Disney's Animal Kingdom Wild Africa Trek

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to go on a wild adventure with my coworkers at my daytime job (gotta pay the bills, yes?). We spent a day working by checking out a new tour experience at Disney's Animal Kingdom -- Wild Africa Trek.  I, of course, took my camera along.  Had to capture the fun! Here are some pics from our day. If you're in the Orlando area, the tour is a MUST.  Definitely in my list of favorite experiences I've had while living in Orlando.  LOVED it.

We got up close to many of the animals. Loved the giraffes!

Coworkers on the rope bridges. Waving to Guests who were riding on the safari.

More coworkers. Love that Mary Ellen is airborne! And Karen has a huge smile on her face. Must have been having a good time :)

More coworkers and a beautiful view of the safari.

See the elephant hiding out in there? :)

Halfway through our experience we stopped at a pavilion for a little snack. They gave us our snack in cool metal packs. And we also used the time to check out some other animals that were hanging out around the pavilion.

A few of the animals we encountered on our trek. The Thomson's Gazelles (little deer looking fellas) are my favorite.  They run SO fast. And they are full grown at the size you see them below.  And the yellow bird? For the life of me I don't remember what it's called, but they build their nests upside down so that snakes and other predators can't get in them. Clever, right? The spider totally grosses me out. I despise spiders (yeah, yeah, yeah, they eat bugs and do other good stuff...they're still scary and gross). The hippo was out of the water munching on some delicious treats (apples and lettuce).  I've never seen a hippo out of the water.  They are BIG!  GINORMOUS! And the elephant...check out his ears!  Love it. And of course, another picture of a giraffe :)

Hope you got a little preview of our adventure.  It was SUPER fun!  So be sure to check it out. :)

Orlando Photographer - Family Time

Although I live in Orlando now, my roots are in the Buckeye State.  Most of my family still lives up in Ohio so I visit at least once a year.  Back in June, I was in Ohio for 9 days.  I spent the first part of the week hanging out in Columbus with my friend Katie from college and also attending the MJ2Day workshop (yes, I still need to blog about that.  It's coming, it's coming!).  Then, I went up to Northwest Ohio to visit the family because the sister got marrrriiieeed!! (yes, I need to blog about that, too, thankyouverymuch.  I told you I've been busy this summer!!) :)

A few days before the wedding, my mom, sister (Kali), and I went for a little walk at a reservoir outside the town I grew up in.  Of course, I brought my camera along and snapped a few pictures.

This is my sister Kali and my mom.  See any resemblance between them? :)

My sister posed for a few other shots.  Here are 2 of my other favorites. Isn't she pretty?  These may very well be some of the last few pictures before she became a married woman!! Nothing like documenting history, eh? :)

Now I just need to get my other sister in the mix and I'll show you a lineup of all 3 Kratzer girls and our mom.  We only look a smidgen alike ;)

Be sure to check out my Facebook page (and "Like" it! Share it with your friends, even!) at www.facebook.com/kristinoellephotography.com.  And my website at www.kristinoellephotography.com.

Thanks friends!

Central Florida Photography: Headshots with Chelsea!

You know what's fun about being a photographer?  Well, there are a lot of things, but today I'm thinking of one thing in particular.  I love meeting and getting to know new people when I take their pictures.  Looove it!  But there's something special about being able to capture the beauty of my closest friends in picture. I got to do that about a month ago when I spent a weekend hanging out with my sweet friend, Chelsea.  Chelsea and I have been friends for a long time.  Unfortunately, for the past 8ish years we haven't lived near each other.  That stinks.  A lot.  But, it does make the time together even more valuable.  Chels was "in town" (aka in the state of Florida which is much closer than the state of Colorado where she lives) so I got to spend an entire weekend with her.

