Claire and Chris /  by Jessica Peterson

I photographed this beautiful backyard wedding.  Claire wanted the wedding to have a "tea party" feel for her special day.  It was so bright and natural and it was so much fun to photograph.  My favorite part was not only her vintage dress but the many, many bridesmaids she had in creams and blushes, it made for such a beautiful pallet to work with.

Thanks you two!

/  by Jessica Peterson

                                                                                                                        ... and some more.

Found Items /  by Jessica Peterson

I am a part of a small group of women photographers in my area.  We get together once a month to talk shop, talk trash, talk pretty, talk politics, talk photo.  We give ourselves assignments to keep juices flowing.  This last one was tabletop.  I walked around the studio building and picked up these 4 little bits.  I can't tell you how relaxing shooting still life is for me, I like the silence and the solitude.  The purple flowers and part of a bouquet C gave me and the nails and screws are leftovers from the giant chalkboard I built this week.

I like simple things.

An Odd Studio Visit /  by Jessica Peterson

I am working in my dream environment, I can bring my dog to work with me.  This morning I photographed Max.  He was very cooperative but only after I gave him Tootsie Rolls.   This afternoon Andrew came by to see the new studio.  I photographed him as well.  He was very cooperative but only after I gave him Diet Coke. When I downloaded the photos I couldn't get over how much the two resembled each other.  Strange how things happen. 

New Studio! /  by Jessica Peterson

I finally did it!
A dream come true, I got a studio space and I am in heaven.
The Studio is in downtown Salt Lake City and I am more than happy to share the joy if anyone is interested to renting this space from me for shoots.
I will post more information on that in a bit.

Have a beautiful weekend and enjoy your New Years... 
I hope you all get lot's of kisses and are able to be with friends and family.

Love
Jess

Thanks Lou for spending the afternoon with me exploring the natural light in the space.

Outside My Front Door /  by Jessica Peterson

This afternoon I stepped outside of my car and saw the sprigs of wheat glowing against the gray 
of the day... I have never noticed them before and I loved the way they spoke to me to I grabbed my camera.  After I photographed them I turned around and saw all these crippled, dry plants that quietly hugged my house.  I have never looked at them with the intent of finding beauty, they always seemed so normal and invisible.  I popped around to each plant, finding certain angles that gave them a different life.  I really enjoyed these few minutes, I felt a much needed grounding to the earth.

I LOVE the flesh color of the images above, they it's so nice to have these colors hanging on.
 The images below remind me of the bowing and twisting of what I assume my veins look like inside my arms and legs. 

My First Christmas Tree /  by Jessica Peterson

I bought my first Christmas tree this year. 
I found the smelliest cheapest one at Home Depot and a strand of lights and brought it home in the back seat of my car.  Instead of spending money on new ornaments I decided to just make them from all the little nicknacks around the house.  I have old tapes, tons of photos, pins, tickets, old postcards etc...
It looks like a mess but it is mine.

Disneyland with the siblings /  by Jessica Peterson


Last week I was able to go to Disneyland with the family.  Disneyland is a magical place, especially if I enjoy it even with 50 minute wait in lines...  But really is was so great because I was will my favorite people.

I brought my little film slr... 



Estate sales are kinda great /  by Jessica Peterson

I have never been to an estate sale but this morning I wanted to do something new.  Luckily there was one just a few blocks from my house.  The home was super old and cute, pink carpet and closets of knitted pink sweaters and blankets.  Most of what I found were small items; lace, buttons, rolls of floral paper, a milk glass goblet, a sweet rolling 1970's bag and a vintage tv dinner tray... But the real score was a 1960's Kodak Instamatic 100 camera with a roll of film inside (and it still works!)
Guess how much all of these items cost me...  20 dollars.

I am not going to lie, I think I might have a new weekend vice.



Thinking of Photography and My Two Older Brothers /  by Jessica Peterson

 I am slowly restoring old family photos.

It's amazing how quickly things change... 
From my mother's childhood she has a small handful of fading photographs, mostly old 6x6 black and whites and polaroids.  They are cracked, yellowed and littered with 50 years oily finger prints. Most of then are portraits outside of her homes holding pets or standing and posing with siblings.

My brothers and I have a few shoeboxes of 4x6 prints of our first bike rides, camping trips, Disneyland, 
Halloweens, birthdays and random snaps from disposable film cameras... They are all damaged from Cheeto dust and tape from attempted scrap booking.  There are no negatives to be found, just one of a kind images rotting away.

The children today have terabytes full of almost every day of their lives, 30 different angles of a first tooth, an entire birthday party documented from start to finish, every time they eat a cupcake, take a poop, scrape their faces, wear new clothes... There are multiple exposures incase an eye is closed, 
a hand is not right, a belly not sucked in.  They are posted on blogs, facebook, multiples printed out and 
sent around for Christmas.  They are never ending.

I appreciate all of the steps photography has taken but
have found I love looking through old images...
The closed eyes
the missed expression
the blurr
when it was too expensive to practice the perfect forced smile and
the corrupted colors from the decay of elements (not stamped on by a iphone app).

I love the two photos of my brothers as kids.
These are the only ones of them that day and all we have is the one moment.