I’m trying feverishly to sort through all the hundreds of pics I took while out in Arizona! Sometimes I wonder if I could ever take a trip without my camera… crazy idea, I know. But no worries cuz I know that will most likely never happen. At least not on purpose!

So we packed for 80 degrees weather. Phoenix was in the desert last time I checked a map. But by the end of the MJ2Day workshop, it was a cool 60 degrees. But nothing we couldn’t handle. We love the cool fall weather. Right?

The next day, Jason and I had planned to drive up through Sedona to the Grand Canyon and spend the night. We were warned that a cold front was coming in.  But being the hard core couple that *we* often think we are, we decided it would be no big deal. As we were driving, we noticed the temperature dropping. QUICKLY. By the time we hit Sedona, it was snowing.  It was at this point, that we decided we need to stop and buy Jason a sweater at the local outlet stores since he was in just a t-shirt and jeans.

By the time we hit hit the Canyon it was almost 15 degrees outside!! So just a little nippy outside. HA! (At least Jason got a sweet Hilfiger sweater outta the deal :))

It was the first time that either of us had ever been to the Canyon. Words seriously cannot describe it. I know that’s what everyone says. But it’s true! I wasn’t even able to fully capture it with my camera either. (Maybe partly because I was trying to use frozen fingers to adjust my settings!)

You can actually see the snow clouds above the Canyon in my pics. We made it just in time for sunset. Pure awesomeness…

We got up early the next morning to photograph the sunrise in the Canyon.

This was as close to the rails as Jason got. He has a *small* fear of heights. And I’m the blonde on the right who forgot to take the camera off of manual before handing it to a complete stranger.

A few images from our hiking adventures in Sedona:

Wow! Where to start… I got back late last nite from my first photography workshop. It’s called the MJ 2Day and is offered by the uber fabulous Melissa Jill. I can’t say enough about how awesome her workshop is! Melissa is completely transparent about everything she does. From album designs, to client interactions, to shooting techniques. She covers every aspect of photography including the business side of things. And that’s only a few of the things that makes this workshop awesome. I feel so blessed to have been able to be a part of this workshop!

Jason asked me on the way home, what was the biggest thing I’d say I was taking home from this workshop. I asked if there was an “all of the above” option :) He said “no”… *sigh*… So then I thought about it a little more and realized that one of the biggest things I am taking home is a group of new friends– a great group of talented photographers who share the same passion I have about photography. I am so excited to see where the future leads them all!

I’ll post more from the workshop and my trip to Phoenix once I finish plowing through my inbox… a week with very limited internet access has left me running a little behind!

But here are just a few of those talented photographers:

Gotta love my hubs! He decided to secretly snaps shots of me instead of shots of our bride…. and here I thought he was working! ha! OK, so I *strongly dislike* being on this side of the camera (hence why I’m the photographer), but here goes…

These are some shots during our latest Trash the Dress Session. We started on the RR tracks with some close up shots. Nothing too crazy here. Although I did almost fall a few times trying to balance myself in crazy angles on tiny rocks as they slid down a steep hill. Take note of the “field of mud” towards the top right of the scene.

Here’s one of the finals shots from that:

Remember the field of mud I mentioned earlier? Well I went and practically laid down in it for this next shot:

Then we headed across the street to this great old wooden building. Its steps were perfect for getting a shot that balanced our bride wearing her hub’s camouflaged MUDDY boots with her beautiful white CLEAN dress. So I laid in the street with the 2 husbands on “car patrol” lookout for me while I took the shot.  It was at this point that on lookers (who could not see the bride for the wall) begin asking “What is wrong with that girl lying in the middle of the road?!” Of course, no one actually came to check on me. They just watched.

Here’s that shot:

We ended up over at the Train Depot building against this awesome green background. I love love loved it! Remember me saying that I laid in the field of mud? You can see some of the mud on my jeans in this next pic. And this was after I attempted to wipe some of it off… I’ll do just about anything for a great shot. I LOVE a challenge!

and this is one of the final shots:

and, yes,

I LOVE MY JOB!!!