I have been having some minor issues with this blog so i have moved my photography blog to www.shanellenicolephotography.com/TheBlog. Thanks for looking:-)

This mama is 36 weeks and the Dr. was pretty sure she will be having the babe within the next week or so. Needless to say we had to book this session ASAP.  I had so much fun on this session. The kiddos were so super cute!! I know mom was stressing because they weren't quite in the picture mood... But it turned out great:-) I absolutely love how tender these shots are of them together!! We are hoping we are able to get some shots with daddy before baby boy makes his debut!! Fingers crossed!!!

I absolutely love how natural this family was. They could just be goofy and play with each other without worrying if they were looking the right way. I Love this. I Believe it is this type of image that should be in the photoalbum or on the wall. It is the fun times playing and interacting with each other that should be remebered!!! I was smiling the whole time I was editing these images. You can just feel the joy and love this family has for each other!!

Seriously I have never had a newborn this sleepy!  She was an amazing model!!

Such a fun couple!!  and they were absolute naturals in front of teh camera!! I loved that they were up for some fun shots as well:-)

This is the front of their announcement that I made for them

Another of my recent ventures has been Bridals.  I have to say I LOVE doing Bridals!!!! Thank you sis for being so cooperative :-)

Isnt my sister beautiful??

I have recently decided to venture into boudoir photography. I am still trying to decide if I really want to pursue it . My friend  was so nice to let me use her as a model. Here are a couple of my lovely friend.

I am so honored to have met my new friend. She is an amazingly strong woman and beautiful inside and out. I admire her loving heart and feel so privelaged to have met her.  She also shares my same passion for photography which made this session so much fun!! Its crazy what phtoographers will go through to get a good shot!! I had her sit in the water and waited to get a graceful shot with the water surrounding her. A few times she was just about wiped out by a wave.

I love this image so much. It really speaks to me. She has a hard road ahead of her...  Their first son was born deaf. They found out early in her pregnancy that their newest additon would also be born deaf. As I was visiting with her the other day she tells me she knows it will be hard. But she is so strong and has such a  positive outlook. I admire that greatly. To me this image portrays her letting go of all worries of the struggles they will be facing and enbracing the beautiful blessings she has been given!!

I recently Traveled to Idaho to shoot my sisters engagement and bridal session. I was so excited while I was there to find out that my friend had recently had her precious lil one. She wasnt supposed to be here for another 3 weeks!! Here are a few images from her session.

When I found out this beautiful mom to be had been put on bed rest our plans for our session had to be changed. This was my first time doing a maternity session completely indoors. I have to say This ended up being one of my favorite sessions!!! I am sharing a few more in this sneak peak than normal since they are being so patient in waiting for their full gallery due to my travel plans. i hope you enjoy!

I have finally had a chance to use some of my cocoons that I make. I love them all but I really really Love this one "little hedgehog". Also available in cream  "Dandelion Puff"

I Have several cocoons and bows for sale check out my etsy at

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ShanelleNicole

 or just email me and I will get one made for you :-)

For a limited time your session fee will be waived with the purchase of $300 or more in prints and products!! $150 will be due at booking and the remaining $150 will be due when you place your order. And to add a little interest to this post here are some of my recent faves:-)

First I just have to point out this is the Mama of the three pictured below.  Doesn't she look fantastic?

This is one of my dear friends and my mentor. Seriously, Shawn is an amazing photographer im always striving to reach the level of quality she is able to acheive on every shoot!! I am so lucky to know her and be able to learn from her. I am so thankful for all she does for me.

I got lucky here "T" was in the mood to be photographed with his sisters:-)

I was pleased to have the opportunity to photograph this famly once again. My first photosession was with this beautiful Mom when she was two days past due!! Then My first newborn session was this handsome lil one. It is neat to think a year ago these were my first clients and now I get to see how much he has grown in one year, It is amazing how fast time flies and how fast kiddos grow!!  Thank you "D" Family for allowing me to capture these amazing moments for you.

