To all of the couples I’ve had the pleasure of working with this year: THANK YOU. Simply put, your trust in me means so much. And, without you and your trust, I wouldn’t be able to do this thing that I love so much. So, thank you.

So, first, there was Jerry and Christina’s March wedding at Meadow Brook Hall:

Then there was Lisa and Rob’s wedding in Alexandria, Virginia:

And Bethany and Chuck’s wedding at Cherry Creek Golf Club:

And Diana and Cory’s wedding at Weller’s Carriage House:

Then it was June and it was time for Ashlee and Andrew’s wedding at the Country Club of Lansing:

And Becky and Derek’s wedding at a beautiful family home in South Haven:

And Jillian and Mike’s wedding at the University of Michigan Museum of Art:

(I hope your tea is still warm.)

And Carole and Henry’s wedding at Meadow Brook Hall & Gardens:

Then, fall was on its way and it was time for Chelsey and Brent’s wedding at Eagle Eye Golf Club:

And Alice and Matt’s wedding at a private home on Lake Michigan:

And fall was in full swing at Audrey and Paul’s wedding at Misty Farm:

And Jessica and Steve’s wedding at Weller’s Carriage House:

And Jamie and Mike’s wedding at Andiamo of Warren:

And, last, Paige and Adam’s lovely winter wedding at Oakhurst Country Club:

If you’re still in your cozy blanket and you have a little more tea, you can check out last year’s recap here.

Best wishes for health and happiness in the new year!

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Here’s a little peek into our day with the Alice in Wonderland themed wedding:

The details of the day were almost all handmade and some were even rented – definitely something you could apply to your own wedding…

And a little behind-the-scenes peek:

Justin, Mary & Julia: Thank you for your willingness to dedicate such a huge part of your life to helping others in our industry – the small seeds you are planting around the country (and beyond!) today will surely provide beautiful shade in which we can rest (and take beautiful photographs) tomorrow.

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Tomorrow, I will be back in Grand Rapids to photograph the event once again and I’m super excited to be inspired and wowed again this year…and I’m not even getting married! For my 2011 couples or anyone else reading who might be planning a wedding, this is a great place for unique ideas and a chance to be in a room with lots of people who know how to make those ideas come to life. If you come to the show, look for me…I’ll be the one wandering around with a camera. Well, either that or standing near the folks from San Chez sampling tapas…

What: GRunveiled: A Wedding Show for the Contemporary Bride
Where: St. Cecelia Music Center, 24 Ransom Avenue Northeast, Grand Rapids, MI
When: February 24, 2011; 5-9 p.m.

Click here to find out even more about GRunveiled, here to see some highlights from last year’s event, or click here to buy tickets.

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For a chance to be the big winner, head over to the NHP FB Page and you’ll see a post from me asking a simple question. Just leave your answer in a comment there and you will be entered into the drawing from which I will have the interwebs select a random winner. And, if you haven’t “liked” the page yet, it’s not too late! Just click “like” and then answer the question – we’ll add you too!

But you have to leave your answer on Facebook. Or else I won’t think anyone’s really out there. And then this would be pretty anticlimactic. If you’re not even on Facebook, maybe you can leave a note here and I’ll have some sort of honorary prize for good behavior.

So, for now, enjoy a preview of the “Arts & Leisure” gallery. Pick your favorite. And then head over to Facebook and tell me your answer to this question:

What is your favorite place on the planet and why?

To see the full “Arts & Leisure” gallery, click on “galleries” in the menu above. Once there, select “Arts & Leisure,” then “Gallery I.” Feel free to look around. Enjoy. On Sunday, February 6 at 12 p.m., I’ll capture the names and announce a winner shortly after that!

I have walked into every wedding this year with the goal of capturing your emotions in a timeless way – a way that would show who you are and how you felt on your wedding day to the generations that follow. So, thank you. Thank you for helping me do just that.

And, to my 2011 couples, I can’t wait to see what you have in store! Happy New Year to each and every one of you!

So, to begin, here’s Dan and Lori at Genitti’s Hole in the Wall in Northville:

Angie and Larry at Cobblestone Farm in Ann Arbor:

Now, keep in mind this was not a wedding. But, if any of you read the amazing story about this couple, you know why I have to share their photographs here. So, Christine and Tracey on Max Patch Bald in North Carolina:

Marella and Ben at Foundry Hall in South Haven:

Sara and Brandon at Above & Beyond in Muskegon:

Lindsay and Rachel at The English Inn in Eaton Rapids:

Elizabeth and Stephen at Willow Harbor Vineyard in Three Oaks:

A beautiful wedding at Little Stone Church on Mackinac Island:

Holly and Nathan at Longacre House in Farmington Hills:

Howard and Dana at the South Haven Conference Center in South Haven:

Catie and Darnell at Frances Park and the Michigan Princess Riverboat in Lansing:

Cynthia and Philip at Troppo in Lansing:

Best wishes for a happy, healthy, and unforgettable 2011!

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When Eric and I were up in Leelanau a couple of weekends ago, we visited Christmas Cove Farm in Northport to pick up some apples. And, while we didn’t pick them ourselves, this place is more than you would ever imagine stumbling upon. They have hundreds of different varieties of apples for sale in their barn, sort of a little apple wonderland. I was in heaven taking photos… of apples. To me, it was a perfect way to spend a fall morning enjoying all of the little things I love about the fall in Michigan. So cheers to apples and orchards and perfect fall days! I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do. :D

It was fascinating reading about all of the different kinds of apples they had and all of the colors were so brilliant!

Apple. Wonderland!

I loved something about these containers… just waiting to be filled up with some more bright apples at any minute.

It took us a while to read about all of the different kinds of apples and decide which we wanted to take home but we walked out with Macoun and Bread & Butter apples (which, as they noted, are great with bread and cheese!). Macouns are delicious!

I’m also taking the opportunity to meet up with some friends that I hiked with back in 2007 and some new friends that just finished the trail last month. It’ll be a whirlwind but I bet I’ll get to photograph some pretty amazing things along the way!

Until Monday, I may be a little slower than normal to respond but don’t fret, I’ll be back. For now, here are some images from my introduction to New Jersey when I saw it for the very first time along the Appalachian Trail. It really is a beautiful place.

Shortly after seeing this sunset, we stopped hiking and camped amidst these tall grasses. The next morning, I found the most incredible spiderweb which you’ll see in the image below it.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Here’s the view from the cottage:

So, I couldn’t choose between the next two. I love the big, bold sky in the next one but I also love its reflections on the lake in the one after that.

These colors make me happy! I’m so lucky I was able to explore and find them all. :D When I was in Leelanau in the summer, it was a totally different world. It’s amazing how different a place can look.

Pumpkins! All kinds of pumpkins!

We stopped to take some photos of these guys specifically for our nephew, Nathan, so he could say, “moo.” He makes such cute animal noises.

And this last one I just love. Yes, it’s on an angle and no, that’s not perfect. But it was pitch black outside and I was hoping for the best! Those stars make me think I’m dreaming…

Happy fall to you! Hope you’re enjoying the colors and the wonder of the season.

If I’m a little slower to reply to emails, forgive me. But I’ll get back to you as soon as possible and maybe even on the drive home as the red, orange, and yellow leaves whiz by me…

And while I’m here talking about places that will never get old for me, I leave you with an image from Jordan Pond in Acadia National Park in Maine, all three of which can be added to my list of places I will never tire of in their respective order of specificity. I took this photo when I was there in the summer of 2008 for the third time. It just keeps getting more majestic.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend and get to visit some place that makes you happy!

Hope these make you daydream a little. :D