Jun
22

Country Senior Session

Devin finished up her third and final senior session with a bang! We ventured way south of town to her family’s property… property that has been in the family for generations and means the world to them.

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We took her country cap and gown senior session images on a piece of property that affectionately is home to “the shack.” Her mom kept calling this building the shack, but each time I wanted to refer to it, I had a hard time calling it a shack. Finally, Shellie assured me that the term was one of affection and that the shack had been named by Devin’s great-grandfather. Family history is so important to me. I’m glad that I get to play historian with some of my shoots. I was relieved and after that, I could refer to its name more easily.

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Devin’s sessions were also very dear to me because her mother was one of my very best friends in junior high and high school. We grew up having beauty contests, playing Ouija board and Light as a Feather. We spent hours pool side and if combined together and strung continuously end-to-end, probably a solid year competing together in various sports. We awkwardly navigated through some of our first loves together. We survived freshman year hazing and finally, graduated… although Shellie was at one end of the commencement exercise and I at the other. 🙂 Shellie was, and always will be, a very dear friend to me. And that is also why Devin’s sessions are, and will always be, very dear to me. As I said, family history is very important to me. When I have the opportunity to help someone create and solidify their family’s legacy, it makes my heart sing. When I’m helping someone super special to me, it makes my heart sing, do back flips and ride on cloud nine for a bit.

Devin’s Country Senior Session

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video.

The post, Devin’s Country Senior Session, 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.

Jun
15

San Antonio Senior Pics

Last week, I wrote about Laura’s fabulous other half—her twin. This time, please direct your full attention to this girl.  She is equally amazing… which makes sense, she’s a twin.

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Laura is also from a large blended family of seven siblings (duh!). Her siblings range from a sophomore in college to a third-grader. Laura finished 4th in her class of a little over 100 students.

During Laura’s time at Jourdanton High School she was in the National Honor Society, FFA, band and was also voted class president and FFA vice-president. During free time from high school, which wasn’t much because she spent 99% of her time with her lambs, Laura volunteered her time with the Cowboy Fellowship Church, Relay for Life, Rachel’s Challenge and a Wimberley Mission Trip. Her favorite subjects were anatomy and physiology and her favorite teacher was Mrs. Yaws. Laura confesses that high school taught her that her community is full of incredible, diverse people who all work together for the same goal.

Now that Laura has graduated, she plans to attend Texas A&M in College Station and major in nursing. After college, she would like to get married, have a family and work in a hospital. Oh, and eat whole batches of cookies in one sitting. 🙂

San Antonio Senior Pics

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video. (Again, I apologize for not having separate videos for these two beautiful girls!)

The post, Laura’s San Antonio Senior Pics, 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.

Jun
07

San Antonio Senior Portraits

I don’t have any idea of what it might be like to be a twin. I would imagine that as a child, you always have someone to play (and fight) with; as an adult, you always have a friend and confidant. I also imagine that up to a point, almost every single thing you do in life is shared with your twin. I could be totally off base here, but that is why I decided to write Maddie and Laura’s blog posts separately even though they shared a session. They are both amazing girls and they deserve their own spotlight—if only for a brief second, if only on this blog. They both have accomplished so much is their short time on Earth so far, and I want to brag about them. Separately.

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Maddie is from a large blended family. She is one of seven. Her siblings range from a sophomore in college to a third-grader. On May 28th, Maddie graduated 9th in her class, finishing ahead of about 100 other seniors. She was a member of the National Honor Society. Maddie participated in the band where she was a principle player and a section leader. She also was active in the FFA raising goats and lambs. She served as the Chapter Historian and advanced to state competition for Parliamentary Procedure twice. She placed in the top ten both times (6th and 8th). Maddie also served as her high school’s yearbook editor. She was also a very cheerful cheerleader earning a leadership award and All-American status. Her favorite subject was English and she has a special place in her heart for Mrs. Zuniga.

Her volunteer activities included performing at the Argent Court (an assisted-living center), working in a booth for Relay for Life and FFA at the Strawberry Festival, and cheering at the Special Olympics. She was also a member of Rachel’s Challenge—an organization meant to motivate, educate and bring positive change to many young people.

When Maddie isn’t excelling academically, she loves to dance! She received two National Dance Scholarships to Myrtle Beach, acceptance to summer intensives for the Joffery Ballet, highest scoring senior dance with her tap solo at the Thunderstruck Dance Competition, and accepted into the dance program at A&M (where she will pursue a double major in dance and physical therapy). Maddie hopes to one day own her own dance studio.

Prior to our session, I asked Maddie what she was expecting from the session with me. Her response was sooo sweet and something I would have never said as a high schooler. In addition to capturing her true and real self, Maddie asked me to capture love and bond between her and her sister. That is remarkably sweet.

San Antonio Senior Portraits

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video. (I apologize for not having separate videos for these two beautiful girls!)

The post, Maddie’s San Antonio Senior Portraits, 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.