This beautiful Family, as a whole, is now complete.  What a wonderful joy to know you finally have all of your family. I love newborn sessions because I get to see how the family interacts with each other on a much more real basis. I loved watching Dad play with his older son, S, now 17 months. He would throw him in the air, "S" giggling all the while. Every once in awhile I would see him look over at me to see if im still watching. He sure did love his picture taken he kept saying "More" and then flashing me a cute pose.  I loved watching him interact with baby "M", gently trying to shoosh him.  The ultimate joy for me though was feeling the overwhelming love coming form Mom and  Dad as they watched their boys. Taking pride in their now complete family. This family is so beautiful. Im so happy for you all that you are now, as a whole, Complete.

I just ADORE this lil Man. I had the oppurtunity to Photograph him in the womb, at birth and now for his 6 month photoshoot. It really brings me joy to watch him as he gets older:-)  And would you believe he made it the entire session without getting fussy? I couldn't, especially since he did three clothing changes! Even I would have been grumpy!! Well, thank you lil man for being such a good sport! And thank you to his lovely parents who are so much fun to be around! I'm so grateful to have met this wonderful family!

I am currently looking for new and Unique faces between the ages of 3-8. For the Month of April I will be waiving the session fee for children between these ages. You will also receive 50% off of prints!! Call now to book your shoot before this offer ends!!

Hey Sweet pea Happy Birthday

Mama woke up this morning wishing I was waking up to get ready for your birthday party. It would have been a magnificent party. I know you are in a wonderful place. but that still doesn't make me miss you any less. I hope you can here me when I talk to you at night I hope you heard me tell you happy birthday This morning. I dont know how often you are able to drop in but I know I feel you near quite often even more lately. Im sure you can tell Mama has really needed that. Thanks for allowing me to feel your presence when I most need it. Today I was looking at your brothers easter basket and I told Daddy "it just doesnt feel right. I feel like we should be preparing two baskets".So you will have your very own basket here that we will fill with spiritual gifts. Things that we can do that we think you would want of us. My spitual gift to you is to remember the good memories and look forward to knew memories when we see you again. Although you are not here My heart neevr forgets we have two children. You are always in my thoughts. Sometimes I swear I can feel you playing on the ground near me.  I miss you so much sweet pea. Please remember how much we love you and how much we think of you. I love you so much

Love Mommy, Daddy, and Baby brother

Today would have been our sweet Angel Gabriel's 2nd Birthday. Im trying to concentrate on all the good Gabriel did in this world while he was alive and the good the memory of him continues to do. Gabriel touched so many hearts. He opened my eyes and reminded me what is really important in this life. Every Minute he was alive I was just grateful to be holding him. I was grateful to have my family. Gabriel was born in Okinawa Japan. They were unable to provide all of teh medical equipment needed for him there so we were transfered to San Diego. We arrived here with no house to go home to, no car to get around in and only enough clothing and supplies that woudl fit in a suit case. This would normally stress me out but at the time material things were unimportant. The only thing that mattered was being there for our son who was fighting for his life. the day he was born was bitter sweet. I had anticipated the day I would finally get to meet my baby from the moment we found out we were pregnant. So while in labor and awaiting our sweet angels debut I was so full of love and excitment. When he was born i was filled with Love and fear. I loved this baby already. I was so happy to see him I had hope that things would be ok. But fear that they woudln't be as well. April 1st 2008 was the happiest and scariest day of my life.  Every second I was able I was in the NICU singing and praying with him. Sometimes i woudl just sit there and stare. the nurses were so wonderful they knew that I needed to be close but that I needed company at the same time. They would chat with us as we sat next to Gabriel. Daddy read Gabriel verses from the bible. he even went and bought him his very own bible that on the inside said

presented to Gabriel Anthony Mele

BY The luckiest and most loving Father on earth. I love you son

It was so difficult to see my husband so torn apart. He is the Rock and solid foundation of our family yet he was a mess. We seemed to take turns falling apart. This was not something Just one of us could carry on our own. When he needed to fall apart I was strong and when I needed to fall apart he was strong. Many marriages fall apart during these hard times Ours grew stronger.

