Bella Vita Photography » Beach portraits

Destin Family Beach Portrait Photographer | The Isder Family

admin — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 04:12:22 +0000

I actually did these family beach portraits for this wonderful cute new family a few weeks ago, but I’m just now catching up to them & posting the sneak preview! Rainy days seem to be the theme, as this was another rainy day that turned out some awesome pictures on our beautiful Destin Beaches. That’s the great thing about the Emerald Coast & Florida Panhandle – rain is a common theme, but sun is never far behind it when you’re on the beach! They just moved away, so hopefully this reminds them of sunny days and beaches back in Destin, Florida! (And the previous post about Gustav probably reminds them of all the reasons they’re glad to have PCS’d! hahaha).

So – enough of my babbling – and lets see their family & their little bitty cutie (who as you’ll see, likes a high sodium diet of Florida Sand!).

As you can see, he loves the beautiful white sand of Destin so much, he even was willing to take it off Daddy’s feet! He probably won’t remember just how much he loved the Florida Beaches, but at least he’ll have this as proof when he grows up! All in all, we had a great time, and the gallery will be online soon! We’ll have more family beach portraits from our beautiful Destin Beaches to come!

Destin Wedding & Family Portrait Photographer | Website Update

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 17:49:19 +0000

Hopefully we won’t experience any downtime with the website… I’m in the process of switching servers & sites & layouts & the whole 9. I’m telling you – a change is a coming! I’ve got lots of news on the horizon, lots of updates coming & all of it’s gonna be good so stay tuned! If you have any problems, though – and we do experience any downtime, the blog should remain up – so post a comment here, or email my personal addy: ownlymine AT hotmail . com (hoping I can avoid any more junk mail than I already get).

Destin Engagement Photography | Jennifer & David

admin — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 05:01:46 +0000

Well after at least 3 or 4 (or 5 or 6) reschedules due to weather & rain & lightening & you name it (the weather here on the Emerald Coast is pretty unpredictable, especially in Destin, especially in the summer) – we FINALLY got out to get this engagement shoot! I was so glad too, because we had a lot of fun. David was a little camera shy (or at least he claimed to be, but turned out to be a ham for the camera). All in all, I think we had a blast & it really has me looking forward to the wedding coming up! Time is flying so fast, I’m fully expecting to wake up tomorrow & realize it’s fall already! We met out at Okaloosa Island between Fort Walton Beach and Destin) and spent some time out on the beach, getting some great portraits before they get married in Destin in just a few short months. I’m pretty excited to be their wedding photographer!

What I love about this couple is David is clearly smitten with Jennifer, and the cutest part of all is he was like a school boy jumping for joy every time he got to kiss her!

And finally, the sunset we waited so patiently for. Our Destin beach sunsets are amazing. After weekend after weekend after weekend of rain, rain, and more rain, it really was worth the wait & quite a beautiful ending…

Obviously the white sandy beaches of Destin is amazing, but it’s the colors of the sky on Destin’s beaches that are really wonderful & worth seeing. I encourage everyone doing a beach portrait or engagement session to hang out just a little while to see these beautiful sunsets!

Destin Childrens Photography | Celebrating Adoption

admin — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 07:03:14 +0000

Well, it’s nothing new, but I did want to blog about this wonderful organization called Celebrating Adoption. Recently, I’ve been able to do quite a few childrens portrait sessions for Celebrating Adoption as an active member/photographer. I have to say, I have absolutely loved doing every single session. I love children and I hope to one day adopt (just gotta work on the whole Dave Ramsey plan & convincing my husband!), so it’s easy, but in addition, it’s not every day you get to witness such giving, caring, and loving. Its truly a love that extends beyond all boundaries. I absolutely love listening to their stories of their adoptions, and it is really really a blessing to be able to meet people with such huge hearts, and witness first hand them truly changing another persons life. I am humbled more and more with every session I do… so much that it nearly brings me to tears. Every story is so different, so intriguing, and I thank God every day that there are families who have so much love to give to these children who so desperately need it. I can only hope that more people consider adoption to give a child a home and more importantly – a family.

Please pass the word along to anyone you know who might be interested – there are plenty of children in our area being adopted every day and a family portrait session, or a session of just the child, is an excellent way to celebrate the adoption & welcome them to the family!

Destin Child Photographer | Baby bunz on the beach!

admin — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 06:26:50 +0000

I absolutely love childrens photography! Just recently I got the chance to take some really cute pictures of little man Tae on the beach on Okaloosa Island between Fort Walton Beach and Destin. Nikki & her husband and brother tagged along & Tae gave us all quite the show! Who knew that a “just barely over 18 months” could be such a poser!? I swear, I think hes headed straight for the Abercrombie & Fitch Fall 08 catalog!

So without further ado, here is “Handsome” himself!

Now who can resist this smile:

Here are those baby bunz:

And with just a tad more decency, and a tad less crack:

And I have to say – we should consider ourselves lucky to live on some of the most beautiful white beaches in the world right here in Destin, FL. Nowhere else can you get such amazing beach portraits!

Ok, thats all for now, keep an eye out for this little looker!

Destin Wedding & Portrait Photographer | Mmmm… chocolate

admin — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 03:25:51 +0000

Ok, so not photography related, but yummy nonetheless. I would give anything to see THESE at anyone’s wedding reception!

I’m sharing my recipe for Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars – I’ve got tons of chocolate chips, and tons of pecans, so I’m off to bake some. Now, if you’ve never tried these, then you MUST try them (and don’t come knocking on MY door ’cause I can eat an entire batch, and down a gallon of milk along with it in no time flat!). And just to clarify – I HATE pecan pie, and I LOVE these…

So… cheers to calories, chocolate & fatty goodness!

