Pizza on the Grill

Pizza on the grill makes for a perfect summer date night.  Making them and experimenting with pizza in a whole new way was interactive and delicious.  I started the day shopping for the ingredients.  Pizza #1 was planned and Pizza #2 was a bit of a modge-podge. The dough came from Wealthy Street Bakery in East Town. The toppings came from Aperitivo and Relish located in the Downtown Market.

Pizza No. 1 Monique's Marvelous Marinara Sauce La Quercia Prosciutto Americano Bayley Hazen Blue from Jasper Hill Farm, VT Fresh Arugula Mozzarella Cheese Drizzled with Balsamic Reduction

Pizza No. 2 Smoking Goose Dodge City Salami Roasted Red Tomatoes Mozzarella Cheese Feta Cheese Fresh Purple Basil

We also enjoyed a bottle of Mesta Rosado which is our absolute favorite Rose of the summer. The 100% Tempranillo from Spain is fresh, crisp and has slight tones of strawberries.

The pizzas were very easy to make.  Simply stretch out the dough and glaze one side of it with your favorite high quality olive oil.  Lay on the grill at Medium-High for 1-2 minutes.  Flip and add toppings (minus the fresh herbs!) and shut the grill cover for 5-7 minutes.  We toyed around a little bit about how long to have the grill lit for and which burner.  It was recommended to us to have only one burner on and let the whole grill get hot before starting.  Just watch it closely and you will figure out what works best for you.

Cheers to the many meals of summer and may the season stay long.

Beavertail

Tucked away in a secret corner of Beavertail State Park is The Kitchens.  It is my favorite little spot in Rhode Island to hang out. When the tide is low you have your own private beach, and you go home when the tide comes in.  One of my favorite things to do is to go there with girlfriends to spend the day. Since they are all gorgeous, I just had to bring my camera along.

Marisa | Senior Session

Senior picture season is officially here!  I started with Marisa - a senior at Kenowa Hills High School. She loves her truck, soccer and all things country.  She is hoping to attend Ferris State University with their Criminal Justice Program and is planning on trying out for the soccer team.  She's got her head on her shoulders and is super laid back.  I had fun shooting with her and she was a natural.  Here are some highlights...well, a lot of highlights.  Best of luck in the rest of your senior year!

Emily and Andrew

My first wedding of the season was such a joy.  I had the pleasure of photographing my now cousins wedding.  I loved the grey and yellow together and she truly looked like a princess in her dress.  My favorite part of the wedding had to have been that she walked down the aisle to the Game of Thrones intro song.  They are such a laid back couple with an unbelievably supportive and strong family.  Here are some highlights from the day! I also had the great pleasure of having  Alycia Choroszucha photograph this wedding alongside me.  To see more of her work check out:http://www.alyciasea.com

Charlee & Dan

With the kickoff to wedding season right around the corner, I wanted to share  one of my favorite weddings from last season.  This was a 100% DIY wedding held in a 90x120 family pole barn.  Everything from the flowers, to the bar, to the centerpieces was done by the bride and help from family.  With 450 guests for dinner and a total of 700 people, this wedding was HUGE and still cost under 10k. Charlee's family are natives from Alpine Township and have a working farm that is over 100 years old.  These two are also firefighters for Alpine Township and Grand Rapids.  A truly awesome couple that is rich in family history surrounding Alpine Township and they are truly one of the most fun loving couples I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. This wedding was a true celebration of an entire community coming together to uplift this new marriage..and of course to party.  Congrats to Charlee and Dan.

Lake Michigan

Part two of our Grand Haven adventures - Chad and Rubin had to miss out on our Sunday family trip due to the joy of having a second job so we decided to go back the next night to catch the sunset.  We have been so blessed to have seen so many amazing sunsets in so many beautiful places all over the country.  This one could have easily been one of my favorites.

Grand Haven

This is the story behind my last post titled "Isolation".  We never thought it would be possible to take Megan out on the ice on the big lake, and it sure was a challenge.  It was all possible thanks to my Mom having some great engineering skills.  She tied together two sleds to roll Megan's wheelchair on to. My Dad pushed her along while my Mom and brother pulled her with the ropes.  If you have been to Grand Haven this year then you know that in order to get onto the smooth part of the lake  you first have to climb over ice cliffs ranging in height from 10-25ft.  Colin was brave enough to lift her out of the wheelchair and carry her down while my Mom and Dad followed with the chair.  A lot of people looked at us like we were crazy and a few thought we were pushing around a baby! We had so much fun together as a family and I am so happy Megan got to experience it.  Here are some of my favorite photos from the day. The last picture of my super cute Mom is my favorite.

