About Audrey
Thank you for visiting my blogsite! Make yourself at home and stay awhile...and while you are at it, please leave a comment or two so I know you were here!
My blog is not only a place where you will see sneak peeks from my recent sessions, but hopefully you will also get to know ME better. I love sharing my photography journey, and I am also known to write about other things that are going on in my life.
So snoop around! :) That is what my blog is here for!
For more information about me and my sessions, please visit my website!
I told Dana I’d let her see a couple of pictures tonight. We just finished her and Daniel’s engagement session a few hours ago! So here are just a couple to leave her hanging! 
A full blog post with more photos from this session will be up soon!
I am about to gush about my daughter….so if you don’t want to hear about it, then now is the time to close this screen. Or click “x”…or whatever. Brilynn’s prom was this past Friday night. We had a little drama in the days leading up to prom. She found a dress that she fell in love with on-line……in Japan. So a month before prom we ordered it knowing it would take 2-3 weeks to get. Well, 3 days before prom her dress had not come in. And after all attempts to correspond with this company I was unable to get any kind of communication from them. We didn’t know if the dress was on it’s way or not. There was some crying and some panicking, but dresses from friends and strangers starting pouring in to help poor Brilynn out. And finally, exactly 24 hours before prom night, she got a dress. The most beautiful dress borrowed from a friend who has an older sister in college that wore this dress to her senior prom. So sweet of that family to let Brilynn borrow this to die for dress!
So here goes the gushing… Brilynn is a pretty girl whether she’s got Nike shorts on and no make-up or if she’s all fixed up for a date night. But, oh my word, put her in a prom dress and WOWSERS!!! What a beauty!! I am constantly surprised at how she has become this beautiful woman overnight. It’s like I tucked her into bed one night and she woke up the next morning as a lovely young woman. She is smart, focused and ready to fly…but I’m going to soak in this last year with her at home with me. In fact, she might find me kissing her on the forehead at night and asking her if she’d like me to read her a bedtime story. She just grew up too fast.
Back to prom…her boyfriend, Landry, showed up in a tux and looked as handsome as a 16 year old boy (or guy…he’s still just a boy to me) can possibly look. What I like most about Landry is how crazy he is about Brilynn. He genuinely cares about her and adores her. If my daughter is going to have a boyfriend, it better be someone who treats her like gold (or like a “princess” is what she likes to say). And Landry does that.
Prom day started around 1:00 with hair and make-up. Oh, I should probably credit the hair stylist and make-up artist. That would be ME. Spelled m-o-t-h-e-r. Cuz I’m good like that.
And then the dress…
And then the boy…
We snuck in a few family pictures too…
A big group of friends….
Which meant more beautiful girls, stunning dresses and lots of laughs…
And of course more good looking boys (men? guys?)…
It was a perfect night. Memories Brilynn will look back on and smile as she remembers it all….
I love you, baby girl. Raising you has been my greatest source of pride and joy. You truly are a gift from God.
I did not cry while writing this. I know you think I did. But I didn’t. I did get one of those lumps in my throat that was sort of painful to keep down, and my eyes got a little watery – but that could have easily been allergies….or something.
It took nearly three years for us to find our church home since moving to Birmingham. Most of that was our fault. Stubbornness. Comparing every church we visited to our church back home in Franklin, TN (Grace Chapel). Funny thing is God had been directing us to Church of the Highlands since before we moved to Birmingham. A couple of months before we even sold our home in Tennessee I met a young woman who had just moved to TN from Birmingham and she immediately asked us if we would be looking for a church in Birmingham. She told me all about Church of the Highlands, Pastor Chris, and how the church changed her life and her husband’s life. Then when my husband and I were house hunting in Birmingham we grabbed lunch at an Applebees (Or was it Chili’s?? Surely we didn’t voluntarily eat at an Applebees!!) and the waiter asked us if we would be looking for a church. And for the second time we heard a testimony about how God is doing awesome things at Church of the Highlands and in his own life. Once we finally moved to Hoover, we continued to hear numerous times from random people that we should visit Church of the Highlands. So we did – we visited Church of the Highlands. And then we visited several other churches in town (for good measure). But none of these churches were Grace Chapel (our church back home). None of them sat in the rolling TN hills with a beautiful barn on the back of their property which then backs up to the most perfect picturesque creek…split rail fences, community garden, and skate park. That was the church we knew and loved. It was not in Birmingham, AL. And there was no pastor in AL who was anything like the pastor we loved so much – Pastor Steve Berger. (We still love and miss him!) Church of the Highlands was great, but it was HUGE and it didn’t feel like “home” at first so we quickly moved on. We just visited more churches (very nice churches!) but none of them felt right for us so we watched a lot of Grace Chapel’s services on-line in the comfort of our own home. Too bad God wasn’t really in Birmingham….too bad He seemed to only be at Grace Chapel because Hoover, AL was quickly becoming our home, and we desperately needed a church home. But we were oh so stubborn and though Alabama didn’t “get it”. Boy were we wrong.
