St. Louis Photographer » A Journal by Holly McCaig

I was so excited, and fortunate, to be second-shooting a wedding with my dear friend, Audra Little from Phoenix, Arizona. This wedding was rich in Mexican tradition. The service was a full Catholic mass and spoken half and half in Spanish & English. Wonderful! I loved every minute of this. It was a simple wedding, but full of life and charm. Andy & Ileana will reside in Chandler, Arizona and I thank them for allowing me to photograph their day with Audra.

The madrina de arras holds the 13 coins the bridegroom presents to the bride. The coins, or arrhea, was a Roman custom of breaking gold or silver, one half to be kept by the woman and the other half by the man, as a pledge of marriage.

As part of the ceremony to symbolize unity, a large loop of rosary beads or a lasso (cord) is placed in a figure eight shape around the necks of the couple after they have exchanged their vows.

Everyone loves a mariachi band!

It goes without saying that life is just too short. And, when you are not expecting it, in the blink of an eye, everything can end.

On Saturday evening, I received a call while out in Phoenix. At first, I had heard that she had collapsed and they were rushing to the hospital. The next call would be to tell me that she did not make it. I felt so helpless, so far away.

She was my brother’s future mother-in-law. And, we all loved her dearly. She was fun, spunky, and kind. Our families get along so well. And, now, to know that they are hurting without their mother, well, it just tears my heart apart.

It’s a tough time for us all right now. What will the kids all do now? They are all 20 to 28 years old. Three are in college (all paid for because Phyllis worked for Washington University). My hopes are that they would continue their education, even if it means it will be that much harder to manage. Phyllis would have wanted that.

Please pray for them all. Or, if you don’t pray, just keep them in your thoughts. My brother is especially having a hard time – being an EMT, you think if you could have just been there that you could have helped. Funeral services are Friday. If you see the flags at Washington University at half-mast, please honor her memory.

Finally – a new and improved, Pink Ink Studios. I developed this website at the end of 2007 and it has just grown exponentially. I have seen some ups and downs with it. We have moved from a cheap, free shopping cart to a paid, more controlled cart. We have added a second domain to split the website up into two parts. We’ve seen people come and people go. Now, it’s 2009 and we have a revised look, vision, and are growing. I love it.

My vision for Pink Ink Studios was a place that photographers could come together and purchase e-products that help make their business run better. If that’s logistically or in a creative sense, then I wanted that. Everything at Pink Ink Studios is available to the professional photographer for their commercial/business use. There are a variety of designers on board with us that give you multiple options!

With this new update, we have been taking on more contributors to provide our readers with articles on the business and how to incorporate our products. We have opened up the forums! They are free to everyone that wants to learn and network in this business. We had a paid subscriber area, just like so many others. However, the economy has people cutting costs – and we, as photographers, need all the free help we can get.

If you’re a photographer in the business, I invite you to come on by and check it out. Visit us at www.pinkinkstudios.net today!

Meanwhile, here’s my latest product that I’ve put up at Pink Ink Studios – it’s a template for you to use in aiding your clients the understanding of how cropping works on their images. A common issue some of us have found happening to them.

These are slightly late. I have several sessions where I still haven’t gotten some feedback or response from clients on so I am not going to show those until that happens. I want my clients see things first before the public does. Don’t forget, March special – 1/2 your session fee in print credits (excludes dog and lollipop shoots).

Both of these sessions were surprises for their fathers, so they were under tight wraps! Now, Valentine’s Day has passed and here are these cuties. Playing with a new slideshow feature that I think it is pretty fun. Enjoy these mini session recaps.

Thanks! These kids were WAY too cute and fun!

I really do need to get back to my regular blogging. It’s just that so much has been happening that when I think about it, the flow isn’t there and I just say, “I’ll do it tomorrow.” – Completely unlike me. So, here’s back to trying again!

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to shoot in a cemetery in the city with another photographer, Jason Wall. I’m second shooting a wedding with him in a few weeks. Yes, that’s two weddings in February I get to second for. This weekend, I’m flying to Phoenix to shoot with Audra Little. I am not just looking forward to shooting, but to also be in the beautiful, Phoenix again. I love it there. And, I just love seeing Audra and her family. Good times – and great Mexican food!

So, back to the cemetery, Calvary Cemetery. I really didn’t put two and two together until just a few minutes ago. Being in a cemetery, photographing angels, and wondering about the lives of those we were reading the markers of are always interesting to me. But, for it to also be the anniversary of my sister’s murder 14 years ago – coincidence? I didn’t plan it. This statue over a headstone really caught my eye. She is intriguing. Though, she isn’t truly an angel statue, she was watching over these headstones. It definitely made me feel okay again about the true meaning behind this anniversary. Isn’t she beautiful?

Thanks to Jason for showing me this great place. It was cold, but worth it!