where I'm blogging!

Yay! You can follow my new blog, finally, at www.morganlamare.com. This website is my new blogsite, so it will be the only site I manage. I am so excited for it's simplicity and the ways it will encourage me to consistently post my work, and give you glimpses into my personal story, too. This blog is filled to the brim, so enjoy perusing it if you are a potential client wanting to research more weddings. My new blog is a work-in-progress, and it will of course take time to get a variety of posts up. Thank you to my readers for your constant love and support! I hope you enjoy the new site!

blog update!

Frantic set in recently when I realized my website was down, and my blog has not been updated in how long?! Please know I am putting the finishing touches on my brand spankin' new blogsite, and hope to publish it by the end of next week. If you want to inquire about a wedding or boudoir shoot, please email me at morganlamare@gmail.com, or call/text me at 406.570.7162. If you want to view my most recent work, please visit my Facebook page at Morgan LaMare Photography. I am alive and kicking, and have so many wonderful shoots to share with you! Happy Tuesday!

katie and ryan: married

Although wedding season 2013 has officially kicked off, I have two more beautiful weddings to share with you from last September . . . the first being the most beautiful Katie and Ryan. Their wedding day was absolutely perfect - the weather, the couple, their families, a fabulous wedding party, and a gorgeous venue. The Rockin' TJ Ranch has all sorts of darling spots for photos. I will let the photos speak for themselves. I hope life is finding you nothing but happiness and adventure, Katie and Ryan!

my other love: mexican food

In addition to my amazing husband, adorable children, good Pinot Noir, a medium-rare filet mignon, and my fabulous friends, my other love is Mexican food :) I was lucky enough to photograph the main dishes that Hot Mama's Salsa prepares and sells in their darling little storefront in Bozeman, and these are just a few of them. At one of my last shoots, Diana handed me the evening's dinner in a brown paper bag, and it was to die for. I love, love, love Mexican food, and I will say this was by far the best I can remember having. Her enchiladas are out of this world. If you are a local Bozeman food lover, don't hesitate for a second to enjoy her delights. Yum! I will post photos of the lovely Diana very soon . . . she is beautiful, and an amazing businesswoman, and I'll share her gorgeous self in a future post. Happy Wednesday, everyone!

boudoir

If you've been following my blog for some time now, you know I have entered the world of boudoir photography, and absolutely adore this part of my photography career. In the past few years, this part of my business has really taken off, and I am happy to say that I am fully prepared to move forward with my whole heart and soul at making this so much bigger than it is right now. It has become so empowering for me to be a part of this experience with women, with strangers. It is a combination of my love for meeting new people, and enjoying a glass of wine or champagne with them as we talk about their relationships with their partners, learning about their road to self-confidence, and having them allow me to give them the gift of seeing themselves in an entirely new perspective. Expect to see beautiful new things come of this - I am working on a new website dedicated exclusively to boudoir, marketing materials to help my boudoir girls get the absolute most out of their experience, and learning where to share more information about these sessions so that I can reach more than just a young bride. I can't wait to share this journey with you. It's probably going to be so fabulous, we will need to throw a launch party to celebrate its success . . . ;)

instagram prints

In my attempt to keep my personal photos up to date and organized in my home and albums, I had to share with you the most darling little prints I ever have seen . . . What is this, you ask? These are my Instagram prints! I fell in love with this app right around the time Grayson was born, and I've been so good at keeping only the photos on my iPhone the ones I want to keep. We took so many of him on our phones in the hospital, and so I began searching for a company that specifically printed Instagram photos. Enter Prinstagram. They are fabulous! They are a new company, so they have a few kinks yet to work out, but none that affected my products or how I received them. The quality is impeccable - they are durable, have a gorgeous lustre finish, and the photos look in print exactly how they look on my phone and computer. When you log in and create an account with them, they will access your Instagram account, and from there you select the product you want. I chose the 4 x 4 square prints and I am in love with them. I have a couple of cute little photo holders I might display them in, or they can stay in a keepsake box, and a 4 x 4 sized frame is also quite common. It is wonderful to have these little memories off my phone and in my hands. So I can look at that cheesy face in print whenever I want. :)

whitney and nick

I feel like it's been forever since I've shared a wedding on here, and I have a handful of 2012 nuptials to share still with you, one of them being the beautiful ceremony of Whitney and Nick. I truly enjoyed spending the day with these two . . . they are definitely very well loved, based on how long the food line was. ;) They were a treasure to photograph, completely enamored with one another, and so gentle, kind and loving. I processed a few of these photographs different from my normal post-production, but the ambiance simply called for old-school. The wedding was held at the bride's mother's home on the river in Columbus, Montana, and Whitney has a very powerful relationship with horses. It just felt right to set the scene for a few photographs to match her love affair. ;) One of my favorite elements of the day was that Nick's grandfather stood as his best man. It was such a meaningful gesture! I love it when people step away from a typical wedding tradition and make it their own . . .