Fast forward three years later. We finally revisited Church of the Highlands, except this time we visited one of the satellite campuses in Riverchase. The minute I walked into the building something felt different…something actually felt right. People were packed like sardines in the sanctuary – standing room only – and these people were freely worshiping God through song and praise. The Holy Spirit blanketed this room and I could feel Him…this must be home. We became members just a couple of weeks later and joined a small group. In a couple of weeks I will be auditioning to be part of their praise & worship team (crossing fingers…and go ahead and say a prayer for me while you’re reading this!!). Being a satellite campus means we have a campus pastor (who is awesome), Blake Lindsey, and he leads worship and just about everything else during each service except preach the sermon. We watch Pastor Chris Hodges on large video screens who is preaching live at the main campus at Grant’s Mill each week. I thought it would bug me to watch the sermon on video, but honestly, I mostly forget he’s not standing live on our church stage. The message is still the same. Speaking of messages, Pastor Chris can BRING IT. I’ll have to admit, it took a few sermons for me to really understand him and his preaching style. I liked him…but his preaching style is different from Pastor Steve’s at Grace Chapel. After listening and watching him preach a few sermons something finally clicked, “This guy is GOOD. This pastor GETS IT…There is a REASON why this church has NINE campuses in Alabama. There is a reason why this church continues to GROW…and it’s not because they are winning a popularity contest. It is simply because GOD IS WORKING HERE IN THE LOCAL CHURCH and through this pastor!”
I don’t know why it took us three years to come to this conclusion. I’d like to think it was God’s perfect timing, but I think the truth is our family got a little off course when we ignored the signs in the beginning. Our life here in Birmingham may have been more enjoyable and gone more smoothly if we would have trusted God’s prompting. He didn’t send us to Birmingham without carefully placing us where we can continue to grow in Him. He made it very clear to us in the beginning where we were supposed to be, but our pride and stubbornness got the best of us. Just because the church was different than what we were used to and the preacher preached differently than what we were used to. And the worship music was not the same as it is in so many churches in Nashville (Kinda hard to compete with the great music in Nashville, y’all!)
BUT TODAY… Today was a special day at church. Last week, Easter Sunday, just over 3,000 people were saved throughout the different campuses at Church of the Highlands. 3,000 PEOPLE – PRAISE GOD!!! So THIS WEEK, Pastor Chris surprised us all by doing an impromptu baptismal service! And opportunity for all those recently saved and anyone else who has not been baptized yet to be baptized TODAY during the service! What?? And they left no room for excuses. They had complete changes of clothes for anyone of any size who wanted to get baptized…shorts, t-shirts, and yes – even undergarments!! They even had pony tail holders, blow dryers and hair moose for those who needed it! My daughter turned to me with tears in her eyes…I asked, “Are you doing it?” She eagerly nodded yes as tears filled up her eyes and she wrapped her arms around my neck for a good long squeeze as we both cried together. Then I turned to Chris (my hubby who became a Christ follower 4.5 years ago on Christmas Eve) and asked him if he was going to do it and he simply nodded his head and said, “Yeah!”. Within the next 60 seconds they were both getting their t-shirt and shorts and got in line with so many others who decided to get baptized today. IT WAS SO AWESOME. You can see today’s message HERE: “Baby Steps”, and if you’re interested in the Easter message (that led over 3,000 people to Christ!), you can view or listen to it HERE: “When Only A Miracle Will Do”.
