ThompsonPoole Photography

Fun Links

2008-11-15T12:26:00.003-06:00

I have had a crazy week. So, I thought I'd post a couple links for things that have made me smile and helped me get through the week. Also, if you need sushi suggestions in San Antonio give me a ring. After photographing six different restaurants in two days I know a little bit about where to go. Godai is pretty yummy. I'll post some photos in a couple months once they run.

A very funny site.

I can't help but laugh at cats doing funny things.

Wendi

Portrait fun!

2008-11-06T23:03:00.003-06:00

Today I invited my friends, the Isenhowers, down to the garage studio to do some portraits. I am working on a prospective job and wanted to show the client what I saw for the job. So, I set up the white back drop and tried to do some non portraity portraits. It was a lot of fun and I think turned out pretty well. These are the results.

I put three of the photos of Christina together to do a fun triptych.

Kyle and Parker.

Parker in his spiderman pose. I know this is portraity but I couldn't resist with that face.

Wendi

Halloween!

2008-11-03T14:58:00.002-06:00

Friday was Halloween and so we had the annual Dr. Oktober's Falloween Frolic as my husband Rick has named it. It's our annual Halloween party. This years party didn't disappoint. My husband Rick is a huge fan of the holiday and so I have joined in with his celebration. It was a little difficult for me to get behind the idea of a costume party, but I am glad I have. I was always the person in the ghost costume at Halloween, aka a white sheet over my head. I did this because I could never decide what to wear and it was easy. Now we have started planning our costumes at least six months in advance. It is fun and Rick really enjoys it. This year I was a geisha and he was a ninja. I set up a backdrop and made a studio in the garage to capture all the people in costume. We also played a game where couples competed to see which one could eat a doughnut off a string the fastest. The trick was they had to do it together without the use of their hands and they were blindfolded. Great fun ensued as you will see. That said, hear is a collection of the photos.

This is my favorite photo of the night. Chris is trying to swallow the rest of the doughnut as Joel is celebrating in the background. We ended up calling the game a tie and they both won prizes.

Wendi the geisha, Rick's sister Sandy did my make-up. She did a great job. It was fun getting it off.

Rick as a ninja.

Chris and Lauren as McCain/Palin. They were my favorite. They came in with photocards and were campaigning. They even left a sign in our front yard.

Bobby and Kim won the contest as tree and tree hugger. Really creative.

The doughnut game isn't the easiest if you have a height difference like Nancy and Joel. I think Joel just gobbled it all.

Until next year.

Wendi

Fall Fun

2008-10-29T09:17:00.002-05:00

It has been awhile. Things have been crazy, but good. I have finally gotten into the fall spirit, thanks to the cool weather we have been having. Yeah! Today I was looking through old photos for something and stumbled upon these gems from last fall. Last year, when I had more time, my husband Rick, my nephew and mother-in-law all went to the corn maze in Hondo, Texas. It was a blast and I would highly recommend it. So, I thought I share with you some of the fun.

This is one of my favorites. It's what I saw the whole time in the maze, the back of Rick's head.

Rick wanted to take this "Which way do we go?" photo.

Sneaky Rick

Classic vacation photo. I wish they had cutouts everywhere you go. It would make a trip to the grocery a lot more fun.

Yeah Hay!

Wendi

Dogs and crafts

2008-09-22T12:39:00.003-05:00

I love my two crazy dogs. I call them monkeys because that is what they secretly are. They are both Australian Shepherds and are full of energy. Frieda is the older of the two and is very prim and proper. She crosses her legs and eats daintily. Then every once in a while she goes psycho, barking, bouncing and attacking the other dog.

They love to play, even though it looks rough, they are just having fun.

Chewbacca, or Chewy as we call him, is our other dog. We got him as a puppy a little over a year ago. He is all puppy and all male. He also lives up to his name and loves to chew on anything and everything. Plastic and wood are his two favorites. So, when he got a hold of a piece of PVC we were discarding this is what ensued.

The one thing I didn't realize is that he is part cat too. I am a bit of a crafty person and love knitting and now I am getting into sewing. That said, I had a plastic bag full of fabric and a couple balls of very nice alpaca yarn sitting on the coffee table last week. I had the dogs in the house and they were asleep in the kitchen so I left them there to go to work on the computer. Five minutes later I go back to the living room and see Chewy doing something under the dining room table. Knowing this could be trouble I go check it out. I was correct. I never knew he had a fondness for yarn. When I came in the dining room he looked up at me from under the table, mouth full of yarn and his paws all wrapped up in it, too. It would have been a great photo but I was so angry I didn't think about the humor until later.