Isolation

This winter I came to realize there is a correlation between 82% of Lake Michigan being frozen and my sister being in a wheelchair.  That correlation is isolation. Confinement.  The power of the water and of the body isolated from movement.  Both of their insides roaring to move but being completely confined by ice - or a wheelchair. Her insides are so alive and dying to be expressed and to move, but her body will not let her. Her body keeps her locked in one position day after day, night after night; much like the frozen lake longing to thaw and for its waves to be free once again. But do not mistake isolation for unhappiness or for ruin.  Even in restricted places there is room for love and for light to shine through.  Does the sunset bring less warmth to our hearts and eyes in the winter? No. Do you have to be unhappy if you cannot move about freely or talk? No. The sun reflects its beautiful colors spread over the ice in a million rays.  Instead of swimming, people explore this phenomenon of nature climbing the cliffs of ice and looking in awe out to the distance where all they can see is ice. Isolation does not mean ruin, it does not mean unhappiness and it does not mean beauty is restricted. The most amazing lesson I have learned through my sister is that even though she cannot use her body to express herself, or words to say how she is feeling, she has more expression and more love shining through her eyes and her smile than anyone I have ever come in contact with.  Everywhere we go she is radiant with love and people notice.  Strangers come to talk to her, hold her hand and look into her eyes.  She heals people, she projects love and kindness onto them, she inspires people.  She does all of this while being able to use no words and no gestures. On frozen Lake Michigan nature stares you straight in the eyes and it is beautiful.  The waves isolated in ice or free and hugging the warm sand, it stares you straight in the eyes and reminds you that you are small and you are loved.

Jordan and Cody | Fall

Walking the paths of Rome Point through the woods on a warm fall evening set the tone for Jordan and Codys 2nd annual fall photoshoot with me.  We had a fire down on the water to roast smores.  It would have been more romantic if I wasn't tagging along.   Jordan is always ready to go with all of my ideas and always brings her great style and ideas to the table.  Who wouldn't love photographing these two? We had their little fur baby, Sophie, with us too this time.  Happy fall!

Nantucket

This past September Chad and I traveled to the quaint and romantic island of Nantucket.  Located 3o miles off the coast of Massachusetts, it has a unique place in our countries history and os the least populated county in Massachusetts.  Indians who once lived there called it "faraway land", English Colonists spotted it  in 1602 and now the island is made up of sailors and summer homes.   Our two day trip obviously had to start with Chad sprinting across the parking lot with our luggage in hand to make the ferry so we could be on our two hour journey.  We walked from the port to find our hotel tucked away in the streets of town.   We stayed at The Roberts Collection and loved the colonial feel to the property.  The historical integrity of Nantucket is amazing. The streets of downtown are still the original cobblestone set as early as 1837.  I have always been smitten by the unsurpassed amount of history New England has to offer which adds a sometimes rare historical element to modern day travel. After settling in we rented a moped and scooted around the island.  We first went down to Brant Point Lighthouse on the beach where Senate John Kerry resides.  We then scooted over to the village of Siasconset to see the rose covered cottages that were all so charmingly named. While getting lost leaving the village, we found Sankaty Head Lighthouse.   The lighthouse was built in 1850 and was moved in 2007 due to the eroding bluffs. It was a beautiful walk and we were filled with wonder learning about how one goes about moving a giant lighthouse.  We also went to Dionas beach where shells mark the path down.  It was very windy and cold so we wrapped up in a sheet and took a nap between two dunes. We had an amazing lunch warming up with a bow of chowder from Something Natural and then strolled up and down Jetties Beach.  We watched the sunset, read and drank wine at Madaket Beach.  We also paid a visit to Cisco Brewing Company to do our favorite thing, drink beer and listen to live music. Traveling in New England is best done in the fall when tourists have retired their Sperries and you can really feel the life and culture pouring out of the old colonial towns.  When you leave Nantucket be sure to follow the old tradition and throw a penny over your shoulder into the harbor to say, "I'll be back."

Nate Seymour | Pt. 1

When I was home last I had the pleasure of photographing one of my best friends again.  I always enjoy shooting with Nate and he has so much potential as a model. More to come tomorrow! Just a teaser for tonight!  

Handcrafted | ArtPrize 2014

If you haven't made it to The Mitten Brewing Company yet to check out my ArtPrize piece, here are the images.  The environmental portrait series of West Michigan Brewers is called "Handcrafted."  I wanted this portrait series to be about the brewers as individuals.  So much of the growth of Grand Rapids as a city has come from these people pouring their passion into their beer.  They have brought to our community some great places to bond with loved ones, to laugh, to get to know each other, for deep conversation and I'm sure a few awkward first dates. I wanted to do a no bullshit portrait series in the place of their work with the best natural light I could find. For two weeks I traveled around West Michigan pulling my resources together to get this done.  I am so happy with my work and proud of it.  I am so proud of where I come from and the sense of community Grand Rapids embraces. I chose this project because of my love for craft beer.  While working at Perrin Brewing Company I really recognized the role of the brewer and the art of bringing craft beer to our draft lines.  They spent time with us every week teaching us about each beer and the brewing process.  It truly is an art.  Since then I have always felt like our breweries, our city and our beer get a lot of attention but the faces and hands behind it do not.

