. It was a huge turning point for all of us. And when it was time for them to leave, they came to say goodbye to me...

I have no words for what that moment was like for me.

But I have this photo. And it still makes me cry. And I am so thankful my photographer wasn't too shy to get down there with her camera, when everyone else had backed away to let us have our moment.

Thank you Jean.

Then there are moments... that only happen for awhile. And they are routine. But only for awhile.

And to capture those... it's to remember before you forget. To look ahead and think about what you will want to savor. Because things change faster than we think they will... and things that are so familiar... go away.

I can't say that I have ever been a very chipper person... or even an inherently happy one.

But photography for me, is to find the joyful moments. And to hold on to them. Or to embrace the painful ones for what you learned. To look at the small things in life that are hard to saying goodbye to--and claim them.

In my heart, photography feels the same as writing. And it almost feels miraculous to me that I have been able to advance in it, learn it, and then jump off at almost the same point I'd left off with my writing.

It is a gift to me.

It's something I can grab on to, when the world feels so fast, and so big...

So here's to taking photos... no matter what camera you have... whether you know the rule of 3rds or not; own photoshop or not...

Here's to holding on to life... and all the things that make us smile. And cry. To all of the Littles that grow up too fast. And all of the "grown ups" that don't realize how fast it will go.

Here are some of my favorites. Perfect or not.

And just because it's adorable...

I hope that both of my children find something that they can grab on to... as they grow and find themselves... and learn how to swim through this life.

Update Overload

2009-08-28T21:13:00.006-04:00

Okay, so I'm going to give you some photos this time.

How about a beautiful squishy newborn? He was 10 days old and absolute perfection. It was hard to leave him.

And my girl, proudly sporting her mullet-hawk. She works her 80's look something fierce.

My little boy, so full of joy. He's so fabulous. I just adore him.

And a snap shot from a proud mama. Asa told me, "Mommy, I'm going to write my name."

I was on the phone with Grandma Susi so I told him, "Okay sweetie!" and went on.

He came to me a few minutes later and dragged me over to his beautiful easle (thanks Grandpa Bob!!) and showed me this. Sure, he spelled it wrong but he did get an almost "S" and two "A"s. All on his own. Way to go little guy.

And now for my most recently edited shoot. I love these photos. These are my friends the Haskins and they are such a gorgeous family. So real and so fun. And good-looking to boot!

Surprise!!

2009-08-26T14:34:00.001-04:00

Turns out I am going to be doing some commercial photography for Art & Soul, Bercot Children's Wear!!

We're doing a sneak peak photo shoot in about an hour. I'm so excited!

I just had to share this one.

2009-08-21T19:46:00.002-04:00

Busy Photography Week

2009-08-15T11:22:00.006-04:00

Well this week I got a taste of what it would be like to own a business. I had three sessions, two with people I had never met.

It has been great experience for me doing photos for people that are not friends. It's building my confidence, cementing my style, and teaching me what I want out of my business.

On to the photos.

2009-08-08T21:13:00.005-04:00

Wow has summer gotten us busy!

Last weekend, we had two parties! I am not finished editing photos from them yet. Friday my friend Kristen had her baby!! I need to see if she minds if I post a photo of him here. I took some yesterday. He's gorgeous. I've been sewing in what spare time I have, which doesn't feel like much.

I'm wiped out tonight, but trying to catch up on blogging a bit, and photo editing. I have three or four photo shoots this week so I don't want to fall behind. :)

Thanks for checking in with my blog! As usual, you can click on the photos to make them bigger.

I will try to update more often.

-Molly

Ellis in a dress I made her this week:

Asa and Grandad, hand in hand:

Cleaning for Grandpa Bob's surprise party.

I wanted to get some photos of the kids in their Matilda Jane/Might Acorns clothes, but all of them ended up being dirty (spur of the moment thing--lol). I was still happy with some of the sibling shots I got. It's hard to get a good picture of them together!

I wanted to be a photographer...

2009-07-19T12:47:00.005-04:00

The reason I started to really delve in to photography was to preserve. Because time goes by too quickly. And I just don't want to forget those things that are so important... but that we forget. Because life just gets busy and it flies by so fast.

For me, it's those little things. It's not the perfect portraits and it's not the stunning lighting you get at sundown.

I wanted to be a photographer... to take pictures like this:

Ellis and her Mommy

2009-07-12T23:29:00.004-04:00

Ellis has started calling Kyle "Mommy."

She loves him. I think she may love him more than anyone.

I took this picture of her hand today hanging on to his shirt during our walk and I love it.

And some from my photo shoot Friday night. I love all of these. There are tons more that were great. These ones just stood out more to me personally.

Otto & Basketball

2009-07-10T13:59:00.002-04:00

Just a few family photos to share.

I was bored.

2009-07-02T14:12:00.003-04:00

I have been feeling bored with my photography. I just needed to try something different.

I love them all. I think, somehow, they represent Ellis and I both.

Sleepy Foot.

2009-06-29T08:12:00.009-04:00

A random sleepy foot from last week.

Flowers in the Green

2009-06-18T16:30:00.003-04:00

I haven't been out to shoot in a few days. I didn't have the energy to take the kids out, so I went out with my flowers not expecting to get much, but I do love this.

I know nothing about flower photography. But sometimes you just have to shoot something. lol

.

My new watermark

2009-06-17T14:23:00.004-04:00

I've been working since last night to come up with something I like and feel represents me in some way.

I think I like this.

The Park

2009-06-16T17:49:00.008-04:00

Thank you for visiting my photography blog. I hope you enjoy it.

Please excuse the bad watermark. I am considering hiring someone to make me one that suites me better.

We went to the park today.

I swear all 3 of us were PMSing.

Getting out helped.

Click on the photos to see them full size. I'm not a fan of the smaller sizes but blogger doesn't display images much bigger than this in the blog post.