Personal Archives

Feb

Baby Come Back!

“Baby, Come Back” is a song by the 1970’s group, Player. It’s the song I sing in the shower every morning to my camera who’s in New York City. I miss my camera incredibly. Yes, I’ve personified my camera. The only thing I have left to do is name her (more on that later). I miss having the creative outlet and I miss capturing life’s moments.

Being a photographer without a camera, it’s kind of hard to tell you that there’s only about three months to get your senior pictures squared away. But, there is only three months to get your senior pictures squared away!

Senior Portraits by Ata-Girl Photography Co.

I’d also like to ask you to sign up for my ezine. It’s an electronic newsletter that I’ll send out periodically to let you know what’s going on with Ata-Girl – like the status of my camera. It will also be one of the places that I will let you know about booking and print specials. The first edition is scheduled to go out on February 22, 2012, so don’t miss it and sign up now!! (The other place will be a special Facebook tab which only fans can access. Check out the Special Offer! tab.)

If you have a recommendation for a name for my camera, leave it in the comment box for this blog. If I choose your recommendation, I’ll give you a photo credit for a FREE 5X7 with a paid session.

Until next time, be positive, be happy, be healthy, and don’t forget to be photographed.

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I am a San Antonio-based wedding and senior photographer who started Ata-Girl Photography Co., LLC in 2010. As one of the up-and-coming San Antonio wedding photographers, I am also available to shoot in Austin, Houston and Dallas and the surrounding areas. I am also available for destination weddings worldwide. Ata-Girl Photography Co. offers an amazing wedding photography service that you won’t soon forget. As professional photographer, my sole purpose is to provide you the absolute best photography experience.

I am a professional photographer who enjoys documenting the important milestones and captivating moments in people’s lives. I firmly believe that the unique set of circumstances I have faced in life has prepared me to take a personal and genuine interest in my photography clients. When I’m not photographing a wedding, family or high school senior, I enjoy watching my daughter play softball, hiking, cycling, reading, and listening to Elvis!

The post, Baby Come Back!, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

Jan

2012 Photography Goals and Plans

The past two years with Ata-Girl has been so amazing; I am very much looking forward to see where this journey will end up taking me. I have never been the person who makes ridiculous resolutions each year, but I have always been a goal setter. Some of my goals for 2012 pertain to my personal life and some pertain to Ata-Girl. By December 31, 2012, I’m hoping to have achieved every single one.

I will be more committed to my health and happiness. I will eat better more often. I will exercise more consistently. I will try to lose the 17 pounds I gained in 2011. I will ride in more charity bike rides this year… starting as early as April. I have never been conditioned well enough to participate in any charity rides before September, but I believe I am well on my way to be ready for the Fiesta Wildflower Ride this year (http://www.fiestawildflower.com/home.htm). I will complete a century ride (100 miles in one day), and I will finally meet my goal of cycling at least 2,000 miles in a calendar year.
It’s here! The 2012 Ata-Girl Photography Co. Catalog!
I will shoot more weddings this year. Last year, I shot two weddings and what a treat that was. I got to document one of the most important days in a couple’s life. I got to memorialize the happiness, love and laughter shared by the bride, groom and their families. I want to do this more. I am very excited about this!! My goal is to shoot at least four weddings this year (but I’m secretly striving for eight)! I am currently in the process of implementing some new marketing ideas with a group of other professionals as well as some that only pertain to Ata-Girl. I CANNOT wait for them to materialize. (See above.)
I will not be threatened by other photographers. I will not be critical of or threatened by other photographers’ work. I will not take it personally when a potential client hires another photographer. I will be confident in my work and my skill level. I will not replicate others’ work or fall victim to trendy styles. I will continue to develop an artistic style that is all mine and I will not diverge from this path.
I will continue to grow, learn and improve my skills. On a daily basis, I will continue to learn and improve my skills. This not only pertains to my photographic skills, but my business, marketing and personable skills. I will continually seek new ideas, pursue expert advice and honestly self-critique/examine my own work.
I will get a backup camera. Having spent the last month 🙁 without a camera has made me realize the importance of having a backup. I can’t remember ever having had a product fail me unless it was just absolutely old. I’ve heard of this happening, but never imagined it would happen to me. I’m getting a backup.

So, there they are. There are my goals for the upcoming 12 months. They will happen.

