Merry Christmas!

Well another Christmas has come and gone. I hope that everyone reading this had as much fun as I did and that Santa was good to you! :) When I wasn't working, I was blessed to be able to get my shopping done early, baking done, decorating done, wrapping done, eating done ;), and of course spending some time with the family.

Several days before Christmas my husband and I traveled a few hours south to my Dads home in Kentucky and we had a wonderful couple of days there. After the dinner and the exchanging of gifts, we all loaded up and headed over to the Kentucky Horse Park for the Southern Lights. They have a nice light set up on the drive into the park and then they have a petting zoo (with porcupines….really), gift shops, food, and all that fun stuff. J I have 2 nieces that are 2 years old and they had a great time at the petting zoo. My 4 month old nephew wasn’t quite as enthused, but he did like the lights. J  

Here is just a small sampling of the some of the awesome lights to be seen at the http://kyhorsepark.com/

Also for Christmas this year I was so happy to receive a gift card from my Dad and Step-Mom to my favorite place to buy camera equipment. I can't wait to start shopping! :) http://www.bhphotovideo.com/

Last but not least, I have wanted a small point and shoot camera for awhile now. I almost always have my Sony DSLR with me and it can sometimes be cumbersome. Also, I have wanted something to take hunting and fishing with me that I wouldn't worry about possibly getting wet, too cold, or falling out of my tree stand. So, my husband came through for me and bought me this:
http://store.sony.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921666296230

I was able to use it at Christmas #2 at my moms house and I loved it. The camera is smaller than my cell phone and takes great pics. I haven't had the opportunity to test all the features, but I'm sure I will get around to it soon!

I hope that everyone had a very Merry Christmas and that you find many blessings in the new year! I've already got my list of goals for 2012 started and I am eager to get started! I'm thinking next post will be goal oriented! ;)

Happy New Year Everyone! Be safe! :)

What to Wear!

Here is the what to wear guide for this seasons festivities! Outfits great for the whole family for Christmas parties, formal Christmas dinners, or new years eve. Of course, we all like to look nice for Christmas photos! :)

Farming and Photos

I was raised in the country surrounded by farms and I was an active member of my high school FFA chapter. Through FFA, I showed hogs, judged livestock, crops, soil, grew crops and participated in a number of other things. FFA was without a doubt the best thing I did in high school to prepare me for the "real world" After having spent so much time hunting on farms and sitting through ag classes and going to farm equipment shows gave me a good foundation to be a farmers wife.

My husband and I are multi-taskers. I am a 911 disaptcher/Photographer and he is a Police Officer/Farmer. My husband and his twin brother have helped their grandfather farm since they were quite young and while their grandfather does incredible for his age (he's 88) they have basically taken over the farming duties. Over the past couple years, I have become more and more interested in the actual farming process. While in college, I would ride in the combine with my husband between classes, but that was more to get a chance to spend time with him then to actually learn anything. Now, I find myself watching weather, something I have never in my life done unless I was planning an outdoor event. I listen to farm reports and check soybean prices. When my husband tells me about a tractor, I am actually interested and not just acting like it to make him happy. ( Don't judge me, I know he does this when I tell him about a new camera (; ) Don't get me wrong, I have always had an agricultural interest, but I tend to be more interested in livestock and small gardening. (My husband's family has not raised livestock in many years.) I guess my point is that Soybean varieties weren't usually a topic of conversation between us until recently. The farm is a soybean farm only. This is rare in Ohio, as most farmers will alternate soybeans and corn each year. So, please don't ask me about corn, all the knowledge I really have on corn variety is sweet, field, indian, and pop! ;)

I consider myself very blessed to have a husband that loves to farm and that this is a lifestyle we enjoy so much. I can't imagine a spring coming that wouldn't be joined by the smell of fresh turned soil and me checking the spray schedule so that my beloved flower beds don't get doused with weed killer carried on the wind from the field that is about 10 steps out my front door. Fall for me always meant deer season and holidays. Now it also means I will find handfuls of soybeans in my washer and dinner will be either delivered to the field or won't happen till well after dark. This year while my brother in law manned the combine, I rode on the side of the tractor while my husband hauled wagons back and forth from the field to the barn lot. As usual, I had my camera and wanted some non-traditional night time farm photos, so this is what I came up! I was pretty happy with the result. God willing, I will have more farm photos in the future! :)