Chels and I met in the first grade at church in the children's choir.  We had quite angelic voices at the ripe old age of 7.  It's true.  We even both played singing angels one year in the church musical.  :)  We went to different schools so our friendship grew over Sundays and Wednesday evenings at church.  But I remember very clearly that every summer, when school was out, I would spend a ton of time with Chelsea having sleepovers, swimming in her pool, riding bikes, rollerblading, etc.  My favorite story I like to tell is the time when Chels did a surface dive into her 4 ft deep swimming pool.  I thought I'd follow suit and try to be cool, but instead of a surface dive I did a full out dive.  And hit the bottom of the pool.  With my teeth.  This resulted in an emergency run to the Orthodontist where my braces had to be reapplied.  Both my parents and the orthodontist were thrilled, I'm sure.  But no worries, I was fixed and ready to go in time for Cedar Point the next day! :)

But the best memories I have of Chelsea are the times when we've shared conversation.  During summer camp.  Over the phone.  During youth group.  Over coffee.  And countless other times.  When I tell my testimony, I think about the life-shaping experiences I've had and Chelsea was there with me during many of them.  The Lord has blessed me with a wise, caring, compassionate friend.  For this, I couldn't be more thankful.

So thank you for your friendship, Chels.  And thanks for letting me capture how beautiful you are.  :) You are a blessing in my life!

Check out my other pictures at www.facebook.com/kristinoellephotography and my website at www.kristinoellephotography.com.

Thanks friends! :)

Orlando Photography - Dan & Angela Engagement Session

This is an exciting session for me to share!!  Why, you ask?  Because two people that I think are the awesomest are getting married...to each other!  That makes them like the awesomest of awesome (don't even try to wrap your mind around that one!) :)

I spent a ridiculously humid lovely summer evening with Dan and Angela around Winter Park, FL grabbing some fun shots.

These two are seriously so amazing. I've had the privilege of knowing them (and calling them my friends!) for about 2 years now. In those 2 years I've seen God work in crazy wonderful ways in their lives. I cannot tell you how excited I am to see how the Lord will use them together.

Angela has a passion for the people of India. It's been incredible to get to know her and hear her desire to see the Gospel made known in India.  Dan is studying to become a pastor and has a ridiculously incredible amount of knowledge and wisdom. I feel instantly wiser just by spending time with them. (You know, wiser by association.  It works, right?) :) 

And you know what else is cool?  They are super fun, too!  And they make each other laugh...constantly.  It's incredibly obvious how in love they are with each other!

All that to say...I can't wait for their wedding! It's going to be so fun! (Don't you love the pictures above from the lake?! It looks like Dan is telling Angela all about their future and promising her the world. And I adore the picture of Angela laughing at whatever it is Dan has said.  These pics certainly capture their personality and spirit.)

Dan and Angela, it truly is a privilege to know you both.  Blessings to you both on your wedding day in October.  Can't wait to celebrate with you guys!!

To view more pictures from their session, visit my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kristinoellephotography (don't forget to "Like" it and leave comments on your favorite ones!).  You can also check out my website at www.kristinoellephotography.com.

Thanks friends :)

Orlando Photography - Shoshanah Senior Pictures

I'm catching up on blogging!  I've been so busy actually taking pictures that I haven't blogged about all the sessions.  And you know, the story that goes with each session is sometimes the best part!  So, this evening's blog is about a session I did in May (omigoodness, was that really 2 1/2 months ago?!? Phew.).  I had the great joy of photographing Shoshanah for her Senior pictures.  We set out early on a Saturday morning to beat the heat (yes, the temps were already high in Florida in the middle of May!).  We explored the Winter Park, FL area making stops along Park Ave and around Rollins College -- some of my favorite areas in Central Florida to take pictures. 

Shoshanah is just as much fun to be around as her pictures would lead you to believe.  This girl is so full of life!! We were laughing the whole time and Shoshanah was totally ready for her close-up.  She brought her mom, Mary, with her which I have to say made the day even more fun.  I've spent the last year and a half sharing life in community with Mary and her husband Mike as part of a small group at City Church Orlando.  I can honestly say that they are 2 of the wisest people I know.  It's been such a blessing to reap biblical knowledge from them and to have them offer up their advice and support along life's road.  But this photo session wasn't about that...this photo session was about their lovely daughter, Shoshanah.  They have raised a stunning young woman and I'm excited to see the ways that the Lord will continue to use Shoshanah for his purposes. 

Thanks Mike & Mary for letting me be part of your lives and for letting me capture the spirit of your beautiful daughter in photographs.  And thanks Shoshanah for such a fun day and for lots of laughs!! People like you make my job super easy and super fun!! :)

Be sure to check out more pictures from Shoshanah's session on my facebook page: www.facebook.com/kristinoellephotography and of course, check out my website, too, for more info: www.kristinoellephotography.com. Thanks friends!!