This is the end result of his mischief. The funny thing is that he had to dig around in the bag to find the yarn; it wasn't at the top of the bag. He knew what he wanted.

I also wanted to share photos of my fun Sunday sewing project. This is my first purse. I have made some totes but nothing with interfacing, stabilizer, and false bottoms. I am very excited about it. The pattern is from Amy Butler who is amazing. I love her patterns and fabrics. Check her out.

I love the bird fabric I used for the interior. I wanted it for the exterior but I think it works better this way.

Wendi

Album

2008-09-22T12:32:00.004-05:00

Because we are working with more out-of-town brides I thought I would post some photos of one of the album choices included with each of the packages we offer. It's a bit tricky to really explain an album over the phone or through email.

This is our flush-mount album by Cypress Albums. It is a sophisticated custom, made-to-order handcrafted book by the artisans at Cypress. The album is bound in an elegant Japanese bookbinding fabric -- which you get to choose from over 18 colors. This is one of the most finely crafted albums available. We hope you love it as much as we do!

This shows the thickness of the pages.

Wendi

Florida Fun

2008-09-19T13:33:00.003-05:00

Well I am finally getting around to posting fun photos from Florida. The weekend of Labor Day and Hurricane Gustav, I went back to Pensacola, where I grew up and my parents still live, for my high school reunion. The Reunion was ok, but my friend Lottie couldn't make it because of hurricane Fay trouble. She just back to her flooded neighborhood that weekend and so our plans of getting the girls back together didn't work out quite the way we had planned. My friend Suzie came into town though and I had a blast with her family.

I especially loved getting lost in the woods in Alabama and piling into her dad's truck after we got her sister's truck stuck in the sand.

Here are Suzie on the right and me on the left getting my dad to take our photo on the porch before the reunion.

One of the coolest parts of the weekend was that by sheer luck it was scuppernong season. Scuppernongs, or muscadines, are these southern grapes that are amazing. I grew up eating these and haven't had them in at least ten years. So, when my dad suggested that we go to a pick-your-own farm near the house I did a happy dance. My grandmother, who is a bigger fan of the grapes than I, my dad and I all went to pick and here are some of my favorite photos from the trip.

I love homemade signs.

Scuppernongs on the vine.

My grandmother picking the scuppernongs.

There are two different colors of the grapes. The purple ones are slightly sweeter, but I like the golden the best.

My dad picking the grapes.

My dad picked a lot of grapes. I think his eyes were bigger than his stomach.

I had fun in Florida, but remember not to drive there during hurricane season. I got stuck there for a couple more days than I planned because I had to wait for Hurricane Gustav to pass so I could go home on I-10.

Wendi

Long time no cake!

2008-09-14T12:07:00.002-05:00

It has been a while since my last post. I have been traveling and working hard. I the few spare moments I have had I baked, both times for parties. I had fun making these and so I thought I share. First are the cupcakes I made for my friend Kim's Karaoke and Cakes birthday party. She wanted three different kinds of cupcakes for her party so I made carrot cakes and she made strawberry cakes. I then made chocolate cakes for every party needs chocolate. The recipe I had, mentioned you could fill the cakes with creme and I thought Chocolate filled cakes equals Hostess Cupcakes. So these are my attempts to honor such a great cake from my childhood. I loved those things, I really just ate the frosting off the top like I do with most cake but it was so good.

I can't decide which photo I like best, so I thought I'd show you both.

Next is the Blueberry Raspberry Pie I made for a AMSP board meeting. I didn't have enough blueberries for the blueberry pie I planned, because I ate them, and when I went to the store they were out. So, I improvised. It turned out great and I think it was the prettiest pie I have made to date.

Next pie I make is an apple pie. I want it to be fall in Texas. Also be on the look out for another post in a couple of days from my trip home to Florida.

Monday morning laughter

2008-08-25T10:11:00.002-05:00

I was taken by surprise this morning and hit with a case of the giggles that almost had me falling out of my chair. I was starting my week with a typical morning procrastination and looking at websites when I saw a link for Cake Wrecks on MSNBC.com. I am an ametuer pastry chef and have had many cake wrecks myself, let us all forget the pirate ship cake that looked a lot like a brown log if you know what I mean, and so I was intrigued. Once I saw the blog I couldn't stop looking or laughing. What a great way to start the day. I especially liked the watermelon cake and the lifesized bride.