What made today even more special is that my parents happened to be in town to watch my son’s baseball tournament and visited church with us for the first time this morning. We left church this morning just beaming and filled with joy! What an amazing experience that we will never forget – what a GOD thing, ya know? So of course we headed straight to the Mexican restaurant to celebrate over chips and salsa!
Here are the links to Chris & Brilynn’s baptism videos that I took on my phone. Church of the Highlands had professional photographers there taking photos (thank God…no photos, can you imagine??) – we will get mailed a print of their baptism! Can’t wait!
Chris gets baptized! AND Brilynn gets baptized!
Sorry no pictures this post! Obviously, if the baptisms had been planned I would have been more prepared! But I wouldn’t have changed it for the world. Thank you, Jesus, for today’s gift. What a treat for my family to share together, and I am looking forward to seeing what God has planned for us next!
It’s finally spring. The weather is beautiful – sunny and in the 80′s. Sam is starting to potty train. Eli’s world is consumed by homework, playing in the neighborhood culdesac with his buddies, and lots of baseball practices. Brilynn is equally concerned with getting her tan on as she is maintaining good grades. And she’s got that boyfriend, Landry, who keeps her pretty occupied too (I’m determined to get pictures of the two of them this week!).
Last night my two boys were chillin’ on my bed watching a little t.v. together. My camera was sitting out on my dresser, and I thought, why not? Why not? How about because it’s really dark in this room! Who cares? Well, that means I’ll have to bump my ISO way up with a chance I’ll still get some blurry photos…not to mention, the obvious grain! So what? So what? Hmm..true, so what. It’s my camera. My kids. My room. Who cares if it’s dark and I have grainy photos. I bet I’m going to love documenting this everyday moment of my boys just hanging out together. I’m taking these photos for me.
Sam with his dobbie (a.k.a. “blankie”) and Eli with his ipod…
I got Eli a new pair of Under Armour baseball socks…he wears them with everything!
Oh my gosh, look at his little squishy tummy peaking out from under his pajama top!
I hope you enjoyed a little peak into my world. We’re nothing fancy…but don’t I have the cutest kids ever? 
Those of you who know me well, know that I have a heart for single moms. I was a single mom for 5 years. I remember the struggles – emotionally, financially, and even physically. I also remember making a conscious decision to appreciate those years I had – just me and my two kids. It was tough at times, but I am so much stronger for it now. And honestly, some days I miss it being just the three of us.
In honor of single moms, I want to give away TWO photo sessions to TWO very special single moms. This can be any photo session of your choice. Maybe you’d love to have a portrait session of JUST YOU! I absolutely LOVE photographing women and watching them blossom in front of the camera. It’s so much fun. Or if you’d prefer, I can do a photo session of just your children or child (as long as I get at least ONE of just you!). And of course you can do a family photo session – you and your kids. What a great way to document this time in your lives as a family!
How can I become a candidate for this gift?
Simply send me an e-mail telling me about yourself, your kids, your story. Tell me whatever you want. Just please don’t give me all the dirt on why your ex-husband is…whatever. I realize single moms are single for different reasons. Maybe you never married, or you’re a widow, or you are divorced. Tell me what makes you a great mom. Tell me why your kids are so incredible. Tell me what struggles or challenges you have overcome. Just tell me about you. And then attach a photo of yourself and your precious kiddos! (It’s ok if you need to send a couple of pictures.)
You can enter yourself OR if you know a very special single mom who is deserving of this special gift – I want to hear from you too! Just write an e-mail about why this mom is so incredible and attach a photo or two of her and her kids if possible!
How will the moms be chosen?
I have a feeling I will have a hard time making a final choice. I am looking for two moms who have a positive outlook on life. I love to hear about hard working moms who do whatever it takes to make a good life for her child or children. I am NOT…I repeat, NOT, looking for the prettiest two moms. But sometimes a photo helps “see” the person better. I am looking for true beauty – from the inside out. I guess the best way I can explain it, is I will choose the two moms whom my heart connects with the most.