Central Florida Photography: A Proposal Story

I'm a sucker for happily-ever-after and all the other sweet romantic-type stories.  And what better a place for a sweet, romantic story than Cinderella's Castle?  Especially if you were once "friends" with Cinderella herself!  I got to be part of a very special day for Dan and Nancy before I'd even officially met them!  Our mutual friend, Karen, found out that Dan was planning to propose to Nancy at Magic Kingdom Park right in front of Cinderella's Castle.  Nancy and Karen had met when they were both interns work for Disney on the College Program.  Karen gave me a call and hired me to shoot their proposal as a gift to the couple.  (Brilliant idea, by the way!  What girl wouldn't want pictures of her proposal to look back on?!).  And it was perfect because Nancy had no idea who I was so she would (hopefully) just assume I was a tourist hanging around taking pictures.

Dan told Nancy he had to fly to Orlando for work and asked her to meet up with him there so they could spend a little time at Disney since it was so special to her.  Of course, Dan didn't have to be in Orlando for work at all.  The whole trip was planned so he could propose to Nancy.  Dan got in touch with me the week before the proposal, we made plans for the day it would take place and everything was set in motion.  On the day that the proposal was to take place, rain became quite the threat.  Luckily, it held off and everything went off without a hitch!  Nancy was completely surprised and of course she said YES!  Dan had gotten Nancy's grandmother's engagement ring from her mother and had it cleaned and ready to give to Nancy (the ring was GORGEOUS!).  The entire proposal was absolutely beautiful.

So, best wishes to a beautiful couple!  Prayers that your wedding day is just as magical as your proposal day and that your marriage is full of many blessings!

For a few more pics from their session, be sure to check out my facebook page (and LIKE it!): http://www.facebook.com/kristinoellephotography. And of course, check out my website too: www.kristinoellephotography.com for more information!

Central Florida Photography: My 2 Cute Nieces!

I have super cute nieces.  Maybe I'm biased.  They're also really funny.  I probably think that because I teach them some of the funny stuff they say.  But really, I promise you, if you hung out with them, they'd make you laugh.  I mean, I'm sure at some point they'd probably make you want to pull out your hair too, but mostly they'd make you laugh. :) (Dear sister, if you're reading this, I really do love your children and they only occasionally make me want to pull out my hair!).  They also sing songs that they make up with lyrics that make absolutely no sense (if we're

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not facebook friends, then you are truly missing out on a great video I posted.  Let's just say some of the lyrics to one of the songs that was composed by my niece Britony involved these words: "Britney Spears", "Ears", and "Earrings".  I'm gonna give her the benefit of the doubt and assume that those words were all combined into one song because they rhyme.).  In any case, it's entertaining stuff.  And Kerigan.  She's just as entertaining.  They were visiting over Easter and so she shared with me everything she knew about the Resurrection story. It went

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something like this "Jesus died on the cross because he wanted to go home to his real dad."  Hm...yes.  Sounds about accurate to me...ahem. She did, however, get the details correct about the tomb (or the cave as she called it) being empty after 3 days.  As much as I laugh at all of this, I do have to say that it brings me great joy that this little one has such a thirst for learning about Jesus.  At just 4 1/2 (yes 4 1/2, not 4...she'll correct you real fast on that one!) years old she has short bible verses memorized and can tell you quite a few stories from the Bible.  And she asks curious questions about Jesus.  I love seeing how God works in the hearts of little ones. So back to photography...I suppose that's why you're reading this anyway, right? :)  These 2 are entirely ornery so they were definitely a handful to work with, and we were working against the clock...the sun was setting fast on us!  Nevertheless, I think we got some great shots!  And there are even a few where you can really tell how close these 2

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little ones are.  They fight like siblings, but they definitely love like best friends.  Kerigan rarely calls Britony by her name.  Usually when she wants to talk to Britony she yells "Sissy!"  I love that. 

Anyway, enjoy a few of my favorites posted here and check out a few more on my FB Page, Kristi Noelle Photography.  Don't forget to "like it" and don't forget to schedule a session with me soon!  I'm still running a great deal on Spring Portrait sessions.  Pay only the session cost and get all of your images post-produced on a CD.  All for just $100.  Check out my Pricing page for full details. Oh and if you're curious where these pictures were taken...Disney's Port Orleans Resort - French Quarter and Disney's Port Orleans Resort - Riverside.  Both super gorgeous resorts!!