Wendi

Vacation

2008-08-18T10:22:00.002-05:00

Vacation is so nice. The only bad thing about it is coming back from vacation. This past week my husband and I spent four days in the Bahamas at the Atlantis resort. Wow, is all I can say about Atlantis. The trip was a prize through my husband's work and what a prize. We swam with the dolphins, snorkeled on the reefs and spent the day at the resort's waterpark. It was crazy cool. I even took a waterslide through the shark tank. Crazy, crazy place. Maybe some day we'll go again. I thought I'd show you some fun photos. By the way, check all your gear to see if it is working before you go on vacation. I took an old digital SLR and a underwater point and shoot with me. I tried using the SLR when we got there and it didn't work. Argh!!! I ended up having to use the point shoot the whole time. It worked ok. Just frustrating that the other camera didn't work.

Me walking through the predator tunnel at the resort. Rick took a cool photo.

Rick and I with Echo the dolphin. A lot of their dolphins are rescued from the aquariums destroyed during Hurricane Katrina.

My feet on the beach in the Bahamas. I grew up on the beach in Florida and I love to stand on the beach and let the water lap at my feet. Every time I get near a beach I have to do this.

Me with Echo.

Rick and I snorkeling.

Happy Anniversary!

2008-07-27T21:06:00.002-05:00

Yeah! Today is my husband Rick and I's sixth wedding anniversary. I am very happy and thrilled to have married such a wonderful man. So in honor of this day I will share with you some fun photos. Rick and I have a tradition of giving each other the 'traditional' anniversary gifts according to the year. This year is our sixth and the traditional gift is iron or candy. Rick really out did himself this year. He gave a bag of Jelly belly candies, he picked out each flavor just for me, a box of chocolates, and a pair of scissors (for the iron). Some people might think this is lame but to me it is awesome. I LOVE candy! And the scissors are perfect. I have lost all our scissors recently and have been very upset because I couldn't find any when I needed them. So this present made me smile.

We also celebrated by going out to eat at Bin 555. A local wine and tapas place. It was perfect and we had our favorite meal, a bottle of Cab and the kobe beef pizza. It is so so yummy.

On another note. I got nostalgic today and went looking for wedding photos. Since Our wedding was still in the days of film. I had to search for the few I scanned. I found some, not my favorites, but still some really cute ones so I thought I'd share.

Why you should never leave the guys unattended in the choir room with time to spare.

This is the day after at my parents house. Rick rented a mustang convertible to drive us to the airport an hour away where we few to Ireland for the week. It was a surprise for me I didn't know where we were going just that I needed a passport and warm clothes.

Happy anniversary Rick!
I look forward to many, many more.
Wendi

Smile

2008-07-18T14:13:00.003-05:00

This is something I shot this week that just makes me smile. I spent the day photographing a family for a local water park and the boy was slightly difficult throughout the day. Then right before they left we got them some roasted corn to get some food shots and he turned into a total ham for the camera. So, my daily lesson was, if you have trouble photographing boys get them food and all will be good. I hope this makes other people smile the way it does for me.

Wendi

Neal and Allison

2008-07-08T09:10:00.006-05:00

Wow. That is the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about this couple. They are both truly amazing people and I feel blessed to know them and honored to have photographed their wedding. I knew they were great the first time I met Allison. And then it was confirmed during the rehearsal dinner, when my second shooter Miriam and I found ourselves wiping tears off with everyone else that night. We had such a fun time photographing their wedding that it didn't really feel like work. The ceremony was one of the most intimate I have ever witnessed. Neal got light headed and needed to sit so the entire wedding party sat and the ministers continued the ceremony sitting. It was beautiful. Then the reception was an all out party. Awesome. That said I thought I'd share some of my favorite photos.

Don't you just love iphones. I want one!

Allison watching her brother Andrew as she waits for him to walk her down the aisle.

First dance fun.

Allison's Grandmother really knows how to boogie.

I don't know if you know, but I love photo booths.

Now, the next two photos are from the best second shooter ever, Miriam Craft. I am trying to convince her to move to Texas so we can work together more often and just hangout together more. She is awesome.

I also wanted to share something that made my day, week, and year. This is an excerpt from an email Allison sent me.