So what’s included? Here’s the scoop…
****EVERYONE WHOM I RECEIVE AN E-MAIL FROM OR ABOUT WILL GET A $50 CREDIT TOWARD ANY PHOTO PACKAGE TO USE WITHIN THE NEXT 12 MONTHS!****
When will the two moms be chosen?
I will accept entries through March 30th and the chosen moms will be announced on Monday, April 2nd!!
Information:
It’s been several months since I’ve blogged! I’ve missed it. Sometimes life throws you curve balls and the only thing you have time to do is react, dodge, catch and just hope you make it through stronger for it. This past October my family decided to make a last minute trip to the beach. We didn’t go on a vacation during the summer and we hoped we’d be able to catch some warm weather before winter hit. My sister found an incredible deal for us to all stay in Seacrest Beach, FL – it was 80 degrees down there the week before we went, and 80 degrees the week after we left. But when WE were there, we got to enjoy a cool 50+ degrees and lots of wind! 
To make up for the cooler temps, we went out to eat a lot…which in the Seacrest Beach area, let’s just say “it ain’t cheap”! We did end up having one long beautiful day at the beach and I managed to get my tan on – so it’s all good. Memories were made and the kids had a blast!
We were ready to get back home. Little did we know what adventure laid ahead of us. Two steps into our home I quickly knew something was wrong. What was that smell?? Two more steps, what is that sound?? And two more steps, slosh! slosh! Our feet were sloshing around in inches of water that covered almost our entire first floor of our home. Wooden floors buckled everywhere. It. was. a. disaster. Water was still gushing into our home from a water pipe under our kitchen sink that had come undone while we were on vacation. Under the house 3 feet of water stood. Like a swimming pool. The water had been running into our home almost the entire time we were gone. Seriously!? Just our luck.
For the next four weeks, we lived at the Residence Inn. A lovely 2 bedroom suite provided by our insurance company (can’t say enough good things about State Farm!). But two bedrooms, and a tiny living area for five people – including a teenage girl and a 2 year old boy – let’s just say it was FAR from a vacation! State Farm was gracious enough to pay for us to stay in a rental home we found in Bluff Park. Five bedrooms!! Yeah! And that’s where we lived for the next three months. Through Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t home.
As if flooding our home wasn’t stressful enough, our daughter wrecked her car in the school parking lot while we were living in the hotel. $1,200 in damage. While in the rental home, our daughter’s friend backed into my husband’s car living a pretty little dent in the front bumper. The kitchen sink was not draining, so for a week we had to wash dishes in the tiny 1960′s bathtub of the rental home. And the final blow was finding out literally days before Christmas that my husband was not going to be getting his annual bonus this year. (Thank you, Jesus, he did end up getting a little one which helped pay for all the expenses that had come up…and of course, Christmas presents!)
February finally came and it was time to move back into our home. We were ready to get back to normalcy. But what I didn’t expect was to move into a home that finally felt like home to me. We bought our house when we moved to Birmingham three years ago. The house never felt like home to me. It’s a pretty house…I just didn’t like it for us. It never had that “homey” feel. I didn’t know how to decorate it, and it never felt like it was mine. We even had it on the market for 13 months until this past August. We showed the home 2-3 times a week, and always had great feedback, but for some reason it didn’t sell. Little did we know that God had a different plan for us. A flood…actually an undone pipe under a kitchen sink. Because of this flood, we got to upgrade all of our floors to beautiful dark, hand-scraped wide blank wood floors throughout our entire first floor (even our master bedroom and Sam’s room that were carpeted before). We had enough money left over (again, thank you, State Farm) to replace and upgrade all of the carpet upstairs too! Because the doors under the kitchen sink got wet, we had to replace ALL of our kitchen cabinets! So I got to design my kitchen the way I wanted! (We even got those cool little spice racks above the stove!) New granite countertops, and new tile backsplash. Because the floors had to be pulled up around the fireplace, we had to replace the marble around it. Bye-bye, marble, and Hello, stone! Most of the rooms on our first floor also got new paint – walls, trim and doors! It is truly unbelievable how our home has been completely transformed. Thank you, God, for caring about little ol’ me!