life with little G

Happy Monday, everyone! As you'll see from my previous post, I am leaving Blogger because it. drives. me. bananas. But I couldn't resist sharing this little cutie pie with you. Grayson was two months old yesterday, and while of course time is flying, it is also an experience I am truly enjoying each and every day. Well, except for that one week we thought he was colicky. That was not a good week. He is absolutely beautiful, and has the sweetest smile I've seen on a baby. I feel like we have been blessed a million times over and over. He sleeps right next to me at night and only wakes up for a little snack. His routine is becoming more and more predictable everyday, which makes my transition back to work much easier and enjoyable knowing that when I sit down to my computer, I know what I have time to get done. Grayson absolutely adores bath time, kisses and love from his sisters, time with Daddy, and he cracks up when he stares at either the elk head or the clock on the wall. I am crazy in love with this little man! And as I work through my blog issues, I promise to keep posting here until my new site is live, up and running. I can't wait to share it with you all! On a work-related note, 2014 clients are booking now, and boudoir spots fill up quickly. Knowing I am officially back to work, please email me with your inquiries!

moving to a new site!

Good morning and happy day to all who still believe I'm out there in blogging world and take the time to come by and see . . . ;) I thought I'd use this post as one last conversation on this template, as I'm moving towards a bigger and better blogsite very, very shortly! It's very exciting, because I truly do love blogging, but my relationship with Blogger, who I've used for the past however-many years, is failing, and a breakup is imminent. There are some quirks and irritancies that interfere with my ability to blog the way I want to - one of them being that I can't even begin a new paragraph anymore in my conversation. So please, please, please stay tuned for the next post coming from a brand new site. I may have to do a redirect post from this blog, but my new site will be beautiful, filled with posts of all sorts (I know you are just dying to hear more about all of my little shorties, aren't you?!), and weddings and boudoir photographs galore. I can't wait to share it with you! Happy Wednesday!

meet grayson joseph!

Ahh, thank God he is here! We finally met our little man, Grayson Joseph, on April 2, 2013, at 7:03 pm. He was born after an induction I chose to have because I was beyond my due date, swollen beyond any level of comfort whatsoever, and emotionally and physically spent. I truly wanted labor to happen on its own, but after some medical questions were answered, and after my doctor and I had come to the conclusion that my body simply needed a little nudge after contracting for weeks without progress, it was decision time. We chose April 2nd for the induction, and arrived to the hospital at 7:30 that morning. So as to not bore you with too many details, the Pitocin was started at 9:00, my epidural was placed around noon, and at 5:30 I was feeling the heat. I pushed for not even 30 minutes, and when that baby was placed on my chest, my emotions let loose. Even knowing your baby is looking to be healthy, and even after an uncomplicated pregnancy, there is nothing more amazing than looking at your beautiful, healthy, screaming baby for the first time. It was a moment I will never forget . . . a delivery that was truly amazing. Since then, we’ve been moving through the motions in a sleep-deprived state. He is a wonderful baby, adored by everyone who meets him, and especially adored by his father and sisters. I fall more and more in love with my husband each day, watching him love Grayson, and I know making promises to him of which I can’t hear the words, but I know are being said. I feel a little emotional myself at times, feeling the pressure of being a mother now of three. Three little creatures who depend on me emotionally, physically, financially, spiritually. This baby has given me the opportunity to view them as my little teachers now . . . and I am striving each day to be the kind of mother my children simply adore. I promise to share many more photos of this handsome devil, beyond Instagram and Facebook, but feel free to follow me on those sites for little snippets of our days together!

no baby . . . yet!

Waiting for a baby is a funny thing . . . for myself, I feel wonderful up until 37 weeks, and then boom! I feel like if the baby isn’t here by 37 weeks, 1 day, I’m late. I get so anxious, excited, nervous and a bit impatient. I know, people who know me would be so surprised. ;) This time, I am better because life is so full. 7 and 5 year old daughters, a wonderful husband who I love to spend time with, an amazing network of friends to entertain, a beautiful home to keep in working order, a business to run, and my husband’s business to collaborate on, are all keeping my days very, very busy. There have been days I’ve even wished to not go into labor because it just didn’t fit in with my other plans. But it’s funny how the timing of things seems to work out exactly as it should. This past week, the little ones were on spring break, and since they are too young to complain about not being able to go somewhere warm or to the beach, they happily enjoyed their time at home, sleeping in, staying up late, and enjoying some one-on-one with me before they meet their little brother. We had a day of lunch, nails and shopping, an afternoon bowling the 6-lane bowling alley in Ennis with one of their favorite shorties, two birthday parties to enjoy, they spent an afternoon at Norris Hot Springs, and the weather cooperated enough that they hula-hooped to their hearts’ content, along with bike rides and trampoline jumps. It was an important week for me to spend loving, patient time with them, and they happily ventured off to school this morning knowing Grayson’s arrival is imminent, and feeling happy and excited to meet him. As for myself, my toes are polished, my bag is packed, and I may squeeze in one more prenatal massage if I can this week. I am going to enjoy each day and not rush this little guy’s arrival, not because I absolutely cannot wait to meet him, but because I want him to come when nature calls, not Pitocin. And I am so grateful for this space to share everything with you . . . thank you for your emails, texts, and support as always!

