Thursdays Thanksgivings..."One Beautiful Moment" {Northern San Francisco Bay Area Photographer~Shelley Hohe}

"One snap of the shutter, and there it was . . . one beautiful moment captured in time for eternity."

This was the first sentence of my morning devotional that I read a few days ago.  Being a photographer, this devotion really spoke to me and I wanted to share this with others.  Every morning not only do I love it, but I need to have my morning devotions with God...it starts my day on the right path!  

I love it when I am able capture the ordinary with my camera and by creating a gallery with the photos I capture it tells a Timeless story full of beauty and life. Just like in this devotion I love how it talks about how  "God makes extravagant beauty out of seemingly mundane things."  Whether it's the skies above or the seas below everything in between the two are masterpieces created by God.  

Not only did God use a gallery to display His masterpiece when creating the skies, seas and everything in between, but He also used a gallery to display His glory...humans!  "We too are made out of something ordinary—dust"  
^{Genesis 2:7-8"}And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed."

You might think as humans we are ordinary, mundane and seen by few, but God looks at each one of us as his beautiful masterpiece created just by Him. How beautiful is that! 

Isaiah 40:6-8 

The voice said, “Cry out!”
And he^[a] said, “What shall I cry?”

“All flesh is grass,
And all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.

The grass withers, the flower fades,
Because the breath of the Lord blows upon it;
Surely the people are grass.

The grass withers, the flower fades,
But the word of our God stands forever.”

Devotion by...Our Daily Bread.  

http://odb.org/2012/03/28/one-beautiful-moment/

Below are some photos I captured of God's masterpieces and I am so thankful for these that He created....

......of course I to had share a few of my all time favorite photos I captured of our kids, 

these were captured at home a few years back on an ordinary day!

Our lovely daughter playing the violin...there is something so peaceful about this...

Our son doing what he does best...playing so hard he falls asleep with toys in hand :)

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Though the Eyes of a Photographer { Marin, Sonoma, Napa County Photographer...Shelley Hohe}

One of my favorite things to do is go on drives, especially in the country or on the coast.  Not only do I enjoy it but the whole family does too.  I love being the passenger while my husband drives.  I get to distracted when I drive because I am always captivated by the things I see, not being able to concentrate on the road ahead of me.  Ever since I received my dslr camera and decided to become a photographer, I see things so much differently.  Through the eye of a photographer you see things as art that others might not.  Just last night I was was talking to our friends parents about looking for new locations for my client sessions.  Growing up in the beautiful San Francisco Bay Area you would think that I would know all the great locations...right???  Wrong!  When I first started to get serious about photography we were still living in Oregon and moving back here has given me the opportunity to see things differently than I did when I grew up here.  We have been back here for over a year now and I am just excited when I notice things that I didn't before like a beautiful garden, an old antique door, a gravel driveway lined with a wooden fence & flowers, a rusty truck, stone pathway.  Now that I have my camera I am always having to stop, get out of the car and take photos to capture this beauty and art.   


Below are just a few photos I have taken over the year.  I am so excited to be putting together an arrangement of some of these photos to decorate our daughters room.  I love the fact that not only do I get to share this with our daughter but we are also saving money by not having to purchase art from somewhere else.

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Sunny Valley Oregon/ApplegateTrail ~ Personal {Northern S.F. Bay Area Photographer....Shelley Hohe}

A few weeks ago we headed up to Oregon to pack up our entire house and finally move it down to California. On our way up we just had to make a stop in one of my favorite places....Sunny Valley Oregon. Surrounded by magnificent mountains, the sun rays reflecting off the beautiful green meadows and creeks, the beautiful covered bridges and the Applegate trail....every time we drive through this beautiful storybook like community you can't help but recognize God's handiwork, His creation, His masterpiece. It's like a little glimpse of heaven on earth.

Capturing Art....Black & White or Color ~ Lifestyle {Northern S.F. Bay Area Photographer...Shelley Hohe}

Now that i am living back in the San Francisco Bay Area, i am in the process of scouting out some new locations for some upcoming photo sessions. In the midst of my searching i came across this beautiful serene pond surrounded by trees. When i arrived, there were a small group of woman artists who were painting a landscape of this beautiful scene. I approached one of the very kind ladies and asked if i could capture them painting with my camera. I am so glad she said yes because what i ended up with was "capturing art" with my camera.

I love the fact that this photo is not posed, she just went about her painting. It gives it much more of an emotional feel to me. I usually shoot in color because i just love bright and beautiful colors, but with this photo i decided to do one in black & white as well. I like the feeling black & white photos give because instead of focusing on the colors in the picture you are focusing on the subject and what their doing or feeling.