I know Gabriel would want me to remember the time we had with him and to remember we will see him again. Im holding on to those memories and anxious for that day when our entire family will be reunited. 

We had the oppurtunity to meet an amazing woman who is now one of my closest friends. She is a photographer who volunteers with NILMDTS. She met us in the hospital and provided us with the most precious gift of all. She captured intimate moments and priceless pictures of our Family.

Today on my son's Birthday I just want to show teh world how beautifuyl he was and still is. I want eevryone to knwo that Although he was only with us for two months he worked miracles in so many peoples hearts including my own. Here is my son who I am so very proud of.

Please excuse spelling errors and grammar. Ive been crying so much today  my head is killing me I just cant reread this right now.

I had the opportunity to photograph a very special little fighter on her First Birthday.  This party was magnificent for so many reasons... First, this was the first time many people were able to meet Miss K. The strong connection felt  at this first meeting was beautiful. I feel honored to have been able to witness such a wonderful moment.

The second reason was the divine food and perfect decorations!!! Oh my gosh the food couldnt have been more perfect! And all of the princess decorations were so cute!I what a perfect theme for Miss K.

The Third reason this party was so magnificent was the love... Just walking in the door you could feel the love. There were SO many friends and family there to see her and to celebrate with her!  When I was first able to upload the images from this session my heart just melted looking at the tender moments captured with this family. Parties are always hard to photograph.  You never know what kind of lighting you will have to work with and there are always so many people!!! Despite the more difficult shooting conditions, the love radiating from this family made every shot so precious!

I Knew from the beginning Miss K was a true living miracle but I had no idea how much she had really been through. I really feel I need to share her story with all of you.  I asked he Mom for a summary of what Miss K has been through and instead of my6 trying to retell it I will include what she wrote to me.

"At 25 weeks, I was admitted to the hospital. 3 days later, I developed early and severe eclampsia and HELLP syndrome. Hardly any oxygen was flowing to K. In order to save us, I had an emergency C-section. She was 1 pound, 6 ounces, 11 inches.
She remained intubated (tube downn throught) for 7 weeks and went back and forth with various breathing tools 2 months until they discovered the real reason for the breathing issue. A hole in her heart was making her lungs work too hard. She was transferred overnight to Rady and a procedure was done the next day to repair it. She was about 7 pounds at the time and 4 months old. She then had severeacid reflux and she stopped eating. After weeks of trying to get her to eat by mouth unsuccessfully, we had a surgery to stop the reflux, insert a feeding tube, and repair 2 hernias. She was home 10 days later. I have kept her locked up to prevent her from getting sick and re-hospitalized. She came home on oxygen and we were finally able to get her off of oxygen completely this month! Her meds around the clock are dropping off! She continues to have weekly physical therapy and occupational therapy. And that is the story of Miss K"

Im just so amazed at miss K's and her families strength

Cyrus,

I can't believe how fast you are growing up. It seems like just yesterday we met you for the first time. I cherished every moment after you were born. I should have been sleeping while you were sleeping but instead I was taking a million snapshots of you sleeping and eating ( thats all you did lol). As time went on I remember saying "this is my favorite stage". But then a month later I would say the same thing and so on until now. And even now I will still insist THIS is my favorite stage. I know every stage and every milestone will be my favorite. Imjust soakign up every moment because they go by so quickly. I love watching you learn, and  I love watching you grow. I often wonder what you will end up doing with your life. You are very good with your hands and you figure things out so fast. I know you will be successful in whatever you choose to do. You need to know you brightened our lives. Loosing your brother was the hardest and most devastating thing we have ever had to experience. God blessed us with you right away. I think he knew we needed you here. There was so much joy when we found out we were having you. You helped ease our aching hearts. Your name means sunshine or of the sun and you certainly are our Sunshine:-). I love you so much bubba. You are my everything and my world. I love you so much!

