This session has been a long time coming! The S Family won this session from the Giving Is Awesome campaign at the beginning of 2010. They wanted to do their session in December but we waited while I had baby Nicholas and through my maternity leave. This past Sunday we finally met up at the Thomas Center to have our session. I seriously think we laughed through the entire session. This group is so fun to be around. Here are a few favorites of this family.

Aren’t they so adorable together?

S Family it was great to finally get our session scheduled! I hope you love the sneak peek and your gallery will be up soon!

Afternoons like yesterday are the reasons that I love what I do. Julianne was a NICU nurse when the M Twins were born seven weeks early and she grew very attached to this family during their stay at the hospital. She nominated the family for my annual Giving Is Awesome contest. As my thank you to her for the nomination, her family also received a complimentary photo session. Yesterday we met for our photos with her handsome husband and her “puppy” Bella. (She is quite possibly the largest puppy I have ever photographed!) Here are a few favorites from our session.

V Family it was great to meet up with you for photos! I hope you love the sneak peek and full gallery coming soon!

This session takes me way back…… little Ben was the first baby that I ever photographed and now he is over two years old!  His parents actually nominated my 2009 Giving Is Awesome winner and as a thank you for their nomination they received a complimentary photo session. We met earlier this week in Downtown Alachua for their photos.  Here are a few favorites!

P Family- it was great to see you guys again and congratulations on baby #3 as well! Enjoy your sneak peek!

These two little miracles came into the world seven weeks early and had many obstacles to overcome in the beginning. Baby Girl M was a bit bigger then Baby Boy N and she was at one hospital while her brother was at another and their parents had to travel back and forth to spend time with both babies. One of their nurses at North Florida Regional Medical Center nominated this family for the Giving Is Awesome campaign in the hopes that they could get some newborn photos.

My assistant Jenna and I met the babies this past Friday, just a day after their original due date. As part of their winning package the M Family received a newborn session for Baby M and Baby N, as well as all of their digital files on CD with a print release. Here is an extra long sneak peek from their session.

Introducing Baby Girl M

And her brother Baby Boy

And some of the two little miracles together

Love the sweet little smile on Baby N’s face here. Baby M, in true diva fashion, is hiding.

M Family- it was wonderful to meet you and your little babies. I hope you enjoy your sneak peek and your gallery will be up soon!

This session was really special to me because it was the family that I nominated for the Giving is Awesome campaign. Sandi had been saving money to have a session with Sweet Serendipity Photography adn then learned that her mother was diagnosed with cancer. She planned to instead purchase a session with her siblings and her mother so that her mom could have professional pictures of her family before she began radiation and chemotherapy. We met earlier this week (on one of the coldest days I can remember!) for their session at Kanapaha Botanical Gardens. It was so cold, in fact, that the gardens had all of their plants covered to protect them from the freeze. We found a few pretty spots for these pictures.

Thank you for allowing me to have this session with you guys and I hope you enjoy your sneak peek!
The sisters.

Sandi and her twin sister Brandi.

And with mom who is so healthy and beautiful looking here.

The girls…

Love this one of mom by herself….

This year I had a hard time choosing between all of my Giving is Awesome nominees- and thank you so much for sharing these stories with me! It is amazing to be able to give just a little something to these people who are your friends and loved ones. Because I couldn’t decide between these stories I decided to give a little something to each of them. The total value of these giveaways is $1500!

The second runner up is an acquaintance of mine, and I am actually the one who nominated her. She has been saving up money for a family portrait session with Sweet Serendipity Photography for quite some time now, and whenever I see her she tells me how excited she is to schedule a session with me. For Christmas she told her family she just wanted money so that she could have her family pictures with me. When she called me the other day to tell me she was ready to book a session, she also shared with me that instead of a session with her husband and children, she wanted to do photos with her mother and siblings. Her mother was very recently diagnosed with cancer and she felt that it would be very meaningful for her mom to have a session before she began a rigorous schedule of chemotherapy. So, because GIVING IS AWESOME, Sandi Oakes- your session with your mom is compliments of Sweet Serendipity Photography.

The first runner up was nominated by one of my boudoir clients, Julianne. Julianne is a NICU nurse and often interacts with very special families. She nominated the Marin family who recently gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, seven weeks premature. The babies have spent many of their first weeks in the NICU- one at North Florida and one at Shands hopsital- and the family has remained strong during this difficult time. This GIVING IS AWESOME winner will be receiving a complimentary newborn session and their high resolution images on DVD from the session. Julianne, as my thank you for nominating this family you also receive a complimentary photo session.