What do you like....Black & White or Color???

click on photos to view enlarged

Marin/Sonoma County Lifestyle & Wedding Photographer

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Coming soon...Tour across the U.S.A ~ Personal {Oregon Photographer...Shelley Hohe}

Oh yeah! A road trip across the U.S.A....how exciting!!! Soon we will be driving across the country to visit our family on the east coast. Our destination...Pinehurst, North Carolina to be exact. It's been almost 10 years since my Dad and step-mom moved from California to the beautiful and majestic Pinehurst area in NC. They went out there to visit and play golf at one of the finest golf resorts in the world, the next thing you know they were moving out there. Can you blame them, what else could you want if you were a huge golfer about to retire??? As Top Ten Golf Resorts in the World says Pinehurst http://www.pinehurst.com/offers offers a quintessential southern getaway! It must be "the" place to be, because after my step-sisters went out for a visit they ended up moving out there as well.

In the last almost 10 years my Dad and Step-mom have come to Oregon to visit us many times, but we haven't ever made it out to where they live. Flying was always a huge factor for me (i am not a huge fan being 27,000 feet in the air ) and we never were able to take much time off to be able to be gone long enough to drive. Well now that we are in the process of moving back to California and in between jobs for my husband we thought now is the perfect time to take advantage of going across the U.S.A

The last few weeks i have been sick so i haven't been able to get that excited. Now that i am feeling much better it is sinking in that we are in for a great adventure. Some big stops we will be making along the way is Salt Lake City Utah, Topeka Kansas...home of the greatest Wizard of Oz museum ( and my all time favorite movie..."there's no place like home") and Knoxville Tennessee where we get to spend a few days with Roberts brother and sister in law.

Roberts brother is the restaurant manager of the famous steak house Ruth's Chris and do you know who gets to go eat there???? You guessed it, we do :) Besides being a restaurant manager, he is an awesome cook and he makes the most delish chocolate pecan pie in the whole wide world! My sister in law said he is making one especially for me, i am dreaming about my first bite already Mmmmm mmmm!

It will be so fun to check out the beautiful area they live in. Maybe we will even get the chance to bump into some famous country recording artists at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville Tennessee, wouldn't that be a hoot!! Besides visiting with my brother and sister in law we are also hoping to get the chance to meet up with an old high school friend, his wife and their new baby boy.....i think a baby photo session is in store for this photographer ;)

Our final stop and destination is Pinehurst North Carolina where we will spend the majority of our trip visiting with my Dad, step-mom, step-sisters, niece and nephew. It will be so nice to get some quality time with them and to check out the majestic place they live in. I miss living close to my Dad so i will definitely be soaking up every minute i have with him. I am just so excited to get a whole week of waking up and having breakfast with them, taking a nice walk with them around the beautiful golf resort where they live and to be able to explore the history of the east coast will be so fascinating to me.

I have been studying up on Pinehurst with the kids so they could get an idea of where we are going and 3 things that we keep learning is that they are known for their rich history, their southern hospitality and being known as the golf capital of the world. Not only is golf a main attraction there but Pinehurst Resort also offers one of the top 50 tennis experiences according to Tennis Magazine. We sure love tennis, we might have to just bring our racquets with us ;)

During this road trip i have decided to take full advantage my my camera gear. I am hoping to document every thing and new place i see in pictures. I will be taking many pictures and sharing them along the way. I am getting notebooks for the kids and myself to also document in as well. I am hoping to find notebooks with pockets for postcards and items we collect along the way. This will be one geography lesson our kids will never forget!

So don't forget to stay tuned in for our "Tour across the U.S.A {IN PICTURES}" coming soon to a blog near you!

Buildings & Bridges ~ Architecture {Oregon Photographer...Shelley Hohe}

Growing up just 20 minutes north of San Francisco these photos bring back so many special memories of all the times I would go to the city with family and friends. One of my greatest memories is walking across the Golden Gate Bridge.

The Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, CA.

These next two beautiful pieces of architecture are buildings that reside in the county I grew up in...Marin County. The first building is St Raphael's Church in San Rafael and the second is the Marin Civic Center that was built by the famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Both of these buildings have been photographed and have been in many books. I used to drive by both of these beautiful buildings almost everyday for 4 years on my way to work.

Beautiful Scenery ~ Landscapes {Oregon Photographer...Shelley Hohe}

I really enjoy being able to go outside with my camera to capture some of God's beautiful creations.