Monday, November 28, 2011

Favorites • 2011



This has got to be one of my favorites of all time.  Ever.  I think that might be because I shot these guys' engagement, their wedding...and now they have a baby.  Sweet.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Where it all began

I think about this a lot. People ask me, too.  What made you get into photography?  Well, truth be told; some of it had to do with my Dad.  He was a classic darkroom enthusiast. I am sure if I went back home I would find some of the developing equipment in the basement.  He simply had a pure love for the whole  process.  The mechanics of it.  He worked on boats.  Garage had more tools than you knew what to do with.  He bought a remote shutter release for the old Pentax K-1000.  A "squeeze bulb" attached to a long skinny tube that triggered the shutter when squeezed.  Cool.   I remember that.

 I really wasn't too fascinated about it back then.  But, I always enjoyed spending an afternoon browsing the drawer full of  prints we had accumulated.

Flash forward to 2004!  This photograph is permanently etched into my mind.   I call it my "blueprint" for how I do things today.  I shot this with an Olympus D550z digital camera. It's now the equivalent of a VCR to the camera world.  It had a slide-away front cover.

Here, we have the beautiful Ellie ...soon before she turned 2.  She is lit from the front by the sun reflecting off of our house.  And from behind the beautiful backlight.  This angelic shot still mesmerizes me to this day.  I could look at it again and again and never tire of it.
it's a mini Leah with brown hair!!









Next:  guess who??

Oh Georgie...my little baby doll.  Your eyes still freeze me in my tracks today.  She is , and always has been, my patient poser for pictures.  Georgia taught me to zoom in close for a powerful image. I love this picture so much. I can't tear my eyes away from those adorable baby blues. 






My sweet Leah.  This image was taken fairly recently.  Oh how she loves to create these little moments for me.  I fall in love with photography all over again when this happens.  Truly a moment frozen in time forever.  A story to be told.  This picture certainly says a thousand words.


My girls inspire me, without a doubt, to create these memories for other families too.


But , the real magic behind all of this is Debbie. Se makes me believe in myself, pushing me to new heights I could only dream of. I couldn't have done any of the photo stuff without her....let alone have all these beautiful women in my life ;)




Monday, November 14, 2011

Site Update



I changed around the layout of my website, & added some updated shots from this past season. Some old favorites, too. Check it out! 
http://www.jgaughanphotography.com/


Allison 2012 • Edwardsville Senior Photography

This was an especially awesome session!  Allison's a naturally great poser. Very cool!





















Musser 2012 • Edwardsville • O'Fallon • Senior Pictures

This was an especially awesome session!  Allison's a naturally great poser. Very cool!