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The post, 2012 Photography Goals and Plans, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

Dec

Photography Goals Review of 2011

Speaking in terms of growing and progress, 2011 was a stellar year for my photography skills and experiences. Among what seems like hundreds of sporting events, I shot weddings and brides, graduates, historical events, and many family functions. When I review my work, it is so easy to see how much I have improved, yet I still find lots of room to better myself. For reference, here are two shots: the one of the left was taken shooting in fully automatic mode in 2006 with a Konika Minolta DiMage Z3. The one on the right was taken shooting in full manual mode with my latest investment: a Nikon D7000. (I <3 this camera!) I wish every picture I possess was taken with my D7000.

Comparison: 2006 Z3 vs. 2011 D7000

The year began with some aerial photography… my first ever! This was so (scary) much fun! I am not intimidated by heights and I love roller coasters. But, I wonder what kind of an ordeal this would have been if the preceding sentence were not true. It probably would not have happened. (Top Photo Credit: Theresa McAllister, JISD)

Jourdanton ISD: 100th Anniversary

The year continued with a few senior sessions which were so much fun!

Ata-Girl Senior Sessions

I shot some beautiful weddings.

Ata-Girl Weddings

My work was displayed in an art show in Austin at the Flatbed Press. (Photo Credit: Fred Jimenez, One Louder Photo)

“Rub Some Dirt on It” / Ata-Girl Photography Co. / Flatbed Press Gallery

I took some amazing sports photos that absolutely stopped time. Notice the drops of sweat below Brent Tymrak’s helmet. And can’t you totally feel your hands and knees scraping on that track?

Ata-Girl Action Shots

I finished the year with a some sweet shots of family and friends.

Ata-Girl Family & Friends Sessions

The last photo I took in 2011 broke my camera. Yes, my beloved D7000.

Ata-Girl’s Last Photo in 2011

So, tonight I have to celebrate New Year’s Eve… cameraless. This makes me sad because I love to capture life’s moments. There’s this piece of my heart that believes if I don’t “capture” it, it’s gone forever. Maybe I’ll take a trip to Wally World and get me a point and shoot. This is sure to help me survive the night and while I wait for my D7000 to get fixed.

By standing, posing and competing in front of my lens, you make me happy. You make me excited to capture and preserve your life’s moments. Thank you for allowing me to do this and helping me to grow. Again, I just want to think all my subjects for being a part of my life in 2011 and I hope to also be a part of it in 2012.

Stay safe tonight!

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The post, Photography Goals Review of 2011, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.
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Nov

Starting New Family Traditions

I have never been the person who comfortably eases her way into something new. Any time I start something new, I jump in with both feet… hands tied behind my back. Most of the time, I blindly stumble and feel my way around until I become more familiar with my new surroundings, but I never slowly acclimate myself. It’s been this way since I was a very young girl. I couldn’t just ride my bike… I had to ride my bike to my memaw’s house, then lift weights, then shoot baskets, then ride my bike home. When I got home, I practiced my long jump form in my homemade long jump pit. I couldn’t just jog a mile with my friend after school… I had to alternate each hundred yards with different exercises of skipping, side stepping, hopping on one leg then the other. I dare not just wash my car… I have to detail each and every square inch sometimes using Q-tips to reach far back into the air vents and even remove decorative pieces of trim to clean behind them.

san_antonio_wedding_photographers_atagirl_photography family traditions

Since 1993, when I was stationed in Fort Huachuca, Arizona, Granny Taylor invited me to her house for Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations. Everyone who was a “regular” at Granny’s house was assigned a food item to bring. Crazy Aunt Carol brought the mashed potatoes, Aunt Donna made the potato salad, Aunt Tata made the green beans and corn casserole, and Tricia made the broccoli casserole. Granny would cook the turkey, ham, and stuffing. Since everyone knew how much I loved cooking and how early I liked to wake up (please note my sarcasm), I was assigned dinner rolls and ice. And not the good, homemade or even the frozen-and-let-rise kind. I’m talking the 10-minute, brown and serve variety. For the last 17 years, I have got to experience some of the best holiday food on the planet, spend time with some really great people (and with my own brother and sister), and all I had to do was wake up in time to put 12 dozen brown and serve dinner rolls in the oven.

Earlier this year, Granny Taylor passed away (LOVE you, Granny!) and her family is making slight revisions to their holiday plans. Although I’d probably be completely welcomed, I think it’s totally ludicrous to continue with the Taylor tradition until I’m nearing my 70’s, taking my kids who will be in their 40’s, and bringing my grandchildren who, if all happens in a timely manner, will be teenagers.

