One of the things I love most about Silver Spring is how creative the community is. Artists -- from makers to musicians to chocolateers -- can be found in every corner, and one of them is Katie Meek. 

If you haven't yet met Katie, you're really missing out! She's the creative genius behind a fun, whimsical line of greeting cards, invites, bookmarks and all things paper called Meekly Yours. The best part? She draws all of it by hand! (See what I mean? The talent in Silver Spring is astounding!)

Katie currently has an Etsy shop, but she's taking a big leap with plans to make Meekly Yours her primary source of income. To do that, she's launching her own website soon and asked if I could help with product photos. I was more than happy to! We started with an artist session, moved on to product photos and ended with headshots. Watching Katie work was so much fun! She takes inspiration from the world around her and keeps a collection of ideas in one of the coolest sketch books I've ever seen! 

Transitioning between office/day job to full-time business owner can be exciting and scary, and I applaud Katie for her bravery. Her future is so bright and I have no doubt Meekly Yours is going to be wildly successful!

​When I was a kid, my mom often taught lesions in truisms. One of her favorites was “birds of a feather flock together.” It took me awhile to understand what the rhyme meant, but the older I get, the more I find it to be oh so true.

That’s especially the case now that I live in D.C. I moved here eight years ago (man! I can’t believe it’s been THAT long already!) from Nebraska, where I was born and raised. As someone who isn’t native to the area, I’m constantly meeting new faces and making new friends. It never ceases to amaze me how people who don’t know each other, but who have similar interests and backgrounds, gravitate towards each other.

It happened again with Jennifer! We hadn’t met each other prior to her headshot session at the National Portrait Gallery, but as soon as we started talking, I felt like I’d known her for years. We have so much in common! Like me, she is also originally from the Midwest, she started her career as a journalist, and she LOVES LOVES LOVES animals and cooking!
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It was so much fun getting to spend the afternoon with her talking about our lives and the paths that led us to connect on a sunny, Saturday afternoon. I wish Jennifer all the best as she continues her journey through this crazy thing we call life!

If you live in Silver Spring and don't already know Abe Saffer, you're probably doing yourself a disservice. Abe is incredibly active in the community, runs a hysterical twitter feed and is the brains behind #Carson2038. (Okay, technically, Carson is Abe's son and based on what I can tell, Carson has no interest in becoming president -- but don't tell Abe that). 

Most notably, Abe is the newest member of the Silver Spring Citizens Advisory Board. This group of Silver Spring and Takoma Park residents meets regularly to discuss issues important to the community, like transportation, economic development, housing, youth activities and the environment. The board then provides recommendations and advice on these issues to the County Executive and County Council.

What makes the board so incredibly important (and unique) is the fact that Silver Spring is unincorporated. That means we don't have a mayor or a city council. The Citizens Advisory Board is it, and the members work incredibly hard to make sure residents of our community have a voice.

You can find a list of all board members here. If you see any of them, be sure to thank them for everything they do to keep Silver Spring and Takoma Park happy, beautiful places to live!

Family portraits are some of my favorite photos to take, but what makes them even better is the friendship I establish with the families I photograph. That's definitely the case with the Myers-Copp Family. Like me, Graham, the dad and husband you see here, is a labor activist. We've known each other for a few years now, but I met his beautiful wife and lovely daughter for the first time during this photo session. Don't they make a gorgeous family??

The four of us spent an afternoon in some of my favorite locations, Sligo Creek Parkway and Downtown Takoma Park. For me, the best part was getting to spend time with Graham's daughter. She's only seven, but she's incredibly intelligent and super outgoing for her age. She had no problem hamming it up for the camera or talking two of my favorite subjects: current events and cats. Seriously... I think I might be working for her one day :)

As much as I love this entire collection of photos, one of my favorites is all the way at the bottom of this post. (Scroll, baby, scroll!) Jumping was actually Graham's idea, but what I love about it is all the ways it demonstrates just how care-free and fun-loving this family is. Their bond for each other is undeniable, and I'm so glad I was able to capture that love with my camera!

All through the month of February, I held a contest to win a FREE mini session with me. Thank you to everyone who participated and shared a little love via Facebook. I'm so excited to announce that the winner is:

Dawn Marie's name was chosen randomly from all those who entered. Dawn Marie, your prize must be used between April 1, 2016 and October 1, 2016, and includes 45 minutes at an outdoor location of the winner's choice and complimentary digital files. Contact me so we can chat details.

Thank you again to everyone who participated. Your love and support means the world to me!