emily carroll photography

The Power of a Wish

2012-02-03T17:12:00.013-07:00

One of the perks to my job is having the ability to donate my time and photography for a greater cause. The Make-A-Wish Foundation is an organization very close to my heart. Years ago I volunteered as a wish granter and I personally saw the positive impact that a wish has, not only for the wish child but for their family and community. So, I don't need any persuading when I am asked to photograph Wish Kids.

Two Saturday's ago I did just that and everyone involved had the most fabulous day. From 9:00am to 4:00pm my house was filled with Wish Kids, their families, Make-A-Wish staff, hair stylists and makeup artists. I photographed 18 Wish Kids over the course of the day, learned about their wishes, talked to their families and was so inspired!

I was given permission to share a couple of wishes.

In 2003 Brandon's wish was to have a firefighter room redo, his room was transformed into a fire station complete with a fire pole. Nine years later, he still regularly visits the fire station, is fully outfitted with all of the gear and his room has not changed a bit.

He is such a great kid and is very mature and polite and has a great sense of humor! During the photoshoot he saved a little Spiderman (who had a rip in the butt of his suit-my son) who was running around. And of course, Brandon wants to continue with that theme and be a fire fighter, his goal...to help others in need.

He definitely wore the 40 pounds of clothing like a professional!

Ceci's wish was to have a national platform to discuss the importance of being a bone marrow donor. She was featured on the Early Show in December 2011. Here is a link to her segment.

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7391167n&tag=contentMain;contentBody

Ceci's brother was a match to be her bone marrow donor. His donation saved her life. She is so poised and intelligent and I was so inspired by her and her brother, that night I signed up to be a bone marrow donor. I have not met many 18 year olds who if given the option to go anywhere, have anything, meet someone, or be something use the opportunity so selflessly.

It was really easy, sign up online bethematch.org

and request a kit to be mailed to your home, swab our cheek and send it back. You will be added to the national registry and will be called if you are a match for someone. If there was no one in Ceci's family who was a match, she would be looking for a match on the registry. What a gift to be called on if you were able to donate to save another life.

You can follow Ceci's story at www.cecisclimb.com

It was such a meaningful day and I am honored to have been able to photograph.

Mission

The Make-A-Wish Foundation^® of Arizona grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy.

Granting Wishes
The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Arizona grants the wishes of children between 2½ and 18 years of age whose physicians’ affirm that they have a life-threatening medical condition. A “wish” is a critically ill child’s answer to the question, “If you could have anything in the world, go anywhere, be or do anything…what would you choose? What would you do?”

Goodbye 2011

2012-01-31T14:04:00.002-07:00

Hello again, I know it's been too long...

Have not really been on top of the blogging, I think about it a lot, but that is as far as it has gotten since June. But the good news is, I haven’t had much time to write the blogs because I’ve been really busy! 2011 was a very busy year for me and I am so appreciative of all of my longtime clients as well as my new clients! I will share some really cool displays that we did this year in the next post, and I am making it my goal that it will not be six months from now! Many memorable sessions and events recently that I promise to share.

A very exciting project I completed in the fall was a whole studio renovation. And now, I love coming into the office and working. As with any remodeling project, it always takes longer than planned but the end result was worth the wait!

We have some very exciting additions and offers coming up in the next couple of weeks, workshops, frame sale, valentine’s day specials....stay tuned!

The whole front room is floor to ceiling photographs with every type of printing that I offer, frames, canvases, museum mounts.

And you sit on the comfy couch and watch a slide show of your photographs. Wine is always a good addition to the slide shows, usually offered after 4:00pm!

Took a couple of tries to get the pink right in the bathroom, started with four walls of pink and that is not a good look!

Stop in and take a look!

See you soon!!

Happy Birthday Mama

2011-06-11T21:25:00.014-07:00

Happy birthday to the most caring, talented, patient, loving person I have ever known. Today my mom would be 65, but she passed away just one week after her 63rd birthday. Not one day has passed in two years that I have not missed her or talked to her. She is missed by so many.

Here’s what I cherish: Every picture of the two of us, all of the cards that she wrote to me that I saved, every card that I wrote to her that she saved, everyone else’s memories and stories of her. There is nothing as strong and pure as a mother's love for her children, no matter what the age of the child, that bond is there forever.

And I see her in all of the signs she sends. Last year I found this card that she had sent me when I was in college twenty years ago, but in this message, every word applies now.

The other day I was talking to a woman about the same age as my mother and she said that if her mother had died when she was my age she would feel very cheated. Sometimes it takes someone else’s words to convey your own very true feelings.

My photography and my perspective has changed in the last two years. I used to photograph families and make sure I photographed the children with the mom and the dad but I didn’t usually photograph each child interacting separately with the parents. The most important pictures to me with my mom are the ones that are just me and her. Every relationship is unique and important.