Now is the perfect time to begin a new tradition with my children, and hopefully one day grandchildren, in my home, and with a meal that I have prepared. I have not cooked an entire Thanksgiving meal since 1992, after Sierra was born, so this ought to be interesting. We’re having turkey, ham, stuffing (a very special recipe), and all the trimmings. I’m also making two pumpkin pies, and a cherry pie.

I’ll jump in with both feet… hands tied behind my back. For now, I’ll cook everything… the whole kit and kaboodle. Maybe one day, I’ll start assigning the menu items. (Sierra, you’ll have rolls and ice.)

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The post, Starting New Family Traditions, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

Nov

Six Word Memoir: Personal Reflection

4th Annual WWWR, Wimberley, TX 2010

A recent exercise about life asked me to write a memoir about my life using no more than six words. How do you describe 42 years using only six words? It wasn’t easy and took me a few weeks to finish.

Without detailing each bit of pain I’ve experienced throughout my life (and there have been many), I’ll just say that I knew loss much greater than most people by the time I turned 21. By that time, I had experienced four separate and very traumatic experiences. However, I spent the last 21 years getting to know myself, my strengths, and my weaknesses. It wasn’t something I set out to do, it has just been a natural transition. I guess it comes with age.

I know it’s cliche, but life is too short to live with regrets. I am at a point where I love everything about my life. I’ve learned to appreciate each day and the people in it. I’ve learned to stand behind my beliefs. I’ve learned which battles are worth fighting. I’ve learned to make sure the people I love know it and I surround myself with them. I now stop and smell the roses, admire the beautiful sunsets, and listen to the birds’ songs. I am, however, still learning to forgive. Even with all the hardships life has handed me, I love life. Life is a beautiful thing.

My six word memoir:
Endured loss. Treasures life. Seeks perspective.

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The post, Six Word Memoir: Personal Reflection, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

Oct

Texas Photography Art Show

Through November 4, one of my works will hang in the Flatbed Press Gallery in Austin, Texas. This gallery is said to be one of the top gallery spaces in the state of Texas. My photo, “Rub Some Dirt on It”, is with numerous other works of art—all in a Texas photography art show who were selected to be in this art show. I was doubtful my piece would be chosen to be part of the show. You can imagine how delighted I was when I received the email confirming the selection.

Although my photograph didn’t win any prizes in the show, I am very grateful for the opportunity. Being in the show has made me feel validated, legitimate and even a bit more confident as a photographer. All the pictures hanging in the gallery will also be featured in a coffee table book. I’m buying a copy. 🙂

“Rub Some Dirt on It” / Ata-Girl Photography Co. / Flatbed Press Gallery

I’d like to thank Kye Burris and his parents for not only allowing me to enter the piece in the show, but to photograph his athletic achievements for the last couple of years. Kye is pictured above; he is the baseball catcher in the bottom center. I’d also like to thank my good friend and fellow photographer, Fred Jimenez, for snapping this shot for me on the show’s opening night. Fred also has a piece in the show and you can check out his work at OneLouderPhotography.com.

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The post, Texas Photography Art Show, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

Oct

Why I Love Wedding Photography

Growing up and sitting next to my cousin, Robert, I couldn’t understand how he could effortlessly move a pencil across a piece of paper and create the most detailed images. His pencil would appear to radically move about on the surface of the paper with no real purpose. Yet, when he finally lifted the pencil from the paper, there appeared the best super hero or 4X4 truck I had ever seen drawn.

Thinking his pencil was magical, I’d pick it up and try replicating the images he had drawn. Even with my best effort, my stick people lacked creativity and even symmetry. I was incapable of drawing anything recognizable. For some reason, all the artistic creativity that exists on my dad’s side of the family did not find its way to me. There are quilters, painters, embroiderers, carpenters, musicians, and artists… real artists who can visualize and then create a work of art. I cannot. I cannot draw!

I earned my first camera when I was about 11 by selling greeting cards from a catalog I received in the mail. I could have opted for $1 earned on every package of greeting cards I sold, but I selected the 110 film camera instead. It even came with a roll of film, 12 exposures I think, to get me started.

That camera initiated the little creativity I did have. Later on, I’d “borrow” my parents’ Polaroid and take my little sister on a photo shoot in the front yard. I’d ask her to wear her pink Hermann Sons ballet outfit and to lean against a tree. Or, I’d ask her to scoop up some puppies and pose on the back porch wearing her newest school shirt.

Pictures not only served as an artistic outlet for me, they have also served to preserve some of the most important people, places, and times in my life. Once an event is captured in a photograph, there is no letting it go, or forgetting about it. That photograph will live on.