The WINNER this year from the GIVING IS AWESOME campaign is the Strode Family from Gainesville, FL. They were nominated by Julie Peine, whose son Ben was my first newborn client. Ironically, Julie found out about Sweet Serendipity Photography through Brandi Strode, and over the years Brandi has sent many referrals to Sweet Serendipity Photography, including her little sister Josi’s wedding this upcoming April. Julie wrote a very heartwarming email about Brandi and her family, and I was so incredibly touched by the selflessness of this family. Because I am just announcing the winners here I am not going to share many of the details before I have the opportunity to speak with Brand. However I will share a link from Julie’s email that I think really is what this campaign is all about. “Perhaps the Strode’s aren’t the typical family but I think that they epitomize what family should be about, despite the difficulties that life might bring. I know I look at the Strode’s and wonder if I would have the faith to step out and do what they’ve done. I find it easy to make excuses, but they have done whatever is needed to make the right things happen.”

The Strode family will receive a complimentary photo session, as well as a collection of prints and digital images valued at $750. The Peine family also receives a complimentary photo session for sharing their story with me.

Thanks to all of you for making me take the time this holiday season to pause and reflect on all that I have been blessed with. I am so grateful to be able to give something back to these families who are oh so deserving. I look forward to being able to share their stories and photos with you over the next few months.

Happy New Year to each and every one of you! May 2010 bring you much joy and happiness!

At the end of last year I announced the Giving is Awesome contest here on the blog. Perhaps you remember the story of Mia and her battle with Multiple Sclerosis. Click here for the full post. Even though Mia won the photo session in January, her constant fight with her disease had her in and out of the hospital for the majority of this year. Mia had contacted me and was so greatful for the opportunity to have family portraits done, but she knew she did not want to be in a wheelchair at their session. So with that determination, Mia has fought hard and when we met last week at the Thomas Center for their photo session, she was walking completely unassisted. It was absolutely wonderful to meet such a loving and caring family, whose trials and tribulations this past year and a half have brought them so much closer together. Mia’s positive outlook on everything is infectious, and I had a huge smile on my face the entire time I was with her and her family.

Giving truly is awesome. I felt like a million dollars. If you know anyone that might be a great candidate for the Giving is Awesome campaign this year, please feel free to share their story with me. I will make a formal announcement on the blog as it gets closer to the holiday season.

And- since giving is SO awesome- I am going to be doing some giveaways this week. I will be posting several sneak peeks and information posts this week, and for those readers who leave comments on the blog I will be giving away some prizes in the form of discounts on prints and a FREE SESSION! So- start leaving comments and win some prizes!!!

Here is the contest that I alluded to a few days ago. It is a different sort of contest, but one that I hope will make someone very happy this holiday season. Please take the time to read this, and think of someone that you know in this area who could use a gift of custom photography this year.
The other day I was in the mall, purchasing a book for my own darling daughter. When I was checking out at Waldenbooks, I was asked if I would like to donate a book for a child with cancer. I was all caught up in the hustle and bustle of the rush of the season, and started to say “no” but the words caught in my mouth. Before I knew it, I had said yes and was writing “Love, Madalyn Swanson” on the inside of a WALL-E Golden Book. And it felt good, thinking of a young child who might get to open up the book on Christmas day and have a smile on their face. I wanted to do so much more this holiday season, to make that warm feeling continue on. So here it is:

I have partnered with photographers all accross the country for a campaign called “Giving Is Awesome.” The goal of this project is to give the gift of custom photography to someone who may not otherwise be able to afford it. You can learn more about this at www.givingisawesome.com.

You know someone. You know someone who’s experienced a tragedy, is struggling to stay afloat, is raising kids while holding down more than one job, or is volunteering selflessly despite extenuating personal circumstances. You know someone who can’t afford custom photography, but who would cherish it this holiday season. You know someone who deserves a year-round reminder of their family’s spirit, love, and beauty.

You know someone. I guarantee it.

I want to know who they are, and I want to give them the chance to experience complimentary custom photography — $250 worth, to be exact. Whether it’s a CD of images, prints for Grandma, or a custom designed storyboard, it’s in your power to give them the artwork they deserve this holiday season. The winner of this contest will receive a free photo session, as well as a $150 credit to spend as they wish.

Oh, and the best part? The person who nominates the winner receives a free photo session. That’s a $100 value! What better reason to show some love could there possibly be

The rules:

*You cannot nominate yourself, and the person nominated must sincerely be incapable of purchasing my services. (Being unable to make mortgage payments for a two-million-dollar-vacation-home in Paris does not qualify as sincere financial need.)

*The nominee must reside in the area of Gainesville, FL. Tell me who you know, what they’re experiencing, and why they deserve my artwork. Please include a way to contact both your nominee and yourself as well.

* You must e-mail me the full story to jaime@jlsphotographystudio.com

The winner will be announced on New Years Day — get nominating! I can’t wait to read all of your entries!

Open your heart to someone this holiday season — and thanks for giving me the opportunity to open mine.

Love,

Jaime Swanson