There is not one person I know whose life has not been changed by cancer. My dear Maya has brought it to the forefront most recently by opening up her life and fight with sweet baby Ronan. There has to be a cure for cancer.

Just like the words from my favorite song, Just Breathe “Hold you til I die, meet you on the other side”. I’ll meet you in the blink of an eye my dear sweet mama.

Going to California!

2011-05-16T22:02:00.018-07:00

The summer heat in Phoenix is not my favorite, but what I do love in the summer is the beach, I was raised near the beach and my most favorite location for photography is on the beach! There is no better time to have family photographs than during your summer vacation in Southern California!

I will be there from mid June through July with a couple of breaks and am scheduling sessions. They fill up quickly because I only photograph one family per evening.

Incentive to plan ahead...schedule your session by the end of May and receive 20% off portrait prices and a reduced session fee.

Here are some of my favorite images...

Among the photographs and displays created from these images are as large and small wall displays,

canvases, watercolors, books, gifts and holiday cards.

Here's my little guy after dipping his wet mouth in the sand, he couldn't be happier with a sand beard.

Farewell to Ronan

2011-05-15T22:51:00.013-07:00

This evening I was so honored to have photographed a most beautiful yet heart wrenching memorial for "Rockstar Ronan". Throughout my years as a photographer, I have photographed so many life events, the majority are celebrating births, birthdays, weddings, family vacations; usually very happy events. Once in a while a life event and celebration of life also includes the end of a life. One cannot make sense of the illness and death of a child and there are no words to make the pain of losing a child go away.

Although the pain shared by everyone there was felt so deeply, there was also so much love and support and truly the most beautiful farewell ceremony.

Hummingbirds have appeared in times in my life where I have lost someone so close to me. Tonight during Ronan's service, a hummingbird flew around and came back again and again.

"Legends say that hummingbirds float free of time, carrying our hopes for love, joy and celebration. The hummingbird's delicate grace reminds us that life is rich, beauty is everywhere, every personal connection has meaning and that laughter is life's sweetest creation."

Freezing Family Fundraiser

2011-04-19T23:19:00.009-07:00

Of course, the day that I schedule a fundraiser for my son's preschool turns out to be 40 degrees and windy with rain and black clouds all around.

April in Phoenix?

Day before was 78 day after 75, but despite the unseasonably chilly conditions, how cute are these?

One would never know!

Making tiny changes to the list

2011-03-07T12:34:00.005-07:00

I can finally cross "start blog" off my list!!!!! I am a big list maker and crossing things off the list is like a small victory, and a list item that remains for years becomes very comfortable on the list. Yeah! I got it off the list and onto the computer!

Now, why didn't I do it before?

Ok, so it really wasn't that hard but for for three years I had a post on my website under the blog link "working on it" and just realized that 2011 was a good time to finish the site!

But, what to do for a first blog post after waiting so long?

I kept thinking about what a three-years-in-the-making blog post would be and first, the reason that I have a business......

so grateful for all of my clients, THANK YOU for being the reason that I am able to have a business doing what I love every day. I am so thankful for all of the opportunities that allow me to document and share in so many lives and milestones through weddings, parties, births, birthdays, family vacations and everything in between.

This is my tenth year in business in Arizona; seems like a long time but has flown by. Over the ten years I have had the greatest experiences photographing both near and far.

My most exciting photographic highlight of 2010....A week in Italy!

Still seems surreal, but last summer I had the best photography job! I was invited to photograph a family trip in Italy. Started in Rome then to Amalfi, Positano, Sorrento and the island of Capri. All I can say is gorgeous, amazing, so much fun...thank you, thank you to the wonderful family!

Parasols in Rome, even the cobblestone streets were beautiful!

The Spanish Steps in Rome

The Amalfi Coast is a very long coastline and looking uphill were homes, vineyards, lemon trees that have been there for generations. This town, Positano is the most quaint, charming place I have ever been.

Looking down on Positano

Sunset on the patio of our villa. Can a baby appreciate that?

We had an Italian guide a few days and learned so much about the whole area and the history.

There is not any new construction allowed but open land can be planted with grape vines and lemon trees. The grapes makes for an abundance of wonderful local wine that was comparable to the best wines I've had and the most expensive bottle, about $15! And from lemons, limoncello which we found out first hand is better enjoyed in just a few ounces rather than cups and cups!

What better way to enjoy the sunset that in a jacuzzi overlooking the Mediterranean?

Churches everywhere, hundreds of years old and built into the cliffs

At the bottom of the 400+ stairs that we walked up and down every day...a dock perfect for diving into the Mediterranean!

I did put down the camera long enough to jump off a cliff into the ocean.

The nightly view from the villa, sweet dreams!!! I will be back for sure!