After toying with my love of photography for some thirty-something years, I am thankful I have taken the last five or so to really, really learn photography. I am pleased with the knowledge I have gained, yet also realize that I still have lots to learn. The most valuable thing I have learned is to do things my way–not to replicate someone else’s work. I’m constantly looking through the viewfinder, even when my camera is out of reach. I often wonder what that skyline would look like from this perspective, or that shutter speed, landscape… no, portrait with a black vignette. I have come to a place that most everything I see is through the viewfinder. I love photography! I am an artist!!

I still can’t draw.

Tanya Diane, with puppies

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The post, Why I Love Wedding Photography, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

Jul

Capturing Memories with a Photo

When I was in high school, the ONLY thing I wanted in life was to be an Olympic/professional athlete. I either wanted to play volleyball or run track at this level. (So, I’m still puzzled why I chose to have a basketball insignia put on my senior ring.) I have always had a special place in my heart for competing; I love to play sports. So to me, taking an action shot is not just about getting a picture of some guy throwing a ball. I like to capture the emotion of the moment–the vapor rising from the sweaty head of a football player on a cold Friday night or the Diamond Pro being flung from the underside of a pair of Mizuno cleats while someone tries to steal home. I not only try to capture the actual moment, but the emotional ties to the moment. Twenty years from now when someone looks at one of these action shots, I want their heart to feel as if the moment is happening again… right then.

As a photographer, I grew tremendously last year having covered so many events. I had so many different opportunities to grow: I shot right at 70 JHS sporting events (among many others), I got to shoot professional athletes, I shot a group of 1,400 people, I shot from a helicopter, and I shot many other types of sessions–weddings, engagements, teens, newborns, etc. I had the opportunity to have my work critiqued by a photographer who won the Pulitzer Prize. I had fun and learned something at every single shoot. I hope to grow this much again this school year.

I had so much fun photographing all the amazing athletes and capturing memories with a photo. For them, the images will last forever. In just a few short weeks, another school year will begin. I’m really anxious to begin this year. Let the competitions begin.

So, with that in mind, I leave you with my absolute, most favorite shot from last school year. Enjoy!

Rub a Little Dirt on It!

P. S. All of last year’s galleries will be taken down on August 15, 2011! Complete your purchases before then!!

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The post, Capturing Memories with a Photo, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

Mar

Flying High: Aerial Photography

JHS 100 Year Celebration

This year marks a very important anniversary of the Jourdanton Independent School District. The class of 2011 will be the 100th class to graduate from Jourdanton High School.

On March 23, 2011, I got to participate in one of the festivities for the celebration. Every student, teacher, staff member, and administrator gathered together in Indian Stadium to pose for a photograph–a group photo of approximately 1,400 people! The 14-hundred people formed the number “100” on the field.

While the “100” was being finalized on the ground, I was whisked away into the air by a fellow classmate from the 76th graduating class of JHS. (If you’ve done the math correctly, we’re from the heavenly class of 1987.) My personal pilot for the day was none other than Joseph Meyer, owner of Flying J Services. He strapped me in and told me not to worry. (YEAH, RIGHT! This was my first time in a helicopter.)

He gently lifted off the ground and we hovered from different angles waiting for the green light. While we waited, I took some test shots experimenting with apertures and shutter speeds. The shots had to be good; I couldn’t let the “uneasiness” of the flight distract me from what I was there to do. Hovering felt totally normal, but any time the helicopter changed elevation, it felt just like riding a roller coaster–which I love!–but withOUT any rails, or connection to the ground. That feeling forced me to reach for the “Oh Crap” handles more than once, but Joseph’s aircraft doesn’t have those.

Finally, everyone was in place and we took about 100 shots from different heights, angles, and a few from right overhead. It was an awesome experience to be a part of such a great celebration. You see, my grandfather came here from Oklahoma around 1904 in a covered wagon and went to school in Christine. My dad went to school in Christine and then Jourdanton High School. He didn’t actually graduate because he got blamed for moving an outhouse, (yes, an outhouse) to the middle of the circle drive (where Jr. High is now). According to my dad, it was his older brother who really did it, but my dad didn’t want to tell on him so his brother graduated, Dad didn’t. Then, I graduated in 1987. Outhouses were rare in the 80’s, but big hair was alive and well. Sierra graduated in 2010 (there’s no telling what she did) and God willing, Kyanna will graduate in 2014. I hope my grandchildren attend school here. My mom’s family has probably been here longer, but they settled in Charlotte and Leming so they don’t really have any relevance to this story. I really think JISD is a good school and always has been. My education (and complete experience) here has always been a good foundation for everything else I’ve learned in life. That’s why it was a REAL honor to help out yesterday.