The day we moved back into our home I literally just sat on my open staircase and looked around at my “new” home. I could NOT believe it was mine. Four months of chaos, unknowns, and financial stress was forgotten. Now I’ve been enjoying re-decorating my home (Pinterest is my new BFF!). This is a perfect example of when unanswered prayers are a blessing. God sees what we are incapable of seeing! His plans are way better than anything we could dream up! We could never have spent $50,000 renovating our house! But God. God is so much bigger than all of that. When I prayed and prayed and prayed that our home would sell…I absolutely BELIEVED He would answer my prayers (I just thought he was teaching me patience!). I had an undeniable peace when we took it off the market. I knew that if it didn’t sell there was a good reason. And two months later we went on vacation….and so the story goes…
All of that to say, it’s been crazy ’round here! Plus I have a two and a half year old little guy who keeps me super occupied these days! I wouldn’t change it for the world. I have some photo shoots in the works that I’m excited about. Shooting for me…and then I’ll be shooting seniors, class of 2013! I’m excited about getting back in the swing of things!
Here are a couple pictures of my house starting to come together. And I FINALLY have family pictures in a collage up my staircase! (We took all of our family photos down while our house was on the market for 13 months!) I don’t know how long we’ll be in this house, but for now it is our family’s home; and I will treat it as such.
I’ve taken Stacey’s family photos three times now in two years. I’ve also taken their daughter, Channing’s, 1 year pictures (see HERE). Many families never get their pictures taken…ever. So three times in two years may seem excessive. But other than sorting through a box (or computer file) of snapshot pictures that are unorganized and blurry – Stacey will be able to pull out beautiful, heirloom photos. She’ll remember Channing’s chunky knees, pony tails sticking straight up on her head, and baby blue eyes. She’ll remember how Rylee loved to steal the spotlight by striking poses and making overly animated faces. She’ll remember how shy and uncomfortable Harper was trying to keep up with her big sister in front of the camera…how she would tilt her chin down and smile sideways a little awkwardly. And she’ll remember how handsome her husband was and still is. She’ll remember how he knew how important family pictures were to her as he agreed to do his hair exactly as she requested. And he wore the clothing she chose for him without complaining. She’ll see what a beautiful family she had. Being a mother and wife can be tough, but what she’ll remember in later years are the precious moments that slipped by all too quickly. This is why she does family photo sessions. She knows. These days are numbered and she wants to capture them now so she can hold on to them later.
They’re like most other families. The baby who cried for the first 30 minutes of the session. The older one who tested her parents with her attitude. And the middle child who was most comfortable disappearing in the photos with her head down or turned most of the time. I only tell you that because people get so stressed out about getting family pictures done. I expect nothing from families other than to be themselves, have fun, and be comfortable. They did that, and I was able to capture some beautiful photos! So, here’s another large share because I’m terrible at choosing just a few photos!
It is obvious. These two are so in love. Attracted to his “beautiful eyes” at first, Courtney quickly new he was The One. Apparently there is something magical in working a long shift, little sleep, and crazy hair that won Jason over! Cute story – I’ll let him explain. As Jason explains the first time he met Courtney with her crazy hair, they’re both laughing and grinning at each other. He wraps his arms around her and pulls her in close….
They’re getting married on 11-11-11! (Which also happens to be my birthday…but as I get older, I think it’s best not to focus on getting a year older!) A lucky date for a beautiful fall wedding – can’t wait!
I didn’t have to give Courtney & Jason very much direction at all. They were both so comfortable with each other.
“Forever is not a word…rather a place where two lovers go when true love takes them there.”
Ok, ok…maybe not. Especially not down here in Alabama! But we have had a little bit of a temperature change – I’ve actually worn a sweatshirt once or twice. And with cooler weather we can’t help but think about the holiday season!! Oh, wait…not necessarily down here in the south. We tend to think about FOOTBALL first! (Go Vols!……and I just lost any potential clients in Alabama….). Seriously though, we all know how quickly the leaves change, costumes are packed away and bellies everywhere are filled to the brim with turkey and dressing! Every year we are so surprised when Christmas seems to sneak up on us!
