Goat Isle Soap Branding and Photography

I partnered with Carpenter's Family Farm, located in Brockport, NY, to develop a logo, packaging, marketing materials and product photography for their extensive line of Goat Isle Soap and raw goat's milk products. This has been such a fun brand to work with! I've had the opportunity to visit the farm and see the animals that they care for, as well as use many of their amazing soaps. There are over 30 varieties! And so many beautiful scents and combinations. Visit their website to learn more. They will be at many festivals and shows this year, for those who are local.

This is one of the posters designed for a craft show event. I really enjoy being able to support a brand through multiple marketing platforms. Especially having the opportunity to style and photograph their soaps and products for the website and social media. I love this part! Here are some of the images.

I was able to incorporate the logo onto a few of the images and create headers and larger scale social media graphics. 

Follow Goat Isle Soap on Instagram if you'd like to know about upcoming events, how to order, and see their adorable goats and farm animals. Look for Carpenter's Family Farm on Facebook.

Art Direction and Food Styling

Over the past two years in my career as a designer, I've had the opportunity to grow my skills in art direction and food styling. I've worked in the food and grocery industry for 16 years and food photography has become a favorite part of my job. I have worked on many different shots for food packaging as well as for ads and various marketing materials.

The most recent project at the top of my dream-job list was working on photography for Wegmans MENU magazine, winter 2015 issue. This was such an exciting opportunity for me because I've always wanted to work on a magazine.

Most people don't realize the amount of planning, preparation, equipment, time and intense attention to detail goes into one beautiful finished photograph. You definitely have to have patience and an eye for looking at details, noticing flaws and finding ways to make the subject look even more appealing. An absolute must when it comes to photography, especially food photography. My brain is wired for that type of work. It's actually more fun to me than work. I really enjoyed handpicking each green bean, looking for the most beautiful mushrooms, and selecting every garlic clove and herb in order to carefully compose the recipe setups. Not to mention selecting the perfect vessels, plates and surfaces. It really is an art! 

The theme of the winter issue is primarily colorful and flavorful Asian dishes with some really unique and beautiful ingredients. I learned a lot about Asian vegetables, some of which I had never used in cooking before. 

There are also sections showcasing products and other new recipes. I love the variety of both templated shots and beauty shots that allow more creativity.

Who wouldn't enjoy working with amazing cheeses and indulgent desserts? 

And everyone's favorite, pizza.

When the magazine is released, the pages are filled with appetizing images that make it look "simple." But it really takes an army, working behind the scenes (and camera) for everything to come together. Chefs, meal planners, photographers, designers, art directors, shoppers, editors - too many to name. It takes an entire team with a serious amount of teamwork. I was grateful to have people guiding me and teaching me throughout the project. I am thrilled to have had the opportunity to be involved in the creative process and part of this amazing team. I learned a tremendous amount about food, food styling, art direction and photography.

If you haven't looked at a copy of MENU yet, I highly recommend you do. I am inspired with each issue. There are recipes for every type of home cook - don't be intimidated. You may even surprise yourself when you try a new recipe!
 

Happy Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is a special time of year for us because nine years ago, we got engaged two days before "love day". I'm so thankful that 10 years ago, God brought my forever valentine into my life. My husband, Andrew, is my best friend, my love, my heart. He has shown me what love truly is. He loves me at my best and at my absolute worst. He makes me laugh. Encourages me. Supports me. Puts up with me. Celebrates with me, as well as shares the difficult times. He simply gets me. He's by my side, no matter what. I am so grateful and so undeserving. I love you Andrew! 

In November, my talented brother-in-law, David, showed us his photography studio and took a series of portraits of us. I am a big fan of his work and I'm so blessed by this photo! I love it. Thank you David. We love you! Check out more of David's beautiful work on his blog, here.

I added my own design to this photo to celebrate the gift that love is, and to wish all of you a very Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you get to share it with the one(s) you love. Most of all this Valentine's Day, I hope you know that God, the Creator of your heart, is crazy in love with you! "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

Fall Foliage Photos

Sometimes I like to play photographer. Last week, we experienced a few Indian summer days - it reached 80 degrees at one point! In the middle of October. With the beautiful fall foliage and weather like that, I had to get outside and take it in. 

I hightailed it to one of my favorite parks after work. The sun was gleaming through the trees along the Eerie canal, illuminating the multitude of autumn colors. It felt so good to be outside again after accepting the fate of colder weather. 

My toes were happy to see the light of day again. Soon they'll be hidden beneath socks and boots. 

I was surprised by the fun details I came across. Tree bark dotted with amber sap, unusual looking toadstools, fluffy milkweed, a couple wandering ducks. Oh, and a snake that scared the crap out of me. I nearly stepped on it, trying to get a closeup of a tree. When enjoying nature, look before you step. Lesson learned!

There was beauty everywhere I looked. These are some of my favorite photos from that day. The colors drastically shifted as the sun set.

He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.

Jeremiah 17:8

 

Lucky Seven

 

Happy Anniversary to my one and only, my wonderful husband and best friend, Andrew. It doesn't seem possible that we've been married for seven years! That's the equivalent of middle school and high school combined - and those seemed like a long time. These seven years have literally flown by. I couldn't be more thankful to have such an amazing man by my side.

I love looking at our photos. Our wedding day was July 9, 2005. We had a "traditional" photographer who captured our special day with traditional poses - on film. You know, film, that stuff you used to have to have developed and could only print more if you had the negative. Seems like light years ago! Looking back, I wish we had hired a digital photographer, or knew one of the talented photographer friends we know now. One with more in-the-moment-capture-the-little-details style. Today, I could recommend a list of amazing photographers - where were all of you seven years ago?!

Two years after our wedding, David, Andrew's brother, was studying photography at RIT, and offered to shoot some photos of us. I decided to wear my wedding dress again and Andrew wore a shirt and tie (and jeans this time), for a fun post-wedding photo shoot. The photos in this post are all from David, and they're some of my all-time favorites. I love how natural and relaxed they are, compared to how formal and "staged" some of our wedding day photos were.

We went to one of our favorite parks on a sunny day. We even received a few "Congratulations!" from passers-by, who thought we had just tied the knot! We had a lot of fun "modeling." The best part is, I was able to edit them myself and still have all of them on my computer. I have a box of wedding day negatives that I have yet to scan. One of these days. David is a very talented photographer and I'm so glad we got to have this shoot with him!

 

I love these photos and I love the man that I married. I can't wait to see what God has in store for us for the next seven years!