By the way, Central Office will be selling the prints in a fundraiser to help with the expenses of the celebration. You can contact that office at (830) 769-3548 for more information. (Click here to see a few of the aerial photos: http://tinyurl.com/3awuk3w.) If you’d like to have an outhouse moved, please call my uncle.

Photos courtesy of Theresa McAllister, JISD

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The post, Flying High: Aerial Photography, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

Jan

Action Photography: Flipping Great

Flipping Great

Being one of the select San Antonio wedding photographers, I always have a fine time photographing sporting events… as was the case here.
So, the girls’ game didn’t end as expected. Despite having easily defeated this team with our home court advantage, that just wouldn’t be the case when we entered their house. The opponent’s coach reminded me A LOT of Tennessee’s head basketball coach, Pat Summit. They looked alike, and sounded alike, and evidently, coached their girls to play alike. There was a lot of shoving, elbowing, and reaching that apparently you just couldn’t see unless you were watching the games from the visiting side. The refs just wouldn’t give us the calls we would have liked.

The boys’ basketball game was also a good one! We scored. They scored. We scored. They scored. We’d foul. They hit two free throws. They’d foul. We hit two free throws. One of the guards popped a three. And so on. The game was like that all four periods long, back and forth–a pretty evenly matched game.

In between all the fouling and scoring, there was a bit of a back-and-forth with the teams’ fans. The home team’s cheerleaders seemed to be encouraging this. It was a bit of a contest to see who could get louder. One of the refs must not have minded the separate competition because he would very discreetly let our fans know who was winning the chanting contest. The home team’s cheerleaders would get out on the court between periods and during time-outs, and two would proceed to throw about three or four back hand springs in a row. One of them would slow so much toward the last back hand spring, that it looked as if she just might be in slow action. (I must admit that even in slow motion, she was going a lot faster than I could. One attempt at a back hand spring would probably break my neck.) I did start to have a bad taste in my mouth when someone from the other side started to boo us. Finally, with a little urging from her fellow teammates, one of our cheerleaders got onto the hardwood, jeans and all, and did about eight back hand springs of her own. (Frankly, I lost count after three. It could have been 17 for all I know.) The referee passed and let us know that we won that round, and our side was now up by one.

So, the real game continues into the fourth quarter, and for the last few minutes it appears that it just might end in overtime. (Last week’s game was a triple over-timer.) When suddenly, we scored a basket or two that the opponent just couldn’t answer to. When the final buzzer sounded, we had won. We were up by four points and I hoped one of the boys would do some sort of celebration–tasteful and sportsmanlike, of course.

As the two teams met at center court and shook hands and offered each other the “good game” handshake, I studied the players to see which one would celebrate. I finally picked out two possibilities. By some stroke of luck, I focused on number 30. I hit the jackpot. As he was returning to the visiting bench, he offered up this little standing back tuck just to make things FINAL. We won. We won the basketball game, we won the chanting competition, and we won the tumbling contest. The crowd went wild!

(Pictures are worth 1,000 words. I was very fortunate to be able to capture this picture. Okay, maybe the games didn’t happen exactly as I stated, but the depiction above was a little more exciting. The bottom line is you always have to be prepared for the unexpected. This is something I’ve been trying to get better at the last few months–what happens after the great play. Another 20,000 frames and I might have it down.)

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The post, Action Photography: Flipping Great, first appeared on Ata-Girl Photography Co’s website and blog. Please feel free to comment here, or share this post with your friends via Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. Please email me if you have any questions about this article or want to share a neat idea for a future blog post with me.

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Hi, I’m Tammy.
I'm a San Antonio-based wedding photographer for outdoor-loving couples who value real moments.

I am a San Antonio-based wedding photographer and I am absolutely in love with capturing the kinds of weddings where there are more hugs than handshakes, the dance floor rumbles all night long, and chairs are pretty much rendered useless after dinner. Whiskey bottles are passed around, most of the wedding party has been best-best friends since kindergarten, Grams is likely to lose her shoes and your partner is much more emotional than you are. These kinds of weddings are my jam!

Since 2010, I have excelled in helping each of my couples plan for one of the very best days of their lives! I’d love to share my very personalized wedding experience, my super-human organizational abilities, and my U. S. Army combat skills (when needed) with you too.

I want your wedding day to be as perfect as you do! I am all in with my whole heart!