favorite finds

Every wedding season, I typically shoot anywhere between 15 and 20 weddings . . . and I always fall in love with ideas, creations and tiny little details that my couples are incorporating into their big day. Now because of the wonderful world of Pinterest, we have an even broader place to seek out for inspiration. I'm a sucker for bringing in some unique little touches that separate your wedding out from others, whether it's in a fashion statement or reception detail. Here are a few from recent weddings that jump out at me for your inspirational pleasure! 1. The Blusher Veil. I know I've oohed and ahhed over Kate's blusher veil a hundred times on this blog, but here it is again for emphasis on just how darling it was. It was so fun to play around with during portraits! I adore a beautiful fashion veil or headpiece when the wedding is celebrated outside of a church . . . 2. Succulents Bouquets. Angela of Fresh Designs created these stunning bouquets, and adorned a couple dozen reception tables with different succulent arrangements for a fresh, delightful spin on traditional wedding flowers. Although many couples are stepping outside the box and allowing their floral designers to use their creativity, these were such a refreshing spin on a bridal bouquet. 3. To Go Boxes. I'll admit, up until this past summer, you'd really never find me indulging in wedding cake or dessert. I didn't have much of a sweet tooth, and it was a plate of calories I was happy to pass up. Not so much anymore, my friends. This baby has instilled in me a sweet tooth like no other, and I was more than delighted when Rachel and Paul included this adorable message on their dessert table for those who wanted or needed to leave after the cake was cut. You can bet your you-know-what I made my way home with one filled a bit too full. ;) 4. The Hell With It! A Change of Plans. Nisha and Matt had originally planned their wedding in our hometown in Plattsburgh, NY, on a date that I'd already be in town to shoot another wedding, so it worked out perfectly for me to be a part of this beautiful couple's big day. A few months later, I got an email from Nisha that enough was enough - wedding plans were too much, it was too stressful, and they were heading to Charleston, South Carolina in April with their nearest and dearest for an intimate wedding in one of their favorite places. I happily packed my bags and hit the road, and had one of my most memorable weekends ever in such a beautiful place! 5. Hydrangeas. I know these may not be that magical to you, but I am in love with hydrangeas. I grew up in a teeny, tiny house in a crappy part of town, but smack dab alongside our driveway was a ginormous, beautiful hydrangea bush that made it feel quaint and lovely. I don't see them as often as I thought I would in wedding flowers, but with all of the other amazing details Mikey and Heath incorporated into their August wedding, it was natural to see something so breathtaking to me included in her bouquet. There are so many more lovely things to share with you, and I promise to do so while I'm spending the next few weeks in my archives, updating websites, working on marketing materials, and waiting for the little man's arrival. Happy Tuesday, everyone!

rachel and paul: married!

The beautiful Rachel and Paul are such a wonderful couple who I got to work with last September . . . they got married on the most perfect late-summer day you could ask for. It was warm, but there was that feeling in the air that gave a bit way to the early chill of fall. Rachel and Paul came to Montana, where Rachel's parents live, from England to celebrate their nuptials, and the party was an absolute blast. I hadn't worked with the couple before because of their location, and they were as natural as could be in front of the camera, alternating between fits of laughter and meaningful connections. Angela with Fresh Designs designed the entire event, bringing her effortless touch to every table, nook and cranny that was part of the day. Rachel and Paul, thank you for including me in your beautiful day!

welcome to march!

I know we have a long ways to go until spring is officially here, but I wanted to welcome everyone to the wonderful month of March . . . the gateway to spring, the month we get teased the most with warmer days, sunshine on your face, and can kick the kids outside to enjoy the fresh air a bit more. It is also baby month for me! My due date is March 31st, and next week I begin my weekly checkups to see what kind of progress little G is making in there. I am excited, anxious, nervous, and sometimes feeling a bit impatient, but I remind myself that when I'm barely able to focus on the hook of my nursing bra at 3:00 in the morning due to exhaustion, I will recall these days that I can sleep in with fondness. ;) And of course, within hours of meeting him, we will never understand how there was a time we were as happy without having him here. I still have lots and lots of shoots to share with you, among other things, and am excited to lay it all out this weekend for a fun few weeks of blogging before I pop. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the love, attention, excitement and warmth you all give to me, my family and my business. I wouldn't be as happy without you all in my world!

heather and luke: engaged!

Heather and Luke's engagement session was short, sweet, filled with beautiful light, and a wonderful representation of why engagement sessions are so important . . . seeing how they interacted with one another in front of the camera completely blew me away. They were so at ease with one another, from moments of playfulness to moments of serenity. Their wedding will take place at the home of Heather's parents, where this session was held, and is being coordinated and designed by the extremely talented Leslie Lukas. I am so honored to be a part of it!