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welcome to our blog!

Thanks for stopping by! We're Ben and Amy Starks (that's us in the photo to your left :)).


Our blog serves as our online diary. Here, you will find lots of eye candy, stories about our photography experiences, and other random tidbits about our quirky life together.


Feedback makes us super happy, so feel free to leave some! And if you have a few minutes, check out our site!


(*We switched over from our old blog on 4-10-09. R.I.P. old blog.)

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As I was editing the photos from Mallory and David's Winter Park engagement shoot, I realized that I'm going to miss photography. This thought isn't monumental - I knew I would have moments like this. And it didn't make me sad - I'm excited and confident about our decision, and our future. It just made me feel nostalgic. I know I've already said it, but we've had so many incredible experiences with so many unbelievable people during our journey with photography, and it's good to remind myself of how blessed we've been over the last couple of years with our business. I never want to forget that feeling. :)

Mallory and David are the kind of people you want to be friends with. They're easygoing, fun, and down-to-earth - and I happen to really love people like that. ;) Their relationship is comfortable and their chemistry is obvious - which makes it super easy to translate their love into images.

The day of their shoot was a typical Florida summer day...HOT and HUMID. But they rolled with the weather, and laughed through the sticky foreheads and sweaty embraces. That's true love, my friends. ;) We're bummed to miss their wedding next year, but SO glad that we got the chance to photograph them during this really awesome time in their lives.

Here's a few favorites from the day:


Florida, you are living up to your nickname with that sun flare. :)

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Mallory - you're gorgeous. :)

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Their hands and the tree sort of make a heart here. It was unintentional, and I love it. :)

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Probably my favorite from the day. :)

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LOVE these two. There's a sweet simplicity about them that feels really relaxed to me. :)

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Annnnnnnd these 2. There's just no way to choose a favorite, ok? :)

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Congrats you guys! :)
(5) Comments Leave comment Send to a friend
megan:

and of course, you loved mal's skinny jeans and boots. (;

(06.23.10)
Ben and Amy:

Haha. Well, duh. ;)

(06.23.10)
Mallory and David:

We ABSOLUTELY LOVE THEM Amy!!! I think my favorite ones are the casual outfit ones! I LOVE the one that you did with us peeking out from the column!! CANNOT WAIT to see the rest of them!! thank you so much!

(06.23.10)
Ben and Amy:

Yayyyy! I'm so glad you love them! You guys were SO much fun to photograph! I'm excited for you to see the rest! :)

(06.23.10)
Whitney F.:

Gorgeous as usual! I love the locations you two shot in and wow, nothing less than stellar : )

(06.24.10)
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70
It's been an embarrassing 10 days since my last blog post. However, I have a very valid excuse; we've been moving houses, and living in the dark ages for the last several days. No internet. No cable. I do have my iPhone, but I absolutely refuse to upload photos and type out an entire blog with that thing. I would end up throwing it across the living room in a fit of frustration. Not that I'm speaking from experience or anything...

In other, [insert intense sarcastic tone herecompletely unrelated news, I have accomplished more work than ever in the last several days. Shoots have been edited, housework has been done, laundry has been washed, dinners have been cooked. So in short, I guess it is possible to function without the almighty worldwide web. But I'd rather not. :)

Blogworld, I feel like I have so much to catch you up on. It's like I'm meeting up with a best friend for coffee after not hanging out for weeks - there's so much to say I'm afraid I'm going to end up babbling on rapidly like an auctioneer at an antiques roadshow.

But the life updates will have to wait for another day. This post is being written for the purpose of highlighting two great friends of ours - Nick and Sami - and their fabulous relationship.

I'll keep this brief because I know most of you have already scrolled past my rambling to the photos ;); Nick and Sami really are perfect together. And I'm not just saying that. Their personalities mesh in a way that only two people who are truly meant to be together can mesh. We've known Nick for awhile, and we met Sami once they started dating. Our session with them was appropriately representative of their relationship; full of laughter and comfort and affection.

Their session took place in downtown Ft. Myers (hello Ben's old stomping grounds and awesome new shoot spot!) and I am thrilled with the outcome. Some of these images are now a part of my "all-time favorites" club. We're so happy that we were able to capture this part of their life together, and we are super excited about their beach wedding in December. :)

Here's part one of their shoot:



The wind gave us a few issues along the way, but I think it really worked with us for this shot.

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Palm trees are in abundance. So is sunshine. Thank you Florida. :) P.s. Doesn't Sami look totally gorgeous in that shot to the right?

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LOVE. THIS.

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I told Nick to lean in like he was telling her a secret...so he did...and then he realized he didn't have to actually tell her a secret. ;)

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Stairwell kissing is definitely a photo-worthy moment. ;)

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Give me an empty rooftop parking garage, skyscrapers, sunset lighting, and a super photogenic couple and I am one completely thrilled photographer.

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FAVORITE. I cannot describe how much I love this photo without making lots of fast, excited gestures with my hands.

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Oh, and Nick, this is for you. Haha. :)

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(8) Comments Leave comment Send to a friend
Ashley McCormick Photography:

Love the rooftop photos too! And the "secret" one :) Amazing as usual!