Apr
21

Strawberry Pines Senior Session

It was during Devin’s second senior session with me, that I discovered she was a bad mama jama. Repeating the words “bad mama jama” in this blog post will do nothing for my SEO, but I know it will make Devin happy! Because… she IS ONE BAD MAMA JAMA! Even thought we both excel in biology, and even though I showed her audio and video proof on YouTube®, she still won’t accept the fact that “bad mama jama” is a real word.

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Devin’s second senior session was at the fabulous Strawberry Pines in Poteet, Texas. We had a lot of fun shooting in the barn. beneath the pines trees and in the rock house. Devin even was patient enough to let me experiment some using light fixtures, mirrors, mantles and antique mirrors. Once again, Devin did an amazing job and helped me create some amazing portraits during her senior session. Devin, you one bad mama jama! <3 (Sorry, I just couldn’t help it!)

Strawberry Pines Senior Session

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video.

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About Ata-Girl

I am a San Antonio-based wedding photographer and I cater to outdoor-loving couples who prefer to have all the realness captured on their wedding days. I am the wedding photographer for the outdoor adventurers, the romantics, the laid back, the snugglers, and those who wish to capture all their realness.

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!

You can always call or text, but if you really want to get to know me, schedule a meetup!

I started Ata-Girl Photography Co., LLC in 2010. 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. I enjoy documenting the important milestones and captivating moments in people’s lives. I love being a part of people’s journeys and consider myself privileged to document their legacies.

If you enjoyed this blog post and would like to get your hands on 20 FREE interactive wedding planning tools that every couple needs, please take a moment to access them here.

I am a published author (purchase my book here), a podcast host (listen here) (watch here) and a WPPI-C certified professional, full-time wedding photographer. I specialize in a 10-day image delivery, same-day prints, same-day slideshows, Italian handcrafted wedding albums and I have a mobile meeting space.

When I’m not behind my camera, you can find me hiking, cycling, backpacking, camping, enjoying water sports, listening to music (Elvis and Prince), hunting for arrowheads, reading audiobooks, occasionally eating a few glazed donuts (my only weakness to sweets) and then re-starting my keto diet about every 10 days. The most important things in life are for me to see my two daughters happy and to create a family history my grandparents and grandson would be proud of.

Apr
07

Campus Senior Pics

Karley’s senior portrait session on campus was amazing! This was Karley’s third senior session with me (see her first and second) and by this session, she was an absolute pro! If my senior clients purchases three senior sessions, I always suggest having one of them on their high school campus. They hate this place now, but will one day reminisce about all their youthful days spent on campus with friends and teachers and coaches who became friends. If you’re going to document you’re high school experience, it’s important to have a senior portrait session on campus.

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It has been extremely special for me documenting Karley’s final year in high school. I’ve known Karley all my life (she’s my niece) and have helped her though many difficult times. I’ve helped her bury (many) dead cats and may have been her only lemonade stand customer. I’ve listened to speeches about sugar addiction (FIVE TIMES IN A ROW!) and given her a place to hang out between her last class and softball practice. We’ve been through a lot of memorable times, but unlike her older brother, I never had to rescue her when she ran away from home in the middle of the day (or night). It’s been fun watching Karley grow up and I’m glad to have been able to document this milestone in her life. I’ll spend the rest of her senior year watching her play softball.

Campus Senior Pics

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video.

The post, Karley’s Campus Senior Pics, 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
23

Sporty Senior Portrait Session

Mandy’s first session was all about her feminine and beautiful side. This time, we tackled her rough and tough sporty side. Lucky #7 is a force to be reckoned with on the soccer field and she isn’t afraid to get tough on the sidelines of a football game either.

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I have grown fond of Mandy over the past few months. She is a beautiful, soft-spoken girl with a solid head on her shoulders. Mandy will graduate in the top 10% of her class ranking 11th out of 230 students. She also is a member of the National Honor Society. This fall, Mandy will pursue a business degree at Texas A&M.

There is no doubt that Mandy will grab life by the horns and conquer all that comes her way. I’m sure her mom is very proud of her.

Sporty Senior Portrait Session

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video.

The post, Mandy’s Sporty Senior Portrait Session, 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
04

High School Senior Portraits

Mackenzie’s high school senior portraits were so much fun to capture! Just like her older sister, she was a lot of fun to work with. And those, legs! She has legs for dayssssss! Coming from someone whose legs are only about one-third of their total body length, I am totally jealous of her legs!

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Speaking of legs, Mackenzie endured four different hip surgeries while she was in high school. She had two surgeries to put pins in her hips and then two surgeries to take them out. She’s all better now and has even returned to playing her favorite sport, softball.

Like many of my senior clients, Mackenzie is a member of the National Honor Society and is college bound. She’s planning on attending Cisco University in Abilene and majoring in physical therapy—which probably resulted from one of her four own surgeries. Physical therapists are the bomb!!

Mackenzie’s favorite subject is speech and her favorite teacher is Mrs. Georg. She claims that high school has taught her to keep pushing no matter how hard life gets. (Truth!!) Mackenzie loves to be with family doing anything that is outside. Good luck, Mackenzie!!