 
Oh and just for fun, here is a site with some fun farm facts! :)
http://www.farmersfeedus.org/fun-farm-facts/

Bad Moon Rising

A full moon is always a good and a bad thing for me. A full moon for some reason tends to make people act a little wild. I work full time as a 911 emergency dispatcher so I know that anytime the full moon is rising, it will be an eventful night at work. Which again, can be good or bad. Eventful can mean many things in the law enforcement/emergency field. The full moon we had last week had us buys, but luckily nothing too serious. It also gave me a photo opportunity. If my friends or family are reading this, they are probably saying, "everything with Hanna is a photo opportunity." Anyhow, that being said, I was very nearly late for the 911 job, because I was standing in a field with a tripod and camera attempting to get a shot of the moon. I had to work fast, but this is the result. What do you think?

Christmas Ornaments! :)

Custom Christmas Ornaments are available. At just $20 each, you can have a lovely photo ornament to decorate your tree for years to come.

Fantastic Fetty Family

I was contacted by a high school friend and asked to take her family photos. I was very excited to take the photos for her and see her again. She has a beautiful family and I decided to share a few of the photos here. :)

Black Friday specials!

So, I'm pretty positive that the reason Thanksgiving was created was so that crazy people could make a mad dash to a shopping center the day after feasting on wonderful food. I have to admit that about 3 years ago I started participating in the black Friday madness. My husband found a TV he had to have and we have gone every year since. We do make a plan that we have stuck to and we are usually really happy with the deals we get.

This is the first year I have heard of small business Saturday and as a small business owner, I think this is a great idea. I fully intend to support small businesses on Saturday and I hope that others will make the effort as well. I have decided to put on my own Black Friday/Small Business Saturday/Cyber Monday sales. I'm hoping to up my sales with these specials and get some positive attention from consumers! :)

www.johnsonbranchphotography.com

Rock the Shot: Nov Photo Challenge

I am a member of the Rock the Shot photo forum and they usually have a monthly photo challenge. I have not yet entered a photo in any of the challenges, but noticed that this month is a Family photo challenge. Basically people can submit a photo they have taken that shows them the true meaning of family. I chose to submit the photo below. I took this photo of my brother, sister-in-law, and my niece, Gabbie during their family photo session. Gabbie was very tired and didn't really want to have her picture taken. I told my brother that if we could get her to sit still for just a second, I could get a few good pics. Well, he decided to just trap all of them. :) Every time I see this picture, I laugh! My brother tends to look stoic in all pictures, so I was happy to catch a natural smile out of him also! :)

Check out this and other entries at: http://www.rocktheshotforum.com/2011/11/08/november-photo-challenge-family/

www.rocktheshotforum.com

30 days of Thankfulness!

Happy November everyone!! I LOVE this time of year! :) The leaves, the smells, harvest here on the farm, the cooler weather, all the fall fun things that can be done, deer season, and of course Thanksgiving! My favorite holiday!
I think Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, because it was always the time of year that my family that lives far away would all get together and have Thanksgiving and then prepare the Ohio shotgun deer season! My Dads family would travel fro FL every year for this and we would all spend a week in Southern Ohio hunting from daybreak to dusk! It was this time of year that I have some of my best memories. :)
Thanksgiving is also when I make sure to eat my favorite food ever. My Grandma Johnson's noodles. I have tried for years to make them as good as hers and it just hasn't happened. My only saving grace will be 50 years from now, my grand kids will not have had my grandmother's noodles, so they will think mine are pretty great! :)
In honor of Thanksgiving, I am doing 30 days of Thankfulness! I started this a few days ago, so I will post a couple pics here to get caught back up! My first one was God, for giving me so many things to be thankful for! I am so very blessed and thank Him everyday for those blessings. My second was my home. :) Third was my husband :), and the one for today is my Dad. (we are having his 50th birthday party this afternoon) His actual birthday is halloween! :) So, I am also thankful to get the chance to visit with lots of family and friends today! :)

So what is it that you are thankful for?? Please comment! I love comments! :)
https://www.facebook.com/JohnsonBranchPhotography
Oh and in case I forgot to mention, my new website went live! It still needs some work, but it is up and running! Yay! :)

http://www.johnsonbranchphotography.com/


Day 30: Today I thankful that I had a successful deer season this year! :)

Day 29: Today I am thankful to have been born in the great United States of America and for the opportunities we have here. 