Crust –
1 1/2 cup Flour
1/2 cup Butter — Softened
1/4 cup Brown Sugar — Firmly Packed
Filling –
3 Eggs
3/4 cup Corn Syrup
3/4 cup Sugar
2 tablespoons Butter — Melted
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup Pecans — Coarsely Chopped
12 ounces Semisweet Chocolate Chips

Directions:

CRUST: Preheat oven to 350F degrees. In small bowl, mix flour, 1/2 cup butter and brown sugar until crumbly. Press into greased 13×9″ baking pan. Bake 12-15 minutes until lightly browned.

FILLING: In medium bowl with wire whisk, beat eggs, corn syrup, sugar, melted butter and vanilla. Stir in pecans and chocolate. Pour evenly over baked crust. Bake 25-30 minutes until set. Cool; cut in bars.

Eat, drink & be merry!

And in the meanwhile, check out “Chocolate, Anyone?”

Oh, and next time you’re in Destin or anywhere along the Emerald Coast – give me a ring & I’ll make these just for you if you book your wedding! Hahahaha! Oh, and if you’re coming to the studio for your children’s portraits, I’ll just send these with you when you go

Destin Wedding & Portrait Photographer | Lynda & Washington

admin — Tue, 06 May 2008 07:28:28 +0000

So I haven’t posted in a while, but I’ve got good reason! I’ve been so busy I can’t see straight! Between soccer leagues, tournaments, weddings, and babies I’ve got my hands (and my CF cards) full!

So… here are some long overdue pictures from a recent wedding. I got to go out to Grayton Beach, off of 30-A in Walton County, just past Destin in April to shoot this wonderful beach wedding. It was one of the best times I’d had in a while, and it was a GREAT way to spend a hot summer day on the beach doing what I love!

Anyways, Lynda & Washington were a lot of fun. Lynda & her family were blessed with some good genes, lucky for me & my camera. Seldom do I get to just have fun on my side of the camera with people who pose effortlessly! Her family was gorgeous as you can see, and the beach was absolutely perfect that day! What made it so wonderful is that it was a small intimate ceremony on Grayton Beach, with just their closest friends & family at the wedding ceremony & reception. They had planned a Destination wedding on the white sandy beaches as a great way to commit to each other, and as a bonus, it was a nice long beach vacation for their friends & family. They stayed at one of the gorgeous beach houses along 30-A in Grayton Beach called “Barefootin’”. It was only a few steps off the back deck to the white sandy beaches and gorgeous Emerald Coast, and then the reception was held back at the Beach House.

The daughter of the bride, she had such natural sass & posing!

(Now isnt that a GORGEOUS Gown… I so wish Id had a champagne wedding dress!)

I just wanted to cuddle this little cutie all night long! (And she came right to me!!!)

There was seriously not a dry eye on the beach!

A huge thank you to Christie at Yours Truly Weddings of Destin, Fl – she did a wonderful job with a beautiful beach ceremony complete with a bamboo arch. Yours Truly Weddings helps with weddings of all kinds on the Emerald Coast including Destin, Walton County (along 30-A), Grayton Beach, and beyond!

Coming soon… more of our children’s photography showcasing little Hayden Jones & the crab on the beach out here in Destin (boy have we got some stories from that photo shoot!), and little Mrs. Rebecca in the rain with the train (who knew I could rhyme!?) up in Crestview.

Destin Wedding & Portrait Photographer | To be continued…

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 04:30:58 +0000

I love the way these look with them dressed in black. The french quarter look & feel of Village of Baytowne Wharf really helps since just about anything goes!

We’ll be doing Part II of the engagement pictures just as soon as the weather warms up! Then we’ll be headed to the beautiful beaches of Destin or Grayton Beach and try out some really awesome beach pictures. I have no doubt that they’ll take another great set of pictures!

Stay tuned for more!

Destin Wedding & Portrait Photographer | Beautiful Day

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 04:26:26 +0000

We were so lucky to have such great weather out at Village of Baytowne for our engagement session. We ended up spending nearly 2 hours the weather was so great! We hit up the main parts of Village of Baytowne Wharf and then skipped over near the boat ramps where the Solaris is parked (a great wedding & reception venue), and spent some time at the park enjoying the nice weather & shooting these engagements.

Wow… do you see how beautiful it is out there! I love the colors! Of course, Jonathan was all about this picture!

Destin Wedding & Portrait Photographer | Ashley & Jonathan Engagement Session

admin — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 04:24:20 +0000

When Ashley & Jonathan announced they were getting married in Destin, I was ecstatic! I was even more excited when they told me they’d be happy to have me do their engagement pictures and they were open to any place along the Emerald Coast. They weren’t real sure they wanted them on the beach, so I decided to take them down to Village of Baytowne Wharf in Destin, Florida right across from the Hilton Sandestin Beach & Golf Resort. In fact, they’re technically also part of Sandestin & part of the Hilton Sandestin property. However, rather than being on the beach, it’s just north of the Beach, but with all the same Sandestin Hilton Charm! If you’re looking for a great place to get married, have a reception, or just go have some fun, great food & do a little shopping, Village of Baytown Wharf & Sandestin Hilton are a great spot! Village of Baytowne even has regular events for children & families! Luckily this time of year it wasn’t too crowded though, and it made for great engagement pictures!

Here’s just a tiny sneak peek!

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