High School Senior Portraits

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video.

The post, Mackenzie’s High School Senior Portraits, 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.

Feb
24

Tompkins Senior Session

This Katy Texas senior session is near and dear to my heart! This young man belongs to one of my very, very best friends! I have known JoAnn since 5th grade. Throughout junior high we were inseparable—our junior high coach even referred to us as the Bobbsey Twins. We cut each other’s hair, traded school lunches, played every sport together, and shared an adoration for Prince and Michael Jackson. Sometimes, we ran a small scam at school events. We would yell, “Donations, donations,” until we collected enough loose change to grab an after school snack and play a game of Ms. Pac Man. When our “donations” were really good, we’d each splurge on a pint of Blue Bell ice cream. We had a near-criminal incident once that involved a couple of pair of Kaepa shoes. Thankfully, we can both look back on that and laugh. We also had a boyfriend in common, but even that wasn’t enough to keep us apart for long. We did go our separate ways for a few years through high school and college/Army, but we eventually found our way back to each other. JoAnn is one of the funniest, most pure, kindest and gracious souls I know. I will treasure her friendship until I take my last breath.

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Now, let me introduce Blake! He has his dad’s quietness and his mom’s kindness. He does, however, get his height only from his dad. 🙂 He has a perfect mixture of his mom’s and dad’s qualities and he WILL make some young lady a very lucky wife one day. JoAnn and Spencer have done a fine job of raising this young man!

He will follow in his mom’s footsteps in the fact that he’ll be playing baseball for East Texas Baptist University. (JoAnn played tennis and ran cross country for Texas A&I—which has since become Texas A&M Kingsville). He plans to major in sports management. Currently, he volunteers his time ushering at his church, and with the Challenger Buddies and the Katy Wolf Pack. When he has true leisure time, he likes to hunt, fish, play ping pong (<-Notice the similarity to tennis?) and hang out with his friends.

Blake admits that his favorite subject is English and his favorite teacher is Coach Hayes. He acknowledges that the biggest lesson high school has taught him is time management. If he had the power to fix something wrong with the world, he would like there to be world peace.

Katy Texas Senior Session

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video.

The post, Blake’s Katy Texas Senior Session, 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.

Feb
11

Senior Portrait Experience

I had to make sure this senior portrait experience was on point… because… well… I’ve never photographed a future geneticist before! I also didn’t pay particularly good attention in biology; I couldn’t even memorize the periodic table of elements. To this day, about the only compound I remember is H20. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I don’t know much about anything—let alone biology. Since 1985, I’ve been extremely baffled. You see, my biology teacher, Mr. Plfugrad nominated me for an award of Who’s Who Among American High School Students in biology. I’m not sure I ever pulled anything better than a C+ in his class (actually, that goes for most of my high school classes except PE). Again, baffled. However, despite my national recognition for excellence in biology, I was not going to be capable of any biology small talk with Devin. I had to make sure her senior portrait experience was memorable using other tactics.

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Devin has an entire list of achievements under her high school belt which include being in the top 10% of her class and a member of the National Honor Society. She’s hoping to graduate at the top of her class and has been the highest ranking female for the last two years. She’s been awarded a $48,000 scholarship to Texas Christian University in Ft. Worth. Her extracurricular achievements include trips to bi-district competition in the One-Act Play and regional advancements in track, cross country, UIL Persuasive Speaking, and UIL Debate (where she also advanced to the state level). In addition to all this, Devin has also been a cheerleader the entire time. Go, Devin!! For fun, Devin especially enjoys theatre. She says it feels like one big, happy family. Her favorite teacher is Mrs. Borth. Devin loves her sense of humor and the fact that the two are always on the same page.

Devin’s senior session was filled with a lot of fun and laughs! Here are a few of my favorite images to prove it!

Senior Portrait Experience

If you’d like to see all the images from this portrait session, please enjoy this video.

The post, Devin’s Senior Portrait Experience, 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
21

Senior Pics at the Pearl

I was super excited when Mandy contacted me and said she was interested in taking her senior pictures! I felt connected to Mandy in a way that only those who have suffered great loss are familiar with. I felt extremely honored and privileged to be able to play a small part in her and her family’s legacy! THIS is so much of WHY I do what I do.

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Mandy will graduate with the class of 2016 from Pleasanton High School and will continue her education in College Station and Texas A&M. Whoop.

Mandy is a super, super adorable girl who also happens to be super, super gorgeous! We had so much fun on this session taking her senior pictures! The evening was a little cold, but Mandy toughed is out and we were able to capture some amazing images at this precious time in Mandy’s life. She was even tough enough to let me try some creative shots after the sun had completely settled. I enjoyed Mandy’s first session and I can’t wait to work on her second when we tackle her cheer and soccer personalities!

Senior Pictures

If you’d like to see all the images from Mandy’s senior pictures portrait session, please enjoy this video.

The post, Mandy’s Senior Pictures, 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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