(10.11.09)
Sami Hughes:

thank you soooo much you 2 are the best!!!!

(10.11.09)
Cora:

Great job Amy and Ben...You did a great job with Nick and Sami!

(10.11.09)
Kimberly:

Love all of these pictures! Amazing! Especially the one of them on the top of the parking garage. Ahhh... Awesome.

(10.12.09)
LIZ:

They are absolutely beautiful.. You look really good together. love the pictures, especially the squirrel.

(10.12.09)
Nana:

your roof top favorite is mine too! Great looking couple, great photos!
You guys are good!
Love you bunches!

(10.12.09)
Callie:

I love these! Way to be super photogenic Nick & Sami!! AL & Ben - these are some of my favorite pictures you guys have ever taken! Seriously! Awesome!

(10.12.09)
Jen:

WOW, I always knew Sammy was pretty, but Nick cleans up pretty good too. Such a beautiful couple! You did good Nick...you did good.

(10.15.09)
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69
It's a bit late, but Fall has arrived.

Unlike other states, Florida's seasonal changes are pretty subtle; no changing leaves, no major temperature drops. There's a faint chill in the air, and one can walk outside without immediately breaking into sweat. In my opinion, that adjustment alone is remarkable.

Today, Ben and I celebrated Autumn in our Jeep with the top down. The weather was refreshingly crisp and the wind energized me as it hit my face at 45 mph. I've never been able to choose a 'favorite' season (*ahem* the Queen of Indecisiveness does not make those kind of choices), but I think I am coming dangerously close to having Fall favoritism.

Fall, welcome to Florida. Kick back. Relax. Stay awhile.

***

Alex and Chris are getting married in October, and we couldn't be more thrilled to be a part of their Fall nuptials. Their engagement session at Kraft Azalea Gardens in Winter Park was so enjoyable and their chemistry is effortless. It's so easy to capture two people who are as in love as they are. Check out a few shots below for confirmation :) :



Meet Alex and Chris. You'll notice that laughter is a common component in most of their photos. :)

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I love Alex's face in this one. :)

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Hello - fierce.

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I know the following 2 are similar, but I love them both.

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Easily one of my favorites from the day.

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I'm getting to be pretty good at this paparazzi thing. I think that makes me a creeper in some way, but I'm ok with that.

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This set holds my two favorites from the session.

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(1) Comments Leave comment Send to a friend
Whitney F.:

A few words: amazing, beautiful, love. Wonderful job as always you two!

(10.03.09)
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61
Not too long ago, I posted 'part 1' of Larissa and Justin's Winter Park engagement session. Well here's round 2 - this couple totally rocked our cameras. :) We can't wait for their wedding at Casa Feliz in 3 weeks!





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57

In the words of the great Bob Dylan, 'I feel a change comin' on...'

That is, I feel a change in our business. Our photography. Our goals. Our focus. Change is definitely coming; exciting, nerve-racking, forward-moving change.

***

Now that I've succeeded in being completely illusive, obscure, and dramatic (which probably left you thinking, "what the crap?"), let's get on with the actual purpose of this post.

Larissa and Justin met at a business conference; he was a rep from Florida, she from Colorado. Justin convinced Larissa to make the move to the sunny state, and a romance began. 3 years later, Justin and Larissa decided to make it official - they'll be getting married at beautiful Casa Feliz next month. :)

Their engagement session (which took place in downtown Winter Park) is one of my all-time favorites. So much so that I wasn't able to narrow down the number of photos to create an appropriate "sneak peek." Therefore, the session will be broken into two parts so I can adequately portray the awesomeness that is Larissa and Justin. :)

In the short time that we were able to spend with this couple, we learned that they are down-to-earth, funny, approachable , and completely compatible. They allowed Ben and I to give creative input (no matter how weird it seemed :)), and were comfortable with themselves, their relationship, and our cameras from the start. The moments captured were filled with real emotions and affection. And as photographers, we couldn't ask for anything more fabulous than that. :)

Larissa and Justin, we truly had a blast with you guys - thanks for making our job super easy. We can't wait to see you next month!

Here's a few gazillion from the day:

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So sweet. :)

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These next two make me smile.

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Larissa is ridiculously gorgeous.

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This is the product of that sometimes weird creative input I was talking about. L.O.V.E. it. :)

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These next 3 are definitely some of my favorite shots ever. That brown door has a piece of my heart.

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Could they be more photogenic? Really?

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This last shot is quirkiness to the extreme and I could not love it anymore. It's my absolute favorite from the day.

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(*Part 2 will be coming soon!)
(3) Comments Leave comment Send to a friend
Nana:

What an absolutely adorable couple!! Really look like fun people, too. Great pictures--love your brown door and the brick street in front of them. Eager to see the rest of them! Love, Nana

(08.19.09)
Shirley :

this shoot does appear to be truly amazing. and that last picture. is incredicble. its in my top 10 of your photos ever.

(08.21.09)
anne:

since i know both of them (and will be in the wedding) i say kodo's on the great pic's. Justin is very camera-phobic and you have captured him beautifully (her too!) great shots and can't wait to see the wedding photo's

(09.02.09)
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