Josh

This was an especially difficult photo shoot for me because I have known Josh for basically his whole life, and it is so hard for me to accept that he is graduating! I had SO much fun taking his pictures! We started out at the beautiful Botanical Conservatory. We stopped in the butterfly area first, but unfortunately, none of the butterflies would get close to Josh. (I had one land on the back of my leg!) So we moved along to explore everything else. We had so much fun in the first room. We took a lot of pictures at the top of the waterfall because it was just so awesome being so high up! He told me it is his favorite place in the gardens and I would say it’s mine too. :)

We went through every room in the Conservatory and they kept getting progressively hotter, so we didn’t spend very long in the dessert room which is the last room. We only went into the entrance of the room to get this shot. :)

We left the Conservatory as they were closing and headed to South Side High School which is where Josh will be graduating from on Saturday!! I was very impressed with the architecture of the building. It has so much character in the pillars, the bricks, the ivy, and the fountain with the quote inscribed above it. I wanted to capture the beauty and the history of this great school so that Josh could always remember it. 

As we were getting close to finishing up our photo shoot, Josh wanted the last pictures to be of him in his cap, gown, and cords. I think that is probably when it really sunk in for me that this guy is graduating!! I will always remember when I used to be taller than him, and I will never forget those two or three months when he suddenly became half a foot taller than me. :) I highly doubt that I will ever witness anyone else have such a dramatic growth spurt in such a very short amount of time! 

Josh, I am SOOOOO PROUD of you!! It was such a joy and an honor for me to take your senior pictures!! 

Congratulations Josh!! :)

Caleb - Newborn

I had the honor of photographing this handsome little guy!!! He melts my heart with his cuteness!! He was such a trooper with everything his mom and I put him through!! :) He managed to be comfortable enough in every position we put him in that he just fell asleep. :) I don't know what he was dreaming about, but the little smiles that popped up occasionally were SO ADORABLE!! :) 

And I have to talk about that hat!! That amazing little hat was handmade for him by Vicci's Little Critters. If you haven't heard of her, she is freakin AWESOME!! She mostly makes stuffed animals, but boy am I glad she decided to make this hat because it is TOO CUTE!!! You should probably check out her website: www.viccislitttlecritters.com or take a peek at her etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ViccisLittleCritters. :)

This bow tie was too big for Caleb, but he didn't seem to mind at all. He just kept napping in his basket. :)

So I have to tell you the story behind this bookshelf. This was made by Caleb's father per a request by his mother. :) I already thought the bookshelf was awesome the instant I saw it, and now I think it is incredible that it was handmade!! At first I didn't think that we could get Caleb to fit in the cubby, let alone to stay without being held. But his mom and I were able to work together to make it safe for Caleb. I am sure glad we finally figured it out, because I don't think that will ever be happening again. :)

Caleb's dad, Jason, is in the Air Force. He actually got deployed one week before Caleb was born and he hasn't met his son yet. Pictures like these are all Jason has right now. I am so blessed to be able to help Jason get a chance to see and hold onto these fleeting little smiles or these adorable yawns from his son. :)

Thank you Jason for your service!! And CONGRATULATIONS on being a daddy for the first time!! :)

Promise is One!

I can't believe that my niece is one year old!! I am a little late with this (and by a little, I really mean a LOT)... but I thought it was definitely still worth sharing anyways. :) I thought it was appropriate to show a picture or two from each photo session I have done with her over the past year. I think it is so neat to see how much she has grown and developed in a fairly short amount of time. So here are the pictures! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!! :)

We had so much trouble finding a time to do a photo shoot with her, but we finally got it arranged. And unfortunately, she was not feeling very well at all, so she fussed a lot when I was trying to get her smiling and happy. And then I magically lost about half of the pictures (still really not sure how that happened). This is what was saved from our first photo shoot. :) She stuck every single letter in her mouth. I figured she would have stopped trying to taste them after the first one, but apparently she is just too curious. :)

After the loss of most of that photo shoot, we rescheduled and decided to go a different route by trying outside. We had done a photo shoot outside before when she was much younger and not capable of getting away from us. So this was definitely different, and it turned out to be a lot of fun. :)

I always feel like Promise looks at me the exact same way every time, so I was really excited to catch a few of her smiling. I think those occurred because her mom was jumping out and playing peek-a-boo behind me. At one point I think she was also doing jumping jacks to try to get Promise to laugh and smile. It amazes me to see the dedication of parents. :)

I leave you with Promise working on her curtsy. What a cutie she is!!!! :)

Cora

I have known Cora for a couple years and it is crazy to me to believe that she is graduating already! I think as I get older and have gotten more involved with youth ministry over the years, I just always struggle to let go of the "kids" I have had in my youth group. Cora is a really awesome, talented, young woman that I am incredibly blessed to have gotten the chance to spend so much time with her!! :) And did I mention how beautiful she is?!?!