"I LOVE THEM!! They are so great!! You guys did such a phenomenal job, you told our story with such amazing detail. I appreciate your being there so much, you made us feel so comfortable and natural, and it was so easy having you there." Allison said.

If that wasn't enough to make me feel great she also attached an e-mail that her brother Andrew sent her. This is what hit me from left field. I was not expecting it and it really touched me.

"THOSE ARE THE BEST WEDDING PICTURES I'VE EVER SEEN!!!! Do you know if Thompson Poole has a time machine so I can have them do my wedding five years ago???" Andrew said.

In response, if I had a time machine your wedding would be my first stop.
I loved this wedding and everyone I met during the couple of days we photographed it. Congratulations Allison and Neal.

To end this long post I thought I'd share this fun random photo from the wedding. It just makes me smile.

Wendi

Beautiful Shoes

2008-06-27T18:08:00.002-05:00

There is one thing that is very important to remember when photographing a wedding, wear comfortable shoes. The problem with this is is that it is very hard to find comfortable shoes that aren't tennis shoes. So my search months ago when my old shoes went south began. I needed shoes that looked some what dressy, were black, and would be good after 10 hours or more on my feet. The first pair I found were naturalizer shoes, see below.

Knowing the brand, I thought, 'hey these should be good, right?" I was wrong. After wearing them for two weddings, the second out of necessity, I wanted to rip them off my feet after an hour. My average wedding day is about 12 hours on my feet with about 15 pounds of gear. I needed something better. So the quest began again. The day before the last wedding I shot, June 10, I went to Dillard's desperate. I needed something fast. I found what looked cute and advertised itself as the European comfort shoe. I decided to try on two pairs of the Josef Seibel Shoes. I put them on and I immediately knew why they called themselves that. They felt like my New Balance Tennis shoes with heels. So, I forked over the handsome sum for the shoes and left crossing my fingers that they would still feel as good after 10 hours on my feet. They did! After one 10 hour day followed by a 14 hour day my feet did not ache. My legs were sore and I was tired but when I took my shoes off I felt like I hadn't been on my feet at all. Here they are well worn.

I love these shoes and I couldn't resist showing the two photos I took of them. They just make me smile. I can not begin to describe how much better I felt after this past wedding and these shoes had a big part in that. So, if you ever need dressy comfy shoes, buy these. They come in many different styles and colors. On that note I will leave you. Take care and happy shoe hunting.

Chris and Kelly

2008-06-16T17:16:00.003-05:00

I just had to share some of these wonderful photos I took at Chris and Kelly's wedding in Pensacola, Florida. I had so much fun shooting this wedding. They are a great couple and it was a blast to be back in my hometown for a wedding. Kelly and I grew up in church together so I knew a lot of people at and in the wedding. It was like a reunion of sorts. The craziest thing was the fact that at the reception the DJ came up to me and asked if I knew him, because I used to babysit him. I did know him but could barely recognize him. It made me feel a little old. That said the wedding was a joy to shoot and the people made it awesome. I really liked the whole travel wedding thing too. Have camera; will travel!

Congratulations Chris and Kelly! I hope we can hangout next time I'm in P'cola.

My How Time Flies!

2008-06-06T16:51:00.002-05:00

I had a great week. We had a very successful business retreat followed by the birth of Parker Allan Isenhower. Parker's parents, Kyle and Christina, might be familiar to some of the viewers.

I photographed their wedding a few years ago and have had the pleasure of becoming close friends with them. So when they had their first baby I made it a point to make an early visit to the hospital. The following are a few photos from Parker's first day.

The last photo is an attempt to show Parker's faux hawk hair style. He the most hair I have seen on a newborn. Way to go Parker.
I feel truly blessed to have photographed such important moments in the Isenhower's lives. I love documenting major events in peoples lives, the emotion and energy of the events just fill me up and I pray that I capture at least a part of that feeling in my images.

The First One!

2008-05-23T13:17:00.019-05:00

Well, here we go. The first official Thompson Poole Photography blog post. We have been busy this Spring getting the ball rolling on the new business and things are looking great for the summer. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for me to share with you some photos from earlier this year that I love. So here we go. The first two are from Steve and Lisa's wedding outside of Beorne Texas at the Marquardt Ranch. It was a beautiful wedding at a wonderful location.

The second group of photos is from Joel and Nancy's in Helotes, Texas. Despite a chilly rehearsal, the wedding day turned out beautiful and warm enough for everyone to party all night.

Congrats to both couples!

Wendi