Day 28: Today I am thankful for deer season!


Day 27: Today I am thankful to be starting my vacation! :)


Day 26: Today I am thankful for all my wonderful customers!


Day 25: Today I am thankful for Black Friday Sales


Day 24: Today I am thankful for holidays and that they bring people together!


Day 23: Today I am thankful for stand mixers and dishwashers! ;)


Day 22: Today I am thankful for Squanto


Day 21: Today I am thankful for fun TV shows that specialize in finding things that don't technically exist. I'm convinced Bigfoot is out there! :)


Day 20: Today I am thankful that I was raised in the country and have been able to continue to have that lifestyle. I was lucky to have a Dad that took me and my brother hunting at a very young age and that we both still love to hunt as our family has for generations before us. Also in that equation I was lucky to have a mom that even though she wasn't crazy about having her daughter hunting, never told me otherwise. Lucky still to have found a husband that chooses the same lifestyle and adds some farming to it. :) 


Below pic is my brother and I in 1988 after frog gigging with our Dad. I was 5 and he was 8! :)

Day 19: I was thankful today to be able to go to Kentucky and see my family for my nieces 2nd birthday party! It was a great day! :)


Day 18: Today I am thankful for food! :) We are very blessed here to have access to some of the best food. Even though I am trying to eat healthier, I did indulge in chocolate waffles at the Outback last night! So good! :)


Day 17: Today I am thankful for lazy days! It isn't often that we get to put away the computers or turn off the phones and just enjoy doing the simple things! I have been making an effort to do this everyday! FYI: I haven't been overly successful! ;)


Day 16: Today I am thankful for my wonderful nieces and nephews! Between my and I, we have 13. They range in age from 3 months to 13 years. 10 on his side and 3 on mine, and our youngest niece, Amelia is 2 today! :) 
The below photo was taken at Amelia's 2nd birthday party! From left to right, Mandy, my step-sister, holding our niece, Gabriella Rose (2.5). In the middle is me, holding new nephew, Cassander James (3 months). Far right is my sister-in-law, Erin (married to my bro: Gabbie and Cas' Mama), holding our other niece Amelia Marie! 

Day 15: Today I am thankful for that it is my Friday and I am going to have a couples days off :) 


Day 14: Today I am thankful for good health! For my family, friends, and myself. 


Day 13: Today I am thankful for my hound dogs. This pic is my youngest pup, Harm. She is the 5th generation of females from her line that we have owned. 

Day 12: Today I am thankful that my beloved Steelers won the game against the Bengals! Go Steelers! :)

Image is from Google, not mine

Day 11: Today I am thankful for the clients that came in for my mini family photo sessions! Lots of adorable smiling kids! :)

Day 10: Today I am thankful for Veterans and this country! God Bless our veterans and America!

Day 9: Today I am thankful for all my loyal fans and customers! I am so lucky and I can't wait to do family photo sessions this Saturday! :)

Day 8: Today I am thankful for my full time job as a 911 emergency dispatcher!

Day 7: All of my family and friends that are so supportive and that I can always count on them! I am very blessed! :)

Day 6: The doctor and the medical staff that removed my husband appendix and that he is at home recovering safely! :)

Day 5: My Mama with her first grandson, Cas! This was at my grandmother's 80th birthday last month! :)

 Day 4: My Papa and I trout fishing in Arkansas fall of 2010! :)

 Day 3: My husband getting his officer of the year award for 2010! :)

 Day 2: My home! :)

Day 1: Thankful to God and all the things He has given me to be thankful for! :)
Also, the picture of the cross is not mine! I found it on google images!


I hope that everyone counts their blessings, find the silver lining in everything, and always keeps an open mind. Today I thanked God for everything he has given me and then I thanked him for everything he hasn't!