We had quite the struggle finding a time when she wasn't busy working or involved with school activities for me to take her pictures. And whenever we did eventually find a free date, the weather decided that we should reschedule. But finally we made it happen and here are the results!! I hope you enjoy them!! :)

Isn't she GORGEOUS?!?!?! I tried to find ways to show off her incredibly beautiful, long hair. :)

You want to know how awesome Cora is? She climbed in a tree with a dress on and wouldn't take any help. She rocks!! :)

And because I just can’t resist, I am posting the graduation invitation that I designed. Wasn’t she an adorable little girl?!? She always brings a smile to my face. :)

Congratulations Cora!! I am really going to miss you!! 

Sam Harness

I had an impromptu photo shoot with this awesome guy!  He has signed with a modeling agency and needed some quick head shots.  It was a pleasure working with him and being able to help him with this at the last minute.  :) 

Chick-fil-A Craft Fair

I was so excited to be a part of the 2nd Chick-fil-A Craft Fair this past Saturday! This was my first time being in a craft fair! I had so much fun and I am looking forward to doing many more! Since my knowledge of such an event was non-existent, I spend many, many hours researching the necessities and how other photographers display their work. I personally thought it was all very interesting and it really got my creative juices flowing. I had a vision of what I wanted to accomplish and started working toward that. Unfortunately, I realized that what I wanted would cost more than I had, so I knew I had to make changes. I went back to sketching my ideas and researching other options. And then, just when I thought I was doomed, my husband swept in to save me and my day! He looked over my ideas that had been trashed and my new ones. He quickly determined that I did not need to throw out my original designs, I merely had to tweak them. I still didn't see how this was possible, but he told me that I didn't need to worry because he would simply make those crazy expensive items himself for a fourth of the cost. I was shocked and delighted!! He proceeded to take three days off work so that he could help me pick out the supplies, work out the designs, and build the missing display pieces. We had lots of fun working on everything together those three days and late into each night/early morning. :)

On Saturday, I was fairly nervous because I had yet to see how everything would come together. Thankfully, set up went well and my display looked the way I had envisioned it. Needless to say, I was pretty proud of myself. :) The weather was perfect all day, and I was so excited to sell my prints for the first time!! I had postcards, two different sizes of matted pictures with backing, two different sizes of wood prints, and two different sizes of framed prints. I also provided two sample portfolios of portraits and weddings that I have done. It was really neat getting to meet new people and talk with them about what I love doing!! So, without further delay, here are pictures of my booth!! :)

Here are some close-ups on some of the wood prints and the smaller framed prints.

This is only about 1/3 of the postcards I have!

Thank you so much to Chick-fil-A Jefferson Pointe for this wonderful opportunity!! I hope that they will continue to provide this awesome opportunity for local artists, and I hope that I am always available to participate in it!! I plan on finding more and more opportunities such as this one because it was so much fun! I will make sure to post where I will be and when I will be there so that any of you who are interested can come out and see what I have to offer!

And for those of you who like to avoid crowds of people at all cost, I can take print orders through my website of any of my photographs. Simply message me with the photo you like, the size you want, and how you would like to receive it. :)

www.rachelwilhelmphotography.com

afO's 1984

I am the photographer for a wonderful theater company called all for One, inc.  Last week I got to see and photograph their production of 1984.  I put together two collages with some of my favorite pictures.  This play was definitely one of the most emotional plays I have seen both in what was portrayed by the actors and actresses and what I was left feeling.  It was a sad but very thought provoking play.

All for One's new season has been released!!  Check it out at: http://allforonefw.wordpress.com/

To purchase season tickets, please call: (260) 622-4610 

Don't miss out on a wonderful season of family-friendly plays!!