[ Lavender Days ]

Mona, UT has the most beautiful lavender fields that go on forever! They are right at the base of the majestic Utah Wasatch Mountain Range. 

Living in Salt Lake City is going to be a great opportunity for me to gain more and more diverse personal work! I'm pretty excited!

[ Solvang ]

Solvang, CA is located in the Santa Barbara County and is a beautiful Dutch town. I highly suggest you go there if you can ... it's charming.

[ Garden Gnomes ]

Aren't they cute? I kind of want to steal (yea, steal) a garden gnome and return it "to the wild", take it on a trip, and photograph it at historic landmarks like the travelocity roaming gnome. Afterwards I'd mail the rightful owner of the gnome a copy of the image as a prank. I wonder how many people have duplicated the idea of a roaming gnome with them on vacation .... 

[ xoxo ]

I love you Paul. See you soon ....

[ Aebleskiver's ]

Say what??? Pronounced able-skee-vers, this treat is one of my favorites from Solvang, CA. Aebleskivers are a Dutch treat, which are similar in texture to pancakes crossed with the fluffiness of a popover. Beware of eating them because you might get jam on your forehead like I did, and I'm not even kidding! These are messy!

[ London ]

Recently I glanced at Nicole Hill's blog and saw her post on where she'd rather be. It got me thinking about vacationing and exploring. This inspired me to look through some of my past adventures and I found some moments in London. I picked out some of my preferred images for you to peek at!

[ I spy ]

one bus ...

maybe three.

[ figure study ]

Quite a while back I photographed this for a figure study in one of my portrait classes. My inspiration was a sculptor / artist by the name of Auguste Rodin. I wish I could spend every day studying artists and their work....

[ Dream ]

Ambition, hope, aim, intent, desire, wish, yearning ... here is the dream machine.

[ Highkey Camera Champion ]

Congratulations to AMY! You won a lovely camera strap of your choice!

(Image by HighKey camera)

[ Real love ]

I think I may have found it! The recipe is a tender, familiar setting for a date and a nice gentle kiss with the person you love. Feel free to add sunshine.

[ Oreo Madness ]

The first time I ever tasted bliss was when I was introduced to homemade oreos. Jamie Christensen is the original master of these cookies but Emmalee made the ones you see pictured. They are soooo gooey and soft and they practically melt in your mouth! Tonight I think I've eaten about 5 of them, which is no joke. Find the recipe here.

[ Remnants ]

These remnants are my newest obsessions. My plans for these sections of fabric include photographing things on them and ultimately framing them in various, distressed mismatched frames. I think this will make a fun art project.

[ Graffiti ]

is sometimes pretty.

[ Arnoldi's ]

My favorite (well, one of them) restaurants in Santa Barbara is Arnoldi's. It is authentic Italian dining, approved by my husband who lived in Milan, Italy. He determines what is authentic and what isn't, and this place definitely is! 

[ still water ]

This pretty little ravine of still water caught my eye and I just HAD to photograph it!

[ with this ring... ]

I came across the company Paloma's Nest while thoroughly exploring the wonderful Etsy (everything on the site is handmade). I purchased the little ring bearers bowl for myself because I thought it would make the perfect jewelry holder for my own rings. 

All the pictures you see below are ones I photographed right after I found the delightful surprise in my mailbox. Ahhhh, I love tiny things!

[ Highkey Camera ]

If you are a photographer, I highly suggest you get one of these camera straps. Let me tell you three reasons why:

1. These camera straps are fun, and so is photography if you make it that way! Stand out from your usual "canon" or "nikon" rut and be creative! Their designs can be seen HERE. And make sure to check the colors because most of their designs come in a variety of colors.

2. You don't just buy a cute camera strap....part of your money goes to charity! They have a link HERE which shows the charities you can choose from.

3. I know the founders Andie and Tom personally and they are incredibly professional and organized, plus fun and kind, which always helps in a creative industry. See their bio's HERE.

I purchased the two pictured below. I love love love them!

Now for the giveaway (which is a new thing for me). Comment before Sunday June 14th and you'll be eligible to win a camera strap of your choice! I'll choose a random winner using the "eeenie meeenie minee mo" system to pick my winner. Make sure to post your email so I can email the winner with the information needed! 

( photo taken by highkey camera )

*Giveaway closed

[ James & his Italian bike ]

James Hanna aka XVI Photography has become such an amazing photographer and digital compositing master! That's my opinion, but go to his site and see for yourself. James and I began at the Brooks Institute at the same time and although our photographic journeys have contrasted one another's, I can tell you this much; James is a stellar photographer and a wonderful person, one of my favorite people here in Santa Barbara. We had a lunch date at our favorite restaurant, which is called Panino, and while there I photographed him and his very own bike he put together himself! How cool. And it's from Italy, so we all know that makes it immediately THAT much cooler...!