Cheers to our brewers!

Special thanks to all who participated: Odd Side Ales, Dark Horse Brewing Company, Arcadia Ales, Perrin Brewing Company, White Flame Brewing, Pike 51, Brewery Vivant, The Mitten Brewing Company and Founders Brewing Company.

Cameron | Kaden | Brennan | Grayson |Morgan

Time for updated family pictures of the Williams boys! Only this time there is a new baby girl added to the mix.  These boys just keep getting more and more handsome and I can't wait to see how beautiful Morgan will be! Kaden loves Mustangs so their reward for good picture taking was a ride around the neighborhood in Chads GT 5.0! They loved it! I'd say it was a better bribe than cupcakes.

Hopewell Rocks | Continued

Morgan Eliana Faith Williams

Today God gifted our family with another healthy and beautiful child.   My sister gave birth to her fifth baby and her first girl.  Our family has been so overjoyed with the news of a little girl.  Morgan was born on 9/19/14 at 7 pounds 11 ounces at 5:30am.  The first song she ever heard was James Taylor - Carolina on My Mind.  I'd say that will start her out right...

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia met us with a wonderful afternoon at the beach and then rafting the tidal bore in the Shubenacadie River.  We rented an adorable cottage in the small town of Maitland, NS. We set out at 6:30 in the morning to wait for the tide to roll in. As the tide quickly moves in over the sand bars standing waves are created. When we rafted the waves were standing 9ft tall.    We took out rafts with 42hp propellers and drove into the waves head on.  We would then chase the standing waves down the river as they were created over more and more sand bars.  It was one of the most fun things I've ever done.  I've never heard my dad laugh so hard in my life. Rafting the tidal bore in the Bay of Fundy is an absolute must for your traveling adventures.  Being my 5th rafting trip - it was the most fun. Here are some pictures from Maitland and the beach!

Hopewell Rocks | Bay of Fundy | NB

The flight of stairs leading down onto the bare ocean floor reads "must be back at these stairs by 5pm." That day 5pm is when the muddy waters of the Bay of Fundy come rushing back in. By rushing back in, I mean that in a matter of a couple short hours there is 4o ft of water where you were just standing.  The water reaches all the way to the top of the rocks in the picture below where the 600 million year old rock formations start to bow out again.  Hopewell Rocks is located in New Brunswick, Canada situated in the Bay of Fundy, home to the highest tide change in the world.  .  Everyone should experience what it is like to truly walk about the ocean floor.  You are filled with wonder looking at cliffs hundreds of feet above you knowing that soon the waves of the river will be crashing upon them. The Bay of Fundy is a natural phenomenon and is the most surreal and fascinating place I have ever been.

Jordan | Bombshell Boudoir

This bombshell has supported her husband through 4 deployments and she wanted to give him something special when he returned home after seven long months in Afghanistan.  Meet Jordan: bringing West Coast glam to Rhode Island wherever she goes.  Jordan is my favorite photoshoot and Starbucks buddy.  She is always on par with my ideas and ready to get in front of the camera to show it off.  I really admire her for sticking it out in RI while her husband is away and her family and friends are on the opposite side of the country.  This summers session was Baking Boudoir.... no cupcakes were actually made. Bon Appetite!

The Thirsty Pig | Portland, ME

Day One - Stop One of my road trip up the coast of Maine into New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. I've always heard such wonderful things about Portland, Maine.  I knew my first time in the state I would have to stop.  Coastal cities are my favorite cities to visit.  I love the mix of laid back salty beach goers with the liveliness a city offers.  Portland is known for its beer and that sits very well with my family and I.  We were only there for a few hours so I knew we just wanted to have a couple great meals and great beer to start the road trip off right.  I did a little research and we happened upon The Thirsty Pig. Located in Old Port right downtown by the water and was an  awesome atmosphere with local Maine beers and hand crafted sausages.   They make all of their specialty sausages in house.  I had not seen my dad or brother since February and this was the perfect place to catch up.  Next we went to In'finiti Fermentation and Distillation.  They served up some great samples of in house brewed beer.  We also really enjoyed the home-made pretzels and beer cheese.  Our view was a harbor full of lobster traps and when in Maine you eat lobster…or lobster mac n cheese.  I highly recommend these two places for a laid back dinner with a vibe you can't beat.

Cheers Portland!