My baby just turned one! As any Mom would I wanted some shots of him to rememeber him as he is at 1. You would think I have a bit of an advantage being a photographer huh? I wish!!! Most photographers' kids have what is known as Photographers' child syndrome. Its where they will not cooperate or even look at the camera. In fact some may even run from the camera!! I did get lucky and get a few shots but man did I have to work for it. This one was taken at the beach... he was more interested in the kids playing, people running, and birds flying than his crazy mama jumping around, dancing and throwing sea weed in the air hoping to get his attention. Some sight im sure lol.

Im almost ashamed to admit this but I gave him a few cheezits to distract him for a moment:-) So yes his mouth is full here lol. But hey, he looked at me!!!

Here I decided to sing "If your happy and you know it"  coincidentally, at least in telling myself its coincidental, at the same time he decided to plug his ears.

And of course I had to get a couple closeups:-)

Its families like this one that make me sad to be leaving san Diego. I know as a photographer I will have the oppurtunity to meet a lot of families, but I'm sad I will not be around to watch this family as they continue to blossom With each passing year. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment with them. Their energy was so peaceful and so full of love. My world, as chaotic as it is right now, seemed to slow down while I was with them.

Mom had an amazingly strong and loving energy.  She was nurturing in everything she did. I admire how she never took for granted a chance to teach her children something. And I love how she glowed as she watched her children play.

Dad had such a beautiful balance about him. He was their pal and their friend. So full of energy and life. But in an instance he is able to slow down to cherish tender moments like this.

I loved witnessing the excitement and love that these kiddos already have for their new baby sister. I was happy and amazed at how fast they came to trust me. Im smiling as I write this thinking of how N flashed me a flirty smile when I first met him. And E after we had finished the session would run up to me and say "chase" trying to get me to run after her. Im sure that was a funny sight watching me try to run through the sand.

I am honored that they were able to be so natural around me and that they let me in... gave me a peak into their lives so to speak.  It was nothing short of inspiring watching them interact.

and I will never forget the beauty inside and out of this beautful mother. It was such a joy meeting you and your family. Thank you for giving me a glimpse into your lives. You all are amazing.

Have you recently overcome something you never thought you could? Or surprised yourself with accomplishing the seemingly unimaginable?  For the month of February I will be accepting nominations to win a free photosession and 75% off prints. Send your story to shanelle@shanellenicolephotography.com. Explain to me why you or your family deserve to win one of the free photosessions. Winners will be contacted March 1st. The Photosession will need to be claimed by June 1st.  Be sure to include the best way and time to contact you in case you are one of the lucky winners.

I guess a good Start is to introduce myself.

I've been thinking to myself the past little while what should I wite in my first post? Do I talk about myself? My aspirations? I guess all this talk about myself makes me feel a little narcisistic.  but I feel its important not just for my potential clients  but for myself as well to really have to think about who I am and what im about.

So here it goes.... Im a very passionate person in all I do. When im sad im Overwhelmed with emotion. When im happy im on a natural high. I guess im a little histrionic in a way. I function better and more efficiently under pressure and on the spur of the moment.

I love emotions... emotions are what make us alive and human. Im sensitive. Especially  to others feelings. I tend to treat EVERYONE I meet as a friend Ive known forever. but I only Open all the way up to those who i've had time to really get to know and trust.

I believe there is good in everything and everyone.

My family is the most important thing to me. If I have nothing else I would still be happy as long as I still have my family.They are my life, my world, my rock solid foundation.

Im in love with the simple natural beauties of this world. I love to watch and treasure the simple things in life that many people dont take the time to notice.

Im a believer and dreamer. I know I am capable of accomplishing anything I want to accomplish. I learn more and more each day and am not comfortable unless im constantly progressing. I tend to be a little over critical of myself but am learning to lighten up and just enjoy what I do. Im learning to except mistakes. Im confident that my talent has no limit to where it can go and this is just the beginning of where I intend to go. 

My goal in my sessions is to capture the REAL you. Not the posed fake cheese smiles, but the genuine expressions. I want to beable to see inside of you and really feel your soul with the images I capture.

Photography has been a great blessing in my life. It is a way to express myself. A way to show the world what I view as beautiful, and I believe it is a timeless treasure that i will never regret learning,