I’ve gotten several inquiries about family photo sessions. Everyone loves doing sessions in the fall. Maybe because it’s fun to accessorize with hats, boots, tights and sweaters. Or maybe because mom’s make-up won’t melt off her face in the Alabama humidity! (Is it just me?) I think it’s a combination of all of it – and a lot of beautiful COLOR! Don’t wait until it’s too late to get your family or children’s photos done – so you have plenty of time to put together Christmas cards and gifts for your family – like framed prints, calendars (grandparents love them!), personalized coffee mugs, and…you get the idea. So as I put together a portrait package for my clients this year, I put myself in your shoes. If I were the client, what would I really want? I would want a CD with all of the images. I’d want to put them on facebook. I’d want to print photos for family members. I’d want to use them for slide shows I’ll put together for my children’s 16th birthday or even their weddings. Truth is, we all love digital images for many reasons. I would also need them at a reasonable price. But I look at Custom Photography (which is what I do) like this: You can buy a pair of jeans at Target or at a boutique store downtown. Either way they’re jeans. BUT if jeans are important to you (like they are to me!) then you know the benefits of buying them at a boutique store – the experience just walking into the boutique, the customer service, the wide selection of designers, the way the jeans actually fit, the stitching, the pockets (ooooh, the pockets are SO important!), and the quality of denim – they always last longer! But if jeans are just a pair of pants made out of denim material to you – then Target is your store for jeans! Ok, so I hope I didn’t lose you. It’s like a Lexus verses a Hyundai. They both get you from point A to point B. But how you want to get there is entirely up to you! Maybe you don’t care that much about cars? Maybe you do. Maybe all you want is a picture of your family where everyone is looking at the camera and smiling. If that is your goal, then custom photography may not be a priority for you and your family. And that is totally ok! But for many people, memories captured through custom photography are cherished as family heirlooms and made a priority for their family.
I find it hard to price my work. I feel pressured by other photographers to “do this” or “do that”. Don’t sell digital files – ever! Or whatever… Truth is, I love what I do. I absolutely LOVE it. I think everyone should be so lucky to love their job. But I do so much more than take pictures. I study photography for hours every week. I’m either shooting, reading other photographer’s blogs, participating in on-line photography forums, updating my blog and website, learning about new products and equipment, e-mailing clients, assisting clients with orders, editing photos, culling through images, and so on and so forth. If I did this for free, eventually my husband would tell me to stop! So, here is what I am going to do… I am including a CD with all edited images from your session in all of my portrait packages. I will also upload your images to your own photo gallery where you can order high quality, professional prints AT COST! No, seriously….at cost. Because I am fully aware that there are options (and Groupons) everywhere for you to print photos at very low prices. Not necessarily high quality print options, but I digress. I will still offer all types of prints, custom designed storyboards, and custom designed albums. But for Christmas and fall photography sessions, I have put the following package together. (If you’d rather not do a package, please see my website for rates and other information: www.audreycurranphotography.com).
If you book your session within the next 2 weeks (Wednesday, October 5th) you will NOT pay the $75 session fee and will save $100 on the package!
$600 Christmas Package: ($500 if booked by October 5th!)
(**You can pay an additional $150 to substitute 3 10×10 gallery wraps instead of the 16×24 or 16×20 – perfect Christmas gift for parents or grandparents! This is a $420 value!**)
Here is an example of a Gallery Wrap – comes ready to hang!
Here is an example of the custom luxe Christmas cards included in this package! (Fully customizable for your family.)
$150 non-refundable deposit required within 7 days of booking your session. The remaining balance is due the day of your session. Please contact me through my website or e-mail me at audreycurranphoto@gmail.com.
I’m looking forward to hearing from you and meeting your family soon!
Blessings,
Audrey
The contrast between this rustic, historical industrial site, Sloss Furnaces, and the charm and warmth of an intimate summer wedding was so refreshing! I am thankful that Angela Blake graciously invited me to shoot along side her for Kelli and Wesley’s wedding. (You can see Angela’s work HERE.)
Kelli’s unique style and elegance was woven throughout every detail.
From Miss to Mrs. Kelli changes out her sash from black to red as she’s ready to celebrate!
Kelli, you are simply stunning! I wish you both a lifetime of many blessings!
